by Nancy Glynn
Lana’s Calling
Golden Hills Legacy Series
Book Two
Nancy Glynn
Copyright © 2015
Nancy Glynn
All Rights Reserved
This is a work of fiction. Names, characters, businesses, places, events and incidents are either the products of the author’s imagination or used in a fictitious manner. Any resemblance to actual persons, living or dead, or actual events is purely coincidental.
This e-book is licensed for your personal enjoyment only. This e-book may not be re-sold or given away to other people. If you would like to share this book with another person, please an additional copy for each recipient. If you’re reading this book and did not purchase it, or it was not purchased for your use only, then please return it and purchase your own copy. Thank you for respecting the hard work of this author.
Other books by Nancy Glynn
Black 21, Book One
And Never Let Her Go, Book One
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Table of Contents
About THE AUTHOR
“Watch out for your daughters.
The man is coming.
He’ll promise you the world.
But if you accept, there’s no turning back.
Watch out for your daughters.
Because here comes Jack.”
Chapter 1
Lana Stone gazed at her ghostly apartment with the sheets covering her furniture and dust particles floating in the air, already appearing abandoned. The early March sun blasted a shield of light through the semi-parted blinds, memories harboring in her mind before she’d leave it all behind.
Nothing could keep her from claiming Stone Manor as her own. She would make her parents proud no matter what it took. Even if it meant destroying Jack Red once and for all. This was her destiny, a fate made centuries ago without her permission. In her dreams as a child, she’d see Stone Manor slowly rebuild from ground up, first collapsing, smoke billowing to the heavens, then brick-by-brick, rebuilding itself into the beautiful home it was meant to be.
Every passing year since she was three, she’d witness this architectural miracle in haze-filled dreams, calling out for her possession. She never mentioned it to her mother, Daisy, until one time upon awakening, she was given a message.
When she went to her mother to warn her, Daisy blew it off, reminding her daughter what had happened to Stone Manor and that it was no longer there. Even after Lana had told her how it stood strong on the day of her twenty-first birthday in one particular dream, how a deep voice had wished her a happy birthday at a celebration inside the manor, and how the voice had asked her to come be his bride, Daisy’s eyes had widened for a nanosecond and then turned down in worry. “Hush, sweet girl. We don’t talk about our bad dreams. Only the good ones.”
“But, Mom! It could be the man. You and Dad both told me if he ever tried to scare me to let you know. I think that was him!”
Her mother just shook her auburn head and put a finger to her lips. “We don’t speak of that anymore.”
“I know. Ever since Emily’s death…”
“No more!”
“But that mark on her—”
“Lana Rose Stone!”
That was five years ago. It was never brought up again until it was too late. Now that her parents were gone, she would go to the place where it all began, a place that filled her with a rage even thinking about it, much less dreaming about it. Golden Hills would belong to her, and she would run it the way her father was supposed to before he escaped that fateful day twenty-five years ago.
But he never really did get out, did he? Lord knew they tried. They gave Lana and Emily a good home filled with so much love and joy. Uncle Eric lived in New York but visited from time-to-time. When he came for the funeral, it was the hardest thing for Lana to see. She told him her plan, and he tried talking her out of it. He begged her not to go, but her mind was made up. The defeat in his eyes broke her already broken heart.
She put her two-week notice in at Lincoln Park High, not knowing when she’d be back, if ever. Her students hated her leaving and begged her to stay. Even Principal Edwards asked if she’d reconsider, but there was no changing her mind. This was a done deal. No going back. Golden Hills better be ready for its newest resident, one they might not be pleased to join.
After setting up the power and water before her trip, which had already been strangely taken care of, and having all her mail now sent to her new address, she looked around her small apartment on Lake Shore Drive once more. Memories of her parents visiting her there seared her soul. The love that passed between her handsome father, who only aged better in his forties, and her classy mother with her shorter, more stylish auburn hair that bobbed around her shoulders, was quite evident.
With the click of the lock after closing the door for the last time and dragging her luggage, she walked to the elevator and pushed the down button. Looking around the corridor, she thought she saw a flicker of a shadow out of the corner of her eye. The elevator finally came and she stepped in, the doors closing until she heard a man’s voice call out. She pushed the red stop button to hold the door open as an attractive man in his forties joined her.
“Thanks, dear.” He wore designer jeans and a purple polo shirt, clean shaven, and a Chicago Cubs hat covering stylish black hair.
“Sure.” She glanced up at the mirrored doors and caught his blue stare for a brief moment, followed by a twitch in his lips. Her eyes lowered to the floor, feeling flush in the face.
They stood quietly next to each other as the elevator descended one story at a time, the only sound was of whooshing air. His hands were neatly folded together. This had to be the longest elevator ride ever.
“Lovely day, isn’t it?” he asked, not looking at her.
“It is. But it usually is in March in Chicago.”
“So, why are you leaving?”
“Excuse me?”
“Your bags.” He glanced down, smiling.
“Oh, right. Just a little getaway.” Her brows flinched at an unknown sensory attack.
“Well, that’s nice. We can all use a little getaway.”
She smiled and walked through the opening doors, rolling her luggage behind. “Have a good day.”
“Thank you. I think I will. Enjoy your…getaway.”
Turning to say thank you, he was already gone.
Shrugging, she wheeled her luggage out into her used Jeep Compass. Her parents hated the thing and wanted to buy her a new one, and with her father’s money, they could, but she refused. She didn’t get her mother’s long legs, fitting perfectly in her car, but only her green-blue eyes. The rest came from her namesake. Thanks to her grandmother, Lana, she had a thick mane of silvery blonde hair, so opposite of her parents. Her father loved her hair because it reminded him so much of his mother.
She gunned the car out of the garage and headed toward I55. The city skyscrapers disintegrated into dots on the horizon. With her windows and sunroof open, her long hair blew around her face, whipped by the cool air. The gray-blue sky loomed ahead, thick clouds that never brought rain.
Determination pumped her adrenaline, causing her to drive faster than normal. This move was a long-time dream, literally, and it felt surreal that she was actually driving to Golden Hills, Illinois. A rebuilt town after her parents and Uncle Eric had demolished, wiping away tar-filled souls.
Her mother was the bravest woman she knew, but also gifted. She had always warned for Lana to ignore it if this gift ever tried to emerge, to not allow any visions or use it in any way. Lana told her she didn’t seem to have it, but
she lied. She did have it, and she practiced it day and night. There was no way she was going to a hell-housed town run by dark forces and old contracts signed in blood and not have some ammunition.
Yes, that town had died the day her parents left it, but who knew what had grown in the soil of these black souls. Did the seeds of hate and greed fester until Stone Manor was completely reborn? Or did new, lighter souls find their way through all the decay?
Something told her it was a mixture, and she would need to be very careful with every step she took. Stone Manor had redesigned itself and waited for her. She couldn’t really see all the details, she believed to protect her, but fear had no place in her thoughts. Fear is what her parents lived with every day, afraid of the man coming to get them.
And he did.
Now it was her time to get to meet the man. Jack Red better be ready for her.
Chapter 2
As Lana drove down familiar streets that had haunted her dreams, especially King Road, right off near a well-known forest that housed his church, a chill ran down her body. With plans to soon visit there, she made a mental note of its location. And she would be visiting it. She didn’t care if a church sat in the back, hiding from unsuspecting visitors. Didn’t matter to her.
She glanced in the mirror with a determined look and forged ahead to her father’s home, the home of the Stones. Stones with blood. Blood that would stop at her hands. Unless it was called for, but that was not on her agenda. No. Her agenda consisted of only one thing. And his name was Jack Red. Beasts of all beasts. She’s never seen his face, only his voice in her sleep, a demonic voice and not human.
Would he have horns or hooves? Or would he try to blend in with the rest of the town? Her mother once described him as very handsome with deceiving blue eyes. One thing was for sure; she’d know it was him. Would sense it. She trusted her sixth sense, so it better not betray her.
The bare winter trees surrounded her on each side, as she drove down the road that would lead to the black ornate gates. She didn’t pray, but if she did, it would be about now that she would. A foreboding feeling crept up her spine, warning her to turn back, but there was no going back.
As the sun dipped below the trees, casting an orange glow, she found the gates that would lead her to her new home. She drove up to them and stuck her hand out to punch in the code made just for her; it was her late parents’ wedding anniversary. Only a code filled with love would open these dark gates, but the gates opened without her ever touching the pad.
The grand home slowly came into view, peeking around a Grecian piazza splashing water. As she drove closer, her mouth gaped wide as she gazed at the mansion that corroded her dreams. This house really did exist, perfect in the way it was from the beginning. First built from her grandfather’s hands born of lust and greed to the hands of whatever grew from the evil soil that inhabited this town.
Driving down the winding driveway, the one that was built for thirty cars, according to her mother, she gaped in wonder. The massive fountain took center attention, with the surrounding gargoyles guarding it. Everything was exactly as she had described it and how it appeared in her dreams.
As she stepped out of her car to get a better look of the house, a vision of her parents running out of the crumbling home had formed. Her handsome father carrying little Emily had appeared on the wide porch. They ran to the parked car that Uncle Eric waited in, and she watched as their car zoomed out through the gates. That vision must have been sent to her. She didn’t have them very often.
She wiped a tear with a new purpose and slammed the door shut, strutting to the trunk to grab her bags. After rolling them onto the sidewalk, she stood with her hands on her hips, glaring at the monstrosity before her.
“I’m the new Stone blood. You will do what I say and want. No more William Stone or any of the greed that went into you. You will have a different aura now and obey me!” She shook her small fist at the house. “You and everyone in this town will bow to me!”
She grabbed her bags and smugly walked up the steps, eyeing the gargoyles perched atop the roof, looking down at her with almost a sneer. A wind picked up and tangled her hair in knots, briefly throwing her off balance. She steadied herself and glanced up at one of the gargoyles that had glowing red eyes. One hard look from her brought it crashing to the ground, splintering into a million pieces. She jumped out of the way, crossing her hands over her face.
With a glib smile, she continued her walk to the wooden double doors. But this time, there would be no butler named James to greet her. She would need to hire one to help run this beast. There would be no one cooking in the kitchen just yet. Only her cooking, and those meals would not be the best. She definitely took after her mother in that department.
The contemporary foyer, with a touch of the medieval times, was a little dark as the day creeped into night. She glanced at the chandelier and blinked, instantly brightening it. The double staircase took her breath away. Visions tried to develop in her mind of the birthday party, but she forced them away. She just couldn’t take the horror of it right in front of her. She did see her parents dancing, black and white streamers and balloons floating, her mother in her beautiful green gown at the tender age of twenty-two, her father in his black tuxedo, barely turning twenty-one. Their loving smiles erased what Lana knew would come.
Her grandfather Mark had offered to come and bless Stone Manor to chase away any residual demons, but she refused. She didn’t believe in all that hoopla like her mother had, like her grandmothers, Lana and Rose, had. Even her dad had become this devout church-goer, attending her grandfather’s Sunday sermons with her mother, praying away anything to do with the man as they liked to say so as not to call upon him.
Spreading her arms out wide, she said, “Jack Red, I’m here! Come and get me, you disgusting, non-human piece of garbage!”
Nothing. She smirked and dragged her bags up one of the spiral staircases. “I really need James.” Thump, thump, thump went her bags down the stairs.
“You called, madam.”
She spun around so fast, she nearly fell backward. At the foot of the stairs, a man dressed in 1920s garb, stood, waiting for her command. “You’re not… but how?”
“The how doesn’t matter. I’m here to serve you. Let me help you with those bags.” He grabbed their handles and slowly walked up the stairs, meeting her, staring eye-to-eye. “Nice to meet you, Miss Lana. You look just like your grandmother, and not just on the outside. Nice to see that around here again.”
“Who sent you? Not him?”
“You sent me just by calling out to me. Oh, and I’d be careful who else I’d call out to—just saying.” He picked up her luggage and smiled before carrying them up to the landing.
“I’ll remember that, James is it?”
He turned around. “Yes, madam. It’s James. Good to be back at work…and at Stone Manor. I’ve missed this place.” James returned to his duties without further comment.
Lana laughed and ran back down the stairs to explore her new home. She checked out William’s old study/den off to the right of the foyer. The mahogany desk sat near the wall-lined bookshelves filled with, what else, books she loved. Running her fingers over their spines, she quietly laughed. When would she have time to read?
A vision of her grandfather sitting at the desk came to her. William was working furiously on some important paper, sweat rolling down his face. He glanced up at her once with those sparkling blue eyes penetrating hers. When their eyes locked, he disintegrated, dropping the black pen to the desk with a tinny sound.
Curiosity grabbed her as she noticed the paper still there. She strode to it and picked it up. It was some sort of wish list for all Jack had promised him. Millions of dollars to never deplete, expensive homes and cars, luxurious vacations, and the heart of his one true love: Lana.
The paper disappeared out of her hands, but the pen rolled to her line of vision as if beckoning her to write with it. Her own list of wants and desires?
She only had one desire, and that was to bring Jack Red to his monstrous knees. He was not allowed to rule Golden Hills anymore.
This was her town now.
The lights in the office flickered as if they were going to blow and then brightened again, a sizzling sound buzzing from the thin glass.
“Making an early appearance, Jack?”
She dumped the pen in the trash can next to the desk and walked out, shutting the lights off. Next, she walked to the majestic dining room connected to the bright kitchen. As she started for the kitchen, she could hear humming. “Hello? Who’s in there?” When Lana walked through the doorway, a woman with dark hair and an apron stood at the sink, cleaning it out. As she turned, Lana recognized her from her mother’s stories. “Lucinda?”
The Portuguese woman smiled and nodded.
“But I didn’t call you.”
In her heavy accent Lana heard so much about, she said, “James did. He say Daisy’s and Christian’s child need our help. I here to help, my fair lady, Miss Lana.”
“Oh, well… thank you, Lucinda. I feel honored to have you and James here, knowing you raised my father as well. He really loved you. My mother did, too.” This was not turning out the way she had planned. She wanted nothing but anger and revenge to fill her soul, to fuel the power living inside her.
“You can call me Lucy. Your daddy did. Miss Daisy would never and said she loved my name the way it was, but I prefer Lucy. Okay?”
“Got it. Thank you, Lucy. My mom said how you taught her to make her famous tacos. She’d make them for me when I was sad.”
“I make them for you tonight, then.”
“Why, I’m not sad, Lucy.”
“I make them for you tonight.” She smiled and walked to the pantry to get the ingredients for her tacos. Twisting back to Lana, she added, “And James is right. You look just like the first Lana, your grandmother."
