Sacred Ground

Sacred Ground

Adrienne Ellis Reeves

MILLS & BOON

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This book is lovingly dedicated to

Lee Caswell Ellis

4/6/27–12/21/05

My thanks to Edward Darby, Sr., for his intimate knowledge of rural South Carolina and sharing it with me. My appreciation also to Alice Stamps who provided me with essential information about South Carolina woodlands and forests.

In the middle of this work, my brother became ill and later died. The fact that the book eventually reached the publisher is due in no small part to the patience and efficiency of my daughter, Debbie Reeves, to whom I give my heartfelt gratitude.

Contents

Chapter 1

Chapter 2

Chapter 3

Chapter 4

Chapter 5

Chapter 6

Chapter 7

Chapter 8

Chapter 9

Chapter 10

Chapter 11

Chapter 12

Chapter 13

Chapter 14

Chapter 15

Chapter 16

Chapter 17

Chapter 18

Chapter 19

Chapter 20

Chapter 21

Chapter 22

Chapter 23

Chapter 24

Chapter 25

Chapter 26

Chapter 27

Chapter 28

Chapter 29

Chapter 30

Chapter 31

Chapter 32

Chapter 33

Chapter 34

Chapter 35

Epilogue

Chapter 1

The rain poured down as it could only in March. Steadily, persistently, undeviatingly, straight down as if it would never cease, taking all of the warmth, liveliness and hope out of the air.

Gabriel Bell sat glumly, his right hand barely touching the steering wheel of his Lexus, wasting the phenomenally over-priced gas with which he’d filled the tank this morning. The car inched forward, one vehicle in the endless line stretching in front of him heading south on the New Jersey Turnpike.

“Some beginning to what’s supposed to be our big adventure,” his fifteen-year-old brother, Drew, complained, moving restlessly in the passenger seat.

“Yesterday at breakfast we talked about leaving today,” Gabe said. “Remember that?” He slid a glance at the man-child next to him.

“Yeah. So?”

“You had nothing to do after school but finish packing your things so we could get an early start this morning. Early. No later than eight, we agreed.”

“I couldn’t help it if the guys came over to say goodbye, and I did some stuff while they were there.” Drew was defensive.

“Right. Then you fell into bed and didn’t get up until seven and spent the rest of the morning running around the apartment finding your CDs and video games.” Gabe kept his tone mild. No point in getting himself upset over this skirmish. What he intended to do was win the war.

“How’d I know it was gonna take so long to find things?” Drew said indignantly.

“There was no rain this morning when we were supposed to leave. So deal with it, Drew. Complaining won’t make the rain stop or the traffic go any faster.”

Maybe he should’ve taken the Garden State Parkway. It was definitely more scenic but I-95 would take them the straightest way from New York City to South Carolina. To a place he’d never seen and, as Drew had said, to their big adventure.

As if the very idea of thinking about it energized the atmosphere, there was a sudden acceleration in the line of cars and they resumed their usual highway speed.

“Yes!” Drew said and sat up straight.

“It’s still raining, so there must have been an accident holding everyone up. Watch for it on your side.” Anticipating Drew’s reaction if he did see signs of an accident, Gabe moved into the far right lane.

A few miles down the road, Drew exclaimed, “Man! Look at that. Someone must have been hurt really bad!”

The whole passenger side of a small blue car was smashed against a guardrail, apparently pushed there by a large SUV that skidded on the wet pavement. The ground was littered with broken glass around which flares were set. A highway patrolman was sitting in his car out of the rain and writing in his notebook.

“How’d they get mangled together like that?” Drew asked, turning back to get one more look.

“I’m not sure, but it looks like the SUV was trying to pass but he skidded on the wet road and hydroplaned into the blue car.”

“They prob’ly had to get more than one ambulance,” Drew said thoughtfully.

Although Drew said nothing more, Gabe noticed that he kept glancing over toward the speedometer.

“What?” Gabe asked.

“It’s still raining hard and I was wondering how fast you’re going,” Drew replied.

“You’ve got a right to ask. It’s your life as well as mine. I’m staying at fifty until we get past this rain.”

The rain began to lighten a little at the same time that Gabe saw a restaurant exit coming up.

“Let’s get off here for lunch and maybe by the time we’re through, the rain will have gone.”

“Sounds good to me.” Drew was always ready to eat.

A busload of people began entering the restaurant, cutting between Drew and Gabe. They milled around chattering and looking at a few craft items for sale in the lobby. Gabe couldn’t see Drew for a few minutes. A group of men moved and there he was, looking anxious.

“What happened to you? I thought maybe you went back to the car,” he said.

Gabe slung an arm around his shoulder for a second. “I got caught in the middle of this crowd. Let’s try to beat them or we’ll be here all afternoon.”

Drew was the prime responsibility in Gabe’s life now, and every facet of his young brother’s existence had become magnified for Gabe since the death of their parents two years earlier. Pop had caught the flu, which had turned into pneumonia, and in a few short weeks it had taken him away. While the family was still dazed by the suddenness of his death, Ma had gone the same way before the winter was out, after being caught in the freezing rain while waiting for the bus.

When Gabe had come out of the cloud of grief that had overwhelmed him, his first thought of the future had been gratitude that he hadn’t married Olivia Eagles after all. It had been a close call but he knew she wasn’t the kind of woman who would have welcomed a teenage boy into their home. Single and unencumbered, Gabe had vowed to make Drew the center of his care.

Although he was twice Drew’s age, Gabe had loved his little brother from the moment his mother had laid him in Gabe’s arms at the hospital.

“You’ve always wanted a brother.” She was smiling and teary-eyed at the same time. “I expect you to take care of him.”

Gabe thought of their mother as he and Drew were ushered to a table in the restaurant and served the soup of the day that their waitress had recommended.

“I like soup when the weather’s like this, but this sure isn’t like the chicken-noodle soup Ma used to make.”

“That’s why I never get soup in a restaurant,” Drew said. “This chili isn’t so bad.”

“Ma would’ve loved this trip. She always wanted to go places,” Gabe said.

“Yeah, you’re right. It’s funny that Pop never did, but it’s because of him that we’re going to South Carolina.”

It had been on another afternoon three weeks ago that Gabe had received a call while he was deciding between using the ground round steak for hamburgers or for meatballs to go with spaghetti. Drew was supposed to check in any moment; Gabe would let him call it.

The phone rang. “You want hamburgers or spaghetti and meatballs for dinner?” Gabe asked.

“I prefer spaghetti and meatballs as long as there’s herbs and garlic in the sauce,” a man said. “Is this Mr. Gabriel Bell?”

“Sorry. I was expecting my brother to call. I’m Gabe Bell. What can I do for you?”

“My name is Jasper Moultrie, Mr. Bell. I’m an attorney and I have information to give you regarding your great-grandfather’s will. When would it be convenient for me to see you?”

“Whose will?” Was this a new kind of scam? Gabe wondered. At work, in the papers and on television, there were always warnings about the ingenious ways con artists were thinking up to get your money. He didn’t know anything about a great-grandfather.

“Ezekiel Bell was his name. He had a son named Edward who had a son named Booker. Your father, Mr. Bell.”

Moultrie’s voice, quiet yet authoritative, made Gabe sit down at the table with the phone, prepared to give serious attention to what the attorney was saying.

“How do you know all this?” he demanded.

“That’s what I’d like to explain to you, Mr. Bell. I could come to your office on Chambers but I think you’d prefer hearing the details and asking questions in the privacy of your home. When may I come over?”

He even knows where I work, Gabe thought. Maybe he’d better see this guy right away in case there really is something to this will he should know about. “How about tonight? Is that too soon?” he asked.

“That’s fine. Shall we say eight-thirty?”

“Fine. I live at—”

“I know the address, Mr. Bell. See you soon.”

“You’re in someone’s will? Does that mean you’ll get some money?” Drew asked when Gabe told him of the call.

“I don’t know what it means, Drew. I just hope it’s all aboveboard.”

At eight-thirty, as Gabe let Mr. Moultrie in, shook hands, introduced him to Drew and offered him a seat, he felt his skepticism fade away. Tall, his white hair setting off his dark brown skin, his features regular, and his dark eyes shadowed with glasses showing a world of experience, his presence nevertheless displayed a liking for people and a willingness to smile.

“I haven’t been in an apartment like this for years.” He glanced appreciatively at the high ceiling, the built-in bookcases, the tall window overlooking the boulevard, the long hall through which he’d entered. The dark blue sofa and the upholstered chairs were well-worn and comfortable. “They don’t build them like this anymore,” he said.

“I was raised here, so was Drew, and when our parents died, I moved back in.”

“Wise move. I only get to New York occasionally when I have business here. I live in Charlotte, North Carolina. You ever been there?” His glance took in both Gabe and Drew, who were sitting on the sofa.

“Never been south, except once I went to D.C.,” Gabe said. Drew shook his head negatively.

A little smile touched Moultrie’s mouth as he placed his black briefcase on the floor. He settled himself in his chair and straightened his pant legs. His hands steepled, his eyes smiling, he began his story.

“If it’s all right with you, Mr. Bell and Drew, I’ll give you some background on this will. Your great-great-grandfather was Ezekiel Bell Sr. His mother and father had been slaves but he was born free in South Carolina in 1870. All his life he heard stories from his father, Elijah, his grandfather Moses, and other elders who talked about a place that was special to the Africans in that part of South Carolina who’d come from the same area in West Africa. They called it ‘De Land.’ It held a treasure that was linked to where they’d come from.”

He paused but there were no questions. Gabe and Drew made an attentive audience.

“‘De Land,’ they said, was watched over by ‘sperrits’ and the men in the Bell family beginning with Elijah.”

“Did they know exactly where that place was?” Drew asked.

“Yes, but it didn’t belong to them. Getting hold of it and then keeping it was the responsibility of Elijah and his descendants.”

This sounded too much like a script for a Harrison Ford movie to Gabe for him to take it seriously. At least Drew was entertained.

“The stories caught the imagination of your great-grandfather, Ezekiel Bell Jr., and he asked questions about it. He was a smart boy and in his belief, he made ‘De Land’ his life work. He learned to read and write, earned money any way he could and saved every cent. His intuition had led him to ‘De Land.’He’d dreamed about it and recognized it when he saw the remnants of this old plantation in Orangeburg County. He married Sarah who was a hard worker like him and understood his dream.

“Every few years they’d purchase more of the land. As the years went by he found several ways to increase his income. He bought a few acres to raise cows, hogs and even chickens for the market. He learned all about building houses when he built his own, and hired himself out to build for others.

“Meanwhile he and Sarah had a family—Elizabeth, Robert and Edward. Finally he’d purchased fifteen acres, and the special woodland the Africans had spoken about belonged to him.”

“I don’t get it,” Drew said. “What made it special? Did it have oil or something?” He sat forward, his hands on his knees.

“What made it special for him,” Mr. Moultrie explained, “was how the older Africans had felt something mystical about it. They used words he didn’t understand. His father said they meant sacred ground and they said it with reverence.”

Sacred ground? Superstition or a legendary folktale, Gabe had to admit the attorney was spinning an interesting story at this point.

Mr. Moultrie continued. “There was another fact about this sacred ground that was unique. Ezekiel had felt a calling to purchase the property. He knew he couldn’t sell it but had to hold it in trust for a particular person.” He paused.

Gabe felt the hair rise on his arms as Moultrie’s calm gaze rested on him.

“You, Mr. Bell.”

Gabe tried to speak but his mouth was dry. “Me?” he croaked. Drew was looking at him with the same astonishment he was feeling. “How could it be me?”

“Because it had to be passed to the eldest grandson in the sixth generation who carried the Bell name.”

“How am I the sixth?” Gabe was trying to make sense of what he was hearing.

“Elijah Bell began the saga. His son, Ezekiel Sr., was the second generation and Ezekiel Jr. was third. Edward was fourth. Booker, your father, was fifth, and that makes you the sixth.”

“What happened to all the other children who must have been born in six generations?”

“Some died single, some had only daughters, not sons. Do you know of any relatives you have on your father’s side?” Moultrie asked.

Gabe shook his head. “Ma had four sisters and five brothers and most of them had children. Pop always said that was enough family for anyone. When I asked Pop about his family he said there was only his brother, Jacob, but I didn’t even meet him until after Drew was born. He was single and teased Pop about having two sons, one for Pop and one for him,” Gabe reminisced affectionately. Uncle Jake had been a favorite in the family.

He couldn’t sit still any longer. “Excuse me, Mr. Moultrie. Would you care for something to drink? Coffee, tea, juice, water?”

“Water’s fine.”

Gabe took bottled water from the refrigerator, poured some over a glass of ice for Moultrie and grabbed two bottles for him and Drew. He felt like he was in Oz and had to anchor himself with something familiar before he heard the rest of this bizarre story.

“Let me tell you how I came to be involved with this matter,” Moultrie said after he’d sipped some water. “Then we’ll get to the details of the will. I was born and raised in Swinton, South Carolina. Went to university in Columbia and to law school in Philadelphia. Eventually I established my law practice in Charlotte, North Carolina. Once when I happened to be home, I had a surprise call from Ezekiel Bell asking me to do some business for him, which I did. Six months later he told me that had been a test to see if I’d kept his confidence.”

“He didn’t trust you?” Gabe asked.

That brought a smile from Moultrie. “As you get to know more about your great-grandfather, you’ll see he had a subtle mind. Apparently he’d listened to see if there was any whisper about the transaction in the community. From then on I carried out all his business. He said he didn’t want a local person and that he felt fortunate to find a person from Swinton who worked elsewhere.”

Gabe had been doing some estimates in his head “He must have been very old.”

“One hundred years old when he died several weeks ago.”

“A hundred!” Drew whistled silently. “I’ve never known anyone that old.”

“South Carolina has a lot of centenarians, Drew, as you’ll see,” Moultrie said.

“Any question about the soundness of his mind?” There was nothing casual about Gabe’s question.

“None at all. In his late years, he wasn’t as physically active as he’d been but he never lost his mental faculties, I can assure you. In any case, the bulk of the will had been written when he was in his seventies. There were only a few items to add later, primarily about the identity of the heir after I had traced you down at his request.” He paused and turned his benign glance on Gabe and Drew. “Any more questions? No?”

He took several papers from his briefcase. Drew’s eyes followed his every movement.

“As these documents go, Mr. Bell’s will is quite brief. He insisted on only the specifics and omitting as much legalese as possible.”

Gabe was motionless as Moultrie read the will, glancing up every now and then.

“‘I, Ezekiel Bell Jr. of the city of Swinton, the state of South Carolina, do hereby make, publish and declare the following as and for my last will and testament, hereby revoking all wills and codicils made by me at any time, and directing that my executor, or substitute executor, serve without bond.

“‘First, I nominate, and appoint my attorney, Jasper Lee Moultrie, as executor of this, my last will and testament, and direct that he pay my funeral expenses and just debts as soon after my decease as possible.

“‘Second, I give and bequeath to my great-grandson, Gabriel Riley Bell of New York City, New York, for the period of three full months as soon after my death as possible, my fifteen acres of land, which include my home at 305 North Grayson Road outside of Swinton, South Carolina.

“‘Third, Gabriel Riley Bell is to reside in the furnished house at 305 North Grayson Road and to examine its contents closely.

“‘Fourth, Gabriel Riley Bell is to explore, discover and carry out the treasured destiny this property has held for six generations.

“‘Fifth, Gabriel Riley Bell may not rent, lease or sell any portion of this particular property.

“‘Sixth, Jasper Lee Moultrie, executor, will provide living expenses of two thousand dollars a month for the three months.

“‘Seventh, upon the satisfactory completion by Gabriel Riley Bell of Article Four, the executor will so declare and will then deliver to Gabriel Riley Bell the entire estate consisting of the aforesaid fifteen acres of land in Swinton, South Carolina, the house and contents that are on the property, and any other parcels of land belonging to the estate at the time of my death.

“‘Eighth, I give and bequeath to Gabriel Riley Bell the sum of one hundred thousand dollars with one half to be held in trust for his brother, Drew Booker Bell, until his twenty-fifth birthday.

“‘In witness whereof, I have hereunto set my hand and seal on this eighth day of June 2005.

“‘Signed and declared by the said Ezekiel Bell Jr., and for his last will and testament in the presence of us, who at his request, in his presence, and in the presence of each other, have hereunto subscribed our names as witnesses.

“‘Marshall G. Hamilton of Swinton, South Carolina, Jane Ann Hamilton of Swinton, South Carolina, Jasper Lee Moultrie of Charlotte, North Carolina.’”

Moultrie silently handed Gabe a copy of what he’d read. As he reached for it and settled back on the couch, Gabe felt his breath return. He’d been oxygen starved. Drew scooted next to him so he could read the will that talked about fifty thousand dollars for him. He had to see the words to believe it.

“So I’m to go to Swinton and live in this house on the fifteen-acre property for three months during which time you’ll give me living expenses of two thousand a month?” Gabe asked, his eyes still on the document.

“That is correct.”

“That’s clear. What I don’t get is the fourth article. As a result, I assume, of examining the contents of the house, I’m supposed to discover and carry out a treasured destiny that’s been waiting or hidden for six generations?”

His voice rose in disbelief as he repeated the words Ezekiel had written. “What does that mean?” His gaze fixed itself on Moultrie but his expression said that whatever Moultrie answered it would be subject to disbelief.

“Sounds like it means buried treasure.” Drew, excited at the prospect of finding a cache of jewels, clutched Gabe’s arm.

“I can’t tell you, Mr. Bell,” Moultrie said sympathetically. “I do know that most of what you’ll need is in the house so as soon as you get there…it’d be wise to thoroughly search each room. Drew can help you.”

“But what are we to look for? A map, a key, a box, or what?”

“Mr. Bell said you’ll know it when you see it.”

There was another provision stipulated in the will that was perplexing to Gabe. “Why the sixth generation? That’s a long time to wait. Supposing there hadn’t been a grandson with the name Bell in the sixth generation?”

“When I asked the same question, Mr. Bell said the oldest African had foretold it.”

Other questions that Gabe or Drew brought up usually came back in one way or another to the same vague statement. Gabe began to think Moultrie knew as little about this “treasured destiny” as he did. Great-Grandfather had trusted even his attorney just so far with ancient secrets.

There were only three issues to be decided about the will as far as Gabe was concerned. If he took the whole matter seriously, as he decided to do after Moultrie left.

The first involved his job with the state in the accounting department. He’d gone there right out of college and was content to do a competent job that would advance him up the ladder in a reasonable number of years before retirement. Consultation with human resources and his department head resulted in an agreement that he could take two of the weeks as vacation and the rest as a leave of absence without pay but without a loss of benefits. Since benefits was his main concern because of Drew, Gabe was satisfied.

The second issue was that Drew had been slacking off in school and worrying Gabe seriously for the first time because of the group of kids he’d begun hanging with.

Intervention of some sort was called for and Gabe had been racking his brains as to what it should be. There was no way he was going to allow Drew to slide further down the slippery slope of disengagement from school.

Three months away from his school would at least change his environment. Gabe went to the school counselor, who helped him make arrangements for lessons and exams.

The third issue was the least important to Gabe. He asked himself again if he would be searching for gold. But it would be an adventure unlike any that had come his way in his uneventful life, and it would help Drew.

The day he’d notified Moultrie that he’d arranged matters with his job, the attorney urged him to get to Swinton as quickly as possible. “Remember the house is fully furnished. All you and Drew need are clothes and personal items like your computer, books and music.”