After I went inside, I turned* and quickly closed the door behind me. There was a key* in the door so I locked* it. I held my candle up and looked around the room. I wanted to see it; the great red room of Lorraine Castle. In this room, a young duke died a long time ago. A young wife died too. She slept in the room and for some fun her husband scared* her in the room. Her fear* was terrible and she died suddenly in bed. I looked around the big dark room with all its shadows and dark windows… Was it all true? Might I get a ghostly visit tonight?
I walked around the room and took my little light into all the corners of the room. There was an old chair and a bed of course. I sat down on it. It was cold. I got up and went to the big windows. I wanted to see out but all I saw was the black of night. I took off my coat and put it on the chair. There was a mirror and a table. On top of this table were lots of candles. I lit all of these and put them all around the room. `Thank you, some light,’ I said to no one. There was a fire and the room was cold so I lit it and watched the smoke. I wanted the fire on all night. It gave light too. In a dark room you can never have too much light. I turned my back to the fire. It felt warm. I went to my coat and got my gun out from the pocket. I put the gun on the table. I wanted it close to me.
I stood for five minutes and warmedy legs and watchede room. In one corner* of the room it was very dark. I looked into the dark corner and after some time I began to see something there. My eyes began to water*. I moved forward with a candle. There was nothing there. I sat the candle on the floor to light up the corner. I then went back to stand in front of the fire.
Time moved slowly in the room. I got more afraid the longer I stayed in the room. `There are no ghosts,’ I said to the shadows. The shadows didn’t answer. They moved in the candlelight. My eyes moved from left to right and tried to see through the dark. Everywhere I looked I thought I saw something or someone move. `There are no ghosts,’ I said. I thought about the three old people downstairs. I tried to think of them. I could call on them. For what? I did not know. What was there to be afraid of? It was a room and that was all it was.
Just then I remembered. saw candles out in the corridor. I unlocked the door and went out the room. I left the door open and got the candles. There were ten of them. I went back in and put them around the room. `More candles,’ I thought,’ that is better.’ I turned and locked the door again. I now had seventeen candles and I could now see all of the room. ‘No ghost can visit this room. It has nowhere to hide.’
GLOSSARY
*turned – moved his body around
*key – an object for opening or locking doors
*locked – a door that has been closed with a key
*scared – afraid
*fear – nervousness caused by something that is frightening
*corner – a place where two sides (or walls) meet
*water – to run with tears (perhaps because the person isn’t blinking)
EFLshorts 