Lady Fairclough pulled a handkerchief from her wrist and dabbed at her eyes. "Mr. Holmes, I have seen that strange room at Llewellyn Hall at Pontefract, and I can believe your every word, for all that I agree with Dr. Watson as to the fantastic nature of what you say. Might I ask how you know of this?"
"Very well," Holmes assented, "You are entitled to that information. I told you before we left Claridge's that I had spent the night in research. There are many books in my library, most of which are open to my associate, Dr. Watson, and to other men of goodwill, as surely he is. But there are others which I keep under lock and key."
"I am aware of that, Holmes," I interjected, "and I will admit that I have been hurt by your unwillingness to share those volumes with me. Often have I wondered what they contain."
"Good Watson, it was for your own protection, I assure you. Watson, Lady Fairclough, those books include De los Mundos Amenazantes y Sombriosos of Carlos Alfredo de Torrijos, Emmorragia Sante of Luigi Humberto Rosso, and Das Bestrafen von der Tugendhaft of Heinrich Ludvig Georg von Feldenstein, as well as the works of the brilliant Mr. Arthur Machen, of whom you may have heard. These tomes, some of them well over a thousand years old and citing still more remote sources whose origins are lost in the mists of antiquity, are frighteningly consistent in their predic¬tions. Further, several of them, Lady Fairclough, refer to a certain powerful and fearsome mystical gesture."
Although Holmes was addressing our feminine companion, I said, "Gesture, Holmes? Mystical gesture? What nonsense is this?"
"Not nonsense at all, Watson. You are doubtless aware of the movement that our Romish brethren refer to as 'crossing themselves.' The Hebrews have a gesture of cabalistic origin that is alleged to bring good luck, and the Gypsies make a sign to turn away the evil eye. Several Asian races perform 'hand dances,' ceremonials of religious or magical significance, including the famous hoola known on the islands of Oahu and Maui in the Hawai`ian archipelago."
"But these are all foolish superstitions, remnants of an earlier and more credulous age. Surely there is nothing to them, Holmes!"
"I wish I could have your assuredness, Watson. You are a man of science, for which I commend you, but 'There are more things in heaven and earth, Horatio, than are dreamed of in your philosophy' Do not be too quick, Watson, to dismiss old beliefs. More often than not they have a basis in fact."
I shook my head and turned my eyes once more to the wintry countryside through which our conveyance was passing. Holmes addressed himself to our companion.
"Lady Fairclough, you mentioned a peculiar gesture that the dark stranger made at the conclusion of your brother's wedding ceremony."
"I did, yes. It was so strange, I felt almost as if I were being drawn into another world when he moved his hand. I tried to follow the movements, but I could not. And then he was gone."
Holmes nodded rapidly.
"The Voorish Sign, Lady Fairclough. The stranger was making the Voorish Sign. It is referred to in the works of Machen and others. It is a very powerful and a very evil gesture. You were fortunate that you were not drawn into that other world, fortunate indeed."
Before much longer we reached the rail terminus nearest to Merthyr Tydfil. We left our compartment and shortly were ensconced in a creaking trap whose driver whipped up his team and headed for the Anthracite Palace. It was obvious from his demeanor that the manor was a familiar landmark in the region.
"We should be greeted by Mrs. Morrissey, our housekeeper, when we reach the manor," Lady Fairclough said. "It was she who notified me of my brother's straits. She is the last of our old family retainers to remain with the Llewellyns of Merthyr Tydfil. One by one the new lady of the manor has arranged their departure and replaced them with a swarthy crew of her own countrymen. Oh, Mr. Holmes, it is all so horrid!"
Holmes did his best to comfort the frightened woman.
Soon the Anthracite Palace hove into view. As its name would suggest, it was built of the local native coal. Architects and masons had carved the jet black deposits into building blocks and created an edifice that stood like a black jewel against the white backing of snow, its battlements glittering in the wintry sunlight.
Our trap was met by a liveried servant who instructed lesser servants to carry our meager luggage into the manor. Lady Fairclough, Holmes, and I were ourselves conducted into the main hall.
The building was lit with oversized candles whose flames were so shielded as to prevent any danger of the coal walls catching fire. It struck me that the Anthracite Palace was one of the strangest architectural conceits I had ever encountered. "Not a place I would like to live in, eh, Holmes?" I was trying for a tone of levity, but must confess that I failed to achieve it.
We were left waiting for an excessive period of time, in my opinion, but at length a tall wooden door swung back and a woman of commanding presence, exotic in appearance with her swarthy complexion, flashing eyes, sable locks and shockingly reddened lips, entered the hall. She nodded to Holmes and myself and exchanged a frigid semblance of a kiss with Lady Fairclough, whom she addressed as "sister."
Lady Fairclough demanded to see her brother, but Mrs. Llewellyn refused conversation until we were shown to our rooms and had time to refresh ourselves. We were summoned, in due course, to the dining hall. I was famished, and both relieved and my appetite further excited by the delicious odors that came to us as we were seated at the long, linen covered table.
Only four persons were present. These were, of course, Holmes and myself, Lady Fairclough, and our hostess, Mrs. Llewellyn.
Lady Fairclough attempted once again to inquire as to the whereabouts of her brother, Philip.
Her sister-in-law replied only, "He is pursuing his devotions. We shall see him when the time comes 'round."
Failing to learn more about her brother, Lady Fairclough asked after the housekeeper, Mrs. Morrissey.
"I have sad news, sister dear," Mrs. Llewellyn said. "Mrs. Morrissey was taken ill very suddenly. Philip personally drove into Merthyr Tydfil to fetch a physician for her, but by the time they arrived, Mrs. Morrissey had expired. She was buried in the town cemetery. This all happened just last week. I knew that you were already en route from Canada, and it seemed best not to further distress you with this information."
"Oh no," Lady Fairclough gasped. "Not Mrs. Morrissey! She was like a mother to me. She was the kindest, dearest of women. She—" Lady Fairclough stopped, pressing her hand to her mouth. She inhaled deeply. "Very well, then." I could see a look of determination rising like a banked flame deep in her eye. "If she has died there is naught to be done for it."
There was a pillar of strength hidden within this seemingly weak female. I would not care to make an enemy of Lady Fairclough. I noted also that Mrs. Llewellyn spoke English fluently but with an accent that I found thoroughly unpleasant. It seemed to me that she, in turn, found the language distasteful. Clearly, these two were fated to clash. But the tension of the moment was bro¬ken by the arrival of our viands.
The repast was sumptuous in appearance, but every course, it seemed to me, had some flaw—an excessive use of spice, an overdone vegetable, an undercooked piece of meat or game, a fish that might have been kept a day too long before serving, a cream that had stood in a warm kitchen an hour longer than was wise. By the end of the meal my appetite had departed, but it was replaced by a sensation of queasiness and discomfort rather than satisfaction.
Servants brought cigars for Holmes and myself, an after dinner brandy for the men, and sweet sherry for the women, but I put out my cigar after a single draft and noticed that Holmes did the same with his own. Even the beverage seemed in some subtle way to be faulty.
"Mrs. Llewellyn." Lady Fairclough addressed her sister-in-law when at last the latter seemed unable longer to delay confrontation. "I received a telegram via transatlantic cable concerning the disappearance of my brother. He failed to greet us upon our arrival, nor has there been any sign of his presence since then. I demand to know his whereabouts."
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"Sister dear," replied Anastasia Romelly Llewellyn, "that telegram should never have been sent. Mrs. Morrissey transmitted it from Merthyr Tydfil while in town on an errand for the palace. When I learned of her presumption I determined to send her packing, I can assure you. It was only her unfortunate demise that prevented my doing so."
At this point my friend Holmes addressed our hostess.
"Madam, Lady Fairclough has journeyed from Canada to learn of her brother's circumstances. She has engaged me, along with my associate, Dr. Watson, to assist her in this enterprise. It is not my desire to make this affair any more unpleasant than is necessary, but I must insist upon your providing the information that Lady Fairclough is seeking."
I believe at this point that I observed a smirk, or at least the suggestion of one, pass across the face of Mrs. Llewellyn. But she quickly responded to Holmes's demand, her peculiar accent as pronounced and unpleasant as ever.
"We have planned a small religious service for this evening. You are all invited to attend, of course, even though I had expected only my dear sister-in-law to do so. However, the larger group will be accommodated."
"What is the nature of this religious service?" Lady Fairclough demanded.
Mrs. Llewellyn smiled. "It will be that of the Wisdom Temple, of course. The Wisdom Temple of the Dark Heavens. It is my hope that Bishop Romanova herself will preside, but absent her participation we can still conduct the service ourselves."
I reached for my pocket watch. "It's getting late, madam. Might I suggest that we get started, then!"
Mrs. Llewellyn turned her eyes upon me. In the flickering candlelight they seemed larger and darker than ever. "You do not understand, Dr. Watson. It is too early rather than too late to start our ceremony. We will proceed precisely at midnight. Until then, please feel free to enjoy the paintings and tapestries with which the Anthracite Palace is decorated, or pass the time in Mr. Llewellyn's library. Or, if you prefer, you may of course retire to your quarters and seek sleep."
Thus it was that we three separated temporarily, Lady Fairclough to pass some hours with her husband's chosen books, Holmes to an examination of the palace's art treasures, and I to bed.
I was awakened from a troubled slumber haunted by strange beings of nebulous form. Standing over my bed, shaking me by the shoulder, was my friend Sherlock Holmes. I could see a rim of snow adhering to the edges of his boots.
"Come, Watson," said he, "the game is truly afoot, and it is by far the strangest game we are ever likely to pursue."
Swiftly donning my attire, I accompanied Holmes as we made our way to Lady Fairclough's chamber. She had retired there after spending the hours since dinner in her brother's library, to refresh herself. She must have been awaiting our arrival, for she responded without delay to Holmes's knock and the sound of his voice.
Before we proceeded further Holmes drew me aside. He reached inside his vest and withdrew a small object which he held concealed in his hand. I could not see its shape, for he held it inside a clenched fist, but I could tell that it emitted a dark radiance, a faint suggestion of which I could see between his fingers.
"Watson," quoth he, "I am going to give you this. You must swear to me that you will not look at it, on pain of damage beyond anything you can so much as imagine. You must keep it upon your person, if possible in direct contact with your body, at all times. If all goes well this night, I will ask you to return it to me. If all does not go well, it may save your life."
I held my hand toward him.
Placing the object on my outstretched palm, Holmes closed my own fingers carefully around it. Surely this was the strangest object I had ever encountered. It was unpleasantly warm, its texture like that of an overcooked egg, and it seemed to squirm as if it were alive, or perhaps as if it contained something that lived and strove to escape an imprisoning integument.
"Do not look at it," Holmes repeated. "Keep it with you at all times. Promise me you will do these things, Watson!"
I assured him that I would do as he requested.
Momentarily we beheld Mrs. Llewellyn moving down the hallway toward us. Her stride was so smooth and her progress so steady that she seemed to be gliding rather than walking. She carried a kerosene lamp whose flame reflected from the polished blackness of the walls, casting ghostly shadows of us all.
Speaking not a word, she gestured to us, summoning us to follow her. We proceeded along a series of corridors and up and down staircases until, I warrant, I lost all sense of direction and of elevation. I could not tell whether we had climbed to a room in one of the battlements of the Anthracite Palace or descended to a dungeon beneath the Llewellyns' ancestral home. I had placed the object Holmes had entrusted to me inside my garments. I could feel it struggling to escape, but it was bound in place and could not do so.
"Where is this bishop you promised us?" I asked of Mrs. Llewellyn.
Our hostess turned toward me. She had replaced her colorful Gypsyish attire with a robe of dark purple. Its color reminded me of the emanations of the warm object concealed now within my own clothing. Her robe was marked with embroidery of a pattern that confused the eye so that I was unable to discern its nature.
"You misunderstood me, Doctor," she intoned in her unpleasant accent. "I stated merely that it was my hope that Bishop Romanova would preside at our service. Such is still the case. We shall see in due time."
We stood now before a heavy door bound with rough iron bands. Mrs. Llewellyn lifted a key which hung suspended about her neck on a ribbon of crimson hue. She inserted it into the lock and turned it. She then requested Holmes and myself to apply our combined strength to opening the door. As we did so, pressing our shoulders against it, my impression was that the resistance came from some willful reluctance rather than a mere matter of weight or decay.
No light preceded us into the room, but Mrs. Llewellyn strode through the doorway carrying her kerosene lamp before her. Its rays now reflected off the walls of the chamber. The room was as Lady Fairclough had described the sealed room in her erstwhile home at Pontefract. The configuration and even the number of surfaces that surrounded us seemed unstable. I was unable even to count them. The very angles at which they met defied my every attempt to comprehend.
An altar of polished anthracite was the sole furnishing of this hideous, irrational chamber.
Mrs. Llewellyn placed her kerosene lamp upon the altar. She turned then, and indicated with a peculiar gesture of her hand that we were to kneel as if participants in a more conventional religious ceremony.
I was reluctant to comply with her silent command, but Holmes nodded to me, indicating that he wished me to do so. I lowered myself, noting that Lady Fairclough and Holmes himself emulated my act.
Before us, and facing the black altar, Mrs. Llewellyn also knelt. She raised her face as if seeking supernatural guidance from above, causing me to remember that the full name of her peculiar sect was the Wisdom Temple of the Dark Heavens. She commenced a weird chanting in a language such as I had never heard, not in all my travels. There was a suggestion of the argot of the dervishes of Afghanistan, something of the Buddhist monks of Tibet, and a hint of the remnant of the ancient Incan language still spoken by the remotest tribes of the high Chaco plain of the Chilean Andes, but in fact the language was none of these and the few words that I was able to make out proved both puzzling and suggestive but never specific in their meaning.
As Mrs. Llewellyn continued her chanting, she slowly raised first one hand then the other above her head. Her fingers were moving in an intricate pattern. I tried to follow their progress but found my consciousness fading into a state of confusion. I could have sworn that her fingers twined and knotted like the tentacles of a jellyfish. Their colors, too, shifted: vermilion, scarlet, obsidian. They seemed, even, to disappear into and return from some concealed realm invisible to my fascinated eyes.
The object that Holmes had given me throbbed and squirmed against my body, its unpleasantly hot and squamous presence m
aking me wish desperately to rid myself of it. It was only my pledge to Holmes that prevented me from doing so.
I clenched my teeth and squeezed my eyes shut, summoning up images from my youth and of my travels, holding my hand clasped over the object as I did so. Suddenly the tension was released. The object was still there, but as if it had a consciousness of its own, it seemed to grow calm. My own jaw relaxed and I opened my eyes to behold a surprising sight.
Before me there emerged another figure. As Mrs. Llewellyn was stocky and swarthy, of the model of Gypsy women, this person was tall and graceful. Swathed entirely in jet, with hair a seeming midnight blue and complexion as black as the darkest African, she defied my conventional ideas of beauty with a weird and exotic glamour of her own that defies description. Her features were as finely cut as those of the ancient Ethiopians are said to have been, her movements filled with a grace that would shame the pride of Covent Garden or the Bolshoi.
But whence had this apparition made her way? Still kneeling upon the ebon floor of the sealed room, I shook my head. She seemed to have emerged from the very angle between the walls.
She floated toward the altar, lifted the chimney from the kerosene lamp, and doused its flame with the palm of her bare hand.
Instantly the room was plunged into stygian darkness, but gradually a new light, if so I may describe it, replaced the flickering illumination of the kerosene lamp. It was a light of darkness, if you will, a glow of blackness deeper than the blackness which surrounded us, and yet by its light I could see my companions and my surroundings.
The tall woman smiled in benediction upon the four of us assembled, and gestured toward the angle between the walls. With infinite grace and seemingly glacial slowness she drifted toward the opening, through which I now perceived forms of such maddeningly chaotic configuration that I can only hint at their nature by suggesting the weird paintings that decorate the crypts of the Pharaohs, the carved stele of the mysterious Mayans, the monoliths of Mauna Loa, and the demons of Tibetan sand paintings.
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