Ashland insisted on picking me up that night. As I carefully shampooed my hair (that bump still hurt) and later ransacked my closet for something suitable, I reviewed my trip to Mobile thus far. As it stood, I had a sore leg, a bump on my head and handprints on my ankle, and I had probably lost a good friend—no, two good friends—for an undetermined reason. One of those friends might also be betraying me somehow with a man I found repulsive and crafty.
On the upside, I was dreaming more clearly than ever before, I had the job I always wanted and I was going to spend some time with Ashland Stuart. I was looking forward to getting to know him better. He seemed intelligent and quick-witted, and he was of course very handsome. I suddenly regretted putting all my “date” clothes in storage in Charleston. In the end, I opted for white jeans, a blue and white striped top and navy blue flats. I looked at myself in the mirror. Hmm…jeans aren’t too snug. Okay. I pulled my hair into a low ponytail at my left shoulder and dabbed on some makeup. Well, he said I should dress casual, so I am!
Ashland knocked on my door a few minutes early, but thankfully I was ready to go. As I climbed into his car, I waved goodbye to Bette.
“You look great!” He gave me an appreciative smile. I couldn’t believe I was doing this, going out on a date with my boss. He was out of my league, really, but he had asked. I tried not to think about the why too much.
“Thanks. You did say casual. Where are we going?” I fastened the seat belt and put my small purse down by my feet.
“Do you like seafood?” The car slid through the tunnel that led to the causeway across Mobile Bay. “This area has some of the best. You’ll never have shrimp like Gulf shrimp, I promise!”
My stomach grumbled, and I was happy to chit chat with him. “Oh yes, I love all types of seafood. Are we going to a restaurant?”
“No, I thought we could have dinner on my boat.” The sun had fully set, and the stars shone brilliantly over the bay. I gasped as a meteor whizzed across the sky. “Look at that!” I squealed with delight, rolling down the window so I could see the sky better.
“See, I’ve even arranged for entertainment.” Ashland laughed and rolled his window down too. A few more flew by—we were in a genuine meteor shower. We crossed the bay in a few minutes and pulled up to the Fairhope Marina. “I’ve never been on a boat before,” I confessed.
“No worries. It’s a big boat, and the seas don’t look too rough tonight, so it should be pretty smooth. We won’t go out far, just outside the bay, and then we’ll have dinner. I’ve cooked something special for you.”
“Gee, I hope you didn’t go to any trouble, Ashland.”
He looked at me thoughtfully. “That’s nice.”
“What’s nice?”
“You calling me Ashland. I like that.” He stepped out of the car and went to open my door. I was finding that he was a true southern gentleman. I liked that.
“Do you trust me?” He gave me a wide smile. God, he’s handsome!
I nodded once, accepted his hand and stepped out of the car. I promised myself I would not trip this time. We walked down the planks to the boat, and my eyes widened. It was a big boat. As a matter of fact, it was the largest one in the marina, as near as I could tell. I could hear the tinkling of glasses and people laughing. Apparently lots of people had planned to watch the stars fall tonight.
I chuckled at the boat’s name, “Happy Go Lucky.” We stepped aboard, and Ashland gave me a tour. It had several rooms, an ample kitchen and a full-size bathroom complete with Jacuzzi tub. I felt like I was in an old episode of the Lifestyles of the Rich and Famous with Robin Leach. Well, okay, maybe not quite that luxurious, but it was close.
Ashland led me to the dinner table he had set up on the deck. I could see that he had a server waiting for us, who held out my chair and handed me a fine cloth napkin. Ashland’s eyes twinkled as he opened a bottle of champagne. The server brought us covered dishes; with a flair, he removed the covers. They were plates of cold, boiled shrimp with cocktail and tartar sauce. In a few minutes, we were served West Indies Salad, stuffed flounder and cocktails.
“My compliments to the chef,” I told the server. He looked from me to Ashland.
Ashland grinned. “I’m the chef.”
“No! You can cook? Hidden talents. Thank you for going to the trouble of doing all this for tonight…. Oh, look; here comes some more stars…” We made a toast to the stars, and eventually neither of us could eat anymore. We washed our hands and settled down on a cushion at the bow to watch the skies. That night was the Leonid Meteor Shower. It would be ending soon, but I wanted our time together to go on and on.
Ashland sighed. “The stars are so beautiful tonight. You know, in the winter, you can see the Pleiades—the Seven Sisters—in the Northern Hemisphere. Actually, there are nine stars, but only seven can be viewed with the naked eye. They say they’re dying stars and will fade away soon.”
“Mia mentioned something about that to me the other day. She said she believed those white crosses we found were actually markers because they had the stars’ names on them. They were pretty faded, though; I didn’t even see them until she pointed them out to me. She’s convinced it’s a map to something.” I sipped my cocktail absently, staring up at the stars.
“A map to what? Did she say?” Ashland was staring at me. I felt a surge of worry, but I wasn’t sure why.
“No, she didn’t. I told her those markers didn’t mean anything. They could just be names of children who died at birth, or even markers for family pets. I mean, who knows, really?”
He looked serious; his jaw was clenched a little. He set his drink down on the side table. “I think it’s time I told you a little about my mother and why I’m restoring the old house. You see, my mother’s family were descendants of the Cottonwoods—and the Beaumonts, even though they later moved to the northern part of the county. My mother loved that old house, and she spent a lot of time there in her last years.”
“Bette, my landlady, she’s with the Historical Society, and she told me a little about that.” I wanted to let him know he didn’t need to dive into painful memories just to fill me in. I wanted to save him some heartache.
He smirked. “Well, people do talk.”
“Oh, no! Bette isn’t like that at all. She knew your mother, and she really liked her. She didn’t say anything negative.” Except that she had lost her marbles.
“That’s good to know. You probably know that my mother was obsessed with finding the heiress, the Cottonwood girl. She did everything in her power to locate her, even hired detectives and researchers to follow the leads she uncovered. Nothing ever came to fruition. My mother’s theory was that the girl was killed because of a treasure, a necklace that was worth a remarkable amount of money. Don’t get me wrong; the Beaumonts and Cottonwoods were wealthy, at least before the war, but Mr. Cottonwood had made some bad investments and had done who knows what with his fortune. And he had his eye on his wife’s. Mrs. Cottonwood’s brother wasn’t willing to see his sister’s inheritance squandered by a man he hated. So, with her consent, he took her fortune out of the bank and put it all in a small collection of jewelry. She could keep her money in her own hands that way. It was the only way women back then could.”
“Wow, that explains so much.”
He looked like he didn’t know what to make of that comment, but he continued. “According to the local historians, Mrs. Cottonwood invested the money in diamonds and sapphires. The largest piece in the collection was a necklace called The Seven Sisters. It was seven sapphires, with two diamonds, set in the swirling formation of the stars. It was quite the showpiece. She was never seen wearing it, but in her will, she left it to her only living heir, Calpurnia Cottonwood. It was my mother’s theory that after Mrs. Cottonwood died, Mr. Cottonwood killed the daughter or sent her away so he could get his hands on it. At least, that was her theory.”
I didn’t know what to say or think for a minute. I said in a quiet voice, “Is that why I’m here? You want me to find this treasure?” I felt a keen sense of disappointment. Had I been wrong to come to Mobile? Had I been wrong to accept his dinner invitation?
“Oh, no, not at all. I’m just telling you about the ‘treasure’ because I felt like you needed to know. Please believe me when I tell you that I didn’t hire you to find a necklace. I want to build a museum, one that helps the city and the region remember its past. I feel like I owe that to my mother, to my family. I don’t want you to find the necklace, but I am asking you this: help me find out what happened to Calpurnia. I can’t explain it, but I need to know.”
He reached out and covered my hand with his. The stars fell around us, some skidding across the sky like quiet angels falling into the faraway sea. Others simply appeared and disappeared, leaving nothing behind but a moment of awe and brilliance. Ashland leaned toward me, one hand on mine, the other on my cheek. I closed my eyes as he kissed me. And I kissed him back. His lips were soft and warm, and I could have stayed like that forever.
As I pulled away slowly, I whispered, “Yes, I’ll help you find her.”