Chapter Seven
White snow blanketed the roofs and dusted the cobblestone streets of the small village in Stanbury.
When she’d been a child Christmas had always been Evie’s favorite time of year, but after Alfie’s death, it had turned into her most dreaded time.
What used to be a house filled with dancing, games, and feasts had become a cold, lonely, and isolating shell.
But this year, cheer had been restored to Everwood Manor.
Delightful smells emanated from the kitchen as the newly employed cook and kitchen maid prepared a Christmas feast of meat, potatoes, vegetables, pudding, and spice cake.
Music filled the hallway as her mama played the piano, something she had not done in years.
Evie and Hugh had wasted no time getting married.
Seven years had already been spent, and that had been long enough.
Their union had injected new life into her mama, who now looked forward to a warm future filled with grandchildren and love.
Hugh’s parents were equally delighted, and the village that had been divided by the death of Alfie came together.
She and Hugh had elected to keep the truth of Alfie’s death a secret.
The truth, Evie knew, would only hurt her mama and Alfie’s reputation.
He’d taken his own life. In the eyes of the church and the people, he was a sinner in more ways than one.
Evie knew differently. Alfie had been a kind and sensitive soul, and the world had been too harsh a place for him.
She’d honored him by decorating the walls of Everwood Manor with some of his best landscapes of the moors and the portraits he’d sketched of himself and their family. Evie loved seeing his work everywhere. It was as though Alfie were part of the household again.
They had a cheerful evening filled with love and promise. And that night, when Evie snuggled next to her husband, she gazed up at the silver moon and listened to the church bells in the distance, as she did every night, before falling asleep with her lips curved into a smile.
The End