This audiobook is narrated by a digital voice.

The letter arrived on a Thursday morning, delivered by a postman who seemed eager to be rid of it. Margaret Whitmore noticed how his hands trembled slightly as he passed the yellowed envelope through her doorway, and how quickly he retreated down the cobblestone path without his usual cheerful farewell.

The envelope bore no return address, only her name written in spidery handwriting that seemed to dance across the aged paper. Inside, she found a brass key wrapped in parchment and a letter that would change the course of her quiet life forever.

"Dear Miss Whitmore," the letter began, "I regret to inform you of the passing of your great-aunt Constance Blackwood, whom you may not remember from your childhood. As her sole surviving relative, you have inherited her estate in the village of Ravenshollow, including the cottage at Thornfield Lane and the adjacent property known locally as Shadowmere Cemetery."

Margaret read the words twice, her tea growing cold as she tried to recall any memory of this mysterious relative. Constance Blackwood. The name stirred something deep in her memory, like a whisper from a half-remembered dream. She had a vague recollection of a severe woman in black visiting when she was very young, someone her parents spoke of in hushed tones after she left.

The letter continued with practical matters—the cottage was fully furnished and in good repair, and there was a modest inheritance that would allow her to live comfortably. What struck her as odd was the final paragraph: "I must warn you that the cemetery has been... troubled... for some time. The previous caretaker fled three months ago, and the villagers refuse to tend to it. You will find more information in your great-aunt's journals, which are kept in the study. Whatever you decide, please do not venture into the cemetery after dark."