The Key West citizen., 1940-12-02
Chapter Nine
Alone With Fear

WE FOUND Aunt Maggie's
- room as neat as could be
Slippers under the bed. Her deer
purple dressing gown across the
foot. Silver toilet things on the
bureau. None of which she would
ever use again.
Neither this room nor any OF
the others showed evidence OF
having been entered by alien
feet.
Back in the hall, the candles
cast weird shadows before us and
Alice clung more closely to Bob
InStinctively I also moved closer
to Kirk, for in the uncertain light
it seemed to me that one of the
doors Of a big armoire moved
slightly.
But when we investigated we
found it empty.
Gust nerves." laughed Kirk re-
aSsuringIy.
We had almost finished with
the second floor when we met the
other crew. Evidently l was not
the only one suffering from
nerves, for Bill was still kidding
Eve because she had brought
along one of the darts from the
game room.
"For protection" she an
nounced.
Il told her an ice pick would
be much more efficient" Bill said
"But you could do a pretty good
job with this, planted right in the
vicinity of the heart" Eve argued,
fourishing the heavy feather
tipped steel pin to illustrate her
point and making Alice vince.
Shouldn't think it would be
long enough" said Bob.
ooh, yes, the pin is nearly three
inches" she pointed out.
Nobody had found anything on
the tour. But Andrew had come
back into the house. It developed
that there were two tires fiat on
Bills car. That tires on every car
on the place were fiat.
Som mebody had accomplished
this very neatly by removing the
valve cores from at least two
tires on each car.
Delay
1 FTER good deal Of rather
4 n pointless discussion as t.
ways ard means, II was finally de
cided to postpone until morning
any further effort to get in toucE
with the outside world.
And when ] say outside world
am in no way eXaggerating thG
feeling of isolation which com
pietely overwhelmed US. although
we were only FIVE miles from Ros
well and twenty from Atlanta. NJ
telephone, no electric lights. thC
automobiles out of commission
the road practically impossible
ard the rain still pouring. And Il
the drawing room the sheeted fig
ure of Aunt Maggie, with fngel
marks on her throat
So 1t was not very gay house
party group gathered around the
fire in the library. There hac
been times when / though can
delight romantic, but this wa.
not one Of them. Beyond the cir.
Gle of the freight the big ole
room was full of shadows, anC
beyond these shadows the outel
rooms were swallowed in dark.
ness so complete that it was al
most palpable. One felt it there
waiting, with something ominou.
in the waiting - fingers. perhaps
which might reach out and draw
one into the suffocation of dark;
ness even more final.
In fact, when Andrew opened
the dining-rOOm door unexpected
ly, Claire. who was sitting with
her back toward him, started III
with a little involuntary CRY o.
fright. Bob and Kirk both sprane
up as though to rush TO her de.
fense. furnishing the rest of us {
little comic relief from strain anc
giving all an opportunity to laugh
even though some of us did so {
bit shakily.
Andrew, the unwilling cause oi
1t all was triumphantly holdins
aloft an oil lamp, and for one
felt like giving him three rousins
cheers at the sight. He had re.
membered the two lamps and car
OF kerosene oil which we hac
moved from the kitchen pantry tC
the basement, and he and Bessie
had salvaged them and put the
lamps in condition for use. My
grandmother kept them because
she never quite trusted elec.
tricity. A search Of all the car:
had revealed only one flashlight
Where you want I should put
the other'n, Miss Sally?" Andrew
asked.
"Why not just bring it in here?
Even then We won't be any toe
bright"
"I thought as how you might
want it IN the front hall. mebbe
to light you up the steps"
"All right" ! said. As usual
Andrew had worked it all out be.
forehand. "And please bring II
some extra candles. so there viii
be enough for all the bedrooms
Theys already candles in then
silver candle dishes on the bed.
side tables, Miss Sally"
"Yes, I know. but these are Il
get US to the bedrooms" Eficien'
as he is. there are plenty of time.
when I wish Andrew wasn't quite
so-omniscient.
] felt a little conscience-strick.
en- when Andrew came In again I