3 A Basis for Murder by Morgana Best

newspaper clipping I'd slipped into my folder, and read it again. It was dated Monday September 29, 1890, and was from the Melbourne Argus newspaper. I'd come across it after I had visited the falls with Melissa, and been taken by the beauty of the description.
    The panorama from the head of the gorge is of the most magnificent description. On each side almost perpendicular walls of granite and slate, below the winding stream, on the banks of which are the batteries of the Baker's Creek Company, the North Bakers Creek Company, the Sunlight Company, and perched up amongst the rocks on the eastern Bide, the crushing mills of the Lady Carrington and the Cosmopolitan companies. On the opposite side stand out prominently the numerous shafts and houses of the Earl of Hopetoun Company.
    To the north the massive granite falls, over which the water in winter roars in torrent, and to the south, through the azure haze the rugged peak of Enmore, 30 miles away. As a subject for a picture, it has but few rivals in the Blue Mountains of New South Wales or the canyons of the "Rockies" of America The varying lights and shades mingling with the glow of the setting sun. The roar of the stampers below, and the thunder roll of the exploding shots in the numerous tunnels on the sides of the gulch are features of a scene of awful grandeur.
    "A scene of awful grandeur," was a perfect description of the vista before my eyes. I was waxing lyrical.
    I left my position on the viewing platform to sit on a little wooden seat which was away from the edge, but which nevertheless afforded a good view. I took a deep breath and calmed myself. I decided to do a brief grounding meditation. I sat up straight and imagined my feet stretching into the earth, through the earth's crust, absorbing the earth's energy. I imagined my feet turn into branches and connect with the earth itself.
    Suddenly I was jolted from my meditative state. I stood up in alarm and looked around, but no one was to be seen. The hairs stood up on the back of my neck. The adrenaline was pumping through my veins, and my heart was racing. I couldn't see any sign of what had startled me, but I had certainly received some sort of spiritual shock.
    I looked around. The sky was still blue; a lizard ran into the undergrowth; a magpie looked at me from a tree. The world for all intents and purposes looked sunny and normal. Yet I knew that I was now not alone. I could sense the presence of a malignant, dark entity, but it remained elusive even as I stretched out my mind to try to categorize it even in the most basic of ways.
     
    * * *
     
     
    A rose has thorns, a cat has claws; certainly both are worth the risk.
    (Anonymous)
    Chapter Twelve .
     
    I went back to the Hillgrove museum to see if it would supply any clues of the evil entity. I figured it was a long shot, but it was as good a place to start as any. This time, there was a car parked down one end of the museum, so I parked my car at the other end, under a tree, after rolling down the windows as the day had turned hot. The weather in this part of the country was highly unpredictable, but for the moment it was hot, and my car's air conditioning wasn't working.
    I walked down the pathway to the old, white building, and, once inside the little ante room, made the gold coin donation. A gruff looking man appeared at the doorway from the museum itself and I jumped.
    "Did you pay?" His voice was accusatory.
    "Yes, I just put the money in that box." I pointed to the honor box on the bench.
    "Are you here to look at the museum?"
    I bit back the overwhelming urge to say something sarcastic. Why else would I be there? I simply said, "Yes."
    The man scowled at me and went back into the museum. I wandered around the main room of the museum, relieved that, this time, I wasn't aware of any ghosts of children haunting the old school house. Perhaps the gruff man had scared them away; nevertheless, the man was keeping an eye on me. I decided on the direct