Read Online Bird by Rita Murphy - Free Book Online Page B

if he had not already made up his mind that the captain had merely followed in his family’s footsteps, he would have found other reasons for the captain’s death.”
    “And what would they be, Miss Moreland?”
    “I cannot say. Only that she had a hand in it.”
    “But surely Dr. Mead would have—”
    “Dr. Mead is a good man, but this house exacts a price from all who’ve had dealings with it, miss. The doctor is no exception. The Mead family is as deeply entangled in its history as the Barrowses.”
    “In what way?”
    “The Meads were the original owners of this Manor. It was named after the doctor’s great-grandmother Sylvia Bourne. Early on they lost it to the Barrows family over some misunderstanding. In the end, they lost not only the house, but supposedly the fabled fortune as well. It happened long ago, but I’m afraid the matter is still not laid to rest. He still cannot let it go.”
    “I do not understand. There is no longer any fortune. Surely Dr. Mead must realize that?”
    “I do not know what he realizes, or what he covets. I know only that he will have no peace now until he finds whatever it is he seeks. Though he has stayed away these many years, the Manor has once again cast a shadow over him, and under its influence he cannot be trusted to think clearly.” She steadied herself against the wind. “Please, miss. Promise me that you will not let him pass through the doors of Bourne Manor again,” she pleaded.
    “But this is my home you speak of, Miss Moreland.”
    “It is a dangerous place, miss. Leave it as soon as you are able. Do not wait for her return. If she could destroy her own husband, would she not do the same to you?”
    “But—”
    “I must go,” Miss Moreland said, looking nervously about her. “I trust you will not tell the doctor of our conversation.”
    “No. Of course not.”
    “I bid you good day, then, miss,” she said without meeting my eyes. And with that she was gone.

    In the days that followed, I tried to make sense of Miss Moreland’s words. Though they did not come together in any coherent way, I found I could not dismiss them as simply another story. Neither could I ignore one disturbing phenomenon: while I slept, the door of my room locked and then, shortly before dawn, unlocked on its own. This happened each night, though I never saw the key turn in either direction. I only discovered it when I woke in the early hours, attempting to make my way to the washroom at the end of the hall. I also distinctly heard something that resembled footsteps on the lower landing and once saw a light cast briefly under my door. I had always assumed that it was Wysteria who was responsible for the locking of the doors, but perhaps I had been wrong. I began to suspect that the rumors were true and that something indeed lingered in the house, though if it was a human spirit, I never saw or heard it in the daylight. I found that each time I thought of abandoning the Manor, the noises would grow louder. The more afraid I became, the more convinced I was that I must remain inside its walls.
    One night while I lay in bed staring at the ceiling, Miss Moreland’s strange tale filled my thoughts and led me to remember something Wysteria had once said about the Manor’s being closed up properly at night. “It is imperative, Miranda, that every room be locked before bed and the ring of keys securely fastened to my side upon retiring.” As the skeleton key could lock and unlock only the third-floor rooms, I was at a loss as to how to secure all the other doors. Since Wysteria had left the Manor, I had searched in vain for her keys. I knew there was a certain place she kept them after she retired at night, for as vigilant as she was, she would not have slept with them, and I also knew she had not taken them with her, as she had only worn a light coat over her dressing gown and Dr. Mead would have noticed.
    There was one place that I had not looked, and that was Wysteria’s