Kingdom by the Sea (Romantic Suspense) Read Free Page B

she suddenly noticed
a book that looked out of place.  She stepped closer and realized what was off. 
It was facing the wrong way; the pages were facing out.
    At
first she ignored it and continued browsing the shelves.  But she found that
her eyes kept wandering back to that one book, high up on the second shelf.
    Now
it was nagging at her.  Apparently she was a hopeless librarian.  Being 5’2,”
she could not reach the book on her own, so she stepped gingerly upon the
rolling ladder and pushed off with one foot. 
    The
wheels squeaked as they careened over, and Nicole brought herself up two steps
and pulled out the book.  The Selected Works of Edgar Allan Poe .  When
she flipped the book around, a sheet of paper suddenly slipped out of it.  A
bit startled, she watched it float out of her reach and drift to the floor. 
    With the book still in hand, Nicole stepped down from the
ladder and picked up the loose sheet.  Page 93.  Printed on it in small type
was the poem “Annabel Lee.”  She surveyed the words:
    It was many and
many a year ago,
    In a kingdom by
the sea,
    That a maiden
there lived whom you may know
    By the name of
Annabel Lee
     
    She
vaguely recalled this one.  It was sort of a tragic love story.  In it, the
narrator speaks of his one love, Annabel Lee, who was taken from him by death. 
Ironically, he blames the angels in Heaven, accusing them of conspiring against
him out of jealousy and spite.
    Just
then, a harsh clacking sound startled her. 
    She
paused.
    Then
she heard it again.  Clack .   A few beats passed— CLACK .
    She
thought it might be coming from outside.  Curiously, she crossed to a narrow
window that stretched alongside a chair in the corner of the room. 
    Through
the criss-crossed glass, she saw her own blurred reflection.  She cupped her
hand over her eyes and pressed up against the window.  From here, the ocean was
a scatter of glittering jewels.  The night wind blew with vigor.  Like an army
of tiny shadows, dark leaves charged across the air—whisked around, appearing
angry and—
    A
massive black bird sped straight toward her and crashed into the window. 
Nicole jumped back, startled, and slapped a hand over her galloping heart. 
    Splayed
on the wet glass, it looked almost like a crumpled leather glove.  Then, with
confusion, she watched the bird peel itself off the glass and move backward. 
    Her
breathing slowed.  And her face began to relax as she realized that it wasn’t a
bird at all.  No, that wouldn’t make sense, she decided.  Surely it had been an
optical illusion.  The leafy end of a tree branch blowing against the glass,
she reasoned.   
    With a sigh, she sank down, curling her body inside the
chair.  She set the Poe book on her knees, flipped it open and began to read. 
It wasn't long before she started to feel drowsy.  The ocean wind kicked up
again and a branch began tapping at the window—a faint, almost rhythmic sound. 
As her eyes drifted across the page, the lines of the poem swirled in her
mind...
    With a love that
the winged seraphs of heaven
    Coveted her and
me.
    And this was the
reason that, long ago,
    In this kingdom
by the sea ...
    That the wind
came out of the cloud by night,
    Chilling and killing
my Annabel Lee...
     
    Intermittently, the branch stopped
tapping and seemed to hover, its leaves flitting gently, as if anticipating. 
On the other side of the glass, someone was waiting.

Chapter Four
    On
Monday morning, Nicole was sitting on the dining room floor, with her file
cabinet wheeled by her side, writing down all the pieces in Aunt Nina's tea
set—trying not to miss her sisters who had left the night before—when the
doorbell rang. 
    The
sound surprised her, especially as she hadn't left the house all weekend and
didn't know anyone in town.  Maybe it was the mailman?
    When
she pulled open the front door, there was no one on the other side of it.
    Curiously,
she stepped outside.  She looked around and paused,