When seventeen-year old Billy Weaver takes the train from London to Bath in search of work, he is excited and optimistic about the opportunities ahead of him. The weather in Bath is miserable and “deadly cold.” His first priority is finding lodgings, and after asking the porter at the train station for recommendations, he sets off towards The Bell and Dragon pub. As he walks through the unfamiliar city, Billy notices how decrepit and neglected the neighborhood is. However, he is stopped in his tracks when—in stark contrast to his gloomy surroundings—he spots a charming and “brilliantly lit” Bed and Breakfast. After a few minutes deliberating whether he should continue his journey to the pub, Billy feels inexplicably drawn toward the Bed and Breakfast. The roaring fire enchants Billy, and he can’t help but notice the inviting furniture, the “pretty little dachshund” curled up by the hearth, and the cheerful yellow chrysanthemums in the window.
As Billy lingers outside, in the warm glow from the Bed and Breakfast window, the door swings open and a friendly old woman welcomes him inside. The landlady is terribly kind towards Billy, and offers him a cheap price for lodgings. As he hangs up his coat, Billy notices “there are no other hats or coats in the hall.” It strikes him as a little peculiar that the Bed and Breakfast is not busier, especially because it is so pleasant. As she leads him upstairs, the landlady explains that she is a little “choosy and particular” about the guests she accepts into her home. While showing him around his neat bedroom, the landlady insists that Billy sign the guest book that same night. Billy is amused by the landlady’s odd behavior, but he is not alarmed that she seems “slightly off her rocker.” Instead, Billy decides that she was not only “harmless,” but “also quite obviously a kind and generous soul.”
After unpacking, Billy follows the landlady’s instructions and walks downstairs to sign the visitors’ book, where he finds only two previous guest entries. Both of the names written there feel somehow familiar to Billy and he wracks his brain to establish why he recognizes them. The landlady interrupts Billy’s thought process, carrying a large tray of tea and placing it down besides the sofa, where she invites Billy to join her. Billy is curious about the two names in the guest book, and asks the landlady several questions about them. He becomes increasingly certain that he’s heard the names somewhere, perhaps in the newspaper, but every time he gets close to working out how or why, the landlady changes the subject.
Meanwhile, Billy and the landlady share a pot of tea. The landlady makes numerous strange remarks about her previous guests, Mr. Christopher Mulholland and Mr. Gregory W. Temple, commenting on their bodies, their ages, and speaking about them as if they were still living upstairs. Billy is unable to ascertain how long they were guests at the Bed and Breakfast, or when they left. The landlady contradicts herself constantly, but remains insistent that Billy must drink his tea.
During one of the landlady’s long silences, Billy realizes that the caged parrot in the living room is not in fact alive. The landlady explains enthusiastically, “I stuff all my little pets myself when they pass away,” and points to the dachshund, which is also dead and stuffed. At this exact moment, Billy notices that his “tea tasted faintly of bitter almonds.” He asks the landlady, “haven't there been any other guests here except them in the last two or three years?” She replies, with a smile, that there has not.
