Collette looked out through the window to the rainy, dreary day outside. She hated it when she couldn't go outdoors. It felt as if she were caged up like a bird. Perhaps worse than the feeling of being caged was what rainy days brought… knitting. Collette absolutely hated sitting around in a circle with a bunch of silly girls gossiping as they knitted away.
You see, Collette isn't what you would call a typical Victorian-age girl. She hated dressing in the formal dresses she had to wear to the parties and gatherings she was obligated to attend. Her family had lived in the Loire Valley of France at the rambling manor estate for centuries. Collette loved the meandering streams, the stately oaks and the lush country meadows of the region. However, since the Loire Valley was only a short distance southwest of the bustling city of Paris, there was always excitement nearby.
Although tomboyish at heart, Collette was also a very beautiful girl. Her dark auburn hair showed its deep red highlights when seen in the bright afternoon sunshine and set off the bright sea-blue eyes that always seem to be searching for something. Collette's fair and rosy skin is the envy of many girls. If it had been a nicer day, Collette would have much rather being riding her gray-speckled Arabian horse, Amier, across the open meadows of the estate, but alas, today she was stuck inside.
At that moment, Collette heard the voice of her mother calling for her as if she had read her mind.
"Collette, Collette," she called in her gentle voice, "Collette, please come downstairs and we will practice your knitting."
As soon as she heard her mother's last few words, Collette fled the room before she could be found. She was always hiding and finding places to slip away.
Collette crept quietly down the wide hallway trying to find a place that she hadn't used as a hiding before. She considered the servant's quarters, but remembered she had been found there before. No matter which place came into her mind, Collette didn't think it would be suitable for a whole day of hiding out without being found.
She quickened her pace as she once again heard her mother's voice and footsteps echoing down another hallway. Collette slipped into the library to catch her breath and consider her options. The sound of her mother's voice got louder.
Although it wasn't the best hiding place, Collette decided to slip through the secret passage-way from the library into the servant's quarters. That would give her a bit more time to find a place which would be safe from her mother's eyes. Their old manor home was just full of secret passageways and little surprises. Collette's father loved showing her the hiding places he had used as a boy. She seemed to have inherited his adventurous spirit and loved their special secrets.
Collette reached under the familiar bookshelf and felt the "click" of the latch which released the hidden door. The bookcase swung open to reveal a dark tunnel. Collette opened the door and stepped into the darkness. After realizing that she didn't have a candle to light her way down the dark passageway Collette decided to wait until her mother passed out of earshot and then reenter the library.
When the only sound she could hear was her own breathing, Collette leaned against the heavy door to open it, but it wouldn't budge! She tried again and again, but the door just seemed stuck this time. Collette sighed heavily as she considered what to do. She could yell and bang on the wall until someone heard her, but then she'd be stuck with a lecture for hiding and knitting. Her only other choice would be to feel her way down the dark passage way until she came to the servant's quarters. Not one easily scared, Collette took the darkness over the knitting.
Going slowly, Collette felt her way along the cool passageway. It seemed like hours had passed, but she knew it had really only been a few minutes. She took a deep breath and told herself to get a grip. She had never been in the secret tunnels alone and definitely not alone and in the dark.
She continued to feel along the wall when her hand brushed against what felt like a doorknob. She gave it a slow and steady turn and the door opened smoothly in front of her. Dull light poured into the darkness and her eyes adjusted and she peered around her. Collette looked around her but did not recognize the small room before her. It certainly was not the servant's quarters, but what was it? It was not any room that her father had trusted to her knowing. Or perhaps even he was not even aware of it!
The room was small and plain with a small window and one door. The secret entrance she had opened was disguised as a simple but tall bookcase. A small sound caught Collette's attention and she laughed when she realized it was her stomach growling. In her hurry, she had forgotten how close to supper it was. Determined to find out where she was, Collette climbed out from the bookcase door and into the little room. She quietly turned the handle of the door and opened it very slowly.
It took a moment for her to realize that she was looking at the back of a closet. Moving the clothing aside, she discovered it was an unused closet in one of the servant's rooms which hadn't be used in many, many years. At one time, it had taken a much larger number of servants to run the manor, but now the number of people working for her parents was much smaller. A number of unused rooms were closed up and not in use. This was one of those rooms.
With the afternoon passing, Collette decided to go back to the kitchen and get a snack. However, she swore to herself that she would return to the secret room that night.
It was yet another day of work for Ademaro. He had spent the morning plowing the fields readying them for the crops to be planted.
Ademaro was counted a faithful and trustworthy worker at the manor. He had been employed there for some time, after emigrating from Italy. He had hopes of moving his family to America, the land of freedom. But when their money ran out, he stopped in France in order to work and save for their trip. He knew it could take many years, but it would be worth it.
He loved working the land. Monsieur and Mademoiselle had been kind to him and he had served them well. Ademaro's family had a small set of servant's quarters in the manor to use and it was warm and dry. However, he longed for a home and a piece of land to call his own; and it was this desire that kept driving him.
As the sun moved higher in the afternoon sky, Ademaro wiped the sweat from his brow. The cool water from the jug felt good on his dry throat. He shaded his eyes from the sun and looked over rolling hills to the grounds surrounding the manor. He could see a friend of his working in the vegetable gardens. Ademaro knew it was Adolf, he could tell by the way the man limped.
Adolph was another immigrant who worked at the manor. He had come shortly after Ademaro and his family arrived, but Adolph was from Germany. He walked with a slight limp, but Ademaro didn't know why. Adolph was a quiet man. He said very little, but was friendly enough. Ademaro felt it wasn't necessary to know so much about a man, and he was happy for the friendship.
After taking one more drink of cool water, Ademaro looked back to the sun and noticed it was a bit lower in the sky. He put the jug away and picked up the reins. He didn't want to be seen as a slacker and wanted to finish the task at hand.
That night, as the moon rose into the dark sky, Ademaro looked out of the little window of his quarters. He laid down the pen he had been using in the candlelight and sighed. He lifted up the odd scraps of paper that made up his journal. Ademaro had wanted to keep track of the events his family had encountered upon leaving France, and using whatever scrap papers he could find, he pieced together his journal. It was simple and ragged, but those papers contained the hopes and struggles his family had lived and it was precious to him. He looked around the sparsely furnished room to see if he had any other extra scraps of paper tucked away. Sighing, he realized he had run out.
He thought there might be a sheet in his secret room. Well, it really wasn't that large of a room. It was an extra compartment located at the back of his closet. He had discovered it quite by accident after coming to the manor and being given the set of rooms for his family. Since Ademaro had few possessions, and very little of worth, he didn't have much to hide, except for his precious journal.
Pushing the clothes to one side, Ademaro put his hands against the back of the closet wall, he gently pushed it. He didn't want to draw attention, didn't want the old door to squeak, so he moved slowly and carefully. The dim light of the candle shown in the small room, it looked like a tiny library to Ademaro. There will bookshelves lining the walls and filled with books. Ademaro would never use paper from the books, because books were just so precious. Some of the books were written in different languages, so he was unable to read them. But just to know that these wonderful books were there gave him such joy.
He continued to look around the room for paper, when he heard a quick knocking on the door outside his main room. He quickly and quietly retreated to his living quarters and walked briskly to the door. Opening it, Ademaro saw the face of Adolph looking back at him. Without a word, Adolph entered the room. He was sweating and looked nervous.
"Is something troubling you, Adolph? asked Ademaro.
"Oh, it's nothing," answered Adolph, "I just wanted to bring you something before I leave."
Ademaro was puzzled. What would Adolph be bringing him and where was Adolph going? He had said nothing about leaving the manor.
Before he raise his questions, Ademaro's thoughts were interrupted by Adolph.
"I know how much you like your journals, so I brought you this," said Adolph as he placed a small maroon-colored book in his hands. Gold trim ran around the edges of the leather cover. It was beautiful.
"I don't know what to say," mumbled Ademaro, keeping his eyes on the beautiful book.
"Just say you'll keep it," answered Adolph. And he was gone without even a goodbye.
Later that night, Ademaro leaned over his sleeping daughter's bed and kissed her gently on the head. "Good night, little one," he whispered to her. He quietly turned to leave his children's small room and entered into the room he and his wife shared. Although there were very few furnishings in their rooms, it was cozy. It was quiet and peaceful and this was the time of evening Ademaro loved the best. Usually, after the children had been put to bed, he and his wife would sit next to the wide open windows in their room and quietly discuss their hopes and dreams.
Tonight Ademaro was alone. His wife was working late in the kitchen and would not be back until much later. There was a fancy dinner going on and all the kitchen and house servants were needed.
He sat quietly at the window looking out over the darkened grounds. He was about to close the window when he noticed glowing lights far at the end of the grounds. Ademaro squinted to be sure he was really seeing the little specks of light, but he was certain they were there. The lights seemed to be moving slowly about in the outlying fields.
Ademaro knew that the workers of the manor were either in the kitchen or headed for bed, there would be no one out in the fields at this time of the evening. He grew worried and decided to investigate. After checking to be sure the children were sleeping, he quietly slipped out of the room and down the hallway to the back entrance. He crossed the open area in back of the house and entered the dark stables. After lighting a lantern, Ademaro spoke gently to the horses, quickly bridled one of the fastest mares and led her out into the night. His eyes searched through the darkness until he again found the lights in the distance and headed for them.
The quiet of the evening was broken by the sound of loud voices. Ademaro slowed the mare down, but the blast of a shotgun brought the terrified mare to a stop and up on her hind legs. The shot was not directed at him, yet Ademaro knew he was in danger. He slipped off the horse quickly and tied her to a low branch. He crept slowly toward the direction of where he had heard the sound of the shot. Squinting in the dim light, he made out the outline of a person lying on the ground. Rushing over, Ademaro gasped at what he saw.
Before him, covered in blood lay Adolph. Falling to the ground next to his friend, Ademaro saw that Adolph was still breathing… barely. "What happened, Adolph? Ademaro questioned, "Who did this?"
Looking up into Ademaro's face, Adolph replied with dying breath, "They were here for the book. Don't let them have it…" They were his last words before he died.
It had been several weeks since that dreadful night. Ademaro was haunted by the words of Adolph had spoken as he breathed his last breath of life. Whoever those terrible men were, they wanted the book that Ademaro now had and he still had no idea why. He had spent so much time thinking about what it all meant, but couldn't figure it out. He had tried to forget it happened, but that didn't work either. He would wake up in the middle of the night to find himself covered with sweat and the sheets ripped off his bed. He had no peace.
Often Ademaro was needed to go into the nearby village to pick up supplies for the manor. Although it didn't happen nearly as often, every few months, Ademaro would travel into the bustling city of Paris. It was on one of these trips that Ademaro overhead much talk about a German gang causing much trouble in the area around Paris. Men were talking between themselves quite loudly in one of the shops, Ademaro could not help but overhear. They discussed rumors of a missing book, something that the thugs were searching for and willing to kill to find.
Ademaro realized that Adolph was the hunted man the men were discussing. He grew more intrigued with this strange book and quietly looked for help in translating its words. Over time, Ademaro solved the puzzle of the words. He had to work slowly, as to not draw attention to himself, but patiently he found out the mystery of the strange words.
The book contained lists of names, names of people who were indebted to this German group. If the person on the list did not pay their debt, it was sure that something unpleasant thing would happen to them.
Ademaro used this knowledge and the cover of his secret room to act as allies to the poor people listed in his book. The secret room hid the book while Ademaro got word to person after person of the threat against them. He always signed his letters "A Helpful Friend" and not his real name. He did not want to endanger his family or himself. Rumors grew through the months and years of a wonderful person known only as "A Helpful Friend", but the person's identity was never found.
The distant sound of her name being repeated brought Collette to her senses. She sat at the dinner table with the food before her barely touched.
"Collette, are you dining with us this evening?" her father questioned.
"Umm," she paused, "Actually, I'm quite full. May I please be excused?
"Well, yes, Dear, but you've barely eaten a thing," her father replied as she pushed her chair back from the table and walked quickly from the room.
Collette's thoughts that evening were focused on that strange room she had discovered. She was set on exploring it further and retraced her steps from earlier that day. She quietly opened the door and stepped into the dark room. This time Collette was prepared and withdrew a candle from the folds of her skirt. She carefully lit the match and waited for the candle's glow to light the room.
Collette looked around the room and set her eyes upon the bookshelves. Walking over to the shelves, she ran her fingers over the spines of the books and finally left her hand rest on a small, dark blue book. She slowly removed it from the shelf and turned it to herself.
"Clink." Something metal hit the floor after falling from the cover of the book. Curious, Collette bent down and picked up the cool object and held it before her in the dim candlelight. It was an old skeleton key. She immediately began to scan the room with her eyes to see where the lock was that the key belonged to. But look as she might, Collette could not find any lock to fit her newfound key.
As Collette withdrew the book from its hiding place, she slowly ran her fingers over the cover. The ancient maroon-colored cover was cracked in some places and the gold trim which ran around the edges had turned rust-colored. There was no lock on the book, so she gently opened the cover. As she turned the pages with a careful hand, she realized the words on the pages were lists of names written not in French, but in German.
A bit disappointed, Collette closed the book and stood up. As she did, something brushed against her leg as it fell to the floor. She bent down in the dim light to see a yellowed and worn envelope with writing on the front. She brought it close to the candle to read and saw immediately that the handwriting was this time in French. It said, "To Whoever Finds…"
Excitement built in her again, as Collette gently opened the brittle envelope. She read the words written on the letter it held inside. "I Ademaro, a servant in the employ of this Manor have lived a life full of both excitement and sadness. I have had opportunity to help many souls through the years and it is my hope that when I am gone, no more will perish."
As Collette read further through the note, it told the story of Ademaro and how this simple man had taken the role of "A Helpful Friend". It seemed that a ruthless German mobster had sought to kill those people who could not or would not repay him. He had created a list of names, the very list Collette now held in her hands, and planned on having them killed one by one as payment in full. For some reason, the lowly servant Ademaro had obtained the list. Instead of just destroying it, he wanted to show kindness towards those on the list.
The final line of the letter challenged Collette. "If you read these lines, you now know the story of "A Helpful Friend". You must not be content to hold this knowledge, but instead must in turn give help to those who need it.
Collette quietly folded the letter back up and held it against her chest. She didn't know how, but she accepted Ademaro's challenge and looked forward to continuing the actions of "A Helpful Friend."