Produced by Marcia Brooks, Suzanne Shell and the Online Distributed Proofreading Team at http://www.pgdp.net POSSESSED by CLEVELAND MOFFETT _Author of "Through the Wall", etc._ NEW YORK THE JAMES A. McCANN COMPANY 1920 Copyright 1920 by THE JAMES A. McCANN COMPANY _All Rights Reserved_ Printed in U. S. A. DEDICATION Whatever the defects or limitations of this story, I can assure my readers that it is largely based on truth. Many of the incidents, including the dual personality phenomena, were suggested by actual happenings known to me. The doctor who accomplishes cures by occult methods is a friend of mine, who lives and practises in New York City. Seraphine, the medium, is also a real person. The episode that is explained by waves of terror passing from one apartment to another and separately affecting three unsuspecting persons is not imaginary, but drawn from an almost identical happening that I, myself, witnessed in Paris, France. And the truth about women that I have tried to tell has been largely obtained from women themselves, women in various walks of life, who have been kind enough to give me most of the opinions and experiences that are contained in Penelope's diary. To them I now gratefully dedicate this book. C. M. CONTENTS PAGE PROLOGUE 1 CHAPTER I. VOICES 6 II. WHAT PENELOPE COULD NOT TELL THE DOCTOR 18 III. A BOWL OF GOLD FISH 42 IV. FIVE PURPLE MARKS 46 V. WHAT REALLY HAPPENED AT THE STUDIO 53 VI. EARTH-BOUND 62 VII. JEWELS 70 VIII. WHITE SHAPES 80 IX. THE CONFESSIONAL CLUB 90 X. FAUVETTE 103 XI. THE EVIL SPIRIT 111 XII. X K C 115 XIII. TERROR 128 XIV. POSSESSED 142 XV. DR. LEROY 149 XVI. IRRESPONSIBLE HANDS 161 XVII. THE HOUR OF THE DREAM 169 XVIII. PLAYING WITH FIRE 179 XIX. PRIDE 192 XX. THE MIRACLE 199 XXI. THE TRUTH ABOUT WOMEN THAT NOBODY TELLS 210 EPILOGUE 252 "_Keep thy heart with all diligence; for out of it are the issues of life._" PROVERBS, _Chapter IV, Verse 23_. POSSESSED (_June, 1914_) SCARLET LIGHTS