"Joseph Delaney - The Spook's Curse" - читать интересную книгу автора (Delaney Joseph)

I smiled to myself when I saw where the doctor had got his wood from. It was wet outside, so heтАЩd
gone for the only dry kindling available. HeтАЩd chopped up one of the church pews. No doubt the priest
wouldnтАЩt be too happy, but it might just save his life. In any case he was now unconscious, breathing very
deeply, and would stay that way for several hours until the effects of the potion wore off.

From the crack in the floor came the noise of the boggart feeding. It was a nasty gulping, slurping
sound as it continued to draw blood from the leg. It was too preoccupied to realize that we were close
by and about to bring its meal to an end.

We didnтАЩt speak. I just nodded at the doctor and he nodded back. I handed him the deep metal dish
to catch the blood I needed, and he took a small metal saw from his bag and laid its cold, shiny teeth
against the bone just below the priestтАЩs knee.

The housekeeper was still in the same position but her eyes were squeezed tight shut and she was
muttering to herself. She was probably praying and it was obvious she wouldnтАЩt be much help. So, with a
shiver, I knelt down beside the doctor.

He shook his head. тАЬThereтАЩs no need for you to see this,тАЩ he said. тАШNo doubt youтАЩll witness worse one
day but it neednтАЩt be now. Go on, lad. Back to your own business. I can deal with this. Just send the
other two back to give me a hand getting him up onto the cart when IтАЩve finished.тАЩ

IтАЩd been gritting my teeth ready to face it but I didnтАЩt need to be told twice. Full of relief, I went back
to the pit. Even before I reached it, a loud scream cut through the air followed by the sound of anguished
weeping. But it wasnтАЩt the priest. He was unconscious. It was the housekeeper.

The rigger and his mate had already hoisted the stone aloft again and were busy wiping off the mud.
Then, as they went back to the church to help the doctor, I dipped the brush into the last of the mixture
and gave the underside of the stone a thorough coating.

IтАЩd hardly time to admire my handiwork before the mate came back at a run. Behind him, moving
much more slowly, came the rigger. He was carrying the dish with the blood in it, being careful not to spill
a single drop. The bait-dish was a very important piece of equipment. The Spook had a store of them
back in Chipenden and theyтАЩd been made according to his own specifications.

I lifted a long chain from the SpookтАЩs bag. Fastened to a large ring at one end were three shorter
chains, each ending in a small metal hook. I slipped the three hooks into the three holes close to the rim
of the dish.

When I lifted the chain, the bait-dish hung below it in perfect balance, so it didnтАЩt need that much skill
to lower it into the pit and set it down very gently at its centre.

No, the skill was in freeing the three hooks. You had to be very careful to relax the chains so that the
hooks dropped away from the dish without tipping it over and spilling the blood.

IтАЩd spent hours practising this, and despite being very nervous I managed to get the hooks out at my
very first attempt.

Now it was just a question of waiting.