By
William E. Spear
Volume 1, Issue 21
~~
Full Transcript –
LET ME GO TO HER, PODCAST EPISODE FOUR – Rosie is Missing
ORIGINAL DATE: 23 MAY 2023
(Cold open)
Why was James, one half of the couple who ran Furnivall Manor, so secretive about unveiling the painting? And, why was Dorothy, the other half of the couple, equally adamant about keeping it under wraps?
The answer to those questions and more are coming up on The 3:57 by William E. Spear.
(Theme for Let Me Go To Her comes up)
Hello my name is William Spear and this is our series titled LET ME GO TO HER.
It is interpreted from Elizabeth Gaskell’s THE OLD NURSE’S STORY published in 1852.
Standing in the hallway, the student is spellbound by the painting of the attractive Maude Furnivall, the older sister of Grace. Even the booming weather did not interrupt the gaze. But a voice coming from the drawing-room shatters the moment.
Now, Episode Four . . . Rosie is Missing.
(Theme for Let Me Go To Her fades up and under)
“You were told not to look.”
A flash of lightning lit the hallway and a loud thunderclap shook the mansion.
I spun around and was face-to-face with Mrs. Stark. She seemed a few degrees colder and greyer. “How did you find that painting?” she demanded.
The tone in her voice matched the contemptuous and disdainful stare of Maude Furnivall. Both made the point “You are not good enough to look.”
I explained the paintings were magnificent and my curiosity led me to pull back the covering. She shook her bony fist and said someone must’ve helped me.
Dorothy joined us: “What is the problem, Mrs. Stark?” The older of the two insisted I tell her who helped me. For added measure she called me an undesirable presence.
More lightning flashed and rolling thunder clapped louder. The mansion creaked to its core and the chandelier rattled.
But the student, Mrs. Stark, and Dorothy were not the only ones seeing and hearing the weather. Inside the drawing-room, Rosie was staring out the window. There was the little girl from her parents’ funeral.
Rosie looked back at the now-sleeping Miss Furnivall and turned to her shivering friend. “I am coming to you,” she whispered. She pushed open the glass door and walked into the rain.
Back in the hallway Dorothy had pulled James from the kitchen and demanded an explanation. This time he neither looked down nor mumbled. He steeled himself and with a bass voice that came up from the cellar and insisted the story be told.
Mrs. Stark shrieked for James to leave. Before he moved I told them I was leaving with Rosie. A thunderclap escorted me into the drawing-room.
A moment later I returned panic-stricken. “Rosie is gone,” I announced. “She’s missing.”
James turned on Mrs. Stark and Dorothy intervened: “It wasn’t her fault,” she said.
Thunder exploded, the chandelier shook violently, and the organ joined the chorus.
(Organ music fades up)
You’ve just listened to the Fourth Episode of LET ME GO TO HER.
Organ and theme music are through the courtesy of DS Technician at PixaBay.
The Three Fifty-seven is written and produced by William Spear.
Thank you for listening.
(Organ music fades up and out)
End of transcript.
The 3:57 by William E. Spear 