The Unsettled Dust
Page 29
As Stephen’s will had been rendered ineffective by Elizabeth’s decease, Harewood, as next of kin, had to play a part, whether he felt competent of not, in winding everything up. Fortunately, Doreen had been taking typing lessons, and had bought a secondhand machine with her own money.
The flat was found to be in the most shocking state, almost indescribable. It was as if there had been no visitors for years; which, as Harewood at once pointed out, had almost certainly been more or less the case, since the onset of Elizabeth’s malady, an epoch ago.
A single, very unusual book about Harewood’s own speciality was found. It had been published in a limited edition: a minute one, and at a price so high that Harewood himself had not been among the subscribers.
‘Poor fellow!’ said Harewood. ‘I never knew that he was really interested. One can make such mistakes.’
The valuable book had of course to be disposed of for the benefit of the estate.
Stephen’s car was so far gone that it could be sold only for scrap; but, in the event, it never was sold at all, because no one could be bothered to drag it away. If one knows where to look, one can see the bits of it still.
About the Author
Robert Fordyce Aickman was born in 1914 in London. He was married to Edith Ray Gregorson from 1941 to 1957. In 1946 the couple, along with Tom and Angela Rolt, set up the Inland Waterways Association to preserve the canals of Britain. It was in 1951 that Aickman, along with Elizabeth Jane Howard, published his first ghost stories entitled We are the Dark. Aickman went on to publish eleven more volumes of horror stories as well as two fantasy novels and two volumes of autobiography. He also edited the first eight volumes of The Fontana Book of Great Ghost Stories. He died in February 1981.
Copyright
This ebook edition first published in 2012
by Faber and Faber Ltd
Bloomsbury House
74–77 Great Russell Street
London WC1B 3DA
All rights reserved
© Robert Aickman, 1990
The right of Robert Aickman to be identified as author of this work has been asserted in accordance with Section 77 of the Copyright, Designs and Patents Act 1988
This ebook is copyright material and must not be copied, reproduced, transferred, distributed, leased, licensed or publicly performed or used in any way except as specifically permitted in writing by the publishers, as allowed under the terms and conditions under which it was purchased or as strictly permitted by applicable copyright law. Any unauthorised distribution or use of this text may be a direct infringement of the author’s and publisher’s rights, and those responsible may be liable in law accordingly
ISBN 978–0–571–29451–0
Table of Contents
Title Page
The Unsettled Dust
The Houses of the Russians
No Stronger Than a Flower
The Cicerones
The Next Glade
Ravissante
Bind Your Hair
The Stains
About the Author
Copyright