Intro To My Novel (4) She took her first impulse and leaped into the water in hopes of getting across quickly. Yet she perhaps, should have thought, for a moment, of something that was always told to her as a child. ‘Do not go about outdoors barfoot!’ The young lady was barely across the small body of water before feeling a sharp pain in her right foot, she fell down immediately, though meaning in her heart of hearts to carry on. “Oh God!” she screamed and fell into the stream. Blood intermixed with the creek water, and Celina look at her foot and went pale. What she had stepped on, she did not know, all that this poor lady knew was that a horrible gash in her right foot would leave her immovable and enable her from finding Thomas, whom she was horribly worried about. There she sat, in the creek, with a cold and wounded foot, for what seemed to be only a few moment before nobody but young Thomas approached her! “Thomas! Oh, where did that cry come from! Did you hear it?!” “A….a….corpse! It was mortifying! It’s this dead man, in the forest, I want to get out of here! Let us get out please, let us get out!” “A what? You must be joking Thomas, just run and get help I-“ I’d swear upon it! I was walking through this little swampy area, and suddenly I felt something bump against my knee and…oh it was disgusting, I want to get out! Let us get out!” For a moment, just for a moment, she did not feel the extreme pain she had been feeling those few long and terrible minutes, only horror. She managed breathlessly, “A dead man!” “I wanted to vomit just seeing the thing….it was all pale…and the man was fat…..and in hunting clothes it seemed….but I know little more! I only looked at it for a moment before running!” Celina only breathed heavily in response before Thomas started again. “Are you hurt Miss Celina? Oh I cannot stay here for another moment! Yet…you are all bloody! I will go, and someone will come back for you!” “Do hurry Thomas,” she gasped breathlessly, not wanting to be in the forest very long with a supposed dead man. He did so, and soon vanished into the distance, just as he had previously, before Celina Dae was left alone in a forest with a wounded foot, and perhaps, a corpse! Yet, for all she knew, she could have not been the only living being within the forest, for when there is a corpse, there is often one responsible for making it so! Yet she had not long to ponder such horrors, for she soon had Mrs. Broadson and Colonel Wentworth standing in front of the pond. “My, that’s an awful gash! You needn’t worry my lady, I will carry you the rest of the way. “Oh, thank you Colonel!” “My poor, poor child! Oh dear! I cannot even look at it, it is so very awul! Do not worry, my dear, we will bring you to the house and the colonel will have you bandaged in no time at all!” said the old widow frantically. And so it was done. Miss Dae was carried to the back of the house and placed in her room, without being in the sight of any attendant at the ball aside from Mrs. Broadson and the colonel himself. She was bandaged up and wearing shoes five minutes later, and one wouldn’t have possibly suspected her unwell or astonished in the least. “You certainly have gone through quite a state, Miss Dae. Indeed, it was quite a nasty gash! Is all well, now?” “Yes, I….oh, oh….no! Have the authorities been informed?” Colonel Wentworth and Mrs. Broadson looked at each other in a bewildered manner. “Child! The authorites have no interest in a wounded young lady! Or perhaps I have misunderstood?” “Thomas has not told you! Oh, he told me there was a corpse in the forest!” The colonel and widow looked at one another incredulously. “Was he not jesting? You know how little boys are, Miss Dae! Perhaps-” “If he was jesting, it did not amuse me. Go speak to him!” Thomas was called upon, he confirmed, and neither the colonel nor the widow believed. With much insistency, coming from both the frightened Thomas and the puzzled Miss Dae, the two finally concluded it was best for the colonel to go to the police. 5 The Corpse “That is what the boy told me sir.” “Odd, yes…indeed, how odd. I will come.” The hasty conversation did not last long before the two respectable gentlemen, policeman and colonel, were headed toward the house to question Thomas on the supposed sight he had seen. Once there, (the attendance of the ball had cleared by then) Officer Woodland was greeted genially by all but Thomas, who was in deep and strenuous thought. “Now, my boy, where did you find the body?” “About a mile past the first creek you come to, it was in a swampy….marsh.” “It was a man?” “Yes.” “A grown man?” “Yes.” He then turned to the colonel solemnly. “Perhaps you will come along with me?” “I will,” said he eminently somber. There are a variety of strategies used for passing time, one may, perhaps, walk aimlessly through a hall, pacing back and fourth, or pretend to read, mayhap, some may occupy themselves with only their own thoughts, or some may use a hobby, such as a musical instrument. Approximately fifteen minutes passed, yet to Miss Dae the time seemed half as much, for her spirit and all the interest she owed to it was focused upon the pianoforte. Here she also had to ponder of the interests of the colonel. He was a well learned gentleman, of great respectability, and possessing every amiable quality a man of his rank and assets could have possibly possessed. The colonel admired her beauty and friendliness as well as her being frank and honest, unlike many women of his rank that he had come into acquaintance with throughout the course of his thirty-four years. “Was it not heroic, Celina, of the colonel to carry you back all that way? Celina?!” demanded Mrs. Broadson. “Oh….yes, indeed it was,” said she, lost in her own thoughts. It was soon afterwards the gentlemen returned. “We have located and identified the body,” said the officer, “Mr. Foster, a very respectable business man of the town….it seems most probable in this case, and the evidence shows signs of….strangulation.” Strangled, thought Celina….He had said it so naturally she had not realized it quite at the moment he said it. “Oh, dear me! On my estate?! How dreadful….this is doing nothing for my nerves, I feel ill! I must lie down….oh heavens!” cried Mrs. Broadson walking off to her room in a pitifully dramatic state. Miss Celina’s eyes were filled with shock and dismay, for after all, who wants a dead man on their estate! She thanked the officer for coming, and asked him when they would be back to remove the body. The officer would come and remove the body with three other men tomorrow; it would then be buried in the town cemetery. “Perhaps he has family you should inform?” she asked. “No, none to my knowledge. He was a widower on the estate, I believe his wife died when he was only a young man….perhaps twenty. It is sad…for they were newlyweds. It will be in the papers, certainly. This will be a shock, for there was never such a horrific crime in Devonshire!” said he. It was then that the colonel spoke, “Perhaps I must take my leave immediately, my cousins are, I am quite sure, very curious. Good night officer, Miss Celina, I do hope this incident has not taken such a horrible toll on you as I fear it has. It is all horrific, I grant you, but you shall not be harmed my dear lady.” “Thank you colonel. Goodnight.” The colonel took his leave. The officer stayed. “Is there anything I may further assist you with, officer?” she inquired, eager he would take leave very shortly. “Yes….perhaps. I would like to ask you a few questions for…for….something of the most disturbing nature has….been found…in this case.” She remained silent and looked intently into his eyes with anticipation. “The object he was strangled with was very disturbing, very, very disturbing. I cannot explain this, but I was surely hoping you would…” he paused, “what is your name?” “Dae. Celina Hazel Dae.” She said with a quiver in her voice. The man looked down and sighed, he reached into his front pocket and pulled out a handkerchief, placing it into her hands he said, “C.H.D. Those are your initials. Could you explain to me , Miss Dae, why this man was found strangled with a handkerchief with your initials sewn into it?” Celina was silent and then began breathing heavily. Why? She did not know. But that was her handkerchief. Her eyes welt up with tears. “That’s….mine.” Her hands grew limp as she stared at the object of disgust. She made no other answer…only stared. Her breathing grew heavier and heavier, and she began to shake her head, slowly. “Do you have any idea why or how this could have happened with an object owned by you?” “No,” she said quickly, “I…I….can’t imagine.” “It would look quite suspicious to many people, Miss Dae.” “I know it would. I have done nothing! “ The police officer nodded his head. “Who was the last known person to have this handkerchief in their possession?” “Myself, of course!” she cried. “Where was the last location you placed it?” Miss Dae thought. “On the nightstand, next to my bed.” “You are certain?” “Yes.” “That would mean the murderer must have been in this house.” “In my room!” she cried shaken. “Indeed, indeed….in your room Miss Dae. It was my understanding there was a ball?” “Yes, indeed there were many people there.” “Approximately how many people?” “That is very hard…but perhaps…fifty or sixty.” “Any one of those people had access to your bedroom.” “Yes, though I never saw anyone go into that area….except….I will be honest, me.” “For what purpose?” “I only walked down the hallway to go outdoors. I did not enter the room. If, however, I had turned right and gone upstairs, I would have been there. However I did no such thing. I walked directly outdoors. Thomas can be my witness that the first time I went outside during the time of the ball was when he and I went for a walk and he discovered…it.” There was a short pause. “I cannot keep you up all night, Miss Dae. Thank you for the information you have shared with me.” He took the handkerchief from her shaking hands, bowed, and took leave. The murderer was in my room, she realized. Why? Where was I? “Miss Celina!” She spun around quickly. “Thomas!!!” she cried, “Do not startle me again like that!” “Sorry Miss Celina. What happened?” “Nothing at all, go to bed,” she mumbled and began to walk away. “He was here, wasn’t he?” “Thomas, you had no business listening in!” she stopped walking. “I’m sorry….I…its just that….I’m frightened.” She paused. “Come here Thomas,” she sighed and opened her arms. “I don’t want a hug! I want to know what happened! You treat me as if I were 3 years old! Look, I found the stupid body, I want to know the details. I have every right!” She stood still, taken aback as to what Thomas had said to her. “The murderer used my handkerchief to….well… you know.” By now Miss Dae sounded like and exasperated child. “To finish him off?” “Yes, but I dearly wish you wouldn’t say it like that, Thomas.” “It was someone at the ball!” “I find that unlikely.” “It was Brendan!” “Oh, Thomas stop it!” “Or perhaps it was the Forest Goblin,” Thomas smirked. “This is not a joke Thomas.” “Well there actually is supposedly a man in there.” “According to whom?” “Fitzwilliam.” “Fitzwilliam?” “Yes, the boy down the lane, perhaps a year younger than I. He comes with me sometimes to try and catch rabbits.” “What on earth does he tell you, Thomas?” “He has told me of him seeing what seemed to be a man in the forest, twice. I have even seen it once myself….when we went a bit farther than we should have.” “You’ve only seen him from a distance?” she asked him sharply. “We have seen motions in the forest, and the figure of a man….scampering away.” “When did your friend initially begin seeing this man?” “Two days ago, I believe.” She raised her eyebrows incredulously. “Why did you not tell us?” “We knew you would laugh, you adults always do. It all seemed too bizarre.” For a moment she was in deep thought, having nothing to say, but wanting to say something. Could she believe this? After all the odd events occurring in Devonshire, how couldn’t she? She yawned and said slowly, “Since there should be no reason why you would devise a story like this, I have no option but to believe it true. We should get to sleep, Thomas, goodnight,” and that was that before Miss Dae walked off through the hallway and up the stairs to her bedroom. 6 An Awkward Encounter “Indeed, if I had known such awful, horrible things happened in Devonshire……Good Lord! Perhaps we should not have moved here at all if such appalling crimes are committed! Murder! Simply horrendous! Pass the butter please, dearest….thank you. I cannot fathom how this could happen just as soon as we have moved here, its simply-” “Come now, my dear Mrs. Warrington. Surely this does not happen often…indeed it does not, look here in the papers.” “Still! It does no good for my nerves! I have eleven children to protect….how can I possibly think them safe in a town like this!” “Certainly he, whoever he may be, will be soon brought to justice for such nonsensical actions,” stated the third eldest daughter, Mary. The Warringtons were left to ponder this suggestion further at the breakfast table, fluttering with clatter and conversation. Sarah Warrington, settled at the end of the table, ate in silence, listening attentively to the discussion surrounding her. As the second eldest, the young woman had always been expected to be the second most learned, prudent, and good natured. She was indeed, the second most prudent and good natured Warrington sister, however, was not as good learned as Mary, Jane, Catherine, or Georgiana. She had never taken any special interest in literature or drawing as her other sisters, and was not thought the most handsome, nor was she thought the most musically inclined. She was, however, though plain, the most sensible and kind hearted, seeing fault with few people in the world, and spoke harshly of few. The sun shown vaguely through the wide clear windows, as Sarah gazed out into the green glistening grass of the outside, yawning softly. A murder was committed in this small, innocent town, she thought. In Sarah’s mind, it was only sensible to stay in the town until this crime was solved, and if it was never solved, perhaps the people of the town should simply put it out of their worried minds. For after all, the authorities surely knew plenty of the case they were involved in! The estate in which the Warringtons lived was that of a recently passed relative, Mr. Warrington’s uncle. A large estate it was indeed, with many chickens, several pigs, and a large extent of vacant land. This land extended for several miles, rich green grass covered in daisies. The house itself was brick, and several stories, windows extending across the red brick walls two feet apart from one another, very sturdy, yet obviously aged and stained.
Copyright © 2006 Jenelle Marie Dayton |