Fiction Reviews: The Wind in the Rose Bush (Mary Eleanor Wilkins Freeman)

 

A middle-aged woman from New England is traveling to Ford Village to bring back her stepdaughter, Agnes.

Upon arriving at her destination, Rebecca Flint is welcomed into the home of Augusta Ford, the wife of her deceased brother. Near the porch post, there is a vase with a single rose. Rebecca is amazed and wonders how it is possible for a rose to sprout in the middle of winter—let alone move in the absence of wind. When Augusta Ford tells her not to touch the rose, Rebecca nods in agreement.

Once inside, Rebecca asks about Agnes. Augusta tells her that the girl went out for a walk but will be back home soon. As Agnes grows increasingly late, Rebecca becomes worried and voices her concern to Augusta, who simply downplays it.

At some point, Rebecca glimpses Agnes—who is wearing a hat—through a window. Augusta opens the door, but the girl is nowhere to be seen. Rebecca, a rational woman, begins to suspect something is amiss, feeling as though there are spirits in the house. As the wait continues, Rebecca becomes increasingly nervous. Determined to take her stepdaughter away, she tells Augusta that she plans to pack Agnes's things and take her back to her house in Michigan.

Augusta claims that Agnes has gone out with her friend, Addie Slocum. Rebecca goes to the Slocum house, but no one is home. By the time she returns, Agnes is still missing, and night has fallen. Rebecca sleeps in one of the guest rooms, but in the middle of the night, she hears a musical piece played on the piano in the living room. When Rebecca comes downstairs, she finds the room completely empty.

The next day, Augusta sends Rebecca away without Agnes. Sometime later, Rebecca receives a letter from the postmaster, from which she learns that the only person alive in Ford Village is Augusta.