crybaby ghost writer
two
Nicholas Thatch felt out of place at the glitzy party, because he was out of place. He had grown up in the upper crust of society, and between his inheritance and his successful exploration endeavors he was quite possibly the richest man in the room. But he had never mastered small talk, and his aunt had informed him recently that, “the young men were wearing their hair close cut these days.” Which was her way of saying his brown hair was too messy for her tastes. Nick knew that his Aunt Mildred meant well, and she had done her best to take care of him after his parents were lost at sea. But she wanted him to give up his research and his travels and just settle down with a nice society girl.
That wasn’t likely to happen any time soon. Nick’s wealth and tragic loss of his parents made people think he was interesting at first, and it seemed they could usually overlook that he often had a jacket on inside out or his bow tie was crooked. But then they talked to him and decided he was either dull or a little crazy. Which he just have been, to show up at this party in an effort to track down the author of the books on Kerelia.
Nick adjusted his glasses as he walked inside the building, pushing thoughts about his aunt and her disapproval of his appearance out of his mind. Kerelia was a far bigger priority than fashion trends. His father had been a respected historian and his mother a brilliant linguist. They had told him stories about Kerelia since he was a boy, and they had been off on a voyage looking for more information on its whereabouts when they went missing. The shocking and terrible loss of Edward and Viola Thatch had made headlines for weeks and continued to be a subject of some fascination among the people of Pinehaven. Nick was tired of the pitying looks; he just wanted to honor their memory by finding Kerelia and learning about it more in depth.
And that’s why he was here tonight. His only goal was to find the author of the History of Kerelia books and make him an offer. Nick had his parents’ notes, and his own cartography skills and experience with adventure. And the author of these books seemed to have impressive insight on the lost civilization. Together, Nick was confident they could find the place at last. He could validate his parents’ work.
Frankly, Aunt Mildred should have been proud of him. Amazing discoveries in the areas of history and science were very “in” these days. Nick made his way into the room where the author was supposed to be speaking about his latest book on Kerelia. He had arrived late, another bad habit of his. He caught the very last part of the speech, and then sighed as he saw the author swarmed with people eager to talk to him. Nick hung back, deciding he’d wait until everyone got drunk and wandered off.
He tried to edge off into a corner so no one would notice him there and start trying to talk to him. He thought he had retreated safely to safety when he literally scooted out of the room full of party goers and found himself at the base of a staircase that led up to the amphitheater where lectures and symposiums were held.
He thought he could go unnoticed out here, and lounged there for a few minutes in peace, just leaning on the banister and staring at the intricately tiled ceiling. His quiet contemplation was interrupted though when he heard a startled squeak and turned to find a girl in a pretty dress tripping down the steps. She very nearly went sprawling but in a move of gallantry that Mildred might have even approved of, Nick moved from his place beside the banister and caught the woman before she could fall.
Her cheeks were a little flushed and he supposed she must have had some champagne.
“Are you all right?” he asked. She looked up at him with wide brown eyes and her face turned a little pinker as he set her back on her feet.
“Um. Yeah, I guess I didn’t need that last glass of champagne,” she said.
“One of your pins is coming loose.” Nick reached out and pinned back the curl that was trying to escape her fancy updo. “There you go. You must have spent a long time styling it, it’d be a shame to let the champagne ruin it.”
“Oh. Thank you,” she squeaked. “Are you here for the party?”
“Sort of. I need to speak with the author, but it seems that everyone else does too.”
“William has a lot of fans,” she said dully.
“Hm. I noticed. Seems rather a waste of time to make mindless banter with people who probably barely understood the books, assuming they even read them. A shame, really. The books are brilliant.”
“Oh. So you’ve really read them?”
“I’ve read the first two volumes multiple times,” Nick replied. “The theories on Kerelian culture are quite fascinating. The only real point I might dispute is that they had a direct line of succession; I think they actually appointed heirs from within the family and extended family. I can’t be certain, of course, but I’ve been working on making a key for translations for years now…” He trailed off for a moment, reminding himself not to ramble. “Well, anyway. That’s why I wanted to speak with William. These books are the only extensive writing I’ve seen, so the author must be extremely knowledgeable.”
“Uh, yes. He sure is. I can help you meet William. I’m his sister. He’s my brother.”
“If you’re his sister then I guess it works out nicely that he’s your brother,” Nick replied, smiling slightly. She blushed.
“Right. I’m Tara, by the way.”
“Oh. Sorry, I should’ve done introductions in the first place. It’s, uh, nice to meet you. I’m Nicholas Thatch.”
“Pleasure to meet you, Mr. Thatch.”
“Nick, please. Calling me Mr. Thatch makes me sound more important than I actually am. I appreciate the offer to arrange a meeting with your brother, but you really don’t need to go to that kind of trouble.”
“It’s no trouble at all. To be honest though, you might want to talk to him tomorrow. He tends to have a little too much fun at these social functions. I can give you the address of the hotel where we’re staying and you can come by in the morning?”
“I suppose that’ll work fine,” Nick said. “It would probably be better to talk in private anyway.”
“Did you want to ask him about his research?” she asked, seeming almost nervous.
“Sort of. You’re probably going to think I’m crazy,” he admitted. “But I’ve been planning to go looking for Kerelia for a long time. I’ve finally made all the arrangements and financed the journey. And I was hoping to invite your brother to come along and join the search.”
That wasn’t likely to happen any time soon. Nick’s wealth and tragic loss of his parents made people think he was interesting at first, and it seemed they could usually overlook that he often had a jacket on inside out or his bow tie was crooked. But then they talked to him and decided he was either dull or a little crazy. Which he just have been, to show up at this party in an effort to track down the author of the books on Kerelia.
Nick adjusted his glasses as he walked inside the building, pushing thoughts about his aunt and her disapproval of his appearance out of his mind. Kerelia was a far bigger priority than fashion trends. His father had been a respected historian and his mother a brilliant linguist. They had told him stories about Kerelia since he was a boy, and they had been off on a voyage looking for more information on its whereabouts when they went missing. The shocking and terrible loss of Edward and Viola Thatch had made headlines for weeks and continued to be a subject of some fascination among the people of Pinehaven. Nick was tired of the pitying looks; he just wanted to honor their memory by finding Kerelia and learning about it more in depth.
And that’s why he was here tonight. His only goal was to find the author of the History of Kerelia books and make him an offer. Nick had his parents’ notes, and his own cartography skills and experience with adventure. And the author of these books seemed to have impressive insight on the lost civilization. Together, Nick was confident they could find the place at last. He could validate his parents’ work.
Frankly, Aunt Mildred should have been proud of him. Amazing discoveries in the areas of history and science were very “in” these days. Nick made his way into the room where the author was supposed to be speaking about his latest book on Kerelia. He had arrived late, another bad habit of his. He caught the very last part of the speech, and then sighed as he saw the author swarmed with people eager to talk to him. Nick hung back, deciding he’d wait until everyone got drunk and wandered off.
He tried to edge off into a corner so no one would notice him there and start trying to talk to him. He thought he had retreated safely to safety when he literally scooted out of the room full of party goers and found himself at the base of a staircase that led up to the amphitheater where lectures and symposiums were held.
He thought he could go unnoticed out here, and lounged there for a few minutes in peace, just leaning on the banister and staring at the intricately tiled ceiling. His quiet contemplation was interrupted though when he heard a startled squeak and turned to find a girl in a pretty dress tripping down the steps. She very nearly went sprawling but in a move of gallantry that Mildred might have even approved of, Nick moved from his place beside the banister and caught the woman before she could fall.
Her cheeks were a little flushed and he supposed she must have had some champagne.
“Are you all right?” he asked. She looked up at him with wide brown eyes and her face turned a little pinker as he set her back on her feet.
“Um. Yeah, I guess I didn’t need that last glass of champagne,” she said.
“One of your pins is coming loose.” Nick reached out and pinned back the curl that was trying to escape her fancy updo. “There you go. You must have spent a long time styling it, it’d be a shame to let the champagne ruin it.”
“Oh. Thank you,” she squeaked. “Are you here for the party?”
“Sort of. I need to speak with the author, but it seems that everyone else does too.”
“William has a lot of fans,” she said dully.
“Hm. I noticed. Seems rather a waste of time to make mindless banter with people who probably barely understood the books, assuming they even read them. A shame, really. The books are brilliant.”
“Oh. So you’ve really read them?”
“I’ve read the first two volumes multiple times,” Nick replied. “The theories on Kerelian culture are quite fascinating. The only real point I might dispute is that they had a direct line of succession; I think they actually appointed heirs from within the family and extended family. I can’t be certain, of course, but I’ve been working on making a key for translations for years now…” He trailed off for a moment, reminding himself not to ramble. “Well, anyway. That’s why I wanted to speak with William. These books are the only extensive writing I’ve seen, so the author must be extremely knowledgeable.”
“Uh, yes. He sure is. I can help you meet William. I’m his sister. He’s my brother.”
“If you’re his sister then I guess it works out nicely that he’s your brother,” Nick replied, smiling slightly. She blushed.
“Right. I’m Tara, by the way.”
“Oh. Sorry, I should’ve done introductions in the first place. It’s, uh, nice to meet you. I’m Nicholas Thatch.”
“Pleasure to meet you, Mr. Thatch.”
“Nick, please. Calling me Mr. Thatch makes me sound more important than I actually am. I appreciate the offer to arrange a meeting with your brother, but you really don’t need to go to that kind of trouble.”
“It’s no trouble at all. To be honest though, you might want to talk to him tomorrow. He tends to have a little too much fun at these social functions. I can give you the address of the hotel where we’re staying and you can come by in the morning?”
“I suppose that’ll work fine,” Nick said. “It would probably be better to talk in private anyway.”
“Did you want to ask him about his research?” she asked, seeming almost nervous.
“Sort of. You’re probably going to think I’m crazy,” he admitted. “But I’ve been planning to go looking for Kerelia for a long time. I’ve finally made all the arrangements and financed the journey. And I was hoping to invite your brother to come along and join the search.”