The Mistresses of Wistmere: A Neo-Gothic Novel

by Rachel Secor

  A noise, like a door slamming, sounded from the hall, startling Selina.

  “I will return when you have need of me,” the strange woman said as she moved swiftly toward the unguarded door.

  “Wait!”

  But May-Jewel was too slow. The door slammed shut before she could reach it and she knew, even before entering the hall, that the woman would be gone by the time she looked for her. With shaking hands, May-Jewel returned to the bed and knelt to inspect the saturated spot on the floor. The odor was unrecognizable, but the intent was not.

  So Selina was real! May-Jewel shivered, recalling the evil she had seen upon the woman’s face. And now she had placed herself in the same jeopardy as Katherine. She had told Katherine that she had believed her when she first spoke about the maid, but she had said it without conviction, said it only to be contrary to Alex’s lack of belief more than anything else. It was disturbing to find out that Katherine hadn’t been lying. What then of the incident in the cottage? And the cemetery? Could Selina have been behind those awful attempts on Katherine’s life?

  “It had to be her,” May-Jewel gasped. “She’s trying to kill Katherine!” Wrapping a shawl about her shoulders, she started to leave the room. But a thought, a horrible thought stopped her in her tracks. Oh, God! Was Alex a part of this whole episode? Was that why there hadn’t been any attacks on her but only on Katherine? What would Alex do now that he knew she didn’t want to take part in any of his kind of ‘solution’ for Wistmere? Would he allow Selina to attack her as well? Trembling, she realized that neither Katherine nor she were safe.

  Chapter Eleven

  The uneven stone walkway gave cause for Garth to hold Katherine’s elbow as they sauntered through the garden.

  “Why didn’t you look at the document from Jameson?” he inquired, holding her firmly.

  “There wasn’t any need to look at it.”

  “Oh, why not?”

  “Because if you’re a fraud, you are likely to be well prepared to establish your claim. You don’t strike me as being a fool, and it would be foolish to come here unless you were completely prepared to face the questions that people like Alex and Mr. Jameson would throw at you. And if your claim is valid, it’s valid. What would looking at a document prove to me?”

  Garth glanced at her, a slight smile rising to his lips. In the moonlight, he thought again that she resembled a fawn, delicate, delicate and innocent, and yet… Was she as innocent as she looked?

  “Does Wistmere mean so little to you that you would just walk away from your inheritance?” He didn’t wait for her to reply, but hurried on. “Pity that Mistress Belwood doesn’t share your sentiments. I shall yet have to play the scoundrel.”

  With her heart scarcely beating, Katherine turned to face him. Had she misread all his silent dark stares? She was sure they were signs of reaching out for understanding from a lonely, bitter man. She looked intensely at him and realized that she had been wrong, that her heart had betrayed her. She was no better than May-Jewel with her fascination for Alex.

  “So, you do intend to cast us out,” she replied as she pulled her elbow free of his hold and resumed the walk.

  “Well, after all, it’s my right,” he said without emotion. After a moment he added, “Though I’m not sure that I would. We shall have to wait for Jameson to arrive to decide your fate. But you didn’t answer me. Could you so freely give Wistmere up at the first obstacle that comes along?”

  She glared at him. “You, sir, are more than just an obstacle. And whether I could or couldn’t give up my birth right is unimportant. You’ll make that decision for me. But then why should I cling to Wistmere? It’s naught but stone built on misery and heartache. Its dark corridors sometimes actually reek with evil.”

  “The manor was built during an evil time, a time of rebellion and secret alliances. It has a dark history…”

  “Mister Craig,” Katherine interrupted, staying her steps. “I don’t really care to hear about the history of Wistmere. I believe it’s structured on broken hearts. Yet I feel Robert owes it to me for all the unhappiness that he caused my mother, and I shall accept it as my home for as long as I can. If it’s not to be mine, I shall return to my previous vocation without many regrets.” She turned and walked away from him, ending the conversation.

  “Without many regrets?” he repeated softly. Garth followed in silence until they reached the gazebo. The moon shone through the trees and its light flooded the garden.

  Katherine peered at the profile of the man as he moved beside her. He didn’t look Scottish. His classic features were more like an artist’s attempt to create the perfect face, blocked and bold. It was a strong handsome face framed with thick, black, untrained hair that spilled over his forehead. But as man is only ten percent image and ninety percent what lies beneath, Katherine wondered what lay hidden in his heart. Why did he treat her so in the cottage? Was it his intent to belittle her, to keep her in her place, to let her know by his aggression that she wasn’t born a lady? In spite of his motives, she was drawn to him. Yet it seemed clear to her that Garth wanted only the estate.

  A cool breeze engulfed her, and she thought to return to the manor. But as she started to move from his side, Garth firmly took her by the wrist and indicated that he wanted her to sit. She relented.

  “Just as all roads lead to Rome,” he brooded, “at Wistmere, all paths seem to lead to this unattractive structure.”

  Frowning, Katherine remarked, “The way you say ‘Wistmere’ sounds as if you hate it.”

  “Hate it and love it,” he quickly replied. “I hate what this place has stolen from me, yet I love the memories of the happier times.” He toyed with the infant tendrils of a vine that had wound its way up the post. His gaze encompassed the structure. “My mother had this gazebo built when I was small to keep me from tumbling into the well beneath it.”

  The leaves of a silhouetted aspen whispered over the distant call of a bird. Garth paused, listening to the twilight. When again he spoke, his voice was cold. “My mother was murdered in that manor by the man who gave me life.”

  Katherine held her breath. In all the talk about Lady Edythe’s death, no one seemed to have given any thought as to how Garth felt when he lost her. His broad shoulders drooped as if the weight of the memories were, at last, too heavy to bear.

  “I’m sorry,” she murmured and, indeed, she was.

  “I apologize for the term relating to my mother’s death but that’s how I see it.”

  “You needn’t apologize. But you mustn’t let the memory of her be soiled by hate either.”

  “I don’t need to tell you that my father was a selfish and immoral man. His lust for women was like a dying man’s thirst, never quenched. But you know that, don’t you? You know how his possessions were allotted just so much time and space in his life but never loved. He was more my mother’s jailer than her husband. And when he couldn’t be here, he had Brice or one of the other servants watch her night and day. Mother became an unhappy woman, and she cried often when she thought I couldn’t hear her.”

  Garth turned to hide his face in the night shadows, and Katherine waited silently for him to continue.

  “The last night of her life, they were arguing in father’s chambers. Though my ear was pressed against the door, I was unable to distinguish clearly what was being said, although I heard my name spoken often. Then I heard her scream, and Mother flew from the room. Father charged after her. When he saw me, he knocked me against the wall. As I lay stunned on the floor, I heard her shriek. By the time I had reached the stairs, Mother’s twisted body lay on the floor of the great hall. And there Father and Charles stood, looking down at her. When Father saw me, he said over and over the words that branded me for life, ‘Why d’you do it, boy? Why d’you do it?’ as if I had pushed her. Her death was recorded as an accident, but I’ve cursed him every day since. I loved her,” he whispered, “and he hated her. So which one of us pushed her?”

  Katherine listened
, beset with sorrow. She thought about what Charles and Molly had said. Garth believed that Sir Robert had killed his mother, and that belief spawned the hate and haunting found in his brooding gray eyes.

  “I understand that Charles’ actions, too, could have been questioned at that time,” she mentioned. As he turned, she saw him frown.

  “Yes, he was there. How much he saw or heard, I don’t know. How much he had to do with it, I don’t know either. But I’m going to find out by questioning the old man.”

  Katherine then repeated what the cook had told her earlier about her suspicions of Charles’ part in Lady Edythe’s death.

  Garth nodded as if he had heard her comments before or had arrived at similar conclusions. “Had I not been so young and had I not been sent away so soon afterwards, I would have proven who was guilty.”

  “Is that why you let everyone think you were dead? So that you could come back and reveal the truth?”

  “Yes and no. I ran afoul of Father in India, and, as a result, the law was also looking to arrest me. My loving Father had sworn out a warrant against me on the grounds of theft. Faking my death was the only escape from them both.”

  “Theft?”

  He shook his head. “Never mind. That’s a story that has ended.”

  She wanted to believe him. His sorrow seemed real enough, as did his hate for his father. Though pretending to be dead seemed like an extreme solution to that situation. It was also so unlike the man that she thought he was. Robert Craig had indeed stacked the cards against his son. She fully understood Garth’s hate for him.

  She looked past him, the manor fully in her view. “But now what will you do about the estate? Are we expected to leave?”

  Garth looked toward the manor also and smiled. “Of course not.”

  Relieved, she smiled in return. “May-Jewel will be happy to hear that.”

  “And you? Are you happy to hear that too?”

  “Yes, I guess I am. I will be satisfied to stay, at least for a while. Although there has been so much injustice done here, Wistmere is, after all, where I was born and raised, although, I, too, have many bad memories. Perhaps now is the time for healing to begin.”

  “What do you mean ‘for a while’? You’ll stay forever.”

  She could see his features in the nocturnal light. He had declared that she would stay as if there wasn’t any arguing or discussion about the issue. Part of her was relieved and part of her was wary. But seeing an encouraging smile spread over his face, she only replied, “Well, we’ll see.”

  He seemed content with that and taking her arm, they returned to the manor.

  Tomorrow, she thought entering the great hall, tomorrow I will tell him about Selina and the cottage.

  * * *

  As she entered her room, she was surprised to see May-Jewel dozing in the over-stuffed chair. She awakened her by gently shaking her shoulder and asked, “What are you doing here?”

  May-Jewel quickly sat up. “I was waiting for you. To warn you. That maid, Selina, was here!”

  “Oh, Lord, you’ve seen her?” Katherine couldn’t help but be overwhelmed and, at the same time, relieved by May-Jewel’s admission.

  “Yes! I’m sorry but I really didn’t believe you when you spoke about her, and then I opened the door and there she was!”

  “What was she doing? Did she say anything?”

  “I came in here after dinner to get away from Alex and when I entered, she was standing by your night table holding a glass of what I thought was water. When she saw me, she dropped the glass and ran.” She pointed to the wet spot. “I don’t think that the contents were just plain water though. And,” May-Jewel added a bit slower, “she now thinks this is my room.”

  “Why does she think that?”

  “Because I told her it was.”

  “But why did you tell her that? She’s apt to show up in your room now! You’ve put yourself in an awful dangerous position. She has to be behind the cottage incident and the one who locked me in the mausoleum. We don’t know what she’ll do next!” She sat down on the bed and bit her lip in apprehension.

  “Well, we know that she drugged your water,” May-Jewel concluded.

  “I have to know where she hides during the day and who’s helping her. How does she move about the manor without anyone knowing it? And remember, Molly said food has gone missing from the pantry. I’m sure she’s the culprit.”

  “You don’t still suspect me of being her partner, do you?” May-Jewel asked, almost afraid of the answer.

  “I kind of thought ‘yes and no’.” Then she added hurriedly when she saw the shock on her sister’s face, “I mean I did until you wrote to Jeremy. Before that, I was suspicious because of your growing attachment to Alex. Oh, you don’t think that maybe she and Alex are in on this together, do you?”

  May-Jewel sat on the bed next to Katherine. She had thought as much herself. Now that she had seen the mysterious woman she could understand Katherine’s actions and her fears. “I’m glad you’ve cleared me of any wrong doing. I’ve been sitting here asking myself, ‘what now’? I don’t have any answers, except that we’d be better off away from here. It’s not our estate any longer anyhow. The only thing is that I don’t want to give up so easily. But, Katherine, Selina presents a real danger. She’s evil. And we don’t know whether that water was simply drugged or if it was poisoned. In any event, I’m going to sleep in here with you, if you don’t mind.”

  Katherine nodded in agreement. “Tomorrow we’ll post our own letter to Neal Jameson and ask him what he can find out about Selina, for he’s the only one we can trust. She had to have arrived on some ship at some port. Somebody has to know something about her. And as for the estate, Garth said that he wouldn’t put us out. Tomorrow I’m going to tell him about everything. Maybe he has an idea of what’s going on. Yes,” she smiled and hugged her sister, “if we stay together tonight, we should be safe enough… for the moment.”

  With May-Jewel in agreement, they prepared for bed.

  “What did you discover about Garth while on your walk?” May-Jewel asked as she slipped under the covers.

  “That he wasn’t responsible for his mother’s death, for one thing, and that we can trust him for another.” She hesitated then confessed, “I think he’s truly Sir Robert’s son and… I’m beginning to really like him.”

  “Like him, like him?” May-Jewel looked at her sister, and seeing the expression on her face, realized exactly what Katherine was admitting. Her mouth opened in shock. “You can’t really like him, like him if he’s your half-brother!”

  Sighing, Katherine said, “I know. But I can’t help it. There’s something about him that is so… so open. He’s so honest about who he really is. And I don’t mean just about his name but about his true self.”

  “You don’t think that he could be lying? That he’s not the type of man you obviously think he is. And regardless of his papers, he could still be an imposter as Alex suspects.”

  “Or he could be an ally with us against Alex and Selina.” She hadn’t meant to link the two in the same breath again but the look on her sister’s face showed her that that thought had occurred to May-Jewel as well. It was a frightening thought. She ended by saying, “We have to trust somebody. I think it should be Garth. He isn’t the one we have to fear. I’m sure he would never harm us.”

  May-Jewel eased back on the pillow. “How can you be so sure?”

  Katherine didn’t answer. Garth walked through her sleepy mind and pushed her fears aside. Hugging her pillow, she closed her eyes and drifted into sleep.

  * * *

  Alex paced the great hall anxious for May-Jewel to come down for breakfast. There wasn’t any doubt in his mind that she was angry. His actions were unforgivable. And as long as there was wine available, his actions were unlikely to change. But he knew that they had to change. He felt sick. The lack of sleep had left him drawn and nervous. It’s useless to wait, he thought. But as he began to leave, he saw May-J
ewel coming down the stairs.

  Seeing him, she turned to retreat.

  “No, May-Jewel, wait! I want to talk with you. Please come down.”

  “I don’t want to talk to you,” she replied, her hands tight on the banister, her face hard and cold. She had decided that even in the daylight, she didn’t trust being alone with him. Yet when she saw his look of despair, she wavered. His hair was mussed and his eyes were bloodshot. His usually impeccable attire was rumpled, and his jacket hung about his sagging shoulders as if it were on an old man. But as imperfect as his appearance was, it was refreshing. She preferred this Alex over the dapper but plotting and drunken one.

  “All right, I’ll come down,” she said, slowly descending the stairs, “but if you make one move to touch me, I’ll scream and inform everyone, including Mr. Jameson, everything that you’ve said and about your transgressions against me.”

  Alex’s tired features hardened. “Those were the actions and words of a man drunk with wine and desire!”

  “Those were the actions and words of a man filled with greed and lust!” She responded angrily. “The only desire you have is to own Wistmere. And that you’ll never do!”

  He looked as if she had slapped him. “I beg you to forgive me for my indiscretion last night. I’m sorry. Please listen to me,” he pleaded.

  May-Jewel silently stared at him. Until that moment, she hadn’t fully realized how strongly she felt about him. “All right, Alex, I’ll listen to you. But it’s unlikely that I will fall into your arms with forgiveness.”

  Alex’s eyes narrowed with torment. “I’ll admit it was my intention to take Wistmere from Katherine… and from you,” he said haltingly, “but that was before, before I came to know you. Now I don’t know what I want. I can’t think beyond your face. With my eyes opened or closed, your face is all I see. I’m sorry I have hurt you.” His extended hand stopped within an arm’s reach of her.