Here we are, mid-September. I don’t know about you, but I could use another month of summer. This week, the Tuesday Tales word prompt is LIVELY. We’re back with Samantha. The forces of evil have been busy! I’m continuing with The Bonds of Time.
Six months later
England
Sam walked into the empty compartment, stowed her backpack on the ledge above the seat, removed her navy wool coat, and sat down. The blast of the whistle indicated that the train was ready to leave the station. The trip would be a short one since the train covered the distance from London to Swindon in less than an hour.
She settled back in the seat and sighed before taking out the note that had brought her to Wiltshire ahead of schedule. Aunt Meg wasn’t happy with her decision, and their discussion had been a lively one, but for what was probably the first time ever, Sam had put her foot down and insisted she would be waiting for her aunt at Keltoi Manor, the family ancestral home that was now hers, and not in a rented flat in London.
She stared down at the paper, an ancient scrap of parchment. As odd as it sounded, it seemed as if the paper emitted its own energy, and her fingers tingled as she held it. When she’d mentioned it to Aunt Meg on the phone after she’d received the note, her guardian had laughed it off as being someone’s idea of a joke, but there had been something in her tone … why would Aunt Meg lie about something like that? It was true that she’d been different since the accident that had killed the girls, her own life only being spared by an attack of appendicitis that had sent her to the hospital in an ambulance and not in the old Volkswagen she’d driven. Then there had been her great-uncle’s accidental death, a man she hadn’t even known existed. His death had made her mother Lady Keltoi, a peer of the realm, something else that had come as a surprise. Sadly, her mother never claimed her title, since within a few days, there’d been an earthquake near the archeological dig in France that had changed Sam’s life forever. She sighed. If only she’d taken Gabe with her. The cat had been a comforting presence these last few months when it seemed as if there was no hope left in her life. Aunt Meg should’ve been here with her. Unfortunately, she’d caught some sort of bug and had been unable to travel. Doctor Astrid had insisted that the cat stay with her since she found great comfort in him—a strange thing to say, but it was true.
Don’t forget to check out the other Tuesday Tales.
Living the Dream 