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She looked up at him, meeting his eyes. There s a door in the
wall that leads into the Place. It has a lock on it, a big iron one, and
they lock it behind them when they leave.
What is the bar you spoke of?
That falls across on the inside. It means even with a key you
can t get in. We keep it barred except when there is a special client
coming.
And she sees such clients alone?
No, usually with one or two others.
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ANNE PERRY
Are there many like that?
I don t think so. Mostly she went to clients houses, or parties.
She only had special ones here once a week or so.
Pitt tried to picture it in his mind: a handful of nervous, excited
people sitting in the half-light around a table, all filled with their
own terrors and dreams, hoping to hear the voice of someone they
had loved, transfigured by death, telling them . . . what? That they
still existed? That they were happy? Some secrets of passion or
money taken with them to the grave? Or perhaps some forgiveness
needed for a wrong now beyond recall?
So these people were special last night? he said aloud.
They must have been, she replied with a very slight move-
ment of her shoulders.
But you saw none of them?
No. As I said, they keep it very private. Anyway, yesterday was
my evening off. I left the house just after they came.
Where did you go? he asked.
To see a friend, a Mrs. Lightfoot, down in Newington, over the
river.
Her address?
Number 4 Lion Street, off the New Kent Road, she replied
without hesitation.
Thank you. He returned to the issue of the visitors. Someone
would check her story, just as a matter of routine. But Miss La-
mont s visitors must have seen each other, so they were acquainted
at least.
I don t know, she answered. The room was always dimly lit; I
know how that works from setting up before they come. And
putting the chairs right. They sat around the table. It s perfectly
easy to stay in the shadows if you want to. I always set the candles
at one end only, red candles, and leave the gas off. Unless you knew
someone already, you wouldn t see who they were.
And there was one of these discreet people last night?
I think so, otherwise she wouldn t have asked me to lift the bar
on the gate.
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SOUTHAMPTON ROW
Was it back on this morning?
Her eyes widened a little, grasping his meaning immediately. I
don t know. I never looked.
I ll do it. But first tell me more about yesterday evening. Any-
thing you can remember. For example, was Miss Lamont nervous,
anxious about anything? Do you know if she has ever received
threats or had to deal with a client who was angry or unhappy
about the séances?
If she did, she didn t tell me, Lena replied. But then she
never talked about these things. She must ve known hundreds of
secrets about people. For a moment her expression changed. A
profound emotion filled her and she struggled to hide it. It could
have been fear or loss, or the horror of sudden and violent death.
Or something else he could not even guess at. Did she believe in
spirits, perhaps vengeful or disturbed ones?
She treated it confidential, she said aloud, and her face was
blank again, merely concerned to answer his questions.
He wondered how much she knew of her mistress s trade. She
was resident in the house. Had she no curiosity at all?
Do you clean the parlor where the séances are held? he asked.
Her hand jerked a tiny fraction; it was not much more than the
stiffening of muscles. Yes. The daily woman does the rest, but Miss
Lamont always had me do that.
The thought of apparitions of the supernatural doesn t frighten
you?
A flash of contempt burned in her eyes, then vanished. When
she answered her voice was soft again. Leave such things alone,
and they ll leave you.
Did you believe in Miss Lamont s . . . gift?
She hesitated, her face unreadable. Was it a habit of loyalty
fighting with the truth?
What can you tell me about it? Suddenly that was urgent.
The manner of Maude Lamont s death surely sprang from her art,
real or sham. It was no chance killing by a burglar surprised in the
act, or even the greed of a relative. It was acutely personal, driven
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ANNE PERRY
by a passion of rage or envy, a will to destroy not only the woman
but something of the skills she professed as well.
I . . . I don t really know, Lena said awkwardly. I m a servant
here. I wasn t part of her life. I knew there were people who really
believed. There were more than the ones she had here. She once
said that here was where she did her best work. The things at other
people s houses was more like entertainment.
So the people who came here last night were seeking some real
contact with the dead, for some urgent, personal reason. It was
more a statement than a question.
I don t know, but that s the way she said it was. She was tense,
her body straight-backed, away from the chair, her hands clenched
on the table in front of her.
Have you ever attended a séance, Miss Forrest?
No! The answer was instant and vehement. There was harsh
emotion in her. Then she looked down, away from him. Her voice
dropped even lower. Let the dead rest in peace.
With sudden, overwhelming pity he saw the tears fill her eyes
and slide down her cheeks. She made no apology nor did her face
move. It was as if for a few moments she were oblivious of him,
locked in her own loss. Surely it was for someone dear to her, not
for Maude Lamont, lying stiff and grotesque in the next room? He
wanted someone who could comfort her, reach across the grief of
unfamiliarity and touch her.
Have you family, Miss Forrest? Someone we could notify for
you?
She shook her head. I had only one sister, and Nell s long
dead, God rest her, she answered, taking a deep breath and straight-
ening up. She made an intense effort to control herself, and suc-
ceeded. You ll be wanting to know who they were that came last
night. I can t tell you cos I don t know, but she kept a book with all
that sort of thing in it. It s in her desk, and no doubt it ll be locked,
but she wears the key on a chain around her neck. Or if you don t
want to get that, a knife ll break it, but that d be a shame; it s a
handsome piece, all inlaid and the like.
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I ll get the key. He stood up. I ll need to talk to you again,
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