Chapter 2: 24 Kills for Shelly

The Estate

The drive back to the family mansion was very quiet. The only sounds to be heard came from the engine and the wheels on the road. A profound sense of loneliness and despair had started to settle like a fog over James. He finally reached the gates of his family home and noticed that the gate was open. The caretaker was just inside the fence gate trimming the hedges near the gate.

Milton Conway had been the caretaker of the house and grounds for the last five years. He had taken the job when Robert, the previous butler/chauffeur had died. His job was to keep the house and grounds in good shape. He required just a few hours each day to carry out his duties. Milton had gotten to know Sarah and was sorry to see her pass away. When the young owner of the estate had brought his fiancée back to be buried, he knew that he would have company for a while. Milton had retired from the Marine Corps some years back and sought out the peace and quiet that his life had never known. Now he was not sure what the future would bring.

James waved at Milton as he came through the gate and drove the car up to the estates large garage. He parked the car in an empty spot and got out. James closed the garage door and walked to the main house and the solitude of the mansion. Milton had moved into the gatehouse after Sarah had passed away.

James put his few bags down in the central hall and walked into the cavernous study his father had designed and built in the house. James noticed that it was clean and orderly as always. A flask of Brandy and four glasses sat on a small table near the large fireplace. James took a glass and poured himself a drink, then sat in one of the oversized chairs facing the fireplace. He sat in the silence for a few minutes and then heard Milton enter the room.

Milton was a Gunnery sergeant for the US Marines and had a commanding voice and presence. Milton was five foot eleven inches tall. His gray hair was still cut in the traditional Marine style, high and tight. A lifetime of military service had left Milton with a very muscular build. Underneath his quiet exterior and his superficial desire for peace and quiet, lurked a soul filled with violence and malice. Milton had learned to love the stalking and killing of his intended prey. A lifetime career in the military had taught him to not only kill but to kill with ease.

James motioned for him to come and sit down. James started to explain, “I want you to know my intentions for the next few months. I plan on keeping to myself for the most part. I think you know my history and what has recently happened. I need some solitude, time to heal. My requirements will be few but perhaps the next time you go to town, you could pick up a few things for me?”

Milton saw the grief in the man’s eyes and decided that he would need space at first then later maybe a friend. Milton looked around at the books and said, “I’d be glad to get some things for you.” Milton continued, “I know some of your family history and I came to like Sarah.”

Both men agreed to respect each other’s privacy. Milton got up from the chair he was sitting in and started for the door. He paused and turned around and spoke. “I am sorry that your fiancée was killed. If you ever need to talk I’ll be glad to listen.”

Milton had once had a family and had lost them in a terrorist attack. The loss of loved ones was something he understood.

As Milton was about to leave the study James said, “Thank you for your kindness. I want you to know that you have a home here for as long as you want.”

James sat in the same chair for several more hours and stared at the empty fireplace. Study Begins

James spent the next few weeks taking long walks in the surrounding woods and along the country lanes in the area. His thoughts always returned to those he had lost and how he would spend the rest of his life. In his third month of isolation, James was out walking and his mind settled on the one thing that had never been a part of his life. Religion, he’d never needed it before now but perhaps now was the time to include it. Shelly had just begun to help him explore the Norse religion, when she was taken from him.

James had not been raised to believe in any particular kind of God or religion. Sarah and Robert had taken him to services when he was younger but he never felt it was right for him. Shelly had found something that made her happy. She wore Thor’s hammer on a necklace. Shelly had been buried with her necklace and one or two other tokens of her belief. James decided that he would look into the religion that she had found. Maybe he could find something in her religion to ease his pain and heartache.

James spent a few days thinking about religion and what he could look for and expect. His parents had not been particularly religious and felt it better that James find his own way. James thought about all the books that his father had collected. He decided to call on some of his father’s old friends to recommend some books on world religions. He made a few calls and received about the same information from each person. He should check out a rare bookstore in Butlerton, about an hour away from where he lived.

James let the information sit for a while then planned a drive. He hoped to find the rare bookstore he had been told about. His search for knowledge would begin with something about the history of the Norse people and their beliefs. After breakfast he walked out to the garage.

In the garage he looked at the five cars that he had at his disposal, his sedan, a 1965 Cadillac, a 1966 Mercedes, a 1965 Ford pickup truck, and a vintage Bentley. He chose the Bentley. Of course Milton kept all the cars in good working order and the family accountant saw that the license and registration were always up to date. James got in behind the wheel and started the car. He drove out of the garage up the long drive and through the gate.

The drive took about an hour. It had been a good drive and James was more relaxed than he had been in several months. He stopped at a phone booth and looked up the address of the bookstore mentioned by his father’s friends. The drive to the store was short and on the way James realized he was filled with apprehension.

James parked the Bentley and entered the store. After a quick look around James began to search for the section that he wanted. James noted the smell of old books mixed with the unmistakable smell of dry stale dust. The bookstore was in an older building with two large windows in front and several rows of book shelves well over nine feet high. The light seemed to fade the further back the books went.

Behind an old wooden counter a stoop shouldered elderly, white haired man stood. “Can I help you young man?”

“Yes, I believe my father bought some rare books from you many years ago. His name was Winston Shaw.”

“Yes I sold him some very fine books for his library.”

“I’m looking to add some books to that same library and wonder if you have any books on the Vikings or the Norse religion.”

“I just happen to have a pretty good selection on that subject. If you’ll follow me I can show them to you.”

Lars as James would later learn was the owner and sole employee of the bookstore led James through a series of isles near the back of the store and stopped near a large shelf filled with books on the subject in question.

“May I ask where your interest in this comes from?”

James thought for a moment and then said, “My fiancée wore a small Thor’s hammer before she was killed and is now buried with it.”

Lars looked at the tall young man and said, “I am sorry for your loss.”

James steeled himself and replied, “Thank you.”

Lars chose three separate books saying, “I should think that these three would be a good start.”

James took the books and said, I’ll start with these and see where they lead me.”

Lars smiled and said, “Great.”

They went to the front counter and James paid for his books. James noticed on his way out that Lars wore a strange symbol around his neck. The pendant was a silver circle with an upward facing arrow inscribed in the middle. James would later learn that the symbol was for the Norse God TYR.

When James got out to his car he looked at the books he had purchased. Two were fairly new editions. The first one was a history of the Vikings. The second was a translation of the Poetic Eddas. But the third was an old book; the author was a man named G. Von List.

The drive home seemed to take longer. James realized that he just wanted to get home and begin his reading.

James arrived home with plenty of time before darkness fell. He decided to take a walk and clear his head for the reading to come. About half way through his walk he met up with Milton coming back from his own walk. The two stopped to chat for a few minutes. The subject was how the grounds looked. James said that he was very happy with everything and looked forward to more years residing on the estate. The two men parted and James continued with his walk.

James returned to the mansion and went to the kitchen and fixed himself some dinner. With a tray in one hand and the first book in the other he went into the dining room and settled down to eat and read. Three chapters later he stretched and realized was tired from a full day, and excited by the first of the three books. The first book was mainly a history of the Norse people. But the book also included parts about the religion and beliefs. James had been taught the regular history subjects but this was a whole world apart from the rest main stream history. The Norse had a very rich history and a religion all their own.

His family had been English on both sides but as he read more he found out that the Vikings had held the lands that his ancestors had come from for centuries. He could indeed have some Viking in him. The clock chimed ten PM and James realized that he was too tired to go on and decided to go to bed. As sleep caught up with him, James thought that through his studies he could feel closer to Shelly. That night James got the first good night’s sleep he’d had in several weeks.

The next day he got out of bed and went down to the kitchen to make some breakfast. While he ate, he picked up his reading where he had left off the night before. James had planned on spending some time fixing up the study for his reading but two hours later he was still at the kitchen table. The book had fixed his attention. James closed the book at the end of chapter seven.

James stood up, stretched, and decided to take a walk. He walked for about two hours and thought about all he had read. For some reason the subject matter had awakened something in his soul. The sense of loss was still there but now he felt even closer to the love he had lost. He could barely remember the loss of his parents, but the loss of his fiancée was still a painfully vivid memory. He fought to hold back the tears and lost.

The end of his walk returned James to the house. He took his books into the study and did not leave the until later that evening. At the end of the first book, he stood up and realized that night had fallen. He also discovered that he was very hungry.

James explored the refrigerator and decided on a sandwich. For the next few minutes he busied himself making and consuming a large roast beef sandwich on wheat. A beer was just the perfect choice to chase the food down. The clock on the stove showed it was 1:10 AM. Bed was last on his list of things to do.

James woke up just after ten the next morning. He felt refreshed and ready for a new day. After a shower and some breakfast he set out on a long walk. Two hours later he arrived back at the house and went into the study. The second of the three books sat on the desk awaiting his attention. James took the book and settled into his favorite chair in the study. The second of the three books was a bit more complicated and James felt the need to take a few notes.

After James had read and taken notes on the first three chapters he stood up, stretched, and headed for the kitchen. As James walked in, he noticed Milton working on the stove. James had failed to notice that one of the six burners was in need of repair. It was Milton’s job to keep everything clean and in working order. James invited Milton to share dinner with him. Milton accepted and the two began to fix dinner. James found that Milton had a very good recipe for spaghetti.

The topic of conversation came around to the death of James’s fiancée. James had not felt the need to talk about it but the feelings were there. Milton had sensed that he needed to be here to listen. Milton had lost all of his family and had had someone to call on for help. Milton had gotten revenge but deep in his heart burned the fires of anger for the people that had caused his grief. James relived the entire incident. After it was over he felt a bit better, but a knot of hatred still festered in his brain. All the losses he had felt over the years had left their stamp on him.

James had not even been there to say goodbye or to try and stop the killing. And since Shelly’s killer had been killed, he didn’t even have the chance for revenge.

Milton had been in the Marine Corp and had found an outlet for the anger and rage; James still had the anger and rage and no way to get it out into the open.

Once the food was eaten and the dishes cleaned up the two men said good night and left for their prospective activities. James returned to the study and took up his book and note pad. The rest of the evening passed quietly. The second book involved more about the lore and myths of the Vikings. James learned that he should call them the Norse and not the Vikings.

The study of the ‘Northern Way’ was starting to have a profound affect on his subconscious.

James noticed that at the end of the second book he had taken more than thirty pages of notes. Looking out of the window of the study he noticed that the sun had set and that it had also come up. James had been studying the entire night. A profound sense of exhaustion swept over him. He got out of the chair and stretched to smooth out the kinks. James left the book and notes on the table and went up to bed. In his room he set the alarm for noon and lay down to sleep.

With about five hours of sleep he would be able to face the rest of the day. Almost as soon as his head hit the pillow he was off to sleep. His sleep was filled with strange dreams, some beautiful and some very frightening. James remembered two dreams after he woke up. One was where he and Shelly lived happily ever after. In the middle of this dream a small tear slide out of the corner of his left eye and traced its way down his cheek. The other dream was of a ritual area set inside of a grove of oak trees with a Valknot inscribed on the ground. In the middle of the ritual area sat a stone altar.

The alarm awoke James at high noon. He stripped off his clothing and headed for the bathroom. The shower felt especially good, hot water cascading off his shoulders served to revive him. James had always enjoyed the feel of a fresh white T-shirt next to his skin. A pair of soft cotton slacks and a pair of gray socks completed his clothing for the day. James thought about the dreams and decided to jump into studying with both feet.

A large sandwich took care of the hunger pangs. James put on a good pair of work boots and went out the back door. He intended to put some labor into the yard. The second book had outlined the need for a central area in which to worship the gods. James looked around the large back yard. An area just off the north section of the mansion had a clearing. It was largely overgrown with bushes and some old oak trees. James decided to tear out the bushes and to clear the area for a stone altar.

For the next hour he dug the old bushes out and stacked the wood. Just about this time Milton came around to the area. Looking puzzled he asked, “May I ask what you’re planning on doing with this area?”

James replied, “I want a quiet, secluded place to think and relax. I want the area framed by hedges and those old oak trees.”

“That sounds like a great idea. May I offer some suggestions?”

The two men put their heads together and came up with a great design for the area. The old oak trees would stay and be the anchor for three sides. The fourth side would need an eight-foot fence with a wooden gate. A row of thick hedges would take up the empty spaces between the trees. Milton left to order the materials and James sat down on the ground to look at the plans for his new area. Thirty minutes later Milton returned and said that the needed materials would be delivered the next day.

The two men sat on the ground, stared up at the sky and exchanged small talk. James got up and said that he needed to take his afternoon walk. Milton agreed saying that he had some things to finish in the front of the house. James took off on his walk. Because he had been up all night and had already worked in the yard for three hours his walk lasted about an hour.

Once back at the house, James went to the kitchen and heated up some of last night’s spaghetti and ate in silence. By the time the dishes were put away, darkness had again fallen. James went up to bed. A good night’s sleep was needed before he started on the next book.

Early the next day, a large truck from the local nursery arrived at the mansion and three workmen got out and began to unload. Milton was showing them where to put the hedges and fencing when James arrived on the scene. James listened to Milton give directions to the work crew and silently agreed that Milton was better equipped to take the lead here. Four hours later hedges, fencing and a gate now newly defined the area.

James had arranged for an adequate amount of rock and mortar to be delivered to build the altar. James had specified the items be delivered on Friday. Milton did not know about the second shipment. Friday and Saturday were Milton’s regular days off. James would put the altar together that day. The second book had outlined a method of building the altar and how to consecrate it. James figured that he could have the altar built in a day. And by that time he figured he would be about half the way through the third book.

For the rest of the day James puttered around the house, picking things up, putting them down. Dusting some of the unused rooms. Doing some of his laundry. By the end of the day he was again ready for bed. The next day promised to be a busy one. The drive to town would be a welcome change of scenery.

Thursday arrived with a cloudy sky that threatened rain. He chose to drive the one vehicle best suitable for bad weather. It was his 1965 Ford pickup. The dark blue truck was old but in great shape and had very low miles. All it ever had done to it was new tires, oil, gas, and some minor maintenance. James picked up the correct set of keys, opened the door, got inside, started the engine, and drove out the gate and into town.

The town offered just the items he needed but he had make stops to get them all. The last item to get was a large bottle of honey wine. James had had to special order the wine. The owner of the liquor store was curious but ordered it anyway.

James managed to get all the items he needed and started the drive home. On the way, his mind wandered to the past. He saw Shelly and himself spending their off hours together. The memories of the good times and feelings welled up inside of him. A few tears began to flow. After a few minutes he had to stop and get control of himself. Counselors had told him that to cry was good and signaled the onset of recovery. James did not want to recover. He wanted to grieve longer. His grief gave him strength.

James put the truck away and carried his purchases into the house. The honey wine went into the small fridge in the study. The other items also found their way into the study. James went to the tool shed and got the tools he would need for building the altar. These he took to the site. With this done, he went back to the house and finished all the other things that he needed to do.

Friday morning arrived, clear sky, warm temperatures, and no threat of rain on the horizon. The materials arrived at the appointed hour and James set to work. The altar took just over five hours to complete. At about 2 PM James finished the altar, put the tools back to the shed, and cleaned the area up. Once satisfied with his work, he went back to the house for a nap. The consecration ceremony would take place that night. At the stroke of eleven PM, James carried the items that the books required him to have, out to his newly built altar.

The book had outlined the need for a fresh mistletoe twig, a sledgehammer, a dagger, a drinking horn, honey mead, and his family sword and shield. James stopped and thought about a family sword and shield. He didn’t have these but he would go on without them. After all these items were placed on the altar in the prescribed manner, James decided he was ready to start. He laid a copy of the ritual on the end of the altar and cleared his mind. When he was ready he read the ritual aloud and performed the motions called for. At the end of the ritual he thanked the gods and gave half of the used mead to the Gods and Wights.

James cleared the area of his tools and other items and went in the house. He put all his ritual tools into a specially built oak box, then sat in his favorite chair and contemplated all that he had done during the last two days. A deep sense of peace and satisfaction settled over him.

Saturday arrived, clear and warm. James looked at the clock and saw it was already 10am. It was time to get out of bed and start on the third book. This book was larger and looked to contain more details. More notes might be needed. After James was up and had eaten, he went into the study and decided to unpack his computer. He had not touched it since he had come home. Notes taken on the last book should be put into it. James busied himself with getting it set up. Next he started to type his notes into the computer. A special file called ‘Secular Notes’ was created.

During his studies, James learned that the Vikings did not believe in Heaven and Hell, but rather in nine separate kingdoms. Some of these realms were pleasant and others were not so pleasant. The Vikings had believed that unless you were killed in battle your soul would end up in Hella’s realm. Even though James was not yet a true believer this knowledge did give him a goal to shoot for. He would have to know all there was to know about the nine realms.

Around four in the afternoon, he started on the third book. As expected, this book was more complicated and involved some of the real meat of the subject. James decided to skim over some of the chapters. One of them caught his eye. The chapter was on exercises that could be learned and performed on a daily basis. These started off with the person using a small stick and finally progressing to a large heavy sword. As fascinating as the chapter was, James realized that he needed to read the first part of the book before trying the middle of the book. With that he began to read. James had reached the chapter in the book that explained the exercises and the reason for them. James looked at the clock and decided it was time for bed

The next day came with a thunderstorm and heavy rain. James was disappointed to find that he was stuck indoors for the day. But on the bright side he had plenty of things to do in the house. One of them included cleaning some of the unused rooms. Since he was the only one in the mansion he had covered most of the unused furniture. But they still needed to be looked at and made sure that rodents and moths were not taking up residence in his house.

After lunch James went up to the large attic and decided to sort through some of the old stuff stored there. Two hours into the job he found a long wooden box. The wood was a deep brown color; James guessed it was hand made out of walnut. The box appeared to be perhaps six feet long by four feet wide, and about three feet deep. Wide enough for a body was his first thought. James unlatched the box and slowly lifted the lid. The box was lined with a dark red silk. In the box a five-foot long sword, and a three-foot round shield lay carefully preserved. The handle of the sword was most likely teakwood. The blade was double-edged and very sharp. James put his finger on the blade and was rewarded with a small cut. The shield had the family crest on it. James’s father had had this made but did not have the chance to give it to his son.