Catherine's Ring -e

by Elena Dorothy Bowman

In a small fictional town in the northeast corner of Massachusetts a mysterious package from out of the past had the residents buzzing. The original recipient had long since passed, and the sender of the package had died at sea in a tragedy that stunned the world. Where had this package been all these years, and why, even if it was postmarked the year it was sent, was it never delivered? When the present day recipient received the mysterious package, he wondered if he opened it, would he be opening a Pandora's Box. But, neither he nor his wife were aware that his thoughts would ring true, and the strange events and entities that would envelop his family, and the family of the descendants of the original sender.

978-1-59431-909-9

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Historical Fiction/romance

Prologue

In a small fictional town in the northeast corner of Massachusetts a mysterious package from out of the past had the residents buzzing. Unfortunately, the person for whom the package was intended had long since passed away. Given the problem of what to do with the package, the Post Mistress, of this traditional town, decided to pass the problem off to the descendant of the deceased. There were many descendants living in the town, but the one she sent it to had been named after the deceased. Therefore, it stood to reason, even if he no longer lived in the town of Wikersburg, Massachusetts, he should be the recipient of the package.

When the package arrived in Cambridge, Massachusetts, Nicholas Lindin, the recipient named after his Great-Grandfather was surprised to see it. He couldn't understand why the Post Mistress in the town he grew up in would send him a package. It wasn't until he opened her package, discovered her letter and the much smaller package tucked inside, that had obviously seen better days, when it totally confused him.

In her letter, the Post Mistress explained why she sent the disheveled package to him and not to another member of the family. Simply because of the date stamped on the package, and due to the fact that he was the only Nicholas Lindin she knew. His wife, Maria was just as taken with the package, particularly the smaller one, as her husband and didn't know what to make of the situation or why he was chosen to receive it.

Nicholas stared at the date on the smaller package for a long time before he asked his wife to look at it, because he wasn't sure he was reading it correctly. When she agreed with him that the date was the same as he thought, he didn't want to open it. Opening it to him would be opening a Pandora's Box. But what he didn't know was how true that would turn out to be.

The date stamped on the battered package was 1915 and inside this package was a letter from a young woman to the boy she loved. She wrote her parents were against their marriage so her father was sending her off to England to separate them. Why did her parents object? They were of different religions and in 1915 that was not acceptable. Inside the package was a beautiful and captivating diamond, ruby and emerald ring that the girl's father had created for her and her sister of gems he had acquired in the Orient.

But what was unforeseen by her parents, particularly her father, was that 1915 was a dangerous time for sailing across the ocean. In particular, it was extremely dangerous to book passage on the HMS Lusitania. Catherine Barton sailed away on the Lusitania on May 1, 1915, and on the 7th of May, somewhere in the Irish Sea, the U20 a German submarine sent a torpedo into that cruise ship and Catherine Barton, along with thousands of others, lost her life.

***

The hunt for who deliberately held onto the package for one hundred years then decided to drop in the Post Office and push it under the counter was on, and what the significance of that action was is what brought Nicholas and Maria to search for answers. Unaware that a second ring, created for Catherine's twin sister Caroline, would soon become apparent when a young British girl, a descendant of Caroline Barton, was just as determined to discover where her Great-Grandaunt's ring disappeared to. She became enthralled with the quest when she read her Great-Grandaunt's letters to her deceased sister and discovered the existence and disappearance of Catherine's Ring.

Lord Alexander-V reluctantly allowed his daughter Catherine to travel to the United States to search for answers. She didn't go alone, her mother, Lady Bridgette Alexander, accompanied her and both were escorted by a member of the British Consulate in Boston. At least, that's who they thought he was. But appearances can be deceiving, particularly when one is entrusted with the lives and safety of the members of Royalty.

As the search for answers continued, the Lindins and the Alexanders became more than good friends, enmeshed in the search for answers, they became as members of one family, determined to discover who, what or why. For all of their efforts, they could only resolve part of what had occurred, but many questions went unanswered, questions they wondered if they would every find answers to.

Did Catherine Barton's spirit searching for so many years find its way back to her home, and was Nicholas' spirit waiting for his lost love to return all these many years? Will they discover each other in the world they once knew, even if it is to be only in the realm of the spirit world, where they can be together again? If so, what effect will that have on the living who may sense the existence of the restless spirits?

Would Catherine Alexander-V, allow herself to admit that she was really smitten with her protector Tony, and that he had more than a protector's interest in her? Will Maria and Nicholas be the recipients of a miracle that they were told could never happen? If so, what part did Catherine's Ring play in the phenomenon if it comes to pass? And what power did Catherine's Ring have over the events that haunted the families?











































Chapter I

Cambridge, Massachusetts - May 2009

Stan, the neighbor across the street on the right from the Lindins was leaning on his cane and waiting in his driveway for Nicholas and Maria to get home from work. He had timed it right. He knew they were like clockwork, always arriving home at the same time each evening, and this night, Stan was waiting for them with a package in his hand.

He waved as they drove into their driveway motioning with the package that he wanted them to join him. Nicholas and Maria looked at one another.

"I think Stan wants to talk to us," Maria said as they drove into their garage.

"So, it would seem," Nicholas answered turning off the engine. "Guess we'd better see what's on his mind."

Instead of going inside the house from the garage entrance, they walked around to the front of the house and met Stan in the middle of their street.

"Got a package for ya," Stan said. "Told the postman that I'd take it and sign for you, rather than having you go to the Post Office to pick it up."

"Thanks, Stan. Appreciate you saving me the trip. How's the leg?"

"What are neighbors for if they can't help out once in a while? Oh, some days are better than others, can't complain wouldn't do any good," he answered with a smile. Turning, Stan walked back across the road to his driveway and disappeared into his house.

"That was nice of Stan, wasn't it?" Maria asked. "Poor Stan, that leg does give him problems. A package for us? Did you order anything from the store," Maria added.

"Yeah, it's been that way since the War. No. Why?" Nicholas asked.

"Thought maybe you ordered something that's why Stan was holding it for us."

"Must be a mistake. I didn't order anything did you?"

"No, not at all, at least not that I can remember," she added thoughtfully.

Nicholas shook his head and looked at the package Stan handed him. The return address had Mildred's name on it, the Postal Clerk from Wikersburg. Now, why would Mildred be sending me a Priority Mail Package? Haven't seen or heard from her in quite a while. So, why now?

"Who is it from and to whom is it addressed?" Maria asked lightly.

"It's addressed to me, from Mildred, at the Post Office in Wikersburg."

"Wonderful! A surprise package! Wonder why she sent it?" Maria mused.

With a shrug, Nicholas lightly shook the package to see if anything inside would rattle, laughing along with Maria he said, "Maybe we'd better go inside and open it up before one of our neighbors think we've lost our minds."

Maria suddenly looked around and waved to the neighbor diagonally across the street on the left from the Lindins, "Too late, we've already been spotted."

"Who? Mrs. Anderson?"

"You got it."

Once inside Nicholas opened the package sent to him. Inside were a letter and a smaller package. The letter was from Mildred, the postal clerk in Wikersburg. The package--well, from someone momentarily unknown, hmmm, Nicholas thought, what now?

Nicholas looked more carefully at the package itself. It had seen better days, what he held in his hand was battered and disheveled, almost as if it had been put through the mill. Still, it was addressed to Nicholas Lindin, but to an address in his home town. A town he hadn't been back in, in months, and forwarded by the Post Office to his present address.

"Wonder where that package came from," Maria said perplexed. "It looks as if it traveled all the way from darkest regions of Timbuktu."

"Doesn't it though," Nicholas laughed examining the package.

"That's strange isn't it?" Maria asked. "Who do you think it's from?"

"I don't know…guess I'll have to open it to find out now, won't I?"

"Well, what are you waiting for? Aren't you curious?"

"Not as much as you are apparently," he teased. "It can wait until after dinner. Let's eat first. We can open it at our leisure after dinner when were not in a rush."

"If you insist!" she said slightly disappointed. "You go freshen up and I'll start dinner."