Mystery in Noir

2. Journey to the Past

2.

Journey to the PastAnthony stood on the terrace with his host. Among the cypress tress, there was a small stairway – cut into the rocks and circled by manzanita shrubs – which lead down to the ocean. The squawking of seabirds and salty air, these were the things the detective missed in Paris.

“You know, Anthony, once this was my Uncle Gustavo’s house, then my grandmother Lucrecia lived here with some other family members, I moved in with my own family after it became empty after her death,”

“I really don’t want to press you, Stella…”

“Naturally, you would like to know why you are here. Look, I am not young, probably don’t have much time left. My children and grandchildren are living in another, new world, wouldn’t want to burden them with ancient events, they have to live their own life. Regarding my life, I think, I had a good life, but… There is something that is bothering me, and I truly don’t wish to leave this world without resolving that issue. Because if I don’t resolve it, it will stay that way forever. It’s about a particular night. Something happened that night… All my life, everyone avoided that matter that really occurred during that night. I want to uncover it!” Stella’s determined voice suddenly stopped, and was searching for Anthony’s blue eyes. “You are very familiar with Golden Age Hollywood, aren’t you?”

“Absolutely, I am a staunch fan of the era,” replied Anthony enthusiastically. “Then could they really make movies. By now I have a fairly good collection of films made between the 1920s and 1950s,”

“In that case, the name Carmen Carson must be recognizable,”

“Totally! A late silent era actress, I think she had only one sound movie before her death at a young age…”

“Do you know the birth name of Carmen Carson?”

“I have to tell you, I do not.” admitted the noir detective his shortcoming.

“Her real name was Carmen Arismendi, but it was deemed too foreign in Hollywood that time, so it was changed to Carson. Actually, the name is not Spanish but Basque, the family comes from Basque origin, however later Spanish blood was more dominant.”

“Are you a relative of Carmen Carson?” Monsieur Noir was genuinely surprised.

“My aunt. My father’s sister… Probably it is best to start the story at the beginning. In this case, it is very well in the past. My aunt, Carmen was born in February 1899, about 110 miles north-east of Los Angeles, in a hacienda called La Casa Turquesa1. They often called it a house, however I think palace would be more suitable. If you’ll see it, it will take your breath away! It got its name from the turquoise mined not far from there. All-around, the seemingly never-ending desert. So Carmen was born there. Her parents were Bernardo Arismendi and Lucrecia Ávila.”

“Please, Stella, continue,”

“The history of the family obviously goes back much longer than the Casa Turquesa… One of the lineal ancestors of Bernardo, an impoverished Basque nobleman, somewhere from near San Sebastian, at the end of the 1500s – during the Age of Discovery – without much possibilities at home, he had left for New Spain, and in Veracruz, in present-day Mexico, married the daughter of a well-to-do Basque family who emigrated earlier, which meant substantial dowry. From their many children 2 boys reached adulthood. One of them stayed in Veracruz, this will be the latter improvised Veracruz branch of the family. The other one moved north to the city of silver, Zacatecas, where he amassed substantial wealth. In the middle of the 1700s, when mines’ profits decreased, the family once again moved even further north, into Sonora, and finally they settled down in Southern California. This area, at the time, was part of Mexico. Shortly the predecessor of the Case Turquesa was built, which was later often expended and updated, but it characteristic Iberian style and turquoise walls were preserved. They lived there in relative isolation, as California was peripheral at the time.

An enormous change came for the family, with the Mexican-American War of 1846-1848. Later this was always mentioned as the war. The provisions of the 1848 peace gave the northern portion of California, the current US state, to the United States. This was a fundamental shock for a Spanish speaking Catholic Mexican family, to live under the rule of an Anglo-Saxon Protestant country. With one exception, all the family escaped to the Mexican side of the new border. Only Felipe Arismendi, my grandfather’s grandfather stayed with his wife. The Casa Turquesa was left in a crumbling state, all what could have been moved was taken away. But Felipe was young and ambitious, he adapted to the new circumstances, learned English and revived the hacienda. His only son’s son Bernardo, my grandfather was born in 1870.

For Bernardo, his father chose a suitable wife. Lucrecia Ávila Castillo O’Connor was said to be the most beautiful girl near and far. Her deep voice, distinctive dark hair and tantalizing eyes were well-known among local folks. Lucrecia’s grandfather arrived in the 1840s from Ireland. During the war because of his Catholic faith he supported the Mexicans against the Americans. He later worked on the ranch of a Mexican landowner, who loved him so much that he married his daughter. Their daughter married a Spanish nobleman, their daughter Lucrecia was born in 1873.

Bernardo and Lucrecia married in 1891. During the next 25 years they had 14 children: Fernando, Lourdes, Vicente, Juana, Gustavo, Leonor, Cristina, Carmen, Luisa, Raniero, Miguel, Diego, Rosa and Alejandro. Fernando, Vicente and Rosa died in infancy or as a child, but eleven of them reached adulthood. Lourdes spent most of her life as a missionary in Africa. The stunningly beautiful Cristina was disfigured by smallpox and spent her later life in a convent. My uncle Raniero become a monk, as my grandmother swore if she survives the difficult childbirth, she’ll give her newborn son to the Church. The twins, Miguel and Diego, were the black sheep of the family. Because of familial commitments, Juana was married into a family in Mexico. Gustavo – after he didn’t want to marry according to his parents’ wishes – moved to Los Angels in his 20s, which was an astonishing act. Poor Luisa was born with physical disability, and although she was taken care of until her death, she spent her life in seclusion. At the time of Carmen’s death, six siblings lived in the prosperous Californian property. My grandfather, Bernardo, died not long before Carmen, in 1928.

1 Turquoise house (Spanish)