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Page 6
Suddenly Mrs. Otis caught sight of a dull red stain on the floor just by the fireplace and, quite unconscious of what it really signified, said to Mrs. Umney, `I am afraid something has been spilt there.'
`Yes, madam,' replied the old housekeeper in a low voice, `blood has been spilt on that spot.'
`How horrid,' cried Mrs. Otis; `I don't at all care for blood-stains in a sitting-room. It must be removed at once.'
The old woman smiled, and answered in the same low, mysterious voice, `It is the blood of Lady Eleanore de Canterville, who was murdered on that very spot by her own husband, Sir Simon de Canterville, in 1575. Sir Simon survived her nine years, and disappeared suddenly under very mysterious circumstances. His body has never been discovered, but his guilty spirit still haunts the Chase. The blood-stain has been much admired by tourists and others, and cannot be removed.'
Dull: Not bright
Stain: When a liquid has marked something by sinking into it.
Unconscious: Here it means 'not knowing'.
Signify: Mean.
Care for: Here it means 'like'.
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