Phyllis H Moore

The Bright Shawl Phyllis H Moore

Bella Rodriguez has decided it's time to leave her step-father's home. Her mother has been dead for three years and her older sister disappeared. Bella's worry is that her step-father is not concerned and she fears she may be next. Her only reservation is leaving her younger brother, Manny behind. She's running out of time and may have to miss her high school graduation, but her sense of danger is acute. While Bella plans a journey to a new life, Manny is left to face the unraveling of the only home he has ever known. Without Bella, his father's motives and instability is obvious. He is torn between the loyalty to his father and the dependability of his step-sister. The siblings experience whispers, guiding them to follow their instincts, but sometimes these messages are clouded in their own uncertainty. Will they cling to the known, or strike out and shape their own futures, and if they do, how will they ever know a family. "The nervous tension around them would crowd the room with sweat, smoke, and clenched jaws. Bella didn't intend to spend one more day with her stepfather or his associates-it was time to leave." "The remnants of those men had hung in Mirabella's kitchen, and she hadn't been able to wash the residue from the cups or dishes. It had begun to creep into the hall and follow her into the dining room, spreading tendrils like ivy around the furniture and up the walls to the ceiling. She hadn't been able to open the shutters in the front rooms to allow the sunlight to diffuse the creeping, as it was prohibited by Manuel's paranoia."