THE LEGACY OF SLEEPY HOLLOW
ISBN: 1-897370-95-4
eBook: 1-897370-96-2
"...25 years after the Headless Horseman's famous midnight ride..."
Katherine Van Brunt, daughter and only heir to the infamous Abraham "Brom Bones" Van Brunt and Katrina Van Tassel, brings back the dead and loses her heart to the son of her father's nemesis in her quest to save the legacy of Baltus Van Tassel in...THE LEGACY OF SLEEPY HOLLOW
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Advance Praise for THE LEGACY OF SLEEPY HOLLOW...
"Leshay continues the story of the original Sleepy Hollow with all the eerie atmosphere of Irving and adds the magic of romance. A cracking good read!"
~ Deborah Macgillivray, Award-winning author of A Restless Knight
~ * ~
"THE LEGACY OF SLEEPY HOLLOW is not only a legacy to its famous namesake, it is also a legend in its own right. This "legacy" of Sleepy Hollow carries the reader instantly to a point in time 25 years in the future of that all so legendary past. The Legacy is melded so perfectly that the readers feels they too are one of the living characters moving into Sleepy Hollow to help rebuild that very legacy. And we know these new characters will live on because the legacy brings prosperity, love, and life once more to Sleepy Hollow. Here, here Morgan Leshay! A hearty salute to The Legacy of Sleepy Hollow!"
~ Torri Mbriel, Reviewer
A cacophony of male voices greeted
Katherine when she descended the stairs the following morning, some raised in
frustration, others more calm and quiet.
“There is nothing left,” Heinrick stated. “Nothing. Even with the
livestock, there will be precious little to see us through until spring.”
“It is nothing we haven’t had to do before, Heins,” Callum reminded him in a
quiet voice. “We’ll simply grow leaner and stronger for the work we have ahead
of us.”
Katherine came to a halt near the parlor door and held her silence. It seemed
every male in the village had come to her door that morning with something to
say about the burned storehouse, and Icharus, Callum and Balt were trying to
allay their fears.
Brau stood near the fire, and he turned to the others. “Your plight lay heavy on
my mind through the night last night, gentlemen. As I lay sleepless in my bed, I
recalled that Sleepy Hollow was much quieter before Master Crane arrived.”
Heinrick lowered his gaze. “Yes, that’s true. Since you came here, sir, we’ve
had a man murdered… a dear friend to all of us. And now this…”
“You can’t think to blame this on Icharus, Brau,” Callum protested. “Katherine
asked him to come to Sleepy Hollow to help us. Why would he murder John and
destroy all that we had left of—”
Brau arched a brow. “Indeed, why? You yourself said you saw Icharus’s carriage
go into the barn and that you thought the man who went inside was he. Perhaps
you were right after all.”
Watching them from the doorway, Katherine felt the heat of anger boiling within
her, especially when she saw the light of suspicion in the eyes of the men when
they looked at Icharus. Her ire rising, she swept into the room. “That’s quite
enough, all of you. Master Crane is here at my behest. In the time he’s
been in the Hollow, he has done nothing save his best to see my wishes carried
out.”
She faced Brau, hands on hips. “Do you now accuse me of desiring the
murder of John Tanner, or of having wanted the storehouse set ablaze when the
only thing I’ve requested from any of you is for us to work together to bring
peace and prosperity back into Sleepy Hollow?”
Brau sighed and shook his head. “That is entirely correct, my dear. It was
you who asked him to come here. It was you who requested his aid, in
spite of my advice to the contrary. You wish for us to simply follow him, a
stranger. But I think we were doing just splendid without him.”
Heinrick nodded. Callum frowned. Dehann scowled at Brau, and cast an odd look in
Katherine’s direction. “I think we’ve forgotten the topic at hand, gentlemen. If
we could—”
Katherine shook her head, ignoring his words. “We weren’t doing anything before
Icharus came into Sleepy Hollow, Brau. We stood at stalemate, going neither back
nor ahead. At least now we have some small hope of moving forward!”
Brau uttered a short bark of a laugh. “Hope? But wait… you are, once again,
correct. We weren’t being murdered. We weren’t facing starvation. No, we were
doing none of that. Yet now we are." He peered askance at her. “Tell me, why
is he here, Katherine? Why would he even agree to come here, to take on the
burden of Sleepy Hollow in the first place? There is no logical reason!”
He shook his head, a look of incredulity on his face. “By your command each of
us has striven to do as you asked us to, Katherine. We follow him at your
behest…but I fear we may be following a madman, like sheep, directly to the
slaughter.”
He turned to Heinrick. “You know I speak the truth, Heins. In the short time
Icharus Crane has been in Sleepy Hollow, he has already tweaked the ire of the
Witch… and the provoked the wrath of the Horseman—“
The rhythmic sound of slow but steady clapping reached her through the haze of
her anger, and Katherine turned to see Icharus standing with hands raised in
applause.
“Nicely done, Van Ripper. You’ve managed to cast the seeds of suspicion and fear
into the minds of every man present. If I did not know better, I would vow that
to have been your aim from the start.”
He turned to Katherine.
“I thank you, Mistress Van Brunt, for your spectacular defense. However,” he
said, and turned back to face the others. “I have no need of it in this
instance. Last night I chased a man through the marsh across the brook. I
believe that man to be responsible for firing the storehouse, and it is very
possible he is the same who murdered your own Master Tanner some weeks past.”
Brau looked surprised by Icharus’s announcement, but Icharus was not finished.
“My brother tells me you were in the woods last night, Braughton. Your story is
that you saw the flames and doubled back in case Mistress Van Brunt required
assistance, I believe.”
He arched a brow in silent question, his eyes cold. He paused for a moment to
let his words take root in the men’s thoughts before continuing, and Katherine
smiled, delighted by his clever turning of the tables.
“Clearly there is a madman at large, but the fellow’s identity remains
undiscovered. Now we can stand about and cast accusations. We can argue the
matter until the sun goes down and we’ve lost yet another day we could have
spent working toward building a better future for the people of Sleepy Hollow…
or we can move forward, as Mistress Van Brunt has suggested. What say you,
gentlemen?”
Balt had lowered his head, and he appeared to be fighting to keep the grin from
his lips, but Callum showed no such restraint. With a wide smile on this face,
he clapped Icharus on the shoulder. “Well said, Master Crane. I could not have
done better myself. I say we go forward, and let the Horseman take the
hindmost!”