Greenbriar Manor

Vermont Briars and Ancient Burdens

Meanwhile, many states away, Daniel's brothers were drawing up a contract for Vera's estate to be transferred. Hunting down the original property blueprint and deed was Daniel's assignment. They would fax the documents to the Manor in the morning. He would have it notarized, and Salem's heir would take over the estate as soon as possible. The brothers were happy, and in a way, so was Daniel. The mansion was ready to be demolished, and with it would go a dark family secret. Only the tiny guest house that had functioned as the maid's quarters in its prime would be needed by Brittany and her parents. Salem had willed it all to them anyway. Vera had never planned on anyone returning to the house itself. She had always been frozen in time, where Bridgette was last seen. Until Brittany set her free. Bridgette went home but it was not yet a happy reunion. As we have seen before Briars prick and people bleed. They often come back to inflict injuries unless the whole root system is destroyed or removed and well, you can do that with roots, you can't do that with families. 

Instead of Mabel visiting Mack in the Summer. Brittany and her dad had shown up begging crumbs from Daniel's willing hands. The family would never outright sell the property in Vermont. They couldn't but the family could always inherit it. Brittany's father known for his vagrant ways and care for very little seemed to care very much for his tiny daughter and that tiny house so much so that he returned from a life of disappearing acts to beg for it. It had felt like the only home they had ever really known and well the Greene's were all about providing their family with places to grow and return. Once Brittany returned to the Vermont house there would be a certain balance at BriarWood again that had not been in ages. 

Fran was eager to never set foot in Vera's creepy estate again. She still wasnt right since the last trip to see Ruth and Mabel. Even Mack had come back different. He no longer played piano at home. He barely spoke to Ingrim and Brooklyn. She had no idea if he would return to the little boy she knew or not. She knew that house had a way of sticking with you even in stories and songs. Something puzzled her where did he learn that song? She thought of that girl the one from the foyer. How could that be Mabel's best friend? The child was mischievous and cunning and at times just plain out rude. Did her cousin know the child her daughter had befriended or the mysterious grandma? She remembered Mack talking about Vee and every time the child mentioned her grandma she said See See. Could he have been mistaken? Could that creepy note really have been from aunt Vera? The whole manor seemed to house secrets she would rather not know. Keeping houses sometimes makes you clean alot of skeletons. 

She was excited to finally meet Daniel and had heard good things about him. Brooklyn must have known him as a young boy he was acting unusually happy. He has been so sad since his boss went to the hospital. She had no idea if the handler would return and the horse had gotten fat waiting on him. Ingrim was trying to get him to canter again but it was like he too missed the old man who trained him. She hoped for everyones sake he would return soon and give them all something new to look forward too. Lately it had seemed the Manor had gone dark.Fran noticed that Mari was never in the library anymore when she asked Fern she said she had a huge fight with Brtttany over a tea party. She was refusing to talk to anyone but her brother and members of the Grey house.

 Brittany had been skulking around and demanding her dads attention. She tried to wander through the halls of the Manor until the owners found her putting family heirlooms in her backpack. When it was brought to her dad for answers he told them at the old house they had scavenger hunts with her grandma. Jake told her that was not appropriate here. She spent the next two days in the bedroom above Macks reading. Until Friday morning before dawn it had seemed the girl would be just  fine. But she saw Bridgette. Brooklyn waited outside the attic door hoping that the girl would follow her. It was time to show her the truth about hidden things in old houses. Brittany mistook her for Mari and tore off after her into the library. Bridgette giggled thinking of how quick Salem had been at tag. her granddaughter was just as fast. She would let Britany almost grab her and then fade into the other shadowed corner. Enough to be frustrating and not alarming. She led her into  the ballroom and sat down to play. Brittany sat at the other end of the bench watching her and smiling. As the last notes of the dreadful song was over she turned to her and the warm exterior faded away. Brittany recognized her home. She led her to the room where she had played hide and seek all those years before and found that teaset that Mari had been so mad about. The one Mabel bad broken a piece of before she moved. She picked up the tea set and handed her another saucer. This one had a B on it too but it was green and chipped on one side. It held liquid and as she put it to her lips she smelled a strong smell of almond icing. She got dizzy and woke up outside the house where she was staying under a tree house. She knew that whatever happened here was not good. She was also wishing she could wake up at home again. :" Wait she thought....Mari said her friends name was Bridgette." She remembered the sugar bowl. Was her tea set stolen not found after all. Did See See know what happened to that sad piano playing girl from her dream?" She would wait until uncle Daniel came to ask. He knew everything about the family her dad had said. He would give her dad the keys to her home and they would live happily ever after. Not like the children she met here. They were all so dedicated to their places and their jobs. She had adventure but now she needed to be safe and hide like the bear. She crawled back in bed and went to sleep unaware that the room she was in was on a totally different hallway than she had before. She was staying in her grandma's old bedroom. Here only Brooklyn and Bridgette would watch her. She needed to stay gone until the papers were signed tomorrow, Then no more tricks. 

Brooklyn left very early that morning and took the papers Daniel needed to the notary for scanning. The man had already recieved a letter he did everything as if Daniel had been standing there and filled out the change of deed forms. All that would be needed now were two signatures. Salem's son and Daniels. It was almost done. Soon, his father could come home. The awful secret could be buried with the deed in the attic and Mari could finally see her cousin had returned. Eventually, the house always righted itself. Ingrim had been riding his horse no one had been paying attention as he often went off by himself since Mack came home from Vermont. He wandered the edge of the property. In the tree line the horse stopped and sniffed the night air something perked his ears up. A chestnut mare sauntered into the clearing and before Ingrim could stall him the horse ran wildly after her. The chase went through bushes and briars and eventually back to the brook. He threw Ingrim over his head and he landed on a wet pat of grass. The horse stamped his foot angrily and ran back into the barn. He looked up to see a strange overweight woman with an apron on carrying something wooden and heavy. A rolling pin. She was humming and getting closer. He managed to get up and run. Banging on Brooklyns front door with abandon. He had never been here at night. It looked alot different. Deserted even. Maybe they all were at the manor house. A strange woman opened the door she seemed to limp away. She introduced herself as a family friend she said she had been working through a twisted ankle and that she was going to get better unless it killed her. She smirked eerily as she said that and asked after his mother. He told her about the horse and the strange woman at the brook. She nodded. slowly, she told him that it would make more sense in the morning. She watched as he wandereed up to the main house. She disappeared as Brooklyn came through the front door. Thinsg were preparing for Daniels return and Brittanys exit. The house was choosing family again. 

Mack woke up to the sound of a woman crying. He turned over to see Ingrim huddled in bed beside him soaking wet and muddy. He woke him and he seemed in a daze. He said that the horse was safe the woman was creepy and tomorrow everything would be okay. He thought abot Vee and her strange tea party with him and Mabel. Where did she go and would she be happy with her family returning to her house? He smiled as he fell back asleep. 

Daniel awoke to the tinkling of bells. It was the telephone. Everything was ready even his room. He made a call to the hospital and told the old handler to wait til Sunday and he would be able to come home once and for all. They were preparing his room. The man sighed slowly and hung up. He did not like to wait. Neither did Daniel. Fern arrivede with Fran to escort him home. This time there would be more Greenes in the house than had been in decades. Maybe even centuries. He needed the plans. The family was growing and so were the things in the shadows. Only Fran and Daniel could keep the peace....