Read Online Ravens Deep (one) by Jane Jordan - Free Book Online Page A

of their own accord, as age takes its toll on even the simplest mechanisms. But it made me think about the history of Ravens Deep and who had lived here in the past. If I ever saw Darius again, I made up my mind that I would ask him. Locals always knew the history of old houses and the stories of the people that had once inhabited them.
                  After breakfast, I sat down in the library and looked at my papers on the desk.  Through my research I had traced my ancestry back to my great grandfather three times removed.  With the help of Mr. Chamber’s letters, I had discovered that he was John Shaw, born in 1838. He had married a girl named Maria. Mr. Chambers had not known her surname and I had been unable to discover that information myself.
                  At Ravens Deep there was no phone line, no internet connection.  I had to rely on the research that I had previously completed in London. There I had been able to access old census records, but they were so incomplete and I had come to several dead ends.  I wondered if I could get back any further into the history of my family and then again, did it really matter.  My curiosity for personal history had been satisfied as Mr. Chambers had already given me the relevant information. 
                  I sat thinking, although I had based my story on some of my own ancestry, the main character in my book was fictional, so now I had to construct the details differently.  The girl I would write about was not me. I rose from the desk and surveyed the vast array of books on the book shelves.  I read the various titles, but it was one with no title which caught my attention. It was a very old leather bound volume, ripped and frayed as though well read over the years. The inside cover was missing, but it seemed to contain local history. I found Beaconmayes easily and it was interesting to see pictures of the village, at a time when it had been little more than a few old cottages.
                  I sat down at the desk and carefully turned over each page, as not to cause any more damage. As I reached the middle of the book I found a diagram of a map showing the surrounding lands. A church was marked and I figured its location was in the middle of nearby woods.  I calculated that it wouldn’t’t be too far from here and assumed it could be reached by car nowadays. I meticulously looked through the entire book, but could find no mention of Ravens Deep or Ravens Farm and this struck me as odd. Why would a local book be comprehensive in listing all the old and historical properties in the area of that time, but leave these particular ones out?  Especially when this house had obviously been here a lot longer than some other properties mentioned.
                  At the end of the book, several pages were missing from the spine, it was likely they contained the information I was looking for and the ongoing thought process posed a curious question.
                  “Why would someone in the past have not wanted any record of this house to exist?”  My voice interrupted the peaceful ambiance of the room and my thoughts turned back to the conversation I had with Samuel Dunklin yesterday, and the fact that he had never heard of Ravens Deep.
                  I spent all morning searching through the library for any evidence that Ravens Deep or the farm existed on paper, searching old and newer maps, but there was no indication of even a building let alone an address.  It made me wonder if these properties had ever been recorded.  I was perplexed at the mystery, but no closer to solving it, so I focused my attention back to my research notes and began to write the first chapter for my book. The next couple of hours passed quickly. I was happily absorbed with my thoughts and ideas and even happier with the progress I had made. But I did not want to spend the whole day indoors, so eventually I