Read Online Deception at Dark Hall (The Briony Martin Mystery Series) by Stacey Coverstone - Free Book Online Page A

thoroughly studied the poem. I know The Raven’s theme is one of undying devotion. The narrator experiences a perverse conflict between the desire to forget and the desire to remember. He seems to get some pleasure from focusing on loss. Do you agree with my interpretation, Lee?” Her gaze shifted to the young woman pretending to be a man.
    Lee’s gaze snapped up, eyes widened. She looked to Sharlyn, as if requesting permission to speak.
    “Go ahead. Answer the question,” Sharlyn urged in a tender voice. “I like when you join in the conversation.”
    Lee cleared her throat. “The poem is prophetic.”
    “Oh? In what way?” Daniel asked.
    Lee’s gaze dropped to her lap. Silence alone could express the emotion of the moment.
    Sharlyn’s fingers found her hand. She squeezed it as if to bolster her courage. “Don’t be afraid to voice your opinion, Lee. It’s not often you and I find ourselves involved in a stimulating discussion regarding literature, is it?”
    “No, it’s not.” Lee offered a shaky smile and drew a breath into her lungs before expounding on the subject she knew well. “When the raven steps into the narrator’s chamber and the narrator asks his name, the raven’s only answer is: nevermore. The narrator is surprised the bird can talk. Each question he asks the raven after that is responded with that one word: nevermore. As the narrator recalls his lost love, Lenore, to the raven, the air grows denser and he feels the presence of angels. He wonders if God is sending him a sign that he is to forget Lenore. When he asks the bird if he should forget Lenore, the raven again replies in the negative, suggesting that the narrator can never be free of his memories. The narrator then becomes angry, calling the raven a thing of evil and a prophet. He remarks to himself that his friend the raven will soon fly out of his life, just as other friends have flown before, along with his previous hopes. The narrator’s final admission is that his soul is trapped beneath the raven’s shadow and shall be lifted nevermore.”
    Lee paused.
    “Why do you claim the poem to be prophetic?” Daniel asked.
    Her voice lowered. “Some scholars suggest the poem is a type of Ancient Greek or Roman form consisting of the lament of an excluded lover at the sealed door of his beloved. In the end, the narrator becomes regretful and grief-stricken before passing into a frenzy and, finally, madness. In that way it is prophetic.”
    For what seemed an eternity, no one spoke. Briony wondered if the prophecy she addressed in her discourse was actually the narrator’s in Poe’s poem or that of the foretelling of her own life.
    Sharlyn shook her head in disbelief. Perhaps she’d never heard Lee string so many words together at one time. When at last it seemed her shock had ebbed, she chuckled and patted Lee’s thigh. “That’s quite an intellectual analysis. I didn’t know you knew so much about Poe and his work. Did you study him at Mount Carmel High?”
    “Mount Carmel High?” Briony inquired.
    “It’s an all boys Catholic high school here in Chicago.”
    This was ridiculous! Briony quelled the urge to blurt out that she knew Lee was a woman, not a man. What was the point of their charade? She stared, contemplating. Lee’s burning hot gaze seared two holes straight through her, suggesting a challenge.
    Briony found Lee’s speech to be more than an intellectual analysis. Something hinted a deep personal connection between her and the poem. But what exactly did it mean? Her gaze shifted between her and Sharlyn. The two women were obviously close and shared an interest in the supernatural, through literature and séances. Though interesting, Briony wasn’t sure how, or if, the dots connected. And whether any of it made a difference. Maybe she was following a lead that wasn’t a lead at all. Perhaps she’d have to call John again and ask for his advice, after all.
    Daniel’s voice broke into her thoughts. “This