At that moment a raindrop hit Nancy’s nose. Within a few seconds drops of water plopped all around them, making soft splatters on the greenery.
“Let’s go,” Nancy said, “before we get drenched. I’ll come back later.” The girls retraced their steps across the island as the rain fell with more and more intensity.
“I’m soaked!” complained Bess, pulling at her wet, sticky blouse. “I’ll be glad to get back to the cottage so I can take a long, hot shower.”
“I get the shower second,” George said.
“You two deserve it,” Nancy said. “Thanks for coming along with me to this island. I know neither of you really wanted to come.”
“That’s okay,” Bess said, stepping over a clump of tall weeds and pushing branches out of her way. “I’m just glad we’re heading back.”
“Me, too, if you want to know the truth,” said George. “The house didn’t bother me, but these wet clothes feel pretty uncomfortable.”
The wind howled, and the girls hunched forward against the downpour.
“It’s almost as if the wind wants us back at the house,” George shouted at her friends.
“Maybe ghosts can cause storms like this,” Bess hollered. “That’s why people only see ghosts on dark and stormy nights.”
George grinned. “Not likely,” she yelled. “It’s more probable that people get to imagining things on dark and stormy nights. Right, Nancy?”
“Right,” Nancy said, grinning and squinting into the rain that pelted her face.
The wind died down as fast as it had come up, but the rain continued relentlessly.
“How far back to the canoe?” Bess asked.
“It can’t be much farther,” Nancy said. “I can see the shoreline through the trees.”
“Do you think we’ll have trouble paddling back in the rain?” George asked Nancy.
“I don’t think the rain will be a problem,” Nancy said. “If the wind stays low for a while, we shouldn’t have trouble And I don’t see any lightning.”
“Here we are,” George said as they came out of a wooded area and onto the beach. “I remember that fallen birch at the edge of the water. This is the spot where we left the canoe.”
The girls stopped dead in their tracks and looked up and down the shore.
Bess was the first to speak. “Nancy!” she said, her eyes filled with horror. “The canoe! It’s gone!”
7
A Temporary Residence
“What could have happened to the canoe?” Bess gasped.
“Maybe the storm carried it away,” George guessed.
“I suppose it’s possible,” Nancy said as they came closer to the point in the sand where the canoe had been left. She doubted that was what had happened, though. She and George had pulled the canoe up onto the sand so that it was almost completely out of the water.
“Look!” Nancy said. “There are tracks in the sand here where the canoe was.” She pointed to where the canoe had been scraped along the sand a few feet. “It was picked up here,” she said, pointing to where the tracks stopped, “and carried off.” Several footprints in the sand disappeared into the grass.
George turned to face Nancy. “What do we do next?” she asked.
“I think we should find shelter and wait out the storm,” Nancy said.
“The house,” George said. “Let’s go back to the old house.”
“No, thanks,” Bess said. “I think I’d rather wait right here. Maybe someone will come by in a boat, and I’ll flag them down.”
“Nobody will be out in a boat in weather like this,” Nancy said. She hooked a soaking lock of hair behind one ear. “Let’s go back to the house and wait until the rain stops.”
“What if that isn’t until tomorrow?” Bess asked fearfully. “We’ll have to spend the night in that house!”
“We’ll all be there together,” George said. “At least we won’t be out in the cold rain.”
“Come on, Bess,” Nancy said gently. “We really don’t have a choice. George is right. We can’t stay out here. It’s too wet and cold.”
Bess sighed heavily. “I guess you’re right,” she said. She laughed ruefully. “I can’t believe I’m agreeing that staying in a haunted house overnight is the better choice!”
Nancy grinned. “It’ll be an experience you can share with your grandchildren.”
Bess grimaced. “If I live that long.”
The girls began their hike back to the old house. After a while they sighted the tower stretched up into the gray and black sky.
When they reached the back door, Nancy moved the loose board and pushed the heavy wooden door open.
“After you,” Bess said to Nancy.
Nancy crawled into the house through the space left by the board. George and Bess followed, shutting the door behind them.
“The kitchen,” Nancy stated, looking around her.
The room was deep in shadow, but they were able to make out some features. They were in a spacious, old-fashioned kitchen with large wooden cupboards along two of the walls and open spaces where the sink and stove would have been.
“This was obviously updated in the forties or fifties,” Nancy said. “This linoleum was very popular back when our parents were growing up. My grandmother’s kitchen looked a little like this.”
“It’s getting so dark,” George said. “I wish there was a lantern around here.”
“We don’t need one,” Nancy said with a little smile. She dug into her knapsack and brought out a flashlight.
“I should’ve known that Nancy would come prepared,” George said, grinning.
Nancy snapped on the light. “Let’s explore,” she said.
“Great!” George said.
“Just don’t go anywhere without me,” Bess said anxiously.
George and Bess followed Nancy out of the kitchen and into a large paneled room. From the ceiling hung a huge crystal chandelier covered with dust and cobwebs.
“How gorgeous!” Bess said. “This must be the dining room.”
“I’ll bet the owners entertained a lot of their New York friends right here in this room,” Nancy said.
“Maybe just before they drowned in the lake,” George said.
“Don’t talk about that!” Bess wailed. “I don’t even want to think about it.”
A howl came from outside that startled Bess.
“Just the wind,” said George. “It’s started to blow hard again.”
The howl came again, and the house shuddered in the shrill wind. They could hear the rain against the windows and trees branches being knocked against the house.
“Let’s see the rest of the house,” Nancy suggested.
The girls followed Nancy through the dining room and into a room that was even larger. Nancy shone her flashlight on a few large pieces of furniture, which were covered with white sheets.
“This must be the parlor,” Nancy said. “They probably received guests here.”
“I can’t believe the furniture is still here,” George said. “Oh, look at this old clock!”
Nancy pointed the flashlight toward the antique timepiece on top of a fireplace mantel.
“It’s ticking!” George gasped.
“What? That can’t be!” Nancy said, moving swiftly to join George. Bess followed close behind.
“It is working!” Nancy exclaimed. She checked her watch. “And the time is correct.” She put her hands on her hips and turned out toward the room. “Well, I guess we were right.”
“What?” asked Bess.
“Someone does come here,” Nancy said.
“Who could it be?” Bess asked.
“I wish I knew,” Nancy said. “Probably the same person who built the fence in the middle of the island and fixed the boarded-up door. I’m wondering if this person could have any connection with the weird things going on at the resort.”
The girls passed into the large front foyer of the house. It, too, was paneled with dark wood. Nancy looked ca
refully at the front door, which was nailed shut.
“This door has not been rigged so that it could open,” Nancy observed. “That person apparently decided to use the back door for his—or her—comings and goings.”
They continued their tour of the house and found a library on the ground floor that still held rows of hardcover books, now damp and mildewed in the humid lake air. A grand piano stood in one corner of the room. Nancy moved the piano bench out of the way, blew some dust off the keys, and played a few chords.
“It’s horribly out of tune,” she said. “At least we know that the person who set up housekeeping here isn’t a pianist. No self-respecting musician would play on an instrument that sounds as bad as this.”
The girls moved back into the foyer. The sun, invisible behind the thick layers of clouds, was setting, and what little natural light they had had from outside was diminishing.
“Want to see what’s upstairs?” Nancy asked.
“Not really,” Bess said. “But I have a feeling that you two want to explore some more.”
“Do you want to wait here?” George asked.
“And be down here all alone?” Bess said. “Forget it! I’m coming with you!”
A grand staircase stretched in front of them up into the shadows of the second floor. Nancy let Bess and George start up first so she could shine the light on the steps as they climbed.
“Don’t depend on this railing,” Nancy said, wiggling the banister. “It’s falling apart.”
The girls made their way slowly up the stairs, the steps creaking from their weight. At the top they found a long hallway with rooms on either side. The doors to all the rooms were shut.
Nancy opened the first door on the left, and the girls peeked inside.
“Completely empty,” George whispered. “Let’s try another room.”
They crossed the hall and opened the door. “Another empty room,” Bess said.
They walked into the room, and Nancy stepped to the far window. “It’s completely dark now,” Nancy said, “but the rain’s stopped.”
George and Bess joined her at the window. “I think I see a hint of light on the horizon,” George said. “Maybe it’ll be sunny tomorrow.”
Bess gasped. “Did you see that?”
“What?” George asked, looking out the window.
“A light. I saw a light down in the trees!” Bess said excitedly. “There it is again! Did you see it?”
“I didn’t see anything. Did you, Nancy?” asked George.
“No,” Nancy said quietly. “Who would be roaming out there on a night like this? Maybe it was your imagination, Bess.” Nancy couldn’t help but worry, though. Could the person who had taken their canoe still be out there? “Maybe we should block off that entrance to the kitchen, just in case,” she said, trying to keep her voice casual.
“Good idea,” George agreed.
The girls hurried down to the dark kitchen. Sweeping the room with the beam of her flashlight, Nancy looked for something to prop against the door. “Hey, maybe we’re in luck,” she said as her beam landed on the windowsill. There sat a long, rusty skeleton key.
Nancy put the key in the keyhole. “It locks from the inside,” she said, pulling at the door. “No one’s getting in now. Come on,” Nancy said. “Let’s go back to exploring the rooms.” They climbed the stairs once again and continued their tour of the second floor. In some of the rooms, old bed frames and large wooden wardrobes still stood.
“How do you think we could get to the tower?” George asked as they headed back to the staircase. “I’d love to see what’s up there.”
“I’ll bet the stairs are inside one of those front rooms,” Nancy figured. “Let’s look.” They went back to the first room they’d explored and entered. Nancy spotted a door with the beam of her flashlight.
A large iron key, like the one she’d used in the kitchen, sat in the door’s keyhole. Nancy crossed the room and pulled open the unlocked door. “Bingo! A staircase,” she said.
George and Bess followed as Nancy began to climb the steep, narrow stairs. A flapping noise from overhead startled them.
“Bats!” Bess shrieked. “Let’s get out of here!”
The three girls moved quickly back down the stairs and slammed the door behind them.
“Oh, I hate bats!” Bess said, shuddering. “Let’s get downstairs.”
Nancy and George didn’t argue, and they all hurried out of the room and down the steps to the ground floor.
“We’d better find a comfortable place to spend the night,” Nancy said. “Let’s try the parlor.”
The girls moved into the parlor and threw off the sheets that covered the furniture. Two long couches would sleep two of the girls, they decided. The third would have to sleep sitting up in one of the large overstuffed chairs.
“We’ll take turns,” Nancy suggested.
“I’ll take the chair first,” Bess said. “I couldn’t go to sleep now, anyway!”
The girls agreed that Bess would awaken Nancy first, and they would trade sleeping places. Nancy and George lay down on the couches, and Bess settled into the big chair.
It was quiet in the house except for the soft ticking of the clock on the mantel and the howl of the wind outside. Bess sat in the chair, her eyes darting around the room.
Nancy curled up on the couch and pulled one of the sheets over her. She soon fell into a light sleep. In her dreams she was climbing the stairs to the tower, bats swooping at her head. As she raised her arms to fend them off, a light appeared behind the bats. Then she saw the ghostly figure of a person—but she couldn’t see who it was. The light grew nearer, and she thought the person was coming toward her. Nancy tried to scream, but her voice was frozen with terror. If only she could see who it was.
Nancy’s eyes snapped open. At first she was disoriented. Then she remembered where she was. Relieved that the horrifying apparition had been nothing more than a bad dream, Nancy sat up.
Rubbing her eyes, she looked around the dark room. Someone was shining a light on her, but Nancy was blinded by it and couldn’t see who was behind it. She looked away from the light and saw that the chair that Bess had been in was empty.
Nancy’s heart thumped with alarm. Then she saw someone standing in front of the window, pointing the flashlight out into the night.
Suddenly Bess staggered back from the window and let out a piercing scream.
8
The Island’s Inhabitants
“Hurry!” Bess shrieked. “Come see the ghost!”
Nancy raced to the window.
“Where is it?” Nancy asked Bess, who was trembling from head to foot.
“Where?” George demanded, joining them. “I don’t see anything!”
Bess expelled a lungful of air. “It’s gone!” she whispered. “It dissolved into thin air. Didn’t you see it?”
“I’m afraid not,” Nancy said.
“Neither did I,” said George.
“Oh, Nancy, we’ve got to get off this island!” Bess said. “I know there’s a ghost out there! He wanted me to see him!”
“We will get off the island,” Nancy assured her. “We will, but we have to wait until morning.”
George and Nancy persuaded Bess to rest on the couch.
“I’ll take the chair,” Nancy said.
The night seemed endless, but finally, after many wakeful hours, the three girls fell asleep. When they awoke, the morning sun was streaming through the windows, slanting across the wooden floor in the parlor.
“Oh, I wish I had a toothbrush,” George grumbled as she perched on the edge of the couch, stretching her arms overhead and yawning.
“I’d settle for some toothpaste,” Nancy said, sitting up in the chair. “And a little fresh water.”
“I could go for some fried eggs and hash browns,” Bess said. “And a glass of orange juice and a cup of hot coffee.”
“Oh, don’t talk about food,” George groaned, waving at Bess. “I’m starved.
” She glanced at the clock on the mantel. “It’s already nine in the morning.”
“Let’s get our stuff together and walk back to the beach,” Nancy said. “Maybe someone will come by in a boat, and we can flag them over to pick us up.”
“Good idea,” Bess said, more anxious than any of them to get off the island. “Even though the sun is up and the house looks less scary, I still believe absolutely that I saw a ghost last night! It was the ghost of the financier, I’m positive!”
“What about the financier’s wife?” Nancy asked, winking at George. “I mean, did you see a man rather than a woman?”
Bess thought for a moment. “Well, I guess I can’t be absolutely sure,” she said. “I saw a figure with fog and mist all around it, and it was looking right at me! Then, when you and George came to see it, it vanished! I know it wants us off the island!”
“Well, we will oblige as soon as we can find a way,” Nancy said. “Come on. Let’s start walking.”
The girls picked up their knapsacks and headed out the back door, arranging the loose board on the door to look just as they had found it.
“It has really warmed up,” Nancy said, gazing at the blue sky above them.
“Yeah,” George said. “It sure is good to be out of that dark, damp house and into the warm, fresh air!”
“Before we go,” Nancy said, “I want to check the exact spot where Bess saw the—uh—”
“The ghost,” Bess prompted.
“Whatever it was that she saw,” Nancy said with a little smile at Bess. “Show us the spot, Bess.”
Bess walked around the side of the house and pointed to a spot directly across from the window at which she’d been standing the night before.
“There,” she said, pointing across the clearing toward the edge of the woods. “It was standing right there.”
Nancy walked directly to the spot. “Here?” she said.
“Yes,” Bess confirmed, standing back a little.
George joined Nancy. “Let’s start on the ground,” Nancy said. “Look for footprints, anything that could have been left behind.”
The girls bent over and began their search.
Haunting of Horse Island Page 5
