Page 27 of The Haunted Hotel
The noise once again rises as they all begin to chatter loudly.
“It’s okay. Bertie and I have a plan, and it’sgenius,” Roger speaks over them.
“What is it?” Edwina asks suspiciously. “Because if I recall, it was your idea for us to show ourselves to the fleshies and make this into the most talked-about haunted hotel in the north of England, which is what landed us in trouble with this Stanley fellow and the Bureau in the first place.”
“Yes, well,” I bluster. “In my defence, I didn’t know about the Bureau or their apparent rules.”
“No point in casting blame now, Eddy,” Skid tells her. “Fuck the Bureau and fuck the establishment.”
“Quite,” I nod. “Now, the plan. Some of you may have noticed one of our own has returned to the family fold.”
“Morgan?” Edwina replies, her cheeks pinking prettily. “He is very handsome, just like his father.”
“Good genes,” I agree. “Anyway, it occurs to me that we can kill several birds with one stone. One, we can help Cedric resolve his issues before his time comes so he’s not trapped here with unfinished business. After all, he’s not getting any younger. Two, I overheard Morgan talking to his half-brother. It seems the two of them run some kind of hotel empire over in the States. Which means Morgan clearly has a good working knowledge of how to run a successful hotel, and we could certainly use someone with that level of expertise. Three, Roger is convinced the lad has a bob or two?—”
Roger preens. “Oh, trust me, honey. I am never wrong. Morgan positively reeks of money.”
“Yes, well, if you say so.” I shrug. “And if Roger is right about the boy’s finances, he might be persuaded to invest in this place and give it long enough to get back up and running like it did in its heyday.”
“Bertie, it’s never had a heyday,” Admiral Hilary huffs.
“Well then, it’s overdue.” I shake my head. “And finally, if Morgan decides to stay on, we’ll have someone in place that will inherit when Cedric’s time comes.”
“This is all very well, but how are we supposed to achieve all of that if we aren’t allowed to reveal ourselves to him?” Edwina points out.
Roger and I share a glance.
“We’re going to make him fall in love with Ellis!” Roger blurts out excitedly.
Insert sound of crickets.
“I’m sorry, you’re gonna what?” Skid finally says, his tone incredulous.
“Make him fall in love with Ellis!” Roger vibrates with glee.
“That’s what I thought you said.” Skid frowns.
“It’s perfect when you think about it really,” I reply. “Ellis is the epitome of walking on sunshine. He spreads happiness and glitter wherever he goes without even trying. If anyone can unlock my great-nephew’s heart?—”
“And his bank account,”Roger mutters under his breath.
“—it’s Ellis,” I continue, ignoring Roger’s input. “He’ll fall in love with Ellis and, by extension, the hotel, and he’ll help us to save it! It’s a plan with no drawbacks.”
“It’s a plan with many drawbacks,” Skid replies. “Many, many drawbacks. In fact, so many that I’m not even sure where to start.”
“Sourpuss.” Roger pouts prettily.
“I’m just pointing out what I hope should be obvious to you both, despite your scheming, and that is that Ellis has his own autonomy. He may not even be interested in Morgan. You can’t manipulate him into a relationship with someone because it suits your purposes.”
“Well, if it’s for the greater good,” Prometheus pipes up.
“You have already demonstrated your capacity for deceit during the murder mystery weekend.” Skid glares at him and he slumps back into the corner closing his mouth. “I care about Ellis. He’s a good kid and I’m not going to stand by and let him be sacrificed on the matrimonial altar just to save a pile of bricks and mortar.”
“No one said anything about marriage,” Roger mutters. “Good god, this isn’t the dark ages.”
“This may be our home,” Skid continues, “and I don’t want to leave either. I’ve spent the last fifty years here and I’ve kinda got used to it, but I’m not staying at the expense of Ellis.”
“I’m afraid I have to agree with Mr Skid. As pleasing as he is to look upon, how can we be certain of Morgan’s good character? He is an Ashton-Drake, after all,” Edwina asks. “They are for the most part a host of self-absorbed, philandering, gambling, alcoholic, amateur poisoning, grouchy old windbags.”