The parents of Charles Dexter Ward are very worried.  You see, the Wards have tried very hard to hide that they are the descendents of an evil New England necromancer from hundreds of years ago, and Charles has found out about the family’s little secret.  And what’s more, his appearance bears more than a passing resemblance to that ancestor Joseph Curwen, now since long dead and feels a connection urging him forward to learn more of how his ancestor achieved his power over the dead.