"Lisa Tuttle - Ghosts and Other Lovers" - читать интересную книгу автора (Tuttle Lisa)

Mildred came in and found her leaning on the windowsill, head half out the window, shivering with the
cold but still sucking in deep, invigorating breaths of the pure winter air.

тАЬWhat on earth are you doing? Do you want to catch your death?тАЭ MildredтАЩs hands, firm and controlling,
on her arms. Eustacia resisted, refusing to be steered back to bed, afraid of the horrible remains she had
left quivering and clotted on the blanket. тАЬI felt sick. . . .тАЭ

тАЬYes, I see. You must get back into bed, you must keep warm.тАЭ

Every muscle, every bone, every ounce of flesh still resistedтАФuntil she saw the bed, clean and dry and
empty, not a trace of the horror left.

She collapsed with relief and let Mildred tuck her into bed where, utterly exhausted, she fell asleep
immediately.
***


When she woke, her hands were warm and dry.
Her bodyтАЩs only discharge came from between her legs, and that would pass after a few days. She was
back to normal. She had won. She made a face at the Mr. Elphinstone in her mind, his image fading fast,
and almost laughed out loud. She was happy, with four days ahead of her in which she would not be
expected to work at all, time in which she could sleep and dream and read and think. Despite the mess
and bother of it, Eustacia never minded her monthly visitor; on the contrary, she was grateful for the
regular holiday it brought. She knew she was quite capable of working throughout her sick time, but she
certainly wasnтАЩt going to argue with Mildred about it. Mildred thought permanent damage could be done
to a woman who overstrained her constitution at such times. And a menstruating woman (not that such a
word ever passed her lips) could do harm to others as well: milk would turn and bread not rise in her
presence, and the scent of her would drive domestic animals wild. Modesty forbade a woman displaying
herself when the curse was upon her, which meant she must keep to herself and the company of women.
Eustacia thought Mildred was over-nice in regard to their fatherтАФafter all, he had been married and
shared a bed with his wife for yearsтАФbut she was happy enough to avoid her brothers, and even more
men to whom she was not related. The thought that they might notice something wrong with her was
humiliating. She was happy to keep to her room and rest.

It was not until late that evening, after Mildred had taken away her supper dishes and left her an empty
chamber pot and a bundle of clean towels, that she felt the tingling in her fingers again. She realized then
that they were cold, and, as she tucked them into her armpits to warm them, she felt the dampness.

She stared at her hands and saw the mucus blobs swelling and stretching from her fingertips, elongating
and thickening as she watched into fingersтАФ

тАЬNo!тАЭ

Long fingers, hands, bony wristsтАФhands she recognized.

тАЬNo!тАЭ

Denial was of no use. It was in her, and it had to come out. She thought she could feel it seeping out of
the flesh beneath her breasts and behind her knees, and there was a tickling sensation on the soles of her
feet. She couldnтАЩt keep it in. It had to come out.