Read Raven for Free Online Page B

with the
other. “Plus... you have the same scent,” she added, smiling. “She,
however, didn't have dyed hair!” she said with a laugh. “I'm Rose.
I know your family well.”
    Rose. It
suited her.
    “ Plus,
not a lot happens around here without me hearing about it. I do
like a bit of gossip and you've been the talk of the town for some
time. People have been gossiping ever since your parents
disappeared. Now, I understand that you probably don't want to talk
about it but I just want you to know that when you do feel like
talking, my door is always open to any of the Tulugaq clan,” she
said matter-of-factly.
    “ Tulugaq” I repeated, “my grand-father told me what it meant
this morning. I had no idea. I've always been known as Lilly Taylor
so it's going to take me some time to get used to it,” I
replied.
    She
looked shocked. “You didn't know what it means? And you didn't know
that you are a Tulugaq?” she asked, clearly not expecting an
answer.
    Shaking
her head, she gently pulled me by the hand and led me indoors. “Boy
have you been kept in the dark.”
    We
walked in through the back door that led into a cosy country
kitchen and she suggested I sit down at her breakfast bar while she
placed a pan of water to boil on the hob and prepared a cup of tea
for us both.
    “ I
understand from Gabriel that your father changed your surname when
you left the country. I'm sure it was because Tulugaq is not the
easiest of names to pronounce. Especially for those English folk
over there,” she added, smiling.
    “ The
word itself, Tulugaq, as you now know, means raven and it has been
your family's name for many generations. There is much more for you
to know but perhaps you are not ready for that yet.”
    “ Can
you tell me what you mean?” I asked curiously.
    Stopping
what she was doing for a second, she turned and smiled, “Now that
wouldn't be right. It is Gabriel who will tell you but he will only
do so when you are ready. Now, would you like sugar in your
tea?”
    I nodded
as she dropped a heaped teaspoonful into the hot tea and swiftly
stirred it before handing it to me.
    “ Rose?”
    “ Yes
dear?”
    “ Did
you know my parents? I mean, before they moved to
England?”
    “ I
knew your father, Jack, well, but not... not your... your mother.
She wasn't from around here. I believe she was a city girl,” she
sighed, “I am astounded that you know so little about your parents,
your family and your ancestry. We are proud of our heritage here. I
do know why you have been kept in the dark but, like I said...
that's a conversation Gabriel will have with you when you are
ready.”
    More
like when he's ready, I thought.
    Changing
the subject altogether, Rose led me into the living room, where I
noticed about six cats laying in various places - a sofa, a soft
rug, on top of a cabinet. Any nook and cranny seemed to have a cat
curled up tightly inside it. The sound of soft gentle purring
floated into my ears. It was so calming that I could easily have
curled up with them for a nap.
    “ These
are my babies,” pointed Rose, “I won't bore you with all their
names. There are 11 of them altogether... for now
anyway.”
    We sat
where there was a free space, and immediately three cats jumped
onto her lap and another two rubbed themselves against her legs,
purring even louder than before.
    I looked
around and noticed that almost every painting on the wall was of
some kind of feline animal. A wild mountain lion, a domestic
siamese, a ginger tom, a black puma, a lynx. The most beautiful
image was of a white tiger – the animal seemed ready to jump out of
the frame and into the living room. I stood up to take a closer
look and saw that they were all painted by a person called Rosa
Lima.
    “ Did
you do these, Rose?” I asked. “They're absolutely amazing. So
lifelike.”
    “ Why
thank you dear, that's very kind of you. They are all mine. Rosa
Lima is my real name. It's Portuguese actually. My
great-great-grand-father was