CHAPTER 13
“
asey, I think I heard someone out in the kitchen,” said Margo
with a conspiratorial wink. “Can you take a look, please? Watch out
though. Today is Halloween. It might be someone scary.”
“I’m not worried. My scare threshold is pretty high at this point,” said Casey as he walked through the butler’s pantry.
“Roooooar!”
Pearl was dressed in a pair of old pajamas that had been dyed black and appliqued with white felt bones. Her face was covered by a grinning plastic skull.
“Whoa! A skeleton! You sure scared me,” Casey laughed.
“I wanted to be something creepy for Halloween,” Pearl said, pushing the skull mask back to reveal her beaming face.
“We finished the costume a week ago, but Pearl said it had to be top-secret until tonight,” said Margo. She turned on the burner under an enameled teakettle and dropped a tea bag into a cup. “I thought she’d burst if she didn’t get to show it to you before she went out.”
“Well, it’s great, although I must admit I’ve never seen a redheaded skeleton before.”
Pearl bobbed up and down, far too excited to stand still. Oliver swept her up in the air. Pearl’s mask flopped down and covered her eyes, sending her into a fresh fit of giggles.
“Do you really think it’ll be safe for Pearl to go out trick or treating?” asked Casey. His voice was flat and expressionless.
“We still have a couple of officers patrolling the street,” said Margo. The teakettle whistled madly. Margo turned off the stove, poured hot water into her cup, and devoted her attention to her Earl Grey tea. “And they’re only going to go a block or two so I imagine they’ll be all right.”
“Pearl will be fine,” said Oliver. “What do you think, Pearl? Are you ready for some big league candy hunting? I hear the doorbell. It must be our first trick-or-treaters!”
Oliver headed through the butler’s pantry with the little skeleton riding piggyback. Casey followed him, peering over his shoulder as he opened the door. Bobby Bamberger stood in the doorway wrapped from head to sneakers in white bandages. His face was painted grey and his eyes were shadowed with dark circles.
“Whoa, good mummy costume. You look like you just escaped from your pyramid,” said Casey as Bobby walked into the hallway. “Except most mummies don’t carry backpacks.”
“Yeah. Not too bad, huh? Hey, Casey, I heard about the explosion. Your mom said you were alright, but I wanted to make sure. You can tell me all the details at the party.”
“The big Halloween party at the Fantod Theater?” Casey looked horrified. “No way. I told you I wasn’t going. I don’t fit in with those kids, and besides…”
“Bobby, you look great! Very creepy.” Margo clapped her hands as she came sweeping down the hall. “Casey, the doctor gave you a clean bill of health. Don’t let the other kids intimidate you. It’ll be fun. This should be quite a party. That old theater was very grand at one time. I think the architecture will interest you, Casey, even if the party doesn’t.”
“It’s perfect for a Halloween party. It’s really old and weird and people say it’s haunted,” said Bobby. His brow furrowed under the greasepaint as he leaned forward to take a closer look at Casey. “Hey, dude, you look like you really have seen a ghost. Don’t worry. People think all old dark places are haunted, especially in this town. I didn’t mean to scare you.”
“No, it’s okay,” said Casey. He plastered a smile back on his face. “I just don’t need too much excitement right now.”
“Well, I doubt if any ghosts will show up tonight unless they want to dance.” He pointed at the backpack with a bandaged thumb. “You even have a costume. I brought you the getup my cousin, Chuck wore last year. He lives up in Fort Snuff, so no one in Whistlebrass has seen it.”
A glum Casey trudged up the stairs followed by his happily chattering friend. Margo chewed on her fingernail, and shot an apprehensive glance in Oliver’s direction.
“Now don’t fret. Casey needs to do something that will take him out of himself. It’ll do him good to be around kids his own age.” Oliver snapped a leash onto Penny’s collar. The big dog, wiggling and wagging her tail with excitement, looked toward the front door expectantly. Pearl and I will be fine too, honey. We’ve got two police officers patrolling the block and the intrepid Penny to protect us.”
“Well, my money’s on the dog.” Margo pushed him toward the front door where the little skeleton was waiting impatiently.
Twenty minutes later, the mummified Bobby Bamberger marched into the living room followed by Casey in a black hoodie and black jeans. The hood, to which pointed ears had been attached, hid his red hair. Casey’s green eyes looked out from a flocked mask that covered the top half of his face, effectively concealing any bruises.
“Meow,” he said halfheartedly. “I’m not sure about this. I wish I was dressed as something a little more macho. Bobby looks like something out of some cool old horror movie, but I feel silly in this getup.”
“Turn around and let me get the whole effect,” said Margo. She tilted her head sideways and gave Casey an appraising once over. “It’s not bad, but I do have just the finishing touch. Wait a minute and I’ll be right back.”
Bobby walked into the dining room and stood in front of the big buffet examining his reflection in one of its beveled mirrors. He tilted his head from side to side and practiced making scary faces.
“I’ve gone to a lot of trouble to include you tonight.” Bobby turned away from his reflection with a frown. “This party is going to be great. Why don’t you just pretend you’re not the geeky science whiz for just one night, and try being a normal kid?”
“That’s the problem,” said Casey quietly. He looked down at his sneakers. “I’m not a normal kid. I’m fine with grownups, but never know how to talk to anybody our age. You think I’m funny, but whenever I try to make a joke or say something interesting, the other kids just stare at me.”
Bobby rolled his eyes.
“Just don’t try so hard. Ask a bunch of questions like you’re a news reporter or something. You know, like where did you get that cool costume? Have you met that new teacher? Do you like this music? Blah. Blah. Blah. Most people just want a chance to talk about themselves. Trust me. The hard part will be getting them to shut up. They’re like radios. Just start them broadcasting and all you have to do is listen.”
Margo walked back into the hall, holding something glittery in her slender hands. “This party is just what the doctor ordered. If you want to add a little flash to your get-up and make it a little wittier, just stuff this in your back pocket. Tell everybody you’re a cat burglar.”
“Those look like real diamonds,” said Bobby as Margo tossed Casey a sparkling choker.
“They’re not real anything,” said Margo. “It’s only a piece of old junk jewelry, but I think it adds something to the costume.”
“A cat burglar. I like that.” Casey walked up to the beveled mirror and studied his transformed image. “Actually, it’s kind of cool to look in the mirror and see someone else for a change. Maybe this will be fun after all.”
“One last detail.” Bobby reached into backpack and pulled out a pair of black gloves with metallic claws attached to the fingertips. “Here you go, Casey. I forgot I brought these.”
“Great,” said Casey as he pulled on a glove. “Claws just might come in handy.”
Margo placed a basket of candy on the front steps for wandering trick-or-treaters. As she blew out the candle in the Jack-o’-lantern, Bobby and Casey settled into the big back seat of the Wilde’s Volvo. Bobby frowned as he looked out of the window.
“Mrs. McCurdy’s house must be all shuttered up,” he said. “I always used to go there, trick-or-treating. I sure hope they find her. At least everybody is on guard now, and there are policemen all over the place. What else can happen?”
What else can happen? thought Casey. He smiled ruefully to himself. Let’s see…I’ve been chased by a monster, practically blown up, and questioned by a detective who probably thinks I’m a juvenile delinquent fire bug. Now I’m dressed up like a cat and being hauled off to a haunted theater. At this point, I’d say all bets are off.
The big green Volvo scattered gravel as it pulled out of the driveway. Margo drove carefully, watching for any overexcited young witches or vampires that might dart into the street. They turned left onto Pleasant Avenue, a winding row of stately old homes.
Pleasant Avenue was at the base of a hill, and houses on the north side were set well above street level. Visitors who were obliged to climb several flights of steps up lush terraced lawns were often breathless by the time they reached the doorbells.
On a front porch supported by pillars and trimmed with wreaths of autumn leaves, a familiar little skeleton stood clutching an orange treat bag. Oliver, watching his little girl protectively from the sidewalk, failed to notice a boy in a cat costume waving from a passing car.
“She’s fine, Penny,” said Oliver as he ran his hand over the Saint’s massive head. The dog stood motionless and attentively watched every move Pearl made. “Just relax, girl.”
Pearl raced up, her loot bag knocking against her knees. One of the felt bones on her arm had come loose and flapped up and down. She put the bag down on the sidewalk, and pulled out a large ball of popcorn and caramel wrapped in blue cellophane.
“Daddy! Daddy! Daddy! The lady gave me a popcorn ball!”
Three shimmering Jack-o’-lanterns grinned from the porch of the stately Brubaker house. A jaunty scarecrow surrounded by sheaves of corn stood in the center of the extensive and sharply sloping front lawn. The largest structure on Pleasant Avenue, the splendid house was also set the farthest back from the street behind a decorative wrought iron fence. Elderly Eunice Brubaker was standing on the wide front porch, dropping goodies into the treat bags of a cluster of costumed children.
“That looks like fun over there, sweetheart,” said Oliver. “Why don’t you join the party?”
Pearl loped off down the sidewalk, lugging her bag of loot. She pushed open the gate and bounded up the stairs.
Oliver noticed Officer Holstein nearby. He was looking down at a stain on the sidewalk. Something dark had left a mark on the concrete. A mark that, in the light of the nearby streetlamp, had a green iridescent sheen.
Eunice Brubaker let out a shriek. The shadow cast by the scarecrow in the center of her front yard was peeling away from the ground.
Two more shadows rippled across the dead grass, greenish rainbows flickering across their dark forms. Penny yanked the leash out of Oliver’s hand and loped to the latched gate of the Brubaker house. She jumped up against the wrought iron and began to bark.
“What the…” muttered Holstein. He put his hand on his gun and broke into a run.
Other shadows began to twist and slither, stretching out with grasping hands toward a wide-eyed Pearl. Holstein pulled open the gate, and the dog streaked past him. Holstein pounded his way up the stone steps and across the dying lawn, finding speed he never knew existed in his thick legs.
Tear streaked and panicked, Pearl fell to the ground. Penny stood next to her, barking and snapping as shadows rose up hiding them from sight. Guided by the dog’s steady barking, Officer Holstein launched himself into the swaying circle of howling darkness.
Just as his outstretched fingers touched Pearl’s arm, it seemed to melt away. Holstein slammed into the ground, tearing up clods of dirt and withered grass. A split second behind him, Oliver rushed forward and fell to his knees.
The shadows had flown. Miss Brubaker was wailing from the porch. Officer Holstein sat stunned and muddy on the ground. Pearl and Penny were gone. All that remained was a bag of crushed candy and a little white felt bone.