7 of 7 A Modern Day Fairy Tale

By E Perkins

This fantasy brushes the mystical while exploring how people act and react to the searing pain of rejection, stereotyping and physical abuse. It is based on a wealthy family in which the father sets in place the chain of events that fuels this story. Because he is a seventh son of a seventh son, the father uses his psychic powers to control people which is the key to his success and immense wealth. The father's perfect family is to be seven sons and one daughter as were the families of his forefathers. However, he begins to believe that his wife may be a part of an "evil" plot against him. He feels that she violates this tradition by bearing two additional children - a talented eighth son and a dazzlingly beautiful second daughter. The father’s first reaction to the daughter is to separate the eighth son from the mother and the new infant. Unknown to the father, the eighth son as an older child finds his mother and sister. After the passing of several years, the mother dies mysteriously. The eighth son molests his sister thinking misguidedly that sex is love. When the eldest daughter discovers the unholy liaison between the two, the father casts them out of his mansion. The father realizes several years later that their expulsion was not the cure against the "evil" he believes to be pursuing him. He learns belatedly that his trouble is from an unsuspecting source very close to him.

• Language: English
• Publisher: E Perkins
• Release date: Jan 5, 2014
• ISBN: 9781310359118

E Perkins

A native and current resident of Indianapolis, Indiana, I have spent my life working in several different cities in the US. Ever the wandering adventurer, I did a brief stint in the US Army, which took me to Germany. By profession I am a Librarian, M.LS. Indiana University, 1973. I have had several careers including college cataloger, system analyst, project expeditor and many more. My motto was "I'm a Jane of many trades and pretty good at a few". Now retired, I spend my time reading, writing, hiking, doing yoga and for additional spice I work seasonally at the Indiana State Fair.

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7 of 7

A Modern-Day Fairy Tale

By

E Perkins

Smashwords Edition

Copyright 2014 E Perkins

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Ebook formatting by www.ebooklaunch.com

For

Ruthie Cooper

Wilma June and Thomas Sarver

Table of Contents

I. The Room In the Turret

II. Mother

III. Sins

IV. Out In the Cold

V. Jena At the Convent

VI. Jeremy In the Big City

VII. Jena's Family

VIII. Jeremy's Family

IX. Reunion

X. Jeremy's Love

XI. Home Again - Jena

XII. Jesse's Story

XIII. An Unlikely Visitor

XIV. Rosalee

XV. I Am the Omega

Epilogue

The Room In the Turret

Once upon a time in the not too distant past in a country called America, there was a boy named Jeremy. Jeremy lived in a little room. He had no idea how long he had lived there.

The ceiling in the little room was very high and pointed. A tiny leaded window allowed the sun and moon to enter. They were his friends who entertained him endlessly with brilliant colorful showers radiating a spectrum of hues.

The room was furnished quite simply. A small bed wedged in one corner, a bookcase four shelves high that housed a few books and his drawing material. A table with a lamp and two chairs occupied the opposite corner. There had not always been two chairs. Nanny brought the other one so that they both could sit at the table. In the center of the room was a round fuzzy rug.

Adjoining the room was a bathroom and dressing closet that held a small chest of drawers for his underpants, tee shirts, and socks. Also, in the chest were seven pairs of denim pants of different colors, one for each day of the week Nanny had told him. He had three pairs of sneakers. He later figured out that there must be double the number of underpants, tee shirts, socks, and pants because every Monday Nanny exchanged his soiled linen, towels and clothing with a fresh supply.

Why? Simply and bafflingly, why? Why was he here? His tear stained face often strained upward in search of an answer from Nanny. There was never an answer. There was just a far away stare in her eyes. With her small chubby hands she would wipe his tears away.

Nanny was very pleasant almost jolly but not quite. It was as if her jolly had been removed and a pleasant shadow was all that remained. Her gray and black hair was always tied in a very tight bun that looked like it could be swatted like a tennis ball off her head. Short and plump, Nanny was surprisingly agile and light on her feet. So any attempt to dash pass her as she entered his room was rapidly aborted.

Since age and time were meaningless to him, he never thought to ask Nanny her age or even his. He only knew that the duller moon followed the bright sun. Sometimes the moon chose not to come out and play which made it mysterious and a little exciting because sometimes it could be very bright. But the moon was never as bright as the sun. And the light of the sun always came even on gray, rainy or snowy days.

Jeremy was a naturally thin child and the meager meals did not help. He really hated it when Nanny cut his thick curly dark ruby hair. He could not understand why all the hair cutting and scrubbing his scalp was necessary. You'll look like a wild child with nothing but hair and a face! He did not know what a wild child was but it must be pretty bad judging from the scowl on Nanny's usually pleasant face.

Nanny taught him reading, writing, and math as well as how to keep himself and his area clean. Heaven forbid that he become that horrible person called a wild child.

While Nanny was a tough taskmaster, he was always happy to see her. She only came five days. On weekends, food was pushed in to him through a minute opening at the bottom of the door. A harsh voice always instructed him to push it back through when he was done.

One of Jeremy's favorite things to occupy his time was to draw. At first he drew in the backs of books. Lines, lines, at different angles, lines shaded, lines thin, lines thick, lines intersecting, lines. When Nanny discovered his talent, she brought from her own meager salary two art books and drawing paper for the child. She knew that Jeremy's father would never allow such a luxury.

How long this monotonous life would have continued no one will ever know. One moonless night, Jeremy for lack of something better to do decided to move his furniture around. If nothing else he could tell Nanny that he was cleaning.

Jeremy never got further than moving his bed. For a little cot, it was heavy. He had to move it one end at a time. When he finally got it away from the wall, he discovered a large grate covering what looked to be a small tunnel, not high enough to stand but certainly big enough to crawl. There was a dim light that shown at the other end.

He did not know where it led but curiosity got the better of him. Screws worn over time loosely held the grate. The bed almost held it in place. Holding his breath, he lowered the grate. There was surprisingly little dust on the floor and the wall of the tunnel. Now he was shaking with excitement. Where did this lead? What would he find? Unable to contain himself any longer, Jeremy slid into the tunnel.

Except for the dull light at what appeared to be the end, it was dark inside. On his knees and hands, he crawled slowly and quietly towards the light. The tunnel slopped down very gradually. Jeremy prayed that it would not drop rapidly down and he would not be able to get back to his room. Happily the tunnel had several turns from the main one where he was crawling that seemed to drop down almost like stairs. Intent on finding the source of the light straight ahead of him, Jeremy kept going past the dark turns.

He felt like he had been crawling forever and his body was aching from his cramped crawl but he had to see what was ahead. Suddenly the tunnel dropped more and became a little larger. Still he moved as quietly as a cat. The space was large enough for him to seat himself comfortably in front of a very small grate. He had found the source of the light.

Carefully and quietly Jeremy eased himself into the space in front of the grate. He could hear laughter and people talking. He pressed his face against the grate to discover that he was looking down upon a very large room.

The light came from the most gorgeous thing he had ever seen. It had what appeared to him to be hundreds of crystals; each one projecting light and shooting a rainbow is every direction. It dangled from the ceiling like a private sun controlling a universe of color.

Reluctantly, Jeremy dragged his eyes from the light and began to focus on the room. The wood parquet floor shone brilliantly golden under the light. Sitting majestically on the floor was a large table. Jeremy gasped at its length; it was easily five or six times longer than his room. Intricate carvings graced each of the many legs of the table as well as the tall chairs with red cushions.

On one side of the room were beautiful floor to ceiling windows, draped with exquisite red velvet curtains pulled back to reveal through the fragile sheers the elegant windows. On the other wall were mirrors reflecting the light, the windows, the table, chairs and the people who sat in those chairs.

Slowly Jeremy began to look at the people. They must be what Nanny had shown him in the books to be a family. He looked to the head of the table because according to the books that was where the Father would be. Rapidly running his eyes to the head of the table, Jeremy gasped again. The most beautiful creature that he could imagine greeted his eyes.

He was awesome. Looming at the head of the table, his height seemed to be immeasurable. His muscles were sculpted as if fresh from the chisel of a skilled artist. The body was in perfect balance, arms and legs moving in complete harmony. His bronze skin was unblemished and tightly stretched across his muscles. The hair of thick dark ruby curls was streaked with the finest silver that looked like it could have been stolen from Mercury's winged heels. Without a doubt, Jeremy knew this was the Father.

Eagerly wanting to see the Mother Jeremy shot his eyes to the other end of the table. To his consternation, there was not a Mother there but a young boy, not much older than he. The boy shared the same commanding presence as the Father. He was as handsome as the Father. His thick curly dark ruby hair cascaded past his shoulders unlike his father and brothers. Not only did this separate his appearance from them, it gave him an otherworldly aura.

He looked at the boys on each side of the table. All of them were older that the one at head. All of them were as handsome with thick curly dark ruby hair, bronze skin and well-honed muscles.

Stunned Jeremy held his own scrawny hands out in front of him. He looked at his bony arms and legs. Even without looking he knew he did not have the healthy bronze glow as those at the table. He touched his hair and realized this was the only trait he shared with them, which was why Nanny was constantly cutting his curly mane. It removed the link between them and him. In his innocent child's mind the reason he had been banned to the little room occurred to him. He was ugly and they were ashamed of him. He looked at them again confirming his ugliness.

Then he saw a different child sitting next to the Father who was very plain; a pale, sharp and angular face saved only by the massive mop of thick curly dark ruby hair that flowed pass its waist. Why was this child allowed? To him it looked really ugly. Why? Through the tears, that silently began to sting his face, he looked at it again. Then without warning the answer arrived. This must be a girl. This was why the hair was much longer and the clothes were different.

Again the child's mind created an answer. Sooo, it must be okay for girls to be ugly. It really must be because he watched the smile and love in the Father's touch to her cheek. Jeremy rubbed his own check trying to capture a tiny morsel of the Father's warm touch.

Weary, he could not watch any longer. His mind was a torment of images and impressions. Quietly he crawled back to the empty despair of his room. He collapsed onto the bed without moving it back over the tunnel opening.

The next morning Jeremy decided to return the bed to its original position. Although his first outing was very painful, the contact with other people was intriguing and oddly comforting. He left the grate off to the side of the opening so that he could slip into the tunnel without having to move the bed.

He was very careful to make sure that there were no telltale marks about the bed that would betray his newfound freedom. He told himself that he could not let Nanny know anything about the tunnel. He could not have it taken from him.

He wanted to learn more about them. Maybe, just maybe he could find a way to become a part of the magnificent family. He wanted to find the Mother. She could be accessible through one of the other tunnels. He remembered passing two possibly three. Even in his pain he was experiencing an entirely new emotion, hope. It flooded him with all kinds of possibilities.

Nanny noticed that there was something new about the boy, a kind of excitement of one who has a secret. However, she decided it was just that he was getting older. She pushed the feeling aside continuing with the routine.

In the course of the next month Jeremy made several trips down the tunnel to the grand room. He had learned all of their names. Jacob V was the name of the Father. The girl was Jane. The young boy who sat opposite the Father was Jacob VI. The rest of the boys were James, John, Jeremiah, Josiah, Joseph, and Jason. They were always seated in the same order with Jane on the right side of the Father and James on the left. James must be the oldest because he looked bigger and stronger.

Jeremy wrote the names down and spent time looking at them. Why were the names so intriguing? James, John ... J. All of the names began with J even his. Wow! Maybe, maybe he would be allowed to join them. Maybe he was confined to the tiny room until he grew strong and beautiful like them.

Just when his pain was beginning to have meaning and his hope the greatest, as he sat from his high perch listening and watching, he heard the words, seven of seven. These words forever echoing in his mind would separate him from the family he so sincerely wanted to make his own.

Jeremy heard them one night after finishing his own meager meal; he was making himself comfortable in the little window when he saw Jane smile radiantly at her father. Tell us again Father about seven of seven, pleaseee.

The beautiful man looked long at his homely little daughter. She was a wretched looking thing but there was something about the spark in her dark eyes, the manner in which she wrapped herself around him in total devotion that he could not help but love her.

Savoring his rich, fluffy carrot cake, he looked at all of his sons. They were all such perfect carbon copies of him that it was like he peeled each from his own being. He looked at the other end of the table to where Jacob VI sat. He was definitely more creative and intelligent than the others. His longer hair produced an effect that pleased the father. Jacob V took this as a sign that his destiny to mastermind a new super race was evident.

There was something that was hidden in Jacob VI that the Father could not determine. It did not trouble him though. It was more like a ripple that flowed briefly and then hitting a barrier stopped. Jacob V was certain that he commanded the boy.

Again he looked into Jane's glowing face. He began his saga of seven of seven. You kids all know that the number of seven goes a long way back. Long before those fools in Tennessee Appalachia grew to fear our clan of Johnsons. We are into five generations. I am the fifth Jacob. Jeremy could have sworn that as Jacob V said this, his chest expanded with such pride that it appeared the buttons on his shirt would pop.

Idiots, Jacob V continued. They started believing that my Father was turning to the evil path. Little did or could they understand the power of seven, the seventh son has powers that pre-date the Biblical era.

The number seven has roots in Atlantis. There were seven islands. Any man who was fortunate to have seven sons borne of the same woman had a son with the power to heal and a gift of 'Second Sight'. Why, the seventh son is born divine, the chosen one.

We were good to those people. When we held that part of Appalachia in the southeastern tip of Tennessee; wealth, good crops and health abounded. Now look at them - dirt poor, scratching in an unwilling soil that yields nothing. At this Jacob V grinned wickedly and Jane clapped her small hands. He gave Jane another touch of affection on her check. He started to continue.

Atlantis, chimed in Jacob VI from the other end of the table. There is no physical proof that place ever existed! Many ancient philosophers like Socrates and his student, Plato, went to great lengths describing it. Most civilizations also ascribe to a lost paradise but why haven't the physical ruins of any such place ever been found?

And there is no proof that it didn't exist, either, retorted, Jacob V with a bit of a frown in his voice. He was trying hard not to show his irritation. The boy seemed to lack the edge that complimented his being that he found in Jane. Jane and he functioned almost as one unit. Already she demonstrated interest in his business holdings, making astute assessments. Jacob VI on the other hand ever bit as intelligent as Jane, maybe even more so because of his Push ability showed little interest in his legacy.

The special talent of the Johnson clan was the ability of the seventh to mentally manipulate most. In some they could exercise complete control. In most, however, they could create an aura of control - a mental/emotional Push that allowed them control. Then there were those who were totally resistant to the Push. These were the ones in Appalachia who