A Spirited Gift

“Are you ready?” Kevin smiled and adjusted the microphone for me.

“I think so. Thanks.”

I waited for him to step back, then addressed the group. People stopped talking and everyone looked up at me. “Before I launch into my welcome speech, I thought I should point out that our police and fire chiefs are here with us in the ballroom. You all know what that means—the weather sounds bad, but it’s really nothing to worry about.”

Everyone laughed and applauded. The thunder and lightning continued to pummel the outside world around us, but we were okay. I started into my often-rehearsed speech—our guests laughed and applauded at just the right spots. I could see Nancy out of the corner of my eye mimicking the words as I said them. She’d heard the speech often enough.

As I spoke, I thought about the steel gray ocean churning and spitting at the edge of the sand. Trees were blowing,  pushed around by the harsh winds. Debris was flying everywhere—the town needed to issue a memo about taking in or tying down lawn furniture before a storm. It would take days of overtime for our maintenance department to pick up all the chairs, cushions and grills and find where they all belonged.

I finally finished speaking—it seemed like it took forever. Despite my words of assurance to everyone else, I still felt the storm raging outside. Maybe it didn’t look so bad, but I was beginning to feel something more coming toward us.

I looked out at the faces of people I knew and those I’d never met before. They all seemed calm and relaxed, enjoying the party. Wine and food flowed freely—maybe that helped.

Or maybe I was the only one ill at ease.

I couldn’t seem to shake that feeling that had come with the séance. I could only describe it as a feeling of dread. I kept smiling anyway—that was part of my job as mayor. I forced myself to relax and eat something. I chatted and sipped some excellent muscadine wine from one of the local vineyards.

I wished the reception was over and I was home in bed.

That was unusual for me. Normally, I loved these situations. But not tonight. I wanted to pull the covers up over my head and listen to the storm rumble by in the night. I lived with my grandfather in the house several generations of our family had owned and loved. I’d feel safe there—not just from the storm but from the strange uneasiness lurking at the edge of my brain. I couldn’t quite put my finger on it. But I knew it wasn’t just my imagination.

“Dae!”

I heard my name in a high-pitched, girlish voice and looked around to find another mayor waving to me. It was Sandi Foxx, the redheaded former TV weather girl from Manteo. She’d left the Outer Banks and gone to live in Virginia Beach, becoming a local celebrity there. Everyone knew her around here. There aren’t many local channels.

She’d come back a few years ago and been elected mayor of Manteo, which was the county seat for Dare County. I liked her the few times we’d met at other local events.

“Great speech!” Sandi said when she reached me. She gave me an air kiss and her fabulous mayor’s smile. She was dressed in bright red—always flamboyant. “Love this place! The Blue Whale certainly has an interesting and accomplished new owner. Is he spoken for? I think I’m about to be between men, if you know what I mean. But they never last long, do they?”

Sandi was also working on her third marriage. She was a determined woman who liked to have her way. She also enjoyed the company of younger men who frequently weren’t her husband. It sounded like she might be about to break up with one of them.

“Thanks. Yeah, we love the old Blue Whale, and Kevin has done a great job with it.” I didn’t necessarily see her as a rival for Kevin’s attention. She was only here for a couple of days. But I didn’t want to talk about Kevin—it’s hard for me to share my life with people I don’t know well.

“How about an introduction?” she continued, smiling and nodding to people she knew. Her green eyes zeroed in on Kevin. “He’s my kind of appetizer.”

All right, maybe it was hard laying claim to Kevin, but hearing her talk about him as a food made me a little more forthcoming. “As a matter of fact, Kevin and I—”

“Ladies.” Kevin joined us, smiling. He slipped his arm around my waist. “I don’t think I’ve met your friend, Dae.”

Sandi sipped her wine and gave me an ironic smile. “So that’s the way it is, huh? You always were kind of lucky, Dae.”

I was relieved that I didn’t have to explain about Kevin. He had a knack for showing up at the right time and place. “Kevin, this is Mayor Sandi Foxx of Manteo. Sandi, this is Kevin Brickman of the Blue Whale Inn.”

He nodded to her. “Nice to meet you, Sandi. I hope you’re enjoying the reception.”

“I was.” She finished her glass of wine. “Excuse me while I go look for more wine—and someone available to drink it with.”

“She’s . . . nice,” Kevin said when she’d disappeared back into the crowd. “Have you known her long?”