Read Online Dark Perception: The Corde Noire Series by Alexandrea Weis - Free Book Online Page B
Authors: Alexandrea Weis
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the
security guard.
The color drained from Phil’s face.
His eyes darted back and forth. “Ah, yes, he’s good to all of
us—”
“ Never mind, Phil,” Melinda
interrupted, already knowing the answer.
The moving van arrived in front of the
building, and Phil looked almost relieved to see the big
truck.
“ I’ll get the movers
started with the unloading.” He glanced down at Melinda. “Why don’t
you go up and check out your apartment? You can be deciding what
you want to keep and what you want to put into storage.”
“ Storage? I don’t
understand.”
“ Your apartment is already
furnished, Miss Harris. Mr. Cole said you might want to keep a few
of your things, but if there is anything you want to put into
storage, I’m to make the arrangements.”
“ Furniture someone else
picked out,” Melinda mumbled as she remembered her previous
impression of her apartment.
“ Ma’am?” Phil implored with
a confused grimace.
Melinda clutched the envelope in her
hand. “I’ll just go up and check out my new place.”
“ Take the elevator to the
fifth floor. Your apartment is just down the hall from Mr. Cole’s
penthouse. You have a nice view of the river. I hope you will be
happy here, Miss Harris.”
Phil rushed out to the street and
began barking orders at the three moving men, and then the same odd
chill overtook her. She glanced about the lobby, and for a moment
she could have sworn she was being watched. Then she felt a
presence in the area around her. She caught a glimpse of a young
man in chains, reaching out his arms to her. Melinda thought of
something warm and cheerful, like toasting marshmallows over a
bonfire or opening Christmas presents. It was the best defense she
knew against spirits who wanted to be heard.
“ It’ll get better,” she
assured herself as she turned for the elevator. “Once I get settled
in and start my job, I can get on with my life.”
By the time she pressed the call button for the elevator, Melinda
had convinced herself she would come to love The Shallows. Soon,
the dark energies enveloping her would fade and her mind would once
again be peaceful. But then her grandmother’s warning came to
her.
“ Ignoring the gift is as
bad as abusing it,” Grandma Teresa had once told her. “When you
ignore a sore it gets infected and becomes painful. The gift is the
same way. Never ignore the signs, my girl. You might live to regret
it.”
The elevator doors whooshed open and
Melinda jumped. “Enough already,” she complained.
Inside the elevator, she hit the
number five button on the console and waited for the doors to
close. Within seconds, she was being lifted up as a bad rendition
of a Barry Manilow tune played over the speaker. Remembering the
envelope in her hand, Melinda ripped it open and pulled out the
keys. A label attached to one set of keys had 5A written on it.
When the elevator doors opened on the fifth floor, she cautiously
stuck her head out and took a look around.
The corridor was brightly lit, and
directly in front of her were darkly stained double doors. She
walked up to the doors, and then she glanced down the corridor. At
the end of a short hall covered with burgundy carpet was another
dark door with 5A painted on it in gold.
“ I guess this is me.” She
peered back at the double doors. “When Nathan said he wanted me
close by, he wasn’t kidding.”
Melinda held her breath as she pushed
her new apartment door open. Initially, a blaze of bright sunlight
blinded her, but after a few seconds she was able to make out a
wall of windows along the far end of the living room. The light
reflected off gold flecks imbedded in a beige sofa and a
comfy-looking armchair. Next to the chair was a walnut end table
and a kidney-shaped glass coffee table. An entertainment center
against the wall next to the kitchen even had a flat screen
television on it. With shiny hardwood floors and framed posters of
New Orleans landmarks covering the pale yellow walls, it
security guard.
The color drained from Phil’s face.
His eyes darted back and forth. “Ah, yes, he’s good to all of
us—”
“ Never mind, Phil,” Melinda
interrupted, already knowing the answer.
The moving van arrived in front of the
building, and Phil looked almost relieved to see the big
truck.
“ I’ll get the movers
started with the unloading.” He glanced down at Melinda. “Why don’t
you go up and check out your apartment? You can be deciding what
you want to keep and what you want to put into storage.”
“ Storage? I don’t
understand.”
“ Your apartment is already
furnished, Miss Harris. Mr. Cole said you might want to keep a few
of your things, but if there is anything you want to put into
storage, I’m to make the arrangements.”
“ Furniture someone else
picked out,” Melinda mumbled as she remembered her previous
impression of her apartment.
“ Ma’am?” Phil implored with
a confused grimace.
Melinda clutched the envelope in her
hand. “I’ll just go up and check out my new place.”
“ Take the elevator to the
fifth floor. Your apartment is just down the hall from Mr. Cole’s
penthouse. You have a nice view of the river. I hope you will be
happy here, Miss Harris.”
Phil rushed out to the street and
began barking orders at the three moving men, and then the same odd
chill overtook her. She glanced about the lobby, and for a moment
she could have sworn she was being watched. Then she felt a
presence in the area around her. She caught a glimpse of a young
man in chains, reaching out his arms to her. Melinda thought of
something warm and cheerful, like toasting marshmallows over a
bonfire or opening Christmas presents. It was the best defense she
knew against spirits who wanted to be heard.
“ It’ll get better,” she
assured herself as she turned for the elevator. “Once I get settled
in and start my job, I can get on with my life.”
By the time she pressed the call button for the elevator, Melinda
had convinced herself she would come to love The Shallows. Soon,
the dark energies enveloping her would fade and her mind would once
again be peaceful. But then her grandmother’s warning came to
her.
“ Ignoring the gift is as
bad as abusing it,” Grandma Teresa had once told her. “When you
ignore a sore it gets infected and becomes painful. The gift is the
same way. Never ignore the signs, my girl. You might live to regret
it.”
The elevator doors whooshed open and
Melinda jumped. “Enough already,” she complained.
Inside the elevator, she hit the
number five button on the console and waited for the doors to
close. Within seconds, she was being lifted up as a bad rendition
of a Barry Manilow tune played over the speaker. Remembering the
envelope in her hand, Melinda ripped it open and pulled out the
keys. A label attached to one set of keys had 5A written on it.
When the elevator doors opened on the fifth floor, she cautiously
stuck her head out and took a look around.
The corridor was brightly lit, and
directly in front of her were darkly stained double doors. She
walked up to the doors, and then she glanced down the corridor. At
the end of a short hall covered with burgundy carpet was another
dark door with 5A painted on it in gold.
“ I guess this is me.” She
peered back at the double doors. “When Nathan said he wanted me
close by, he wasn’t kidding.”
Melinda held her breath as she pushed
her new apartment door open. Initially, a blaze of bright sunlight
blinded her, but after a few seconds she was able to make out a
wall of windows along the far end of the living room. The light
reflected off gold flecks imbedded in a beige sofa and a
comfy-looking armchair. Next to the chair was a walnut end table
and a kidney-shaped glass coffee table. An entertainment center
against the wall next to the kitchen even had a flat screen
television on it. With shiny hardwood floors and framed posters of
New Orleans landmarks covering the pale yellow walls, it
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