JOHN BIEBE

Distractions didn’t work. I tried to simply drop Riley off at Lachlan’s to spend some time with Nathan but she’d already made arrangements for Natalie to handle our son for the day. It seemed Lach was already taking my son to the Aubrey farm. Nathan loves his Aunt’Allie. At least he won’t be traumatized. It’s me I’m worried about being traumatized over all this.

We haven’t told anyone about Riley’s condition yet but just because it’s not common knowledge doesn’t mean it’s not the center of my attention, God sakes. I had spent the last two hours exploring the mess at the Inn before going back to Jack’s to pick up my wife. She wanted to go straight to the Inn. I didn’t want her anywhere near it, so I dragged her into town for breakfast.

She looked like hell. Way too pale for my liking and I tilted my head. “Riles …”

“No, don’t. Let’s stop playing games here, okay? I know you’ve been there all night. Just tell me what the damage is.”

No fooling my girl. I huffed. “Know you don’t wanna believe this, but it’s really not that bad. I swear. Kevin’s there, he’s already started on the floor. Got some cleaning people in our apartment, but we can’t stay there yet. Everything smells like smoke. Carpets need cleaned, linens and clothes gotta be washed … Clari has the maids doing that. A few things got broken, baby. You just may need to go antique shopping with LizBeth later this week.” Nope, that didn’t cheer her up, so I pushed a hand through my hair and got to the point.

“Riley, I don’t want you doing anything at the Inn. We’ve got experts working and there’s nothing you need to do anyway.”

“I’m fine. I just need to see it.”

I shook my head real slow. Fuck, there were fifty people working there, scrubbing smoke stains from wallpaper, taking broken glass out, broken furniture the firemen pushed out of the way, taking antique Persian carpets and drapes to cleaners. I just don’t want her there.

“John … please.”

“No. Putting my foot down. No. Absolutely not. I want you to spend some relaxed time with Nathan, enjoy staying with Jack and Nat for a few days. Just … come on. You know you shouldn’t be there.”

“I can help.” Tears rolled down her cheek and several patrons at the diner watched sympathetically. Luckily, no one came over to interrupt.

“No. You’re pregnant. You’re not lifting anything and I don’t want you around all that mess. Someone could trample you, God sakes.”

“John, I was there the whole time the original construction was done!”

“You … were … NOT … pregnant then!”

“You’re pregnant?” Felicia, the librarian sitting across from us stood. I raised a hand but that didn’t mean a damn thing. “Hey, everyone! Riley’s pregnant!”

Great. Just what I needed. But as I watched the crowd gather around our table, I started to think maybe yeah, it was just what I needed. The local ladies were all cooing and patting my wife’s hand, agreeing that she should stay away from the Inn until things were safe and cleaned up.

Riley did shoot me a glare but it was short lived when LizBeth walked in right on time. I’d arranged for her to spend the day with Riles. Kevin had already given her a list of what had been damaged and they would plan an antique shopping spree to replace the lost items.

“Go away, John,” LizBeth grinned. “We have girl talk. Why didn’t I know you’re pregnant, Riles?”

Ha! My work here was done. Already my wife was waving me off. At least I wouldn’t need to be worrying about some accident or anything else that might cause trouble or hurt her. She’d be safe in LizBeth’s hands. Well, LizBeth and the rest of the town ladies.

I rushed back to the Inn, Kevin was waiting.

JACOB

At first I was scared when the fire woke us all up last night, but my dad kept telling me that everything would be okay. I felt better when we got to stay with Aunt Jessie and Uncle Lachlan. It looks like we’ll be staying here for a couple of days; my dad says that Aunt Riley and Uncle John are probably going to move into our apartment and that he needs to start looking for a house of our own in town.

Aunt Jessie fixed up Uncle Kim’s old bedroom for me and my dad’s using Uncle Jeff’s old room. It’s really neat because there’s a bathroom that connects our rooms together and Aunt Jessie’s house is really big and there’s all kinds of neat places to hide. There’s a window right by my bed and I can look out at night and see the stars. Kahlua came and spent the night sleeping right next to my head; he purrs really loud and his tail tickles when it swishes.

When I woke up in the morning, I could smell coffee and cinnamon rolls. My dad came out of the bathroom, his hair all wet from his shower and he was smiling.

“Time to get goin’, squirt.” His towel was slung over his shoulder and he smelled like deodorant soap. “You get much sleep last night?”

I rubbed my eyes and yawned, pushing the covers down around my waist as I sat up. I watched as the steam from the bathroom swirled in behind him like smoke from a dragon. “I dreamed about someone standing under Aunt Jessie’s tree.”

My dad glanced over towards the window. “What was he doing?”

I tried to remember, but already I was starting to forget. “He was sad about something, but he was also happy. He said his name was Zebulon Summers.”

My dad gave me a funny look. “I think I should stop letting you watch ‘Lost,’ because it sounds like it’s giving you nightmares.”

I shook my head. “It wasn’t a nightmare. It wasn’t scary.”

He stepped closer to the window and pulled the curtain aside, but didn’t look out. “Come on; go brush your teeth and get your breakfast. Aunt Jessie’s got oatmeal ready for us.”

He went back into the bathroom, leaving the door open behind him. A moment later I heard Aunt Jessie in the kitchen asking him if he wanted a cup of coffee. He grunted an answer and she said something back that made him laugh.

“Zebulon Summers,” I whispered as I went into the bathroom. It was a funny name but I liked how it sounded. I said it over and over in my head as I brushed my teeth, but forgot about it again when I made my way into the kitchen. Aunt Jessie came over and gave me a big hug. She smelled like cinnamon.

“Hey sweetie, did you sleep okay? I came down to check on you around three and I saw that Kahlua was on the bed with you. Do you want some orange juice?” 

She tugged softly on the back of my hair and I smiled. I like when she does that. . “Yes please.”

I said good morning to Nathan, who was sitting in his booster seat next to my dad. He had cinnamon all over his face and his hands looked really sticky.

Uncle Lachlan came downstairs just then, carrying Amanda in his arms. “Here we go, Manda Panda.”

He handed her over to Aunt Jessie. “We’re running low on nappies.”

Aunt Jessie said something back that I couldn’t hear, but Uncle Lachlan just winked at her before turning to look at my dad.

“Want me to help you pack up some of your stuff from the Inn and bring it back this morning? John just called and said that the clean up’s already started. I reckon he’s worried about Riley overdoin’ it and he wants to have your apartment ready as soon as possible.”

My dad shook his head. “You and Jess have done more than enough. I don’t want to overstay our welcome.”

Uncle Lachlan poured a cup of coffee and rolled his eyes. “Bloody hell, you’re a stubborn bugger. You’re not imposing on any of us.”

Aunt Jessie just finished setting Amanda in her swing and she looked over at my dad. “Egan, you and Jacob are welcomed to stay as long as you need to and I won’t allow you to think of it as an imposition. We like having family around.”

“And Enid needs a new Canasta partner since Jeff moved in with Matt,” Uncle Lachlan added. “You have enough to worry about if you’re really thinkin’ of buyin’ a house, and like Jessie said, we like having folks around.”

“The house likes having us here, dad.” I’m not sure why I said that, but all of a sudden realized that it was true. I just somehow knew. Aunt Jessie gave me a funny look but Uncle Lachlan just laughed. Uncle Lachlan always laughs, and I like that about him. My dad just scowled and drank his coffee.

“That settles it then, mate. You’re stayin’, and no arguments.”

I glanced out the French doors that looked out onto the porch and smiled. Somehow, I also knew that Zebulon Summers liked having us here too.

NATALIE

It was a sight to behold. Captain Jno. Aubrey, Senior Post Captain of His Majesty’s Royal Navy, with an apron tied around his middle, dust rag in hand and hair all ahoo. All he needed was a smudge of dirt on his cheek to complete the ensemble. But, his face was clean. In fact, the house was already clean before he even put on the frilly apron. Both Marie, our housekeeper, and I had already been through every nook and cranny thoroughly and the house was clean to our satisfaction.

But Jack?

Well, let’s just say the man’s flustered. And how does he burn off this nervous energy? He cleans and cleans and cleans until he’s either satisfied or burned off all the agitation. There’s no reasoning with him. It’s far better to let him do what he needs to do. And I have to admit. I was a bit nervous, too. We’ve jumped through all the hoops and the State of Vermont has finally approved us as foster parents for Eddie. Erica Chandler was bringing him today.

Ding!

Twelve noon, sharp. Jack had just thrown off the apron and hung it inside the broom closet while I opened the front door, Chelsea in my arms, and ushered our guests inside. We gathered in the living room, and I introduced Jackie, who was staying with us while the Inn is being repaired.

We all sat down to a light lunch, sandwiches, tomato-basil soup. We had a nice conversation; Jackie talked about her life in Amsterdam and coming here to the Inn. Erica shared some of her experiences traveling in South America. Chelsea and Nathan kept each other entertained. Nathan even taught her a new word: cheese.

Through it all, Eddie was quiet; his expression unreadable. He’d been here before, of course, but this was different. This time it was permanent. I wondered what was going through his head. According to Erica, he’d been in a few different homes. I could imagine that he thought this wouldn’t stick either, so I could understand him being a little reserved. And I wondered too. No, I wasn’t second-guessing our decision to adopt Eddie. I wondered just how hard it was going to be to gain his trust.

Erica couldn’t stay after lunch, so Jack helped Eddie gather his few belongings from her car and stow them in his room. They met us at the door for her goodbyes.

“Take care of yourself, Eddie,” she said as she put her arm around him. “I’m positive you’ll be happy here.”

Eddie stood, arms crossed and eyes down to the floor. “Yeah, sure. Well, see ‘ya later,” he mumbled.

She nodded. “Goodbye, Jack … Natalie. Please call if you need anything.” And with that final goodbye, she turned and walked down the shoveled path to her car.

“Glad that’s over,” Eddie mumbled then shuffled into the family room. He plopped down on the couch and stared at the TV. “How do ‘ya turn this thing on?”

Oh, boy … this wasn’t going to be easy.

EDDIE JACKSON

So, yeah, here I am, stuck on a big farm in the middle of nowhere. No 7-11, no place to skateboard, no girls, no nothing. All because that asshole Dean wanted me to help him lift some candy.

The lady social worker got us here just in time for lunch. It was okay, the food was good. The talk bored me to death, though. The two kids were funny. They reminded me of the little kids where I used to stay. The baby’s cute … Chelsea. Now … that foreign lady, Jackie, she was really cute. Talked all funny, too. Mrs. Aubrey said she’d be here for a few days, something about an Inn burning down. Wonder if Jackie likes younger dudes?

Finally, lady social worker left. Tried to make it seem like she was real sorry to see me go, but I could tell she was happy to get me out of her hair. One less thing to worry about … was probably whistling all the way back to Montpelier.

All I wanted to do was to watch TV. Hell, watching TV was the only thing to do around this dump. But no. The big blond dude wanted to march me around outside, just like when I was here before. Now the dude was showing me all this construction that’d started since I’d been here last. Said they were putting in stables and that they were gonna let other people’s horses stay here. I looked interested, said “Uh-huh” and “Yeah” in all the right places, keeping the blond dude happy.

Don’t really know what the big dude wants with me. At first, I thought he was like the last guy who took me in. He just wanted the money the state gave him for keeping me. But somehow, I don’t think that’s what the blond dude wants. It doesn’t look like he needs the state’s cash.

While the dude was talking about cabbages again, I saw a rabbit near the fence surrounding the field where the dude says he’s gonna plant the cabbages. The rabbit stood up and stared at us, twitched his nose in the wind, then hopped away, fast as he could. I wanted to be like him, just hop away when I want to. Gotta be the right time, though, just like Dean said. Meanwhile, I’ll listen to the big blond dude talk about cabbages and horses and pretend I like it.

KEVIN BOYER

Held my tongue as long as I could, then what happens? Fire at the Inn. The damage is not so bad but in some ways it’s pretty bad. This is a very old structure and it’s not as easy as simply replacing the burned through floor. My men had their work cut out for them and my guestimate is that the Biebes might not be able to receive guests again for at least two weeks. Good. It’ll take that long for me to get everything off my chest with John.

I’ve known John for almost five years. He and my wife were lovers years earlier, but that’s not something I feel like talking about, much less thinking about. I met him when he and Riley bought the Inn. I was hired as the contractor on the project … a project that surely catapulted my career. This place was designed for glory. It became all that and more.

When the Inn was being worked on, I started to notice things. Strange things. Men kept arriving, men John would sometimes slip and call “brothers”, although they’ve all got different names and different faces … well, somewhat different faces. I didn’t think much about it at first. Andy, Jeff Wigand, Terry Thorne, that Max Meridius fellow. So what, so he had some damn close friends. I’m the last person to begrudge John friends. He’s a good man, John Biebe.

I obviously spend less time here since the original work, although I was scheduled to start the expansion on his and Riley’s apartment in April. I oversaw the addition, blessedly not effected by the fire.

I do pop in occasionally; dinner with LizBeth or evenings at the Pub to watch the hockey game with John. As time passed, things seemed to be getting weirder and weirder. Every time my wife and I attend a major event surrounding the Biebes, there seem to be more of them … men who look more and more like John every time I look at them.

The new sheriff, Ben Wade. That lawyer dude, Roberts. The fancy Brit, Skinner. They seem to be coming out of the woodwork. Still, I ignored it all. Then something happened with the guys in my fledgling business.

Lachlan had a great idea and I’m no idiot. This is the economy to do what he’d proposed and I was glad to be partner. He wanted to lap up all the old, empty and savable houses in the area, renovate them, revive them and make them green. Wonderful. Even selling them off at a low price we could make a mess of money. It was flipping at its best and Lach (another man who looks remarkably like John, as do the other partners, Eagan Walsh and Jeff Mitchell) already have several buyers waiting to get into renewed, ecologically efficient homes.

Last week I was working with Mitchell when he said something that suddenly, out of the blue, made my skin crawl and my brain shout “A HA!” What he said exactly I couldn’t really say. In his Aussie accent, he was joking with Lachlan and mentioned the Crowe qualities in them all. I asked, “All who?” and he clammed up like a trap.

Lach slithered away and I sat that night staring at a dark television until three in the morning thinking about all this.

I got on the internet and started at the obvious place. Every man I knew close to Biebe was legit as far as Google was concerned … until I dabbled into another arena … films and film stars. Jesus fucking Christ. Everything was there. And nothing … nothing made sense.

A few months ago, John mysteriously disappeared. No one had a good explanation except for the fact that he had to take a trip to Alaska for family matters. I looked at the computer in shock. Nah. Couldn’t be.

Then I was on a roll. Thorne … Proof of Life. The character played by actor Russell Crowe looked like Thorne and did the same damn thing Thorne does for a living. Meridius. Holy Fuck. A gladiator? This can’t be right. Ben Wade? Outlaw turned Sheriff of Stowe Vermont? This was getting just plain crazy.

For the next few days I could hardly look any of these men in the face. All I did was keep trying to convince myself it was impossible. Then yesterday Mitchell slipped again. I guess maybe it wasn’t a slip, maybe I was eavesdropping. So sue me. He was talking to Egan across the room and probably didn’t even know I was standing there. They were fitting tile flooring.

“Like any of us would really risk goin’ back. Life’s good here and now. Besides, John warned us, life back there is nothing but a repeated loop of the same old, same old. Bloody hell, mate. At least here I get lucky. Got nothin’ in my film. Neither did you. Lachlan had Lil and now he’s got Jess. Biebe’s working on buildin’ another family. Life is perfect.”

“Fuckin’ bloody Portals,” grunted Egan.

I’m not sure, but I think I ran out. The time for running away from this is over. I was alone in John’s smelly apartment. It was freezing cold, all the French doors were opened to air the place out and most of the furniture was gone for cleaning. I intended to start marking off the walls and tearing out the carpets, as I may as well start the expansion while I’m at it.

John walked in and I lowered my clipboard.

“What?” he said, suddenly stopping in his tracks and looking around.

“What are the Portals?” Maybe I should’ve eased into it. John went white.

“Fuck!”

MAX SKINNER

I wasn’t particularly happy that I had to fly out to D.C. to talk to a bigwig at the Hilton HQ about our wine. I know the chap from my trader days, which is odd actually because John was quite clear that what happened before, in what appeared to be my film, stayed there once I was through the Portal. The funny thing was though that I just found this fellow’s number in my Treo and punched it without thinking; I just reckoned I might as well have a chat with him about upmarket wine.

I had Maximus in mind as well; after all, his vineyard is yielding some beautiful, beautiful wine. And what do you know, the lad picks up, we have our little chat and he invites me over for a meeting. A wonderful opportunity that I could not pass up on. I reckon I still don’t understand entirely how this Portal business really works, or perhaps it’s because the chap with the pointy teeth, um, what was his name again? Ah, yes, Eric Northman, perhaps he has been playing around with the Portals a little too enthusiastically. Well, as long as it works in my advantage you won’t hear me complain.

I was loath to go though. I had to leave Riley and John in the aftermath of the fire at the Inn. And worse, I had to leave Jackie. She was of course extremely supportive of the Biebes and equally extremely busy helping out and dealing with the situation, and obviously her concerts had been cancelled for now, but I ... I wanted to be there for her. I wanted to be able to take her home after a day of hard work, let her soak in the tub for a while, feed her marvelous food and make love to her until she was relaxed into bonelessness. That’s what I wanted to do.

Instead, I flew to Washington and talked to the Hilton bloke, with a head full of dreams and a heavy heart that I hid as well as humanly possible. It looks like we might have a deal though; the Hilton may very well be our first customer. Not bad eh?

Bought something for Jackie but I doubt I’ll work up the courage to give it to her any time soon. Oh well, it’s the kind of present that will keep.

RILEY

All right, I loved all the attention. I did feel a little guilty though, my own family doesn’t know I’m pregnant but the whole town of Stowe knows already. LizBeth was great, she always knew how to get and hold my attention. When I talked about the Inn, she averted it from worry into a fun adventure of finding replacement antiques for the list she had in her purse. She’d already researched where we would shop.

“My antique broker in New York has a few possible replacements for the mirror. While we’re there, we can stop by and see Eva’s dance studio. I hear she’d already got classes scheduled.”

When I mentioned concerns over Nathan, she bubbled about how much he’d enjoy the short flight to Manhattan, how big he was getting, how excited he was going to be with a new little brother or sister.

I sipped coffee and waved to the current Mayor who placed a hand on his heart then out to me as he passed the diner window. Was that sweet gesture about my Inn or my delicate condition? “You’re not going to let me wallow, are you?” I sighed and LizBeth simply waved for the check.

“Nope, let’s go. Maggie down the street has the perfect armoire to replace the one in the parlor.”

It actually turned out to be an entertaining day, but by four I’d had my fill of distractions and mind boggling creative attractions to keep me from my home. I looked up at LizBeth (she’s five foot nine and I’m five foot nothing) and simply stared. She got the message.

“Okay, I guess we can go to the Inn. They’ve had enough time to clear out the worst of it.”

The worst of it? You can imagine where my mind went.

When we arrived I gawked at my empty parking lot. The top floor of the right tower looked exactly as expected … like a fire happened there. But as we walked inside, except for the stench of stale smoke, I really believed everyone for the first time.

“Hey, this might not be so bad,” I said and LizBeth sighed relief. Things can be replaced, even the most unique antiques. There are other unique pieces to find and I had an expert on my team. The first and second floor were pretty good, although every window in the place was wide open to air it out. We climbed to my apartment on the fourth floor and I was expecting activity there, but it was quiet.

In the middle of the living room floor sat John and Kevin. They were cross legged and talking very quietly. At first I panicked. Was it bad news? Was there more wrong than a burned through floor and roof? Would we be shut down?

As I stepped closer I could almost feel the intensity of the men’s energy. I noticed the ghost, Brian, leaning against the wall with another ghost I never saw before. They didn’t concern me one bit. It was the conversation that had abruptly stopped between my and LizBeth’s husbands that had me worried.

“Everything all right?” I asked as calmly as my voice would offer.

“What’s up?” LizBeth said, her brow knotted. “You two look like you’ve seen a ghost.”

I turned to Brian and his buddy. They shrugged and I shrugged back.

“Ah … Lizzybelle,” Kevin groaned. “Come on and sit down. You need to hear this too.”