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That was exactly what she was going to do

But she didn’t She didn’t ht

She blinked, but it didn’t go away And it wasn’t the darkness, or the reflection of the lights, or a coue in shape, silvery-white, hovering,It came fro, and it was co toward her

She panicked totally Her vocal cords were frozen She stared, breathing out desperate little choking sounds, since she could find no voice It came closer and closer She felt ice trickles into blood and li her She felt her hair ht across the face And she could have sworn that she heard a whisper, irl! He’ll only kill you!"

Then again…her hair…lifting On its own, in the grip of the vague, silvery-white substance A substance that whispered or played havoc with the breeze There was no breeze She had closed the doors

At last, she found voice,screaer--she headed straight for the door out of the Lee room Jeannie wrenched at the knob so hard she nearly ripped it froainst the wall This had no bearing on her She barely heard it She kept screa round level below

Matt Stone had chosen to stay in the caretaker’s cottage, fifty yards to the left of the randfather had died, leaving Melody House--and the responsibility for its upkeep--to him He had only moved into the main house recently because it had become easier on the upkeep side, and, he had to adrandbedroo rooht on top of whatever was going on with the property

He liked the caretaker’s cottage, too Since it had been falling apart so badly due to years of neglect he had rebuilt and refurbished it with everycare they had used in keeping the main house historical, the caretaker’s house was farthe Lee room to be used as a honeyht in his old haunts

He had been sound asleep, however, when the screa from bed

Despite the quiet tone of their small town, as sheriff of Stoneyville he was accustoht Therefore, he was up, into his jeans, and streaking across the patch of lawn that separated the caretaker’s cottage froe oak front door in his hands He burst into the house less than two minutes froht on in the foyer; there alas Just as soft lights eternally flooded the front porch He was prepared for anything when he burst through the door

Or, at least, he had thought that he was

Maybe not

There was no apparent danger Instead, there she was, the blushing bride, standing at the foot of the stairway, shaking and screairl, perfectly toned froy day Hard not to look, but he forced his eyes to hers first, then cast his gaze anxiously around, scanning the area for any hidden threat that , his room had somehow turned out to be a homicidal maniac or a simple wife-beater Either choice seemed doubtful

"Jeannie?" he said, his voice deep with calm and authority Normally, he would have walked to her, set an arm around her shoulder, and patiently deter in his foyer stark naked and screa "Jeannie, please, talk What the hell…?"

By that ti down the stairs as well He was still half-asleep, and Matt would have sworn in any court that the young man appeared as bleary and stunned as anyone could possibly be Certainly not fresh froer cried out in shock

Matt crossed over one of the velvet cord barriers into the parlor and swept an antique throw fro across the room to cast it around Jeannie’s shoulders She had stopped screa like a leaf, eyes wide, dilated

Roger, still dazed, and definitely horrified, thanked hiain, confusion once again reigning in his eyes

"Jeannie, what is it?"

At last, she turned to focus on him, her expression blank at first, then filled with tension "You didn’t see it? You didn’t feel it?"

"Jeannie, I was sound asleep! What are you talking about?"

By then, Penny Sawyer, in a terry robe, her graying hair frizzled around her handsomely constructed face, arrived She stood in the fra in