Room Beneath the Stairs by Wilde Jennifer;

Room Beneath the Stairs by Wilde Jennifer;

Author:Wilde, Jennifer;
Language: eng
Format: epub
Publisher: Open Road Media Romance


CHAPTER NINE

I think it was the cold that awakened me. I hadn’t closed the windows, and the room was filled with an icy chill; a strong breeze was blowing through. I was sitting in the overstuffed jade green chair, still fully dressed. I remembered sitting down earlier, still filled with resolution; and I must have fallen asleep without realizing it. Rubbing my eyes, groggy, I went to the windows and closed them. What time was it, I wondered. How long had I been sleeping in the chair? Dark, ragged clouds had covered the moon, and the room was all blue and black shadows, the furniture barely visible, the whitewashed walls showing faintly in the gloom.

Fully awake now, I stood in the darkened room, listening. Every nerve seemed taut, and I was cold, very cold. Why was I so tense? Why should I be straining to hear something? I couldn’t understand it. The chill had awakened me abruptly, true, but there was no reason to feel—alarmed. I frowned, trying to recall something, and then I remembered the nightmare. That was what woke me up. The details were foggy, vanishing when I awakened, but I seemed to recall a terrifying noise, so real that it had ripped away the layers of unconsciousness. My taut nerves were merely the aftermath of the nightmare.

Weren’t they?

I tried to relax, but still I listened. Outside, the wind raged; inside, the house was filled with those noises common to every old house. Windows rattled, curtains rustled, and there was an occasional scratching sound like paper tearing. In the darkness every creak and groan seemed magnified, but that was perfectly natural. It was absurd to be standing here as though—as though I expected to hear a bloodcurdling cry. Cry? Had it been a cry? I tried to remember, but the nightmare had completely eluded me now. I frowned, admonishing myself. Last night I had decided to be the intrepid girl detective, skillfully uncovering facts, and already I was acting like one of those jittery females I despised.

As my eyes gradually became accustomed to the dark, I could see that the bedcovers were still smoothly turned down. Grey hadn’t come up to join me. Why? It bothered me just a little; and then I realized he must have gone to his own room out of consideration, knowing I was tired and irritable when I left the dining room. Dimly, I could see the luminous hands of the clock on the bedside table. It was just after four in the morning. I had no idea how long I had been sleeping, but the only sensible thing to do was undress and go to bed. Sighing, I walked over to the bed. I sat down, bent to take off my shoes and stockings … and then I froze.

The cry rang out loudly, echoing through empty halls and rooms. It was a horrifying noise, half-human, half-animal, the hideous cry of a creature in anguish. Shrill, piercing, it swelled in volume, and then it ended abruptly.



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