Ghost Girl in Shadow Bay: A Young Adult Haunted House Mystery (14 page)

Peyton chuckled. "You've got a vivid
imagination, and I guess I do, too. Let's be brave together. I just
want to see if it leads to the outside. If we run into any hairy
creatures that we can't handle, we'll get out faster than they can
bite us."

Lily wavered, before relenting. "Okay, it's
a deal. You first--"

Peyton tensed as she went into the
passageway. She vividly remembered doing the same thing in her
dream. Only it was Caitlyn who had led the way.

They came across relatively few spider webs
and crawly creatures, using the light from the study to navigate
their way. Peyton saw no indication the passageway had been used in
the last few decades. So long as she didn't count her surreal
experience last night.

"What do you think this was for?" Lily asked
nervously, staying close to Peyton. "Or do I even want to
know?"

"Maybe nothing," speculated Peyton.
"Probably all houses built in the early to middle part of last
century had these hidden corridors as part of the foundation. Or
it's possible it could have been an escape route, should all else
have failed."

"Yeah, and it could also be a way to sneak
in undetected," Lily suggested.

"What was that?" Peyton stopped on a dime,
unnerved.

"What was what?"

"I thought I heard something." Her heart was
pounding and Peyton envisioned the skeletal remains of Caitlyn
stalking them.

"I didn't hear a thing," Lily said. "Maybe
it's that ghost of yours. I think we should get outta here before
she does something really spooky."

Peyton felt something move across her shoes.
Both girls quickly realized it was a mouse and screamed. The mouse
was probably even more scared by the unexpected guests, quickly
disappearing into the woodwork.

"Guess that's what you heard," Lily gasped.
"I don't think it likes sharing this space--and I'm in agreement
with the stupid mouse!"

"Me, too," Peyton said.

"So can we go now?"

"Not yet." Though wanting to retreat to the
study, they were just about at the place where Peyton had exited to
the outside in the dream. Would the opening still be there? She
checked her nerves, switching topics. "So what did you and Kirk
talk about besides each other?"

Lily had reacted enthusiastically earlier
after Bryant's friend phoned her. She perked up again, forgetting
for the moment where they were.

"Oh, a little bit of everything," she said.
"Kirk seems like he's really up on the issues that mean something
today, besides the hottest clothes and music."

"Yeah, Bry's the same," Peyton said, as they
approached a slither of light at the back of the house. "Sounds
like you and Kirk really hit it off."

"Yeah, we did. But I'll know more about that
this afternoon at the Pizza Palace. Kirk said he'd pick me up, but
I thought we'd meet there. That way he won't have to be subjected
to the twenty questions Nana would likely bombard him with."

"Good idea." Peyton wished she had thought
of that for her first date with Bryant.

They arrived at what Peyton hoped was an
opening to the outside. When she pushed at the wall, it moved with
a squeaky sound and light poured in.

"How did you--?" Lily looked out, then at
Peyton. "You saw this in the dream, too?"

"Yeah, kind of."

Peyton could see the bay in the short
distance, inviting her just as Caitlyn had before she turned into a
skeleton and ruined everything.

The moment Peyton and Lily stepped outside,
both nearly jumped out of their skin. Luke Neville was standing
there glaring at them. Peyton swallowed fearfully, barely noticing
that Hugh was by his side.

"What do you girls think you're doing?"

Peyton flinched.
I could ask you the same
thing, but I won't.

"Hi, Luke," she said, forcing a smile.
"Lily, this is our caretaker...Bry's dad."

"Hi." Lily waved.

Luke nodded with pursed lips and Hugh
growled. "Stop that, boy!" he ordered.

The dog got the message and immediately
became docile, licking Lily's hand like a lollipop. She responded
by cautiously patting his head.

Peyton regarded Bryant's father and wondered
how he happened to be standing there, as though on guard duty.

"So, what's going on?" Luke reiterated in a
softer tone.

Peyton smoothed an eyebrow. "We found a
secret passageway and wanted to see where it led."

He looked surprised. "Oh really?"

"Sorry if we scared you and Hugh."

"You didn't. I--we--just didn't expect
anyone to come out of the house where there isn't even a door. I'll
have to work on that."

"I wouldn't," Peyton said hastily.

"Come again?" Luke peered at her.

Peyton felt like he was looking through her,
causing her knees to buckle.

"Um, what I meant is that I don't mind
keeping this exit to the passageway as it is. I think it'll be fun
to explore sometimes...and use as a shortcut to the bay. I'll talk
to my mother and stepfather about it if you want--"

"You do that. But I have to tell you that
it's probably not a good idea to have secret entrances into the
house--no matter how exciting it is for fun and games. It can only
cause problems."

"It hasn't exactly caused any problems so
far," she said bluntly. "Otherwise you or former caretakers
would've known about it and done something then."

Luke ran a hand across his jaw. "Good point.
Well, no need debating the issue till we see what Vance and Melody
have to say about it. See you later." He looked at the dog. "C'mon,
boy. Let's give the girls some space."

"Is he always so gruff?" Lily asked when
they were alone. "More importantly, is Bry a chip off the old
block?"

"No and no," replied Peyton. "Maybe Luke was
just having a bad day and then we startled him when we came out of
the wall of the house. Bry looks like his dad, but he's his own
person and pretty cool headed, as far as I can tell."

"Well so is Kirk. Let's hope they both hold
up when put to the test."

Peyton didn't doubt that Bryant would, even
though their growing relationship hadn't really been tested yet as
far as normal things go.

And the jury was still out where it
concerned the paranormal.

CHAPTER TWENTY

"Did you know about the secret passageway?"
Peyton asked Lily's grandmother. She'd told her about the discovery
and the dream that led to it.

They were sitting in the breakfast nook,
where Frances Kramer had put out a plate of homemade chocolate chip
cookies and ice tea.

"Sure I did," she said matter-of-factly.
"Caitlyn and I used to play hide and seek in there all the time.
And we used to sneak out to the bay and back, without anyone being
the wiser."

"But why would she show it to me in my
dream?" Peyton asked.

"I have no idea," Frances said honestly. "My
guess is that Caitlyn wanted to relive something she
enjoyed...before the darkness that was to come. She has found that
sort of comfort zone with you."

"So have I," Lily said, biting into a
cookie. "Only I can't compete with a ghost."

Peyton smiled. "You don't have to. You're
real. I'm not so sure Caitlyn is."

Frances touched her glasses. "She's as real
as we are, Peyton. Well, in her own way. Caitlyn wouldn't be
visible to you if you didn't believe in her as much as she believes
in you."

Peyton pondered that. Grabbing a cookie, she
nibbled on it and asked, "Did anyone else know about the secret
passage?"

Frances frowned. "Unfortunately, yes. Trevor
Newbury, the caretaker knew about it. He used to get upset whenever
he saw us in there. Though it was never proven, suspicions were
that he used the passageway to come and go undetected during his
tryst with Rebecca St. Claire. Till the truth came out that fateful
night--"

"That's scary," Lily said, wide-eyed. "I
think it might be best for everybody if Bryant's dad did seal it
off and bury the past with it once and for all."

Peyton wasn't sure it was that simple. The
past seemed to want to be a part of her present, whether she wanted
it or not. She would just have to try and find a way to cope and
trust there weren't more dreadful things to come.

* * *

At twelve-thirty that afternoon, Bryant
picked up Peyton for the trip to the library.

"How has your day been so far?" he asked,
turning from the wheel.

"Interesting," she said with a catch to her
voice.

"Really? More ghostly apparitions pop
up?"

Peyton frowned, wondering if he was making
light of her sightings. But she believed he was serious, as much as
he could be.

She told him about the secret passage, their
run-in with his father and Hugh, and Lily's grandmother's
recollections about the opening.

"Wow! You really did have a wild morning
from the sound of it!"

My night was even wilder with Caitlyn
scaring me half to death.

"It was certainly different," she said,
which was an understatement. "But also seems to fit right in with
what's been happening since we moved to Shadow Bay."

"Yeah, I guess there is something freaky
about all this," Bryant said. "Even Hugh has been more restless
lately whenever we pass by your place. And my dad sometimes acts
like he's off in another world. Maybe he is and I just never
noticed till now. In any case, whether it's a haunted house or
something else, you deserve some answers for your own peace of mind
if nothing else.

Bryant put his hand on hers and Peyton
warmed, grateful he was there for her. She couldn't imagine wanting
to be with any other guy.

* * *

The two-story library looked ancient and the
tiny parking lot was crowded. After circling around a couple of
times, Bryant took the only available slot.

He put his arm around Peyton's shoulders as
they walked across the sidewalk and into the library. This made
Peyton feel like they were officially a pair. She hoped that
wouldn't change the more she delved into the supernatural mystery
surrounding Caitlyn St. Claire.

At the front desk, Peyton told the librarian
she was researching a crime that took place in town around fifty
years ago.

"Hmm...That's quite a ways back," she said,
pushing her glasses up the bridge of her nose. "What crime is
it?"

Peyton glanced at Bryant. She couldn't bring
herself to recount the gory details. "It involved the St. Claire
family on Shadow Bay Lane..."

As if a light popped on in her head, the
librarian nodded pensively. "Oh yes, I remember the case, though
not very well, being only twelve at the time. Is this for a summer
school report or something?"

Peyton bit her lip. "No, my parents and I
live in the house now. I just want to know more about its history,
having picked up bits and pieces here and there."

"I see." She looked at Bryant and back to
Peyton. "I'm sure you can find old information from the Shadow Bay
Chronicle on microfilm. That awful crime took place on September 6,
1961, in case you didn't already know."

Peyton colored with that revelation. Lily's
grandmother had never mentioned the date. September 6th was the day
Peyton's father died three years ago. Coincidence? Or just plain
weird?

"I had no idea," Peyton said
thoughtfully.

"Byron St. Claire nearly turned this town
upside down when he went on his homicidal rampage. It was only
through the grace of God that more people didn't end up hurt."

"What other people would he have wanted to
hurt?" Peyton asked curiously. "I mean, it seems like he went after
the people who made him angry--his wife and the caretaker--if I
understood it correctly...And his daughter, Caitlyn, was just
caught in the crossfire."

The librarian removed her glasses and gazed
at Peyton. "You seem to know your fair share about the incident,
young lady."

"My friend's grandmother knew the family,"
Peyton explained, glancing at Bryant.
I also got some firsthand
information from Caitlyn's ghost.

"What you probably don't know is that the
caretaker had a wife and young daughter living with him at the
cottage."

Peyton's eyes grew with shock. "No, that
never came up."

"The wife's parents were also visiting at
the time the murders occurred. So you see, Byron St. Claire could
have easily directed his wrath towards them as well, had he wanted
to, for even more of a blood bath."

"Wow!" Bryant said, frowning. "Guess it was
pretty fortunate that he didn't go completely ballistic."

"I would say so."

"Whatever became of the caretaker's family?"
Peyton asked, while picturing him lying mortally wounded in their
spare bedroom that early morning. "Do you know if they're still in
town?"

The librarian put her glasses back on. "Oh
heavens no," she said. "They moved away shortly after the murders,
ostracized by the townsfolk, as if to blame for the caretaker's
indiscretions."

"Two families destroyed by a forbidden
affair," Peyton said, while climbing the stairs with Bryant to the
microfilm room.

"Yeah, I know," he said. "Too bad.
Especially for Caitlyn."

Peyton wondered if Caitlyn would have
survived had she not tried to stop her father. Or had he intended
to kill all of them before he took his own life?

"She couldn't have known her father was
capable of such jealous rage," remarked Peyton. "What
sixteen-year-old who loves her father would ever think that?"

Bryant looked at her. "What makes you think
she loved him? Maybe it was just the opposite, given the type of
man he turned out to be."

"I saw it in Caitlyn's eyes." Peyton was
surprised at her response. She supposed others saw the same glint
in her eyes whenever she talked about her father.

"You mean the ghost's eyes?"