Mark was in his study when they arrived. He can see Bryan coming down from the Ford Pick-up from his Cctv monitor. A teenage girl with shoulder-length black hair came down from the other side of the car.
His heart skipped a beat as he recognized Carol coming down from the driver's seat.
He recalled their first meeting at Bugsy Hollow around sixteen years ago. He was an Entomologist. He was working on his paper about bugs. He had two assistants at that time whom he promptly sent away when he got attracted to Carol and decided to stay at Bugsy Hollow while he continued his study alone with Carol as his assistant.
Carol was a very charming landlady to the young Entomologist and his two research assistants. Everything turned out to be a normal courtship except that it turned out to be quite a fast one. A whirlwind love affair?
The young Entomologist never thought that Carol was different until Carol told him about her secret. She was not supposed to tell the secret but because of Mark Chrome's special interest in insects and bugs, and because Carol had a strong desire to keep Mark alive, she decided to tell him. For her honesty, Mark have always appreciated Carol so much.
They were wed in what Carol called the mantis nuptial. Everything went well. They placed all kinds of dead bugs near the nuptial love nest on the night of their honeymoon. Those were reserved food to keep her well fed while their marriage was being consummated.
Mark's knowledge of the praying mantis behavior was the redeeming factor. In the nuptial act, the female humantis starts with a love kiss that would morph them both into their mantis form. Mark expected all these. They've planned everything ahead of time, thus the dead bugs on their bed.
Everything went well as planned. Except that after the act, when they have both returned to human form, Mark was overpowered by his fright that he decided to leave Bugsy Hollow at once. Perhaps, he was afraid that succeeding acts might cost him his life. He got so confused. He needed time and space, he explained in a letter to Carol.
He then returned home and back to his private practice. He couldn't write anything about bugs after that. He could not betray Carol's secret until this very day.
He never got married again. His fidelity to Carol pushed him to live the life of a recluse. He took Bryan home when he was three and took care of him as his own. That was the only time he lived a nearly normal life of fathering Bryan.
Mark Chrome's estate was actually inherited from his own parents who did well in the banking business.
Illiterate that Carol was, she didn't know what to make of that letter. Carol tore them to pieces in utter frustration. That was why Carol decided to bring Anne to human society. She wanted her to learn how to read and write. She wanted to find
out what happened to Mark Chrome and now she is here at his doorstep.
YOU ARE READING
Secrets
Mystery / ThrillerA family secret was waiting to be told. The mother was just waiting for the right time. "Was her child's birthday be that right time?" Carol asked herself. Her own Mom had told her on her twelfth birthday. Her mom's mom had done the same as all the...
