Read Online The Spiral Staircase by Ethel Lina White - Free Book Online

merely shrugged and smiled. “So faithful,” she murmured, as she closed the door.
    Braced by this glimpse of the clash of human passions, Helen went into the dining-room. For the first time, she felt a certain degree of sympathy with Simone.
    “It would get on my nerves to be followed about, like that” she thought.
    It was evident that Newton’s jealousy was working up to saturation-point; with Stephen’s departure, he would probably become normal again, Meantime, he plainly meant to give his wife no opportunity of a final interview with the pupil.
    In Helen’s eyes, his obsession amounted almost to mania, as she considered the stolid indifference with which Stephen, opposed Simone’s passion, He did not run from her pursuit; he merely shoved her away. Even then, he was in the kitchen, helping Mrs, Oates. He had been offered romance—and he chose onions.
    The dining-room was the finest room in the Summit, with an elaborate ceiling of dark carved wood, and a massive fireplace and overmantel, to correspond.
    The great windows were screened with thick crimson curtains, while dark red paper covered the walls.
    Helen crossed to the walnut sideboard, where the glass and silver was kept, and took a table-cloth from one of the drawers.
    From years of practice, Helen could lay a table in her sleep. As she mechanically sorted out spoons and forks, her mind was busy in speculation, Although she was denied the privilege of argument with an employer, she was positive that, during her absence, there had been some monkey-work in the blue room..
    “I’m sure Mrs. Oates is right,” she thought. “Lady Warren is not bedridden. She got up, and then she tried to cover her traces by tidying the bed. Well, she overdid it… I’d like to talk it over with Dr. Parry,”
    Dr. Parry was clever, young and unconventional. The first time he met Helen, he had shown a direct interest in her welfare, which she had accepted on a medical basis. He asked her personal questions, and seemed apprehensive of the influence of her surroundings on her youth.
    What appealed to her most was his unprofessional gossip about his patient..
    “Her heart’s in a shocking state,” he told her. “Still, hearts are sporting organs, She might climb Snowdon and be all right, and the next time she sneezed it might finish her off… . But—she keeps, me guessing. I sometimes wonder if she is so helpless. To my mind, she is an old surprise-packet.”
    Helen remembered his words as she trotted to and fro, between the, table and the sideboard. But her ears still burned whenever she recalled the irony of Miss Warren’s voice.
    “Well, I’ve warned her,” she thought. “It’s her pigeon. But I would like to know where that revolver is. You won’t catch me in that, room again, if I can help it.”
    Although she tried to listen for the sound of the car, the fury of the storm prevented her from hearing the hum of the engine, It was not until she caught Mrs. Oates’ welcome to her husband, that she realized that the new nurse had come.
    She rushed across the room and opened the door, but was too late to see her face, for she was in the act of following her guides through the entry to the kitchen stairs. Her back view, however, was impressive, for she was unusually tall.
    Helen felt a burst of confidence.
    “She’s not a weak, link, anyway,” she decided. “She’d be an awkward customer for him to tackle.”
    As she lingered in the hall, she remembered the loose handle of Miss Warren’s door: She had watched where Oates kept his handful of tools, and discovered that he left them where he had used them, With this clue to guide her, she found the box stuck away in a corner of the boot-closet, in the hall,
    As this was not a legitimate job, she crept up the stairs to The first floor landing, and knelt before the door. She had hardly begun her investigations, when a sudden sound made her look up.
    As she did so, she was the victim of an illusion. She was sure