Engulfed: In the Past

By Jennifer L. Kane

Endless nightmares, haunting memories and frustrating silence. That is Jane's life. Jane fears for her sanity and struggles to move past the night she witnessed her mother's murder, her father's torture and became a mute. Jane welcomes the distractions of growing up the daughter of a rich land owner and enjoys matching wits against those who would cross her and between her stepmother trying to improve her and her nasty neighbor plotting against her Jane has much to occupy her mind in the day light hours but Jane is about to get more then she bargained for when strange travelers come in to play bringing poison and betrayal with them.

She will soon find herself facing the monster of her nightmares. Will she be able to defeat him alone or will she be Engulfed in the past?

• Language: English
• Publisher: AuthorHouse
• Release date: Feb 24, 2012
• ISBN: 9781468543612

Jennifer L. Kane

I have always loved history and think there are some really amazing stories to be found there. I'm a wife, mother and christian. From North Carolina but residing in Southern Florida.

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© 2012 Jennifer L. Kane. All rights reserved.

No part of this book may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system, or transmitted by any means without the written permission of the author.

Published by AuthorHouse 2/22/2012

ISBN: 978-1-4685-4361-2 (e)

ISBN: 978-1-4685-4362-9 (sc)

Library of Congress Control Number: 2012901433

Any people depicted in stock imagery provided by Thinkstock are models,

and such images are being used for illustrative purposes only.

Certain stock imagery © Thinkstock.

This book is printed on acid-free paper.

Because of the dynamic nature of the Internet, any web addresses or links contained in this book may have changed since publication and may no longer be valid. The views expressed in this work are solely those of the author and do not necessarily reflect the views of the publisher, and the publisher hereby disclaims any responsibility for them.

Contents

Chapter One

Chapter Two

Chapter Three

Chapter Four

Chapter Five

Chapter Six

Chapter Seven

For Alex and Ben who inspire me

Chapter One

Waking Up

Jane wanted to scream as she woke. It had been a common dream since the night of her mother’s murder and her own bare escape.

She climbed out of bed.

Knowing she would not sleep anymore tonight Jane straightened her shift and pulled on her pale yellow and brown striped skirt and yellow bodice. Tying each in place before tugging on her boots and combing out her hair. She fastened her hair into a bun and lit a candle from the fireplace before setting out into the rest of the home.

She could not truly call it a house because it was not. It had once been a castle Keep and with it’s thick stone walls and floors the two story relic was well out of the past but it was theirs. It was called Geton castle.

Her father had bought the keep and the land it sat on after their previous home was attacked and burned down by the men who had slaughtered her mother. The fortified stone home gave her father and her self a more secure since of well being even if it was not a fashionable house like her stepmother would want.

But the woman had done her best with what she had. There were Carpets and paintings hang from the walls, fine oak tables lining them and fashionable odds and ends everywhere. Jane often wondered how her father kept from going broke indulging the woman so.

Jane frowned in distaste at the woman’s 6 foot tall portrait of herself hanging in the second floor great room as she pasted through to the stairway.

Geton was cold and drafty before the sun rose and Jane thought longingly of her wrap still in her room.

Jane shivered she could still taste smoke in her mouth and nose and hear her mother’s gurgling breathes as she died.

She needed to take her mind off this. All of it.

Down stairs Jane went through the over sized dining room into a small parlor that faced the road.

There was a red and gold flower patterned carpet on three of the walls of this room and a large fireplace with painting of a woman in a rose garden over it. The majority of the room was filled with a square oak table with four chairs around it. The table too had a carpet over it, to one side had a chessboard that was set and ready to be played and in front of one chair, the chair Jane chose to sit, a harpsichord. Jane did not like this room. It was flashy and pompous just like her stepmother. This and the main dinning room were where sweet Clara did her entertaining so it was where she spent the most of Jane’s father’s money.

Jane sat the candle down next to the harpsichord and began to play. It was a simple song but as she played it felt like the music replaced her blood and her bad memories vanished in a haze as the melody embraced her.

The music fell from the keys fast and sweet. High and strong. She loved the beautiful little box that aloud her to pour out the bad feelings into something refreshing. She would love to have a full sized harpsichord one day with even more range but for now she was more then content with what she had.

She didn’t know how long she played but it didn’t seem like long before a goblet of cider was placed next to the candle by a pale slim hand.

Maggie.

Quite and petite.

Jane liked Maggie she always smiled as Jane played.

Jane lifted the goblet and drank the warm cider.

Jane sat the goblet back down and lifted Maggie’s hand tapping the center of it twice with her thumb.

Your welcome Madame. Maggie said with a smile.

That was the other reason Jane liked Maggie she was one of a very few Jane could communicate with with out having to find something to write on.

Jane went back to playing.

Jane had not been able to speak properly since the fire but she was healthy enough and could hear and write fine. With a select few she even had a code of sorts to speak with.

Now as she played the sounds of Maggie, the cook and Abigail all getting the house and breakfast ready could be heard distantly.

The keys gave and bounced back.

A yip and bark sounded out in the hall and Jane stopped mid song.

Dropping her hand to her side she snapped her fingers.

Thump and clutter, scratching nails on the stone and there they were. Her great big hounds. Her babies.

They were from Germany, big hunting dogs. She couldn’t remember their proper name but they were nearly as big as she was. They had been a gift to her father a couple years ago as puppies and she had sort of claimed them much to her father’s amusement and her stepmother’s dread.

She petted and loved on both her boys.

Roaring barks and whines of joy greeted her love.

Soon her boys laid down around her feet and Jane returned to her music. She was much happier now. Her dogs, her music and warm cider there was not much better then that.

Much sooner then Jane would have liked she heard her father and his wife entering the dining room and heard the servants. Maggie and Abigail clattering with last minute things in the kitchen. It was time to leave her cozy corner and join the family.

Richard and Clara were sitting across from each other, the rooms high thin windows aloud the room to be washed in early morning light highlighting the finely carved oak table, the numerous paintings of Clara or Clara’s favorite things ‘being her mother or grand gardens’ and the fine goblets, plates, and cutlery laid out. It was the same as every other morning since her elder