by Ron Roy
October Ogre
“Oh no, look!” Nate whispered. He scrunched back into the fake-fur blanket.
The figure was wearing torn, dirty clothes, as if he had just crawled out of a grave. The space over his shoulders, where his head should have been, was empty.
The zombie held out a basket. The kids looked inside. A dead-looking face stared back at them!
This is a work of fiction. Names, characters, places, and incidents either are the product of the author’s imagination or are used fictitiously. Any resemblance to actual persons, living or dead, events, or locales is entirely coincidental.
Text copyright © 2013 by Ron Roy
Cover art, map, and interior illustrations copyright © 2013 by John Steven Gurney
All rights reserved. Published in the United States by Random House Children’s Books, a division of Random House, Inc., New York.
Random House and the colophon are registered trademarks and A Stepping Stone Book and the colophon are trademarks of Random House, Inc.
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Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data
Roy, Ron.
October ogre / by Ron Roy; illustrated by John Steven Gurney.
p. cm. — (Calendar mysteries) “A Stepping Stone Book.”
Summary: Bradley, Brian, Nate, and Lucy visit a haunted hotel on Halloween, but once inside they realize that they have seen plenty of people going in and none coming back out.
eISBN: 978-0-375-89971-3
[1. Mystery and detective stories. 2. Haunted houses—Fiction. 3. Halloween—Fiction. 4. Twins—Fiction. 5. Brothers and sisters—Fiction. 6. Cousins—Fiction.] I. Gurney,
John Steven, ill. II. Title.
PZ7.R8139Oct 2013 [E]—dc23 2012038159
Random House Children’s Books supports the First Amendment and celebrates the right to read.
v3.1_r1
This book is dedicated to Oliver.
—R.R.
To Molly
—J.S.G.
Cover
Title Page
Copyright
Dedication
Map
1. The First Ogre
2. The Crabby Witch
3. Yummy Mummy Fingers
4. Killer Spiders!
5. Something Got Brian!
6. The Kids Get Help!
7. Where Is Officer Fallon?
8. Evil Candy
9. Bradley Takes a Chance
“How do I look?” Bradley asked. He was wearing a cardboard box. His head stuck out through a hole in the top, and his feet came out the bottom. There were holes in the sides for his arms.
Bradley had pasted pictures of Presidents George Washington, Abraham Lincoln, Theodore Roosevelt, and Thomas Jefferson on the four sides.
“You look like a box of cereal,” Nate said.
“What are you supposed to be?” asked Lucy.
Bradley grinned. “I’m Mount Rushmore,” he said.
It was Halloween, and the kids were getting dressed at Nate’s house. They were going to the Shangri-la Hotel. For Halloween, the building had been changed into a haunted house. All the kids they knew were planning to be there.
Bradley’s twin brother, Brian, was dressed as an astronaut. A clear plastic salad bowl covered his red hair. He pretended to breathe through a vacuum-cleaner hose taped to the bowl. His shirt and pants were covered with tinfoil.
Lucy was dressed as Sacagawea. She wore a fake-leather dress and moccasins and had her hair in a braid.
Nate had wound strips of rags around his face and body. “Guess what I am!” he said.
“Raggedy Andy?” Brian joked.
“No, I’m a mummy,” Nate said.
The four kids were best friends. Bradley and Brian’s older brother, Josh, was pals with Dink Duncan, Lucy’s cousin. Nate’s older sister, Ruth Rose, hung out with Josh and Dink.
The kids left Nate’s house and walked to Main Street. The sun was down, but it was not quite dark. They waited at the traffic light in front of Howard’s Barbershop.
“Dink told me there’s an ogre’s cave inside the hotel,” Lucy said. “The ogre is guarding a basket of candy. If we steal candy without getting caught, we get a prize!”
“Cool,” Brian said. “We get candy and a prize!”
When the sign said WALK, they crossed Main Street and headed to the Shangri-la Hotel. They stood behind some bushes and looked at the hotel.
“It does look haunted,” Lucy said. Bats, witch faces, and skeletons peered out the windows. Thick cobwebs hung from the front door. Spooky music came through hidden speakers.
A tall green ogre stood at the door. The monster had a lumpy green face and a fat belly. He held a club in his chubby fingers.
“What an awesome ogre!” Brian said. “Let’s go say hi!”
“Maybe not,” Nate said. “I don’t hang out with ogres.”
A bunch of kids in costumes were gathering at the hotel entrance. Bradley saw a Miss Piggy, a Batman, and some ghosts wearing bedsheets. The ogre opened the door and let a few of the kids inside. One of them was wearing a red cowboy hat.
“Hey, that’s Luke Sanders from our class!” Nate said, pointing. Nate waved, but Luke had disappeared into the haunted house.
“Come on,” Brian said. “Let’s go in. Josh told us some of the high school kids helped decorate. He said it’s real scary!”
Just then the hotel door creaked open. More kids went inside. The ogre stayed outside. He waved at Bradley, Brian, Nate, and Lucy.
“He’s telling us to come over,” Bradley said.
“Um, I’m not sure,” Nate said. “I mean, I don’t mind being scared, but that ogre guy is too creepy. Maybe I’ll just hang out here.”
Lucy took Nate’s hand. “Come on, Nate. It’ll be fun,” she said. “And friends stick together! If you don’t go in, we won’t go in, either.”
“But I want to go in!” Brian said. “I want to steal the candy and get a prize!” He looked at his brother. “What do you say, Bradley?”
“I love Halloween, too,” Bradley said. “But I agree with Lucy. If Nate doesn’t want to go in, we don’t go in.”
“Maybe later,” Nate said. “I just need to think about it.”
The kids sat near the bushes and kept their eyes on the haunted hotel. The ogre kept his eyes on them.
Soon all the kids had gone inside the haunted hotel. Only Bradley, Brian, Nate, and Lucy were still outside.
“I wonder what they’re doing in there,” Lucy said.
“Getting eaten up by the ogre,” Nate muttered.
“The ogre is still outside,” Brian said. “I say we go in right now. I need candy!”
“How about you, Nate?” Lucy asked.
Nate looked at the ogre standing in front of the hotel. “Do you think it’s really, really scary in there?” he asked.
“I hope so!” Brian said.
“Probably just average scary,” Bradley said. “The adults who planned this wouldn’t want to scare us to death!”
“Come on, Nate,” Brian said. “We’re the last ones out here. Those other kids are going to steal the candy and get the prize!”
Nate took a deep breath. “Okay, let’s do it!” he said.
“Awesome!” Brian said, slapping Nate on the back.
Nate stood as tall as he could. “Who’s afraid of some ogre?” he said.
“Not us!” they all yelled. Then they marched toward the hotel entrance. They stopped about ten feet from the ogre.
“Can I change my mind again?” Nate whispered.
“No!” Brian said.
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“It does look real,” Bradley whispered. Then he laughed. “But ogres aren’t real!”
“It’s just a costume,” Lucy said.
The kids walked over to the ogre.
“Welcome to the haunted house,” the ogre said. Bradley thought he’d heard that deep voice before.
“Follow me!” The ogre reached for the door. Bradley, Brian, Nate, and Lucy followed.
The door groaned when the ogre pulled it open.
The ogre tapped Bradley on the head. “Are you supposed to be a box of laundry soap?” he asked.
“N-no,” Bradley stuttered. “I’m Mount Rushmore.”
“Cool,” the deep voice said. “Be careful inside.”
Again, Bradley thought he recognized the voice.
“Be careful of what?” Nate asked.
The ogre laughed. “Everything!”
He stepped aside. Bradley and his cardboard box waddled through the door. Brian was right behind him, pushing his way in. Lucy was next, and Nate came last. He took very small steps.
The first thing Bradley noticed was the fog. It was like walking into a cloud. Foggy mist was all around them. Bradley could barely see his feet.
“Follow the green footprints,” the ogre said.
Then the door creaked shut, and the kids were alone.
“What green footprints?” Bradley whispered.
The four kids were standing in the dark. Tiny lights on the ceiling blinked on and off through the mist.
“It’s so quiet in here!” Bradley whispered. He wondered where all the other kids were.
Suddenly a tall witch appeared out of the mist. She shone a light into Bradley’s eyes.
Bradley gulped. “Where did you come from?” he asked.
“From a daaaaarrrrk plaaaace,” the witch hissed.
Brian and Lucy giggled. Nate moaned.
The witch wore a long black dress and a pointy hat. Bradley was sure he saw spiders crawling in her tangled hair. She had a crooked nose, a hairy wart, and gross teeth.
“You’re late!” the witch said. She reached a skinny hand toward Bradley. Her fingernails were long and black. “Give me your hand!”
“No way!” Bradley said.
“Chill out,” the witch said. “I just want to take you to the green footprints. Follow me.”
The four kids followed the witch into the gloomy place.
“Um, Miss Witch?” Bradley said. “What happened to the other kids who came in here?”
“No questions!” she said, pointing to the floor. “Just follow these footprints!” Then the witch walked away.
“Why is she so crabby?” Nate asked.
Bradley saw big green footprints on the floor, glowing in the dark.
They were in the Shangri-la Hotel lobby. Bradley had been here lots of times. He remembered all the nice furniture, the soft carpet, the potted palm trees. The manager, Mr. Linkletter, was funny and nice to kids.
But now it was all different. The lobby had been turned into a big, dark cave. Most of the furniture was gone. A few couches and chairs were covered with white sheets. There was no Mr. Linkletter standing behind the counter. Foggy mist floated in the air. The room was as silent as a cemetery.
“I wonder where Luke and those other kids are,” Bradley said. “We’re the only ones in here.”
“The witch said to follow the footprints,” Brian said. “So let’s go!” He put a foot on one of the glowing prints.
Lucy hurried after Brian. Bradley and Nate followed her. The fog swirled around them.
Bradley wished he had chosen a different costume. It was hard to walk inside a cardboard box. He also wished it weren’t so dark. If the footprints hadn’t been glowing, he wouldn’t have been able to see them.
The prints led the kids past the lobby counter. But there was no phone, no computer, and no big clock on the wall.
Instead there were spiderwebs hanging from the ceiling. There were big black spiders dangling from the webs. A mean-faced jack-o’-lantern sat where the phone used to be.
A skeleton lay on the desk. Its mouth was open as if it were laughing!
Brian stopped dead. Lucy bumped into him.
“Oh no,” Nate whispered. “The ogre ate some kid and left a skeleton!”
“Totally fake,” Brian muttered. “Look, it’s made of plastic.” Brian thumped the skeleton’s arm.
Suddenly the skeleton sat up. It turned and faced the kids, shaking its bones.
The four kids screamed and raced away.
They ran through the dark fog. Brian was laughing like crazy. Bradley bumped into something and fell. He landed on a couch. The other three kids piled on top of him. Bradley’s hand touched something furry, and he yelled, “It’s a wolf!”
They were all tangled up in each other’s arms and legs. Bradley felt his Mount Rushmore box crunch.
Lucy started to laugh. “No, it’s a fake-fur blanket!” she said.
Nate gasped. “Is that fake, too?” he asked, pointing ahead of them.
Out of the mist, a white ghost floated toward them. It was wearing a sheet with holes cut out for the eyes. The ghost was carrying a plate.
“Have a yummy finger?” the ghost asked the kids.
The plate held what looked like bloody human fingers!
“I’m not eating any mummy’s fingers!” Nate yelled.
“He said yummy, not mummy,” Brian said. “Besides, they’re cookies!” He grabbed one and popped it in his mouth. “With raspberry frosting!”
Bradley and Lucy each took one.
“No thank you,” Nate said politely.
“Excuse me,” Bradley said to the ghost. “Have you seen a bunch of other kids? They came in a while ago.”
The ghost laughed. “Follow the footprints,” he said, then disappeared into the darkness.
The kids looked around. They saw more spiderwebs, and bats hanging from the ceiling.
“That ghost didn’t answer my question,” Bradley said.
“They never answer questions,” Nate muttered.
Lucy giggled. “Ghosts are so rude!” she said.
Just then another figure appeared in front of them.
“Oh no, look!” Nate whispered. He scrunched back into the fake-fur blanket.
The figure was wearing torn, dirty clothes, as if he had just crawled out of a grave. The space over his shoulders, where his head should have been, was empty.
The zombie held out a basket. The kids looked inside. A dead-looking face stared back at them!
Nate yelled and tried to hide behind Brian and Lucy.
Bradley gulped. The head was just a scary face painted on a volleyball. “Sir, have you seen some other kids?” he asked the zombie. “They came in before us.”
“Follow the green footprints,” the zombie said. The voice came from inside his chest. Then he wandered away, carrying the head.
“How can he see where he’s going?” Brian whispered.
“They keep telling us to follow these dumb footprints!” Bradley said. “Why wouldn’t he tell me where those other kids are?”
“Because they ate them!” Nate wailed.
“Nate, ghosts and witches and ogres aren’t real,” Bradley said. “These are all fake guys.”
“But what if zombies and ogres were real?” Nate insisted. “What if they really wanted to eat kids? They’d come to a fake haunted house like this one, and find lots of kids. Like us!”
Suddenly they heard a loud squealing noise.
“It sounds like a pig,” Lucy said.
“Oh no!” Nate said. “One of the kids was dressed as Miss Piggy. The ogre got her!”
“What ogre?” Brian said. “The only ogre we saw was the one outside. And that was just some grown-up in a costume.”
“Can we leave now?” Nate asked. “I’ve had enough Halloween forever!”
“We can’t leave,” Bradley said. “We have a mystery to solve!”
“What mystery?” Nate asked.
“Nat
e, a bunch of kids came in here before us,” Bradley said. “Now they’re all gone! What if something happened to them?”
“Let’s go find them!” Brian said. “It’ll be like playing hide-and-seek in the dark!”
“I’m not going anywhere!” Nate said. He pulled the fake-fur blanket up to his chin. “I’ll just stay here on this nice couch.”
Brian tickled him. “What if that zombie comes back to get your head?” he asked.
“Come on, Nate,” Lucy said. “The ogre, the witch, the ghost, and that headless guy all told us to follow the footprints, right? So they must have told the other kids the same thing. Maybe the footprints will lead us to Luke and the others.”
“We should split up and look around this place,” Brian said.
“No way!” Nate said. “I’m not poking around a creepy hotel alone!”
“You won’t be alone,” Bradley said. “I’ll be with you. Brian and Lucy will be the other team. If anyone finds those kids, yell out, okay?”
“We’ll meet back here in fifteen minutes,” Brian said.
“If we don’t get eaten,” Nate muttered.
“First, I’m getting rid of this,” Bradley said. He wiggled out of the cardboard box and dropped it behind the couch.
“Okay, let’s split up,” Brian said. “Come on, Lucy. Let’s follow these footprints.”
The pair disappeared in the fog.
“Now it’s just us,” Nate whispered to Bradley.
Since Brian and Lucy had followed the footprints, Bradley and Nate walked in the opposite direction.
The foggy mist made it hard to see the dark floor. They stumbled into covered furniture and fake trees. Thick, sticky cobwebs hung from the branches.
Nate almost bumped into a long snake hanging from a tree branch. “It’s a python!” Nate cried. “They can swallow a kid whole!”
“Nate, it’s a fake snake,” Bradley said. He patted the snake’s rubber belly. “This guy can’t swallow anything!”
“There should be a law against scaring little kids,” Nate grumbled.
Bradley continued walking, feeling his way in the dark, misty place. Nate walked right behind him, holding on to Bradley’s shirt.
