Chapter 50: Book of judgment

Chapter 50: Book of judgment

Jesper slowly opened his eyes.

Grace watched him opening his eyes. She tried calling him but no sound escapes her cage.

Gregor was furious circling the small glass cage.

The groundskeeper patiently leaned on his shovel watching them all.

The drums start beating the hour. There was suddenly absolute darkness around them all.

When there was light again, a big book was in front of them all. Each has their own individual book filled with wrong markers against their names.

“Jesper Strange…” the voice start speaking… “Jesper Strange grew up in various foster homes. He was taught from an early age that no one wanted him. Constant punishment and humiliation taught him to make himself invisible. Once he becomes of age he left the foster system. His first manual job was a grave-digger. It was while working in the graveyard that he first saw his future wife, Grace Clarke, who buried her grandmother. He knows his place in life and never expected any reaction from her. Life went on.

The groundskeeper was a very secretive man: he offered to teach Jesper a few skills. This simple yet ordinary trade quickly made him a millionaire. The strange occupation lures the wealthy elite who created a demand for his specialized crosses.

Jesper was in love with Grace Clarke: the moment he made his first million; he asked her to marry him once he learned her feelings was mutual. They had a simple yet lovely marriage. He told her precisely who he was but asks she not tell her family. A wealthy woman thanks to her grandmother she accepts his request. Her parents and siblings also live with them in the same mansion and whenever she wasn’t around, they made a point of humiliating Jesper. The deciding factor was the arrival of a man once promised to Grace. This rich playboy simply interferes in their marriage openly creating friction. The family Clarke arranged a lavish engagement for married Grace.

Jesper furious object and had to watch in horror as Grace was pushed down a flight of stairs. He had noticed his sister-in-law throwing something in her face. His wife hit the ground floor face enflamed, head hitting hard on the tile floor before blood start to pool around her head. By the time he managed to reach her the police was called. He was quickly sentenced to prison for her murder.

Jesper left prison with a mysterious letter in his hand. He went to live in a town called Crows Cries, in the back alley. He misses his wife and sometimes has the feeling she was close but staying out of his reach. While he was selling trash he noticed his former in-laws. He quickly realized they are living in his new town using his former wealth and that of his wife.

Without realizing his former in laws was looking for him with the cruel intent of killing him.

“Do you acknowledge your path…” the voice demanded.

“I do,” Jesper said firmly.

“Grace Clarke…” the voice continues… “Grace Clarke was always shy and cautious by nature. She grew up with the knowledge she was hated by her parents and siblings but no one ever told her why they felt this way. The only person who loved her truly was her grandmother. Grace knew for a fact her grandmother hated her family but the true reason was hidden from her.

Grace chooses to go to college where she studied to be a caregiver. Her grandmother paid for her tuition with only one request, once she finished her studies she must intern for a year at the old age home near a very specific graveyard. She found the request off but agreed. During the week she was away from her hateful family.

The first time she saw Jesper Strange, she has fallen in love. She has quickly noticed he was a withdrawn but hard-working man. She stays hidden just admiring him from afar. The day she finished her internship at the Home for the Elderly, she found a bunch of roses and a note saying she was beautiful. Jesper has signed his name. When she went to look for him, he was gone.

Grace Clarke went back to the mansion where she unexpectedly heard her beloved grandmother arguing with her parents. That was the day she discovered she was in reality an adopted child. She was about to question everyone in the room wanting immediate answers. As she approached the door, something in front of the door stopped her.

Grace had run to the Home for the Elderly instinctively looking for Jesper Strange. She just knew he would understand her dilemma. Something magical somehow happened and without thinking twice she told Jesper she was in love with.

Grace found herself being pulled into his world. She was very happy when he admits to love her too. Her happiest moment when he told her he wants to marry her.

Grace discovered her grandmother dead. The circumstances around her death were highly suspicious but she only confides her worries in Jesper. She told her family she was married to him and since she was the owner of the mansion he was going to live with them. The family decides to kill her and blame Jesper.

Grace had a mysterious encounter with the groundskeeper where Jesper work. Once the man has spoken to her; her life was set on a path she was not allowed to tell Jesper. She loved him but feared the knowledge of what she knows. Only during the sound of silence are she allowed to make her presence known.

“Do you acknowledge this truth?”

“I do,” she said quietly.

Jesper Strange is a mysterious man with a few life-changing secrets: to understand the reasons behind his behavior everyone involved must acknowledge first that he was a happily married man until his in laws decide to destroy his marriage; killed his wife and framed him for her murder.

A murderous arrangement was made to kill him in prison. He was left to die in solitary confinement; he knew the hour that his death arrived as blood pool around him. The last thing he notice was the black crow watching him from the small prison window. When he opened his eyes, an unbelievable heat spread throughout his body while several black crows circle around him. There within their mists he saw his wife; Grace smiling at him holding out her hands but he can’t reach her.

Everything was eerily silent around him but he knows for a fact he wasn’t alone. As he slowly moved into a sitting position, it took him a moment to understand the sound of silence. The disfigured silhouette of his wife Grace Clarke appeared fleetingly in front of him each time he needs to make a decision. He suddenly knew as a reborn man his true destiny was about to begin.

Warning…sound of silence echoes his name… Jesper Strange and he is coming…When the veneer of everyday life was stripped away darkness seeps through the cracks. What truths are hidden within the shadows…