The Abandoned Room
by Wadsworth Camp (1879–1936)
- Free to read
- 5 hours to read
- 10 chapters
- Reading level: 6th grade
“The Abandoned Room” by Wadsworth Camp is a mystery novel written in the early 20th century. The story revolves around the death of Silas Blackburn, an old man who dies mysteriously at his secluded estate, known as the Cedars. As the narrative unfolds, suspicion falls on his grandson, Bobby Blackburn, who is portrayed as a young man with a troubled lifestyle, fearful of becoming penniless due to a change in his grandfather’s will. The opening of the story establishes a tense atmosphere with Katherine, Bobby's cousin, keeping vigil at the Cedars on the night of Silas Blackburn's death. Silas exhibits signs of fear and unrest prior to his demise, hinting at an unseen threat. As Katherine confronts her growing unease, we learn of Bobby's absence and potential conflict between him and his grandfather. The narrative is rich with suspense, as after Silas’s death, a detective named Howells suggests foul play and begins investigating, suggesting that Bobby may be more involved in the mystery than he realizes. This sets the stage for a tangled web of suspicion, family dynamics, and the search for truth in the wake of tragedy.
Read the opening
Chapter I
KATHERINE HEARS THE SLY STEP OF DEATH AT THE CEDARS
The night of his grandfather's mysterious death at the Cedars, Bobby Blackburn was, at least until midnight, in New York. He was held there by the unhealthy habits and companionships which recently had angered his grandfather to the point of threatening a disciplinary change in his will. As a consequence he drifted into that strange adventure which later was to surround him with dark shadows and overwhelming doubts.
Before following Bobby through his black experience, however, it is better to know what happened at the Cedars where his cousin, Katherine Perrine was, except for the servants, alone with old Silas Blackburn who seemed apprehensive of some sly approach of disaster.
At twenty Katherine was too young, too light-hearted for this care of her uncle in which she had persisted as an antidote for Bobby's shortcomings. She was never in harmony with the mouldy house or its surroundings, bleak, deserted, unfriendly to content.
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About this edition
This free edition of The Abandoned Room by Wadsworth Camp comes from Project Gutenberg eBook #10869, released 2004-01-01. It is in the public domain in the United States, so you can read it here in full at no cost, on any phone, tablet or computer. Genre: Crime, Thrillers and Mystery, Novels, American Literature.
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