"Of course, Leonore would not allow anything" Beverly sighed. "No scandal must ever attach to the Benchleys. Charlie would be punished… like staying in his room and having no dessert for a whole month. And Louis, no matter how bad he complained, in the end gave way… His father had made a horrible job of raising him, convincing him that he would never do anything right, and that his sister had to take care of him… You see, Louis was not the kind of son his father wanted, so instead of cherishing the son he had, his father destroyed him…Tragic… and I was still trapped there…"
"And you decided to go back to historical research, to get your mind off your situation"
"And you stopped me when I went to the Old Benchley Mansion"
-0-
"You should not be here. It is dangerous."
"You come here all the time."
"I know what I am doing, and where to step. You could step in a place that gives, fall through, break a bone, and remain there for hours, until we missed you, and got into our heads to come looking here."
"But…"
"What are you looking here for?"
"I was looking for some historical artifact that might have been left behind."
"Just tell me what they look like and if I see anything worthwhile, I will bring them to you."
-0-
"Of course, you did not want me running into Amos.."
"That too, but yes, you could have fallen through. Old decaying houses can be treacherous."
-0-
"You are slacking again!" Chester remonstrated Danny. "Do not think I do not see you."
"I do my work!" Danny answered, "Mrs. Grady is happy with it"
"You take advantage of her good nature!
Danny bit back her comment about Mrs. Grady good nature. It would not help. Chester Simms thought that the sun came out of Mrs. Grady backside… Did Mrs. Grady know the extent that the man worshipped her? Did she take it as her due?
There were voices coming from the house, raised voiced. Ken Green was talking to Mrs. Grady, and he sounded upset. Danny turned away. The less he knew about the personal lives of the Benchleys, the better…
It was bad enough being caught in Amos Benchley's drama. He did not need that of his relatives.
He wished that he could get away. But not wit Mrs. Grady reporting to his parole officer. He was stuck there. Like Beverly Hoover. Like Dinah, Like Louis…. Probably Chester was not the only one who did not want to get away. The rest were prisoners of Mrs. Grady…
Even Ken Green was a prisoner, a prisoner of the memories of the young Mrs. Grady… when she was Miss Benchley, and they were childhood sweethears. Green was wedded to that memory, and could not see the real Mrs. Grady as she was now..
And Mrs. Grady herself was a prisoner, never leaving the house, sitting like a spider at the center of the web…
If only Amos could be a way out for him…. Unless Mrs. Grady made a prisoner of him too.
Ken Green kept talking, angrily, and Mrs. Grady seemed to be sobbing…
Danny did not wish to know… The more you mixed up in Benchley business, the less likely you were to get away…
-0-
"And there was a conmotion at the bar, later..."
-0-
The bar was full, with men letting the tiredness of their workday find a way out in their drinks. There were not that many songs in the record player, in fact they have heard them over and over. It was a familiar sound, and as such was welcome.
Danny drank slowly his beer. He would have to go see Amos soon, but he heard no call. He hoped that Amos stuck to wildlife, as he promised, and did nothing to get hunted. Well, he would find out.
He heard the argument between Wendy Pruitt and her boyfriend Frank Carruthers. He knew the argument… she tried to convince him not to use his boat to bring in drugs, reminding him that he could get caught and go to jail – he reminding her that her hacking was also illegal, and that she could go to jail. If only they could get enough money so that neither did need to use those means…
Which of them would go to jail first?
Then the shouts came. Ken Green badgered Louis Benchley "What are you doing to your sister? She is always fixing your problems. She covers up for you. She pays off witnesses. She arranges things. Why can't you assume your responsibility? Why don't you tell the truth about Flynn Eagleton?"
"What do you know, anyway? You have no idea."
They came to blows, until they were forcibly separated by those around him. Louis Benchley left, muttering "You know nothing… nothing…"
Danny watched, amused. He went back to his beer.
The call from Amos came, urgent.
He finished his beer and left. He hoped that there had been no disaster…
There was no disaster. In fact things had gone right. And Amos was almost fully recovered from his time locked in the coffin...
"You were right. It was not hard for me to stop." Amos said, as Danny lowered his sleeve. "I do not think that I need that much… I did not need that much either… then… You see, I am not supposed to kill them, just enslave them… it is just.."
"It is just that two hundred years of being chained alone in the dark did a job on your mind."
Amos nodded.
"You have to start thinking of going public… no, not the blood drinking. But being able to move about, rejoin society."
"Yes. To have a name, an address, to be able to meet people, to talk to them.."
"That will take money…."
"I know of a treasury that was buried once, in Revolutionary times, as a hedge, and kept there 'just in case". It might still be there."
"If not, I can repair some stuff here and sell it in the antique trade."
"I hope it is not needed."
"You will need clothes up to date. No one wears short breeches anymore, you know. "
"How could I get them? I cannot go to a tailor"
"I will take your measurements and go to a used clothing store. I might be able to find something. Some of it might need a stitch or two, but that can be done easily. About where you will… live. Your address, how about here? Ask permission of the Benchleys. Say that you want to fix it, and make it livable again, and then pay rent to them. Talk to Louis, if he can see a way to get money for himself, he will do it…. As I understand his father's will left this ruin to Louis… the old man wanted to rub salt in Louis wound… well, let him see that it will bring him money, and he will jump at the chance."
"But how will I fix it?"
"I will do the fixing. I wanted to for a long time. I want to become a restorer. I have been practicing in smaller objects. But I fix this place, and make it livable, I will make a name for myself. Then you can "convince" Leonore to let me go without giving me grief with my parole officer"
-0-
"And so we made plans" Danny talked. "And no one knew that the next day Sheriff Oates would knock at Benchley Manor to ask questions about the death of Ken Green, whose body had been found on the beach."