Whispers Beyond the Veil Read Online Free PDF

gingerbread railings, bay windows, and window boxes spilling over with pinks and forget-me-nots bedecked the outside of the building. At the top of the house ran an observation platform that must look out over the sea.
    â€œIt’s even lovelier than I had imagined it,” I said. Roses scrambled along the foundation, flourishing lavender sprawled alongthe walkway. Officer Yancey steered me up the porch steps to the door. He held it open for me and I felt a rush of nerves akin to stage fright. I assured myself it was a natural response. This was certain to be the most important performance of my twenty years. Certainly it mattered more than convincing yokels and rubes of the merits of Running Bear’s Miracle Elixir.
    Officer Yancey stepped in front of me, approached the long oak reception desk, and tapped firmly on the bell. I could feel myself holding my breath as I waited to see who would appear to receive me. I forced myself to silently exhale, chiding myself for hiding behind a policeman. I peeked around his back just as a slim blond man emerged from a room behind the counter.
    â€œHello, Ben. I’ve brought a visitor for Miss Belden,” Yancey said. “She’s a personal visitor, not a hotel guest. Is Miss Belden in?” The man looked me up and down slowly with the palest blue eyes I had ever seen. In the medicine show I had suffered a generous share of unwanted appraisal of my person by strange men. It was almost always unpleasant and invariably easy to interpret. This gaze was far more intense and I had no idea whatsoever what to make of it. He silently nodded at Yancey and then motioned us to follow.
    The man strode so smoothly and silently ahead of us it was as though he were gliding down the long hallway rather than walking. He led us past sitting rooms and a library filled with books. Halting, he pointed to a midnight blue portiere hanging in a doorway at the very end of the wide corridor. He waved his hand to show I should enter. When Yancey made to follow me, Ben laid a restraining hand on his arm. Yancey shrugged and let loose another smile that suggested I was in for a surprise.
    I slowly slipped between the brocade folds of the portiere andfound myself in a room shrouded in darkness. Heavy drapes hung at the windows and blocked out any sunlight. A solitary candle flickered on a table at the center of the room. In its wavering glow I made out four shapes seated around the table. It appeared their eyes were closed, their hands linked.
    â€œI feel a presence. Has a spirit come to us from the other side?” A deep, rich woman’s voice whispered out from the gloom. I squinted at the table, hoping to get a better look at the speaker. I stepped toward the table and as I did so the woman opened her eyes. “Someone has joined us. Come closer, if you are able.” Her voice came out even more quietly. I stepped into the edge of the candle glow’s reach, my heart pounding almost as hard as it had when I found myself awakening in the presence of a policeman.
    Each of the people seated around the table opened their eyes and turned in my direction, their mouths circles of surprise. It was a look I’d seen almost daily at the medicine show when Father had orchestrated perfectly rehearsed miracles in front of the crowds.
    â€œDelphinia?” The woman’s voice cracked and she dropped the hands on either side of her as she rose to her feet. “I hardly dared hope you would come.”
    â€œI think there’s been some sort of a mistake ma’am,” I said. The woman lurched against the table, and a man jumped to his feet to offer her a steadying arm. The others leaned forward in their seats to get a better look at me. “I’m looking for my aunt, Honoria Belden.” With more speed than I would have expected from a woman of her formidable size, the lady appeared at my side and wrapped her fingers firmly around my upper arms.
    â€œGeorge, the