Voices in a Haunted Room

“It’s nothing much. She’s just tired and wants to sleep all the afternoon. Jeanne said if I saw you would I tell you not to call this afternoon. I haven’t seen Mademoiselle today. When I went Jeanne said come tomorrow.”

“Oh, I see.”

“Mrs. Frenshaw, I’d like to talk to you. Would you ... come for a little ride with me?”

“But of course, Dolly.” I was rather pleased. I had always found it difficult to talk to her. I was sure she brooded a great deal, and I had often said to David that if only she would talk we might be able to help her. So now I welcomed the opportunity.

We turned our horses away from Enderby and I said: “Where shall we go?”

“Evie and I used to love to ride by the sea.”

“Perhaps you’d rather not go that way now then.”

“Oh, I would, I would. I often go there.” So we turned our horses in a southerly direction.

“It’s wonderful for me to be able to go and see Mademoiselle.”

“It’s good for her, too. I think she’s really fond of you, Dolly.”

A flush suffused her cheek. “Oh, do you really think so, Mrs. Frenshaw?”

“I do indeed.”

“She’s taught me a lot. French ... and everything. It has been wonderful to go there ... especially after I lost Evie.”

“I understand,” I said.

“She’s so sympathetic. After all ... terrible things happened to her too, didn’t they?”

“Yes.”

“Can you smell the sea, Mrs. Frenshaw?”

“Oh yes. I just got a whiff. I always like that ... when you know it’s not far off.”

“Evie used to like it, too.”

I was wondering what it was she had to tell me, but I decided to leave it to her to do it in her own time and her own way. I fancied she could easily return to the secretive Dolly I had always known.

We broke into a gallop and went like the wind over the green fields. Dolly was a good rider and she seemed to gain confidence in the saddle.

Then we saw the sea. It was a grey, quiet, November sea with hardly a ripple on the water and not even the slightest breeze in the air.

“Shall we go down to the beach?” she said. “I love it there.”

I followed and as our horses’ hoofs touched the sand I saw the boat lying there on the beach.

“Oh look,” said Dolly. “Shall we go and see the boat?”

We galloped across the sand to where the boat lay.

Dolly turned and looked at the boat house.

“Oh, I think someone’s there.”

“The owner of the boat perhaps,” I said.

“Shall we go and see? Let’s tie our horses there ... on the rock. That’s where Evie and I used to leave ours when we came here.”

“All right,” I said. I dismounted and tethered my horse. Dolly was already making her way to the boat house.

“Is anyone there?” she called.

There was no answer.

“I did think I saw someone,” she said. “Let’s take a peep inside.”

Cautiously she pushed open the door and went in. I followed.

The door shut suddenly and I was in darkness. Something had been put over my head.

I felt a sharp blow on the head and then there was darkness.

When I opened my eyes the first thing I saw was Dolly. She was sitting on a three-legged stool watching me.

I was lying on the floor; I felt dazed and there was a pain in my head. My wrists and ankles were firmly tied together.

“Dolly ...” I stammered. “What ... what’s happened?”

She said: “You’ll soon come round. It’s ten minutes since we came hi here. I’ve brought you here to kill you, Mrs. Frenshaw.”

I should have thought she was being ridiculous if she had not been holding a gun.

She saw my eyes on it and said: “I know how to use it. It’s one of the things I’ve been taught.”

“Dolly! What is this? Some game?”

“Oh no, it’s very serious. Death is.”

“Do you really mean ... ?”

She said: “Oh yes. You’ve got to die. You murdered Evie and you’re going to die ...

as she did.”

“You’re mad. Nobody murdered Evie. She killed herself.”

”She killed herself because others made her. That’s murder ... and murderers have to die.”

“Dolly, try to be sensible. Talk to me. What do you mean? What is all this about?”

“I’ll tell you. We’ve got time because I’m not going to kill you until Billy gets here. That’s part of the contract.”

“Billy? Billy Grafter?”

“Yes, Billy Grafter.”

“So you and he are friends.”

She nodded. “Well, he was Alberic’s friend, wasn’t he?” She smiled. “You can’t move, can you? You’re well tied up. Billy did that.”

“He’s here?”

She nodded. “He’s going to get him. That’s what he’s going to do. And I’m going to get you. He helped me ... and I’ll help him. You don’t understand, do you? Billy will be here in a moment. Then we’ll just go ahead.” She caressed the gun and I thought: She really means it. She’s mad. “Why should you go free with your sins ... when my sister Evie ...” Her face puckered as though she was going to cry.

“Dolly,” I said, “let’s talk.”

“We are talking, aren’t we? You see, you committed adultery. You broke the seventh commandment. You were married to the nice one and you committed adultery with the wicked one. It was in Enderby when it was empty before Mademoiselle came in. We knew you were there with him. We frightened you, didn’t we, when we spoke through the tube?”

“So that was you.”