The House Has Eyes

by Joan Lowery Nixon

  “Was there a boat anchored in the bay?” Brian asked.

  “I don’t remember.”

  “Are there ever boats anchored in the bay?”

  “Well, sure, now and then,” Mr. Pekka said. “But what business would they have with this old house? Why would a seaman come here?”

  Sean was puzzled. “What makes you think the person you saw wasn’t a seaman? Why did you think he was a ghost?”

  “Because of what happened next,” Mr. Pekka said. “When he got to the house he didn’t go up the back steps and knock at the door. He didn’t bother with the door. I saw him walk right straight through the wall of the house and disappear! And soon after, inside the house, I saw the flickering ghost lights.”

  Mr. Pekka stared at the mansion and shook his head. “One thing I’m sure of: I’ll never again come back to this place after dark!”

  6

  CHARLES RAN OUTSIDE AS Mr. Pekka drove off. “I saw you out here,” he said to Sean and Brian. “Why were you talking to the gardener?” Sean glanced at Brian. “A good investigator never passes up a possible witness,” he said. “Mr. Pekka told us—”

  Brian broke in. Charles was frightened enough. “He told us that he’s been working here almost two years,” Brian said. “Let’s get to work. I’ve brought a tape measure.”

  “What for?” Charles asked.

  “Come on,” Brian said. “I’ll show you.”

  As they entered the house there was no sign of the Elberts. Brian was glad. He was pretty sure that Mr. Elbert might not like what he was planning to do.

  Brian led the way down the hallway to the library. He put a hand on Charles’s shoulder and pointed to the nearest corner on the right-hand side. “Stand in that corner,” he said.

  Charles looked puzzled. “Why do you want me to stand in a corner?” he asked.

  “Not just a corner. That corner. You’re going to help me take measurements. When I tell you to, start tapping on the wall between you and the hallway. Tap lightly. Don’t make much noise. Okay?”

  Brian led Sean into the empty room next door and asked him to stand in the nearest left-hand corner.

  “You didn’t tell Charles about the ghost walking through the wall to get into the house,” Sean whispered.

  “Why tell Charles something that will scare him? A good investigator collects facts and keeps them to himself until he decides which are important and which aren’t,” Brian said.

  “Do you know yet if that ghost story was important?”

  “If my guess is right, the seaman wasn’t a ghost,” Brian said. “Now start tapping on the wall between you and the hallway.”

  Brian left the room as Sean began tapping. Soon Charles began tapping in the next room.

  That’s funny, Sean thought. Charles doesn’t sound like he’s right next to me. He sounds farther away.

  Brian poked his head through the open doorway and grinned. “We just found out something important,” he said. “There’s about a two-foot space between these two rooms.”

  Sean gasped. “Part of a secret passage?”

  “Maybe. Hurry up. We’re going to do some more measuring.”

  Charles looked frightened when they told him. “I don’t like the idea of secret passages in this house. That means people could spy on me.”

  “They are spying on you,” Sean said. “You’ve seen the eyes.”

  “At least they’re people and not ghosts,” Charles answered. He thought a moment. “But who’s doing the spying? Why are they doing it?”

  “We’ll find out,” Brian said. “I want to take a look at the back of the house, then have you show us where you’ve seen the eyes in the living room and entry hall.”

  They had to go down one hallway and through another to reach the kitchen and the back door of the house.

  Mrs. Elbert, who was sitting at the kitchen table reading a magazine, looked up as they came into the room. “Where are you going?” she asked.

  “Outside,” Charles said.

  “To the bay,” Brian added.

  “I’d stay away from the bay if I were you,” she warned. “There’s just a small strip of beach and lots of sharp rocks. It would be very easy to get hurt.”

  “We’re just going to look,” Brian told her. “We’re not going down to the water.”

  Mrs. Elbert seemed nervous. “It’s hard to have a boy in this big old house. He’s here, he’s there. He’s likely to pop up anywhere. He’s hard to keep an eye on.”

  “We’ll make sure Charles is safe,” Brian said.

  But Brian, Sean, and Charles were only halfway across the wide expanse of lawn when Mr. Elbert caught up with them. He puffed a little, breathing heavily.

  “I didn’t know you were here,” he said. “Charles didn’t tell me you were coming this afternoon. His parents telephoned, but …”

  “Are they coming home tonight?” Charles asked eagerly.

  “No, they’re not,” Mr. Elbert said. “Their work is keeping them in San Francisco.”

  “Oh,” Charles said. He looked so disappointed that Sean felt sorry for him.

  Mr. Elbert said, “I’m sure you boys have homework to do. I know that Charles does. So if you’ll just run along …”

  Brian began walking again toward the ocean. “We will,” he said, “after Charles has shown us the bay.”

  Mr. Elbert scrambled to catch up. “You live in Redoaks. You know what the bay looks like.”

  “But not your beach.”

  “It’s no different than any other little strip of beach. Mostly rocks and …”

  Brian had reached the top of the steps leading down to the water. He pointed to a small dinghy that had been pulled up on the sand, above the high-tide line. It was partially hidden by the rocks. “Whose boat is that?” he asked.

  “It’s an old boat. It came with the house,” Mr. Elbert said.

  “I didn’t know there was a boat,” Charles said.

  “You weren’t told because you can’t use it. It wouldn’t be safe,” Mr. Elbert said. He scowled at Brian. “No one uses the boat. I wouldn’t be surprised if the bottom had rusted out long ago.”

  The small part of the boat that was visible didn’t look rusted to Brian and Sean. It didn’t even look that old.

  “Before we go, could we please get something to drink?” Brian asked Mr. Elbert. “I’m thirsty.” He paused and smiled. “A little bit hungry, too.”

  “We’ve got cookies.” Charles said. “And lemonade.”

  “Very well,” Mr. Elbert snapped. “If that’s all you need.”

  “That’s not all,” Brian said. “We need to talk to Charles. Privately.”

  Sean looked at Brian in surprise. Why was he acting strange, as if he had big secrets he wanted to keep from Martin Elbert?

  As they walked back to the house Brian stopped. He studied the brick wall next to the back steps.

  “What are you doing?” Mr. Elbert demanded.

  “The mortar around a few of the bricks looks chipped,” Brian said. “The realtor should get that fixed.”

  He took two steps toward the wall, but Mr. Elbert grabbed his arm, pulling him back. “I’ll report it to the Colliers,” he said. “Come inside.”

  Mrs. Elbert got up as they entered the kitchen, and Charles asked for the cookies and lemonade.

  “Have a seat,” she said, pointing to the kitchen table.

  Sean began to sit down, but Brian said, “Do you mind if we eat in the dining room?”

  They all looked at Brian in surprise. He didn’t explain. He just smiled.

  “It’s all right with me,” Mrs. Elbert said. “Run along. I’ll bring in a tray.”

  Once they were in the dining room, Sean whispered, “What are you doing, Brian?”

  Brian held a finger to his lips. He strode to the buffet table and picked up the seltzer bottle, slipping it under his jacket. Then he said loudly, “Charles, we’ve discovered something interesting about this old house, so we need to talk where n
o one will overhear us. How about in the library? Right now?”

  “But …” Charles began.

  “Right now,” Brian repeated.

  Sean didn’t know what Brian had in mind, but he backed him up. “Sure, Charles. Let’s go,” he said.

  They walked down the hallway to the library, entered the room, and shut the door.

  “Do you remember exactly where that eye appeared?” Brian whispered.

  “There.” Charles pointed to an ornate strip that joined two panels.

  Brian motioned Sean and Charles to join him near that strip. His eyes didn’t leave it as he said in a normal tone of voice, “We’ve begun to make progress, Charles. We’ve found out some important items.”

  Slowly, Brian pulled the seltzer bottle from under his jacket and held it up. “I’m going to tell you something no one else should know,” he said, “so keep it secret.”

  He lowered his voice as he spoke, so that Sean and Charles could scarcely hear him. It didn’t matter, Sean thought, since Brian was saying the same meaningless stuff, over and over.

  Silently, a small piece in the wood paneling opened, and an eye peered out.

  Brian was ready. With a whoosh, he aimed the seltzer bottle and let go. A fast stream of water shot into the opening. Someone yelped, and the panel closed.

  Brian put down the seltzer bottle and ran into the hallway. Sean and Charles were right behind him.

  “Mr. Elbert! Mr. Elbert!” Brian yelled.

  Sean and Charles yelled, too.

  To Brian’s surprise, Mr. Elbert appeared from the next room. His face and clothes were completely dry. Not even a spot of water!

  “Is there a problem?” Mr. Elbert asked.

  It couldn’t have been Martin Elbert behind the peephole, Brian thought. So who was it? Zelda?

  “The kitchen! Come on!” Brian shouted at Sean and Charles. They raced down the hallways, finally bursting into the kitchen.

  Mrs. Elbert, still reading her magazine, looked up in surprise. “Did you get your cookies and lemonade?” she asked. “I put them on the dining-room table.”

  “Uh, yes. Thanks,” Brian said.

  The eye in the wall wasn’t Mr. Elbert’s. It wasn’t Mrs. Elbert’s. There was someone else in the house.

  Brian’s back prickled uncomfortably as he realized that the mysterious, unknown someone could be watching them right at that moment.

  He turned toward the Elberts to tell them that he and Sean were leaving. But Sean pointed at the window and cried out, “I don’t believe it!”

  Brian jumped and whirled toward the back window, where a distorted face with flattened nose and lips was pressed against the glass.

  7

  SEAN SNORTED WITH DISGUST. “Debbie Jean Parker,” he said. He stomped to the back door, threw it open, and joined Debbie Jean on the porch. To his surprise, Sam Miyako stepped up behind her.

  “What are you guys doing here?” Sean demanded.

  “I told you that you couldn’t keep me from finding out about the ghosts,” Debbie Jean said.

  “Brian didn’t tell me you were hired to hunt ghosts,” Sam said. “So when Debbie Jean asked me if …”

  “Be quiet,” Sean whispered. “Mr. and Mrs. Elbert don’t know that we’re here looking for ghosts. They don’t know that Charles hired us. Come on in, but don’t tell them why you’re here.”

  As Sean made the introductions, Mrs. Elbert seemed nervous. Mr. Elbert glowered.

  Debbie Jean stared around the big kitchen. “I can’t believe I’m in the old Everhart mansion,” she said to Mrs. Elbert. “Could I look at the rest of the house?”

  “No,” Mr. Elbert answered.

  Mrs. Elbert gave her husband a look. Brian wished he knew what it meant.

  “I’ll show you some of the downstairs rooms,” Mrs. Elbert said. “We’ll take a little tour.”

  The whole group, including Mr. Elbert, followed. As they walked through the dining room, Sean was amazed to see the seltzer bottle back in place. Who knew about it? Who had put it back? He looked at Brian, but Brian simply shrugged.

  “Wow!” Debbie Jean said. She leaned on the huge table.

  “Please don’t touch anything,” Mr. Elbert ordered.

  In the living room Debbie Jean tugged at the heavy damask draperies. “Wow! Look at these,” she cried.

  “I asked you not to touch,” Mr. Elbert snarled.

  As they reached the entry hall, Debbie Jean jumped on the bottom stair and wrapped both hands around the polished, carved knob that topped the right newel. She leaned back and swung to each side. “Wow! What a staircase!” she said.

  “I told you, don’t touch!” Mr. Elbert shouted. He pulled Debbie Jean’s hands from the knob and firmly led her off the stairs.

  “The tour is over,” he said. “Mr. and Mrs. Collier do not welcome visits from children. There are too many valuable items here that might break.” He frowned at Debbie Jean. “The boys have homework to do. I’m sure you have homework, as well.”

  “But …” Debbie Jean began.

  “Right,” Sam said.

  “Math test,” Sean added. “Come on.” He grabbed Debbie Jean’s arm and steered her out the front door, calling back, “See you tomorrow, Charles.”

  Brian followed them, but his mind kept going over and over a puzzling question. He thought he knew what was happening at the Everhart mansion, but he didn’t know why. And though the Elberts acted suspiciously, were they really in league with the “ghosts”?

  All the way back to town Debbie Jean pestered Sean with questions about the ghosts that were bothering Charles.

  Finally, as they reached the downtown area of Redoaks, Sean stopped his bike and said to Debbie Jean, “This is where you turn off to go home.”

  “So do you.”

  “Not today. We have to … uh …”

  “Visit the office of the planning commission,” Brian said. He looked at his watch. “We’ve got just enough time before they close.”

  Grumbling, Debbie Jean left. Brian, Sean, and Sam parked their bikes in a rack down the street and entered the city hall.

  Sean asked, “What are we trying to find out?”

  “I’m hoping to see a set of blueprints,” Brian answered. “They’ll show us the location of the secret passages in the mansion.”

  The woman behind the desk in the planning commission office listened to Brian’s request and shook her head. “I can tell you without checking our files,” she answered. “The Everhart mansion was built in the early twenties, too long ago to have filed building plans. We have nothing about the mansion on record.”

  She smiled and added, “There is someone who might have some information about the mansion, however. Why don’t you ask Mrs. Helen Hemsley, the president of the Redoaks Historical Society?”

  “Good idea,” Brian said. “Thanks.” He grinned as he thought of Mrs. Hemsley. She was about as friendly as a tyrannosaur with a toothache, but she did know all about the historical places in Redoaks.

  It was a short ride to the office of the Redoaks Historical Society. Through the glass door Brian could see Mrs. Hemsley pick up her handbag and keys, preparing to leave.

  The moment Mrs. Hemsley saw Brian, Sean, and Sam, she hurried toward the door. But they were faster than she was.

  Brian threw the door open and said, “Mrs. Hemsley, we need your help.”

  “Not now,” she said. “The office closes at five.”

  “It’s only one minute to five. And we have just one, quick question.”

  “I don’t have time to answer. Come back tomorrow.”

  Brian shrugged. “I thought you’d have the answer because you know so much about the historical places in Redoaks. But this question is a tough one. I’ll try the museum instead.”

  Mrs. Hemsley looked at Brian suspiciously. “I can answer any question about Redoaks. What is it you want to know?”

  “It’s about the Everhart mansion. It was built before there were laws about filing build
ing plans, so nobody’s seen blueprints. We heard there were secret passages in the house. Do you know if there are?”

  “Of course I know,” Mrs. Hemsley said. She puffed up, looking important. “I heard all about the secret passages in the house from my mother. She was as interested in historical architecture as I am.

  “The house was built during the time when the sale of liquor in the United States was illegal. Mr. Everhart built the house in a secluded spot with access from the bay, so liquor could be brought in by boat.”

  “By boat,” Brian repeated. He thought about the dinghy on the beach.

  “And he had a hidden room built inside the house for the purpose of storing liquor, and secret passages so his supplier could escape if there was a raid.”

  “Was there ever a raid?” Brian asked.

  “No,” she said, “and I doubt if there’s anyone still alive who’d remember where the secret passages and secret room are located.”

  Sean caught Sam’s eye and knew Sam was just as excited as he was. “Did your mother tell you how Mr. Everhart got in and out of the secret passages?” Sean asked.

  “That was Mr. Everhart’s secret,” she said. “At times, people have lived in the mansion, but they either haven’t known about the passages or haven’t been able to find them.”

  “Thanks, Mrs. Hemsley,” Brian said. “You’ve told us what we needed to know.”

  Instead of smiling, she studied them with suspicion. “Maybe I shouldn’t have said a word to you. People are living in that house now. You aren’t going to go snooping around and bothering them, are you?”

  “No, Mrs. Hemsley,” Brian said. He edged backward so fast, Sean almost got stepped on.

  “Is this a school project?” she called after him.

  “It’s a project,” he shouted back.

  Brian, Sean, and Sam jumped on their bikes and raced toward home.

  “That was great, Bri,” Sean said. “We found out what we wanted.”

  “We didn’t find out enough,” Brian said.

  “Bri!” Sean’s bike wobbled as he stared at his brother. “You don’t mean …?”

  “Yes I do,” Brian said. “We’ve got to find out who’s using the secret passages and why. The only way to know for sure is to figure out how to get inside.”