The House of Secrets

‘No. I brought them from home. They were done by a Bennett Cove artist.’

‘The brush work is remarkable.’ Minna took a deep breath. ‘Listen, Sarah, I wanted to explain what happened to me earlier, if you don’t mind. It’s rather strange and no one believes me.’

‘There’s no need to explain. I understand.’

‘But you don’t.’

I watched with dismay as she sat on my bed, folded her hands on her lap, and kept her eyes riveted on them as she spoke. ‘Twenty-seven years ago I stood Matthew’s brother up at the altar. I left Gregory standing there, rejected him at Grace Cathedral with 200 people as witness. He never forgave me. Two days later he crashed his car, probably on purpose. They said that it was completely incinerated in the fire. The body was burned to ashes. But I think Gregory is here. I’ve seen him. He’s either a ghost come back to get revenge on me for leaving, or he didn’t die at all. I’ve seen him, and I’m frightened.’

I recognized her look of desperation. I had experienced it myself when I had seen things that no one wanted to believe.

‘Tell me,’ I said. ‘Where have you seen him? If he’s alive, the police should be called.’

‘I’ve called the police,’ she said. ‘I filed two reports, but they dismissed me. They had the audacity to tell me I was seeing things and blamed it on the war, if you can believe that. I’m afraid if I call again, they will make good on their threat to have me committed to an asylum. I couldn’t bear that.’

‘But where have you seen this man? Has he spoken to you? Has he threatened you?’

‘I haven’t seen him directly.’ She shivered. ‘It’s the small things. I catch glimpses of him in a crowd. I saw him in Union Square today. I’m certain of it. I smelled his aftershave on my pillow last night.’ Minna shook her head and stood. ‘I’ve said too much. There’s nothing you can do. I just wanted to apologize.’ She stood up. ‘You’re a good listener, Sarah Bennett.’

I grabbed my coat and headed downstairs, all the while wondering what I had got myself into.

* * *

Dr Geisler drove a black Chevy sedan. His medical licence allowed him unlimited quantities of gasoline, which had become so precious since the outbreak of the war. He and Minna sat in the front. Since I didn’t have a very good vantage point in the back, I leaned back and listened to their small talk.

We arrived at a large house situated on Russian Hill and fashioned after an Italian villa. There weren’t any places to park, but that didn’t matter, as a man waited for our arrival. When he saw our car, he waved to Dr Geisler, who pulled up to him and rolled down his window.

‘Dr Geisler? I’m to take your car for you, sir. I’ll park it around the back of the house.’ He opened the door for Minna. I opened my own door and joined Dr Geisler and Minna on the sidewalk in front of the house. ‘Mrs Wills is waiting for you. You can go on up to the house.’

As we got close, the shabbiness of the house became more apparent. It had become difficult in this time of war to find maintenance men, which explained why the paint had faded and greyed in spots. Tall weeds grew in the small lawn, giving the house a look of disrepair, as though no one had cared for the exterior in quite some time. As we approached the front door, I noticed two blue stars, and one gold.

A middle-aged woman dressed in a wool gabardine suit that must have cost the Earth opened the door for us. She wore too much make-up, but had a kind smile that put me at ease. ‘Dr Geisler?’ She spoke in a breathy voice as she extended her hand to him. ‘I’m Virginia Wills. Won’t you come in?’

We stepped into a world of white – white walls, white window frames, and white ceilings – balanced out by a floor constructed of dark wood. An old sideboard, too massive to move, held an old oil lamp. Bright spots on the walls marked the places where the rest of the furniture used to be. A large window encompassed the entire western-facing wall, filling the room with light.

When I moved into the beams that shone through the window, the room grew so cold that my breath came out in curlicues of fog.

Dr Geisler and Minna were busy with Mrs Wills, so they didn’t notice me, shivering and freezing as though I were outside in a snowstorm.

‘Most of the furniture’s been moved out already,’ Mrs Wills explained, ‘but I’ve got tea ready in here.’

The room warmed once again, and I lingered for a moment in a beam of sunlight.

‘This way, please.’

We followed Mrs Wills as she led us down a dark corridor into a sitting room with a bay window that overlooked the street. Two armchairs and two dining chairs had been arranged in a circle, so we would have a place to sit. A tea trolley on rollers held a silver coffee service. Mrs Wills busied herself pouring for the three of us.

‘I’m getting a feeling,’ Minna said. She stood in front of the bay window, bathed in the late morning light, and touched the back of her hand to her forehead.

Mrs Wills gasped.

Dr Geisler narrowed his eyes as he watched Minna turn in a slow circle.

He doesn’t believe her.

‘Somebody has died in this house,’ she said.

‘Yes,’ Mrs Wills said in awe.

Minna held her hands out and tipped her head back. Everyone held their breath. Minna dropped her hands to her sides and shook her head.

‘It’s no good. It’s gone. I’m sorry.’

Minna floated with a dancer’s grace over to one of the chairs. Mrs Wills offered her a cup of coffee, but Minna waved her off, opting to tip her head back and close her eyes in quiet repose.

Mrs Wills set the cup she had offered Minna on the tray. She pulled a handkerchief out of her pocket and dabbed at her eyes. Dr Geisler waited, sipping his coffee, as though we had all the time in the world. When he spoke, his gentle voice echoed off the walls.

‘Would you like to tell us what’s happened, Mrs Wills?’

‘You’re a psychiatrist, correct?’

‘Yes, madam. I am a licensed medical doctor, whose specialty is psychiatry.’

‘I think I’m going mad, Dr Geisler.’ The hand that held the cup started to tremble. Mrs Wills set it down. She closed her eyes and took a deep breath.

‘My great-grandfather built this home, and my family has lived in it ever since. My mother was born in this house, and so was I. My children and I are going to move into the housing at Hamilton Air Force Base. My husband’s a pilot.’ Fresh tears welled in her eyes. ‘That’s not important. We are going to put beds in here and make a place for servicemen to live before they ship out. I’ve seen the pictures in the newspaper, with the poor men sleeping in hotel lobbies. I want to do my part, and this house is empty, so I don’t know why this is so hard for me.’ She paused and smoothed out a non-existent wrinkle in her skirt. ‘Things have been moving.’ Her gaze met Dr Geisler’s, as if to gauge his reaction to the words she found so shocking.

‘There’s nothing to be ashamed of, Mrs Wills.’

‘Silverware started going missing. At first, I thought the workmen were stealing, but I discovered the missing items tucked into the old sideboard. Last week, I came to let the painters in. I turned my back for just a minute, not even that. My purse and car keys disappeared. I found them in the sideboard as well. I didn’t put them there, of that I am certain. Why would I?’

‘How did you come to look in the sideboard to find the items?’

‘It’s the only piece of furniture in the house. It’s too big to move, and it doesn’t fit anywhere in my new home. The painters worked all morning and went to lunch. When they came back, all of their paintbrushes had been cleaned and dried, as though they were brand new. We found them in the sideboard.’

Dr Geisler spoke, but his voice faded away. I gulped the weak coffee, but my throat tightened as I swallowed it.

‘Excuse me,’ I heard myself say as I stood up.

The walls had started to undulate. When I giggled out loud, Dr Geisler put his coffee cup down and turned to face me. Out of the corner of my eye, I saw Minna try to stand up, but Dr Geisler shook his head, and she sat back down. All eyes were upon me as I clung to the back of my chair, gasping for breath. Why couldn’t I get enough air? The floor moved beneath my feet, and then everything went still and quiet.

I floated in blissful peace, in a tunnel of pure love. It was warm here, warm to heart, warm to soul. The shape of a man formed near me. As he got close, I could make out his thinning grey hair. He wore a tweed suit, complete with vest and watch fob, reminiscent of the early twentieth century. He stood before me, surveying the room. I couldn’t see Dr Geisler anymore. The light in the tunnel blinded me to everyone but the man. I didn’t fear him. I didn’t fear anything. I had never experienced such perfect bliss.

He surveyed the room. His gaze lit on Mrs Wills. His love for her radiated off his body and enshrouded her in the same white light that encircled me now. So that’s what love looks like. When the man turned his attention to me, the white light around Mrs Wills vanished.

‘Can you see me?’ the man bellowed, frustrated, begging to be heard.

I nodded, not daring to try to speak.

‘By God, you can.’ He moved towards me. ‘Tell her I didn’t mean to scare anyone. It’s my gold watch. It fell behind the sideboard. I don’t want her to lose it. Do you understand me?’

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