Dance of Death (4 page)
Authors: R.L. Stine
She felt a blast of icy air rush by her.
But no one touched her.
Madeline lowered her arms. She opened her eyes and stared around the room.
The man had disappeared.
What happened? she thought. He ran straight toward me!
Anger burst through Madeline. He's playing a horrible trick. He wants to frighten me.
She dashed to the bedroom door and yanked it open. I'm not going to let him get away with this! she thought.
Madeline dashed out into the hallway. She saw a flash of white vanishing around the corner to the right.
It's him! She picked up her skirts and chased after the man. She dashed around the cornerâand the hallway stood empty.
But she caught another glimpse of white.
Madeline ran down the narrow hallways, making turn after turn. Always a moment too late to catch the man.
Her throat burned as she gasped for breath. Don't stop, she ordered herself. You can't stop now.
Madeline spotted the flicker of white again and raced after it. She flew around another corner and skidded to a stop.
A dead end.
Madeline jerked on one of the doors that lined the hallway. Locked. She tried every single door. Every one was locked.
No! Madeline thought. This can't be happening. I know the man turned down this corridor.
Now I'll never feel safe here. Never know when he'll turn up again. Never know what he wants.
And no one will believe me if I tell them about him. Nobody did before. I'm all alone, with no one to help me. She leaned her head against the wall.
Step ⦠drag â¦
Step ⦠drag â¦
Step â¦
What's that?
Footsteps. Behind me. Coming down the hall!
Step ⦠drag â¦
Step ⦠drag â¦
Step â¦
Madeline heard the footsteps come closer and closer. Then she heard a strange crooning sound.
“Tobias,” an eerie voice moaned. “Tobiiiaaas.”
Chills raced up and down Madeline's spine. She pressed her hands to her mouth to hold back the scream rising from deep within her.
A pale form materialized at the mouth of the hall.
It wasn't the man.
It was an old woman. An old woman dressed in white.
Step ⦠drag â¦
Step ⦠drag â¦
Step â¦
She started down the hallway toward Madeline. Madeline's breath came in shallow gasps.
The old woman wore an ancient wedding dress. It hung from her skeletal form in filthy tatters. The filmy veil had been ripped and then mended with jagged stitches of blood-red thread.
It looks like a scar, Madeline thought. A scar on a ghost.
Step â¦
The old woman moved forward.
Drag â¦
She pulled the long tattered train of her wedding dress behind her.
Step ⦠drag â¦
She had almost reached Madeline. Now Madeline could see the woman's blue eyes glittering behind her filthy veil. She could feel the woman's hot, sour breath on her face.
“You've seen my Tobias, haven't you?” the old crone whispered. She reached out and took hold of Madeline's arms. Her clawlike fingers dug into Madeline's skin.
The old woman began to shake Madeline. And shake her. And shake her.
Madeline's head hit the wall with a
thunk.
Spots danced before her eyes.
“My Tobias,” the old woman chanted. She gave Madeline a shake with each word. “You've seen my Tobias, haven't you?
Haven't you?
Where is he? Where is my Tobias?”
Tobias? Who is she talking about? Madeline thought. Who is Tobias?
6
Shadowbrook, New York, 1793
T
obias Morgan opened his journal and dipped his pen in the inkwell.
Today, after more than a year, Justin returned from his journey in the desert,
Tobias wrote.
I almost did not recognize him. His face was burned from the sun and wind. His lips were so chapped they bled. And his eyes ⦠his eyes were wild. Like a madman's.
He brought back papers that he believes hold the key to our project. He believes we are about to achieve our goal.
I must admit I was not certain this day would ever arrive. And there were times I hoped it would not. For perhaps the knowledge Justin and I seek should not belong to mortal men â¦
Justin begged me to start translating the papers
immediately. I began work on them as soon as he left me.
Tobias paused to wipe a bead of sweat from his forehead. It was late, almost time for him to leave his medical laboratory for the day and go up to dinner. But Tobias wanted to finish the entry in his journal first.
The beautiful leather-bound journal was a gift from the woman he loved. Honoria Bancroft, his fiancée.
Tobias promised Honoria he would write his most secret hopes and dreams in the journal. That way, if they were ever parted, Honoria could keep the diary with her, and she would feel close to him.
But tonight he was having difficulty writing down his thoughts. He wasn't sure he wanted Honoria to know about the work he was performing for Justin Fear.
It isn't wrong, not exactly. But not everyone would understand it, Tobias thought.
Tobias was almost sure Honoria wouldn't understand it. Almost sure she would not approve. Honoria wanted Tobias to stop working with Justin.
Once Honoria and Tobias were married, she wanted him to establish his own medical practice somewhere else. She wanted them to leave Shadowbrook.
But Tobias knew he could never do it. He could never stop working with Justin. He owed him too much.
If not for Justin, I wouldn't be a doctor, Tobias thought. He paid for all my medical schooling because he wanted us to work together. He bought me this fine
house, right next door to his own because he wanted me to live close by. He wanted me to be his partner, as well as his best friend.
How can I tell him I no longer want us to work together? I can't repay his kindness by letting him down.
But it was still hard for Tobias to write down what he and Justin were working on together. The thing that had always been the driving force behind Justin's work.
Think of all the good we will do if we're successful, Tobias told himself.
He dipped the pen into the inkwell. The tip of the feather pen scratched across the page as he continued his journal entry.
It's better for Honoria to know the truth someday, Tobias thought. I don't want there to be any secrets between us. I want her to know what Justin and I are trying to do.
I'm almost certain the papers Justin has asked me to translate contain the key to unlocking the secret of eternal life.
A blast of cold air filled the room. Tobias trembled. The flame of his candle flickered. The ancient papers Justin brought back from the desert stirred and rustled.
That's odd, Tobias thought. There are never any drafts in this underground laboratory.
Justin created the laboratory especially for the work he and Tobias did together. The work that would give them the secret of eternal life. A secret passageway led from Justin's house to the laboratory, then on to Tobias's house.
The passageway opened into Tobias's bedroom. His servants knew nothing about it. Not that Tobias had many of them. He was too poor. If not for Justin, Tobias wouldn't have been able to afford to live in Shadowbrook.
Justin will be angry when he finds out that I told Honoria about the passageway and the laboratory, Tobias thought. But we're going to be married. Soon, we'll be man and wife. I couldn't keep it a secret from her.
“Tobias!” a voice called out.
Tobias lifted his head to see Honoria coming into the laboratory. She rushed over to him and threw herself into his arms.
“You're shaking,” Tobias exclaimed. “What's the matter?”
“Oh, Tobias,” Honoria said, burying her face against his chest. “How can you stand to walk through that passage day after day? It's dark and horrible. And I heard rats scurrying around me.”
“You're just imagining things, Honoria,” Tobias said soothingly. “I admit the passageway needs cleaning, but there's nobody but me to do it and I have more important work. It's not so bad, once you get used to it.”
“I could never get used to it,” Honoria cried. She lifted her head and stared up at him. “Never. Oh, Tobias, promise me that after we're married, you won't do this any longer. Promise me we'll go away from here.”
Tobias felt his heart contract as he looked down at Honoria.
She's so beautiful. How can I refuse her anything?
Honoria's hair was the color of sunshine. Her eyes were a beautiful sky blue. She always reminded Tobias of a bright, clear summer morning.
I'm so lucky. So lucky she loves me. So lucky she agreed to marry me.
But in his heart, Tobias harbored a terrible secret. A fear that someday Honoria would change her mind about him.
She and Justin would make such a handsome couple. Tobias knew he wasn't nearly as good looking as Justin. His hair and eyes were just an ordinary brown. Justin had blond hair and blue eyes to match Honoria's.
Honoria had never appeared interested in Justin. In fact, she seemed to dislike him. But Tobias couldn't stop worrying that one day Honoria would realize rich, handsome Justin would make her a much better husband.
What does she see in me? Compared to Justin, I'm nothing. I'm so plain and poor.
Oh, Honoria, Tobias thought. Don't ever leave me. I love you so much!
But no matter how much he loved her, he couldn't betray his best friend. “I can't leave here until my work with Justin is finished,” Tobias said slowly. “I owe him everything, Honoria. Please, try to understand.”
Honoria jerked herself out of Tobias's arms and began to pace around the laboratory. “I understand that you care more for Justin than you do for me,” she snapped. “I'm going to be your wife, Tobias. Doesn't that mean anything to you? I only want what is best for us.”
“But that's all I want, too,” Tobias said. “As soon as I've finished my work for Justin, we'll go away together. I promise. But I can't leave before that.”
He pulled Honoria back into his arms.
“Oh, Tobias,” Honoria whispered. She wrapped her arms around him and held him close. “I'm so afraid.”
“Afraid?” Tobias echoed. “Of what?”
“Of Justin,” Honoria confided. “I saw him when he returned today. He rode past me when I was on my way to your house. He seems different somehow. His eyes are so strange, Tobias.”
She shivered. “I'm afraid Justin means to keep you here forever. Afraid he'll never let you go. I have the money for my dowry. I want us to use it to start a new life together. I want us to go away
right now!”
“Honoria, I've just explained that I can't go yet,” Tobias answered. “And you mustn't worry about Justin. I admit he gets a little intense sometimes. But you mustn't let your imagination run wild.”
A part of Tobias was glad to hear how Honoria felt about Justin. If Honoria were afraid of Justin, she would never leave Tobias for him.
Yes, Justin has everything. Except Honoria, Tobias thought. She belongs to me. And she always will.
Believe it, Tobias told himself. Believe it.
“There's nothing to be afraid of,” he murmured. “I'll keep you safe. I love you, Honoria.”
“Oh, Tobias,” Honoria whispered. “I love you, too.” She lifted her face for a kiss.
Tobias gazed down into her beautiful blue eyes. He lowered his lips until they almost touched hers. He
knew he shouldn't be doing this. It wasn't proper for him to kiss her. It wasn't even proper for them to be together without a chaperon.
But her mouth would feel so good.
Honoria's lips parted.
She gave a high, shrill scream.