Haunted Castle

By Donna Vamplew

A rock group is being pursued by a dangerous stalker. Lives are in danger and families are immersed in the mystery of who is threatening Lisa Henry. A shattered Irish LAPD Detective is given the task of finding the person following the band members and the developments are pointing to within the Haunted Castle. Family ties, love, music, trust an

• Language: English
• Publisher: GoldTouch Press, LLC
• Release date: Aug 5, 2019
• ISBN: 9781733336789

Donna Vamplew

Donna Marchand Vamplew, a proud French Acadian, was born in Sydney, Nova Scotia. After twenty-four years teaching English, business, and physical education at Torontos Notre Dame High School, where she also served as a guidance counselor and coach, she retired. She and her husband, Pat, of thirty-three years have two adult children, Gil and Kate. This is her debut novel, and she is currently at work on her second novel, titled Haunted Castle.

Book preview

Haunted

Castle

Donna Vamplew

Copyright © 2019 by Donna Vamplew.

Library of Congress Control Number:      2019907785

Paperback:    978-1-7333367-7-2

eBook:             978-1-7333367-8-9

All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced, distributed, or transmitted in any form or by any electronic or mechanical means, without the prior written permission of the publisher, except in the case of brief quotations embodied in critical reviews and certain other noncommercial uses permitted by copyright law.

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Contents

Acknowledgements

Dedication

Chapter 1

Chapter 2

Chapter 3

Chapter 4

Chapter 5

Chapter 6

Chapter 7

Chapter 8

Chapter 9

Chapter 10

Chapter 11

Chapter 12

Chapter 13

Chapter 14

Chapter 15

Chapter 16

Chapter 17

Chapter 18

Chapter 19

Chapter 20

Chapter 21

Chapter 22

Chapter 23

Chapter 24

Chapter 25

Chapter 26

Chapter 27

Chapter 28

Chapter 29

Chapter 30

Chapter 31

Chapter 32

Chapter 33

Chapter 34

Chapter 35

Chapter 36

Chapter 37

Chapter 38

Chapter 39

Chapter 40

Chapter 41

Chapter 42

Chapter 43

Chapter 44

Chapter 45

Chapter 46

Chapter 47

Chapter 48

Chapter 49

Chapter 50

Chapter 51

Chapter 52

Chapter 53

Chapter 54

Chapter 55

Chapter 56

Chapter 57

Chapter 58

Chapter 59

Chapter 60

Chapter 61

Chapter 62

Chapter 63

Chapter 64

Chapter 65

Chapter 66

Chapter 67

Chapter 68

Chapter 69

Chapter 70

Chapter 71

Chapter 72

Chapter 73

Chapter 74

Chapter 75

Chapter 76

Chapter 77

Chapter 78

Chapter 79

Chapter 80

Chapter 81

Chapter 82

Chapter 83

Chapter 84

Chapter 85

Chapter 86

Chapter 87

Chapter 88

Chapter 89

Chapter 90

Chapter 91

Chapter 92

Chapter 93

Chapter 94

Chapter 95

Chapter 96

Chapter 97

Chapter 98

Chapter 99

Chapter 100

Chapter 101

Chapter 102

Chapter 103

Chapter 104

Chapter 105

Chapter 106

Chapter 107

Acknowledgements

I would like to acknowledge the help and support of Stefanie Ioannides. Stefanie edited the entire book and gave advice in its completion. Stefanie was a student of mine when she was in High School. I was a student of hers during the copy editing of Haunted Castle. Thank you, Stefanie……. Always, DV.

Another Thank you goes to Juliane Martin (my Hollywood Friend) who also helped to wrap up the final version with the minutest detail being checked!

Acknowledgement also goes to my husband, Pat. His constant encouragement to go sit and write is a testament of our mutual support over the past 40 years!

Dedication

It is felicitous that my first Grandchild was born and then I finished Haunted Castle.

Luca Patrick Manuel Vamplew

was born on April 29th.

This book is dedicated to Luca so that he will always strive to be the best that he can be! Dreams do come true, if you work for them. You will always be loved and cherished.

Reach for the Moon.

Even if you miss,

you will land

in the stars.

Mama

Chapter 1

2005

The gunshots were becoming a little too close for com fort!

Charley O’Neil, Liam Clancy’s partner, went ahead of him in the alley.

They had been having a bite to eat; when the call came through that some gunfire was heard, just down the street from where they were eating.

Down went the half-eaten sandwiches and each took a last sip of coffee before they bolted out of the restaurant.

They both screamed, We’ll be back Sally to square up!

No problem, replied Sally. She shook her head as the two men run out of her restaurant. She loved having the police officers frequent her restaurant every day. She felt like she was helping the city in some sort of way. Liam Clancy’s father had been one of her customers for forty years. She closed her eyes and said a silent prayer that God would keep them safe.

And, as usual, the two best friends take off to check it out. It was not their call. Nevertheless, they were constantly on alert for action. In addition, they were always sticking their noses into things that did not concern them. Two peas in a pod, people used to say, about these two Irish boys from the West Side.

Don’t get too far ahead of me, partner, called out Liam.

Then, it happens again. Charley steps out from behind the dumpster. Shots ring out. Charley crashes against the dumpster; blood is all over the place. Liam runs towards Charley screaming, No, no! Liam hears a noise to his left. Liam turns and fires. A ten-year-old boy hits the ground. Charley looks down at his hands. There is blood all over his hands. Liam drops the gun and turns to look at Charley.

As Liam turns, he wakes up sweating profusely. When is this nightmare gonna stop? When? When? When?

There were so many images and sounds that Liam could not erase from his mind – the shots, Charley’s blood, Charley’s face, the boy’s blood, the boy’s body face down in the alley. It had been six months since that night. He had not returned to work and he had not had a full night’s sleep since that night.

The investigation into the shooting of the boy had been tense. Liam swore that he thought the kid had a gun in his hand. No one found a gun.

He had his hand in his pocket, Liam had told the investigating Detective. I saw a bulge and I shot. I didn’t even realize that it was a kid. We’re talking about seconds. It was seconds between my getting to Charley and my turning to the sound in the alley. I thought whoever shot Charley was taking aim to shoot me.

Liam was cleared of all charges, but it did not take away his guilt. It did not take away the pain of losing his partner. He wished he had died in that alley, that night. Charley had two young kids and a beautiful wife. Now, she was a widow and the boys would grow up without a father.

Every night, Liam would sit after his nightmare and chastise himself for not dying that evening. He would cry and he would take a gulp of whiskey, in hopes that it would help him get back to sleep. It really did not. He was, in his mind, experiencing the living dead.

Chapter 2

2006

Liam Clancy had not been able to go back to work. The thought of killing anyone made him nauseous, especially a kid! He was relegated to the Detective Division Office, helping to answer the phone and helping with the paperwork and the organization of the Bu reau.

The Chief of Police, James Clancy, watched his son go through the motions of living for months and wondered when and how Liam would crawl out of the hole he had dug for himself.

Liam had returned to the Clancy home after the shooting. There were now three people in a home, where there used to be six kids and two parents. Maeve Clancy had been the proud bearer of six boys. After three boys, she continued trying to get herself a girl, but after a set of twin boys, she gave up.

Jimmy (James Jr.) was the oldest. He was a Detective. He did not want to be anything else. He had moved up the ladder to become a detective. He was a Detective in the same Bureau his father had commanded. He was proud to follow in Big James’s Shoes.

Patrick was next. He had not followed the family legacy of police work; he became a doctor. He ran the Emergency Department at Ronald Regan UCLA Medical Center, loving the fast paced and stressful environment. He was not the same as all the other Clancys, saving lives instead of possibly ending them. He had been at the hospital when Charley was brought in to Emerg. He knew when he looked at him that nothing could be done to save Charley’s life. They had tried to revive Charley twice in the ambulance, but it was too late. One of the bullets had ripped straight through his heart. Patrick was devastated that he could not help Charley and even more shattered that he had to tell his brother that his best friend was gone.

Liam was the third born. His goal was to be a cop from the moment he was born. He only finished high school because he had to graduate in order to apply to Police College. He was at the top of his graduating class from the Police Academy. He was a gung ho, no holds barred, type of cop. He loved it. He had become a detective in four years, which raised a few eyebrows. Then, he was partnered with his life-long friend Charley O’Neil. For Liam, he had the perfect life. He had been dating a beautiful, blonde-haired woman named Sam. They had been together for six months, which was a record for Liam.

Bobby was only ten months younger than Liam. Mrs. Clancy had been a busy woman; not mentioning James’s role in the family planning! Bobby was also a cop. However, Bobby had gone down a different path in Law Enforcement. His expertise was forensics, slowly getting a Forensics Degree as he was working as an Assistant Police Officer in the Forensics Department. In no time at all, Bobby would be finished his forensic education. Working in the Medical Examiner’s Office was his goal. He was the brains of the family, along with Patrick.

Bringing up the rear was a set of twins, Sean and Kieran. Sean was so named because he almost did not make it through the first hour of his life. He was a fighter. Maeve had named her fifth son with this name, as it meant, favoured one. She figured God had favoured this child at birth and had pulled him through his rocky beginnings. Kieran had black hair – the dark one. All her other sons had dark brown hair and her last-born had jet-black hair! These two would be trouble, she had said to herself after their birth.

This made up the Clancy Family. Maeve, James Sr., James Jr. (Jimmy), Patrick (Patty), William (Liam), Robert (Bobby), Sean and Kieran practically filled up an entire church pew on Sundays. They were the Clancy Clan and they were proud of their heritage. In true Irish tradition, most of the Clan became police officers. Sean and Kieran had been latecomers to the brood. There were six years between Bobby and the twins. They were both at college – separate ones. Sean was following Patrick’s footsteps and had decided on medicine, attending the Keck Medicine program at USC. He had always been an excellent student. He was interested in opening up his own general practice and becoming the quintessential family doctor. Kieran was a jock. He had managed to get himself a football scholarship at UCLA and he was in heaven. He just hoped that he could stay in school long enough to snag himself a professional career. School had not been one of Kieran’s strong points. He liked to play, so he was in Sports Business Administration.

All the boys had the same middle name – Ryan. It was the name of Maeve’s father. As they grew up, you could hear this name being said when Maeve Clancy had reached her limit. You would hear, Robert Ryan Clancy, you come down here immediately! and more often than not, Sean Ryan, I want to speak to you now. She had her hands full while James went off to work as a police officer, climbing slowly up the department ladder. The boys adored their mother. No one dared do anything or say anything to Maeve Clancy that was out of order. Her boys walked beside her through life.

Chapter 3

Chief Clancy no longer had his office in West Division on Butler. LAPD Headquarters was at 150 North Los Angeles Street, not too far from his old area. His son, Jimmy was a Detective there now. Liam was now doing paperwork at West Division. The Chief did not like to see that, but he knew that Liam had to conquer the demons that were after him. He knew the demons. He had been attacked by them himself at different times in his career; he had lived with them and he had conquered them a few times himself. It is the part of police work, which no one talks about – how you deal with the crap you see every day and how you deal with killing another human b eing.

He was having a battle with Liam because he would not attend the counselling sessions. After a departmental investigation, a police officer cannot return to duty unless he attends therapy sessions and gets a green light from the therapist.

James was disturbed that Liam did not really care if he went back on the streets. However, was he happy inside? Liam was not talking to anyone about the pain inside his heart. James wanted to help Liam get over this hurdle in his life, but he knew all too well that Liam had to initiate the healing. He knew that Liam was too far down in the pain right now to start crawling back up to reality.

Chapter 4

The Mayor was calling James Cl ancy.

Good Lord he thought. What the hell does he want?

It was a strange conversation. It seemed that someone in the know had called someone in the know, and then someone with power called the Mayor. Being the Mayor of Los Angeles was not easy, on a good day. There were the gangs, the crime, and the poverty and, of course, the movie stars. He had to please the movie stars as they carried a lot of power at election time. If you really pissed off a movie star, it could cost you your job.

Someone had asked the Mayor to assign a bodyguard to a rock group that would be headlining a big benefit Concert at The Hollywood Bowl. The group was coming into the city early to record a new album and someone had threatened a member of the group. The Mayor, always on the side of pleasing the stars and the press, wanted James to find someone to fill this position. He didn’t want any bad press happening in his city.

What am I now, he thought, a goddamned babysitter for rockers?

Mr. Mayor, I’m sure that these people can afford their own security detail. James was pleading now.

You don’t seem to understand, said the Mayor. One, this is a special request from a special person. And, two, a life was threatened, and police presence is needed. You have to make sure that an investigation into this threat is initiated. Are we clear?

Yes, sir. Crystal clear. I will get on it right away.

That’s what I like to hear. You have two weeks to set this up. And make sure you make those rockers happy.

James sighed heavily as he hung up the phone.

Nevertheless, part of his job WAS to make sure that the Mayor was happy. He reluctantly started to look for someone to fill the bill. He only had a few years left before retiring. He could have retired four or five years prior, but he wanted to try out what being Chief of Police would be like. He wanted to make a statement with the Department – leave a legacy, inspire tradition and honesty within the Force that had given him so much over the past forty-five years.

James would have to look for someone who did know security systems in buildings and security at events. He also needed someone who could handle crowds and handle himself in a fight. This person would also have to be able to boss around other people; a good authority figure type guy. The doings of rock groups were varied and crazy. Going with the punches and dodging the punches were necessary skills in this assignment.

"But what good cop wants to babysit a bunch of stupid rockers," he thought. No one in their right mind would want this position. Then it struck him – no one in their right mind – Liam! Maybe this is what he needed to get away from West Division and the paper work. He would wear a gun, but the odds of using it would be extremely low. He would have other people with guns that he would empower to shoot, if necessary. Having countless contacts in the police world is something Liam held in spades. He would also know many retired cops and cops that had started their own security businesses to help him make sure this group of spoiled stars is kept safe. "But how do I convince him to take the job?" he asked himself.

To say that Liam was the stubborn son was an understatement. Maeve Clancy always said that Liam would be the death of me. Convincing him to take on this type of assignment was going to take a miracle. James also had to jolt him away from the comfort of the West Division Office and into the real world – well almost the real world.

West Division. Yes, Mrs. Campbell, yes we received your report about the hooligans in the playground last night. We’re looking into the matter. No, no, we haven’t caught anyone yet, but we’re close. Yes, we have it in the report, Mrs. Margaret Campbell, yes. Well, we try! Thank you. I’m sure you’ll hear in the neighbourhood if we catch those hooligans for you.

Liam was ready to scream. When you are stuck inside the West Division Detective building, you have to deal with the little, itty-bitty things of the neighbourhood. You did not have to think much; you just had to make the people happy. He missed being outside in the middle of investigations, but the thought of it all scared him to death.

"West Division. Oh, hi Da. What are you up to?

The question is, my boy, what are you up to?

Well, let’s see now. Mrs. Campbell called again today to check on the status of the hooligan investigation. It seems there were some hooligans in the playground night before last, after midnight, making a ruckus.

Yes, well I’ve heard of those hooligans. They’re usually about 15 to 18 years old and they do strange things like drink beer and play on the swings. I don’t know what this world is coming to. As Chief, I want you to make sure that someone is on top of it. After all, we want Mrs. Campbell not to call the Police for at least two days. It looks like nothing has changed in the West Side.

Nope, same old, same old.

I was wondering if you’d have lunch with me today; on me.

On you? Well, glad to hear that the Police Department can afford to pay for my lunch. What’s up?

Nothing much. I just wanted to pass something by you that came up today. The Mayor gave me one of those lovely little chores of his, I wanted some input, and I chose you. That’s all.

Well, if the Mayor is involved, I wouldn’t want to let him down. You know what I think of him.

Yes, I do, and you’ll keep that to yourself, young man.

Liam let out a husky laugh. The heads of all the people in the lobby turned and looked at him. That was the usual reaction to Liam’s laugh – it was contagious, loud and full of mischief.

James loved Liam’s laugh and had not heard much of it in the past few months. It made him smile.

I’ll be there, Da. Name the place.

How about Del’s at 1:00 o’clock?

Great, see you then.

Chapter 5

Liam didn’t become a Detective by attaining a Masters in Investigative Work or by being promoted because of his father. James Clancy made absolutely sure that if his sons chose the Police Force that they did so on their own and they managed on their own in the Police Force. He kept a watchful eye on all his boys, however, always did and always w ould.

His middle son was the son to push the envelope always. Research states that middle children become more independent, think outside the box and feel less pressure to conform. The combination of risk-taking and openness to experience leads to a willingness to try new things in middle children. Liam was a true middle son to Maeve and James; he wanted to push the limits of police work and be involved in investigating homicides in Los Angeles.

After serving two years as a Beat Cop, Liam wrote his exams to become a Detective. This was difficult for him. He hated school and he hated tests. It was a big hurdle for him to study the rules of being a Detective and of course, it was always difficult for him to follow those rules. Middle children do not like to follow rules. Maeve had her hands full with Liam. Jimmy was a clone of her husband James – a police officer from birth. Jimmy had chosen to be a Beat Cop for many years before deciding to become a Detective. He did want to move up the ladder in the Police Force; he chose to move laterally and become a Detective. He was the lead Detective in the West Division Bureau in Los Angeles. Patrick was the cerebral son; he always wanted to be a doctor and the Clancys allowed their sons to choose and control their destinies.

Liam was not the peacemaker as most middle children; but he did hold close relationships very dear. Once he accepted you into his life, he placed high value on that relationship. Charley had been Liam’s best friend since Elementary School. They had attended the same High School and gotten into the same trouble. They backed each other at all times.

This is why losing Charley in that alley was so painful; he didn’t back him up. His heart and soul collapsed. His relationship with Samantha ended. She had recently moved into Liam’s condo and their future was looking bright. That was the first lady allowed to enter his private world. She knew how important it was that Liam accepted her into his life. When Charley was killed, Sam tried her best to help Liam through the tragedy. But he turned to the bottle. When he looked at Sam, he felt that she was thinking the same as he was thinking – that he was a failure; that he was not a good partner; that he did not back up his friend.

The twins, Sean and Kieran, tried having their big brother come live with them for a while. They shared an apartment. Sean thought that if Liam got involved in getting his body into shape that his mind would follow. He tried to involve Liam in his workouts for the football team, but Liam would say that he’d attend and then he’d just go to a Bar. Kieran, being a medical student, did not have much time to devote to his brother, but with every spare moment he had, he’d try to get Liam to talk about what was bothering him.

It took the intervention of Maeve to at least get Liam away from the bottle. She had him unceremoniously picked up by two very large police officers and escorted to a Rehab Centre. The Director was a friend of the Clancys, and they bent a few rules keeping Liam as a patient, without his consent. He fought hard but eventually, he came around and no longer turned to the bottle to heal his pain. Maeve moved Liam back into the family home and after a few months, James got him a desk job at the West Division Detective Bureau. Jimmy would be there to keep an eye out on his little brother, and they would be patient with their stubborn son. He had attempted Police Therapy Sessions, but he was not willing to talk about his pain yet and the shame and guilt he felt after he shot the boy. He really did believe that the boy was reaching for a gun in his pocket, but it did not help his guilt.

Liam concluded that it was better to just put a wall up and keep everyone, except his immediate family, at a distant reach. He had not lost his feelings for his family. The Clancys were a close-knit family and their connections were impossible to break. His brothers and parents did not like seeing him in so much pain, but they knew they had to wait until he was ready to accept their help.

Chapter 6

April 2006

I ’ve gotta make sure that she doesn’t find out what’s going on, he thought. I don’t know who in the hell this nutter is, but I’m gonna make damn sure that he doesn’t get near to her.

Peter had told Tommy to call someone in Los Angeles to set up a fake bodyguard. Jenna would not fall very easily for a fake story, so they had to be careful. Someone was sending her weird and psychotic mail. There had even been pictures, which demonstrated that the weirdo had infiltrated security in various cities. This depraved person was following them. Peter had come up with a plan. He said that they would hire someone to be the new Head of Security for LA. This individual would be a real cop and he would investigate the existence of this psychotic stalker while pretending to be the head of security for the group. They did not want Jenna to know that someone was following her. No one was to get near to her, and Peter wanted to make sure of that. Keeping Jenna stress free and safe had been his goal for many years and now, there was a new danger!

Forced to stay in London because his wife was pregnant was extremely upsetting to Peter. He was being torn between a rock and a hard place. Tommy had advised him that there was a weird stalker following the band around. Other than Evelyn, his wife, Jenna was the most important person in his life. Peter would give his life to protect Jenna, which he had already done in the past. There would soon be three important people in his life – Evelyn, the baby and Jenna. He was handling the problem from England and it made him very nervous that anyone would be remotely close to hurting Jenna.

Chapter 7

Britain 1987

Peter and Jenna! It had been Peter and Jenna since they were five years old – well since Jenna was five, Peter was seven. Jenna was the little sister that Peter never had. No one would hurt Jenna unless someone killed him f irst.

Jenna’s parents had died in a car accident when she was five. Both of her parents had no siblings, and both sets of grandparents were dead, so Jenna had no other family.

The child welfare system in England took custody of Jennifer Walsh when she was five years old. It was apparent that the System did not support the orphans very well at the time, with children being forgotten and lost in the system. Spending sixteen years in an orphanage was commonplace. There were not a great number of couples looking for children beyond the age of one. Young couples wanted to adopt infants. Toddlers were not popular adoptive choices. In addition, once a child reached the age of five or six, the odds of being adopted decreased dramatically.

After being released from the hospital, Jenna was brought directly into an orphanage. She had received mostly minor injuries in the car crash, but she had a bad break in her right leg and surgery had been required. She had cried for her mother, but her mother had not come to get her. She really didn’t understand everything that was said to her. She lay awake at night listening to the sounds of a hospital. Those sounds would stay in her subconscious for the rest of her life. The white coats of the doctors, the rustle of the nurses’ uniforms, the cold and stiff hospital linen and the smells were memories that would haunt Jenna. Then, while her leg was still in a cast, she was transferred to the Orphanage.

St. Andrew’s Orphanage looked fine from the outside. It was located in an old castle and it looked like there was a lot of room for the children. There was lots of room, but a man, who most psychologists would have diagnosed as psychotic, was operating the Orphanage; he took great pleasure in subjecting children to punishment. Dislike for Jenna by Mr. Jeremiah Jones was evident from the very beginning. For some reason, he was filled with contempt when he looked at Jenna. An ambulance driver was carrying her, and she was whimpering. He hated the sound of whimpering children. They annoyed him and disgusted him. Jeremiah Jones was a middle-aged, unmarried and unloved human being. He had never sustained a lasting relationship; women avoided him. He really did not like women all that much. He wasn’t gay; he just didn’t like them. Liking people was not one of his character traits.

When the ambulance driver and the welfare worker left, Jeremiah told Jenna to crawl to her new room. He did not intend to pick her up. If she wanted to sleep in a bed, then she had to get there herself – dragging her injured leg.

The front foyer of St. Andrews was large and very dark. Wood enveloped most of the building and it was dark with very little attention being paid to lightening up the ambiance. There was a large circular staircase leading up to the second floor, which housed the children’s sleeping quarters. The boys slept on the left of the staircase and the girls slept on the right. In the middle, there were rooms for the staff and infirmary. There was always someone in one of the staff rooms.

The sleeping quarters were very stark. Small cots lined each side of the room, with a middle aisle for movement. When all the children were tucked into their beds, the supervisor would turn off the very bright overhead lights. Lights were not turned back on until the next morning. Children were not allowed to leave their beds for any reason. There would be disciplinary action if a child did not follow the bedtime rules.

Children under the age of one were housed on the first floor in a room, which most people believed had been a ballroom, at some point in history.

There was a large dining room with dark brown wooden tables and long benches for the children who could feed themselves. At the back of the dining room, nurses and care staff fed younger children.

Children formed a line in their respective sleeping rooms and followed their line into the dining room.

Jenna would have to learn that routine. Now, a very mean man was telling her to make her own way up a very long staircase. She struggled with the darkness of the foyer and the pain in her leg. However, she did what she was told and dragged herself up each stair.

That is when Peter Williams first saw Jenna Walsh. She was pulling herself with her hands up a staircase. Tears were flowing down her cheeks, but she was not crying. She looked scared, but she did not say anything. His heart went out to her in that second and his heart connected with hers from that moment on. When Jenna finally made it to the room filled with cots, Jeremiah indicated her new bed and left. She crawled towards the bed and she was thinking that maybe she would never get there.

Why won’t he help me? Where’s my Mommy? I don’t know what to do. My leg hurts. Please, Mommy…come and get me, Jenna was thinking.

Then someone put his arm under hers and helped her up. She turned to look into Peter Williams’s blue eyes. You have to not listen to old Jonesy, he whispered. Jonesy is not a nice man. Don’t show him you’re scared of him. You have to stay strong. You have to make sure that you don’t cry in front of him. I will help you. My name is Peter.

My name is Jenna, she said. I don’t know why I’m here. I can’t find my mommy.

If you’re here, said Peter, then you don’t have a mommy.

Yes, I do, she cried. We were going to the country to play with the animals.

I think you had better just get into bed, for now and we’ll talk tomorrow. I’m not supposed to be here. This is the girls’ room. If Jonesy catches me, I’ll be in trouble. So, get into bed and sleep. I’ll see you tomorrow. It will be okay. I promise.

Peter tucked her in and left her. She could hear other girls sleeping. She could make out a few forms in the darkness. She did not like the dark. It was better than the hospital, she thought. The hospital had terrified her. It would be too soon if she ever had to enter a hospital again. She cried softly into her pillow and wished her Mommy and Daddy would come and rescue her as she fell asleep.

Jenna and Peter’s lives changed that night. Peter now had someone he could call family. Peter would now become Jenna’s family. Trusting each other fully had now begun and their worlds became one.

The next morning, Peter was at the door, as he promised, waiting for her. Jenna had crawled from her bed into the toilet room. She had managed to wash her face and hands and had hurried to follow the others to breakfast. Peter helped her down the stairs and into the dining room – which was a very stark room, with long tables and uncomfortable wooden benches. He got her a bowl of oatmeal and a glass of milk. It tasted like a gourmet meal to her. She had not really eaten much in the hospital; she was too upset. They ate in silence. A lot of talking in the dining room never occurred. The children were to come in, eat and leave. It was not supposed to be a social event.

Infants and toddlers went to a playroom for the day and the school-aged children went to a large classroom. School subject teaching occurred for the older children and the younger children played games. A break at lunchtime was scheduled every day, except Saturday and Sunday. When school time ended, the children were to go to their bedrooms, clean up, nap, change, read or participate in any other quiet activity until dinner. After dinner, weather permitting, children were allowed to play in the grounds. At 7:00 p.m. every evening, the children were to wash up and change for bed. Lights out occurred every night at 7:30 p.m. At 7:00 a.m. the next morning, the ritual would repeat itself.

On Saturdays, the children helped to clean the building. Older children performed the heavier tasks, but all children were involved in the chores. Sundays meant a break from the cleaning and the learning. Everyone attended a Church Service. A Minister from the local church came to give the children religious instruction and carried out a religious ceremony. There were special outfits for the children on Sundays. At the end of the day, however, the outfits would be stored away for the week, only to be resurrected for the next Sunday and church service.

People came on Sundays to view the children who were eligible for adoption. Jenna and Peter were eligible, but they had decided separation would not occur and no matter what, no one would get them into different homes. They had become a family.

By the time Peter was thirteen and Jenna was eleven, they were inseparable. Peter had found a piano Jenna could use to play on. The piano was at the back of a storeroom, which was not being used very often. The room was at the back end of the building in the basement. No one was aware that there were instruments in the room. Peter packed boxes across the width of the room, leaving just a very small passageway to the back of the room. From the door, one thought that the room ended with the boxes. It was the place where they could retreat from reality and do what they wanted to do without threat of punishment.

Being a piano child prodigy had been downplayed by her parents; however, Jenna played the piano at the age of four better than most adults. She could memorize the music of the greatest composers. At the piano, Jenna entered her private world and the result was magnificent. Peter realized that she had a great gift. He had started enjoying the world of music. She loved her music; she was very talented. She had taught Peter some music and he had taught himself how to play a trumpet. They would sneak away and play music together. Music liberated them from a cruel world devoid of feelings.

Jeremiah had tried to break their spirits, but he had been unsuccessful. Peter was determined to get out of that place. He remembered no other home. Orphaned at the age of two, he remembered nothing of his past. He would get very short glimpses of past events, but he was not able to experience any feelings. Memories of her parents haunted Jenna - parents that no longer existed - parents that did not come to rescue her. Her music and at such a young age, her passion, was taken away from her. Gone were the private lessons and the endless, wonderful hours practicing her most cherished activity.

Jeremiah had caught them together and punished them on many occasions. Banishing them to solitary confinement and meals of oatmeal and water became a common occurrence. His main intention was keeping them separated. He also started looking at Jennifer differently. It gave him alarming satisfaction to keep them apart. Peter worried about Jenna when they went to the small confined space of the solitary detention cells. She was petrified of lightning and thunder and the darkness in that basement amplified her fears. When it rained, Jenna wanted to die. She would tremble and shake. Peter would sneak out of the boys’ room and take Jenna to a place where they could sleep together, to get her through her fears. Nevertheless, when they were in the hole, he couldn’t protect her. He hated Jonesy; he hated St. Andrews. He had vowed to Jenna that he would get them out of there.

He’s going to keep sending us to the hole, you know, Peter said to Jenna.

I don’t know why he does this.

Because he’s evil – plain and simple.

Brilliant.

Don’t make fun of me.

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