Tanagwa

By L. Chambers Wright

Rachel Hammond has never fit in and her father has never let her forget it. She joined Richmond's most successful real estate corporation, but nothing she did or said ever pleased him. Her father, a cut-throat businessman, couldn't be more disappointed in her honesty.

She flees the ruthless work environment, the life she knew, and the family patriarch's emotional abuse to start a new life. She moves to Cove Creek, a quaint town in Southwestern Virginia where everyone knows everyone.

The only problem is they aren't telling her what they know. Local customs quickly lose their novelty and no one will tell her what secrets the town is hiding.

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• Language: English
• Publisher: Black House Books
• Release date: Mar 2, 2011
• ISBN: 9781476228105

L. Chambers Wright

L. Chambers-Wright also writes as Laura Wright. She grew up surrounded by Appalachian folklore and ghost stories, many of which find their way into her material. She currently lives with her family in the foothills of the Blue Ridge Mountains. She has had many books published, and continues to prolifically write fiction, as well as non-fiction history. She is the primarily caregiver for a number of relatives, several pets, and an unknown number of wild animals. Her interests include photography, music, and casual gaming. Her personal website is Laurawrites.net [http://laurawrites.net]. She runs the Virginia Creeper Appalachian History and Folklore website [http://vacreeper.com], as well as Appalachia Obscura, an obscure history and folklore website [http://appalachiangothic.com].

Book preview

Tanagwa

By: L. Chambers-Wright

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Copyright 2011, L. Chambers-Wright. All rights reserved. No part of this book may be reproduced, scanned, or distributed in any printed or electronic form without permission. Please do not participate in or encourage piracy of copyrighted materials in violation of the author's rights. Purchase only authorized editions. Published by Black House Books [http://blackhousebooks.com].

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Chapter 1

Rachel Hammond felt misplaced in her new life, but it went beyond social and economic changes. Strangely, the culture shock didn’t have as much impact as the change in landscape around her new home. She expected a change in people, but not so much in geology. She had anticipated mountains, but not with the cities nestled tightly between them. One could come crashing down at any moment and eliminate all life within seconds.

The people seemed sweet despite being private and distant. She was still regarded as an outsider. In all fairness, she hadn’t lived in the region long at all, but it would be nice to see more hospitality. Weren’t they all supposed to be hospitable here? The mountains were another novel enigma. They were so noisy at night. It was a rural area, the forests were supposed to be tranquil.

At least the job duties were the same. It's not as if the real estate business changed. She would eagerly admit that the work atmosphere was far more pleasant than in Richmond, but the name of the game was still a sale. It was disappointing to find hints of the same greed that made her last job so intolerable. She couldn’t start thinking of that. She had to remain optimistic.

Her father disowned her when she left Smith. Again. His golf buddies meant more than she ever would. G. Rhoton Smith, fattest pig of them all, could shoot a mean eighteen holes, but knew squat of employee morale. She had no choice, but to get out from under their weight. It felt like she was smothering in that old life. She knew she would never be good enough; she'd come to accept it.

She shook the residual tensions away. The local customs were difficult to adapt. People had their quirks and oddities everywhere, but she had her own faults. Could she really provide an unbiased and completely logical summary of the area knowing her own faults? That disqualified her from judgment. The strangest local practice was the wind chimes. Every house had at least one large set of the clanging chimes attached to a porch or a black iron Shepard’s hook in the garden. Most houses had multiple sets of the chimes at every available exterior space. No one would tell her why. She’d asked several people to explain the custom and they just shrugged it off. If only they’d open up to her.

It was a new beginning and she had to expect differences. The properties weren’t as valuable, but it averaged out nicely with the low cost-of-living. She had a chance at a better overall career and fewer stresses. Her current realty company only had six other realtors, which greatly narrowed the competition as opposed to Smith. She counted