Read Online Strange Conflict by Dennis Wheatley - Free Book Online Page B

thoroughly,’ the Duke smiled at Marie Lou, ‘particularly the floor, since evil emanations can fasten on the least trace of dust to assist their materialisation, and I may, if I get into trouble, be chased back here.’
    â€˜Certainly, Greyeyes dear,’ said Marie Lou, and with the help of the others she set about dusting, sweeping andpolishing while de Richleau went out to collect a suit-case holding his ritual paraphernalia and a number of large parcels containing numerous items which he had purchased that morning. As the Duke unpacked them the others saw that they consisted of several pillows, rubber Li-Los, silk dressing-gowns, sets of pyjamas and bedroom slippers.
    â€˜Whatever have you brought all those things for?’ asked Marie Lou.
    â€˜Surely you remember that nothing which is even slightly soiled must be within the pentacle,’ he replied. ‘Impurities are bound to linger in bedding and clothes even if they have only been used for a few hours, and it is just upon such things that elementais fasten most readily; but I’m relying on you to provide us with clean sheets, blankets and pillowcases.’
    â€˜Of course,’ she said gravely. ‘I’ll go up and raid the linen-cupboard. How many sets do you want?’
    â€˜Only one for the moment as I am going out alone tonight. The others will be able to sleep in their own beds except during the few hours that each of them will be on watch here beside me.’
    The floor was now so scrupulously clean that they could have eaten from it, and as Marie Lou went off to fetch the things for which the Duke had asked he opened his suitcase and took from it a piece of chalk, a length of string and a foot-rule. Marking a spot in the centre of the room he asked Richard to hold the end of the string to it, measured off exactly seven feet, and then, using him as a pivot, drew a large circle in chalk upon the floor.
    Next the string was lengthened and an outer circle drawn, then the more complicated part of the operation began. A five-rayed star had to be made with its points touching the outer circle and its valleys resting upon the inner; but while such a defence can be highly potent if it is constructed with geometrical accuracy, should the angles vary more than a fraction the pentacle would prove not only useless but even dangerous.
    For half an hour they measured and checked with string and rule and marking-chalk, but at last the broad chalk-lines were drawn to the Duke’s satisfaction, forming the magical five-pointed star which would give him protectionfrom any evil thing which might endeavour to molest him while he slept.
    He then, with careful spacing, chalked in round the rim of the inner circle the following powerful exorcism: INRIADAMTEDAGERAMAMRTETALGARALGASTNAand after reference to an old book which he had brought with him drew certain curious and ancient symbols in the valleys and the mounts of the micro-cosmic star.
    Simon, whose previous experiences had taught him something of pentacles, remembered certain of them as cabalistic signs taken from the Sephirotic
Tree—Kether, Binah, Gebirah, Hod, Malkulth
and the rest—and others, like the Eye of Horus, that were of Egyptian origin; but others, again, were in some ancient Aryan script which he did not understand.
    When the skeleton of this astral fortress was completed the clean bedding was laid out in its centre. The Duke selected Richard to keep first watch so the two of them now went upstairs to change into new night-things while Marie Lou, Simon and Rex made up the bed and blew up one of the spare Li-Los for Richard to sit on.
    They had not long finished when the other two returned, de Richleau carrying a glass jug of freshly drawn water. This he set down and charged with Power by placing the first and second fingers of his right hand in a line with his eye so that the invisible force which he was drawing down flowed from it, along his fingers into the