FOREWORD
Mournful voices haunted her in the night…
The words were barely distinguishable, as dead and fragile as the cracking of dried leaves. From where they called to her, language was only a memory. A fragment of sound no longer carried over vocal chords, rasped between withering lips.
Sometimes, when they were near, she heard a hiss, like the rustling of a snake through undergrowth.
Worse than that was the sound of scratching.
She kept a light in her room, until the candles were extinguished or morning came, whichever was first.
She kept a gun beneath her pillow. The best sleep came at dawn, when those that whispered to her sought the sanctuary of their graves.
Luella arrived in town with one trunk and a suitcase.
The trip had been a long one. The train stopped two cities away, and from there she rode a coach up to Lazarus.
The town was small: a church, a city hall, a Sheriff’s station. A few stores, including a bakery and a commissary. The saloon and hotel sat further back from the street, the windows dark beneath the shutters drawn tight against the blanching desert heat.
Luella entered a small, dark building, and leaned over the counter to speak to the man behind it. “May I speak with the Sheriff?”
The deputy, a man named Sully, roused himself from his daydreaming and blinked.
The woman wore a fine, pale blue dress and matching hat. As hot as the afternoon was, he didn’t see a bead of sweat on her. She regarded him coolly, her brown eyes narrowing as his stare slipped from her face to the swell of her décolletage.
“Miss, uh, can I help you?” Sully asked. “If you’re here to report a crime, then I am the man you need to speak with.”
She smiled. “No sir, that’s not why I am here. I have specific business in which the Sheriff will take an interest.”
“Business. From a woman,” he muttered under his breath. “Well have a seat, ma’am.”
She stared at him for a moment, and seeing no other choice, took a seat in the corner.
Sheriff Drake didn’t come back into the office until a little past twelve. He saw the young woman sitting in a chair, playing with a timepiece in her palm.
“Miss?” he said.
She snapped the timepiece shut and looked up at him. “Are you Sheriff Drake?”
“Yes, I am ma’am. And you are… Miss…?”
“Mrs.,” she corrected, “Luella Pembry.”
“Have you been waiting long?” he asked.
Her eyes flashed over at Sully, who pretended to read paperwork on the desk in front of him. “No sir, not at all,” she replied.
“Well please, come into my office, and we can discuss whatever it is you need.”
The Sheriff’s office was cramped. The desk seemed to take up most of the space in the room. The window behind the desk was open, but the air that sifted in was hot. Sitting across the desk from him, Luella was aware of just how close the space was.
The Sheriff was a tall man with black hair and dark eyes. He had a cleft chin, and olive skin. He grinned, and the expression lit his eyes.
“You’ll have to excuse Sully,” Drake said, “his manners could be better. I was a few doors down, talking with one of the shop owners. I’d have come if I knew you were waiting. Are you settling here in Lazarus?”
“That’s my intention,” she replied.
“Then your husband will be joining you?”
“No, he won’t. I am a widow.”
“I’m sorry for your loss ma’am. Is his passing recent?”
“Somewhat. It’s been little over a year.” she paused. “I’ve come here to get a new start.”
“You have relatives nearby?”
“No. Which is part of the reason I came to California.”
“Well I do suppose family can be both blessing and curse. So what brings you here to see me today, Mrs. Pembry?”
She sat back in her chair. Staring out the window, Luella paused before looking back at Drake.
“My husband was a wealthy man. I’d like to buy property here in Lazarus. I am told that, even with the means to buy, it’s very difficult for a lady like myself to secure land on her own. I was also told that certain exceptions could be made and that you’re the man with whom I should speak.”
“Mrs. Pembry, I do sympathize, but the town’s laws are what they are. I hope you’re not suggesting….”
“What I am suggesting is that I can be of service to you and your town. And once my services are provided, I’d like to purchase a plot of land here to build my own home, in my name.”
“Services? What would that be?”
“Sheriff Drake, the train’s been coming in to Roseville for a few years now. That’s a stone’s throw from here. By all rights, your town should be prospering. The old families stay, but new ones don’t come. There’s a reason for that.”
“Mrs. Pembry, I don’t recall you saying exactly where it is you’re from.”
“You don’t recall because I didn’t tell you. My husband and I lived in Boston. That’s where he was born. But I’m from Louisiana.”
“Then how is it you think you know so much about Lazarus?”
“I don’t think. I know,” she leaned forward in her chair, her voice dropping to a whisper. He could smell the scent of rosewater on her skin. “You and I both know that people are afraid to stay in this town, and for good reason.”
“Since you know all about the local folklore,” Drake spat, “let’s talk plainly about it, then. What is it you‘re getting at?”
“You’ve got a problem keeping the dead in their graves here,” she said. “And I can help you.”
Drake stared at her. A moment elapsed, and they were both silent.
“How did you come to hear of our local…folklore?” he pressed.
“People say things. I listen. It’s not as well kept a secret as you and Mayor Cole think that it is.”
“Mayor Cole…?”
“Jasper thinks that he knows everything,” she continued. “So do you. It’s one of the things you have in common. But as of late, it’s happening more often, isn’t it? The dead are restless.”
“Who are you?” Drake asked. “Who are you really?”
“That’s not the right question.”
“Then what are you?”
She stood. When she smiled, the expression did not touch her eyes.
“Certainly, Sheriff Drake,” she said, “you can figure that out on your own.”
_____________________________
©2010 Lori Titus
Want more? This novella has been published through The Library of the Living Dead Press, and is available on Amazon.com:
Edited by Felicia A. Tiller
Cover Art by Tony Smith
Tags: Lazarus, Lori Titus
September 26th, 2010 at 1:43 pm
Oooh…I never got to read the Foreword! NICE!
September 26th, 2010 at 6:39 pm
Thanks!
Yeah, Doc had me write it at the end.
September 28th, 2010 at 6:03 am
Congrats on the publication!
September 28th, 2010 at 9:56 am
Thanks, Laura!
October 4th, 2010 at 8:52 pm
Ok, now I’m getting fired up!