Hall of Secrets (A Benedict Hall Novel) by Cate Campbell

Author:Cate Campbell [Campbell, Cate]
Language: eng
Format: epub, mobi
Publisher: Kensington
Published: 2014-01-28T00:00:00+00:00

By the time Margot and Blake set out for Sand Point, the cloud cover had dissolved under chilly sunshine. Only scattered fluffs remained to float above the city, brilliantly white against the cold blue.

Her father had warned her that the road didn’t go all the way to the airfield. He had been right, she saw, as Blake parked the Essex just at the edge of the Sand Point wilderness. There was going to be a navy airfield here one day, but the work was still in the planning stages. For now, there was nothing but dirt and trees and grass. Airplanes had landed there before. Eddie Hubbard had done it when there was no airfield at all, and three months before, a professor of military tactics at the University had been the first to land on the newly plowed five hundred feet of dirt that made up the landing strip. “Just to prove he could,” Dickson had rumbled, describing it. “But it’s a good location. Visibility, prevailing winds—all the stuff those fliers care about.”

Margot knew nothing about fliers, or flying, but on this vivid day, it was an enchanting spot. Beyond the trees the waters of Lake Washington glittered a deeper blue than the sky. Gray-and-white gulls swooped and squawked overhead, and the traffic noises of the city faded into the distance. She pulled up her fox collar and struck out toward the frozen strip of dirt. Blake, leaning on his cane, followed her.

“You can wait in the Essex, Blake.”

“Oh, no! I wouldn’t miss this for the world, Dr. Margot.”

“I hope we’re not late.”

“I don’t see any airplanes. I don’t think we can be late.”

“Well, then, I hope the pilot isn’t late! Allison has worked so hard. I don’t want to ruin this for her.”

“I’m sure you won’t. And besides, this project has been good for her. Put some roses in those pale cheeks!”

“You’re right. The difference is remarkable. Very good to see.”

They picked their way through the stubble of mown grass and tree stumps, and though it was too cold and dry for mud, Margot was glad of her boots on the rough ground. They had just reached the edge of the airstrip, and Margot was casting about for someplace for Blake to sit down, when she heard the engine. She turned toward the sound, which was coming not from the south, as she had expected, but from the west, flying into the wind. She shaded her eyes with both hands, trying to pick out the airplane against the dazzle of sunshine and the scattered clouds.

“There it is,” Blake said, pointing.

“Where? Oh, yes! Now I see it! Oh, my goodness, Blake, it’s so tiny!”

Indeed, the airplane looked to her like a child’s toy that had been tossed into the air. Its double wings glinted as it swooped above the boats and barges in Lake Union, heading north until it reached the shore, then banking to the east as easily as if it were one of the seagulls slicing the wind with its white wings.

Download

Copyright Disclaimer:
This site does not store any files on its server. We only index and link to content provided by other sites. Please contact the content providers to delete copyright contents if any and email us, we'll remove relevant links or contents immediately.