Memory Scents by Gayle Eileen Curtis Read Free Book Online

properly because since she’d moved into the house, doors opening on their own had become a frequent occurrence. This had caused her to become almost obsessive about checking them.
                  When James and Kate rang to tell her that they were coming to stay for a couple of days, she’d tried to stop herself sounding too hysterical. The relief that had swept through her was palpable. Almost every day she had spent in the house there had been some incident or another that had either frightened her or made her waste time wondering whether she had caused it herself. Especially after what Grace and Tim had told her at the pub. Hearing about the murders of all those children, particularly one that was found in her garden, had really freaked her out.
                    There had been things left on the kitchen work top that she knew she hadn’t removed from the fridge, pictures falling off the wall for no reason, the television changing channels of its own accord and the most frightening one of all was when the dial moved on the radio. Chrissie had been unpacking some boxes and listening to her favourite radio station when it had suddenly become high pitched and crackly. She went into the kitchen to see what had happened, and as she began fiddling with the aerial she had spotted the dial turning backwards and forwards as if someone was tuning it.
                  Most of the time the house felt warm, homely and familiar, and these were the times that Chrissie really felt she’d made the right decision. And that the future was full of exciting things. But at some point during each day, a cold blanket descended on the cottage like a layer of snow; silent and chilling. It left her feeling sick and fearful and wanting to jump into her car and drive far away from the whole place.    
                  These extreme changes in atmosphere were causing Chrissie to have conflicting emotions. She enjoyed and looked forward to each day in her new house because at times she felt elated. But she also dreaded anticipating the change in atmosphere that could appear at any time. So, gradually and very slowly Chrissie was becoming a nervous wreck; like a large screw being turned inside her head. The offer of some company was grabbed with both hands because Chrissie naively convinced herself that it would all stop for a couple of days.
     
     
     
     
     
     
     
     
     
     
     
     
     
     
     
     
     
     
     
     
     
     
     
     
    CHAPTER FOUR                                                           
     
    NORFOLK 1955
     
     
                  Daphne unscrewed the cap of her flask and inhaled the metallic smell of strong sweet tea that wafted towards her nose.
                  It was a beautiful summer’s day and it was promising to be really warm by the afternoon. She was pleased to be outside for a change. When the weather was bad, Daphne spent time in the library or a café. But she preferred to be in the fresh air, it made her feel free. Something she didn’t feel in her life in general. When she was at home with Tim and Jack, in their big house, with their acre and a half of garden, she felt trapped like a rabbit in a hutch.
                  So, most days during the summer holidays Daphne asked Dora their housekeeper to watch over Tim.
                  They were some of the best days of her life and some of Tim’s worst, something she was oblivious to. Lost in her own world, she never once questioned why Tim hated the summer holidays, unlike other children, who loved them.
                  Daphne leant back on the bench, crossed her feet and breathed deeply. Relief flooded her. She came out most days to be alone, think and reflect. It was like a whole new life she’d created outside her old one. This had been imperative to the well being of her family, even though they