The Mysteries of Holly Diem (Unknown Kadath Estates Book 2) (33 page)

“That’s not entirely…”

“Yes. Entirely.”

She is enrapt by the blur of media, the truncated
nonsense of rapid channel surfing.

“It wasn’t a good idea, okay? Not right then. Yael is
protected, you understand? Hurt her, and we make all sorts of enemies. Ulthar.
Jenny. Even Holly. We could lose our place in Ulthar, you know.”

“Funny you mentioned our landlady. Holly kept too many
secrets, and they caught up with her. That lesson isn’t lost on you, is it?”

“No.”

“Fess up, then. Tell me all about it. What you want to
do, and how, every detail. Confess, Preston.” Her voice sparkled with malicious
joy. “Confess and be forgiven. Then maybe – just maybe – I’ll help you make it
happen. If you’re good.”

“April…”

“And you have been good,” she said, turning off the
television. “Haven’t you?”

The hum of the screen as it powered down, the crackle
of static electricity as she runs her hands across the carpet.

“Haven’t you?”

“Yes.”

“Are you sure?”

“Yes, damn it. You know. You know already.”

“I know you like her.”

“Okay, fine. I like her. I do. Not the way you think,
though.”

“Oh?” Staring at the dead screen as the moving lights
still populated it. “Then enlighten me, Preston.”

I looked for words, and found them as I usually did –
blunt, cumbersome, and lacking.

“She’s nice.”

Expectant silence.

“…and?”

“That’s it, really.” I would have breathed a sigh of
relief, if I dared. “She’s a likable kid. I dunno. If I did anything extra
during this whole nightmare – and I don’t think I did – it was about Lovecraft,
not Yael. That cat looked after you. An army of fucking Toads, and an elderly
cat squared off with them, to the death. You gotta respect that.”

A tense moment, as April glanced up at me. She
frowned.

There was no lying to her.

So, why was I…?

The TV clicked on again.

“I liked Lovecraft, too, Preston.” She flipped
channels. “I had no idea you were so sentimental.”

“I’m not. Usually.”

“It’s cute, really.”

“Rather not be cute, if it’s all the same to you.”

The television flickered, black and then moving
pictures.

“You know, Preston,” she said, closing her eyes, “if
you keep telling lies, then something bad will happen to you.”

I was counting on it.

THANK YOU
for
reading the second volume of
The Unknown Kadath Estates Trilogy – The
Mysteries of Holly Diem!

Please keep an eye out for
Volume Three – The Floating Bridge
.

If you would like more of Yael Kaufman’s adventures, please try
The
Night Market
, currently available on Amazon.

For another series by the same author, check out
The Central Series
on Amazon.

Thanks for reading!

ABOUT THE
AUTHOR

Zachary Rawlins
lives with
his lovely and amazing wife, Chloe, and their genius Corgi, Ein, in an
80-year-old Tudor in Oakland, California. During the day, he works in the
environmental industry. In his free time, he enjoys hiking, photography,
building computers, and writing books like this one. He can be reached at
[email protected]
with compliments,
questions, or lucrative publishing offers.

ABOUT THE
ILLUSTRATOR

Xingtong Lu (Xi Lu)
is a
professional illustrator and graphic artist with a variety of publications and
shows to her credit. You can buy her art book Oxygen
here
(featuring a story and foreword by Zachary
Rawlins), or contact her at
[email protected]
for further inquiries.