The House Of The Bears by John Creasey Read Free Book Online Page B

“Dangerous Hill” sign about thirty miles out of Corbin. It’ll be illuminated, but don’t miss it.’
     
    The first hour was a pleasant ride. Then darkness fell, and they came up a steep hill after passing a sign at a left-hand turning – not an illuminated sign. The engine of the Talbot laboured. The headlights suddenly seemed to strike a wall, a wall that looked like the road. Palfrey put on the brakes and the car stopped. All he could see on one side was rocks, on the other a void; in front of him was the road at that astonishingly steep incline, and so narrow that there looked hardly room for two cars to pass.
    ‘What’s on that side?’ asked Drusilla, nervously.
    ‘I don’t know,’ said Palfrey; but he did know. The edge of the road was also the edge of the cliffs, with a sheer drop into the sea. ‘I doubt if we can try to get up it in the dark,’ he said. ‘I’ll back down. There was a turning to the left, wasn’t there?’
    After travelling ten yards or so, he put the brakes on full. ‘You’d better get out with the torch,’ he said. ‘Don’t go near the right-hand side; just keep your torch-light on it. Sorry, sweet.’
    ‘It’s all right,’ said Drusilla. She shone the torch, then came back, her face pale in the dim roof-light. ‘You’ve about a yard and a half on the cliff side,’ she said, ‘and plenty of room on this side. If you can get nearer this side –’
    The headlights shone on the jagged rocks of the cliff on their left. He drove close to them, and the wing scraped a rock. He straightened the wheels and eased off the brakes again. The car moved at a snail’s pace. Drusilla was walking backwards all the time, shining her torch on to the rocks.
    A car came along the road beneath them. It seemed far below, giving them some idea of the height they had climbed. It swung to the left of the road and disappeared.
    ‘I’ve a quarter of a mile to go,’ Palfrey muttered. He leaned out of the window and called: ‘Are you all right, darling?’
    ‘Ye’-es!’ called Drusilla.
    He could see her legs and feet in the beam of light from the torch. The loud hum of the overworked engine drowned all other sound. Progress was painfully slow. Another car swung round the bend. It was still a long way beneath them. Palfrey continued for a dozen yards, on edge with the strain, scowling whenever he scraped a rock on the near side. Then Drusilla’s light vanished.
    He had no warning; the steady swing, showing her legs and feet, continued until the moment when the light went out. Palfrey jammed on the brakes, and kept looking over his shoulder, waiting for it to go on again. It did not.
    He put on the hand-brake and opened the door.
    ‘Silla!’ There was no answer. In the deep hush which followed, he could hear the lapping of the waves on the rocks below.’ ‘ Silla!’ He broke into a cold sweat and got out of the car.
    ‘Silla!’ The echo came back to him. It rolled round, deep, mocking. ‘Silla! Silla Sil-la – la-la!’ It faded.
    There was a movement behind him.
    He swung round, but saw and heard nothing. Fancy was playing him tricks.
    There was a sound! It came from behind him, and he turned again. He stood quite still, staring towards the rocks, able to see only the stones and boulders of the cliff-side.
    ‘Do you want to find your wife, Dr. Palfrey?’ It was a hoarse, whispering voice, coming out of the darkness. There was no sound after the voice stopped.
    Palfrey found his voice. ‘Yes.’
    ‘Go back to Corbin and she will return by midnight,’ the man said. ‘I warn you not to be foolish Palfrey. If you have a gun, don’t use it. I shall not – Ah!’
    His voice ended on a high note of surprise, of pain. Palfrey saw nothing, but now he heard movement – a scrambling, struggling sound; rocks were moving down the cliffside, men were struggling ! He moved forward, trying to see more clearly. He could hear heavy breathing, a gasp, a sharp sound and then a deafening roar,