The Ghost Lights

[SunlessNick]

"Oh, Nathan, you were so brave!" exclaims Millicent. "Poor Daniel..."

Vicki,She remembers the prediction that there would be danger, but "he" would protect her. She wonders now if it was danger to another and protection from loss.

"You honour me, MIllicent," says Nathan, "but I do not believe we are out of danger yet. We must get your brother back to Collinswood and safety." He sets off immediately, still carrying the boy.

Vicki,He is more than aware of how he could turn this to his advantage, but he is also not indifferent to endangered child - sometimes base and noble motives do align.

Should Daniel protest at being removed from the area, Nathan will invoke chivalry and fidelity: "Your sister is cold, and tired and afraid for you. We must look to her good first."

[VictoriaSilverwolf]

In response to Reverend Trask's admonition, the Countess DuPres, who is the very model of a bas bleu, considering herself to hold advanced ideas, dismisses the idea of abandoning cartomancy.

"You have your wisdom, mon prêtre, and I have mine."

After such misadventures as have befallen the DuPres and Daniel, it is something of a relief to enjoy some few days without further mishap. Andre DuPres, apparently fully recovered in both mind and body, is engaged in establishing trade in Collinsport, having decided that, all things considered, the cold and harsh weather of New England, despite its challenges, is preferable to the warm and gentle climate of Martinique, as long as the prosperity of that island depends on the practice of slavery, for which he has developed a strong distaste. During excursions into the village, he has often noticed the wan and pale figure of Barnabas, at a distance, standing upon the edge of Widow's Hill, gazing into the roaring sea. An unhappy consequence of recent events is that Sarah Collins, who has been forbidden to call upon her beloved brother, he being considered by the elder members of the family to be a bad influence upon a young soul, has fallen into a melancholy state, unbefitting her tender years.

The glowing spheres of light no longer haunt Hells Bottom Swamp, and instead, if report be credited, have appeared above the middle of Alamoosook Lake, a considerable body of water, so that the curious have been unable to approach them closely on foot.
More disturbing is the fact that the body of a man -- a sailor, judging by his apparel -- was found at the base of Widow's Hill. The damage done to flesh by the fall from that high precipice upon sharp rocks, and the pounding action of the waves, have made exact identification difficult, and whether foul play be involved.

[Mr. Handy]

Victoria tries to comfort Sarah as best she can, trying to cheer her up and lighten her spirits. "Perhaps I can take messages back and forth between you and your brother," she suggests.

[Mr. Handy]

Reverend Trask goes to examine the body and the scene where it was found in the hopes of finding out who he was and what caused his death.

[SunlessNick]

Nathan enquires of Millicent as to Daniel's condition after his adventure, but otherwise leaves brother and sister to the privacy they no doubt desire.

He joins the Reverend in the unhappy task of examining the dead man. "I am inclined to think foul play. A sailor from town would have little call to come to Widows Hill, making misadventure unlikely. And even if we consider the possibility of self-destruction, there must sureky have been other means closer to home. We should enquire if someone has been missed."

[SunlessNick]

Millicent remains with Daniel, tending him. Knowing his dislike of the Lieutennant, she tries not to gush too avidly, but does tell him that it was Nathan who rescued him from the pool.

[SunlessNick]

Josette aches to go to Barnabas when she sees him in his plight upon the Hill, but it seems her presence is but pain to him for now. With the decision of her father to remain in Collinsport, she decides it is time she learn to comport herself as resident, not a guest. While her faith does not entirely align with that of the townsfolk, she becomes a regular fixture at church services.

[VictoriaSilverwolf]

Victoria tries to comfort Sarah as best she can, trying to cheer her up and lighten her spirits. "Perhaps I can take messages back and forth between you and your brother," she suggests.

"Oh, would you, dear Miss Winters? I would be ever so grateful. I shall attend to my lessons dutifully."

True to her word, Sarah sacrifices time spent in play to the pursuit of perfection in figuring and literacy. Having thus demonstrated the seriousness of her intent, she is then seen laboring over quill and paper, having such trouble as the very young oft do, so that the resulting composition is punctuated, as it were, with ink blots. Folding the sheet multiple times, she hands it to Victoria, with the shy request that she convey it to her brother at a convenient time.

[VictoriaSilverwolf]

Two may perceive what one does not. Together, Trask and Forbes are able to recognize the dead man as one of the two sailors whose aid they enlisted in the attempt to rescue survivors of the wreck of the Lydia. Upon making inquiry at the harbor, they discover that the other, with whom the dead man oft shared strong drink, has not been seen in Collinsport for some time.

[VictoriaSilverwolf]

Millicent remains with Daniel, tending him. Knowing his dislike of the Lieutennant, she tries not to gush too avidly, but does tell him that it was Nathan who rescued him from the pool.

"Then may he go to the Devil," Daniel replies, in an uncommonly blasphemous mood. "I shall never know such happiness again. Indeed, it already fades from memory, as if no more than a dream."

Further inquiry does not yield any more information regarding this curious claim, merely vague allusions to exquisite beauty and a feeling of comfort.

[Mr. Handy]

When she gets a free moment, Victoria brings Sarah's message to Barnabas.

[Mr. Handy]

"This is looking more and more like the work of Angelique's spirit," Reverend Trask says to Nathan Forbes. "I don't believe for a moment that this is a coincidence. We must try to find out what happened to the other sailor, though it may be too late for him. We can ask which of the ships he may have left on, if he did. Barnabas is likely in danger as well, as are the two of us. We were all present at the witch's death."

[SunlessNick]

"I was not threatened by those lights, if that is significant. I assume you heard the news of young Daniel's misadventure. There would have been opportunity to do the same to me."

[SunlessNick]

"Daniel, you must not speak so! You nearly drowned. Whatever you felt could not have been worth your life."

[SunlessNick]

When it becomes known that the sailor is one of those who rescued Barnabas from the sea, Josette beseeches her parents to allow her to pay for a funeral for him.

[VictoriaSilverwolf]

When she gets a free moment, Victoria brings Sarah's message to Barnabas.

The note being conveyed to the Old House in such manner, the recipient peruses it with great concentration, his countenance altering its expression from one of melancholy, then astonishment, and finally eagerness. He rises from his chair, tosses the paper upon the floor, where he joins many empty vials and bottles, as well as the remains of hastily prepared meals, incompletely consumed, and hurries to the front door.

"Thank you," he says, rushing outside, without extending the common courtesy of escorting his visitor to the door.

[VictoriaSilverwolf]

"This is looking more and more like the work of Angelique's spirit," Reverend Trask says to Nathan Forbes. "I don't believe for a moment that this is a coincidence. We must try to find out what happened to the other sailor, though it may be too late for him. We can ask which of the ships he may have left on, if he did. Barnabas is likely in danger as well, as are the two of us. We were all present at the witch's death."

Further inquiry yields the information that the fellow had not joined the crew of any vessel, but had instead been engaged in recent days in the process of constructing a small, crude boat, of a type certainly not seaworthy. Once the hand-hewn craft was completed, he was no longer seen or heard from.

[VictoriaSilverwolf]

"Daniel, you must not speak so! You nearly drowned. Whatever you felt could not have been worth your life."

Despite being admonished in such gentle fashion, Daniel remains sullen and churlish, often removing himself from his sister's company. He speaks no more of the dangerous incident, but merely responds to all conversation in the fashion of the ancient Spartans, as if words came at a heavy cost.

[VictoriaSilverwolf]

When it becomes known that the sailor is one of those who rescued Barnabas from the sea, Josette beseeches her parents to allow her to pay for a funeral for him.

Monsieur DuPres is entirely willing to arrange for the ceremony to be paid from his not insubstantial resources. The funeral draws both the pious and the curious, so that the church is crowded in such fashion that more stand than sit. Notable by his absence is young Daniel Collins, who could not be persuaded to attend, and who was punished by his elders for his insolence by being directed to remain in his room, without forms of amusement, for the rest of the day. When the mourners return to Collinwood, they discover that he has been disobedient, and is not to be found within the mansion.

[Mr. Handy]

"You're welcome," says Victoria, following Barnabas. "Would you like me take a reply back to your sister? I'll gladly wait for you to write it."