Page 10 of Leafpoint Lighthouse

“One night, it escalated, and to this day, nobody knows what happened. Still, in seventeen-ninety-nine, the entire Damerell gang disappeared after terrifying the coastline, towns, and sailors for years.

“Jasper Manor burned down, and bodies were recovered belonging to Charles and his sons. His daughter remained, and by his will, inherited his fortune. Back then, women couldn’t inherit a title, although they could inherit the estate and other assets if they weren’t entailed. The Jasper estate wasn’t. That’s the way it was back then. The same night, as everything else, the four lighthouse keepers were also murdered. There wasn’t a single witness.”

“That’s a hell of a story!” Thea exclaimed.

Mrs Penrose nodded. “Indeed. But something else tragic happened. The lighthouse’s lanterns refused to work. Subsequent keepers moved in and were out within a few weeks. The lighthouses became known as haunted, and many have alleged to have seen the ghosts of the murdered victims. And since seventeen-ninety-nine, the lanterns haven’t worked.”

Something struck me as off about that.

“So, we’re the first Jaspers to return to Penhaven ?” Thea asked, bemused by the story.

“Yes.”

“What aren’t you telling us?” I pressed. “Because I definitely saw a light last night.” Which caused me concern. How? Because it wasn’t electric.

“Last month, Christmas Day, all the lighthouses began working again. Their lights lit even though there’s nobody around to tend to them. The four replacement lighthouses the county installed—kaput. One collapsed on Boxing Day and is now a pile of rubble. The second caught fire and burned down. The third partially disintegrated and needs to be pulled down, and the fourth fell into the sea,” Mrs Penrose stated.

I wanted to argue with that. “Coincidence.”

“The legend is that when four Jasper daughters return to the lighthouse, evils shall be corrected, and the dead might walk amongst the living.”

“Okay, that’s creepy,” Thea said, wrinkling her nose.

“You mentioned there were six of you? I bet four are female,” Mrs Penrose stated.

I glanced at Thea. “That means nothing!”

“Ships need these lighthouses. This land here possesses properties that interfere with radar. They can’t use that here. So, if they go down… a modern-day wrecker’s paradise,” Mrs Penrose said.

“Seriously. Wreckers exist today? I don’t believe that!” I exclaimed.

“Not in the way you’re thinking. But stealing from sunken ships? A huge business. And trust me, girls, there’s plenty around this coastline. The lighthouse lighting the sea will stop them robbing them in the dark,” Mrs Penrose explained.

“And are we unwelcome because of that? Because we’re stopping theft and desecration?” Thea exclaimed.

“Seems harsh,” I agreed.

“Locals here were raised on these legendary stories. They believe in them,” Mrs Penrose said.

“And you don’t?” Thea demanded

“Who says I don’t? Perhaps I don’t like the idea of punishing innocents for what happened in the past?”

Well, Mrs Penrose had given me something to consider. For the rest of the day, Thea and I worked our way through our lists, but my mind kept returning to Leafpoint and the stories about it. What had I inherited?

If I got one more hostile look, I’d make sure I earned it, I decided as I walked around the local supermarket. Surprisingly, Penhaven had somehow kept commercial and chain stores out of the town. Locals from the area ran most shops and businesses, which was actually nice. But boy, were they cliquey! As proved right now. The dirty looks I was getting were completely unwarranted.

I ignored them and carried on pushing the cart within the fairly decent-sized supermarket. The trolley was full, and I was inwardly smirking. Leafpoint Lighthouse wouldn’t know what hit it when I arrived later. I’d picked up several mops, buckets, brooms, and tons of cleaning supplies and sponges. The rubber gloves and bleach were almost gone because of me.

I went to one of the four tills and winced. This would cost a few hundred pounds, but I’d triple-checked my bank before coming and twice while being here. The money remained so that I could splurge on the top-label household items. As I queued behind someone, I could hear the whispers and see the finger-pointing. All because I’d moved to Penhaven so I could live in the lighthouse.

Well, tough luck.

While not usually confrontational—Serena and Cale were proof of that—I wouldn’t back down. Plus, the will stated we had to stay for a year. So, they were fresh out of luck. I wasn’t going to return to Dagenham with Cale and his friends there.

The woman in front of me paid and sneered.

“Have a nice day,” I said warmly, and she blinked in shock and looked momentarily ashamed. She stormed off, and I smiled. Before I could ask for shopping bags, the cashier began slamming items through the till.