Shaker Town (Taryn's Camera Book 4) (24 page)

She was down the stairs and out the door before Matt knew what was happening. “At least let me get the flashlight!” he hollered. She walked on, but slowed down a little.

The pond was up ahead and as they moved through the thick night she thought of the stories of the babies who had supposedly been discarded in it. For a moment she thought she could even hear their cries, the small mews of little ones in distress. But it was just a trick of her mind. There were no babies in the pond; that was an urban legend.

Already at the maple tree by the bench when Matt caught up with her, Taryn was kneeling on the soft earth, the dirt smearing her knees and caking under her bare feet. Somewhere along the way she'd lost her house shoes. With her hands she was digging into the earth under the tree, her nails breaking down to the quick and bleeding. Blood was mixed in with the soil now and she smeared some across her face when her hair fell into her eyes.

“Good Lord, Taryn,” Matt yelped. “What are you
doing
?”

“I have to,” she replied strangely, in a voice she didn't recognize as her own.

“Well, here, at least use a rock or something,” he offered her a shard of limestone. While she continued to dig, now with something stronger, he looked for his own makeshift shovel and found one in a thick tree branch. Together, sweating and cursing, they dug past the top layer, pulling up sod, and then tugged at the wiry roots. Taryn heard rather than felt something pop first in her shoulder and then in her knee but kept on digging, oblivious to the dull pain.

She was the first to feel the brittle hardness. “Wait!” Taryn cried, motioning Matt to stop. He laid his tree branch aside and dusted his hands off on his pajama pants. They were streaked with mud, dirt, and grass stains but for once he didn't seem to mind.

“What did you find?” he asked, a little nervously.

“Let me see your flashlight,” Taryn demanded. It was the most she'd said in over an hour.

The pale rays of sunrise were starting to lighten up the sky, giving it a smoky appearance. In the field behind them the cattle brayed and chickens chattered. They barely noticed these things.

Taryn gently shone the bright light into the small hole she'd made. Although she'd already felt it with her hands, she still startled a little at the small skull that looked back at her, empty eye sockets blank.

Her instinct was to reach in and pick it up, cradle the small bones in her arms the same way Julius did. Matt stopped her, though, and gently pulled her hand away. He didn't let go. “It's old, Taryn. Touching it might damage it. We need to call someone.”

She indicated her approval with a small smile.

While Matt stepped away and rang up Guest Services, Taryn stayed under the tree with the tiny skeleton. It was the only sunrise he had ever known.

T
he night desk worker at Shaker Town had received a lot of strange calls during his seventeen years at the park. He'd had people get lost on the trails after a midnight run, get trapped on the roof of their building (he didn't ask), get caught getting busy in one of the buildings they'd sneaked into, and even die. He'd seen food poisonings, broken bones, faintings, marital spats, and custody battles take place right there in the middle of the meetinghouse.

It was the first time anyone had ever called in a skeleton.

They weren't sure whether to call a morgue, ambulance, or museum. It was a confusing time for everyone, with most of the people called to the scene standing around with hands in pockets. When one of the paramedics saw Taryn's blood-streaked face, scratched-up hands, and small dislocations there had been an audible sigh of relief–they knew how to fix
those
things.

Now Taryn and Matt sat on a bench in front of the meetinghouse. Lydia's beautiful, rich voice was replaced by someone who still had power but lacked the passion. They listened to her sing the old songs about simplicity, however, and waited. They were both too tired to go to bed, even though they'd been up for more than twenty-four hours.

The story was mostly complete now: Evelyn and Julius had fallen in love (how chaste it was remained a question); Morgan, in either a jealous rage or just plain meanness, had attacked–probably more than once; Evelyn had a baby that didn't survive birth; her brother Edward killed Morgan (either because of the baby or just the attacks); and the two of them left the Believers.

They still didn't know what happened to Julius.

Taryn was a celebrity now, with most of the park workers paying their respects as they sought her out. She didn't know how much they knew about the ghosts or what kind of role they'd played. They had to know a little since most made a point of saying, “At least now we know who our ghost is and why she stays.”

Most of them didn't know about Julius.

“Do you think Morgan will ever leave?” she asked Matt, after Eddie Jay moved on to his horses.

“I don't know,” he answered thoughtfully. “I think he has too much anger, too much resentment. Whatever he had in life has followed him in death. But I don't think he's necessarily a menace to the majority of people who stay here. There's a lot of love, a lot of peace. Eventually that will win out.”

“They're going to bury the little one in the cemetery here,” she said. “I saw the spot. It's a nice one. They let me name him.”

Matt looked at her in surprise. “Really? What did you name him?”

“Matthew Julius,” she replied. “It didn't seem right that he was under everyone's feet all that time and nobody knew him. He at least deserved to have an identity, if not a life.”

The two were quiet now, contemplative. For a moment it was on the tip of Taryn's tongue to say that she was ready to move on, in more ways than one. That maybe what they were doing was more out of habit and obligation than any real love or passion. That they could be soul mates without being together. But the idea terrified her. A big part of her was afraid that by not being with him romantically, she'd lose him permanently, and Taryn didn't think she could face a life without Matt. Taryn knew that comparing him to Andrew and her life with him was wrong. She was trying to stop that. But now even Andrew was becoming a distant memory, something that belonged to another person in another life. Taryn was not the same person she once was. She was changing.

And the way Julius had looked at Evelyn in the schoolhouse...

Matt, for his part, sat next to Taryn and was silent not because he didn't know what to say but because he had too much to say and didn't know where to start. He never wanted to let her out of his sight again, the idea of losing her was soul crushing, the very thought of her was what kept him alive and had since he was a child. He loved her with everything.

But all he could do was start chattering about bourbon balls.

Small footsteps approached them then, and when Taryn looked up she was surprised to see Susan. “Scooch over,” she demanded to Matt. Squeezing in next to Taryn. Susan patted her on the knee. “So, turns out the haunted pond thing wasn't that far off.”

“Who knew?” Taryn agreed. “But what I want to know is how did it even get started in the first place? He wasn't in the pond, sure, but close enough.”

“I suspect someone would've seen Julius with him, if not helped him altogether. My Edward maybe,” Susan theorized. “Or just someone too afraid to speak.”

Taryn nodded, still trying to process.

“I'm afraid I held something back from you the other day,” Susan apologized, reaching into her purse. “If I'd known what I know now I would've shown you then. But there's no time like the present.”

“What is it?” Taryn asked, taking the brittle piece of paper in her hand.

“I think it might answer some questions about Julius, and what happened. Go on, give it a read,” Susan urged her.

Taryn unfolded the paper and began to read aloud.

My Dearest Evelyn,

By the time you read this you will be on your way to your new life with Edward. Regretfully, I will not be able to accompany you.

I have no recollections of a life outside of the village. I was brought here as an infant and this is my home. Although I question my faith daily, I've known nothing else. I have happiness here, and up until some time ago, peace. None of this compares to what I have had with you. If I were a stronger man I would leave and what we have would be enough. I have sinned Evelyn, and cannot comprehend why you should have to settle for someone like myself. I am no longer pure of heart and mind for you and you deserve so much more than I can give.

The child should have been ours, and I must wonder if God wasn't punishing me for not having the strength to protect you. It has to be me, Evelyn, for He could never do such a thing to you. I will love my son and watch for him, although he is not of my flesh and blood.

I fear I am unable to leave with you or live here without you. A fortnight ago the ribbon from your bonnet broke. I caught it and have kept it in my pocket, feeling its presence with me always. I will now hold onto it, for it will most certainly be my admission to whichever afterlife awaits me.

Yours,

Julius

“Do you think he killed himself?” Taryn asked, handing the letter back to Susan.

“I think that's a pretty good assumption. I mean hell, think about it. Here he was a Shaker, someone brought up to believe his hard work and celibacy would be his ticket to Heaven. And now he's had impure thoughts, had a baby he claimed even though it wasn't his, and probably helped clean Edward up after the murder. He might have even taken the heat for it; we don't know. The man was on a downwards spiral. And they weren't real forgiving around here.”

“His death hasn't been recorded,” Taryn pointed out. “So maybe he didn't do it here.”

The three of them sat together now, none of them speaking, each one of them thinking of Julius. Finally, Susan broke the silence. “It's a fine thing what your young man did. I approve.”

Taryn looked up in confusion. “Did what?”

Matt opened his mouth to protest but Susan cut him off. “He bailed your co-workers out. Went down this morning and paid. They got to go home.”

Taryn looked at Matt in shock. His face was beet red and he stared down at his feet, awkwardly kicking at a loose stone. “They were in a bad spot. They needed a break. I just kept thinking about their baby.”

Taryn could barely form the words. Even now, there was so much to Matt she would never know or understand. Words were inadequate so she reached over and took his hand. It was cold and smooth in hers.

“It was a nice thing, Matt,” she said seriously. “I love you for that.”

“He could've drowned himself in the river,” Matt suggested in reply. The women looked at him in confusion, trying to figure out what that had to do with Dustin and Lydia. “Julius? Maybe he jumped in the river. Taryn saw him around there. He couldn've jumped or fallen. Floated downstream. Maybe found by someone else. It would've been a good way to escape, a way to get out without being responsible for leaving.”

“That's so sad. They were all tormented but the Shakers were all he knew. Evelyn could leave because she remembered another life. Julius didn't. He must have felt like he was kicked out of Eden,” Taryn said sadly.

“How about we keep this little secret between the three of us?” Susan proposed. She reached into her purse and took out a tube of bright orange lipstick which she went on to slather expertly across her thin mouth. “You know they'd include the story in one of their damnable ghost tours.”

In spite of herself, Taryn laughed. Matt reached over and squeezed her hand, the firmness of his grasp bringing her back down to earth just a little bit. It was the safest she'd felt in weeks.

FREE Companion Short Story Download

Want to know what Susan REALLY saw at the pond that night? It was an experience that would change her life forever. To download the FREE companion short story,
Pieces
from Susan's perspective, follow the link to enter your email address!

Sign up
HERE
!

Or click the link below:

http://eepurl.com/bspmoH