For the Love of a Special Place

By Shelagh McLeod

Arianna doesn’t remember the unusual event that happened when she was just four years old. But the crow remembers, and ten years later when Arianna is fourteen he returns to her bedroom window. The visit comes as a surprise to Arianna, but at the same time, she knows the crow is there for a reason, and that there’s something she needs to remember.

Then contrary to what she would normally do, she agrees to accompany her mother Marion and Marion’s best friend Meg on a day trip to Crescent Island. They plan to visit the local museum to see its most recent acquisition, the diary of the late Evelyn Manning. The diary relates the story of Evelyn’s father, a farmer who woke up one morning convinced that the Holy Grail was buried on the family farm.

Intrigued by Evelyn’s strange story, Meg, Marion, and Arianna (the crow ever-present in Arianna’s mind and sometimes in the flesh) set out determined to learn more.

• Language: English
• Publisher: BookBaby
• Release date: May 4, 2013
• ISBN: 9781896260853

Book preview

Bluff

PROLOGUE

The crow sat alone in the old white pine wide awake in the warm night air. He could see a light shining, a pale yellow beam peeping from a window in the house across the street from his perch. He took to his wings and flew up to the sill. The window was open. He poked his head in.

A little girl lay sleeping on a flower quilt bed. She was lying on her side her arms holding tight to something that was round and bright. It was hidden beneath a sky blue sheet.

The crow hopped onto the little girl’s pillow. He lifted the top of the sheet with his beak. He almost fell backwards so dazzled was he. A blazing young sun was asleep in the arms of the girl.

The crow rubbed his eyes with his glossy black wings. He hopped back to the open window. He looked out at the moon, almost full, in the sky, then back at the little girl’s bed. I will meet you again, Arianna, he said. And the crow flew into the night.

PART ONE

THE VISIT

The telephone was ringing. It rang several times before Arianna picked it up. Hello, she said.

Hi Arianna, said a voice. It was Arianna’s mother’s best friend Meg. Don’t let your mother forget the book about China, she said, Oh, and we’ll need a bottle of red. I’ve only got white.

I’ll tell her, said Arianna. See you at six, and she hung up the phone and went upstairs to her room.

She was about to pick up the book she was reading when a rustling sound came from the open window. What’s that, she wondered and crossed the room quickly.

A small scream burst from Arianna’s throat as she drew back the white cotton curtain. A large crow was staring in at her.

The crow took quick advantage of Arianna’s stupor to survey the room in behind. He could see the flowered quilt he remembered from so long ago. It was caught in a tangle of sky blue sheets. On the floor there were piles of books and papers, and clothes that had been tossed willy nilly. In the corner, however, in contrast to the mess on the floor, there was a desk made of wood and on its top there was a shiny brass reading lamp. Under the lamp lay a pale yellow notebook. It was open but not yet written in.

The crow looked back at Arianna.

She was kneeling now, more or less, on the very same level as this odd bird who appeared to be checking out her room. Those eyes, she was thinking. So clear. So direct. She felt a little tingle, a warming in her mind as she leaned a little closer without knowing it.

The crow kept his eyes full on Arianna’s. Somewhere, he thought, she’s hidden away the sun she held on that night long ago. But now look! She’s tall. Pretty, in fact. And he had a sudden urge to hop up and sit in her hair.

He didn’t though. There’s work to be done, he said to himself, and he looked at Arianna with such fierce determination that she thought he would speak, command her to act. She was so rapt she almost fell into him. But just in the moment of steadying herself, she saw her own face. It was clearly reflected in the mirror of his gaze. Why, that’s me, she thought, pleased at the sight.

But the crow who was feeling the call of work-to-be-done turned the mirror abruptly away. And without so much as Adieu, he flew back to his treetop home.

* * * * *

The evening at Meg’s was no different from any other with the exception that Arianna felt turned topsy-turvy. The visit from the crow had been quite unexpected. And yet, at the same time, now that it had happened, she knew there was something. A stirring of sorts. It was just out of reach, hiding itself at the back of her mind.

Arianna didn’t say a word about the crow to her mother. Mom would say I’m making too much of an encounter with nature, she thought. And if I don’t tell Mom, I can’t tell Meg, and Dad’s away fishing...

Even Candace, Arianna’s very best friend was away on vacation. On a road trip with her family. But what could I tell her, thought Arianna. The crow came to my window. We looked at one another. Then something happened. I just don’t know what.

Arianna stared blankly at her salad. In her mind she could see how her own face had looked looking back from the eyes of the crow. Such a smile on my face, how happy I looked, she thought, as she chewed on the crisp green lettuce leaves and slivers of radish and cucumber.

When dinner was over Arianna went outside to the backyard patio. There were four cushioned lawn chairs and an arching trellis. Tall purple phlox scented the air. On the chair beside the trellis was Pinko, Meg’s cat. He slept with his left paw covering his face. Arianna sat down in the chair next to his.

The first stars showed faintly in the sky. Crickets thrummed all around. Arianna closed her eyes and listened. A feverish pitch broke for a second. Then one and fifty crickets sang to hypnotic crescendo.

Arianna, said a voice. It was Meg. She was holding a big bag of cat food.

Arianna blinked a little startled.

I just have to feed Pinko, said Meg and she tilted the bag and poured the dry cat food into a small blue bowl.

There was a flash of white as Pinko sprang from his chair. His tail brushed Meg’s legs as he crouched to enjoy his dinner.

By the way, said Meg turning to look at Arianna. Your mother and I made plans for tomorrow. We thought we’d take a trip to the island. Just for the afternoon. Have a picnic. Go for a swim. There’s something I want to see in the local museum. A diary. A woman’s diary. We should all go. Why not? Your father’s away for the rest of the week. You should come.

The words happened so quickly: ‘The island. A diary. All go. The afternoon’. Arianna tried to focus, process what Meg was saying. But in between the words she kept seeing the eyes of the crow. He was watching her keenly waiting to hear what she’d say. I guess I could come, she heard herself say.

Excellent, said Meg. I’ll tell Marion, and she turned and walked into the house.

Arianna stared at Pinko. She felt a jolt of consciousness, a swift coming-to as she realized she had just said yes to a day trip with Meg and her mother. I didn’t even think, she thought to herself. I could have stayed home, had the house to myself, done whatever I pleased. She was genuinely surprised at herself.

THE CROSSING

Meg’s car rounded a bend in the road, then slowed to a stop behind two other cars. On either side the weathered rock ran down to the water’s edge.

Arianna got out and checked the time on her pocket watch. Shouldn’t be long, she said.

In a shallow bay across from the mainland, the ferry sat idle in its berth. To its right was a long forgotten cottage. Two lawn chairs sat empty on the sagging front porch.

Arianna raised her hand to shield her eyes from the glare of the sun. She scanned the island, a bump-up of rocky land glinting pink in the sunlight. Little oases of sumach and juniper dotted the landscape while well in-behind and hidden from view there were clusters of wild blueberry bushes.

The ferry boat engine sputtered into life and the big boat lurched forward chugging its way to the mainland. The distance was so short that Arianna could see the crewmen on deck. One of them was smoking. The other crew member was holding the heavy steel chain that would secure the big boat to the landing dock, a square cut of rock on the mainland side.

The ferry boat drew closer. The captain cut the engine and the pace of the boat slowed as it drifted toward the landing site. When it entered the square cut of rock it bumped up against a thick line of tires before coming to a rocking stop.

Arianna got back into Meg’s car. The heavy steel ramp was lowered and fitted into place so it bridged the short gap between land and water. Two pick-up trucks, a shiny new red one and a battered up black one, drove off the ferry.

Then the crewman who’d worked to secure the chain waved his hand forward directing the first car into the left lane. The second car went straight while Meg drove her car into the right lane stopping well back from the chain that was strung across the far open end of the ferry. Behind them the steel ramp was raised and the engine re-started. The ferry boat lurched forward. They were off to the island.

Arianna looked out through the open car window. The water was calm, the sky serene and intensely blue. She was glad she had come with her mother and Meg. They were chatting in the front, keeping to themselves, leaving her free to think her own thoughts, most of which concerned the crow.

He scared me at first, she was thinking. My heart skipped a beat, and she remembered the moment of losing her balance. l almost fell into him. We almost bumped heads. He didn’t even move. He didn’t blink an eye. His face was so poker straight. She opened her mouth to laugh at how funny he’d looked but she closed it up instantly remembering, in time, her mother and Meg. But they didn’t stop chatting.

That was a close call, thought Arianna. I can’t sit here laughing out loud to myself. I have to act normal, and she straightened her posture and peered through the windshield. The island was right in front of her. The ferry