Lost in Glad More Garden

 

Andrew Burnett was the least likely man to make a mid-career change to write Gothic novels.  He preferred reading spy thrillers and wouldn’t have picked up the novel with its lurid cover and title had it not lain on the empty train seat next to him. The story line was unlike his usual fare, it captivated him and he started reading more books of the same genre.

He felt emboldened to try his hand at writing on similar themes. It was easier said than done and the rejection slips weighed him down. Such was his wish to succeed that he enrolled online in creative writing skills but it was to no avail. He had almost decided to give up when an advertisement encouraged his aspirations. It was a competition for a short story and the winner’s entry would be published in the magazine Gothic World.

He couldn’t believe his luck but this win steadily set him on a literary path. It wasn’t a rapid rise but he persevered and honed his craft. In order to remain relevant and sales worthy, he followed what his peers were writing and what the reading public wanted.  He worked diligently on all fronts to maintain his position and popularity.

 Andrew had chosen the nom de plume of Rupert Knight as a more appropriate moniker for a writer of romance and adventure. Very few knew that Andrew and Rupert Knight were the same person and he zealously guarded his privacy and preferred to remain an enigma.

One of Andrew’s publishers had given him a ticket to attend a literary meet in India. He was pleased to know that he was popular in India but unsure about travelling the distance. His Aunts Betty and Anna who had raised him helped him decide. He wanted to gift them a holiday that was different from their annual seaside stay.

“Why don’t we all go together? You can do a bit of sightseeing while I’m busy and then maybe we can have a short vacation together.”

Betty was hesitant, “We did go there once and it wasn’t enjoyable.”

“I wasn’t aware. When was this?”

“It was a long time ago before you came to live with us”, said Clara.

“Since we are going so far it would be a good idea to see my childhood home.”

 They spoke together almost without thinking, “Andrew, it isn’t always wise to revisit the past.”

Andrew made up his mind that they would travel together and the visit to his childhood home would be the surprise ending.

The flight was tiring but on arrival the old ladies were bowled over by the organizers’ hospitality. After the wet English weather the warmth of the tropical sun, the colorful sights, and the shopping won their hearts. This wasn’t the India of their memories and they were happy that Andrew had overruled them.

There were still a few days remaining of what Andrew termed as a “holiday” and they would be flying to another part of the country.

“Thank you. We are glad that we came along and had such a good time,” said Anna.

“We are going to spend a few days in Glad More Tea Estate. You’ll see how much it has changed. They have started a hotel as well as growing tea.”

Both the sisters were at a loss for words, their palms were sweaty and their mouths too dry to speak. Andrew sensed their unease but couldn’t figure out the reason. Betty gathered her wits, “What do you remember about Glad More?”

“Not much. I can remember Mum and Dad and Lucy and….”

“You remember Lucy?”

“She died and all of us came away from India.”

Neither of the aunts spoke and they drove the rest of the way to the hotel in silence.

Glad More had changed; it looked inviting with charming cottages and gardens while tea was still being cultivated on some of the slopes.  Betty and Anna could only manage a quick glance at the surroundings before they hurried in to their room to have an urgent discussion.  

Anna had a definite opinion, “Andrew doesn’t remember much. Why let the past weigh him down.”

“I agree. But he won’t forgive us if he hears a local or a hotel staff’s story.”

“The tea plantation is no longer the same and I don’t think there would be any old timers who would know or recognize us. Andrew is middle aged and we are old.”

“No Anna, we must tell him and there can be no two accounts. In any case we weren’t there when it happened and believed Peter’s version of what may have happened that morning.”

“I will support what you say but please remember that I didn’t and still don’t think it is necessary.”

Andrew had walked around the hotel grounds, visited the hotel office to enquire if records existed about the previous layout and then gone on to visit his aunts. He found them sitting in the verandah, facing the garden and recovering from the flight and the long car trip.

“Would you like some tea?  Have you walked around the grounds?”

“Yes I did and it is well set up. Tomorrow I plan to see the area where we lived. The hotel has been constructed at a lower level. I must tell you about a cat that is haunting me…….

Betty thought it best to finish what was foremost on her mind. “Andrew, there is something that we need to share with you. Maybe we should have disclosed it earlier but the time wasn’t ever right.

Nobody knows what happened to your sister Lucy.”

Betty’s words were too much to comprehend and Andrew almost choked, “Is Lucy alive? “  

Anna looked away and Betty wondered how she could describe what happened on that day.

“Please remember that we were not present when this happened. I can only tell you what your father told us.

It was early in the morning and Lucy had decided to play in the garden. She was about nine years old and she had been warned not to wander beyond the front lawn. Nobody knows what made her go to what was known as the Echo Point as it was on a rocky ledge on much higher ground. Lucy had a pet cat Tippy and she might have followed him without realizing that she had strayed away from the house.

Lucy’s absence was first noticed at breakfast and there was no trace of her by the time the house and the gardens had been searched. The police were informed, special teams employed to investigate not only the estates but the adjoining countryside.

There were rumors that she was kidnapped but no ransom notes appeared. Also a white child walking by herself couldn’t go far without being unnoticed. How far could she have walked on hilly terrain? The current belief was that she had lost her footing and had fallen to the narrow gorge that lay below.”

“How did they conclude that my sister had fallen below? Were there any signs?”

“Sadly there were no footmarks, not a scrap of clothing, just nothing at all except that Tippy was sitting midway on the stumpy apple tree near the railing of Echo Point. “

 Clara had a nervous breakdown, cried incessantly and blamed herself. Peter called us and we flew out as soon as possible. I can’t even recall how long we stayed here. The tragedy took Clara’s life too as she didn’t live for long. Peter also lost interest after Clara’s death and died a lonely man.”

He guessed his aunts had tried to shield him as a child from the grim news but even after all these years it was both unacceptable and horrific.

Andrew tried to absolve his aunts, “Both of you did a marvelous job of looking after me. My parents should have told me but they were no longer there when I was growing up.

Do you know any details about Tippy since people believed that he saw the accident?”

“Lucy was fond of animals but Tippy was special because he followed her everywhere. He was a tortoiseshell tomcat and would hiss if strangers came too close to her.  I can’t be sure but your parents had arranged for Tippy’s care.”

Next morning Andrew went to the hotel office, “May I have the directions to the bungalow where the plantation manager lived? Do you have a cat that lives near the cottages?”

He was advised, “Sir the bungalow is abandoned and closed to the public. The hotel manager has pet dogs but there are no cats.”

Andrew was determined but a double fence of barbed wire denied him entry. He decided that he would try his luck at Echo Point and it was then that the cat’s mewing became louder, it was almost hissing around him.  His foot hit a broken step and he could detect a creature circling around his feet.

It was unnerving to say the least and he decided to retrace his steps. . As he came nearer to the cottages, there was a flash and a loud hiss and a moment later as if nothing had followed him.

May be his aunts were right that Glad More Tea Gardens didn’t wish to welcome the Burnett family.  He decided not to mention any of this to his aunts who were already hyped up.

 Andrew incorporated it in his next popular novel about a haunted house, a magical cat and dark dense jungles.