Kristy and the Haunted Mansion Read online

  Karen was gazing up at Dorothy’s portrait. “Women didn’t have it easy back then, did they?” she asked. “I mean, she wanted to get out of her father’s house, and the only way was to marry this guy.”

  “It doesn’t seem fair,” agreed Patty. “I just hope she got to travel.”

  I was lost in thought. I was awfully curious about Dorothy and about what had happened to her. How could we find out more? Then, suddenly, I heard a tapping noise, and I froze. “What’s that?” I whispered.

  “It’s me,” said Bart, coming into the room. “Charlie and the boys are downstairs. We explored the upstairs where the servants’ quarters were, and the attic, too. It was pretty awesome. We found all kinds of neat stuff. Anyway, we’re having a little snack, since we’re already starving again. Come on down!”

  The girls and I joined the others in the kitchen. Charlie and Bart were talking about going outside and looking for help. “I can’t stand just waiting around anymore,” said Charlie. “Maybe we can find a phone, at least.”

  “No way,” I said firmly. “First of all, you can’t leave me alone with these kids. And anyway, how would you get across that stream, even on foot?” I peered out the window. “And look, the storm hasn’t let up at all. In fact, I think it’s gotten worse.” It was true. The rain was still pouring down, and the wind was blowing harder than ever.

  Charlie and Bart looked at each other and shrugged. “I guess you’re right,” Charlie admitted. “It’s going to be dark soon, too. We’ll just have to stick it out.”

  “Right!” I agreed. “We’ll be safe here. At least we’re out of the rain.” I tried to sound convincing, but I was wondering just how safe we were, in that big old mansion on Sawyer Road.

  By the time Claudia was ready to leave for her job at the Newtons’, she had heard that Bart and Charlie and the kids and I were missing. For a few minutes, she considered canceling her job because she wanted to be available to help if she was needed. After all, she thought, the job was a short one. Mr. and Mrs. Newton were only going out for two hours: from seven to nine.

  Then Claudia thought again. She told me later that she tried to imagine “what Kristy would say” if she canceled her job, and she realized it was out of the question. “I knew you’d say it was unprofessional,” she told me. “I thought you might even yell at me,” she added with a grin.

  So, Claudia got ready for her job. First, she ate a sandwich since she figured Jamie and Lucy would already have had dinner. Then she checked herself in the mirror and decided she didn’t need to change. She was wearing white knee-length jeans shorts, white Keds, and a tie-dyed T-shirt she’d made the weekend before. It was a beautiful one, with spirals of yellow and green and purple, and she was proud of it. She was also wearing a pair of earrings she’d made from green glass she had found on the beach. The glass had been polished by the waves so it had no sharp edges, and Claud had hung two pieces in little silver cages that now dangled from her ears.

  Claudia’s sister, Janine, came into her room just as Claud was ready to leave. “Have you heard any news about Kristy yet?” she asked.

  “No,” replied Claudia. “Nobody’s heard anything. I’m really worried.”

  “I’m sure they’ll be fine,” said Janine. “Kristy is very intelligent and resourceful.”

  Claudia rolled her eyes. Janine seems to think that intelligence can solve any problem. Still, Claud knew that Janine was just trying to make her feel better. “I hope you’re right,” she said to Janine. “And — thanks.”

  Claudia ran downstairs and looked out the window. The rain, which had been pouring down for hours, finally seemed to have let up. The sky was still dark with clouds, but looked as if it might start to clear up soon. So Claudia decided to forget about a raincoat and umbrella, and just dash to the Newtons’.

  “ ’Bye!” she called to her parents, who were in the living room. “If anybody calls, I’m at the Newtons’.” Claud had talked to Bart’s father and Watson, and to Stacey, Mary Anne, and Dawn. Everybody was in a panic, but they could do nothing except wait for good news.

  Claudia headed out the door and down the street. The Newtons live around the block and across the street from the Kishis, so it’s only a two-minute walk. But guess what happened during those two minutes? It started to pour again. Within seconds, Claudia was soaked. She broke into a run, and arrived, panting, on the Newtons’ porch. “Oh, man,” she said, wringing out her hair. She did not have time to go home and change, so she just shrugged and rang the bell.

  Jamie flung the door open. He’s four years old and one of our favorite kids to sit for, since he’s very cute and almost always in a good mood. “Hi, Claudia!” he said. “Hey, you look like a rainbow!”

  Claudia was confused until she glanced down at herself. Then she cracked up. Her shorts and sneakers were no longer white. Instead, they were streaked with green and purple and yellow. The dye in her beautiful shirt had run! Claud’s legs and arms were streaked with color, too. “Oh, no,” she said. “I don’t believe it.”

  Mrs. Newton came to the door, carrying Lucy, Jamie’s baby sister. “Oh, dear,” she said. “You’re soaked, aren’t you? Do you want to run home and change?”

  “No, I don’t want to make you late for your dinner,” said Claudia. “I’ll call my sister and ask her to bring me some dry clothes.” Claudia tiptoed into the kitchen, being careful not to drip any color onto the hall carpet, and called Janine.

  The next half hour was so busy that Claudia almost forgot to be worried about me. The Newtons left, after Mrs. Newton put Lucy in her baby seat. “I’d give her to you to hold, but I’m afraid I’d come home to a green baby,” she joked to Claudia. Lucy cried for a few minutes after her parents left, but stopped when Janine arrived with Claud’s dry clothes. Lucy is always very interested in what’s going on around her, and she stared wide-eyed at Janine, who smiled back at her. Jamie, meanwhile, was dancing around and singing “Somewhere Over the Rainbow,” although he was messing up the words a little.

  “Somewhere, over the rainbow,” sang Jamie, “there’s a pie.”

  Claudia thanked Janine and asked her to stay for a few minutes while she changed. Then, as soon as she went into the downstairs bathroom to peel off her wet things, she heard Lucy start to cry again.

  “What should I do?” called Janine. For all her intelligence, Janine doesn’t know nearly as much about little kids as Claudia does.

  “There’s probably a box of Cheerios in the cabinet,” called Claudia. “Give her a handful.”

  “But she’s going to get milk all over herself!” called Janine.

  Claudia giggled. “Don’t give her milk,” she replied. “Just dry Cheerios. Babies like to eat them.”

  Claud hurriedly put on the dry clothes and then stood at the sink, trying to scrub the color off her arms and legs. After a few minutes, she gave up. The dye wasn’t going to come off that easily. She headed back to the kitchen. Lucy was happily eating Cheerios, Jamie was still singing, and Janine was looking tired.

  “I don’t know how you do this all the time,” she said. “Taking care of kids is hard work.”

  “But it’s fun, too,” said Claudia. Then she showed Janine her arms and legs. “How am I going to get this off?” she asked.

  Janine frowned. “I’m sure there’s a simple solvent,” she said. “I’ll go home and research it. What are the particular properties of the dye you used?”

  “What?” replied Claudia, bewildered.

  “Never mind,” said Janine. “I’ll figure it out.”

  As soon as Janine walked out the door, Lucy began to cry again. “You just don’t like to see anybody leave, do you?” said Claudia, picking her up.

  “Can we play Wizard of Oz?” asked Jamie. “You can be Dorothy, and Lucy can be Toto, and I’ll be the Cowberry Lion.”

  Claudia laughed, even though Lucy was still crying. “You mean the Cowardly Lion?” she asked Jamie.

  “That’s what I said,” said Jamie. “Or ma
ybe I want to be the Scarecrow.”

  Just then, the phone rang. Still carrying the crying Lucy, Claud ran to answer it.

  “Hi, Claudia, it’s me, Mary Anne,” said Mary Anne, sniffling.

  “You sound terrible,” said Claudia. “Did something happen?”

  “No, I’m just so worried. Why don’t they call us?”

  “I don’t know. They will as soon as they can, I guess.” Claudia noticed that Jamie was watching her closely. “Um, I should go,” she said. “Call me if you hear anything.”

  “Did something bad happen?” asked Jamie, as soon as Claudia hung up. “You look sad.”

  “I’m fine,” answered Claudia, amazed at how sensitive and perceptive kids can be. She didn’t want to scare Jamie by telling him that the Krashers and I were missing. “Everything’s okay. Should we start our game?” By that time, Lucy had stopped crying and was playing with one of Claudia’s earrings.

  “Yay!” said Jamie. “You can still carry Lucy, but just pretend you’re Dorothy and she’s your little dog.”

  “All right,” said Claud. “Come on, Toto, let’s follow the yellow brick road.” She began to walk through the downstairs, pretending she was following a path. Jamie ran ahead of her and hid behind one of the chairs in the living room.

  When Claudia walked by the chair, Jamie jumped out. “Rahhhrrr!” he cried.

  Lucy, startled, began to cry. Then the phone rang again. Claudia ran to answer it. This time, Stacey was calling. She had no news, but she was hoping that Claudia did. It was a short call. When Claudia hung up, Jamie looked at her. “What happened?” he asked again.

  This time, Claudia told him about the missing Krashers, trying not to make the situation sound too scary. But Jamie was very concerned. “Where do you think they are?” he asked.

  “I don’t know,” said Claudia. “But as soon as it stops raining, they’ll probably find their way home.”

  “What if it doesn’t stop raining for a long, long time?” asked Jamie.

  “I’m sure it will stop soon,” said Claudia, sounding more confident than she really was.

  The phone rang again. It was Dawn. She and Claudia talked for a few minutes. Then, as they were about to hang up, Claudia thought of something. “Do you think anyone has phoned the hospitals around Redfield?” she asked. “I mean, if they were in an — I mean, if something happened, they might be there,” she said, catching herself before she said the word “accident” in front of Jamie.

  “That’s a good idea,” said Dawn.

  “I’ll try calling around,” said Claudia. After she hung up, she called information and got the numbers for three hospitals. Then, even though she knew she shouldn’t tie up the Newtons’ phone, she called each one quickly. None of them had any information about a van accident. Claudia hung up from the last call, not knowing whether to feel relieved or even more worried. Was no news good news?

  Jamie tugged on her arm. “Do you think they’re dead?” he asked.

  Claudia was shocked. Jamie seemed too young to know much about death. “Oh, no, Jamie,” she said. “I’m sure they’re not dead.”

  “But kids can die, right?” he asked.

  “Well,” replied Claudia, “they can. That’s true. But it doesn’t happen very often.”

  Jamie asked tough questions throughout the evening. It wasn’t easy for Claudia to answer some of them, but she did the best she could. When the Newtons came home, she pulled Mrs. Newton aside and filled her in on what had happened. Then she headed home and called Stacey. “Want to come over and spend the night?” she asked. “I think I need some company.”

  I sat down at the kitchen table next to Bart. The kids were waiting while Charlie cut up two apples and divided some bread. I knew the kids must be hungry — I certainly was. It was frustrating to know that I couldn’t give them as much food as they needed.

  “I want my mommy,” said Karen, suddenly. “I’m tired of being in this dumb house. Can’t we go home now?”

  “I want to go home, too,” said Chris, sniffling a little. “I miss Molly. She’s my dog. She probably wonders where I am. I bet nobody remembered to feed her.”

  I realized that the younger kids were probably getting tired and therefore cranky. And the older ones were just plain restless. I closed my eyes and crossed my fingers, wishing that the electricity would come back on. Having lights would make everything so much easier. It was almost dark out by then, but it would be awhile before the kids would be ready to go to sleep. Lights would make entertaining the children a lot simpler. But when I opened my eyes, the kitchen was still dim.

  I looked around and noticed that the Krushers were sitting on one side of the table, and Bashers were sitting on the other. Even though they’d played a couple of games together as the Krashers, the kids hadn’t really gotten to know each other. Since they live in different neighborhoods, they don’t spend much time playing together.

  Suddenly, I had a good idea. “Hey, listen,” I said. “How about if we get to know each other a little better? I mean, all we know about each other is what we’ve seen on the ball field. Like, we know Jerry is an awesome third baseman, and we know we can always count on Patty to get a hit and that Joey and Buddy make great double plays. But how about if we find out more?” The kids looked interested, so I went on. “I’ll start by saying a few things about myself,” I said, “and then we can go around the circle. Okay?”

  Everybody nodded. “Well,” I said. “My full name is Kristin Amanda Thomas. My best friend’s name is Mary Anne Spier. I like sports and animals, and I don’t like dressing up, eating cabbage, squirrels, loose teeth, and people who chew with their mouths open.” I saw a few smiles. I turned to Patty, who sat to my left, and told her to go ahead.

  Patty, who’s seven years old, and has bright red hair and freckles and a spunky personality, drew in a breath. “I’m Patty,” she said. “I have three brothers and we have a horse named Ginger. When I grow up I want to be a carpenter and ride a motorcycle. After that, I want to be the president of the United States.”

  “Cool,” said Joey and Jackie.

  Jerry was next. He’s a wiry nine-year-old with curly brown hair and a wicked grin. “I have two pesty little brothers and a dog named Winter. I also have a paper route with my best friend Bonzie. His real name is Jimmy, but we call him Bonzie. I like to build forts in the woods.”

  We went all the way around the circle, while we sat in the ever-darker kitchen and munched on our pieces of apple. I think the kids had fun. I know I did. I learned all about the kids I didn’t know, and I even learned new things about the ones I did know. For example, I hadn’t known that Buddy Barrett has an aunt who lives in Alaska. Even my own brother had a few surprises for me: Charlie said he remembered holding me when I was a baby! Bart made me blush by telling everyone that one of his favorite things to do was “be with Kristy.”

  By the time we’d finished, everyone seemed to feel much closer — as if we were a temporary family. Nobody was sniffling anymore or asking for their mommies. Then Bart suggested that we go back to the room with the pool table and “hang out” there until it was time for bed. Charlie lit a lantern and led the kids down the hall. I heard them talking excitedly about some of the things they’d learned they had in common. Bart and I sat alone for a minute at the table.

  “That was fun,” said Bart. “It was a great idea.”

  “Thanks,” I said. “I was just trying to pass the time and get everyone’s minds off our problems.”

  “I know, but I think it did more than that. I have a feeling the Krashers will be an even better team after this.” Bart gave me a gentle smile and touched my hand. “You’re a pretty awesome person, Kristin Amanda Thomas,” he said.

  I blushed, for the second time in a half hour. Luckily, it was too dark for Bart to see my red cheeks. “Come on,” I said, jumping up and grabbing a flashlight. “Let’s go see what they’re doing.” Sometimes I still feel shy around Bart.

  When we arrived in the
library, we found the kids grouped around one of the big leather chairs. The lantern was set up on a nearby table, casting a bright glow over that part of the room. The rest of the room was in shadow. Jackie, who was sitting in the chair, was holding a large book, and the rest of the kids were reading over his shoulder. “Look what we found!” he said, when he saw Bart and me. “It’s a scrapbook full of newspaper clippings. It was on that shelf over there.” He pointed to a bookshelf near the fireplace.

  “What are the clippings about?” asked Bart. He and I joined the group by the chair.

  “They’re about the family, the Sawyer family,” said Buddy, sounding excited.

  “Mostly about what happened to Dorothy,” said Karen. “On the night she eloped.” She sounded sad.

  “What happened?” I asked. I looked over Jackie’s shoulder and saw the headline on one of the clippings. Local Girl Still Missing, it said.

  “She disappeared,” said Patty. “On the night of June eighth.”

  “Oh, my lord,” I said. “That was the night she was supposed to elope with Will.”

  Karen nodded solemnly. “Show her the first clipping,” she said to Jackie.

  Jackie flipped back a page. Strange Disappearance During Storm, read the headline. The story went on to tell how Dorothy Sawyer had disappeared during “the worst electrical storm in local memory,” while “torrential rains” flooded the area and the bridges on Sawyer road were washed out. I felt a chill run down my spine. The night Dorothy had disappeared had been a night just like this one.

  Jackie went on paging through the clippings, and we all read eagerly. We read interviews with Owen Sawyer in which it was clear that Dorothy’s disappearance had all but broken his heart. We read interviews with Will Blackburn. He revealed the secret plans that he and Dorothy had made for that night. We read police reports about the search for Dorothy, and a story about how the detective in charge had declared, finally, that Dorothy must be considered dead. Sawyer Girl Drowned During Storm, that headline said.