India Rose & The Eternals - The Fountain Of Youth Chronicles Vol. 1

Chapter 8 - In The Hall Of Portraits

The Hope Springs Library, 1982, 1:34 P.M, Day 4 of Summer Vacation

Jonas was right. The Hope Springs Memorial Library was a slightly creepy building, depending on your feelings about gothic architecture and things like gargoyles and bat statues. Other than that, it was a perfectly normal little library.

The library had a history of course, just like the rest of Hope Springs.

Less than one hundred years before, Hope Springs had been a bare spot on most maps of the coast of Maine, situated between two other fishing towns that were separated by thirty miles of barren rocks and jagged cliffs. The area was technically part of a township located up the coast, but in reality, it was home to mostly a few itinerant fishermen and lots and lots of seagulls and seals.

And then along came a fellow named Egan Ninf and his young son. A poor immigrant from Russia, Ninf was said to have invented the safety pin and his fortunes turned quickly when he was able to secure a patent on his small creation, and sell it successfully in the garment district of New York City, making a small fortune in just a short time. Egan and his son (whose Mother had tragically died on the trip over to America) moved up to Maine and bought the large parcel of land between the two other towns and incorporated the town of Hope Springs a few years later. He and his son had helped build the town's first buildings, including the original school building and the Town Hall.

But it was the library that was his pride and joy. He built it last and designed it to resemble a European cathedral, complete with flying buttresses, stained glass windows and of course, the creepy gargoyle that lined the roof of the building. The library was a great curiosity in the state, and more than a few tourists made their way over from the highway to snap pictures of the odd building in the small coastal town.

Of course, this information was all available on the plaque just outside the library's front door, right next to the statue of Egan Ninf and his son. The modest statue's most prominent feature was Egan's wide, wooly mustache. It was so prominent and eerily lifelike, that it had been painted various colors by mischievous high school students over the years.

The Rose family loved the library. It was a "once-a-week" destination for the family (considering their passion for books). Most Wednesday afternoons would find the family browsing the shelves, or parked in one of the comfy chairs in front of the fireplace in the library's grand reading room. It was, in many ways, the Rose family's second home.

As soon as Mr. Rose went off to meet with Mrs. Blue, India, Ireland, and Jonas went their various ways in the library. India immediately headed for a specific set of shelves to get the next book in the series she was reading. When she found it, she headed to her favorite chair in the large reading room and sat under one of the great, stained glass windows where the light poured down on her as she read.

Ireland's favorite spot was also in the great reading room, but it was over in a corner where there was a large drawing table (more accurately, an architects' drafting table) that had been set up and supplied with a large roll of paper that anyone could draw on. Ireland had her set of markers, pencils, and pens with her, and she set about copying some birds out of a large book she had found on a shelf during a previous visit.

Jonas wandered a bit about the stacks, but he seemed a little aimless to India. He half-heartedly collected a couple of books and settled down in the chair next to India. But it was obvious that his mind was elsewhere, and soon he put down the book that he had been trying to read and disappeared into another section of the library.

He returned about 10 minutes later with an excited look on his face. He plopped down once again in his chair, and let out a big breath before stating, "Okay, it's time."