The History of Light & Dark's Notorious Town, Fairview Falls
From the outside, Fairview Falls appears to be a quaint little town. But, appearances can be deceiving. Sailors tell tales of the infamous Bermuda Triangle, a mythical place in the sea that draws forth the unwary and whisks them away never to be heard from again. Could such a place exist on land?
The first tragedy suffered by the town happened in the winter of 1943. St. Luke's Home for Wayward Children caught fire. Dozens of children, as well as staff, were burned alive. Nine-year-old Jeremiah Jones was one of the few survivors. Decades later, the building was converted to low-cost housing. It became a haven for drug dealers, murderers, and thieves. In 2002, another fire broke out but was quickly contained.
In 1954, Jeremiah Jones answered God's calling and became a reverend at the age of twenty. The following year he married his organist, Evelyn Sayer.
In November of 1962, Justin Fernier, his son Ethan and his pregnant wife Eloise moved to Fairview Falls where they took up residence in the tenement building that used to be St. Luke's. Shortly after, Eloise gave birth to a daughter that they named Elizabeth.
In 1963, Reverend Jeremiah Jones was arrested and sentenced to life imprisonment at the Westmore Psychiatric Facility for poisoning his Sunday school class. Seven-year-old Ethan Fernier was the only survivor. Evelyn, overcome with grief, hung herself from the clothesline on the back porch.
In 1967, the Bradbury Circus came to town. Seven-year-old Oscar Valentine, bursting with anticipation to see the circus clowns, dragged his father Harold past the sideshow tents to a little trailer parked in the rear. Ignoring his father's plea to wait, Oscar barged into the trailer. To his surprise, he didn't find the jolly clowns that he adored. Instead, he came face to face with two escapees from the Westmore Psychiatric Facility - Reverend Jeremiah Jones and Azrael, an emotionless behemoth who Reverend Jones manipulated into helping him escape. The patients subdued father and son. That night, little Oscar watched as his father was filleted and eaten alive. Reverend Jones and Azrael were never apprehended.
In the late 1970s, film director Winston Korman took residence in Fairview Falls after hearing the story of Oscar Valentine. It was decided that this cozy little town would make a perfect backdrop for his movies. Korman was best known for his series of low-budget splatter movies which were all shot on the outskirts of town. No one expected that these films would become so famous or that one, in particular, would spawn such evil. That evil became known as the Black Rose Killer.
In 1981, Ethan Fernier bent on revenge and filled with self-loathing, unleashed his anger upon the unsuspecting townspeople. A black rose was found at each crime scene. The police were baffled and never made the connection between the murders and Korman's final movie, "Dead to Rites™," which featured a cult calling themselves the "Ancient Order of the Rose." The murders suddenly stopped. The only victim to survive was seven year old, Alice Walker. Convicted felon, Ted Gasey was picked up by the local authorities and questioned but was later released. He had an alibi. The Black Rose Killer was never found.
All was quiet for about a decade. In 1990, Sarah Weston was brutally attacked by her neighbor, Henry Wallace. Sarah, born autistic and unable to speak, could never give an answer to the desperate Wallaces or the authorities as to exactly what took place. What happened to their son? Did he flee the crime scene? Henry Wallace was never found.
As the millennium approached, the crime rate increased. The range of the occurrences was more widespread leaking into neighboring towns and eventually to the city. A dark cloud was cast across the land. The point of origin - Fairview Falls.
In 1999, Jimmy Wayne Garrick was arrested for the murders of a number of men and women. Though the body count was nothing compared to the Black Rose Killer, the murders were just as savage. The following morning after his arrest, Jimmy's cell was found empty with the door still locked. He was never heard from again. An investigation ensued that eventually led to the permanent closure of the Westmore Psychiatric Facility.
In 2000, the newspapers held yet another ominous headline - "The Taxi Cab Murders." Witnesses reported having seen the victims getting into a taxi. Just as the killing spree of the Black Rose Killer had begun and ended quickly, so did the taxi cab murders. The killer was never brought to justice.
In 2001, the Black Rose Killer would return to haunt Alice Walker. The murderous rampage swept through the town once again. Ted Gasey was later tried and convicted for murder in connection with the killing spree. He claimed to be innocent. A calm finally fell across the city - a calm that would not last forever.
In 2007, a new danger would beset Fairview Falls. After a graduation party, a group of teenagers decided to take a romp into the woods to investigate animal mutilation. They were later confronted by Oscar Valentine who harbored a deadly secret that threatened to devour his sanity. It is a confrontation that changed their lives forever.
In the passing years, many questions have still remained unanswered. Many have tried to forget and bury the nasty little secrets that the town holds. But for some, they can never forget. Some people, people like Peter Jacobs and Martin Graves, just can't leave the past alone. Their destinies are entwined and they all lead down one path - the path to where it all began - the Black Rose Killer.
In 2011, struggling actress Mary David disappeared a few days after attending an open casting call. Shortly after, a group of hikers vanished in the woods without a trace. Their missing person poster hangs in the town post office next to countless others who have vanished without a trace over the years in Fairview Falls.
In 2012, Peter returned to Fairview Falls to write his memoirs of which several chapters were dedicated to unraveling the mystery of Fairview Falls' most notorious and elusive killer. The book, entitled "Of Light and Dark," would go on to be a best seller and eventually be made into a movie funded by Winston Korman's brother, Eli Korman.
In 2023, after a decade of peace and quiet, a coven of witches calling themselves the Disciples of the Black Rose releases a new evil upon the town.
In 2025, a mysterious phenomenon occurs in Fairview Falls. Its residents all seemed to suffer blackouts and amnesia. The source of this disturbance is never identified.
For More Information Contact:
Light & Dark Productions
PO Box 21
Lake Peekskill, NY 10537
Telephone: (845) 526-6118
Internet: LghtandDrk@aol.com
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