Daniel Dix

The Blackwood Mystery: A Closed Book?

A cool breeze flicked her auburn hair back and gave her respite from the unrelenting summer heat as she gazed out on to the lake, staring. At what, she could not say. The death of her father was shocking and yet the tears just would not come when she attended his funeral that morning. Her father, Baron Blackwood, had reportedly overdosed on medication. She never got a chance to get to know her mother since she died shortly after giving birth to her brother. The only family she had left were her older and younger brothers, Andrew and Edward, respectively. She felt numb. But why? She wondered. The Blackwood family was old money, very old money. So old that the family had forgotten what made them rich in the first place. She was never particularly close with her father, he was always working on his next project, his next book, his next investment. It was a rarity to even share a meal with him. Baron was a pharmacologist and Caroline was a progressive psychologist. Everything in their waking moments was dedicated to their craft and expanding the wealth of their family. Wealth that she did not see much of. After turning 18, it was her father’s belief that she and her brothers should earn money on their own, hoping they would build a sense of appreciation for it. She could not say what became of her father, all that time after she had left. Apparently, he never once left that old manor, and it became his tomb. Andrew told her that the proud fire that once burned in his eyes was swiftly extinguished the night her mother had passed. And as if this weren’t enough, she had received a letter earlier that week inviting her to come to the manor. “Ms. Claire Blackwood, after the funeral concludes please come to the Blackwood Manor for the reading of your fathers will.” It was even stamped with the family's crest, an owl with black pines surrounding it. Her mind began to think about what could have been; if her mother were still alive and if she had been there for her father. But she had been thinking all day, and she was tired of thinking. Think too much and you'll get stuck in the past. Claire realized. She took one last look at her reflection in the water and started making her way to the manor.