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Mansion
Charlie’s house was unlike anything Meg had ever seen before, and she could scarcely believe she was engaged to the man who lived here. While she could easily imagine it sitting out of town on a few hundred acres and still being imposing, it was situated between two other similar dwellings, though Charlie’s was by far the most impressive. It resembled a French chateau and reached at least three stories into the air, though Meg thought the turrets might count for one more. She stood outside on the sidewalk next to Fifth Avenue trying to catch her breath.
“It’s stunning, isn’t it?” Jonathan asked at her elbow. “His mother picked it out. Charlie was far too busy with his work at the factory and his other interests to go house shopping.”
“I don’t even know what to say,” Meg admitted. “It’s breathtaking.”
“He can explain the history to you once he’s feeling up to it. At le
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Ghosts of Southampton Hints
Charlie chuckled, and Meg felt her blush meet the apples of her cheeks. While she wanted to add it was best of all to know he remembered her, she couldn’t say that in front of his family.“Charlie was just telling us about how you’d gone back into the bowels of the ship to rescue a little girl,” Pamela explained. “Your lady-in-waiting’s daughter?”Meg looked at Charlie who gave her a reassuring nod. “Oh, yes,” Meg said. “Ruth is more like my niece than anything else. She’d lost her doll and slipped away from her parents. So I went down to find her.”“It seems odd to me that the daughter of a First Class passenger’s lady would go all the way down there to find a doll. Is that where she was being accommodated?” Grace’s inquiry had even more questions behind it, and while Meg could understand why the older sibling was suspicious of her intentions, she felt her abdomen ti
Ghosts of Southampton Moment
“Hello, gorgeous,” Charlie said, reaching for her hand, and Meg gave it to him. “How are you really doing this morning?”She couldn’t help but smile at him. His hand was much warmer now than it had been for days. The tips of his fingers were rough in spots where they’d suffered frostbite, but she was glad to see they were healing. “I’m managing,” she admitted with a shrug. “It’s nice to see you know who I am today.”Charlie’s green eyes grew wide for a moment. “What does that mean?” he asked.Meg exhaled deeply through her nose. She’d done this same song and dance more times than she could count, and since she’d brought the topic up, she knew she'd have to say more, but she was determined not to go into a lot of detail because it always upset him to learn that he didn’t know who she was. “There were times, before, when we were on Carpathia,
Ghosts of Southampton Disclosure
The family walked in, discussing what the newspapers were saying about the sinking, and Meg tuned them out. She had no interest whatsoever in learning the misinformation being spread across the world as if it were fact.“Charlie, you’ve got some color in your cheeks,” Pamela noted as she returned to her spot on the sofa. A small smile played at the corners of her mouth as if she thought she could guess why that might be.“Meg’s presence always makes me feel better,” Charlie assured her. Grace let out a small scoffing snicker and was met by another sharp look from her mother. Charlie either didn’t notice or didn’t care to acknowledge it. “We actually have some information we’d like to share with you, but first we want to caution you that what we are about to tell you cannot leave this room.”“My god! Is she carrying your child?” Grace leaned forward in her seat so far, Meg thought she m
Ghosts of Southampton Details
“Now, will your lady be returning to your side, or will you need to keep Carrie?”The question was another good one. “If you say Kelly’s new home is far away, then it wouldn’t be easy for her to attend to me here. And, I believe she was planning on staying home with the girls.” She was looking at Charlie, but she would’ve accepted a response from anyone.“I plan to give Daniel that foreman’s position that just opened up,” Charlie said to his father. “His arm is currently in a cast, but he’s a fine young man, and I know he will be able to do the work.”Mr. Ashton nodded. “Of course, I trust your judgment.”“That position will come with an apartment, and he will make enough so that Kelly can stay home,” Charlie explained to Meg.“Very good then,” Pamela stated. “That solves that. I’ll let Carrie know.”“But
Ghosts of Southampton Carriage House
Meg was thankful that the carriage house had been completely converted to a guest house since there were absolutely no carriages or horses kept here, and Charlie had an attached garage where he kept his automobiles. (She was shocked when Jonathan said he owned four.) The apartment above the carriage house was nearly as large as her entire house would be if it were placed on one story, and she couldn’t imagine why anyone would call this an apartment.It was immaculate, which didn’t surprise Meg at all since she knew Jonathan to be impeccably tidy. The view from one side was of Charlie’s house—which she couldn’t fathom would soon be her own home—and on the other side she could see the expansive back garden of the house behind them, though there was a large hedge obstructing part of the view. Charlie’s own garden, complete with a small pond and fountain, was nestled between the two buildings, and Meg thought it was quite lovely.J
Ghosts of Southampton Silence
Charlie was all alone in his own bedroom, sitting on the edge of his own bed, looking out the back window at the carriage house, wondering what Meg was doing. There was no way he could see her from here, partially due to the heavy drapery that covered the windows of the second story across the yard, but he imagined she was resting or possibly reading a book. He wondered if she felt all alone when there was no one with her or if she was suffering from the same sensation he was experiencing.The voices wouldn’t stop. Even when other people were talking to him, even as he formulated responses to their questions, he could hear the constant noises of screaming, crying out, in the back of his mind. While having other people nearby lessened the effects to some degree, it never made them stop. When he was completely alone as he was now, there was nothing to dull the effect, and he could distinctly hear the individual voices, make out what they were saying, and envision their fa
Ghosts of Southampton Dinner
Charlie’s dining room table was large and opulent, like most of the other furnishings in his house. However, Meg had come to learn that his mother had chosen most of the décor, and when Charlie said he’d just as soon be surrounded by simpler things, Meg believed him. Nevertheless, seated next to him at the baroque revival dining table made her feel small and insignificant. Luckily, whenever he smiled at her, she felt like the most important person in the world.“How was your day?” he asked as they sipped bowls of freshly made soup. Meg had learned that there would be at least four courses, sometimes as many as seven depending upon who was present, so she paced herself. “Did you do any shopping?”“Not today,” Meg replied, setting her spoon aside to take a sip of water. She’d declined the wine she’d been offered. Drinking anything stronger than tea made her head ache. She was happy to have Charlie to hers
Ghosts of Southampton Fate
Meg swallowed hard. Charlie had made other such statements, but this time he had that far off look in his eyes again. “It could’ve been one of them in my seat as well. Or Jonathan’s or Daniel’s. There’s no way to say how God decided who lived and who did not.”At the mention of God, Charlie’s head whipped around and his eyebrows raised. “Do you think He chose?” he asked. His voice was calm, but there was an air of amusement in it. “Do you think He was looking down at the Atlantic that night and put us into categories of who deserved to make it and who did not?”She put her hands in her lap, absently tugging at the stitches in the hem of her dinner napkin, not sure how to respond. She had little knowledge of Charlie’s religious beliefs except for the few he’d mentioned in a letter from time to time. Since they’d arrived in New York, he had given no indication as to whether or not those s
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