Two things I liked:

-Your beginning had a sort of dark and mysterious flare to it that was enjoyable.

-The very last line presses us to read forward (when you post another chapter, of course, and invites for an actual story to begin after the introduction.

I like the little historical notes the beginning. Especially the one about Europe in 1939. The dry wit is just great there.
You did a really good job of describing your usher. I really liked the line about him being so pale he seemed to steal the sunlight. You didn't say much, but I got a very clear picture of him, nonetheless.
You say everything you need to with just enough words. There isn't any extra or anything missing it seems to me. Good job!