Awakenings

Chapter 3

Awakenings

Book 1 of the Grave Misgivings series

by C. E. Sundstrom.

Copyright C. E. Sundstrom 2014. 

‘Future Looms'

Strange and curious powers,

So misunderstood,

Must be kept hidden,

For the better good.

Lives on the line,

There can be no doubt,

Swimming in murky waters,

Searching for a way out.

 

Chapter 3

March 1683.

Delaware, New Jersey.

Spring Festival is the annual celebration for the town of Delaware; a time when strangers and longtime friends come together. In fact, it is a time when the whole town gathers as a community in order to eat, drink and dance; usually to excess. The hardships of the past year are forgotten, at least for a day, while the townsfolk become absorbed in the frivolities on offer. Hope for a plentiful crop and a prosperous future is abundant. It is an exciting time when all the townsfolk are joyous and relaxed. A wonderful day which later transforms into a magical night when anything can, and does, happen. Sometimes, just sometimes, it is an opportunity for new partnerships to form; a favorable climate for romance to begin to bloom. It is a night when people meet and dance with their neighbors in a celebration of life and rejoice in all its bountiful pleasures.

It is during this festival that Mary first lays eyes on Thomas, a gangling, shy, be-freckled, yet well-heeled newcomer to town. Mary is sixteen; a mere slip of a girl who has been blessed with piercing emerald green eyes. Her jet black hair is brushed for hours daily till it is straight, hanging just below her shoulders. She is a stunning beauty who is starting to acquire many admirers amongst the young lads scattered throughout the town. Alas, as the eldest daughter of a poor farming family, she has no time for romance. She has a more pressing task, bestowed on her by her parents. Her sole responsibility is to ensure that her two younger sisters are safe and stay out of trouble. This is a full time task at the best of times. However, her parents remain blissfully unaware that Mary, rather than assisting with this chore, is the mischievous influence in her sister’s lives. If the truth be known, she is an excellent teacher, training her two young apprentices thoroughly in all the dark arts of skullduggery.

The girls’ latest plan is simple yet elegant in every detail. It has worked before. It will surely work again. The day is fast declining. Seven o’clock and the light from the sun has fully disappeared behind the hills to the west. Most of the adults and older children are scurrying along the dirt road, heading haphazardly in all directions though steadily edging their way into the heart of town. The men are handing out lanterns and taking them to the central light keeper to be lit. The mayor, resplendent in his new cotton shirt, is trying to gather everyone together in preparation for the parade. The women are adjusting bonnets, dusting off their clothes and those of their children, spitting on kerchiefs and wiping down faces.