Two weeks passed; and then it came again in broad daylight.
It was Mrs. Blenkiron’s morning. He had lit the fire in the study at noon and set up Mr. Greathead’s slippers in the fender. When he rose from his stooping and turned round he saw Mr. Greathead’s phantasm standing on the hearthrug dose in front of him. It was looking at him and smiling in a sort of mockery, as if amused at what Steven had been doing. It was solid and completely lifelike at first. Then, as Steven in his terror backed and backed away from it (he was afraid to turn and feel it there behind him), its feet became insubstantial. As if undermined, the whole structure sank and fell together on the floor, where it made a pool of some whitish glistening substance that mixed with the pattern of the carpet and sank through.
That was the most horrible thing it had done yet, and Steven’s nerve broke under it. He went to Mrs. Blenkiron, whom he found scrubbing out the dairy.
She sighed as she wrung out the floor-doth.
“Eh, these owd yeller stawnes, scroob as you will they’ll nawer look dean.”
“Naw,” he said. “Scroob and scroob, you’ll nawer get them clean.”
“Eh, lad, what ails ’ee? Ye’ve got a faace like a wroong dishdout hanging ower t’ sink.”
“Aye, an’ naw woonder wi’ the damp, and they misties, an’ your awn bad cooking. Let me roon down t’ ‘King’s Arms’ and get you a drop of whisky.”
He knew now he was afraid to be left alone in the house. Down at the “King’s Arms” Dorsy and Mrs. Oldishaw were sorry for him. By this time he was really ill with fright. Dorsy and Mrs. Oldishaw said it was a chill. They made him lie down on the settle by the kitchen fire and put a rug over him, and gave him stiff hot grog to drink. He slept. And when he woke he found Dorsy sitting beside him with her sewing.
He sat up and her hand was on his shoulder.
“Nay, there’s naw call for ’ee to gaw. Lay still and I’ll make thee a coop o’ tea.”
Mrs. Oldishaw had made up a bed for him in her son’s room, and they kept him there that night and till four o’clock the next day.
When he got up to go Dorsy put on her coat and hat.
“Aye. I canna let thee gaw and set there by thysen. I’m cooming oop to set with ’ee till night time.”
She came up and they sat side by side in the Lodge kitchen by the fire as they used to sit when they were together there, holding each other’s hands and not talking.