Hello all! Great to see you again!This post will be all about Alistair Chill and Ezekiel Shrill's history and Chill-Shrill Estate's rise and demise.
Alistair Chill was born in Tarrytown, NY in 1835. His father was a shopkeeper, and his mother was a laundress. Despite these humble beginnings, his parents raised Alistair to be a sophisticated, proper gentleman. His parents worked diligently to save the money to send him to the best schools, his mother made sure that Alistair developed gentlemanly manners. Their hard work paid off because Alistair grew into an intelligent man, who was able to recognize business opportunities and turn those opportunities into financial success.Alistair's area of expertise was real estate, especially the purchase and development of land. His fortune skyrocketed.
Ezekiel Shrill was born in 1838 in Poughkeepsie, NY, to middle-class parents. Ezekiel's father was the manager of the local bank, and his mother was able to stay at home to take care of her children and to oversee their part-time cleaning lady. He studied accounting, but did not have the natural talent for moneymaking that Alistair did.
In 1860, Alistair hired the young Ezekiel as an accountant in his real estate firm. Ezekiel was far more naive than Alistair and had a difficult time handling the firm's complex financial dealings. As time went by, Alistair and Ezekiel became best friends. Alistair introduced Ezekiel to many important people and groomed him to be a junior partner in the firm.
In 1865, they established Chill-Shrill Estate, a beautiful castle and property on the Hudson River. Their neighbors shook their heads in disbelief at the sight of such a huge, beautiful mansion only a few miles away from their modest houses. As the mansion was built, the neighbors were awestruck by the stone towers that were constructed at each corner. Decorative friezes and frightening gargoyles adorned window ledges and the roof line. Stained glass artwork beautified the entrance hall. The mansion and grounds were more than large enough to accommodate both Chill's and Shrill's families, as well as the many guests that partied and visited at the estate. The two men loved to hold lavish parties for their friends and their families.
On October 31, 1881, Chill and Shrill held their annual party to honor their partnership and success, and it was their favorite holiday. Chill's wife and children were there, and Ezekiel's girlfriend from Italy, Celestia, had come to the US to stay for a while as Shrill's honored guest. She was excited to give him her response in person to his proposal of marriage that he had sent in his last letter to her. She looked for him at his desk in the study, but he was not going to return there until after the party.
As midnight approached, the guests started to leave, say their good nights, and go home to prepare for the next day. But as they left, a lone figure was making his way to the Estate. Lord Grimmore, for that was the man's name, was a tall, dark man. He was slim to the point of appearing gaunt. People that knew him said that he wasn't trustworthy. Others stayed away from him because they feared his piercing stare. Children whispered that he never blinked.
Ten years ago this night, Ezekiel Shrill had first met Lord Grimmore. Ezekiel was new to Alistair's company and wanted to prove his moneymaking skills. Unfortunately, he made several poor investments instead. As the firm's accountant, he was able to hide his mistakes for awhile; but he knew that he had to replace the lost funds soon--before Alistair found out. Ezekiel spoke with other businessmen to find the name or names of men who could help him. One of the men mentioned a Lord Grimmore, who had helped him make a lot of money in a short time.
Ezekiel contacted Grimmore and arranged to meet him. When they met, the young man begged Lord Grimmore to help him. Lord Grimmore said that he could help Ezekiel with his problem, but he would want to be repaid for his assistance. Lord Grimmore pulled out a contract that was already prepared and had Shrill sign it. Shrill was so relieved to hear that his problem would be solved that he would have agreed to any repayment request. He signed the form with only a quick look at it. Lord Grimmore explained that the contract would be binding for both Shrill and Chill, and Shrill agreed. He was just so happy to have his problem solved.
If only he had carefully read the contract, he wouldn't have been so happy. But that's a story for the next blog...
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