Carnacki, The Ghost Finder | Page 4

I knew you would want to look at the seals, and somehow it
seems safer if there's two, sir.'
"'Peter,' I said, 'you're a brick. This is very thoughtful of you.' And I
drank the coffee. 'Come along,' I told him, and handed him back the
tray. 'I'm going to have a look at what the Brutes have been up to. I
simply hadn't the pluck to in the night.'
"'I'm very thankful, sir,' he replied. 'Flesh and blood can do nothing, sir,
against devils; and that's what's in the Grey Room after dark.'
"I examined the seals on all the doors, as I went along, and found them
right; but when I got to the Grey Room, the seal was broken; though
the card, over the keyhole, was untouched. I ripped it off, and unlocked

the door, and went in, rather cautiously, as you can imagine; but the
whole room was empty of anything to frighten one, and there was
heaps of light. I examined all my seals, and not a single one was
disturbed. The old butler had followed me in, and, suddenly, he called
out:--'The bedclothes, sir!'
"I ran up to the bed, and looked over; and, surely, they were lying in the
corner to the left of the bed. Jove! you can imagine how queer I felt.
Something had been in the room. I stared for a while, from the bed, to
the clothes on the floor. I had a feeling that I did not want to touch
either. Old Peter, though, did not seem to be affected that way. He went
over to the bed coverings, and was going to pick them up, as, doubtless,
he had done every day these twenty years back; but I stopped him. I
wanted nothing touched, until I had finished my examination. This, I
must have spent a full hour over, and then I let Peter straighten up the
bed; after which we went out, and I locked the door; for the room was
getting on my nerves.
"I had a short walk, and then breakfast; after which I felt more my own
man, and so returned to the Grey Room, and, with Peter's help, and one
of the maids, I had everything taken out of the room, except the
bed--even the very pictures. I examined the walls, floor and ceiling then,
with probe, hammer and magnifying glass; but found nothing
suspicious. And I can assure you, I began to realize, in very truth, that
some incredible thing had been loose in the room during the past night.
I sealed up everything again, and went out, locking and sealing the door,
as before.
"After dinner, Peter and I unpacked some of my stuff, and I fixed up
my camera and flashlight opposite to the door of the Grey Room, with
a string from the trigger of the flashlight to the door. Then, you see, if
the door were really opened, the flashlight would blare out, and there
would be, possibly, a very queer picture to examine in the morning.
The last thing I did, before leaving, was to uncap the lens; and after that
I went off to my bedroom, and to bed; for I intended to be up at
midnight; and to ensure this, I set my little alarm to call me; also I left
my candle burning.

"The clock woke me at twelve, and I got up and into my dressing gown
and slippers. I shoved my revolver into my right side-pocket, and
opened my door. Then, I lit my darkroom lamp, and withdrew the slide,
so that it would give a clear light. I carried it up the corridor, about
thirty feet, and put it down on the floor, with the open side away from
me, so that it would show me anything that might approach along the
dark passage. Then I went back, and sat in the doorway of my room,
with my revolver handy, staring up the passage toward the place where
I knew my camera stood outside the door of the Grey Room.
"I should think I had watched for about an hour and a half, when,
suddenly, I heard a faint noise, away up the corridor. I was immediately
conscious of a queer prickling sensation about the back of my head, and
my hands began to sweat a little. The following instant, the whole end
of the passage flicked into sight in the abrupt glare of the flashlight.
There came the succeeding darkness, and I peered nervously up the
corridor, listening tensely, and trying to find what lay beyond the faint
glow of my dark-lamp, which now seemed ridiculously dim by contrast
with the tremendous blaze of the flash-power.... And then, as I stooped
forward, staring and listening, there came the crashing thud of