The Lost Treasure Map Series (17 page)

Mortimer carefully fixed it up. He was very
experienced with such devices, and Bryson wondered if they could
find anything if given enough time.

“
It runs
–
and it
’ll
automatically turn off
...
”

Bryson carefully fitted it into his bag, and
he securely fixed it onto his jacket, so that he could easily
remove it.

He had found the perfect place for it, but
he would have to do some awkward climbing to reach there.

Merton and Mortimer stood at the door, as he
strolled over the snow towards the trees.

As he pulled himself up the first branches,
lightly gripping them, using his legs against its trunk more, he
decided to try to achieve a quick climb.

Its branches were more like a strange
ladder, evenly spaced, at a few feet apart. The scent of pine
mingling with the snow was overwhelming. The view captivated him,
encouraging him to keep going up.

Were they wasting their time? Would ghosts
activate this equipment?

It might be useless too, as strong winds and
swaying trees might ruin the project. A storm might swiftly use up
the memory and battery power. But he doubted it! He was now more
interested in if it would do its job in a storm.

He realized that they were using the latest
technology available, and that science might have finally advanced
far enough to get perfect recordings of ghosts.

He considered adapting other technology to
progress further.

Perhaps, as Mortimer had once suggested, one
day scientists would be the first to capture a ghost with such
technology.

A gust of wind made the tree sway about,
causing snow to fall over him, and he stopped until it
subsided.

The view from the tree was
tremendous
–
and he saw that he was high enough already.

Merton and Mortimer
’s
figures were in the shade
of the building
–
with their arms firmly folded
–
looking slightly
bemused.

Bryson rested over a branch, occasionally
testing its safety. And he spotted a better place for the camera,
where it was not observable.

If Merton and Mortimer had not been there,
and anxiously waiting on his return, he would stay where he was to
rest more.

He considered if there was any primal
instinct in his genes to like being in the tree, considering humans
had such close genetic links to monkeys.

It was relaxing and interesting!

What would it be like staying there though,
in a tree house?

He had seen them out in Africa, with all the
comforts that he needed.

Once he had set up the camera, he began
descending, shifting downwards, and he quickly arrived at the lower
branches.

Mortimer moved down into the lower vault,
with his equipment. While Merton continued setting up a sound
recording instrument, behind the stairs, next to a window.

At the door, Bryson observed the tree, and
instantly noticed how hidden it was, and that he would not see it.
If the presence of the equipment altered anything, it might work
better.

If anything, it was far more
interesting than Mortimer
’s
plan. He could not imagine anything
happening there.

His sight fell on the interior of the vault,
and he remembered the sounds in the room.

What was causing it?

Everything had a logical reason! Why could
there not be anything existing there? Why would there not be
anything at the tombs? In other words, he did not fully understand,
and he did not believe anyone properly knew, from what he had
heard.

Merton finished, and he followed him down
the stairs to Mortimer.

What sounds would they find there? He
tried to see Mortimer
’s
view, and why it would not be a waste of
time monitoring there.

Merton and Mortimer adjusted a
machine, and tested its recording ability. It fascinated
them
–
capturing spirits from the afterlife, with such
devices.

Bryson removed a bottle of wine, which he
had managed to carry, and he poured it down his dry throat. Then he
continued to take swigs, as he felt it restore his energy.

He tried to think of a new ways of detecting
things.

Mortimer passed him, checking what he was
doing, as he went to another place.

Bryson imagined a black shape in the pine
trees, through a window at the top of the stairs, resembling a
ghost animal. Like some primordial memory of an ape, hidden in its
blackness. Like a spirit merged with a yeti.

Why did large creatures not exist out here.
Although apes and monkeys did not inhabit such northerly regions,
normal bears survived in Alaska. While polar animals liked
surviving at unbelievable temperatures.

Foxes and deer had survived
–
while wolves,
bears, and large cats had not.

It was relaxing sitting at such a place.

He observed wisps of smoke forming
ghostly shapes, over the dimness below him, from
Merton
’s
cigarette.

A gust of wind entering through the door,
soon shifted the shapes, dispersing them through the air.

Merton was now content to remain there. He
insisted that Mortimer wanted to put the equipment there without
any help.

He recognized some of
Mortimer
’s
antics, and that he was going to be there a long time
–
setting
everything up at the precise places and angles, in the way that
only he could do it.

Mortimer tapped away at a nail, trying
not to make the noise too loud
–
thrusting it just hard enough to insert it
into a crack in the vault wall.

They covered everything
–
with as much
consideration as possible
–
in the time that they had given themselves.
Mortimer still seemed to have thoughts about the camera in the
tree. Though he was now sure that he thought that there was a good
reason having it there.

The idea had originated from their
conversations in the library
–
that they had built the burial site on the
place where spirits, or whatever, dwelt.

Mortimer glimpsed at his watch, and it made
him clumsily drop a wire from a machine that he was fitting in
place.

Bryson suddenly realized that he was
concentrating the equipment around the tomb of William Randall!

Chapter 35

Beyond
Comprehension

Bryson settled down, removed his jacket, and
realized that the servants were behaving strangely.

He sensed a disturbing disbelief about
something, and that there was something going to occur. Yet there
was no indication of what! It seemed, as the servants marched
about, doing their regular finishing duties, like they expected
them to know or somehow sense it.

It was not only their peculiar reactions,
including their rush to escape from the place. Inspector Bailey had
a nervous appearance, about something, which seemed above his
jurisdiction, and which made him gladly retreat, away to his
room.

It had to be to do with the others, and,
perhaps, what they were doing to find the money. It almost seemed
grotesque, whatever it was.

Were they going to dig up some hideous thing
or destroy something that they should not?

Then, as they left the dark and silent
hallway, faint murmurs of a stranger
’s
voice began emerging
–
from within the
firmly shut door of the dining room.

Merton hesitated
–
moved in front of
them
–
and
shoved his head into a gap in the door.

“
My god!
”
he whispered, but swiftly calmed
himself, realizing the true nature of something, leaving them
wondering what the cause of such a reaction could be.

In the deep blackness, within the room, a
few glowing faces, near flickering yellow flames, on candles,
became visible.

Mortimer glanced in, shut the door,
and showed deep concern.
“
They
’ve
a spiritualist!
”

“
Doing what?
”
Bryson asked confused, now not
recognizing what the problem was.

“
They
’re
holding a
séance!
”

He peeped through the gap in the door, which
this time obviously disturbed the people within.

“
What do they want with
her?
”
he
mumbled.

Robert appeared from the edge of the door,
emerging from dimness, and came through into the hall, swiftly
closing the door behind him.

“
What are they up
to?
”
Merton
gasped, thinking of some implications.

“
They
’re
trying to speak to the spirits
...
”
he
muttered, slightly embarrassed.

“
Why?
”

He smiled, and put his hand at his
hip.
“
To
cut a long story short
–
after a discussion
–
they decided to bring in a medium
to get more information about where the money is. It sounds absurd!
I know ... But
we
’re
having a great deal of fun
anyway!
”

Merton and Mortimer stared at each other,
giving some hidden communication, making him wonder which of them
was the most affected.

“
It should be
interesting,
”
Merton finally remarked, to Robert, looking at
Mortimer.
“
We don
’t
usually allow people to overshadow us in
our detection methods.
”

“
You
’re
right,
”
Mortimer replied firmly, as though
talking to himself.
“
I
’d
like to see what happens
...
”

“
Has anything
occurred?
”
Bryson stated, and Robert nodded that there had not been.
However, it was clear that they had just started.

Robert crept back in, leading them over to a
place at the side of the room, where they could observe, without
disturbing anything.

At first, the medium, an elderly
woman, seemed old-fashioned
–
dressed suggestively like a
fortune-teller
–
using candles in a dark room
–
but it became apparent that she was
creating an atmosphere.

She obviously was not doing it as an
experiment, but like a game, customarily done on special
occasions.

The people around the table, sat silently,
waiting to see what was going to happen, before giving any hint of
their opinions.

Even though James had begun giving an
occasional shrug
–
perhaps explaining how stupid he
felt.

The woman
’s
eyes went wide, and she touched
the table with her fingertips, feeling for any forces. She showed
no sign of knowing what she was dealing with, and he doubted if
anyone had told her what could be there.

If they had arrived earlier, they would have
been able to explain the situation. She surely must believe in
something. What was at the castle might react to her taunts!

Yet it did seem safe: she was just carrying
out her procedure. And she did not sense anything different there.
Perhaps it would take time though, or it was too early, and that
she would need to do it at night.

Her head vibrated, and she shuddered. Then
she prepared to do something, which mildly amused James, who now
made an absurd expression.

Merton and Mortimer were devoted to
searching for anything out of the ordinary. They seemed to signal
each other, as it went on, that they were not missing anything.

It did interest and excite most of
them, which was what she was concerned with, and he was sure that
she would start to act more as soon as they started to become
interested in it. She was absorbing their interest
–
stretching
things out, waiting to put in the climax.

Mortimer uttered something to Merton.

Some noises made her open her eyes wide. She
looked in their direction, into the dimness.

Her attitude visibly altered. She became
serious and cautious about what she was doing, as if realizing that
there might be something wrong with what she was doing.

The shadows of the people at the table
shifted about, as the candle flames reacted to breezes. The medium
used it, as one of her tools, to achieve her goal, to show that
there could be some form of presence giving a reaction, and she
almost tried to force something into taking place.

Some of the others observed the awesome
sight, created mainly by the atmosphere there, not budging in any
way, determined to see it through to the end, perhaps to obtain a
conclusion (and perhaps receive answers to everything that they had
witnessed at the castle, and to where the money was).