Ghosts of Government House

by Judith Silverthorne

  “Yes, he was working here whenever I visited. I loved his food.” Ben’s face shone with a bright smile. “And he’s the one who taught me how to play Mahjong.”

  Ben turned back to Cheun Lee, holding up the game and nodding for him to follow. Jocko scampered behind them along the railing of the centre well, chattering excitedly.

  Sam glanced over at Madeleine. She snuggled Robbie into Sheldon’s lap, adjusted the blankets and began pushing him along.

  “First we’ll get you tucked into bed and then I’ll check to see how your wounds are healing,” she said.

  “Harrumph,” said Sheldon, but a slow smile curled his lips.

  Thunder rumbled in the far distance. Overhead, the clouds began to disperse, though it was still gloomy in the hallway. The ghosts were gone.

  Sam smiled at J.J. Her friend had a happy glow on her face.

  “What are you two playing at now?” asked Gabe behind them.

  Sam groaned.

  Gabe still didn’t believe in ghosts? What were they going to have to do to convince him?

  chapter ten

  well, girls, did you succeed?” asked Grandma Louise, joining them at the bottom of the staircase.

  Sam grinned. “Yep! They’re all friends now.”

  “Turns out Ben already knew Cheun Lee,” said J.J.

  “And Madeleine is taking care of Sheldon,” Sam added.

  Gabe rolled his eyes. “Nothing happened,” he said. “And like always, you two were talking to thin air.”

  “Didn’t you even see Cheun Lee?” asked Sam.

  “No, because he wasn’t there,” Gabe snapped back.

  “Sure he was,” said J.J.

  “Maybe Gabe can only see ghosts when he’s not expecting to,” Sam said. “They were all there.” She grinned. “At least, all that we know about.”

  “Except for the dog,” said J.J. “And the host ghost.”

  Robin had a satisfied smile. “I’m so pleased they know each other now,” she said.

  “For sure. They’re not lonely anymore.” J.J. said.

  Grandma Louise sidled over to Sam and J.J. “And what about you?” she asked, looking at J.J. “Are you still feeling as lonely?”

  Sam felt a lump rise in her throat as J.J. gazed up at Grandma Louise with solemn eyes. “I’ll always miss having Mom hug me. But it helps to know she’s probably around me in another way. I’ll keep on talking to her.”

  Grandma Louise gave J.J. a hug. “I’m sure you’ll always have her with you, sweetie, even if you can’t actually see her. And for sure you’ll always have her in your heart.”

  “You have me too,” said Sam, handing her friend a crumpled Kleenex from her pocket.

  “Yes, good friends keep you from being lonely—even ghosts.” Grandma Louise gave them a little smile.

  “I’d still like a pet though,” said J.J.

  “Not a monkey?” Grandma Louise looked at her in alarm.

  “Nope.” J.J. grinned. “I really do want a rabbit.”

  “That seems like a much better idea all around,” agreed Grandma Louise.

  “You’re not suggesting that we give up ghost detecting, are you?” Sam asked.

  Grandma Louise raised her eyebrows.

  “I’d never do that,” she said. “In fact, I’ve come to realize that by hearing about all these ghosts you girls have discovered, Grandpa Frank may be with us too. I’ve often felt he was but didn’t want to admit it to anyone.”

  Smiling, Sam suggested, “Probably all you need to do is believe and then you’ll see him one day too.”

  “You may be right,” laughed Grandma Louise. She drew both girls into an embrace.

  Gabe sputtered in disgust. “You can all just quit trying to convince me.”

  “Oh my gosh, look!” Sam stepped back and pointed down the hall.

  All eyes swivelled to the slim, shadowy figure heading towards them. Although he carried a broom, dustpan and pail, he was rather formally dressed in a long-sleeved white shirt with a dark vest and dark pants.

  “Is he real?” whispered J.J.

  “I can see him, so he’s real,” Gabe cut in.

  “Not necessarily,” said Sam. “Remember, you saw Cheun Lee before we did.”

  “I keep telling you that guy wasn’t a ghost—and neither is this one.” Gabe turned to the visitor experience host. “Robin, you can tell us who this man is, can’t you?”

  “I’ve never seen him before,” Robin shrugged.

  The tall fellow came to a halt in front of them. “Are you folks all right?”

  “Who are you?” asked Robin, eyeing him warily.

  “George Watt.” He gave a little bow. “We’ll soon have the power plant fired up to get the lights working again. And I’ll have this mess cleaned up in a jiffy.”

  “Thanks,” said Robin. Her body went slack with relief as the man headed over to the overturned plant stand. “I guess I haven’t met all the staff yet.” She shook herself. “But I thought the caretaker’s name was Fred. And there hasn’t been a power plant around here for years.”

  “Well, it is a historical place after all,” said Gabe. “See, he’s real.” Gabe pointed to where George was swiftly sweeping up the dirt and setting the plant stand to rights.

  As the caretaker headed down the hall to the door that led to the conservatory, he called over his shoulder, “If you need me again, I’ll be checking the mushrooms.”

  “Mushrooms?” asked Sam.

  “Maybe he means he’ll be in the basement,” said Robin, puzzled. “That’s where mushrooms were grown decades ago. But there sure aren’t any there now.”

  “Would there be any ghosts down there?” asked J.J.

  “Quite possibly,” Robin answered flippantly. “Perhaps that caretaker is one.” Suddenly, Robin drew in a sharp breath. “I remember now. George Watt is the name of one of the gardeners.”

  “See,” said Gabe. “He’s real!”

  “You don’t understand.” Robin shook her head. “George Watt was employed here. But that was between 1894 and 1908. He started the conservatory and did all the landscaping of the grounds.”

  Gabe looked startled. “You’re kidding, right?”

  “She’s not,” said Grandma Louise. “That’s the same man I had a delightful conversation with about flowers the other day in the conservatory. I thought it was a little odd at the time because he spoke of flowers that are rarely seen nowadays.”

  “Maybe we should check out the basement and see where the mushrooms used to grow,” said Sam, with a mischievous grin at Gabe.

  He shifted uneasily, studying them.

  “But there’s nothing down there for him anymore,” said Robin. “The basement was converted long ago. It now holds a story room, craft room, the cloakrooms, public washrooms and storage.”

  “We could check it out anyway,” J.J. suggested.

  Grandma Louise raised her eyebrows. “Perhaps we’ve seen enough ghosts for one day.”

  J.J. shrugged. “I guess we could save the basement for another time.”

  “Sure,” Sam agreed, adjusting the strap of her backpack across her shoulder. “I’m sure we’ll never get enough ghost detecting.”

  “I’m with you on that,” said J.J.

  “Geez, will you two stop with the pretending already!” Gabe griped.

  “You girls sure have had a tough time convincing him,” said Robin, giving Gabe a big smile.

  “And they sure are good at making things up—ever since they were little,” said Gabe. “But this is the first time they’ve faked something this good.”

  He sidled up to Robin. “So, how did they really do the trick with my hat, and the water in the tub? Did you help them? Maybe you used mirrors?”

  “Absolutely not!” Robin declared. “I didn’t help th
em do anything. Some of it happens all the time.”

  “It was for real!” J.J. declared.

  Sam glared at her brother. “You just don’t want to admit it, ’cause then you’ll be stuck going everywhere with us.”

  “Look, I’ll prove it to you once and for all,” Gabe said. “There’s that Chinese guy going into the dining room. I’ll show you he’s real.”

  Gabe entered the dining room.

  Sam and J.J. quickly followed, getting there just in time to see Gabe walk up to Cheun Lee. Gabe introduced himself and reached out to shake the cook’s hand. Cheun Lee obliged, but Gabe’s hand passed right through it as if nothing was there.

  Gabe gasped and tried to touch Cheun Lee’s arm. Again, his hand went right through. “You’re—you’re not solid!” he sputtered, and staggered backwards.

  Cheun Lee vanished before their eyes, a wide smile on his face.

  “I’m out of here!” Gabe almost tripped in his haste as he pushed past Grandma Louise and Robin.

  Sam laughed so hard her stomach hurt and tears rolled down her cheeks. J.J. was clutching her stomach too.

  “I’m sure your brother’s almost home by now,” Grandma Louise chortled, wiping her eyes.

  “Do you think he’ll be all right?” asked Robin.

  “Gabe?” Sam laughed. “Yeah. It’s so funny…” And laughter overtook her once more.

  Grandma Louise cleared her throat. “So girls, shall we go take a look at that baby rabbit? I think I’ve a mind to do some new car shopping too. You girls can help me decide.”

  “A new car? Cool!” Sam grinned. Her gran was looking happier than she’d been since Grandpa Frank died.

  Grandma Louise winked at the girls. “Maybe I’ll even change my hairstyle and buy some new clothes.”

  Sam glanced at J.J. This was more like the Grandma Louise they remembered.

  Sam and J.J. took their time following Robin and Grandma to the entrance. Sam glanced around. All was quiet—for the time being—now that their new ghostly friends had met each another.

  “How about we come back tomorrow to investigate the basement?” J.J. suggested. “If there’re any ghosts down there, we’ll find them.”

  “I bet there are some ghosts wandering around the grounds too,” said Sam.

  “We can check outside tomorrow,” said J.J.

  “For sure,” Sam agreed. “I’d like to talk to George Watt.”

  “I’ll bet we’ll see him again. Our ghost detecting has been successful so far,” said J.J.

  Sam stopped short and grabbed J.J.’s arm. “Why don’t we start a ghost detecting agency?”

  “That’s a great idea! We already have some research...”

  Sam grinned. “And we even have our ghost detecting kit started.”

  “Right!” J.J. said. “We’ll add some more stuff when we get home.”

  The girls gave each other a high five.

  “The Sam and J.J. Ghost Detective Agency—here we come!”

  about the author

  Judith Silverthorne, a multiple-award winning author, has published eight children’s novels as well as two non-fiction books for adults. Her book Dinosaur Hideout has recently been translated into Japanese. Judith has lived most of her life in Saskatchewan in both urban and rural settings, exploring its history and revelling in the natural beauty of the prairie landscape, which provides inspiration for many of her books. Her love of travelling to other countries also provides many ideas for her stories.

  Judith has always been curious about supernatural phenomena and is particularly fascinated with Government House and the spirits said to be in residence there. She consulted with former and present staff as well as psychics, listening to their reports about the strange happenings they had experienced. She combined some of these stories with her imagination to write The Ghosts of Government House.

  Judith has published several hundred articles in newspapers and magazines, and has worked as an arts administrator, researcher and television documentary producer. She has taught numerous writing workshops and film classes, in addition to teaching English to students in Japan over Skype. Judith has given hundreds of readings at schools and libraries, as well as presentations at conferences. She has one son and presently lives in Regina, Saskatchewan.

  For more information about Judith Silverthorne, please visit her website: www.judithsilverthorne.ca.