Hidden Voices (Tess Schafer-Medium)

by Deborah Hughes

  Barbara glanced at Kade with an open mouth, her eyes narrowing in suspicion that he was pulling her leg. She turned to me. “Did that really happen?” She wagged a finger in warning. “Don’t you dare leave anything out. I want to know it all.”

  “Theatrics. Spirits sometimes do those things and I’m not sure why but it does seem to generate excitement when it happens. Maybe they are hoping to validate their presence.” I gave a dismissive shrug because it wasn’t things like that which I found important. It was the message the spirits were trying to convey that interested me more. “I’m not sure what he wanted me to know and I only hope I can figure it out.”

  “Is this spirit someone different from the one at the Tenney house? It doesn’t have anything to do with Buck’s curse does it?” Barbara finished her coffee and pushed her cup to the side so she could lean on her arms. “You didn’t get any message at all?”

  “Well, I think the message is that there is a message and I need to keep trying to figure out what it is.” I finished my coffee as well and pushed my empty cup towards Barbara. “Is there any more coffee?”

  “Yes, of course. I’ll bring out a carafe.” Barbara stood up and then paused to wag her finger at me. “Don’t think this conversation is over.”

  Barbara had no sooner disappeared into the kitchen when we heard the front door open and Max whine with excitement. A series of dog nails clicking on the floor and the jingle of dog collars told me that Rid had Teddy with him. A second later my suspicion was confirmed. Teddy waddled quietly into the dining room alongside Rid and Max followed close behind looking quite pleased to be having some company of his own kind.

  Kade and I stood up as Rid entered and I gave him a hug as soon as he was close enough for me to do so. “Nice to see you again, Rid.” I waved toward Kade. “This is Kade Sinclair. Kade, this is Rid Truman”. The two men shook hands and then Barbara bustled back into the room, her face breaking out into a welcome smile.

  “Good morning, Rid! Please, come around here and sit next to me.” She glanced down at the dogs and then looked at us. “Do you mind if we break the rules and let them stay in the dining room while we eat? Neither of them begs so they shouldn’t bother you.”

  “Of course we don’t mind, Barbara. I always let Tootsie stay with us while we were eating. And she did beg.”

  Barbara smiled her thanks and patted Rid’s shoulder. “Sit down here next to me, I’ll bring in the food and we can eat in just a jiff.” She waved off my offer to help. “Stay right there, this is my job.”

  Within no time at all we were enjoying a full breakfast of home fries, fluffy scrambled eggs, homemade toast, crispy bacon and corned beef hash, which we soon learned, was Rid’s favorite. Conversation was confined to food at first but then once we were settled into our meal, Barbara wiggled her fingers for me to continue where we left off. “Please continue with what happened at Dawn’s.”

  Rid looked up from his plate and met my eyes with concern. “Did something happen to Dawn?”

  Barbara waved off his concern. “She held a séance and the ghosts moved their chairs around and made shadow dances on the floor!” Though Barbara was clearly in awe, I could also tell she would never agree to having a séance in her house.

  One of Rid’s bushy gray brows lifted. “Really? Was it Night Rowan?”

  “No. Possibly a relative though.” I wished I knew. Sometimes it was more than frustrating to get messages that weren’t very clear.

  “You don’t know? Did Dawn have any idea?” Rid no doubt was thinking about his own experience with his wife. For him there was no question as to whose spirit was near when she was about.

  “It’s a big man and although I know that Dawn’s husband was a big man, similar in build to Adam, it wasn’t him. I had a strong impression that something unpleasant happened in that house many years ago.” And just like that, like a sudden pinch to the heart, I wondered if the unpleasant thing involved the girl at the graveyard this morning?

  Rid was thoughtful for a long moment. He concentrated on his corn beef hash and as if by mutual consent, we all remained just as quiet. Finally he set down his fork, rested his elbows on the table and steepled his bony fingers. “It could be that unpleasant things happened there. The house has been around a long time. A lot of unpleasant history has taken place in this town after all.”

  I wanted to know what Rid knew because I was sure he knew a lot more than Dawn. “You said that Dawn would know a lot of history about her house but it would seem that is either not accurate or she’s forgotten. When we tried to think about who the spirit could be, she was as clueless as the rest of us.” I thought about my experience at the fireplace when I was held in the grip of the spirit. Unease rippled through me at the memory. I could feel my back prickling and hoped that talking about this wasn’t going to lure spirits into joining us. It would scare Barbara, upset the dogs and to be honest, I just wasn’t up for it at the moment.

  Rid gave a thoughtful frown, thinking. “It could be that Night didn’t tell her everything.” He gave me a considering look. “We were good friends, Night and I. Both of us went to school together and grew up here in town.” He paused for a moment then sighed and I knew he was about to tell us something he hadn’t planned on sharing. “I was sweet on Dawn when we were kids but she had eyes only for Night. I think they were a match made in heaven because he never looked at anyone but her.” Rid shook his head in obvious regret for his past actions. “I didn’t care. I tried everything to woo her away from him. It nearly destroyed our friendship.” Rid gave a heavy sigh. “I always thought Night was too big and silent for her but, well, I guess when they were alone it must have been different.” Rid shook his head in a manner that said he still didn't quite understand it. “Night was such a serious person. I think he was born with the weight of the world on his shoulders.”

  “Do you know much of his family history, Rid?” Maybe if I knew more about Night and his connection to the town, I could figure out other things.

  “Well now, the Rowan family history is an interesting one. Night’s ancestors were actually already settled in Bucksport long before Buck and his cohorts laid claim to the land. Night knew that some of his ancestors were Native American but he never did learn from what tribe they hailed. He suspected it might be the Penobscot Indians but that was just a guess.” Rid paused here to take a sip of his coffee and pull his thoughts together.

  “What Night did know was that one of his great, great, heck if I know how many greats to add, grandfathers was a fur trader from Canada by the name of Pierre Rowan. He was French of course. It was he who brought Night’s Indian heritage into his lineage for he married a girl who was half-Indian by the name of Meadow. Her father was a Native American, and it was him that Night thought might be from the Penobscot Tribe. He went by the American name of Rad Rivers and he somehow ended up marrying an English woman by the name of Ruth.”

  Rid glanced around at each of us. “You understand that sort of thing, settlers marrying Indians...it wasn’t quite favorable back then?” He waved a dismissive hand. “I couldn’t care less about that stuff but there were some powerful feelings towards the Indians back in the day. A lot of prejudice.” Rid shook his head in obvious puzzlement for this sort of sentiment then waved a hand to dismiss his gloomy retrospection.

  “Poor Night tried to trace Rivers’ lineage but couldn’t do it. There’s nothing. So he took a guess that he might be from the Penobscot Indian tribe.” Rid looked skeptical of that guess. “What he did learn was how Rad Rivers got his name. He was an advisor to the settlers and Rad is old English for advisor so it was a logical fit. Night guessed his last name came from his extensive knowledge of the all the rivers scattered around the New England territories. All we really know about them is that he and Ruth married in Massachusetts then traveled here to Bucksport and settled in the area shortly before Buck and crew arrived to survey it for development.”

  Rid paused to take a bite of his food, chewed it for a thoug
htful moment then sipped his coffee to wash it down. “Rad laid claim to the land where the Rowans live and he was allowed to keep the property. Not sure if you know, but land was divided among the prominent folks who arrived with Buck. They had to fulfill certain requirements to receive the land, of course. One of them being they had to build a house and another to support the township. The Rowans’ property has been passed from son to son to son until it landed in Night’s possession.”

  “You said the town folk didn’t like mixed races. Did that cause problems for the family?” Kade asked.

  Glad to see Kade getting sucked into the story, I spared him a quick glance. Aware of my scrutiny, he glanced my way and offered a wink before returning his focus to Rid. Why is it that a wink can make someone feel so nice? As for his interest in what Rid was saying, well I could understand that well enough. History was fascinating. The good, the bad and all that resulted from both.

  “Probably not at first. Rad Rivers became a valuable advisor to the new settlers and he was quite respected. Despite the initial peace, however, the Indians eventually began to stir up trouble as you can imagine. People were flocking to America and taking what they wanted. The Indians were given little to no consideration. I really don’t know much about Rivers to be truthful. There is very little written about him. Most of what I know came from Night and what he knew was passed down through his family.” Again Rid paused to enjoy a few more bites of his food. The rest of us remained quiet so as to not interrupt his train of thought.

  “The understanding back then was that the Indians would be allowed certain areas of property in exchange for their help. They knew the area well. Unfortunately, hostilities grew and peace broke down often between various tribes. Because Meadow’s father was respected by Buck and the other men of the town, she was accepted to a degree. Some people, as you can imagine, probably had a hard time with it.”

  Kade leaned on the table and looked at Rid curiously. “How is it you know so much about the Rowan’s family history?”

  Rid lifted a gray brow, amused by the question. “I'm a history buff. I worked at the library here in town until I had to retire and I read a lot. I’ve read quite a bit of material concerning this town. In fact, at one time I was going to write a book but then decided to scrap the idea. Night found out about it and had a fit. Our relationship was already strained and I didn’t want to make it worse so I just dropped it.”

  “Did Night know all that you know?” Dawn knew some of it, of course, but would she be interested in learning more? Would Mary and Adam? As for me, I would love an opportunity to learn about my family history. Something I actually knew very little about. A shame, that. I made a mental note to correct that oversight sometime in the near future.

  “Yes he did. We discussed it many times over the years. Night was proud of his heritage. As for how much of it he shared with his wife and kids, I cannot say. Night was a very quiet, private man. Me, on the other hand, I used to talk his ear off about it. Especially as my family has been here among the town founders almost as long as his.”

  “So do you know of any tragedies being attached to the Rowan family?” Was it Meadow who I connected with at Buck’s grave?

  “There is tragedy in every family.” Rid went silent for a moment and I knew that he was thinking, dredging up memories. “Meadow and Pierre had a son named Kip but their daughter became something of a mystery.”

  At this point, my heart started pounding like a mini-sledge hammer on overdrive. “Why is that?”

  Rid shrugged and shook his head. “She just sort of disappeared. In fact, there isn’t a lot mentioned about her at all. We know from the birth registry that she was the Rowan’s first born and was several years older than her brother Kip. I don’t know how old she was when she died or even how and where she died. As I said, there isn’t much known and I’m not sure what made me think of it now.”

  Kade was trying to connect things as well. I felt him touch my leg under the table and turned to look at him. I could see the silent question in his eyes. Was she the spirit who came to me at the graveyard?

  I answered in the same manner, telling him with a look that I didn’t know. I leaned on the table toward Rid, fully engaged in the conversation and excited to learn more. “Do you know her name?”

  “Now here again, I’m not sure but I think it was Isabelle.”

  The name was so unexpected that I couldn’t stop the gasp of surprise as I felt the blood drain from my face. Kade grabbed my hand and squeezed it. “What?”

  “That story I’ve been working on? Her name is Isabelle.”

  “What story?” Rid asked, his eyes sharp with curiosity.

  “I’ve been writing a story that just comes to me as I type. I think it’s a way for me to connect with past events. I’ve been writing about an Indian girl whose name was Isi but when she was taken by a couple settlers, they named her Isabelle.” The problem here was that the Isabelle Rid was talking about was born to a French father and a woman who was only half-Indian. The Isabelle in my story was a full blooded Indian. That profile didn’t fit my character at all. And yet, I knew there was a connection. But what?

  Barbara was clearly interested in my story and I could see from her expression she wanted to know more. Her next question confirmed it. “What do you mean the story just comes to you?”

  I shrugged in response because it was so hard to explain. “I just feel inspired to write and I sit down to my laptop and start typing. The story just comes to me as I go.”

  “So tell us about this story.” Barbara urged, clearly fascinated.

  “There isn’t much to tell. This Indian girl named Isi is taken by a couple settlers by the name of Nina and Giles. She travels with them to their home…and where that is, I don’t know…and that’s as far as I’ve gotten with the story.”

  “Why did they rename her Isabelle?” Rid asked.

  “Nina and Giles were hiding her identity because she was an Indian.”

  “So what happened to her?” Barbara asked.

  “As I said, I’ve not written much. They have just arrived at the home of Nina and Giles. I have no idea what happens to her and won’t until I write more.”

  “Fascinating.” Rid looked at me as if I were an enigma. I took no offense. Sometimes that is how I felt too. I felt like an enigma.

  “Do you think Isabelle’s demise has something to do with Buck’s curse?” Kade asked.

  “There must be a connection.” I looked at Rid hopefully. “Do you know anything more about her?”

  Rid shook his head with regret. “I’m sorry but I don’t. As I said, I’m not even sure what made me think of it now. All I know is that there was a lot of tension between the Rowan family and other town folks, especially after the fiasco with the British. When they came to burn down the town after the disaster in Castine, the Rowan’s family home was not touched. That may have been because of their connection to the Indians but who knows? In any case, there was some resentment.”

  “But your home was spared too, Rid,” I pointed out. “Were the town’s folk upset with your family as well?”

  Rid smiled. “Not that I’m aware of. My great-grandfather several times over was handicapped during the Revolutionary War. He couldn’t participate in the Naval attack on the British in Castine and neither could his son for he was the only male in a family of five daughters. He was needed at home to help protect the family. When the British troops stormed the town, those who declared loyalty to the crown were spared. Since my ancestors couldn’t move to safety as so many had done, they had to stay and hope for the best. Declaring loyalty to the British crown didn’t seem too unreasonable a request especially as it was an empty oath.” Rid shrugged. “One must do what one must do to survive.”

  “Do you think resentment towards the Rowan family was more geared toward their Indian ancestry?” Kade asked.

  Rid gave the question some consideration and it seemed he was trying to decide if agreed with it or not. After a lo
ng pause, he finally shrugged his bony shoulders. “Although that sounds logical, I just can’t say for sure. What I know has been gleaned from various documents and letters I’ve been privileged to read and from what my grandfather and Night’s passed down to us.” Rid gave his answer some more thought. “Night was determined to learn more about Isabelle and what happened to her but there’s nothing written about it that he could find.”

  “His family didn’t have any stories that they passed down concerning the matter?” Although I knew it wasn’t typical for families these days to share information concerning their ancestry, I still hoped that maybe a rumor had survived. It would at least give me something to go on.

  “Some things are left unsaid within family circles, especially if they are many generations removed. Lots of information gets lost over time. I don’t know what happened to Isabelle but I’ve a feeling it wasn’t anything good. There is no grave for her that I’m aware of.”

  That statement gave me a sudden, brilliant idea. “Where are the Rowans buried? Are they in the same graveyard as Buck and his family?”

  “Good Lord, no. Despite the respect Rad Rivers held among the town folk, his family was buried outside town, near Silver Lake.”

  I knew that Silver Lake was not far from the town epicenter. It was the largest lake in the area. “Do you know where, Rid? Can I get to it? Are the graves marked?”

  Rid scratched his balding head. “There’s a graveyard located just before you get to the lake on the right. Just follow Lakeview Drive and you’ll see it. Where exactly the Rowan family is buried, I can’t say for that is something I never cared to check out.”

  I looked at Kade and knew he interpreted my message without difficulty. We would be paying that graveyard a visit during some point of our day.

  Barbara’s eager gaze had focused on each of us as we talked. She paid close attention to what was being said and as soon as there was a lull in the conversation, she jumped in. “So tell me more about the séance.”