The Ghosts of Aquinnah by Julie Flanders Page A

did not seem to be the case.
    Hannah finished her lobster rolls and shivered in the evening sea air. There were definitely some disadvantages to the off season, and the cold temperatures were number one on that list. Hannah felt the sense of restlessness returning to her, and she found herself anxious to pay her bill and head back to Chilmark. The ocean air had made her tired and she longed for her bed and a good night’s rest.
    As she walked to her car, her thoughts returned to the Irishman for whom she had a name but no face. She knew that Stella had wanted her to investigate The City of Columbus . Since Christopher Casey survived that very wreck, it seemed logical to assume that he was somehow connected to whatever Stella wanted her to discover. She admonished herself for not thinking of it earlier when she’d been at the library.
    She got into the car and drove off towards Chilmark. At least she knew where to begin when she arrived at the library in the morning. She needed to find out what had happened to Christopher Casey.
     
    ****

 
     
     
     
     
    1884
     
     
     
     
    “ I t looks like we’re here, Grover,” Christopher said as he nudged the horse towards the Cottage City Apothecary on Ocean Avenue.
    Although he guided the horse, he had the feeling that Grover knew where he was going much more than Christopher himself did. The horse often looked at Christopher as if he was insulted that a newcomer would presume to know the roads of the island better than he.
    In spite of his indignant air, Christopher had come to like Grover a great deal. In fact, he liked the horse significantly more than he did his owner. This morning was the first time Josiah had trusted Christopher to make a trip to town on his own, and he was grateful to be free of the man and explore this unfamiliar island with no company but Grover.
    Now, Christopher and his equine companion arrived at the apothecary to pick up the medicines and supplies Josiah had ordered from the mainland. As Josiah had explained to him, he had previously always picked up his supplies in Vineyard Haven, the most prominent port on the island and part of the town of Tisbury. But following a fire last summer that had destroyed the main street of Vineyard Haven, along with nearly all of its businesses, most steamers now arrived in the neighboring harbor at Cottage City while Vineyard Haven was being rebuilt.
    This was fine with Christopher as he loved the strange little town with its gingerbread cottages and religious camp grounds. He looked longingly at the Wesley House hotel with its elegant awnings and huge wooden porch lined with rocking chairs. Josiah had informed him that the luxurious hotel had been built just five years earlier. Christopher wondered what it would be like to have the money to stay in such a resplendent establishment. He had no illusions that he’d ever find out, but even an Irishman could dream.
    Christopher hitched Grover up to the pole outside the store and quickly walked inside to gather up Josiah’s purchases. He was happy to see the friendly face of Eliza Luce behind the counter.
    “ Good day to you, Mrs. Luce.”
    “ And good day to you, Mr. Casey. Where’s Dr. Winslow today?”
    “ He’s seeing patients at home today. Sent me to fetch his order.”
    “ I’ll get it for ya then.”
    As the genial shopkeeper disappeared behind a curtain leading to the back room of her store, Christopher glanced at the stacks of newspapers piled on the shop counter. Stella had slipped him a few coins that morning and asked that he bring the latest edition of the Boston Globe back to her. She’d begged him not to say anything to her husband as she read the papers without his knowledge. Christopher didn’t like getting involved in secrets between a man and his wife, but he found it impossible to say no to Stella. It was a problem he’d had since he’d first met her.
    He picked up the Globe and set it on the counter just as Mrs. Luce returned with