Sue wished she could trust herself. She had once, but she hardly remembered the feeling. Hank had beaten it out of her. When she tried to hold on to her independence, he’d hit her harder. When she tried to leave, he’d come at her with flowers and an apology, and when that didn’t work, he’d broken her arm.
“It’s going to be all right,” Vivien said.
Sue nodded, not answering. She had to stop thinking about Hank around this woman. Pointing at the plaque, she said, “Do you still do séance shows here?”
“No. This was back in the early 1900s. Freewild Cove likes its quirky past, but if we were to try to hold public séances, they’d probably riot and burn the building down. Trust me, having grown up here as that weirdo kid in class, I’ve seen firsthand how intolerant good folk can be when it comes to someone who isn’t like they are.”
“That’s not special to Freewild Cove. People everywhere don’t want to hear when things aren’t like they think they are.” Sue went to a window and cupped her hands around her eyes to look inside. She watched the shadows for movements.
“Don’t worry.” Vivien patted her shoulder but didn’t let the contact linger. It sent tiny jolts of Vivien’s emotions through Sue, so she detected Vivien’s concern. “Julia always sent the spirits back when she was done talking to them.”
“I wasn’t worried,” Sue lied. In truth, it freaked her out a little, like going into a reportedly haunted house.
Vivien lowered her voice as if telling a secret. “What the plaque doesn’t say is that Julia Warrick made her money to pay for this building and several other properties in town by bootlegging moonshine and growing marijuana during Prohibition. She was quite the gangster.”
“Is that true?” Sue asked.
Vivien nodded. “Heather and William inherited a lot of the properties. They both went into construction. Heather rehabs old houses and turns them into rentals. William is more on the construction site and runs a crew, though he does flip houses.”
“And you? What do you do?” Sue asked.
“Not much of anything.” Vivien laughed, only to add, “I own several fast food restaurants.”
The smell of sea air stirred along the sidewalk of downtown Freewild Cove. The buildings along the block looked as old as the theater. Cars filled the opposite side of the street, and a hefty amount of foot traffic went into the Chinese restaurant.
“Two words. Crab Rangoon.” Vivien pointed at the restaurant. She moved her finger to indicate down the block. “That way, turn right at the end of the block, and you’ll find a bookstore and coffee shop. Left will get you to an organic grocery food store. Pricey and small, but they have a great produce section. However, if Verna tries to get you to taste her homemade fruit cake ice cream, say no. It’s chunky and not in a good way.”
“No to chunky ice cream,” Sue repeated with a nod. “Sounds like solid advice.”
Several cars drove past, slowing as they neared the theater. The people in them openly stared at Sue and Vivien. Sue turned her back on them and pretended to look at the poster for an Elvis impersonator concert hanging in the glass case close to the theater’s front door.
“It must be nice living so close to the beach,” Sue said.
“It is. I think we take it for granted sometimes.” Vivien leaned against the building and glanced to where Heather paced the sidewalk as she talked on her phone.
“Please don’t touch the water main. I’ll send one of my guys out to check the pipes—no, no, don’t do that,” Heather stated firmly. “I understand that your boyfriend has a special tool, but…”
Heather turned, and her voice became too hard to hear. She braced the phone on her shoulder, pulled a small notepad from her back pocket, and began writing on it.
“Her renters are always up to something,” Vivien muttered. “She’s too lenient with them.”
“How so?”
“She probably won’t make them foot the entire repair bill, even though it’s their fault and what they did went against their lease,” Vivien said. “She never charges as much as she should. On some of the properties, she barely breaks even.”
“I have money,” Sue insisted, feeling guilty. “I don’t mind paying for—”
“Okay, done!” Heather strode toward them, shoving her notepad and phone in her back pocket, only to reach into her front pocket to produce a set of keys.
“I didn’t mean you,” Vivien dismissed the concern. To Heather, she asked, “What was it this time?”
“Marianne has a new boyfriend. He tried to install a jacuzzi that he built himself in the back yard, but instead of using a hose, he thought it would be a great idea to hook into the house’s water supply to make his own faucet.” Heather waved a hand in dismissal. “They don’t have water. I texted Butch to go check it out.”
“I’m not sure what worries me more. The he-built-it-himself part, or the tapping-into-a-water-main part,” Vivien said. “Do you need to go? I can show Sue upstairs.”
“No, Martin is on his way with Jan. He needs to get back to his job site.” Heather took a deep breath and looked like she did indeed want to check on the property. “Anyway, I—”
“I can watch Jan,” Vivien offered.
Heather hesitated and then shook her head. “No, Butch will text me with pictures.”
The front lobby centered around the concessions. Sue recognized the art deco design and gold and burgundy sponge-painted walls from the magazine. Every sign she’d been given had been leading her to this place. The ring sent vibrations up her hand. She could no longer pretend it was too tight and pinching a nerve. The vibrations were too timed, too deliberate.
Something inside her whispered that this was a safe place. Energy pulsed from the walls, nearly imperceptible, and she felt like a young girl walking into a cathedral—the awe, the fear, the power of imprinted human emotions so consuming that it left her speechless.
Muffled voices came from outside. Sue turned to see faces pressed up against the glass as two women looked in at them. Heather started walking toward them, and they quickly went along their way.
“If any busybodies ask what you’re doing here, tell them you’re theater security,” Heather said. “Nobody needs to know your business.”
“Tell them to mind their own,” Vivien corrected. “I would say to flip them the bird and tell them to fuck off, but you seem nicer than I am.”
A small laugh erupted from Sue at the comment. She covered her mouth.
Vivien winked at her. Her phone started ringing in her purse. “This is probably Troy calling me back. Give me a second.”
Vivien stepped away to answer the call.
Sue turned to see Heather swatting at the air next to her.
“Bug?” Sue asked, not seeing anything.
“What?” Heather frowned. “Oh, yeah, just a pest.”
Sue made a point of glancing around. “This is a great place you have.”
“Thank you.” Heather again swatted at the air before moving closer to Sue. She gestured to the curtains on either side of the concessions. “The theater seating is through those curtains beside the concession stand. Feel free to wander around if you get bored.” She pointed to the right. “Alley access is that way. We keep it locked. My brother has a key to that door, but he’ll rarely use it unless I ask him to stop by to do something for me.”