Page 55 of Tis The Season for Secrets
She flipped through the pages until Will stopped her on a page of illustrations: miners working, gold dust flowing through their fingers. Their clothes reminded her of the ones from her grandfather’s era.
“How could anyone have found this place if it’s protected by the mountains?” she wondered aloud. Had it been explorers who’d stumbled across it one day? Kevin had mentioned Yule had been founded in 270AD.
“Your ancestors had an answer for that,” he said, pointing to one of the lines of handwritten text.
“The magic seeps out of the mountain rock when it’s being mined, generating a type of forcefield.” She let the explanation sink in. “So… if they stopped mining dust, then the protections would fail?”
“The Frosts believed so, and your great-grandfather – after generations of peace – planned to test it. If they’d succeeded, they’d have exposed Yule.”
Juliet turned to a page illustrated with fighting miners, pickaxes raised high. She guessed those were the only weapons they’d had to use. She couldn’t believe her family had committed such violence against their own. “But why would they want to run that risk?”
“Because when your great-grandfather led the Frost family, he believed that if they had the power to expose Yule, no one would be able to stand against them. They could get away with anything, just by threatening to stop mining. But then the desire for power grew, and Yule wasn’t enough for them. They wanted the world to know the power they held, and wanted to expose Yule and its magic. Then again, no one can really agree on what your family truly desired, since legend and truth have muddled the history. Some people argue it was a misguided attempt to bring Yule’s magic and warmth to the whole world. Others say it was just a grab for power.”
“But the Klauses stopped them?”
“Yes, the Klauses and other families gathered to retake the mine when their plans were discovered.”
Juliet closed the book on the bloody scene. “Were people killed?”
“No, but many were injured. Our medicine is rather advanced, another secret we protect – all those hurt were able to recover.”
“So that’s why you couldn’t tell me how the protections work? Because no one has actually tested the theory?”
Will nodded.
“The workers in the mine… they wanted to test the theory as well?” Juliet asked, wondering if there was anyone still in Yule who supported her family. She couldn’t even imagine what would happen to this place if her dad had such power.
“Yes, a few families were punished for their involvement. However, leniency was shown, as many were just following orders. The threat of banishment was enough to make them see the error of their ways.”
“And the banishment of the Frost family made it clear they would make good on that threat.” The words escaped her in a breath. Part of her wasn’t surprised by her family’s hunger for power; she was ashamed to say that not much had changed over the years.
Will nodded again. “Up until the 1800s, Yule was governed by all the founding families. However, after everything happened with the Frosts, the Klauses were put in charge of the council. Our delivery technology wasn’t always as advanced as it is now. Sleighs being pulled by reindeer were spotted repeatedly over the years; Outsiders came up with their own myths. The idea of Yule, or Santa Claus living at the North Pole – we think that with the coming and going of those from Yule to and from the Outside, whispers were warped and expanded upon over the years.”
Juliet’s head started to swim. “Does everyone in Yule know about this?”
He shook his head. “No. Many know that the Frost family tried to expose Yule to make a grab for power, but not how.”
“Shouldn’t people know the truth? Is that why the council don’t want me coming back, so I won’t expose the truth of what happened?”
Will shrugged. “I don’t know. Maybe they fear the Frost family returning; since Yule’s population has expanded greatlyover the past generations, they could gain a lot more followers now. Maybe if they tried again, they might not be stopped.”
“Shouldn’t that be left to the people of Yule to decide?” Juliet couldn’t help but think that if the majority wanted the world to know about Yule, maybe they should have a say.
“It’s up to the council and Klaus to decide, but I understand what you’re saying. One of the reasons I helped you come back here was to show that the past is not to be feared. If everyone in Yule wanted the world to know we exist, I think the council would accept it, but it shouldn’t be forced on them either because one family wants power.”
Juliet could understand the desire to test the theory about the dust and mining, which also explained why her own family had been in the industrial industry for generations– they had merely changed location. She wondered if the Frosts had ever tried searching for more rock like what was found in Yule. She remembered her grandfather talking of how the company had almost been bankrupted a few times because of his father’s explorative mining schemes. Juliet had assumed he was a gold or diamond hunter.Maybe he was just trying to find his way home.
“Can we get out of here? I think I’ve had enough.” She shut the book. Now that she had the full story, she didn’t know who the victim or the villain was. Her ancestors were wrong for threatening to expose Yule, but she wondered if the crime had truly warranted this generational punishment.
“It’s coming up to two anyway. I know this is a lot to digest, but I wanted you to know everything. You don’t deserve to be blindsided again like you were this morning,” Will said, putting the book back in the dumbwaiter.
The wooden doors shut, and the small lightbulb turned red. When the doors opened again, it was gone as though it had never existed, but Juliet couldn’t stop thinking about the illustrationof those fighting hand to hand, pickaxe to pickaxe. She didn’t condone violence, but she didn’t like that the council and the Klaus family had kept the truth buried and turned the story of her family’s hunt for the truth about the protections into a tale of warning against those who favoured facts over faith. What if the Frost family had only wanted to test the theory? What if they hadn’t been trying to make a claim for power?
There was no way to know, but she needed time to think. She only been in Yule for a matter of days; she couldn’t make any snap judgements about a place or people she barely understood. Hell, it wasn’t like the outside world was a beacon of honesty and virtue.
She nodded at Will. “Let’s go.”
Laughter filled the air. Children playfully chased each other around the makeshift courtyard, packed with snow for crafting their masterpieces, by the Christmas tree at the centre of town, leaving a trail of footprints. Hurrying across the square, Juliet saw that Lyla stood out in the crowd that had gathered for the competition, bundled up in a bright purple scarf and matching earmuffs. After a quick grilling from Kevin and Lyla about where they’d been, they gathered in the designated courtyard around their assigned piles of snow.
