The Apparition of Shadewoods Manor

The Apparition of Shadewoods manor

by: Markee Jones

My dearest sister,

             The journey was long and tiresome, but as I stepped out of the carriage and faced the manor that would be my new home I felt my spirits soar and my bones rejuvenate.

             Shadewoods Manor stands nestled deep in the hills making it quite an adventure to get here, though I do hope you will muster up the courage to visit me someday soon. Mr. Wright informed me that we don’t get very many visitors, even the local pastor only makes the trip once a month to perform his duties for the household.

             Oh Agatha! Whatever will I do without the company of society! I do love my Edward but without the company of female acquaintances I am likely to lose any sense of fashion in my seclusion! You absolutely must promise to tell me of any new trends as soon as you are able or run the risk of having a decidedly unfashionable twin!

With all my love,

Mrs. Edward Wright

P.S. There are no words that can convey the joy I feel to finally sign my name as my Edward’s wife it is a far more intriguing name than Mary Williams ever was. I am happy to start my life as a wife and mistress of my own household.

My dearest sister,

             Shadewoods Manor is splendidly beautiful! There is a perfect symmetry that makes the building pleasing to observe, and I must admit, also intimidating. But even with the beautiful architecture and gabled roofs, the true intimidation comes from the range of ridges that loom over the manor like a vulture over its prey.

That is so grim!

I will certainly have a row of flowers planted in the front to brighten the atmosphere and make the manor generally more cheerful. Perhaps this improvement will bring around visitors, as well.

It is not all gloom though, the windows in the courtyard, of which there are twenty-one by my count, are pointed and crossed by the same stone that the house is made from giving it the look in one of those manors in those books we used to read together. There is a moment just after lunch when the sun shines on the windows and make it brilliantly bright in the courtyard!

The interior of the manor is anything but a warm inviting hearth and it is clear now that my poor Edward was in terrible need of a wife. The fireplaces are cold and the quiet that encases the manor is eerie. I’ve attempted to remedy this by having the fires lit early each morning and again just before supper. Any attempt of mine to improve the quietness has been met by failure at every turn.

It is quite unlike our family home. I never thought I would see the day when I would actually miss the antics of little Harry and Roland!

There are some days that I feel as though I am walking through a crypt rather than the rooms of my home. The servants are silent, barely uttering a word above a whisper, but only when they find the need! I had once fancied that I heard a giggling maid, but when I turned the corner there was no one to be seen. When I told my Edward about it, he told me that it was only my imagination, or perhaps one of the younger maids playing a lark.

I am inclined to believe him and put all the silliness out of my mind.

With much love,

Mary Wright

My dear sister,

             There is no putting it out of my mind now! There is something strange about this place.

Last night, no matter how I tossed and turned, I couldn’t fall asleep. In an effort to put my mind at rest I decided to walk around the halls. I thought that the quiet would be peaceful but it would seem that this place is impossibly more eerie at night.

I took to wandering the quiet halls, a lone candle in a shadowy and solitary world. I remembered how when we weren’t able to sleep as children Mother would read from the Brothers Grimm’s fairytales. Only after she read through a few would we be calmed enough to fall asleep.

With this hope I held the candle, I had brought from my bedside table, higher and made my way to the library. The library was just as quiet as the rest of the manor, but the high ceilings and the deep walls added a cavernous chill. I had to hold my shawl close to me to keep from shivering as I searched the shelves.

             I was perusing near the tall windows facing the small garden and the vast forest that stood behind Shadewoods Manor. When something caught my eye, a shimmer of white drifting through the trees!

             I watched it move with fascination, it was like a lady’s handkerchief caught up by a gentle breeze. The moonlight caught the flowing folds of the white shift as it moved through the trees. I pressed my palms against the cold glass of the window and watched the figure be swallowed in the black abyss.

             I beg you to send your assurance that I am as sane as I was prior to coming to this frighteningly beautiful manor.  

With love,

Mary Wright

My dear sister,

             I don’t have a clue what I had seen in the woods that night, but there had to be an explanation that was not so terrifying. I took my morning to investigate the woods from where I saw the figure disappear.

             The woods were not nearly as scary as in the pitch blackness of last night, but it still held all the strangeness of the night before. The further I went into the woods the more goose pimples rose onto my arms.

             I was overtaken by shivers when from between the trees a tall stone structure rose up in what at some point must have been a grand church. As I admired the ruins of the structure, I stumbled over something and fell to me knees. I looked over my shoulder and it would seem that I had wandered into a forgotten graveyard.

             I trekked through the overgrowth to the front of the church. It resembled the open maw of some mythical beast. A breeze whistled out of the gapping doorway and brushed against me like the pasting of a ghost.

             A feeling of fear gripped at my heart and I felt all the urgency in the world to get away from the place and back to the safety of home. Sister, I can’t decide if that means my husband’s home or my Father’s home.

With love,

Mary Wright

Dear sister,

             Please don’t be ashamed of me. I have to leave this place! Ever since the day I found the abandoned church in the woods a constant chill has taken over my body and I am covered in gooseflesh. Edward has pulled me away from the fireplace on several occasions to keep the flames from catching on the folds of my dress.

             But now Edward has left the manor to attend to some business and fetch the physician on the way, I had hoped that he would have stayed. There is something about this house that watches my every move, perhaps it’s the house itself. I’m starting to question if the in an impeding danger waiting with bated breath for my guard to drop.

             I know it sounds like madness, but you must believe me Agatha. I must leave here and escape from all this strangeness. I intend to leave at the week’s end and join my Edward or perhaps I will return to Father’s home.

             Either way, I cannot stay here!

Love,

Mary

Dearest Mary,

             Whatever has happened to you? It has been two months since your last letter, and I have not heard anything more since then. I am getting worried and our parents are completely beside themselves.

             What had changed in your plans? You had said that you were going to join Mr. Wright while he was attending to business, but when Mr. Wright came by looking for you, I knew that something must have gone wrong.

             My dear sister, where in heaven or on earth are you? I can only hope that where you are, you have found safety.

With fondness,

Agatha Williams

Word count: 1397