Scribbler Tales Volume Two Snippet - The Portrait by Mary Ann Bernal

The Portrait

Holliday stood before the portrait of her ancestor, the formidable matriarch who had ruled her family with an iron hand, taking no prisoners whenever anyone  had dared to voice their dissension. The artist had captured the very essence of the woman, her cold eyes penetrating the soul of any who stood before her, anyone except Holliday.

She was not like the rest of them. Holliday not only looked like Olivia, she also exhibited her forbearer’s traits.  Perhaps, a reincarnation, if there was such a thing.  And Holliday was feared just as Olivia had been feared, a woman without scruples, an embodiment of pure evil.

The family fortune had been squandered over the years by errant male heirs, gambling and whoring away their lives after having sired the coveted son.  Holliday was the end of a line, the sole survivor of a dynasty that had ruled the bayou for centuries. She had inherited the house, a mansion by today’s standards, the remnants of a glorious estate from a bygone era.

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Scribbler Tales - Volume One snippet - Forbidden Lore by Mary Ann Bernal

 

 

 

Forbidden Lore

 

Night was setting upon crumbling headstones.  The centuries old cemetery was forgotten by most people, except for the High-priestess whose ethereal presence heightened the fear of those who dared walk the burial ground in the darkness.

Arianna was becoming concerned as shades of twilight enveloped the countryside.  They had been warned the graveyard entrance was locked at dusk. If they did not return to the car now, right at that moment, they would be trapped.  How would they survive until morning?  There had been stories, but maybe that was what they were ... just stories.  Yet walking through the knee-high grass in a clearing surrounded by willow trees and ancient oaks was unsettling. She sensed a malevolent spirit lurking within the shadows, awaiting release at sunset.

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