SYNOPSIS - Diary of an American Hero by S.b.Dow (stk@rcn.com)
During one of the more turbulent times in our history, a young boy is taken from life before the truth of his contributions can be learned. Jeremy Daniels was one of the silent heroes who worked behind the scenes to procure our country's freedom. He, along with thousands of others, risked their lives acquiring information of enemy intentions. Many of these unsung heroes never lived to enjoy the freedom of a new nation they unselfishly helped to build. So now Jeremy, a true patriot for the cause of freedom, is taken from life by friends who thought him to be a traitor to liberty. Unable to bear the weight of these accusations, Jeremy is doomed to roam the halls of his home for eternity unless his patriotism can be proven.
Year after unbearable year passes until one night, fearful of a flash flood, a group of teenage friends, seeking shelter from the raging storm, find themselves on the doorstep of the old abandoned mansion.
Stories from their youth foretelling of ghosts and eerie happenings over the house's two hundred year history have kept many, including these friends, virtually clear of it. But tonight, with thunder and lightning cascading about them along with a pelting, torrential flood of rain zapping away their energy, and still hours away from the safety of home, they find they have no choice but to enter.
Fear rules the minds as some refuse to step foot in the house, but the voices of unseen ghosts hovering in the night soon persuade them.
Breaking off into groups of two, the friends cautiously search the house for the safest place to stay. In the library, wires that have not known the sense of energy for untold years suddenly fill the lights with power and throwing the visitors into near panic. Explanations of a lightning hit ease their minds but no explanation can be found for the grand ballroom as unseen forces pack clothing that had been laid out to dry.
Exhausted from the suppression of stored energy and to calm shattered nerves a few of the friends curl up to sleep with the assurance others would remain awake to stand guard; but it did little good. Cold breezes washing over the sleeping arouse them into fits of panic and accusations. While the unaffected seek to calm the nerves of those who were, a ball of light suddenly appears. As it begins to take the shape of a human being, the friends leave reason to panic and rush to escape. But there is none, for the ghost appears before them at every turn. Frightened and huddled together, and after some emotional outbursts, the friends come to realize, that if the ghost was going to hurt them it would have done so already.
In time they reason that the ghost wants them to follow him. Doing so, they are led to a shaft where they find the diary. Reading it they learn that the ghost was once a spy for the American cause during the Revolutionary War.
First hand accounts of his life is illustrated in the diary with ties to actual history. They further learn, after numerous bouts with the unknown that the ghost, named Jeremy Daniels, was murdered before he could prove he was not the traitor he was labeled. Until such a brand is removed from his name, he cannot find the rest he so deserves. The friends find documents and letters to prove Jeremy's claim but are not sure how to proceed. They do not want to bring the news to the world only to have Jeremy become an exhibit for the curious. They decide to contact their history teacher for advice. He hears their story and with great skepticism consents to meet their ghostly friend. He brings along a female reporter after vowing that nothing would be done without the group's consent.
Each character in the story has their own unique personality that allows the reader to relate to a number of the emotions being expressed. Humor from the naïve, the class clown, and the various situations make this story a fast paced, easily read adventure for pre-teen through adult. The reader is exposed to actual historical events by way of the diary in a story-like fashion. It is comprised of heartfelt moments as well as humor. It gives the reader an insight into the lives and times of those who were the foundation of our nation without lecture or teachings.
The Diary of an American Hero is the first story of the series trilogy.
The second story entitled 'Life and Times of Jeremy Daniels' gives the reader a more detailed account of those who fought for our independence in secrecy on the front lines.
In the final story of the trilogy, entitled "The Freeing of Jeremy Daniels", the story follows the efforts of the friends along with the history teacher and reporter in bringing the remarkable story of Jeremy to the world. The story covers the red tape and opposition they encounter from thrill-seekers as well as those seeking to exploit Jeremy.
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The Diary of an American Hero Table of Contents
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1. The Storm
2. The Lost Path
3. Decisions
4. Exploration of the House
5. Haunted Library
6. Safe, For Now
7. Tricks or Treats
8. The Question: To Sleep or not to Sleep?
9. The Ghost ...
10. Led through the Haunted House
11. The Diary
12. Life of Jeremy Daniels
13. Patriot or Traitor?
14. The cellar
15. Search for Proof
16. What to do Next?
17. The History Teacher
18. Return to the Haunted House
19. The Teacher and the Ghost
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Sample from the Beginning of the Story
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Lara held onto a branch she was about to climb under and just stared at where she thought Angela would be. "Unbelievable." She muttered to herself. She shook her head then ducked under the clump of branches.
"Then I guess we'll have to set up our tents out here!" Dave decided.
"At least we won't have to worry about flooding this high up."
"It's not the flooding that's bothering me," Matt said, "It's the lightning."
"If it's the lightning you're worried about, the chances of getting hit..." Julie started to say but Lara stopped her. "It's not getting hit by lightning that's bothers me!" she yelled out from under a tree, "It's getting hit by falling trees that got hit by lightning, that does!" Everyone laughed.
"She's got a point there." Matt said seriously as he nodded his head.
"Well, then we'll have to do something!" Jen called back.
"Yeah, we can't stay out here in this!" Angela added.
"Wait a minute!" Dave called out as he excitedly waved his flashlight back and forth. Not caring if he had everyone's attention or not he went on. "I'm pretty sure I know this part of the woods! In fact, I'm sure of it!"
"How can you be so sure?" Jen doubted. "This soggy piece of woods doesn't look any different from the last soggy piece of woods I just trudged through!"
"No really! I'm sure I've been by here lots of times before!" Dave exclaimed.
"Yeah, right!" Lara grumbled under her breath. "Like Jen said, this place doesn't look any different from the last soggy tree I bumped my head against!"
"Really! For the past half hour I've being seeing spots that look so familiar..."
"Dave! It's pitch black and raining! How can you be so sure?" Julie snarled, not believing a word he was saying.
"I'm pretty sure I am! Besides what do we have to lose?" Dave said with confidence.
"So you're saying we're close to home?" Angela asked with hope.
"No, but I'm sure there's a path not too far ahead that leads to that old abandoned house. If we can find it, we can stay there the night!"
"You're not talking about that haunted place, are you?" Jen asked in horror.
"It isn't haunted!" Dave huffed. "And even if it was, I'll bet it's a lot drier in there than it is out here!"
"Well, suppose somebody's living there?" Angela asked.
"It wouldn't be an abandoned house if someone was living there," Dave mocked.
"You know what I meant!" Angela lashed back.
"Yeah? Well how do you know it's abandoned?" Julie cut in.
"I don't know for sure, but I doubt anyone's lived there for years!"
"Even if someone's living there," Matt stepped in, "I'm sure they'll let us stay the night." As these words rolled off his lips, a flash of lightning lit up the sky followed by a rush of thunder.
"Especially since it's lightning," Angela said, with fear in her voice.
"Especially since it's lightning," Julie echoed, "And getting closer."
"So where's this path of yours?" Jen asked.
"I'm not sure..."
"Oh, here we go!" Jen moaned, "Our great hero!"
"As I was saying, I'm not sure exactly where it is around here, but I know it's around here someplace. We just have to look for it."
"And just what do we look for? Is there a sign?" Angela asked.
"Yeah," Jen snarled, "THIS WAY TO THE HAUNTED HOUSE!"
"No, there's no sign and the house isn't haunted!" Dave growled. "We'll just have to walk up and down this side of the trail pushing the bushes aside and looking for signs of it."
"So, what do we look for?" Angela asked again.
"I don't know," Dave snarled. "Just look for something that looks like a path."
"Why don't we just make it impossible!" Jen grumbled. "Let's do it with our eyes closed!"
"Will you stop being so negative Jen!" Julie snapped. "I don't believe there's a path around here either, but it's better than the choices we have right now." With that said she stormed off and began pushing the soggy bushes aside looking for anything that might show that a path had once existed.
While Julie went off to search, everyone else locked his or her eyes on the approaching lightning. Then, one by one, they silently decided to gamble on Dave's memory. With hope in one hand and flashlights and blazing lanterns in the other, they began searching for the path they hoped existed.
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Sample of the Strange Happenings
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"Don't try to tell me it was the wind!" Jen hissed. Matt felt the intensity he saw in her face forcing him to swallow his words and fall silent.
"So what do we do now?" Angela asked as she cautiously scanned the room.
"We roll the bags back out and get some sleep," Matt said locking eyes with Jen.
"There's no way I'm staying here tonight!" Jen hissed out. "I'm out of here!"
"And just where do you think you're going to go?" Dave argued.
"Someplace where they don't have ghosts!" She howled.
"Will you stop with the ghosts already!" Julie screamed. "It's that kind of talk that's making us all crazy! We're running around imagining things!"
"Take a good look!" Jen snarled as she pointed a hard finger at the rolled up sleeping bags. "Does that look like my imagination?"
"Come on, don't be like that," Lara said as she forced her way in between them.
"Yeah," Dave said, then added something that should have been left unsaid. "Maybe it's not a ghost, maybe there's somebody else in this house. Maybe someone else came in to get out of the storm...." Quickly realizing his mistake, he stopped - but it was too late, the seed had been planted.
"Oh nice going Dave!" Matt snarled with a heavy sigh. "Like we don't have enough problems trying to keep things calm!"
"That's it! I'm getting out of here!" Jen screamed as she tried to push her way through the crowd.
"And go where?" Matt shouted as he grabbed her by the arm.
"I don't know, just out of here!" She yelled as she yanked her arm free but made no further motion towards the front door,
"Look! Look! Look!" Matt said as he grabbed onto her shoulders. "Would you rather it be a ghost?"
"I'd rather be home!" she wailed.
"Look we have no real choice but to stay here for the night! If it'll make it easier on you then Dave and I will stay awake all night and stand guard...."
"We will?" Dave asked with surprise. He was silenced with a harsh look from Matt.
"Yes, we will!" he chimed in with as much conviction as he could gather. Julie, looking for a way to ease the tension, teased, "Oh, that's comforting. You, protecting us!"
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Sample from the Meeting of the Ghost
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Outside, the wind continued its angry vengeance against the worn shingles of the house. The ancient panes of glass rattled in their settings, and the loose pieces of decaying wood rapped to the music of the storm. Long shadows from the barren trees could be seen through the windows and appeared to fluttering their slender arms as they flailed and pleaded to be set free from the night's fury. The house creaked and moaned at the abuse it was forced to take from the unrelenting storm and like islands in a restless sea, the friends huddled together afraid to close their eyes.
"Cut it out guys! That's not funny!" Jen screamed out as she swung her arms around causing hearts to stop and everyone to jump. No one had known she had fallen asleep while sitting up. "What? What's the matter?" Matt cried out as everyone fell over each other trying to crowd around her. "You know what the matter is!" she screamed as her eyes filled with tears. "I finally got to sleep, and you guys have to play your childish games!"
"Guys?" Angela's voice was trembling, "What's that over there?"
"Jen, I don't know what you're talking about!" growled Matt as he looked her straight in the eye. "Nobody's done anything!"
"Guys?" Angela said in a louder voice, "What's that thing over there?"
"You know precisely what I'm talking about!" Jen said as her temper rose, "I was sleeping and you couldn't leave well enough alone! No! You had to sneak over here and rub my arm with your cold hands..."
"Jen," Matt said in forceful tone, "Nobody's been near you. We have..."
"Guys!" Angela cried out as loud as she could. Everyone looked over in her direction. "What's that over there?" She pointed.
Their eyes followed her finger. Mouths fell open and bodies went cold as their minds tried to understand what their eyes were seeing.
"What is it?" Julie whispered as she huddled towards Lara.
"I don't have a clue," Lara answered meeting her halfway. "But I do know I don't like it," she added.
"Do something Matt!" Angela snapped.
Matt looked over at Angela. "And just what would you like me to do?" he asked, shaking his head in disbelief. He knew what he wanted to do but where would he run to?
"Make it go away," she said, unaware of how ridiculous her demand sounded. The friends fell together in a tight circle and inched backwards. Their eyes were glued on a ball of light that was growing in size and coming towards them. It wasn't big or bright, but it did have their full attention.
"Dave!" Julie cried out, "You're the science genius! What is that?"
"Don't ask me! I've never seen anything like this in school!" he choked out.
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Sample of the Historical Passages
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Matt picked up the diary and started to read commanding everyone to silence.
"Thursday May the 7th - Being that we are the last farm before town, we have occasional travelers stop for water and rest. It is during these times that I have been able to learn much about the goings on about the valley. I have since learned that Josh Prichett and Kevin Jacobs were killed some months ago in skirmishes with British regulars at a place called Swedes Ford. I remembered so many times we spent fishing and swimming together, and now they are taken from me. I wonder how many more of my friends will exist only in days past? Because of events such as these, I am subjected to ridicule from some that fail to understand why it is I have not joined the fight. They look upon me as a Tory and address me as such. Though it pains me to hear these slurs upon me, I feel I cannot leave the farm unattended. Truly if there was suitable labor I could draw upon to take up the slack of my leaving, I would be gone in an instant, but there is none to be found so I must fight the war in my own way. Although I have had nothing that comes close to the nature of last month's plot, I have reported to Master Paige things that I deem necessary to watch, such as Tory activities, sentiments, and gossip. I also name patriot sympathizers who talk too much about plans they have heard or activities of other sympathizers. I do not wish to be an informer, but I also do not wish to see lives lost on the battlefields because I chose not to take a stand. Master Paige thanks me on each occasion but I do not know if I am being overly eager to serve with my reports. He has yet to tell me that what I report is of use or none at all, so until such an occasion arises, I shall continue upon this path. I try to arrange my meeting with Master Paige on days that I usually go into town so as not to arouse suspicion from my mother or from others of the valley. So far I have been successful, but I must watch what information I gather to avoid falling into a trap."
"What does he mean a trap?" Angela questioned.
"Well," Dave spoke up first. "If someone was getting suspicious of someone, they might test to see if he was a spy by giving him fake information to see if something comes of it. If it does, then the person is probably a spy."
"Not only that," Julie said, "The guy giving out the phony information might end up finding out who the others in the spy ring are."
"You mean like the tavern owner?" Angela asked.
"Sure," Julie answered.
"And," Matt added, "If the guy was patient enough, he might find out who those guys reported to all the way up the top of the ladder."
"That's not fair." Angela argued.
"It was war Angela," Jen said. "People did what they thought was right."
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Sample of the Humor and Discoveries
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Matt lowered the diary and studied the stunned faces around him.
"A spy! You mean he was a spy?" Dave gasped with eyes wide.
Did they give him a number?" Angela asked.
"A number? What do you mean a number?" Lara asked. The look Lara flashed Angela clearly told she had no idea what Angela was talking about.
"You know," Angela said, "Like James Bond double-o-seven."
"They didn't give them numbers back then." Matt laughed to the snickers of the other friends. He wanted to say more but fought back the urge. Instead he forced his attentions back to the diary. "Anyway," he said with a hidden smile, "Judging from the next few entries it seems Jeremy spent a lot of time thinking about it."
"What was there to think about?" Jen cried out.
"There was a great deal to think about," Dave said, "First of all, he would be completely alone. He couldn't let anybody know what he was doing."
"Not even his friends?" Angela asked.
"Especially not his friends," Matt added, "In those days you really couldn't be sure who was your friend and who was not."
"That's right!" Julie exclaimed, "Maybe Jeremy's friends were pretending to be his friends so they could get information for the British!"
"What about his mother?" Angela asked.
"I doubt he could even tell her," Jen said. "The fewer people who knew what you were doing, the better your chances of not getting caught."
"Besides that," Lara added. "The way he was keeping his spying from her tells me she was totally against him joining the army. Remember how much trouble we had just getting permission to do this camping trip? Imagine how much he would have had trying to go off to war!"
"Good one Lara," Julie said, "Spying was more dangerous than fighting in battles so I'm sure she'd like that even less."
"Wow!" Angela said as her eyes went wide, "You really couldn't trust anybody in those days, could you!"
"I guess not," Dave explained, "Even families were against each other. A lot of the parents wanted to stay with the King, while their kids wanted the war for independence."
"I guess I don't understand why anyone wouldn't want to fight for America," Angela sighed.
"It wasn't America then. " Dave said, "Think about it this way. Suppose somebody came over here and wanted to take this country away from us? What would you do?"
"I'd fight to keep them out!" Jen and Angela shouted out together.
"So would I." Dave said, "But you have to remember that the people who wanted to stay with the King because this was their country and the people who wanted the revolution were trying to take it away from them!"
"Wow," Lara said in amazement, "I never thought about it that way!"
"Neither did I," Julie confessed. "So if you think about it, our forefathers were invaders who took over this country."
"Exactly." Dave said.
"Hey," Julie said, "Don't forget, our forefathers didn't just wake up one day and decide to take over the country. I remember from history class that they were pushed to it because of all the unfair taxes, laws, and stuff like that."
"Guys," Matt said, "We can talk about this all night. Whatever the reasons were that made them rebel doesn't change the fact that they did it. So if you don't mind I'd like to get back to the diary and find out what happens so we can figure out what our ghost friend wants from us."
"Yeah, me too," Angela said, "I want to find out if they gave him a number."