Free Evermore by C. J. Archer

Jacob about my father, but
didn't want to summon him. Visiting our realm took energy and he
needed to conserve it. His weakness worried me terribly.
    Cara and I shared our thoughts out of Celia's
hearing. She seemed just as excited to have a brother as I was to
have a father. I also spoke to George about Louis when I went to
his house.
    "I'm very pleased for you," he said as we
waited in the hall for his carriage to be brought around from the
stables. "Very pleased. So you're not an orphan after all."
    "I suppose I'm not."
    The carriage arrived and George gave his
driver instructions to drive to the house of Lord and Lady Preston.
We wanted Mr. Seymour's address from Lady Preston. We knew he had
moved, but perhaps the new residents could give us a clue as to
where he'd gone, or of how to find the elusive Mrs. Seymour. Lady
Preston had already spoken to them, but it was worth trying
again.
    "I would not hold out much hope if I were
you," Lady Preston said to us as we stood in her private parlor.
Weak morning light struggled through the large windows, casting an
insipid glow over the spindly Georgian furniture. She rifled
through her desk drawer and produced a folded piece of paper. "Here
it is."
    I took it because George was too preoccupied
to notice. He was looking over his shoulder at the door, probably
hoping Adelaide would enter. I hoped Lord Preston would not.
    "What will you do if you cannot find the
Seymours?" Lady Preston asked.
    "I have another line of enquiry to follow," I
said.
    She gave a firm nod. "Good. I hope you are
able to find something, Miss Chambers." She rested a delicate hand
on my arm but there was strength in her grip. "If there is anything
I can do, anything at all, please ask. If you require assistance or
money, I will give it to you." Her intense blue stare, so like
Jacob's compelled me to nod. "Do not be afraid of my husband. You
are welcome here, despite his blustering. He is..." She swallowed.
"He is still very affected by Jacob's death. It's not an excuse for
his abominable behavior toward you, but..." Tears welled in her
eyes and she looked away.
    I laid my hand over hers. "I understand. I
hope one day he will realize we're trying to help his son, but you
need to prepare for the fact he never will. The existence of
spirits is not something everyone can accept. I suspect Lord
Preston is one of those."
    "It doesn't matter what he believes, it only
matters that Jacob is allowed to finish the journey he's already
begun. I want him to crossover and find peace."
    I did not tell her about the curse on the
Waiting Area and how it was affecting all the spirits, including
Jacob. There was nothing she could do and she didn't need the extra
worry.
    "Oh, Emily," said Adelaide, breezing into the
parlor. "What a pleasant surprise. And Mr. Culvert too." She smiled
at me, but she positively beamed at George. He blushed a fierce
red.
    "The pleasure is all ours, Miss Beaufort,"
George said. "I mean mine. The pleasure is mine. Unless it's
Emily's too, but I can't speak for her."
    Adelaide held out her hand and George took it
and bestowed a kiss on the back. His face remained the color of
radishes, but he didn't attempt to hide it.
    "Did you receive my last letter, Miss
Beaufort?" he asked. "I copied out those pages you asked for."
    Adelaide bit her lower lip and glanced at her
mother. "Yes, thank you. It was an interesting treatise."
    "You've been writing to each other?" Lady
Preston's smile stretched thin. "Adelaide, why didn't you tell
me?"
    "I...uh...I've recently discovered I have an
interest in the supernatural. I didn't think you'd approve of my
visiting Mr. Culvert to look at his library, so I wrote to him
instead with my questions. He has been very good in responding with
perfectly copied tracts from his books as well as his own thoughts.
We've had some lively debates."
    "You're right, I would not have approved. Nor
would your father. Not in light of...recent plans."
    Adelaide's nose wrinkled. "You mean