House of Many Shadows Read online

  House of Many Shadows

  Barbara Michaels

  Chapter 1

  The sounds bothered Meg most. Calling them auditory hallucinations helped a little—a phenomenon is less alarming when it has a proper, technical name. Meg had always thought of hallucinations as something one saw. he had those too, but for some illogical reason it was easier for her to accept visual illusions as nonreal than to ignore the hallucinatory sounds. When you were concentrating on typing a letter, and a voice said something in our ear, it was impossible not to be distracted.

  The problem was hard to explain, and Meg wasn’t doing a good job of explaining. But then it had always been difficult to explain anything to Sylvia. Sylvia knew all the answers.

  Meg tried again.

  “The dictaphone was absolutely impossible. I couldn’t ear what Mr. Phillips had said. Voices kept mumbling, drowning out his voice. Once the whole Mormon Tabernacle Choir cut out the second paragraph of a very important memo.”

  She smiled as she spoke. It sounded funny now, but at the time it had not been at all amusing.

  Sylvia didn’t smile. “The Mormon Tabernacle Choir? Why them?”

  Meg shrugged helplessly. “No reason. That’s the point; they are meaningless hallucinations. The doctor says they’ll go away eventually, but in the meantime… Mr. Phillips was very nice about it, he said he’d try to find an opening for me when I’m ready to work again, but I couldn’t expect him to keep me on. I had to listen to some of those tapes three times before I got the message clear, and there was always the chance I’d miss something important. And I’d already used up all my sick leave. Three weeks in the hospital…”

  “You should be thankful you weren’t killed,” said Sylvia. “To think they never caught the man who was driving the car! New York is an absolute jungle. I don’t know how you can stand living here. May I have another cup of tea?”

  Meg poured, biting back an irritated retort. She couldn’t afford to offend Sylvia, especially now, when she was about to ask a favor, but the cliches that were Sylvia’s sole means of communication had never annoyed her more. Why should she be thankful she hadn’t been killed? She might just as well be thankful she didn’t have leprosy, or seven-year itch; or thank God because she had not been born with two heads. It was just as reasonable, and a lot more human, to feel vexation instead of gratitude. Why me, God? The old question, to which there was never any answer… Why did it have to be me in the path of that fool driver; why did I have to land on my head instead of some less vulnerable part of my anatomy; and why, oh, why, God, did I have to have these exotic symptoms instead of a nice simple concussion? Why do I have to be the poor relation, with no savings to fall back on, while Sylvia…

  Sylvia’s close-set gray eyes were intent on the teapot. “Such a nice piece of silver,” she murmured.

  The tea set was the only valuable thing Meg owned— the only family heirloom her parents had left her. The rest of the apartment was furnished with leftovers and makeshifts—colorful posters instead of paintings, remnants turned into curtains and patchwork cushions, secondhand furniture painted and refinished by Meg herself. It was attractive, because Meg was accustomed to making do, but it was not at all the ambience to which Sylvia was accustomed. And trust Sylvia to pick out the only object of value in the place! She had the old acquisitive gleam in her eyes; it was the only emotion that ever warmed their coldness.

  Sylvia’s left hand was half buried in the luxurious softness of the sable cape that lay beside her on the couch. She had refused Meg’s offer to hang it up; and indeed, the thought of that smoky elegance hanging between Meg’s worn trenchcoat and six-year-old fake leopard was rather incongruous.

  As she had so often done, Meg studied her second cousin once removed with incredulity. How had Sylvia done it? Three husbands, all wealthy men, one of them a multimillionaire. If Sylvia had been the conventional sexpot, svelte and blond and heavy-eyed, it wouldn’t have been so hard to understand. But Sylvia looked like the kind of woman who walked the aisles of the supermarket with a little hand computer, ticking off the prices as she filled her shopping cart. Her hair was nicely tended, but frankly gray; the sables and the expensive suit didn’t conceal the dumpiness of her figure. Sylvia wore glasses—pale-blue frames with little rhinestones set in them. As she bent over the plate on which Meg had arranged a few cookies, Meg watched her curiously, seeking something—some warmth of kindness or flicker of wit—and found nothing. With a sigh, she gave it up. Sylvia had her good points, but none of them seemed likely to attract a man, much less a millionaire. They were points that might be useful to an indigent relative, however.

  “Manhattan isn’t the best place in the world to live in,” she said. “In fact, the doctors say it’s a bad place for me just now. Apparently this—this condition will clear up more quickly if I have rest and quiet.”

  “You won’t get it here,” Sylvia said complacently. “The noise level is enough to send anybody off her rocker.”

  “I need your help,” Meg said abruptly. “I hate to ask you, Sylvia…”

  “Naturally you do,” Sylvia said, looking up. Her plain, lined face was relaxed, and Meg knew her comment referred to the first part of the appeal, not to the second. If Sylvia was without imagination, she was equally without malice.

  “I’ve been thinking what would be best,” Sylvia went on. “I don’t suppose the doctor gave you any idea how long this will last? No, they never do, do they? Well… Six months, perhaps? Yes, I should think six months would do it.”

  She reached for another cookie, and then glanced at Meg, as the latter sank back in her chair with an audible gasp.

  “You’re white as a sheet,” she said critically. “You always were too thin; of course you’re not tall, but you ought to carry more flesh than you do. I suppose you lost weight while you were in the hospital. Have a cookie. Sugar gives you quick energy.”

  Meg laughed and obeyed. The laughter was a little shaky, and so was her hand as she reached for the plate. She had known she could count on Sylvia, but… After all, the relationship was a distant one, and Sylvia didn’t owe her a thing. It is not pleasant at the age of twenty-three, to find oneself at the end of your rope with nothing to rely on except the charity of a second cousin once removed.

  She smiled at Sylvia with genuine gratitude; but she couldn’t help thinking that Sylvia’s generosity had been qualified. Six months. On what basis, she wondered, had Sylvia decided that six months was long enough for recuperation from her unusual type of injury? But that wasn’t the consideration. Six months was Sylvia’s usual term. She made a hobby of helping people who were in temporary difficulties; but the key word was “temporary.” Sylvia expected her proteges to solve their problems within a reasonable length of time. If they failed to shape up, Sylvia washed her hands of them; and she was the one who decided what was a reasonable length of time.

  At this point in her silent soliloquy Meg felt ashamed of herself. Catty and ungrateful, that’s what she was. One of the unfortunate by-products of her accident was a newborn of woman who walked the aisles of the supermarket with a little hand computer, ticking off the prices as she filled her shopping cart. Her hair was nicely tended, but frankly gray; the sables and the expensive suit didn’t conceal the dumpiness of her figure. Sylvia wore glasses—pale-blue frames with little rhinestones set in them. As she bent over the plate on which Meg had arranged a few cookies, Meg watched her curiously, seeking something—some warmth of kindness or flicker of wit—and found nothing. With a sigh, she gave it up. Sylvia had her good points, but none of them seemed likely to attract a man, much less a millionaire. They were points that might be useful to an indigent relative, however.

  “Manhattan isn�
��t the best place in the world to live in,” she said. “In fact, the doctors say it’s a bad place for me just now. Apparently this—this condition will clear up more quickly if I have rest and quiet.” “You won’t get it here,” Sylvia said complacently. “The noise level is enough to send anybody off her rocker.” “I need your help,” Meg said abruptly. “I hate to ask you, Sylvia…” “Naturally you do,” Sylvia said, looking up. Her plain, lined face was relaxed, and Meg knew her comment referred to the first part of the appeal, not to the second. If Sylvia was without imagination, she was equally without malice.

  “I’ve been thinking what would be best,” Sylvia went on. “I don’t suppose the doctor gave you any idea how long this will last? No, they never do, do they? Well… Six months, perhaps? Yes, I should think six months would do it.”

  She reached for another cookie, and then glanced at Meg, as the latter sank back in her chair with an audible gasp.

  “You’re white as a sheet,” she said critically. “You always were too thin; of course you’re not tall, but you ought to carry more flesh than you do. I suppose you lost weight while you were in the hospital. Have a cookie. Sugar gives you quick energy.”

  Meg laughed and obeyed. The laughter was a little shaky, and so was her hand as she reached for the plate. She had known she could count on Sylvia, but… After all, the relationship was a distant one, and Sylvia didn’t owe her a thing. It is not pleasant at the age of twenty-three, to find oneself at the end of your rope with nothing to rely on except the charity of a second cousin once removed.

  She smiled at Sylvia with genuine gratitude; but she couldn’t help thinking that Sylvia’s generosity had been qualified. Six months. On what basis, she wondered, had Sylvia decided that six months was long enough for recuperation from her unusual type of injury? But that wasn’t the consideration. Six months was Sylvia’s usual term. She made a hobby of helping people who were in temporary difficulties; but the key word was “temporary.” Sylvia expected her proteges to solve their problems within a reasonable length of time. If they failed to shape up, Sylvia washed her hands of them; and she was the one who decided what was a reasonable length of time.

  At this point in her silent soliloquy Meg felt ashamed of herself. Catty and ungrateful, that’s what she was. One of the unfortunate by-products of her accident was a newborn like straw, my dear, it had been bleached so often. She didn’t last long. He’s on his fourth—or is it his fifth?“

  “I’m surprised you never married again, Sylvia. It’s been five years, hasn’t it?”

  “Six, next month.” Sylvia’s voice was expressionless, but for a moment something looked out of her pale-gray ayes—something that made Meg feel peculiar. “I liked Wilfred, you see. Anyway,” she added brightly, “he gave me the London house and the one in Palm Beach; and, of :course, a very generous settlement.”

  “I don’t know how you keep track of all your property.”

  “Oh, I haven’t much else to do. I never went in for lobbies. Such a waste of time. I’m doing quite well, with my investments and so forth—so well that I’ve almost decided to sell the Pennsylvania house to the local historical Association. They won’t pay much for it, but I an afford to be generous. George would have liked that; e was always so proud of that house.”

  “But if you are going to sell it—”

  “Oh, I won’t sell it for a while. There’s a lot that needs to be done first; that’s why I thought it would be a good place for you, you know about antiques and that sort of thing. You see, the Culvers have been there for almost a year, and I just gave them their notice.”

  Meg felt sorry for the just-evicted Culvers. Obviously they had not shaped up. They must be unusually deserving cases to have induced Sylvia to extend her six-month deadline.

  “He’s an artist,” Sylvia went on. “A painter, I should y. Gifted, but hopelessly lazy. He hasn’t finished a canvas for eight months. So I told them to leave. You can move into the house. I want you to fix it up—you know what I mean. There was some nice old furniture there, at least I thought it was nice, if old-fashioned. I moved the best of it up into the attic. No point in letting my tenants eat off genuine Chippendale, was there? You’ll have to look at it, decide what should stay with the house and what should be sold. Maybe you can pick up a few more pieces at local antique shops; just enough to furnish the place in proper style, you’ll know what to do. When I sell it to the Historical Association I want it to be properly fixed up, with the right furniture and pictures and all.”

  Looking pleased with herself, she reached for the last cookie. Meg stared at her, more than a little confused. She wasn’t sure she did know what Sylvia wanted her to do. Her knowledge of antiques was that of an amateur. Then she began to understand. In exchange for her room, she would have to perform some service, even if Sylvia had to invent a job to occupy her.

  “I’ll do my best,” she said. “What period is the house? Colonial?”

  “No, it’s a perfect monstrosity of a Victorian mansion-Gothic revival, I think they call it, with stained glass and the rest. I think it’s perfectly awful, but apparently that sort of thing is now considered amusing, and it’s an excellent example of its type.”

  “Good heavens,” Meg said, as the image took shape in her mind. “It sounds overpowering. Are you sure it isn’t haunted? I don’t think I could stand living with a ghost just now.”

  “Why should it be haunted?” Sylvia asked reasonably.

  “I was joking.”

  “Oh. Well, I’ve never heard of any ghosts. It’s a huge old place, you’ll simply rattle around in it, but the area is quite peaceful. It’s in Berks County, out in the country, and there is a caretaker living in the guesthouse. God knows it’s quiet. The estate is almost twenty acres.”

  “Twenty acres!” Meg exclaimed. “That land must be worth quite a bit of money today. Are you going to give all hat to the…”

  Her voice trailed off as she met Sylvia’s eyes. Sylvia wasn’t looking guilty; no such thought ever disturbed Sylvia’s opinion of herself. But there was a certain complacency in Sylvia’s look, and Meg understood. Of course Sylvia wasn’t going to give away twenty acres of property. The land would be sold to a developer—or perhaps Sylvia planned to develop it herself. The house itself was too valuable to tear down and too big to be marketable. Sylvia would leave it hunched on a half acre f ground and sell it to the only institution mat would buy Meg fought another battle with envy and cynicism.

  “Sylvia, it’s very sweet of you to help me out. I’ll do my best with the house. Thank you.” On impulse she jumped p and went to Sylvia and kissed her on the cheek.

  Sylvia sniffed. “Let’s get back to your budget.”

  By the time Sylvia left, Meg’s expenditures were lapped out down to the last stick of chewing gum and emery board. Sylvia had allowed for one cocktail a day— When you’re alone and depressed, you must be careful tout drinking too much.“

  Meg escorted her cousin to the door of the apartment id watched Sylvia march down the hall toward the elevator. She fancied that the aristocratic hairs of Sylvia’s cape flattened themselves, shrinking from any possible contact with the peeling, distempered walls. When the elevator door had closed she bolted her own door—an automatic gesture, after two years in Manhattan—and went to the window.

  Down in the street Sylvia’s long black Fleetwood sedan was drawn up at the curb, in flagrant disregard of the “no parking” sign. Her chauffeur stood beside it, alert for evil small boys. As Sylvia emerged from the building he leaped to attention and opened the car door. Sylvia gathered her cape about her and stooped, preparing to enter; at that moment a daring ray of sunshine penetrated the murk of the city skies and shone full on her hatless head. The gray hair flashed silver.

  Watching from above, Meg’s lips curved upward, and a dimple, which had not often appeared in the last few months, popped out of hiding. She had a weakness for omens, and this was me first hopeful one she had seen for a long rime. Sylvia was a gua
rdian angel, albeit a reluctant one.

  Reflected in the grimy windowpane. a dim image of Meg’s face stared back at her—a pale, pointed face framed by a fringe of cropped brown hair. Luckily her hair grew fast; she had cut it all short when the shaved portion started to grow out, but it was still lusterless and unbecoming. The reflection didn’t flatter her; she looked like a frightened child, her dark eyes too large for the thinness of her face. The eyes seemed to question…

  I’d better make it, Meg thought, answering the silent query. I’ve got to make it. Six months. That’s all the time I have.

  Chapter 2

  From Sylvia’s description Meg expected the house to be a monstrosity, with every accouterment of the Victorian gothic style—wooden gingerbread, pseudo half-timbering, rackets, and stained glass. The first view of the house was pleasant surprise. It had individuality and a certain dignity.

  Standing on a low rise surrounded by trees, it was not as large as she had anticipated. Built of stone—blue marble and limestone—it had three stories, plus an attic level indicated by queer little gabled windows. It reminded her of a small German Schloss, the comfortable provincial istle of a petty baron or count. A wide veranda supported y heavy wooden pillars covered the front of the house, chimneys sprouted over the roof, and at the back was a square stone tower, with balconies and attractive round-arched triple windows. The tower had a gabled roof; the gables ended, as did those of the house itself, in wrought-on finials. Some of the windows were leaded, others contained the expected stained glass. Even on a bleak winter day it would not have looked forbidding; it was a toy castle, and on that brilliant autumn afternoon, surrounded by copper-shaded trees, it had a distinctly frivolous air.