The Haunting
Page 12
It was true. With Miss Greer, Maggie, a butler, and two other part-time maids, the manor was well on the way back to its former glory. Every piece of furniture and corner of the estate had been scrubbed, polished, and dusted until it shined like crystal. Speaking of crystal, the chandelier had also been replaced with a new one. It was less extravagant, but the Thorntons agreed that they didn’t need anything too fancy.
Emily glanced up at the big thing, remembering that not too many months ago the sight of it still scared her, along with the memory of it almost falling on top her. But now, the events of that awful night seemed like nothing more than a bad dream.
“Miss Emily!”
Emily looked down to see Miss Greer tugging the sponge from Archie’s mouth. The housekeeper waved it irritably.
“The Mr. and Mrs. want you in the scullery,” Miss Greer informed. “You’re late!”
“I just wanted to put these books away,” Emily called.
“I’ll see to it, Miss Emily,” Maggie said, taking the books from Emily’s arms.
“Thank you, Maggie.” Emily hurried down the steps, snapping her fingers at Archie. “C’mon, boy!”
Archie trotted after her happily. He’d enjoyed the extra staff as much as Miss Greer loved the extra help. He often played with them, hoping to get them to chase him around.
On the way to the scullery, Emily passed the portrait of a small blond toddler. She couldn’t help stopping and smiling at the oil painting whenever she saw it. It was a lovely piece of art, but Emily admired it for other reasons.
Katharine Anne had been a beautiful child who filled the manor and the hearts of her parents with light. Now, three years after her death, portraits of Kat lined the hallways. This time, however, the memory of the young girl brought not painful feelings, but bittersweet ones.
Archie sniffed the air and whined, reminding Emily of her destination. Scratching her friend’s ears, they set off again down the hallway and emerged into the scullery to find Mrs. Thornton practically covered in flour.
“Emily, there you are! Come give me a hand, would you?”
A large mixing bowl sat on the big wooden table, and a whole mess of other ingredients were laid about its surface. Mrs. Thornton stood over the mixing bowl, struggling to stop the flow of flour from the large ten-pound bag she held in her arms.
Mrs. Thornton wasn’t an excellent cook—or baker for that matter—but this was something she insisted on making herself every year.
Emily quickly rushed to her side and took the bag of flour and grunted, lowering it down to set it on the floor. Mrs. Thornton wiped her brow, leaving a white mark across her forehead, then placed her hands on her hips.
“Thank you, dear. I think we need milk next.”
At that moment, Mr. Thornton came in bearing a pail of strawberries. “It’ll have to be strawberries for the cake, Charlotte. I looked high and low for blackberries but they’re just not ready yet.”
“That’s all right, I suppose. Katharine always was the best at spotting the first few ripe ones.”
“She’ll like strawberry cake, too,” Emily said, remembering the time that Kat had shown her the bunnies near the strawberry patch.
“Yes, I think you’re right,” Mr. Thornton said with a smile, kissing the top of Emily’s head.
“Well, let’s hurry it up, then,” Mrs. Thornton said, gesturing for the strawberries. “This birthday cake isn’t going to make itself!”
“Yes, we’ll need to make this one fast so Miss Greer will have time to make another one,” Mr. Thornton said, winking at Emily.
“And what is that supposed to mean, dear? Are you saying my cake will be inedible?”
“Nothing, darling. I just meant that yours is so good I’ll eat it all myself and there will be none left for anyone else!”
Emily giggled as Mrs. Thornton swatted her husband with a mixing spoon. Though she could have sworn she heard someone else laughing, too.
That evening, after supper and cake time, Emily took Archie out for a brisk walk in the gardens. It was a lovely summer night, and the sun was just beginning to set over the grounds. She didn’t have long to be out here before Miss Greer called her back in, but she enjoyed the time when all of the flowers smelled the best, right at sundown.
As she rounded a corner in the gardens, by the foxgloves and lavender, not far from the old well, she spotted a large pile of the ripest blackberries.
Before she even looked up, Emily knew who she was going to see. And she wasn’t scared. She hadn’t been for a whole year.
At the edge of the garden, near the blackberry bushes, stood Katharine with a big smile on her face. She lifted a hand, stained purple with blackberry juice, and waved.
Emily waved back, smiling.
The ghost turned and ran into the bushes, the tips of her gold curls disappearing in the yellow haze of the setting sun.
I’ve always loved ghost stories. There was a time in my life when Betty Ren Wright and Mary Downing Hahn were my favorite authors. It feels like such a dream to be able to publish a book in the same space as theirs.
Of course, this could not have been possible without some amazing people.
To my agent, Frances Black with Literary Counsel, thanks for putting this deal together.
Orlando Dos Reis, my talented editor and all-around cool dude, thanks for believing in my writing and sharing my love of Victorian ghosts and phantoms. What a delight it has been to work with you.
Thank you to the team over at Scholastic: Stephanie Yang, Yaffa Jaskoll, Caroline Flanagan, Courtney Vincento, Jackie Hornberger, Erin Slonaker, and Evangelos Vasilakis. Thank you to Scholastic Clubs and Fairs—a wealth of gratitude for this book and for making so many kids’ days with your book fairs and flyers.
To my wonderful family—Mom, Dad, Jason, and Nichole—your support is much needed and much appreciated. And to my friends, you make ghost stories that much more fun to share. You know who you are.
Lindsey Duga is a young adult and middle-grade writer from Baton Rouge, Louisiana. Drawing inspiration from the cartoon shows and books she enjoyed as a kid, she wrote her first novel in college while obtaining a bachelor’s in mass communication from Louisiana State University. The Haunting is her middle-grade debut. Her young adult fantasy novels include Kiss of the Royal and Glow of the Fireflies. Other than writing and cuddling with her morkie puppy, Delphi, Lindsey enjoys practicing yoga and ballroom dancing.
Copyright © 2020 by Lindsey Duga
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This book is a work of fiction. Names, characters, places, and incidents are either the product of the author’s imagination or are used fictitiously, and any resemblance to actual persons, living or dead, business establishments, events, or locales is entirely coincidental.
First printing 2020
Cover art by Larry Rostant © 2020 Scholastic Inc.
Cover design by Stephanie Yang
e-ISBN 978-1-338-50652-5
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