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The swarthy Transylvanian guide dropped down next to Father His dark eyes looked ale has been cut off There was a big store rocks and blocked the way The only other road leads up into the e? We have a very important connection to erous road Very dangerous" Ovidiu looked as if he were about to sit down on the ground and cry

"We have no choice Take the high road to the village," Father ordered

While they spoke I was studying the road intently The carriage was a little beyond the break in the road The lower road obviously led toward the sht The carriage had skidded when the driver abruptly reined the horses up onto the high road, crashing through the foliage

"It is a dangerous way!" Ovidiu shook his head "Too dangerous to go that way!"

"Father, where did the boulders coe barricade "It is as if they were set there"

Father was irritated with our guide He was a erous, but it is also the only road open to our destination We are expecting a carriage to pick us up toht!"

"Night will come fast now The sun is low," Ovidiu said His anxious dark eyes darted toward the descending sun

"Yes, yes Light the lanterns on the carriage Let us be off We are wasting time!"

I reached out to Father I was very bothered by the way the road was blocked It seeerous way!" Ovidiu looked stricken "We can turn back now! We can be far away by the tiht the lanterns and let us be off!" Father h road

"Father!"

"What is it, Glynis?"

"The boulders down there-"

"Yes, yes, what of theh the trees at the barrier blocking the lower road

"Where did they come from?"

"We are in the mountains, Glynis There are rocks of all shapes and sizes about Now, into the carriage with you"

"But, it is so odd, Father!"

"This is an odd country, Glynis"

I was ushered up into the carriage and seated reluctantly across from my mother

"It was as if they were placed there, Father Do you not think it is odd? Maybe it is a sign"

Mother held May close as she tried to sootheblocked Maybe God does not want n to us," I answered I did not truly believeon with our journey

"This is 1819 I think we are far beyond believing in signs," Father declared as he took his seat He swung the door shut and knocked on the side of the carriage with his fist

The carriage lurched forward, and we began our ascent into the darkening forest

As the sun continued its journey doards, dark shadows began to fill the valleys I sat quietly pondering the strange configuration of large boulders that blocked our passage May finally stopped whi and fell asleep in our mother’s arms Father see blindly out theSilence filled our tiny haven

The climb was treacherous, but as the sun continued to sink below the craggy mountaintops, the horses raced on e with every curve in the road

I could feel the urgency in the driver’s voice as he prodded the horses to greater h thethe starry sky The sun vanished with one last gliht took possession of the earth

As the sky transforht to dark, so did our ht The night was darker than any I could recall, the air stifling I felt as though I could not even take a full breath The darkness filling the carriage sely, e We fell into an eerie silence Mother’s htly shut that her lips were as pale as the arded

"What was that?" May whispered

"The neighing of the horses," Father said, his voice slicing harshly through the darkness

A sharp yelp ripped out of the night

"Father, I heard sohtly

It was then that Ovidiu began to call out shrilly Even though it was in another language, I could have sworn his words were the Lord’s Prayer As I heard the deep voice of the driver join in, I glanced orry at my father

"Father, what did the driver say earlier?"

"Glynis!" Mother’s voice was a hiss