Eye of the Beholder (A Miss Henry Mystery Book 7) (Miss Henry Mystery Series) by Jackson Melanie

Author:Jackson, Melanie [Jackson, Melanie]
Language: eng
Format: epub
Publisher: Brian Jackson
Published: 2014-02-14T00:00:00+00:00

But only a host of phantom listeners

That dwelt in the lone house then

Stood listening in the quiet of the moonlight

To that voice from the world of men…

“Do you think that they’ve gone to bed?” After smoking five boxes of cigars and leaving the front door ajar to avoid asphyxiation.

“Must have.” Jeffrey looked toward the doorway where the faint light flickered.

“But maybe we should check. They might have fallen asleep by the fire.” Juliet didn’t know why she said this, but the small hairs on her arms were standing erect and it wasn’t because of the cold. She would not be at ease until she found the source of that flickering light.

They both turned toward the small door where wavering light played. Juliet let Jeffrey take the lead since he was marginally less a trespasser than she was. They had to move single file since the door would not allow them to stand abreast, and the small passage into the room beyond was narrow and so low that Jeffrey had to stoop to enter.

It should have been a relief to enter what had been a library and find a small fire kindled on the hearth, but the flames gave out little light or warmth and the slightly improved light only served to underline how close to derelict the house was. The once handsome room had been stripped to the plaster and sometimes beyond. Most of the books were gone and the few that remained were stacked on the floor because the built-in shelves had been torn out. Only the fireplace surround remained and that was likely because it was badly damaged. It looked like something with giant claws—or a crowbar—had attacked it, defacing the creatures that had been carved into the dark wood. There was a wingback chair and a settee where people might sit, but the horsehair had split and it was hemorrhaging cotton batting. There was the smell of smoke in the air, but it might have followed them into the room since the air was eddying in that direction.

“This is normal, right?” she whispered. “There hasn’t been a home invasion or a drunken frat party?”

“Normal for here, I gather,” Jeffrey whispered back. The light from the fire painted Jeffrey’s face with unpleasant shadows. “Mr. Reich has been selling off furnishings for years. I just hadn’t thought that it was….” He trailed off, shaking his head.

And Mr. Markham had been buying the family treasures? Surely he didn’t come to visit the gothic ruin just for auld lang syne. But if he were there for property acquisition he must be disappointed because clearly nothing of value remained.

Juliet saw movement by the heavily draped window and turned abruptly, blinking away the lingering smoke that plagued her eyes. Jeffrey gave a small gasp as a rat jumped out of the damaged plaster wall and ran up the rotting drapes beside him. Juliet would have gasped too but her breath wedged in her throat. She was used to wild animals and had even

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