The Cousins Six: A Summer to Remember

By James Saine

Six cousins from Kansas, Texas, and North Carolina spend part of their summer together with their grandparents in Aiken, South Carolina, and share some unexpected high adventure—from solving some mysterious local ghost legends to helping bring some bumbling criminals to justice. On the journey, they learn a lot about the local area, a charming Southern town packed with history; make new friends; meet some unforgettable characters; learn valuable life lessons; and build their Christian faith. Oh, and they have a lot of fun along the way! Many of their discoveries occur in Aiken’s Hitchcock Woods, the largest privately owned urban forest in the United States. It’s in the Woods, with its over 2100 acres of forestland and greater than seventy miles of sandy equestrian trails, that one day, they overhear a trio of thieves, who are hiding out from the authorities and planning their next crime. They realize the thieves are targeting an elderly lady who has become a friend of theirs, and when the local police don’t believe their story, they hatch their own plan to catch the “Banditos.” The cousins, who really don’t believe in ghosts—at least at first—learn of more than one ghost story stemming from The Battle of Aiken during the Civil War and Aiken’s “Winter Colony” days in the 19th century. What will they find out about these bumps and thumps in the night? Hang on to the edge of your seat!

• Language: English
• Publisher: WestBow Press
• Release date: Jun 11, 2021
• ISBN: 9781664233652

James Saine

JAMES SAINE has been an Army officer, a high school teacher and coach, and a university English professor. In 2011, he started writing individual stories for his grandchildren. In The Cousins Six, he brings them together. He and his wife of fifty-four years have lived in Aiken, South Carolina, for nearly thirty years and have four children and eight grandchildren.

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Copyright © 2021 James Saine.

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except in the case of brief quotations embodied in critical articles and reviews.

This is a work of fiction. All of the characters, names, incidents, organizations, and dialogue

in this novel are either the products of the author’s imagination or are used fictitiously.

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Any people depicted in stock imagery provided by Getty Images are models,

and such images are being used for illustrative purposes only.

Certain stock imagery © Getty Images.

Interior Image Credit: Image 1 (The Hitchcock Woods Foundation)

All other images personal photos

Scripture quotations marked NASB are taken from The New American

Standard Bible®, Copyright © 1960, 1962, 1963, 1968, 1971, 1972, 1973,

1975, 1977, 1995 by The Lockman Foundation. Used by permission.

ISBN: 978-1-6642-3364-5 (sc)

ISBN: 978-1-6642-3363-8 (hc)

ISBN: 978-1-6642-3365-2 (e)

Library of Congress Control Number: 2021909073

WestBow Press rev. date: 6/3/2021

Contents

Chapter 1     High Drama

Chapter 2     Winging from Texas

Chapter 3     Two Colu(o)mbias

Chapter 4     Corny and the Law

Chapter 5     Tickets to the Woods

Chapter 6     Controlled Burning

Chapter 7     Discovery and Danger

Chapter 8     A New Friend

Chapter 9     Winter Colony Mystery

Chapter 10   The Kidnapping

Chapter 11   Spiritual Warfare

Chapter 12   Moby Dick and the Banditos

Chapter 13   Laying a Trap

Chapter 14   Springing the Trap

Chapter 15   Ghost Tours

Chapter 16   Roundup at the Inn

1

High Drama

(Emma)

Image1.jpg

Emma bent down and picked up old coffee pot, turning it slowly in her hand. Yes, it certainly does appear somebody has been camping here for a while.

She and the cousins were in Hitchcock Woods—which all the locals simply referred to as the Woods—exploring on their own, Granddaddy remaining back at the house to do some work in the garden. Charlotte, Ollie, and Hunter had stayed with him to help pull weeds and pick green beans. The other two cousins—Luke and Haley—had walked to the woods with Emma. They’d cut through Jake and Hannah’s backyard, climbed up Idlewild Drive, turned on Evans, and then walked down Clark Road into the Woods. Emma had followed the map Granddaddy had given her. They’d hiked down Mr. Fletcher’s Ride, wheeled onto Low Country Ride, and then bounded downhill to Doll Lane. About one hundred yards down this old trail, which sported some of the tallest trees in the Woods, they’d hopped across the creek on their left and had gone part way up the Valley of the Magnolias, which really did have a preponderance of magnolia trees, now in full bloom with their huge white flowers, until they’d come to the sign for Bebbington Springs. Deciding to test the quality of the water there and compare it with that of Willie Barton’s Spring, they’d walked the twenty yards or so to the gully and then traced it up until they found the spring.

That was where they saw evidence of a campsite.

They found a campfire, three sleeping bags, some metal cookware and eating utensils, and an old pack with some men’s clothes in it.

I think we should get out of here, suggested Luke. Whoever’s been camping here might not like us snooping around their stuff.

Is camping allowed in the woods? asked Haley.

No, it’s not, answered Emma. Whoever’s been staying here is doing it illegally.

Emma knew they’d picked a pretty good site, the trail in the Valley of the Magnolias being a narrow, rather steep, and therefore seldom travelled track. Then too, camping by the spring gave them a source of water. The tall trees and surrounding ridges and draws provided ample cover.

Further, Emma looked on the map and saw they really weren’t that far away from the boundary of the Woods and a road. It was a short distance back down Doll Lane the way they’d come and then up Cedar Branch Road and an entrance near the old Williams place. Whoever was staying here could get in and out of town rather easily. She wondered why someone would want to camp here. They weren’t kids if the clothing in the backpack was an accurate indicator of their owners’ sizes.

Hey, Emma, said Haley, Do you have your phone with you?

Yes. Why?

Maybe you should take a picture and show it to Granddaddy. He’ll know what to do. Maybe he can call his friend, Ben Taylor—you know, the Woods caretaker—he can come out here and investigate.

Emma stopped. What was that?

What was what? asked Luke.

I heard a noise from below—down by the creek. Let’s get out of here—now!

Emma led, scrambling quickly upward and onto the trail that led up the valley toward Randy’s Route and Cuthbert Ridge Line.

Image2.JPG

Scrambling up Valley of the Magnolias

Stop! Emma whispered loudly. We’re making too much noise, and they’re getting closer. Quick! Off the trail and into these bushes.

The cousins followed Emma, and in a moment, they were lying flat and peering down the hill. They could see clearly, as this area had recently undergone controlled burning.

Waiting anxiously and with no sounds except the wind and an occasional bird, Emma reflected on how the cousins had gotten to this juncture … … … … .

2

Winging from Texas

(Emma and Charlotte)

Emma tried to relax and settle into her window seat, but a combination of excitement and an inexplicable feeling of danger—certainly adventure—prevented her from getting comfortable.

Charlotte, are you sure you wouldn’t prefer the window seat? It’s supposed to be clear all the way to Atlanta, so you’ll be able to see Texas, the Mississippi River, and a lot of Louisiana, Mississippi, Alabama, and Georgia.

No problem, Emma. I’d rather sit here in the middle seat. Some really hot guy may be assigned the aisle seat next to me.

Charlotte’s big brown eyes twinkled.

Emma rolled hers. Really, Charlotte?

Pardon me, dears, but I believe I have this aisle seat next to you.

Emma and Charlotte looked up to the face of an elderly lady with white hair and a kind, grandmotherly smile.

Oh, yes ma’am. That’s fine. Charlotte flipped up the arm rest on the right side of her seat and slid toward Emma.

The old lady, though seemingly pleasant and gracious, possessed a wide girth. Oh, my. I think Triangle has made these seats narrower than they used to be.

She struggled with the seatbelt momentarily, gave a short grunt, and blew out a breath. There. Finally.

She looked over at Emma and Charlotte. Let me introduce myself properly. I’m Mrs. Alice Woodward.

Emma spoke up. It’s nice to meet you, Mrs. Woodward. I’m Emma Saint, and this is my sister Charlotte.

Where are you girls from?

We live in El Paso, but we’re on our way to spend part of the summer with our grandparents and cousins in South Carolina.

"That’s marvelous! It certainly sounds like fun—and maybe an adventure even. Well, would you believe I’m on my way back to South Carolina after visiting my three grandchildren in El Paso?"

She had to pause a few minutes for the safety announcements and then continued, adjusting her wire-rimmed spectacles. What part of South Carolina?

Aiken, actually. It’s a small town about fifteen miles across the Savannah River from Augusta, Georgia. Have you heard of it?

My lands! exclaimed the old lady with a heavy dose of mirthful laughter. Aiken is my hometown! I’ve lived there all my life—eighty years. It’s such a lovely place. I wouldn’t want to live anywhere else.

By this time, the big Triangle jumbo jet had left the runway and was climbing swiftly to its cruising altitude of 33,000 feet. The captain, whose name sounded familiar to the girls, announced that the weather would be fine all the way to Atlanta, and since they had a tail wind, they’d arrive early.

That’s amazing! responded Emma. She then proceeded to tell Mrs. Woodward about her grandparents, whom they called Yaya and Granddaddy, and said they lived on Aberdeen Drive.

"Bless my soul, I know exactly where that is. I have a sister who lives on Aberdeen. She’s lived alone for a number of years. Her husband was a veterinarian in Aiken.

"Where do you live, Mrs. Woodward?"

Gracious, I live in a big old house—much too large for me—on South Boundary Avenue.

Charlotte jumped in. You mean the street with the old oak trees? Their branches that hang over the roadway make it seem like you’re going through a tunnel! It’s beautiful. In fact, we have a painting of it in our living room at home.

Yes, that’s the street. My husband and I lived there for over sixty years and raised three sons. My dear Henry passed last year, a casualty of the coronavirus, which is ironic since he was an infectious disease doctor at Aiken Regional. But he wouldn’t back away when the virus attacked us. Said it was his duty to care for the sick. I miss him terribly.

Mrs. Woodward stared off into the distant vista.

Oh, we’re so sorry Mrs. Woodward. The doctors, nurses, and all the healthcare workers are real heroes.

Mrs. Woodward spent the reminder of the flight telling Emma and Charlotte about her 10,000-square foot, ante-bellum Winter Colony house and the spacious flower and vegetable gardens behind it.

They were interrupted by a man in uniform who had been making his way down the aisle while greeting the passengers. Greetings, friends. I hope you’re experiencing an enjoyable flight with Triangle Airlines. I’m the captain. Just wanted to welcome you on our flight.

He paused a moment, cocked his head slightly, stared at Emma and Charlotte and said, Have I met you young ladies before? I almost feel like I know you. Perhaps it was on a previous flight? I’m not sure. Forgive me if I’m mistaken.

Emma glanced at his nametag—Young—then gasped and blurted, Captain! Sir! Jeff! I’m not sure what to call you! We’re Emma and Charlotte Saint. Thanksgivings in Aiken at our grandparents?

Of course! It’s been several years since our last Thanksgiving get-together at Uncle Jim and Aunt Sue’s. However, the pictures with the annual Christmas cards and our keeping up with you all on Facebook make the years seem much less distant. This is really a pleasant surprise! I really haven’t run into family like this before—except of course, Mom and Dad, who fly frequently now with the discount they get. Are you girls headed for your grandparents’ house in Aiken?

Yes, we are. We’re going to meet our other cousins and spend part of the summer with them in Aiken before we all pack up and head for Fripp Island to join our parents and spend a week at the beach.

Wow. What fun! Say listen. I’ve got to meet the rest of our passengers, but after that, how would you girls like to come up front into the cockpit? Have you ever experienced that before?

No, we haven’t! That would be so cool. Thank you, uh, Cousin Jeff!

Okay. I’ll be back down this way in a jiffy. And nice meeting you, ma’am. He tipped his hat and smiled at Mrs. Woodward. Please let me know if I can do anything at all to make your flight more enjoyable.

Captain Young turned to the people in the seats across the aisle and greeted them.

"My,