Free 1 Death Pays the Rose Rent by Valerie Malmont Page B

favorite spot at the foot of the bed. Later, I knew, he would stretch his full fifteen pounds over my legs causing me to wake up with a cramp.
I slipped into my favorite nightwear, a very old, very soft Wizard of Oz T-shirt, and got into bed. It didn’t take long to realize that sleep wasn’t going to come easily that night.
I turned on the lamp and looked around for something to read, but there wasn’t anything in the room. I made a mental note that if I was ever flush enough to afford a guest room, it would be kept well stocked with reading material. Even better would be a TV, VCR, and several classic movies. And a thermos of hot cocoa! That was such a good idea I decided I d suggest it to Alice-Ann in the morning.
Then I remembered the book that Rose Thorne had insisted I borrow. I got it out of my purse, which would probably reek of mildew forever. I flipped through the pages of The Illustrated History of Lickin Creek until I came to the drawing of Silverthorne Castle. It must have been something when the owners had been able to afford the many servants and gardeners this kind of place required.
Leafing through the first chapter, I found basically the same story Richard had told me about how his ancestor had accidentally founded the village of Lickin Creek. I skimmed several more chapters and found the background history of Rose Rent Day. This, too, was exactly as told to me by Richard. Almost word for word, as if he had read and memorized the description.
At last, I began to feel drowsy. I flipped through some more pages and found an appendix titled “Lickin Creek Caves.” Caves fascinate me. They always seem to be the setting for fabulous adventures, such as Journey to the Center of the Earth, which had also been a great movie, and Tom Sauryer, and a book I loved when I was a kid, Five Boys in a Cave. However, all my involvement with caves had been in books and movies. From what I knew, cave exploring usually involved climbing up and down some pretty spectacular heights, which was something I didn’t ever want to do.
I read the appendix. About two miles east of Lickin Creek is a very considerable cave, among the many which abound in this portion of the county. One entrance, at the base of a high ridge, which runs north and south, is only large enough for one person to walk in at once, by stooping a little. After
passing through the entrance, one reaches an apparent vestibule, about thirty feet in diameter and twenty feet high. A tunnel, opposite the entrance, extends downward about one hundred yards, to a underground lake of clear, calm water, the cavern roof overhead being ornamented with innumerable crystal formations—stalactites—which sparkle profusely when illuminated by torchlight. A number of passageways open from this cavern and connect to other caves in the area. Several entrances to this cave are found on the estate known as Silverthorne.
There is also a very remarkable series of underground passages under certain areas of the town of Lickin Creek. The entrances are through arches in the foundation walls of many houses. These arched entrances are used in summer as refrigerators, being made very cool by a constant current of air coming up from the caves. Oddly enough, these passages represent the streets of the town, leading in numerous directions, and often crossing each other at right angles, thus enabling visitors to start, at a given point; and proceed around to return to the place of starting.
My eyes were burning by the time I finished reading. Already in the back of my mind was the idea that I might hunt for one of the entrances that were supposed to exist here at Silverthorne. From the description, it didn’t sound as if much climbing would be required to explore it. Perhaps this would be the inspiration I needed for my new novel.
I fell asleep with the light on and dreamed of crystal stalactites sparkling in torchlight and a dark, mysterious underground lake.
    Probably because I was in a