Simon Green - Spirits from Beyond

“It does seem to me,” said Happy, “that we are doing this whole joining together thing a little more often than I am comfortable with. Partly because I am, after all, a very private person. .”

“With so many things it’s best to be private about,” murmured Melody.

“And also because this whole shining with a very bright light thing strikes me as not always being a good thing,” said Happy, doggedly.

“It feels easier every time we do it,” said Kim. “As though we’re learning some useful, and perhaps necessary, skill.”

Happy sniffed loudly. “Is there something you’re not telling us, Kim?”

“More than you can possibly imagine,” said Kim, smiling brightly.

“We do blaze very brightly when we join together,” said Melody. “And everyone knows. . the candle that burns twice as bright lasts half as long. It worries me, as to exactly what it is we’re burning. Our life-force? Our souls?”

Happy sniggered. “Did you just say. .”

“No I didn’t, and you know it,” Melody said sternly. “Try and keep up with the adults in this conversation, Happy.”

“I have considered the problem,” said Happy. “Nothing like being permanently paranoid to give you a healthy interest in all the things that can kill you. . When we blaze so very brightly, you have to wonder whose attention we might be attracting. Nothing like an unexpected light in the dark to catch Something’s eye. All sorts of Somethings. .”

“Well, we know that the inn, or perhaps more properly the local power source, has been blazing brightly enough to pull in all kinds of Really Bad Things,” said Melody. “Like moths to a flame. .”

“Perhaps we’re drawing the attention of whatever it was that first reached down from Outside and put its mark on JC, in the London Underground,” said Happy. “After all, the light we project when we’re joined does seem very like the light that glows from his eyes. . Anything you’d like to add, Kim?”

“I’m not disagreeing,” Kim said carefully.

“But you’re not answering the question,” said Happy.

“Some questions have no straightforward answers,” said Kim.

“I am changing the subject,” announced Melody. “On the grounds that you are making my head ache even more than usual. Hey, JC! Question. Why are we still messing about with the problems of this haunted inn when we know the real trouble comes from the storm raging outside?”

“Because we can do something about haunted inns,” said JC, not looking back. “Haunted inns are in the job description. We know what to do. We don’t know enough about the storm or the power behind it. Not yet. Happy, talk to me!”

“Any particular subject?” said Happy.

“You said earlier. . that what was going on here had attracted forces from Beyond, luring them into our reality. So if we can shut down what’s happening in the rooms on this floor, then maybe we can break, or at the very least weaken, the link between the inn and the Powers infesting it.”

“Good idea,” said Happy. “Worth a try. I suppose.”

“If only things were that simple,” sighed Kim.

* * *

They all gathered together at the top of the stairs, looking up and down the long corridor as it stretched away to either side. The landing was presenting its best Perfectly Normal, Nothing To See Here, Move Along face; but none of them were buying it. They could all feel a cold, spiky tension on the still air, a feeling of forces lying in wait, of things waiting to happen. Bad things. The light was steady, and the shadows lay still, and all the doors were safely, sensibly shut.

But the landing still felt like one big trap, waiting to be sprung.

“All right,” said Happy. “Where do we start? I’m spoilt for choice, for things to flinch away from.”

JC ignored him, giving all his attention to Brook. “Which of these rooms contain Timeslips?”

“You have to be careful,” said Brook, looking about him uneasily. “You can’t be sure of anything, here. The rooms move around, behind closed doors. Any door you choose might open onto a different Time period.”

“And yet you let us stay in rooms up here, without warning us!” said Melody, angrily.

“I said I’m sorry!” said Brook.

“And that’s supposed to be enough?” said Melody. “Where’s my gun. .”

“Leave the man alone, Mel,” JC said firmly. “He is our native guide in treacherous territory. We need him.”

“Yeah,” growled Happy. “We can always use someone to throw into a dangerous situation, just to see what happens.”

“Don’t listen to the nasty telepath, Adrian,” said JC. “We would never do that to you. Unless it was necessary. Or funny. Now, tell me how to find a room with a Timeslip. There must be a way. .”

The barman nodded slowly, reluctantly. “You do develop a. . feel for them after a while. That’s why I thought you’d be safe in the rooms I chose for you. Be fair; whatever you experienced in those rooms, it wasn’t anything to do with Timeslips, was it?”

“Still looking for my gun. .” said Melody.

“There’s a door down here,” Brook said quickly. “It’s got the right kind of feel to it.”

He headed quickly off down the right-hand corridor, looking closely at each door he passed but not stopping until he was half-way down the landing. JC led the others after him, all of them keeping a careful eye out for anything unnatural, or even out of the ordinary. The doors they passed stayed firmly shut, apparently perfectly normal. Brook stood uneasily before his chosen door. It didn’t look any different from any of the others. He took out his keys, fumbled through them to find one particular key, then stopped. He looked miserably at JC, who nodded firmly back. Brook unlocked the door, turned the door-handle very carefully, then pushed the door open an inch. He stepped back from the door, retreating quickly until his back slammed up against the wall on the far side of the landing. JC gestured for the others to stay put and moved forward to stand beside Brook.

“What’s in this room, Adrian? What lies behind that door? Which particular part of Time Past does it hold?”

“I don’t know,” said Brook, all his attention focused on the slightly open door. “I never know. The only way to find out is to look inside. But be careful; what’s there has a way of sucking you in. .”

“We ain’t frightened of no room,” said JC. “Only. . reasonably cautious.”

He moved forward and pushed the door all the way open with one hard shove. Everyone tensed, trying to be ready for anything; but nothing emerged from the room. JC moved cautiously forward, one step at a time, until he was standing right before the open doorway. As close as he could get without actually entering the room itself. He planted both feet firmly on the threshold and placed both hands against either side of the door-frame, before looking inside the room. The room looked placidly back at him. It seemed like a perfectly ordinary, everyday room. All the usual furnishings. No-one there. JC leaned forward, studying every detail.

“Don’t go in!” Brook said loudly from the far side of the corridor. “Crossing the threshold takes you out of this Time and into the Past. And once that door slams shut, you’re lost in the Past. Like all my missing guests.”

“Are you sure this is a Timeslip?” said JC. “I can’t see anything obviously old-fashioned.”

“Well, there are two clues,” said Brook. “First, none of my rooms have furnishings like that. I had the whole place redecorated when I took over. And second, that’s bright sunlight falling through the room’s window.”

“Ah. Yes,” said JC. “Look at that daylight when it’s night here. Bit of a giveaway, that. Well spotted, Adrian! So the room appearing so normal was part of the trap, to lure me in. Interesting. .”