Tales from Beyond (continued)

She lay in the darkness alert, every nerve strained for the slightest sound. She wondered about the young man in the portrait. Was he the owner of the house? Was he the one who was murdered? what lay behind that enigmatic smile of the man in the portrait, and why did she feel a certain closeness to this stranger. Her thoughts drifted away to nothingness as she fell into a deep exhausted sleep. The sound of the gong in the living room counting the hours of four a.m woke her up with a start. She peered in the darkness and decided she couldn't sleep any more. She fumbled for the flashlight and discovered it was gone. She felt a chill. She had left it right next to her pillow, how could it evaporate? Oh well, better just lie there and take her chances. One hour passed by agonizingly slow, and then she heard the welcome strains of the koel bird's song. Dawn had arrived! a wave of relief swept over her as she swung her legs over the edge of the bed and headed for the bathroom. She surveyed herself in the mirror as she brushed her teeth. She saw a pair of anxious eyes with dark cirles around them. Not good. She hastily made herself a cup of tea and parked herself in the comfortable white lawn chair on the verandah outside. The sun was slowly peeking over the distant hills spreading a lovely warm pink radiance over the landscape. Normally, she would have reached for her camera, but today she was just too exhausted. She listened to the myriad sounds emanating from the trees and the bushes. The koel's song climbed octaves, and was at once urgent, and soothing. Then suddenly within seconds, the sun burst forth and the world was awash in gold. All was well. From a distance she could make out a slight figure walking with a limp and heading towards the hillock............continued in next post