Andrew Gracianette

A Mysterious Black Book

This tale of mystery begins with a mansion behind an iron gate, on a hill. It is a luxurious home, not dissimilar from the home of the Orson Wells character Citizen Kane. This being said, its appearances, both external and internal, were more similar to those of the Gatsby mansion from F. Scott Fitzgerald’s The Great Gatsby. The resident of this mysterious dwelling was a man whose past life, and its corresponding circumstances, was an enigma to many. Although his real name was unknown to the majority of the citizenry in his area, he had the alias of Mr. Midas, owing to the fact that, like the king in ancient Greek mythology, he had a penchant for gold, and generally, for the finer things in life. This was a moniker given to him by the locals of his relatively small, though abundantly wealthy city. It was a fitting nickname, given that his palatial place of living dwarfed the nearby houses in the adjacent neighborhood. Reclusive though he was, Mr. Midas was not above occasional contact with the world outside his home. He would of course go shopping for his daily needs, primarily the basic necessities that humans and other animals need to live, namely water and food. He usually dressed in run of the mill clothing when he was outside.