9 Kindred Spirits

CHAPTER 9

Kindred Spirits Lucas peered around the corner and saw a flicker of light under the wizard's door. "Who's there?" said a man's voice. It was André. The ghost wailed again. "ANDRé! ANDRé!" "Mary? Is that you?" The door creaked open as the old wizard peeked through the crack.

Suddenly a cold breeze shivered through the hall as the glowing mist slipped into the room through the crack in the door, which then slammed shut. Lucas turned to Clara. "André knows the ghost!" Clara's eyes were wide. "And the ghost's name is Mary! Do you think André was the one who wrote those notes in the margins of the book?"

"Yes," Lucas said, standing up. "He must have been tracking the ghost all along—that's why we keep bumping into him in the passageways." Clara got up too, and she held Ruskin in place. The dragon was ready to chase the ghost. "But why didn't André meet her in the turret at midnight?" she asked. Lucas shrugged. "Because maybe she's not a nice, friendly ghost? Come on. Let's go." The trio tiptoed over and pressed their ears against the door, listening to the voices inside the wizards' chambers. "Mary, why did you come back to Wrenly Palace?" they heard André ask. "Is something the matter?"

The ghost moaned. "I am not at peace. A dream told me to find something that was hidden in this castle. But when I awoke, I couldn't remember what it was. I traveled the halls; checked every room; and swept through every brick, stone, and tile, searching."

André was quiet for a moment, and then he spoke. "Have you figured out what you're looking for now?" The ghost paused. "Yes. The children have what I need." Lucas and Clara grabbed ahold of each other. "What do you need from them?" André asked. "I need," the ghost said, "the dragon."