Page 22 of Euphoria
“She’s in charge of cleaning the out-of-the-way places,” Alice said absently. “This old place gets infested with mold and spores if we don’t keep on top of it. All those paintings and tapestries are quite delicate.”
“So Grace is a specialty cleaner?” I inquired.
“Hmm,” she replied, typing something into the computer.
“It’s very strange,” I went on.
At this, Alice glanced at me, signaling I was successful in raising her curiosity. “How so?”
“She only appears at dinner, and then she disappears, not to be seen again until the next night,” I explained, deliberately leaving out my encounter with her in the darkened halls.
Alice shrugged at my declaration as if she was used to the strange comings and goings of the woman.
“But why doesn’t anybody mention it?” I asked. “It’s odd the way she creeps about.”
“Grace is a bit of a loner, but she’s harmless,” Alice assured me. “She performs her duties well and isn’t a hindrance.”
“I suppose not,” I murmured, still feeling uneasy about the woman, but it wasn’t my place to keep pestering Alice about it. I would keep an eye on the mysterious Grace Poole and take notes. If she was up to something sinister, then I would catch her eventually.
What I didn’t understand was why no one seemed to mind her mannerisms. She wasn’t the only strange occurrence to have crossed my path while walking the halls of the hotel. There was some gossip I was excluded from, and several times, I’d overheard curious conversations that ceased abruptly when I entered a room.
There was a mystery at Thornfield, and I was purposely kept from it. Perhaps it was because I was still new to the surroundings, but with time, I’d be privy to all the comings and goings of the hotel. Country folk were known to be more distrusting of newcomers than most.
Whatever it was, it certainly mustn’t be anything sinister. Otherwise, something would have been done about it long ago. I wasn’t living in the confines of a novel or film, and real life scarcely held the same fantastical qualities of a good story.
No good would come from my digging for clues. I had come to value my position at Thornfield, so I allowed Alice to go on believing I’d been placated by her vague explanation.
There were too many phantoms in this old house in the absence of life.
