Ghosts of Tsavo (Society for Paranormals Book 1) Read online

  “All he did was fail to kill the ghost lions, which you seemed determined to protect,” I pointed out, not mentioning that this implied his guilt.

  Now that I knew his power, I also knew why he would want to derail the hunters from success. To turn into a lion could be a most advantageous skill indeed. He had wanted to absorb the identity, and thus the powers, of one of the lion twins.

  “And…” he prompted.

  “And he confiscated the… automaton.” My voice faded off at the end as it dawned on me what Mr. Timmons was suggesting.

  “Exactly.”

  “But surely Dr. Cricket wouldn’t go to such lengths,” I said even as another possibility tapped at my stuttering heart.

  “No, he wouldn’t as you well know.” Mr. Timmons paused, eyeing me, perhaps trying to determine if he should continue and if my nerves could handle the truth. He must’ve been satisfied on that count, for he said, “Mr. Adams took the very automaton that would allow your dearly departed husband to return to life, in a manner of speaking. I strongly suspect he has the contraption in his ghostly possession.”

  I slumped back in the chair, my chest as constricted as if I were wearing one of those stupid, overly tightened dresses that Lilly used to insist we wear whenever we went to a social occasion in London.

  But it was his next words that caused me to cease breathing momentarily.

  Leaning forward, he placed one of his large, warm hands gently over my clenched ones. “As far as Gideon Knight is concerned, you’re still married. Once he figures how to possess the automaton and maintain control of it, and possibly strengthen his charismatic powers in the process, he’ll be returning for you.”

  After I’d reclaimed the use of my lungs, all I could say to that was, “Being widowed really is such a bother.”

  Facts & Fiction

  Interested in free books from this series? Read on!

  For those with little appetite remaining for historical matters, skip this section and go directly to the next, to learn how you can collect your FREE BOOKS!

  For the rest of you, perhaps you’re wondering how much of this narrative is based on anything resembling historical fact and what is more in the realm of fiction. Below are the facts and fictions as I understand them.

  Fact: The Ghost Lions of Tsavo did exist.

  Fiction: They weren’t really ghosts or anything of the paranormal realm. They were actually two maneless lions that were so famous as to be given names: The Ghost and The Darkness. They were each more than nine feet long; it took eight men to carry one after it had been shot.

  Fact: Mrs. Isabella Beeton’s Book of Household Management did indeed describe housewives as Household Generals. And Mrs. Lydia Child’s American Frugal Housewife clearly recommends earwax as a remedy for cracked lips.

  Fiction: I personally would never use earwax on any part of my body apart from inside my ears, and even that’s debatable.

  Fact: Ants don’t like cinnamon. Sprinkle some on the ground where they are and they will find another route.

  Fiction: The same cannot be said for lions, so please don’t try the cinnamon trick while on safari.

  Fact: The construction of the Uganda Railway between Mombasa and Kisumu was started in 1896. Nairobi is approximately mid-way between the two cities.

  Fiction: Initially, the train only carried construction materials. It began to accept passengers in 1903, so Mrs Knight and the Steward family couldn’t have used the train from Mombasa to Nairobi in 1899.

  Fact: Nairobi, the capital of Kenya, started life as a British railway camp and supply depot for the Uganda Railway in 1899 and it was, as Mrs. Steward points out, built on a brackish swamp. Nowadays, though, we’d call that a wetland.

  Fiction: In the year this story takes place (1899—one year after the shooting of the man-eating lions of Tsavo), there probably wasn’t anything more than a tented camp for workers; more established homes such as the Steward residence might not have been built yet, but they soon were.

  Fact: In the early 1900s, Nairobi became the “first stop” for big game hunters, beginning the decimation of African wildlife that still continues today with illegal poaching.

  Fact: On 11 October, 1899 (a couple weeks before the Steward family left London), the Second Boer War began between the UK and the Boers in South Africa.

  Fact: Shortly after the Steward family arrived in their new home, the British and Egyptian victory ended the war in Sudan.

  Fact: Vered has other books you might want to read (their descriptions are further below).

  Fiction: Vered doesn’t live in a mud hut. Her kids don’t ride an elephant to school as their father uses the elephant to go to work. And the pet lion ran away.

  Fact: Post a rating and get a gift! Subscribe to the newsletter and get another gift! Keep reading for the details.

  Gifts for You

  Dear Reader

  Thanks so much for taking the time to read Case 1: Ghosts of Tsavo. Mrs. Knight’s adventures continue in Case 2: The Automaton’s Wife. Buy now: http://bit.ly/next-book

  Sign up for the newsletter (http://veredehsani.co.za/from-africa/), and receive a FREE BOOK about African Paranormals, plus exclusive updates on more freebies and discounted prices.

  And now for a GIFT that only reviewers receive:

  Post a rating on Amazon (http://bit.ly/tsavo-review): Select the number of stars you think this book deserves; Type out at least 20 words (that’s 2 or 3 short sentences) explaining what you thought about the story.

  Send a link or copy of your review to veredehsani (at) gmail.com.

  I’ll send you a free Society for Paranormals story in which you learn background details and secrets not mentioned in the book series.

  If you enjoyed this book, please recommend it to others. I deeply appreciate your support.

  Cheers until next time

  Vered

  from Africa… with a Bite

  Read More!

  All of my books can be found on Amazon:

  Amazon US: http://bit.ly/Vered-Amazon

  Amazon UK: http://bit.ly/Vered-Amazon-UK

  For Other Purchase Options: http://bit.ly/vereds-books

  Read the Reviews: http://veredehsani.co.za/reviews/

  SOCIETY FOR PARANORMALS: A series concerning dead husbands, African legends and the search for a perfect spot of tea. For those readers who adore “Pride & Prejudice” and would love to experience “The Parasol Protectorate” set in colonial Africa.

  Ghosts of Tsavo

  Armed with Victorian etiquette, a fully loaded walking stick and a dead husband, Beatrice Knight arrives in colonial Kenya desperate for a pot of tea and a pinch of cinnamon. But she’ll need more than that if she’s to unravel the mystery of the Ghosts of Tsavo without being eaten in the process. All this while surviving the machinations of her best friend’s dashing godfather and the efforts of her safari guide to feed her to any lion willing to drag her away. What is a ghost-chasing widow to do? Buy now.

  The Automaton’s Wife

  Beatrice Knight has enough to contend with: a zebra is dead on her lawn, her horse is possessed and a gentleman has arrived with the temerity to propose to her. To top it off, her dead husband Gideon has absconded with an automaton, threatening to return for his wife. The wife in question however soon has other issues, for a killer has moved into town with a nasty habit of carving up the victims. As luck should dictate, who should be the next target but Mrs. Knight herself?

  Revenge of the Mantis

  All is going as it should for Beatrice Knight, until the Lightning God lands in her barn and announces that her old nemesis Koki is about to pay an unsolicited visit. While powdered cinnamon works well on many insects, the giant Praying Mantis won’t be so easily dissuaded from exacting revenge against the intrepid paranormal investigator. And let’s not forget that Mrs. Knight’s cousin is engaged to a bat man while her brother has returned from the dead as a werewolf. As if that isn’t complicated enough, Mr. Timmons presents a pos
sibility too terrible to consider, yet too tempting to refuse. Now, if only she could survive long enough to make a decision…

  The Fourth Mandate

  Having offered her firm and unequivocal resignation, Beatrice Knight is certain she is clear of her former employer, the Society for Paranormals, and is now free to proceed with her life and a wedding. It all seems quite simple, until the Society’s Director Prof. Runal shows up at the train station, her cousin announces horrifying news and a ponytailed dwarf decides he needs her powers to eradicate all non-humanoid paranormals. At least one thing is certain: anything is manageable with a pot of tea and a fully loaded walking stick.

  THE GHOST POST MYSTERIES: An Urban Fantasy Series in which the humour is darker, the characters more deadly

  Lethal Takeout

  When Axe Cooper is murdered while picking up Chinese takeaway, he’s pretty irritated about the loss of a good dinner, not to mention being dead. Not prepared to move on just yet, Axe decides to stick around and haunt his best friend, Lily Chan, while trying to figure out why anyone would kill a janitor. In the meantime, Axe is hired by The Ghost Post to track down recently deceased writers. As he learns more about his new phantom friends, Axe realises his murder is not an isolated event and that if he doesn’t learn to fly like Superman, Lily could be next. Buy now.

  Fatal Secrets

  Just when Axe Cooper thinks he’s safe, guess again. His memory is fading and unless he wants to lose his mind, he has to figure out why he buried an old friend in a swamp. And let’s not forget the ghost-eating Deathmark that’s developed an unhealthy interest in Axe and his friends. Being dead is no protection from the secret that is about to crawl back into his life. But he’s not the only one with something to hide and some secrets are deadlier than others. Buy now.

  DRAGON & MYTH: A Sci-Fi Adventure Series

  Dragon’s Mind

  Ten years ago, a human brain was installed into a computer system. To most people, it is a non-living entity operating in the background of their lives. Only a girl named Myth knows better: his name is Dragon and he is very much alive. And after ten bodiless years, Dragon has a dream that will change everything. The dream will put his mind and Myth’s life in mortal danger. There are powerful forces that don’t want the truth revealed and they’re coming for Dragon. But where do you run to when you’re already everywhere? Buy now.

  Dragon’s War

  How do you stop a war you started? And should you, if your species’ safety and wellbeing depend on winning at all costs? These are the thoughts that plague Myth as she paces the fortress where she is being kept “for her own protection.” Meanwhile, Dragon is in hiding, hunted by the albino assassin and the city’s very systems that he once ran. As his backup reserves are depleted and the clock ticks down to the launch of a global virus, Myth must escape to save Dragon and together stop the war that they launched. But time is running out and the albino is watching. Buy now.

  GHOSTS & SHADOWS: Fantasy Adventure Series with some Time Travel thrown in, just for fun

  Diary of a Part-Time Ghost

  Fifteen-year-old Ash wants nothing more than to be a normal kid and avoid trouble. Then his birthday gift transforms him into a ghost and zaps him back in time to the beginning of the American Revolution. If he thought that was bad, it’s about to get a whole lot worse. Ash must rescue his ancestor from one danger after another, including an implacable enemy who controls the very shadows. What starts out as a brief experiment in time travel rapidly changes into a race for his very survival, and Ash is running out of time. Buy now.

  Where Shadows Dance

  Ash was looking forward to a summer of camping and time travelling. Then his Great Aunt fades away (literally) and his near-death nightmare gets even weirder. Juna isn’t having a great time of it either: having escaped from her parole officer, she barely survives falling out of an airplane. While Ash and Juna try to get out of the past and back home, events and dreams keep pointing them to the place where it all starts and ends, where shadows dance and time bends. If they can get there, they may be able to stop an implacable enemy from destroying their future. Of course, getting there means surviving first… Buy now.

  ABOUT THE AUTHOR

  Vered Ehsani has been a writer since she could hold pen to paper, which is a lot longer than she cares to admit. She lives in Kenya with her family and various other animals. When she isn’t writing, running a radio show (http://africacreates.net/), or daydreaming about African ghosts and myths, she pretends to work as an environmental consultant.

  Visit Vered and her world at veredehsani.co.za and receive a FREE BOOK and special prices!

  Email her at veredehsani (at) gmail.com – she loves to hear from her readers.

  Copyright © 2015 Vered Ehsani

  All rights reserved

  All rights reserved. Without limiting the rights under copyright reserved above, no part of this publication may be reproduced, stored in or introduced into a retrieval system, or transmitted, in any form or by any means (electronic, mechanical, photocopying, recording or otherwise) without the prior written permission of the copyright owner.