Secret of the Season's Fortune - A Whispering Pines Short Mystery (EBOOK)

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Chapter 1
I turned the corner onto the gravel driveway feeling tired and hungry, but accomplished after finishing the Christmas shopping and weekly errands so quickly. My best friend, Cybil, usually went with me, but this week she refused. At least the kids stayed with her. That’s probably why I got done in record time. Having the kids in tow always slowed progress.
As soon as I approached our building, I understood why she didn’t want to come. Well, not the reason behind why, but what she had been doing while I’d been gone was immediately obvious. She, Rae, Gabe, and Vanda all stood in the cold next to our craft trailer, our meager belongings in a disorganized pile next to it. The kids were shivering and seemed a little shell-shocked over whatever had happened.
“What on earth is going on?” I asked. “It’s freezing today. Why are you all out here?”
All Cybil would say was, “We have to leave. Now.”
“Leave? Why?”
She shook her head, opened the back door of our station wagon that I’d just filled with gasoline, and started loading the boxes and bags.
“Cybil, please, tell me what’s—”
“Effie! Divinò!”
I’d been so surprised to hear our codeword, I didn’t question her further. Just helped her load our things. An hour later, when the shock had mostly worn off, memories from ten years ago tried to push their way to the front of my mind. Cybil had been only sixteen, me seventeen, and—
No. I couldn’t think about that. What mattered was Cybil stood by my side then, so I had to now. Divinò was her grandmother’s Creole word for seer, fortune teller, or mind reader. To us, the word also signaled the agreement we made that day in 1958 when we fled Jamaica. It meant, please just do as I ask without insisting I tell my secret. I had used it first and promised Cybil I would do the same for her if the time ever came. Today, it was my turn to repay the debt.
After three hours on the road, I decided while it would be nice to know why we left, I wasn’t too upset about it. That place hadn’t been right for us. It didn’t accurately reflect who we were.
Although, Cybil seemed to be doing fine there. I, on the other hand, had been slowly dying for months.
Now, another couple of hours had passed. The kids had fallen asleep forty miles back. Out of the corner of my eye, I saw Cybil’s head bob forward and then snap back. Maybe now, when she was half asleep, was a good time to try again.