A Whisper of Eternity - By Amanda Ashley Page 0,36
Zone bed and breakfast?
Going back upstairs, she poked her head into the rooms that lined the corridor. They were all bedrooms or sitting rooms furnished with antique oak furniture. She was glad to see that the house seemed to have all the modern conveniences, except a telephone. And mirrors, she thought, frowning. She didn't recall seeing a single mirror in the whole place.
The last room she looked into seemed very much like her studio at home. It contained a long table,a half -dozen empty jars and cans, a small box of rags, a couple of easels, and several blank canvases in a variety of sizes. The case that held her paints and brushes sat just inside the door, along with the blank canvases and the easel she had brought from home.
Returning to the room she had awakened in, she sat on the edge of the bed. How was she going to get out of here? She hit her head with the heel of her hand. Her cell phone! Why hadn't she thought of it sooner?
Grabbing her bag, she rummaged inside, only it wasn't there. Whoever had brought her here must have taken it.
With a sigh, she tossed her bag aside and glanced at her surroundings. It was a pretty room. The walls were covered in old-fashioned paper with pink cabbage roses. The ceiling was high; painted angels and nymphs smiled down at her. There were wrought-iron candelabras on the walls, a small Tiffany lamp on the cherrywood table beside the bed. The bedspread was a deep, dusky rose, as were the heavy draperies at the windows.
Hunger drove her downstairs once again. In the kitchen, she went through the cupboards. They were fully stocked with canned goods, bread, crackers, Jell-O, cake mix, a dozen brands of cereal, hot fudge, marshmallows, flour, sugar, salt and pepper, spices and condiments, a wide variety of candy bars, and practically anything else she could possibly want, including the items she'd had in her car.
The refrigerator held milk, cream, butter, sodas, lunch meat, and several kinds of cheese; the freezer was filled with meat, frozen vegetables, and three kinds of ice cream.
At least she wouldn't starve to death.
But where the devil was she?
And who had brought her here?
She couldn't believe that someone could have taken her out of the motel room and transported her here without waking her. Nevertheless, here she was.Which brought her back to her original question.
Where was she?
After eating a bowl of cereal and sliced peaches, she went through the house once again, trying every door and window, but to no avail. In the living room, she picked up an iron poker, turned her face away, and swung the poker at the window. The glass should have shattered, but nothing happened.
She stood there for several minutes and then, resigned to the fact that there was no way out, she went into the library, found a copy ofWutheringHeights , and curled up in a chair. She spent the rest of the morning reading the bittersweet love story of Cathy and Heathcliff .
After lunch, she went upstairs, laid out her paint brushes, set up a canvas, and spent the rest of the afternoon painting the view out her bedroom window.
It was only when the sun began to set that fear once again began to make itself known.
She wasn't surprised when Dominic appeared in the doorway. He wore a long black cloak over a black shirt and black trousers. His feet were encased in soft black leather boots. Though she had refused to admit it, she had known, on some deep level of awareness, that this was his house.
He inclined his head in her direction. "Good evening. I trust you found everything you needed."
"Yes." Her fingers clenched around the brush. It was hard to speak past the lump of fear in her throat. "Thank you." Though why she should thank him was beyond her. He had brought her here without her consent, after all.
He took a step into the room.
She took a step back.
He lifted one brow. "Are you afraid of me now?"
"How did I get here? Why am I here?"
"I brought you here because I wanted you here."
"Why didn't I wake up?"
"Because I did not wish you to."
The fear in her throat moved downward and congealed in her stomach. She started to ask another question, but before she could form the words, he was standing in front of her, only inches away. She gasped, startled. She hadn't seen him move.