dinner last night,” said Paddy with a shrug. “Can’t be bad.”
As compensation or punishment? thought Sarah.
“But why did you do it, Paddy?” said Lawrence.
“Crispin asked me to. Gave me fifty quid, didn’t he.”
“Oh really?” said Sarah, turning to look at Crispin. “Why?”
“Keep the bloody ghost theme going. Thought we needed a proper sighting. Bit more dramatic for the guests, you know? Got to do something to keep this place booked and running!”
“Nonsense,” said Lawrence. “Rubbish! I know why you did it young man — because you want to knock this place down and scaring off the customers is the best way to do it!”
“That’s not true, Dad!”
“It is,” said Mandy.
Sarah looked across at Jack. The séance seemed to be working very nicely indeed.
“Quiet please,” she said. Then Sarah waited again for all the grumbling to die down. “Freddy, thank you for answering our questions. May we ask a few more?”
The glass shot across to “Yes” then returned to the centre.
Freddy was certainly a talkative spirit.
Or rather … Jack was doing a great job of steering the glass to answers that had everyone at each other’s throats!
“What is going to happen to the hotel?” said Sarah.
“Er, best you didn’t ask that, Miss …” said Lawrence. “You see—”
But the glass started to move.
“HOTEL … BEING … SOLD …” spelt out Sarah. “Who to?”
“I-N-T-E-R-G-L-O-B-A-L,” she read.
“Interglobal,” said Crispin. “Who the hell are they?”
And before Sarah could ask the question, the glass raced across the table, as if in a hurry to answer the question.
“M-A-N-D-Y,” read out Crispin aloud, his voice quavering. “Mandy? What does that mean? Dad?”
“It means, dear boy, that I have decided to sell my share in The Bell to your sister,” said Lawrence.
“No!” said Crispin, getting to his feet. “But you said you were coming in with me!”
Sarah watched in surprise as he reached across and swept the Ouija board off the table.
The glass spun into the air and crashed on the ground.
The candles scattered and went out.
*
And then — in the near darkness — a cold wind seemed to come from nowhere that blew clouds of soot from the fireplace across the table, and smashed open the shutters and the windows too, the glass exploding into the empty space of the room behind them all.
As the air filled with screams and people scattered, Sarah pushed her chair to one side and dived for the cover of the table, dimly aware of Jack’s arms reaching for her as an icy gale blew through the whole room, the roaring fire extinguished by it as everything went dark.
16. A Message From the Other Side
Jack let Sarah go, and then backing away he stood up.
The wind had come in like a roar, killing the candles and the blazing fireplace.
But now all was quiet.
He took his cell phone out and put on the light.
Placing it on the table in front of him, the light shot right up to his face.
Has to look spooky, he thought.
Everyone else was in darkness. But no one had tried to scramble out of the room: one by one he watched them getting to their feet, dusting themselves off.
“Everyone okay?” he said.
He could see the dark outline of people righting chairs, returning to the table.
“That … was bloody weird,” Paddy said, pointing out the obvious.
“Can't we put some damn lights on?” Mandy said.
But Crispin already started using his cigarette lighter to get a few candles back on.
Jack saw Lawrence Myrtle wiping his face with a handkerchief. “Good Lord,” he said. “Extraordinary. Was it something I said, do you think?”
“When the spirit world is offended, you will always feel its power,” said Basil.
Jack watched as Sarah went over to the shattered windows and closed them, then folded the shutters across too.
“Not for nothing Cherringham’s known as the windy village,” she said, returning to the table and giving him a knowing nod.
Calm
As compensation or punishment? thought Sarah.
“But why did you do it, Paddy?” said Lawrence.
“Crispin asked me to. Gave me fifty quid, didn’t he.”
“Oh really?” said Sarah, turning to look at Crispin. “Why?”
“Keep the bloody ghost theme going. Thought we needed a proper sighting. Bit more dramatic for the guests, you know? Got to do something to keep this place booked and running!”
“Nonsense,” said Lawrence. “Rubbish! I know why you did it young man — because you want to knock this place down and scaring off the customers is the best way to do it!”
“That’s not true, Dad!”
“It is,” said Mandy.
Sarah looked across at Jack. The séance seemed to be working very nicely indeed.
“Quiet please,” she said. Then Sarah waited again for all the grumbling to die down. “Freddy, thank you for answering our questions. May we ask a few more?”
The glass shot across to “Yes” then returned to the centre.
Freddy was certainly a talkative spirit.
Or rather … Jack was doing a great job of steering the glass to answers that had everyone at each other’s throats!
“What is going to happen to the hotel?” said Sarah.
“Er, best you didn’t ask that, Miss …” said Lawrence. “You see—”
But the glass started to move.
“HOTEL … BEING … SOLD …” spelt out Sarah. “Who to?”
“I-N-T-E-R-G-L-O-B-A-L,” she read.
“Interglobal,” said Crispin. “Who the hell are they?”
And before Sarah could ask the question, the glass raced across the table, as if in a hurry to answer the question.
“M-A-N-D-Y,” read out Crispin aloud, his voice quavering. “Mandy? What does that mean? Dad?”
“It means, dear boy, that I have decided to sell my share in The Bell to your sister,” said Lawrence.
“No!” said Crispin, getting to his feet. “But you said you were coming in with me!”
Sarah watched in surprise as he reached across and swept the Ouija board off the table.
The glass spun into the air and crashed on the ground.
The candles scattered and went out.
*
And then — in the near darkness — a cold wind seemed to come from nowhere that blew clouds of soot from the fireplace across the table, and smashed open the shutters and the windows too, the glass exploding into the empty space of the room behind them all.
As the air filled with screams and people scattered, Sarah pushed her chair to one side and dived for the cover of the table, dimly aware of Jack’s arms reaching for her as an icy gale blew through the whole room, the roaring fire extinguished by it as everything went dark.
16. A Message From the Other Side
Jack let Sarah go, and then backing away he stood up.
The wind had come in like a roar, killing the candles and the blazing fireplace.
But now all was quiet.
He took his cell phone out and put on the light.
Placing it on the table in front of him, the light shot right up to his face.
Has to look spooky, he thought.
Everyone else was in darkness. But no one had tried to scramble out of the room: one by one he watched them getting to their feet, dusting themselves off.
“Everyone okay?” he said.
He could see the dark outline of people righting chairs, returning to the table.
“That … was bloody weird,” Paddy said, pointing out the obvious.
“Can't we put some damn lights on?” Mandy said.
But Crispin already started using his cigarette lighter to get a few candles back on.
Jack saw Lawrence Myrtle wiping his face with a handkerchief. “Good Lord,” he said. “Extraordinary. Was it something I said, do you think?”
“When the spirit world is offended, you will always feel its power,” said Basil.
Jack watched as Sarah went over to the shattered windows and closed them, then folded the shutters across too.
“Not for nothing Cherringham’s known as the windy village,” she said, returning to the table and giving him a knowing nod.
Calm
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