Mirror of Shadows Read online

  Mirror of Shadows

  Title Page

  Chapter 1

  Chapter 2

  Chapter 3

  Chapter 4

  Chapter 5

  Chapter 6

  Chapter 7

  Chapter 8

  Chapter 9

  Chapter 10

  Chapter 11

  Chapter 12

  Chapter 13

  Chapter 14

  Chapter 15

  Chapter 16

  Chapter 17

  Chapter 18

  Chapter 19

  Chapter 20

  Chapter 21

  Chapter 22

  Chapter 23

  By T. Lynne Tolles

  Troll Publishing

  Copyright 2012 T. Lynne Tolles

  Version 1.1SW August 26, 2012

  ISBN 978-1-4524366-6-1

  Smashwords Edition.

  This ebook is licensed for your personal enjoyment only. This ebook may not be re-sold or given away to other people. If you would like to share this book with another person, please purchase an additional copy for each recipient. If you’re reading this book and did not purchase it, or it was not purchased for your use only, then please return to Smashwords.com and purchase your own copy. Thank you for respecting the hard work of this author.

  Publisher’s Note:

  This is a work of fiction. All names, characters, places, and events are the work of the author’s imagination or used fictitiously. Any resemblance to real persons, living or dead, locales or events is coincidental.

  Cover Art:

  Mirror by Aleksie – Aleksie O’Konner

  Quote

  In the depths of every heart, there is a tomb and a dungeon, though the lights, the music, and revelry above may cause us to forget their existence, and the buried ones, or prisoners whom they hide. But sometimes, and oftenest at midnight, those dark receptacles are flung wide open. In an hour like this, when the mind has a passive sensibility, but no active strength; when the imagination is a mirror, imparting vividness to all ideas, without the power of selecting or controlling them; then pray that your griefs may slumber, and the brotherhood of remorse not break their chain.

  Nathaniel Hawthorne - Haunted Mind

  (1804-1864)

  Chapter 1

  It was a perfect day for a funeral, if there is such a thing—gloomy, gray, and cold. With steady tears of rain, the heavens seemed to be mourning along with the funeral guests. Though Ella stood strong as the pastor droned on, she would never be consolable for the loss of her beloved grandmother, Rose Grey McKaye. Ella had known for a while this day was coming as her grandmother combatted bouts of cancer, a stroke, and dementia, but all of that was not enough to prepare her for the overwhelming loss she now felt.

  Ella heard no voices of condolences from those who one by one took her hand in sympathy. She only heard the rain tapping on the shiny mahogany casket covered in a blanket of chrysanthemums and peonies in front of her. Occasionally she would nod her head to the speaking sympathizer but she never took her eyes off of the coffin. Instead, she watched as a drop of water hung to the tip of a fern frond, gathering more volume until it could no longer hold on and dropped down the curved lid of the casket, and then meandered down the side stopping only for a moment by one of the carrying handles. It continued down to mingle with other drops at the base of the aluminum stand. It lingered and swelled until it could no longer resist the relentless tug of gravity and it fell to the fake green grass carpet laid out to disguise the recently excavated mound of dirt from the grave into which her grandmother would soon be lowered.

  The long line of umbrella-toting guests passed before her then scattered among the graveyard to their warm, dry cars to go on with their lives. How odd, Ella thought, that time doesn’t stop for a moment to acknowledge the passing of one so loved. She felt sure that she hadn’t taken a breath since she had received the call two days before, notifying her that her grandmother had died. How would she ever survive life without her grandmother?

  Ella’s childhood had been hard and she’d grown up fast and insecure in herself. The only happy memories she’d had as a child were in those blessed, short-lived visits to Grandma Rose’s house where Ella knew without a doubt she was welcome, safe, and loved.

  Ella’s mother had not been a bad person, but Ella had learned at an early age that she was an anchor to her mother’s freedom. Patricia had been widowed when Ella was a toddler. She had no family of her own to speak of, and found herself a single mother with no job and no real skills. First the parade of men came, none of which ever seemed to measure up to her late husband, and then came the drugs which made the unhappy, lonely woman lost and unstable. Needless to say, this brought about a rather turbulent life for Ella’s early years.

  A warm hand touched Ella from behind, guiding her away from the men now lowering the casket into its new home. They cleared away the fake grass carpet, revealing the reality and finality of what was happening. Goodbye Grandma Rose, Ella said without speaking. I love you so…and the car door shut on Ella’s words and pulled away from the curb as its wipers slapped the sides of the windshield with a squeaky but constant beat.

  Chapter 2

  Back at the house, the incessant procession of sympathies from the mourning guests was wearing on Ella. Thankfully, her mother stepped in like a trouper. She must have sensed Ella’s growing agitation, and directed a good number of the guests to the waiting food in the dining room. For Ella, it was a great relief to not have to put on a brave face for all the words of comfort being strewn upon her.

  It wasn’t that she didn’t appreciate the well wishes and show of concern, it was just so exhausting. It was hard enough not to ball her eyes out right there in front of everyone, but being pummeled with the recounted memories of so many people was unnerving.

  When she was not the center of attention for a brief moment, she made her way to a dark hallway on the backside of the stairwell, where she leaned her back and head against the wall and sighed heavily with relief, but that relief would be short lived as Marlin Howard rounded the corner, apparently looking for someone.

  “Aw, my dear, there you are. I was hoping we could have a little chat in private,” the burly gentleman said.

  He looked like a retired defensive lineman in a very fine suit. His hair was thinning on top, and a he had a slightly bent nose, possibly from a long ago break, but he had happy eyes—the kind of eyes that were full of concern and kindness Ella couldn’t help the tiny smile emerging from her lips when the lawyer opened his arms wide for a hug she truly needed. His thick, warm arms embraced her and held her tightly to him. She melted in them and could not help but quietly cry for a very short moment within the comfort of his arms. Marlin was like an uncle to Ella and it felt good to let his strength take over for a few minutes.

  “Can we talk?” he said when her tears waned.

  “Sure, Marlin. I think the den is clear,” she said as she turned and led him down the hall, wiping her cheeks of their wetness. “What is this about?”

  “As you know, I was your grandmother’s probate attorney as well as her friend. I thought we could talk about the contents of her will,” he said as if this was a conversation about sharing a recipe or something else not life altering.

  They entered the den and Marlin shut the door behind him as he made his way to a chair near the window.

  “Is it necessary to talk about this today?” she said wearily.

  “No, but since I’ve known you all of your life and have been more like an uncle than the family lawyer, I thought you should know that your grandmother loved you very much. She’d want you to know that you will be very well taken care of.

  “She told me when you were a child and
your mother was having such a hard time dealing with the loss of your father, that she wanted to take you away from all of that, but for her son’s sake, she thought it might push your mother over the precarious precipice she was balancing on.

  “The loss of your father, her son, too, had been very hard on her. No parent wants to outlive their child and Ken was so young when he passed. She hated that your childhood had been so hard and she wanted to make sure that you should never want again.”

  “I don’t understand, Marlin? Grandma didn’t have any money. She lived in an, albeit, cute little apartment in town, but it’s not like she was loaded or anything,” Ella said.

  “That’s where you are wrong, my dear. She was loaded. How do you think your parents could afford this great big house on your father’s income as a mechanic? Or how do you suppose your mother could keep such a house after your father died; only working part-time typing transcripts? Or your college tuition? Where do you think that came from?”

  “Well, I thought the tuition was from a trust my father had set up, I guess?” Ella said.

  “No, sweetie. All that money came from the trust your grandmother set up with the money your grandfather, Henry, made in his life time. He was very successful on his own, but he would not let your grandmother Rose touch her family money. He found great pride in providing for her himself.

  “Now, Henry McKaye made a lot of money as a doctor and he, Rose, and your father lived very comfortably on that and have ever since, but the Grey Trust is far larger. It not only holds a large amount of money but a large manor and most of the surrounding land of Cauldron Lake. In fact, the area around the lake was called Hanging Willow for centuries before our town of Dead Oak Hollow incorporated it into a township.

  “The Greys were very prominent up in Redding, but when old man Grey retired from his logging business he brought his family to Hanging Willow and built a huge house right on the lake,” Marlin explained.

  “Why haven’t I heard any of this before? Why didn’t Grandma Rose live in her family home?”

  “Out of respect for Henry. She loved that man, I’m telling you. Rose had her pick of men when she was young, from what my father told me. She was amazing, intelligent, and beautiful to boot. Like I said, Henry was a very proud man and rightfully so; your grandmother never spent a dime of her family’s money.”

  “But why wouldn’t she have given it to my dad?”

  “For the same reason. When your parents got married, not too long after Henry died, she gave them this house your mother is living in—fully paid for. ‘A gift from your father,’ Rose had told Ken. Rose also set up a trust for the rest of Henry’s money to pay a monthly stipend to your mother and father for living expenses and house maintenance.

  “After your father died, your mother Patricia received both stipends, but we had to amend that when she got messed up in drugs. Your grandmother paid for your mother’s stay in rehab and made your father’s stipend your college savings. The trust also paid your grandmother’s expenses for her little apartment in town.”

  “I never knew any of this,” Ella said, flabbergasted.

  “Not many do, my dear. Just us old-timers, and due to our respect and love for Rose and Henry, we let her secret lie. Those two were pillars of the community here in Dead Oaks Hollow.

  “When the Sullivans went through a tough time and just about lost their house to the bank, Rose and Henry stepped in and paid six months back mortgage and another six to get them on their feet.

  “When the old Perry dairy farm burned down, killing most of their cows, Rose and Henry pulled together the community and built them a new barn and bought their first five cows. Even helped with their expenses for the first year.

  “Even when my dad died and it looked like I was going to have to give up my dream of going to law school, Henry loaned me the money to go to school and lined up a barrage of young boys in town to help my mom with anything she needed around the house. Rose took some of my mom’s quilts to town, showing off her quilting skills, after which she made a living doing something she loved.”

  “I knew Grandma had a huge heart, but I had no idea how big. And Grandpa…she rarely spoke of him.”

  “Yes. It just about killed her when Henry died. Theirs was a love you usually only read about in novels. It hurt too much to talk about him, I suppose.”

  He reached into his pocket and pulled out an envelope. He read the contents of the will, full of words only a lawyer would understand, and handed her a deed, a map, some keys, and an account book.

  “Now, the house is a little run down, but I think it won’t be much to fix it up. I’ll get some bids and send out a handyman right away. We’ll get you all fixed up and moved in ASAP.”

  “That’s it? I just move in?”

  “Well, you have to sign some papers which I’m having my assistant draw up today and they should be ready for you tomorrow or the next day, but yeah. That’s it. There are no other heirs, no contestants, just some paperwork to be filed and signed.”

  “Wow.”

  “Rose would be thrilled to have someone living in that house again. It’s fully furnished but I’m sure it could use a good cleaning and probably some paint. I haven’t been out there in years. Might be a little spooky at first being so big and run down, but I’m sure you’ll whip it into shape in no time. I can have someone come out and clean it for you, if you like.”

  “Thanks, we’ll see.”

  “Good. Then my business here is complete. I’m sure you’re exhausted. Did you even have a chance to pack up your bags at school after graduation?”

  “Yes. I didn’t have much. I was already half-packed when I got the call from Mom about Grandma, so I was able to finish. ‘Course, most of it is still in my car.”

  “No doubt,” he said as he got up and headed for the door. He turned as he opened the door and said, “By the way, congratulations.”

  Ella looked at him queerly.

  “For graduating college…you know Rose would have been the loudest one there shouting as you took your diploma, if she could have been there.”

  Ella smiled and responded, “Well, there wasn’t going to be a ceremony since I graduated in December instead of June, but you’re right. She would have been the loudest and probably the only one there wearing pink in December.”

  Marlin laughed heartily. “She did like the color pink, didn’t she?”

  Ella smiled meekly and nodded.

  “There is one stipulation to this inheritance though, that I must point out. It states, very specifically, that these items cannot be entrusted, gifted, or willed to your mother.”

  “Why?”

  “Your mother and your grandmother, well, let’s just say they didn’t get along. After the carousing, the drugs, and what your mother put you through during that time, Rose just couldn’t forgive her. Plus there’s always the addiction; Rose felt if your mother came into a lot of money that there would be no way to stop her from getting back into drugs again. That’s why your grandmother gives her such a minimal stipend. It’s just enough to cover utilities, and groceries along with necessities, but over the years your mother often ran to Rose for money and she didn’t want you to have to deal with that.”

  “So what if I refuse to sign the stipulation?”

  “Then the property will be sold and the money divided up between the town and several charities. Your mother will still receive her monthly stipend until she dies or the money runs out, but I don’t see that happening. There’s still plenty of money in the trust for several lifetimes. You mother won’t ever go homeless or starve; she’ll just have to ask me for money instead of Rose.”

  “I see.”

  “If you need anything…money, counsel, help, or just someone to hold your hand, you call me. I know you and your mother aren’t very close, so don’t hesitate to call on me. I promise I won’t charge you,” he said jovially and then hugged her tightly. “Love you, kiddo.”

  “Thanks, Marlin. Love you too. Sa
y hi to Meme for me,” she said as she released him.

  “Oh shoot. I knew I forgot something. Meme got you a little graduation present that I forgot to bring. I’ll make sure I have it when you sign the papers. Don’t tell her. She’ll be barking at me for a week for forgetting.”

  “Right. Thanks again,” she said as she turned and sat back down, looking at the items Marlin had given her. Shaking her head in disbelief at her grandmother’s secret stash, she put all the items back into the manila envelope when her mother appeared at the door.

  “There you are. I’m sorry, but the Danvilles are leaving and they would like to say goodbye to you,” Patricia said.

  “Right. I’ll be right behind you,” Ella said.

  Her mother left looking unconvinced that Ella would be following her. Ella looked at the envelope in her hand once more, sighed sadly, and headed for the front door to say her goodbyes to Mr. and Mrs. Danville and several other guests that were heading out.

  Chapter 3

  The next morning Ella woke to the smell of brewing coffee. Stumbling while putting her slippers on, she grabbed her robe and found her mother downstairs at the kitchen table with the envelope Marlin had given her and its contents spread out on the table.

  “What are you doing?” Ella asked .

  “Deciding what to do with our new found riches!” Patricia responded excitedly. “I’d love to have one of those new Audis, like Mr. Olsen has, and oh, I can finally redo this kitchen. Wouldn’t a granite island over there be nice with all new stainless steel appliances and…?”

  “Whoa, whoa, whoa. Back the cart up a bit. First off, what are you doing going through my stuff, and secondly, where does it say on any of the paperwork that this estate has anything to do with you?”