Shadows of the Silver Screen Read Online Free PDF

Darkness
will create.”
    The filmmaker paused, noticing Penelope for the first time as she hovered in the background, her downward gaze slyly inspecting the papers on his secretary’s desk. “I must admit though I hadn’t realised that this screening would attract so young an audience today.” His flint-grey eyes glittered in the glow of the gaslight. “I would have arranged for suitable refreshments if I had known.”
    Following the filmmaker’s gaze, Monty glanced back to see Penelope as she stood there smiling sweetly, the stylishly cut cerise of her jacket and shirtwaist putting the office’s drab decor to shame.
    “Ah, yes,” Monty replied, in an almost too-eager tone. “I’ve brought my niece, Miss Penelope Tredwell, along here today. She is a keen admirer of the cinematographs and so I would value her opinion on the merits of your Véritéscope show. I trust this is acceptable to you?”
    “Quite acceptable,” Gold replied, turning the full beam of his smile towards Penny. He took her hand in his own. “I’ll be delighted to hear your thoughts, Miss Tredwell.”
    The filmmaker’s fingers felt slippery to the touch and Penelope blushed under the intensity of his gaze. Lowering her eyes, she nodded primly.
    “I look forward to seeing my uncle’s story on the screen.”
    As Wigram looked on with a well-worn frown, Gold released Penelope’s fingers from his grasp and then turned towards the rear of the office. There, a door stood slightly ajar, revealing another room beyond this outer office. Ahead of her employer, Miss Mottram hurried towards this, a circular metal canister clutched in her hands.
    “Now, if you’d all care to accompany me to the screening room,” the filmmaker announced, “I’ll present you with a first glimpse of
The Daughter of Darkness
– a moving picture that will transfix the world!”

V

     
    In the crepuscular gloom, Penelope shifted uncomfortably on her chair, its hard wood and keen edges sending an unpleasant tingle up her spine. Beside her, Wigram sat in silence, his brow furrowed as he stared impatiently at the whitewashed wall that lay before them, whilst from the chair directly to her right Penny heard a strange rustling sound. Turning her head, she watched as Monty unwrapped a boiled sweet, noisily discarding the wrapper before popping the striped lozenge into his mouth. Feeling her eyes on him, Monty glanced across, his gaze meeting Penny’s glare. Then he reached apologetically into his pocket and, extracting another boiled sweet, held it out towards Penelope.
    “Humbug?” he asked.
    Penny shook her head with a sigh.
    Behind them, at the rear of the room, Gold fussed over a strange-looking contraption which stood upon a tripod, its long lens pointing towards the whitewashed wall. The lens was protruding from a large box made of mahogany and brass, a small door on its side held open as Gold fixed the reel of film in place, nestling it between a morass of spokes and sprockets, tubes and strange frills. Finally satisfied, he closed the door with a click, the Véritéscope now ready to screen this promised glimpse of
The Daughter of Darkness.
    “As I explained, Mr Flinch,” Gold began, the sudden loudness of his voice from the shadows making Penelope jump in her seat, “I’ve so far only filmed a brief opening scene, but I trust it will give you a sense of the power of this remarkable invention.”
    The filmmaker gave a nod towards Miss Mottram. Standing by the dimmed gas lamp that was fixed to the wall, his secretary pulled at its chain to cut off the flame, plunging the screening room into darkness. As Penny glanced back over her shoulder in surprise, there came a whirring, clicking noise from where Gold had been standing and then a beam of silver light sprang forth from the lens of the Véritéscope, bathing the wall in a sepia hue.
    Turning again to the makeshift screen, Penny watched as this sepia hue slowly softened into a golden glow. Swirling shapes