Read The Unpleasantness at Baskerville Hall (Reeves & Worcester Steampunk Mysteries Book 4) for Free Online Page A

Prometheans don’t have the range.”
    “Or the intellect,” said Dr Morrow, looking at me a little more closely than I was comfortable with. “I can’t see any scarring on your head, Roderick, from when that train struck you.”
    “It was a glancing blow,” I said. “The train hit the stagecoach I was travelling in, and I was thrown out. It was more a case of a dull thump as my head hit the ground than a whack from a charging train.”
    “I think we’ll lose the stagecoach for the movie,” said Henry. “It’ll look better if the train gives you a good whack and sends you flying high through the air. And we’ll have to give you a good reason for being on the tracks in the first place.”
    .
    “He could be tied to the tracks,” said T. Everett.
    “Capital!” said Henry. “The Lizard Man ties Roderick to the railway tracks then, just as Roderick frees himself — whack! — along comes the train.”
    I had to ask. “Did you say Lizard Man?”
    “Quarrywood is famous for its Lizard Men,” said T. Everett.
    “We try to use them in all our films,” said Henry. “They make excellent villains. They look like men, but they have these big dinosaur heads and tails.”
    “People don’t realise how hard it is to portray villainy,” said Sir Robert. “Or how long it takes. When one only has twenty minutes, one can’t afford to keep pausing the action for a close up of the actor so he can twirl his moustaches in a menacing fashion.”
    “In the States we use the hat,” said T. Everett. “If an actor’s wearing a white hat, he’s a good guy. If he’s wearing a black hat, he’s bad.”
    “What about tan hats?” I asked.
    “They’re for bystanders,” said T. Everett. “They’re only there to make up the numbers.”
    “We tried hats in The Quarry of the Apes ,” said Sir Robert. “Didn’t look right.”
    “Especially on the Lizard Men,” said Henry. “Dashed difficult to feel threatened by a Lizard Man wearing a sombrero.”
    “Even a black one,” said Sir Robert. “We had to re-shoot every scene.”
    “But now we have the balance right,” said Henry. “One only needs a glimpse of a Lizard Man to know he’s up to no good. No need for hats or close-ups of twirling moustaches. It lets the action run much smoother.”
    ~
    The ladies returned just before midnight. I didn’t see Emmeline at first. Naturally my first thought was that she’d tied herself to a stout table — probably using a curtain she’d pulled from its rings — but, no, she was merely hanging back to increase the space between her and Lady Julia.
    Fortunately, Lady Julia favoured early nights, and only stayed long enough to glare at me twice before exiting stage left.
    I counted to five before ambling over to Emmeline, adding a nonchalant whistle to convey an aura of detached innocence in case anyone was watching.
    “She’s like a terrier,” said Emmeline, keeping her voice low. “She didn’t stop all evening. Questioning me about my family, friends, you.”
    “Me?”
    “She’s not sure if I’m an impressionable, silly girl or your partner in crime! And I can’t be beastly back to her because everyone thinks I’m Lily. I can’t get Lily into trouble, so I have to sit back and take it.”
    “She’ll relent,” I said, trying to sound a good deal more confident than I felt.
    “I hope so. I can’t sit through another evening like tonight. I’ll explode!”
    “I’ll have a word with Reeves. He’ll come up with a plan, I’m sure.”
    We couldn’t talk privately after that. Henry came over, swiftly followed by Ida, and from then on the conversation switched to all things Quarrywood.
    Until a woman’s scream stopped all conversation dead.

Five
    all ran to the source of the scream, and found Lily standing in the hallway, staring up at the landing, one hand clasped to her mouth.
    I followed her gaze and started. Was it a ghost? It looked like a ghost. Its face was a glowing skull — a ghostly, shimmering,