Read Online Secret Reflection by Jennifer Brassel - Free Book Online Page B

is not in the least slippery.’
    Again she laughed. ‘Okay, if you want to keep pretending, fine by me. Tell me what happened after Elizabeth fixed up the house.’
    He glanced down and away, almost like a child avoiding an admission of guilt. His whole body seemed to shrink in on itself and suddenly that air of vulnerability returned.
    She took a hesitant step toward the mirror. He looked up and when his eyes met hers, they swam with moisture. ‘I killed her.’
    Kelly jumped backward as if stung. Of all the things he could have said, that was the last she’d have expected.
    ‘What did you say?’
    ‘Madam – your hearing is quite adequate, I am sure, but I shall humour you and repeat my statement. It is said that confession is good for the soul.’
    He heaved a great sigh before he again fixed her with his stern stare.
    ‘I killed her. I killed my childhood friend, Elizabeth. Loyal, sweet, beautiful Elizabeth. I ended her life and in truth I deserve this prison in which I am bound. And though I cannot claim I am in hell, after one hundred and forty years I would have it done. I seek your help,’ he implored, ‘so that I might break this unholy spell and go to confront my Maker.’
    Kelly didn’t know what to say. Compassion rose in her breast, despite her best logic. His face, his expression, appeared so genuinely self-loathing that for a few seconds she found herself almost buying into the whole charade.
    Almost.
    A knock on the door sent her inner alarms into overdrive and her mind back to reality.
    The door swung inward and Nancy’s face peeped around it. ‘There you are!’ She looked about the room as if perplexed. ‘Were you just talking to someone?’
    Kelly’s ‘no’ came out as a mere squeak.
    Nancy gave her a questioning frown. ‘I could have sworn I heard voices.’
    When Kelly remained mute, Nancy gave a dramatic wave of dismissal and entered the room, in full view of the mirror. ‘Well, we were just about to have some afternoon tea. If you feel like joining us, we’ll be in the salon.’
    Kelly studied her friend to gauge if she showed any reaction to the man standing in the mirror. As far as Kelly could tell, Nancy had no inkling, but then again, she had a reputation in school for being an accomplished actress – in their final year, her death scene as Juliet had been particularly convincing.
    For herself, Kelly pretended that she saw nothing and agreed to be down in a few minutes. ‘Just give me five to freshen up and make some phone calls,’ she said as she pushed the door closed.
    When she turned back to the mirror, it displayed nothing but her own reflection and that of the room behind her. Had it all been in my mind? No – it may be an elaborate hoax but I was definitely talking to someone .
    She just needed to find out who.
    Her first call, to the local library, yielded some helpful information. Apparently, all the local histories had long since been sent to either the National Archives in Surrey or the Bodleian Library at Oxford. At the National Archives access to documents was possible but she needed to make a request two days in advance, which, though a nuisance, might figure in with her quest for finding the actor who played her illusive phantom. Thus, Kelly’s afternoon loomed as full of online research in order make lists of needed documents, as well as addresses of theatrical agents in London. If necessary, she’d try the Oxford library if she came up empty in London.
    The second call, to the local vicar’s residence, also promised reward. The housekeeper suggested a visit to nearby Abingdon where the retired curator of the historical museum was renowned for his knowledge of local legends of the estate homes of Oxfordshire. Kelly took down the details deciding that if she had to wait till Wednesday to go to the National Archives, she could spend the next day or two doing some research in the local area. She’d also resolved that she would extend her physical searches to