Ghosts in the Garden

by Judith Silverthorne

  “Well, if you’re sure.”

  “Of course, I’m sure. It’s a very special gift, and he’s lucky you had it refurbished too.”

  Lily’s face brightened again. “It did turn out rather well.”

  A little bell tinkled on the wall next to the dining room door.

  Alice gave Lily a grin and hoisted a tray over her shoulder. “Time to serve the canapés.” She sailed out of the kitchen. Lily whisked another tray up and followed her sister out.

  Sam eased back into the entryway. There was no way she’d be able to get past Kate to see into the dining room. And J.J. was probably frantically worrying about her. The tea kettle whistled as Sam tiptoed back across the vestibule and to the back door.

  She’d barely closed the outside door, when a hand grabbed her arm. Sam jumped and stumbled backwards.

  •••

  “What were you doing?” demanded J.J. “You left me out here on my own.”

  “You didn’t want to come,” Sam grumbled. “Besides, I wasn’t gone long.”

  “Long enough! It’s creepy out here all alone.” J.J. blinked back tears and swallowed hard to calm her anger.

  A guilty look flashed across Sam's face. “Sorry! I won’t do it again. I promise, J. J. At least, not on purpose.”

  “Not at any time. From now on we stick close together, no matter what happens.”

  “Agreed,” Sam said.

  “I want to go home now.” J.J. grabbed Sam’s arm and pulled her across the shadowy grounds. “Will it work if we touch the staff building?”

  “I hope so,” Sam said.

  Halfway across the grounds, Sam slowed. “Sorry, my knee is bugging me,” she said, bending to rub it.

  “Doesn’t look like we’re going to get back home so fast anyway,” J.J. said. “Look over there.”

  “Oh no,” Sam said.

  Two men stood close together on the path to the staff residence. Right where they needed to be.

  “I thought everyone was helping inside the main house,” J.J. said.

  “Must be the coachmen of the landau.”

  “Isn’t one of them Bert?” J.J. asked.

  “I think you’re right.”

  J.J. looked around. Was there another way to get past them? “We could go the long way around the staff residence, I guess.”

  “That’ll take too long in the dark. I wonder if we could distract them somehow.”

  “I don’t see any rocks to throw,” J.J. said.

  “Let’s get closer to see what they’re talking about,” Sam suggested. “Maybe we can figure out what their plans are.”

  J.J. and Sam edged nearer, keeping to the shadows of trees and bushes, being careful about where they stepped.

  “Slow down,” Sam hissed. She bent down and rubbed her knee.

  “Are you going to be okay?” J.J. asked quietly. “Maybe we need to come up with another plan.” She wasn’t sure what they’d be able to do if Sam couldn’t run.

  “I’ll be fine,” Sam whispered. “I just needed a break.”

  “We’re not close enough yet,” J.J. said. The men’s voices were louder now, but she still couldn’t hear what they were saying. J.J. pointed to a caragana hedge. “Can you make it that far?”

  Sam nodded. J.J. dashed toward the hedge, with Sam limping behind her. They burrowed into it.

  One of the men laughed. Bert showed the other man something that glinted in the moonlight.

  “You’re one lucky devil, Bert, to have a swell gal like Lily give you such a great pocket watch,” said the second man.

  “Don’t I know it,” he said.

  “The carving on it means it was expensive.”

  “Yes, she’s a thing of beauty. All I need now is a silver chain.” Bert polished the watch with a handkerchief while J.J. peered through the caragana branches for a better look.

  “That should be easy enough to find in a second-hand shop.”

  “That’s where Lily probably got such a fine watch in the first place,” Bert said. “I’ve always wanted a pocket watch, just like my granddad had. It’s a similar age to his old time piece.” Bert looked at his watch with pride. “Quite exquisite. I’m ever so grateful to her.”

  “What happened to the family watch?”

  “My pops gave it to my older brother.” Bert scowled. “Said it was his by rights.”

  “I suppose it was,” said the other man. “Things like that pass down to the oldest in the family.”

  “Only thing is, my brother didn’t care about it at all. But he wouldn’t give it to me.”

  “Then you made out fine with this one.” The other man slapped him on the back. “Is it time we got back to the horses and got them rigged up for the drive back with the first guests?”

  Bert flicked open the cover of the watch and angled the face towards the moonlight. “No, we have some time yet.” He laughed and slipped his watch into his pocket. “You’re just anxious to get back to the barracks for some shut-eye, Constable Roup,” he teased the other man.

  “Won’t deny it,” Roup said. “I like these assignments, but not the waiting around part in between. I’d rather be doing much more serious RCMP work. I like to keep busy.”

  “I know what you mean,” Bert said, as they took a couple of steps away.

  J.J. saw, with some relief, that the men strolled across the yard, chatting. But they didn’t go far before they settled against a clump of trees, to wait.

  “Did you see that watch?” J.J. eased herself onto her knees.

  “Yes, a shiny silver one.” Sam squatted beside her.

  “Now what?” J.J. asked. The men were still too close to them. “We can’t stay here until they leave. We’re really late now.” J.J. had no idea how the time was changing in the present. For how long had they actually been gone?

  “What if we made a run for it?” Sam asked. “They might see us, but before they could stop us we might be gone. If my guess is right, I think our time travel has something to do with the corner of the house.”

  J.J. agreed, “At least every time we're here together, it's happened that way. And we’ve been touching each other too, so that probably has something to do with it.”

  “I’m sure we have to touch each other and the corner of the building at the same time. Otherwise one of us might get left behind,” added Sam.

  “We’ll have to hold hands tight and not let go.” J.J.’s heart thumped. She stared at Sam. “You can run okay with your knee?”

  “I’ll be fine.” Sam hesitated. “It might not work. We might be stuck here.” Her voice trembled.

  Biting her lip, J.J. said. “But we’ve got to try.”

  Sam nodded. “First, we’ve got to get past this hedge.”

  J.J. lay on her stomach and wormed along the bottom of the hedge, pulling herself forward with her elbows. She could hear Sam scuffing behind her. The men’s voices and bouts of laughter floated towards them, and an occasional waft of wind rustled the leaves. Otherwise, all was quiet on the night air as they crawled along the bushes.

  When J.J. reached the end of the caragana hedge farthest from the men, she stood up in the shadows. Sam stood up beside her. They had to cross the boardwalk to get to the corner of the house; there was no other way.

  J.J. looked towards the men, and then at Sam. “Does it matter which one of us touches the corner first? You’ve always been the one to do it.”

  “I don’t know,” Sam said.

  “You touch it first, just in case,” J.J. said.

  “Okay.” Sam clamped J.J.’s hand in hers. “You ready?”

  J.J. squeezed tighter. “Ready.”

  “Okay. On the count of three.”

  J.J. took a deep breath. “One, two, THREE!” She shot off with Sam’s fingers clasped tight in hers.

  They dashed across the last few feet of ground together, clattered over the wooden walk, and dived towards the building, past a small bush. J.J.’s clothing snagged on a bramble, but she tugged it loose.
/>   “Hey, who’s there?” one of the men yelled. They heard pounding feet.

  J.J. and Sam scrambled for the corner, hanging tight onto each other’s hands.

  Sam reached for the corner first. J.J. bumped into her. She saw Sam’s hand slip, then Sam reached again. Connected.

  The building disappeared.

  J.J. fell to the ground, rolling, landing next to Sam. They were on their backs, and the rain fell gently on their faces.

  J.J. giggled, happy to be back in their time. She stopped instantly. This really wasn’t funny. They could have been stuck in the past forever. She wiped the rain off her face, or was it tears?

  She glanced over at Sam.

  “We made it, Sam.” J.J.’s whole body shook.

  Sam heaved a long sigh.

  J.J. jumped up and used her sleeve to wipe her face. Beside her, Sam rose to her feet. They looked at the familiar scene of their present time. And there, on the driveway, was Sam’s poster tube.

  J.J. picked it up and handed it to Sam.

  “The tube is wet, but it’s still solid. Maybe the poster will be okay.” Sam tucked into under her arm. “I’ve got to finish it right away.”

  J.J. linked her arm tightly into Sam’s. “Let’s get home.”

  Chapter Eight

  With a cup of hot chocolate warming her insides, Sam snuggled into bed, pulling the covers up to her chin. Her mind whirred, though. Maybe she should phone J.J. to discuss their night. She had to tell her friend what she’d heard in the kitchen between Lily and Alice about the watch. But suddenly, Sam felt sleepy.

  Before she knew it, J.J. was at her side, shaking her. “Come on, Sam. We’re going to be late for school. You slept in.”

  Sam groaned. “I forgot to set my alarm last night. My parents had to leave early this morning.” She opened an eye to peer at her friend. J.J. had dark circles under her eyes.

  “Are you okay?” Sam opened both eyes and sat up for a better look. “You look terrible.”

  “I didn’t sleep much,” J.J. said. “I had nightmares all night.”

  “Maybe you should stay home from school,” Sam suggested.

  J.J. shook her head. “No, I’ll be fine. Besides, I want to hand in my poster today.”

  Sam groaned. She still needed to paste the photographs on hers.

  “How’s your poster?” J.J. asked. “Was it dry?”

  “It’s okay, considering our adventures last night. But I’ll have to stay in at lunchtime or after school to get it done.”

  “Good. That means no more exploring the past.” J.J. looked relieved.

  “Except…”

  “Except nothing,” J.J. said. “There’s no reason to do any more.”

  Sam shrugged. “I was just going to say, except I wouldn’t mind going to see Mrs. Goudy one more time. I want to ask her about a watch.”

  “A watch?”

  “Wait until I tell you what I overheard last night.”

  J.J. groaned. “Get dressed while you’re telling me. We’ve gotta get going.”

  As Sam raced around throwing on her clothes and grabbing her poster and backpack, she told J.J. about the watch Lily had given Bert.

  “I bet it’s the same one you know who lost.” Sam couldn’t contain her excitement.

  “That’s a leap,” J.J. said, shaking her head.

  “Might not be,” Sam said. “Think about what Lily’s ghost said. The word, ‘watch.’ I don’t think she wants us to watch anything. I think she’s trying to tell us something about the watch.”

  J.J. pursed her lips. “You might be right.”

  “We just need to find out.”

  “Oh no, we’re not going back there again,” J.J. said shrilly. Crossing her arms tightly, she took a step back from Sam.

  “No, I mean, we just need to ask Mrs. Goudy what she knows about the watch Lily found. Where and when she found it.”

  J.J. relaxed. “That’s okay then. We can do that.”

  “Maybe we can even ask Lily herself.” Sam grinned.

  J.J. laughed. “You really are crazy about connecting with ghosts.”

  “I thought you were too.” Sam looked at J.J. in surprise.

  “I was, until this scary going-back-in-time stuff started happening.” J.J. clenched her hands together.

  “Yeah, wasn’t expecting that.” Sam raised her eyebrows. “But it sure has been interesting, hasn’t it?”

  “You could say that.” J.J. headed to the door. Sam snapped off her light and they left the room.

  By the end of the school day, J.J. looked even more dragged-out. Sam felt sorry for her friend shuffling along beside her.

  “Are you sure you’re not too tired to come with me to Mrs. Goudy’s?” she asked.

  “We won’t be more than a few minutes, right?”

  “No. Mrs. Goudy doesn’t have much time for us today, anyway. When I phoned at noon, she said she has an event to go to.”

  “Then I’ll come, but no messing around afterwards.”

  “Straight there, straight home. City sidewalk all the way. Broad daylight,” Sam promised.

  J.J. straightened her backpack. “I’m ready, then.”

  As they set off, they reviewed their adventures of the night before. By the time they reached the Pioneer Village parking lot, they were laughing.

  “Can you imagine how shocked Bert and the other guy must have been when we disappeared before their eyes?” Sam doubled over in a fit of giggles.

  J.J. snickered. “I wonder how they tried to explain it. Or if anyone would believe them?”

  “Maybe they didn’t dare tell anyone.” Sam opened the foyer door, and they stepped inside.

  “You girls are sure cheerful today,” Amber greeted them. “Mrs. Goudy’s waiting for you.” She waved them by.

  Sam felt a little disappointed that they didn’t meet Lily in the hallway, even though they walked slowly. Maybe she’d be with Mrs. Goudy?

  Mrs. Goudy turned a broad smile on them when they reached her open doorway. “Come in, tell me your news. You sounded so excited on the phone.”

  Sam and J.J. slid their backpacks to the floor by the door and scuttled to the love seat beside Mrs. Goudy, her eyes sparkling in anticipation.

  She eyed J.J. “I don’t like to say anything, but are you getting enough rest, dear? Not working too hard on these posters?”

  “Uh, just didn’t sleep so well last night,” J.J. answered, stifling a yawn.

  “Maybe too excited about your news? So tell me what you discovered.” She settled her hands in her lap and gave them her full attention.

  “It’s not really news, but more of an idea. It involves your sister Lily and what she said to us,” Sam said, peering at Mrs. Goudy.

  Mrs. Goudy nodded, her eyes curious.

  “Remember she said the word ‘watch’?” J.J said.

  Mrs. Goudy nodded again.

  “We think she meant us to look for a watch, not watch for something.” Sam leaned forward.

  “There just didn’t seem to be anything for us to watch for. I mean, we’re working on these posters, and mine is from around the time you worked there with all the staff and the buildings, but, well, we just wondered, that’s all.” Sam dwindled off and sank back into the love seat. J.J. rustled beside her, looking uncomfortable.

  “Do you recall anything about a watch?” J.J. asked.

  Mrs. Goudy thought for a moment. “A watch doesn’t mean anything to me.” She shook her head.

  “What about a watch that Lily may have given to someone? Say, to Bert?” Sam tried to jog her memory.

  “A watch Lily gave Bert?” All of a sudden the older lady sat up straighter. “Yes, I do remember now. Lily gave Bert an old pocket watch she found. It was in terrible condition when she found it. I didn’t think it was worth restoring, but she was determined.” She peered at Sam and J.J. “But how did you figure out about the watch?”

  Sam felt J.J. stiffen beside her. Should they tell her about their adventures of the
night before?

  J.J. interrupted before Sam could start. “We remembered, uh, a story, about how the head gardener years ago misplaced his watch.”

  “You mean George W…” Mrs. Goudy started to say.

  “That’s the one,” Sam cut her off quickly. She didn’t want her saying his name, in case they all flipped back in time. They still weren’t sure if it only happened when they were on the Government House grounds. So far that had been the case, but she wasn’t taking any chances. And she certainly didn't want to be responsible for Mrs. Goudy if they all went back!

  “We got talking about it, and suddenly it made sense that Lily might be talking about a real watch,” Sam explained.

  Mrs. Goudy shrugged. “Makes as much sense as anything, I suppose.”

  “Do you remember where she found it?” J.J. asked.

  “It was in 1941, I believe, because that’s the year we had several special visitors,” Mrs. Goudy said. “Lily came into the staff residence after work one day with this rusty old thing caked in dirt. She said she’d found it when she went to consult John Dewey about cutting flowers for the dining room and table.”

  “Do you remember her saying where exactly she found it?” J.J. asked.

  Mrs. Goudy thought for a moment. “I remember we had huge sprays of pink roses and white chrysanthemums. She’d been out by the rose garden.”

  Sam nodded. “That makes sense.” George Watt had been tending the roses the day they’d seen him without his watch. The flower bed seemed to still be in the same vicinity. But she wasn’t going to tell Mrs. Goudy anything about their trips back in time.

  “Sounds like it could be the gardener’s,” J.J. said.

  “He was working near the rose garden the day his went missing,” Sam added.

  Mrs. Goudy stared at her. “How do you know so much detail?”

  Oops, Sam had said too much. How could she know this much without admitting to being there when it happened?

  J.J. came to her rescue. “There are all kinds of things in his old diaries.”

  “Yes, that’s it,” Sam said. At least J.J. hadn’t said they’d read it in his diaries. She wasn’t even sure he had written it there, but at least it seemed like a possible explanation. She turned a grateful smile on J.J.