Bud: A Novel

The story opens on a crisp New Year’s morning in a snug Scottish burgh, where the town’s bell rings with a playful, off‑beat jig that rouses every doorstep. The air is filled with the chatter of mail‑boys singing, children huddled under blankets, and the occasional clatter of geese overhead. Amid the snow‑drifted lanes, Miss Dyce awakens, candle in hand, her rosy cheeks lit by the early light, and the whole community seems caught in a cheerful, almost mischievous reverie.

Yet the bright start quickly turns curious when Miss Dyce calls for her maid, Kate, and receives no answer. The maid’s sudden, hasty exit through the kitchen window, a tossed snowball, and a startled exclamation hint at a small, unsettling secret slipping through the morning’s merriment. As the bell continues its jaunty toll, the listener is left wondering what mischief—or misfortune—lies just beyond the door.