Ghost in the First Row (3 page)

“I wish we could figure out what’s going on with the ghosts,” said Violet.

“We’ll get to the bottom of it,” Benny said. “Right, Henry?”

“I hope so,” said Henry. “I’m just not sure how.”

It was after midnight when Benny awoke to the sound of thunder. He slid out of bed and tiptoed across the room to shut the window. As he peered out into the rainy night, something caught his eye. Was that the beam of a flashlight sweeping back and forth across the backyard?

Henry stirred. “Benny?” he asked sleepily. “What’s going on?”

“Somebody’s out there,” Benny answered in a hushed voice.

Henry came up behind him. “Your eyes must be sharper than mine,” he said. “I can’t see anybody.”

Benny looked at his brother. “Someone just went into the shed.”

“I doubt there’s anyone out there, Benny.”

“But I saw something moving, Henry.”

Henry put an arm around his brother. “It’s easy to imagine all kinds of things on a dark and stormy night.”

Benny shivered in his pajamas. “Don’t you think—”

“I think we should get back into our warm beds,” said Henry.

Benny nodded. But he knew he had seen someone.

“Ray says putting up posters is hard work,” Benny said the next morning. He was cracking eggs into a bowl. “We’ll need a big breakfast.”

“Well, you do have a big appetite, Benny,” teased Henry, who was keeping an eye on the bacon sizzling on the stove.

“Something sure smells good,” Aunt Jane said, as she came into the kitchen.

“We’re making breakfast.” Jessie placed a platter of toast on the table. “We wanted to surprise you, Aunt Jane.”

“Speaking of surprises,” said Henry, “we forgot all about Alice’s appointment book.”

“Alice’s what?” asked Aunt Jane.

“Ray came across Alice’s appointment book in the shed,” Jessie explained as Henry raced outside. “He thought you should have it as a keepsake.”

Henry was back in a flash, waving the appointment book in the air. While he was removing his muddy shoes, Violet noticed something slip from the pages and flutter to the floor. She hurried to pick it up.

“Looks like an ad torn from a newspaper,” she said.

“Oh?” Aunt Jane raised an eyebrow. “What does it say, Violet?”

Violet read the ad aloud:
Typist available. Reasonable rates. Ask for Patty at 894-8884.

Aunt Jane nodded. “Patty must be the college student Alice hired.”

“To type the plays she recorded, right?” said Benny.

“Exactly!” said Aunt Jane, surprised that Benny knew this.

“You’re mentioned in here a lot,” Henry told his aunt, handing her the appointment book. “At least, that’s what Ray says.”

“Alice and I often got together for a cup of tea.” Aunt Jane smiled a little. “She always had a pot of yellow marigolds on the table. Alice loved yellow marigolds, you know. She was always putting them in her plays.”

“Lady Chadwick loves marigolds, too,” said Benny.

“What do you mean?” Aunt Jane asked.

“Remember the hat they found hanging from the chandelier?” said Benny. “Lady Chadwick’s hat, I mean. Fern said it had yellow marigolds on it.”

“Hmm.” Aunt Jane was only half-listening. She was busy leafing through the appointment book.

“Know what else, Aunt Jane?” Benny went on, as he swallowed a mouthful of eggs. “Alice got a new pair of shoes, but they didn’t fit. She wanted P.J. to take them back. Whoever that is.”

“I thought I knew all of Alice’s friends.” Aunt Jane frowned. “I don’t recall anyone with those initials.” Putting the appointment book aside, she looked around at the children. “I guess you’ve got a busy day planned,” she added, changing the subject.

Jessie nodded. “I can’t wait to see the inside of the theater.”

“The whole town’s curious to see it,” Aunt Jane said. “All the seats have sold out.”

“That’s great!” said Violet. “I knew everything would work out.”

“The play runs all summer, Violet,” Aunt Jane reminded her. “We can’t be sure tickets will keep selling.”

“One thing I don’t understand,” said Henry. “Even if they don’t sell a lot of tickets, why would they close the theater down? It doesn’t make sense when they just fixed it up.”

“It costs a lot of money to produce plays,” Aunt Jane explained. “The town can’t afford to keep the theater going if tickets don’t sell.”

Benny, who was spreading honey on his toast, looked up. “Well, tickets won’t sell if Fern quits.”

Aunt Jane agreed. “Fern’s a wonderful actress,” she said. “It would be a disaster if she walks out on the play.”

Violet frowned. “You don’t think that’s possible, do you, Aunt Jane?”

“There’s no telling what Fern might do,” Aunt Jane replied. “Especially if she thinks the theater’s haunted.”

“I wish we could do something to help,” said Violet.

Aunt Jane smiled. “Putting posters up around town is a big help.”

The children quickly finished breakfast, then set off for town on the bikes that Aunt Jane kept for them. When they reached the theater, Jessie noticed something different.

“Looks like Fern got her wish,” she said, pointing to the billboard.

The others looked up at the sign. Fern’s name now appeared above the title of the play.

“Wow,” said Benny. “I guess Ray really wants to keep her happy.”

After leaving their bikes behind the theater, the Aldens made their way around to the front.

“I hope I didn’t keep you waiting,” Ray called out, as he hurried towards them. “I was having breakfast at the diner—with a reporter from the local paper.”

“No problem,” Henry said, as the director unlocked the theater door. “We just got here ourselves.”

As they stepped inside, the children glanced admiringly at the fancy lobby with its red carpeting. Huge mirrors in gold frames covered the walls and a crystal chandelier hung from the ceiling.

“Oooh!” cried Violet. “How beautiful!”

“Is that where you found Lady Chadwick’s hat?” Benny pointed up at the light.

Ray nodded. “It still baffles me how it got up there.”

“It sure is weird,” said Jessie, as they followed the director to the far end of the lobby.

As Ray opened the oak doors that led into the auditorium, he suddenly took a step back in surprise. “What in the world?” he cried. “Somebody’s been tampering with the lights.”

Sure enough, a large standing spotlight was shining directly onto a seat in the first row of the theater! The Aldens could hardly believe their eyes.

Ray clicked his tongue. “Wait here, kids. I’ll only be a minute.”

As the director hurried backstage, Jessie said, “I wonder why the spotlight’s pointed at the first row?”

“Let’s check it out,” Henry suggested. He headed down the aisle, the others close behind.

At the front of the theater, Benny’s eyes widened. The others followed his gaze to where the circle of yellow light was shining on a seat in the front row—a seat that was littered with popcorn!

“Oh!” Violet’s hand flew to her mouth.

“Alice has been here again,” Benny said in a hushed voice.

Henry put a comforting arm around his little brother. “Anyone could’ve done this, Benny.”

“Whoever it was,” said Jessie, “they wanted everybody to notice.”

Violet nodded. “They shone the spotlight right on to the seat.”

“Let’s clean this up before anybody else sees it,” Jessie suggested.

Henry agreed. “Fern’s nervous enough already.”

With that, the Aldens set to work. They found a broom, swept up the popcorn, and threw it into a trash can. They were just finishing when they noticed someone standing close by. An attractive young woman with sandy-colored hair was watching them through narrowed eyes.

“Who are you?” she demanded. “And how’d you get in here?”

The children were so surprised by the woman’s harsh tone, they were speechless. Finally, Henry recovered his voice. “We’re the Aldens,” he said with a friendly smile. “I’m Henry. This is my brother, Benny and my sisters, Violet and Jessie.”

“We’re putting posters up around town,” Jessie added.

The young woman frowned. “The theater’s off-limits to anyone but the cast and crew.”

“But we’re here to help,” protested Benny.

“The last thing we need is a bunch of kids running around,” the woman said. “This isn’t a playground.”

“That’s true,” said Jessie, who refused to be rude. “And we’ll try not to bother you.”

“Tricia!” Ray walked over, the rolled-up posters tucked under his arm. “What are you doing here so early? Rehearsal isn’t for a few hours.”

“I know,” said Tricia. “But I was driving by and noticed the billboard out front. What’s going on, Ray?”

Ray shifted uncomfortably. “Listen, Tricia—”

“No, you listen, Ray!” she cut in. “It’s bad enough my name’s not even up there, but now
Fern’s
name is above the title of my play?”

“Try to understand, Tricia,” said Ray. “I’m just trying to keep Fern happy so she won’t walk out.”

“Who cares if she walks out?” demanded Tricia. “The understudy can play the part of Lady Chadwick, can’t she?”

Benny whispered to Henry, “What’s an—” But Henry knew the question before he asked it. “An understudy is somebody who goes on stage if an actor gets sick.”

“Or quits,” added Jessie.

“Fern wouldn’t even have a role if it wasn’t for me,” Tricia was saying to Ray, her hands on her hips. “First she gets a bigger dressing room, then—”

Ray cut in. “That’s enough, Tricia.” His mouth was set in a thin, hard line. “I won’t have you questioning my decisions.”

With that, Tricia turned around and stomped out of the theater.

“Tricia’s the winner of the playwriting contest,” Ray explained to the children. “I’m afraid her nerves are a bit on edge. She’s worried about opening night.” He handed the posters to Henry. “There’s more posters backstage, but these should keep you busy most of the day.”

“We’ll come back tomorrow and put up the rest,” Jessie offered.

Ray looked surprised. “Are you sure you don’t mind?”

The Aldens didn’t mind at all. They were happy to do whatever they could to help.

“By the way,” Ray added, as the children turned to go, “there’s a tape recorder in the box with Alice’s tapes. Would you mind bringing it along with you tomorrow? I promised Fern she could use it to practice her lines.”

“No problem,” said Jessie.

When they were outside the theater, Henry said, “Someone’s working hard to make everyone believe there are ghosts in the theater.”

“Why anyone would do such a thing?” Jessie wondered.

“You don’t think—” Benny began.

“Are you wondering if the theater really is haunted?” Violet asked her little brother. “I don’t blame you, Benny. I’ve been wondering that myself.”

Henry shook his head. “A ghost didn’t spill that popcorn.”

“Now that I think about it,” said Violet, “I’m sure there are no ghosts.” She wasn’t really sure, but she wanted Benny to believe she was.

All morning long the Aldens walked along the streets of Elmford, hanging posters up here, there, and everywhere. Finally, Benny plopped down on a park bench.

“Is it lunchtime yet?” he asked with a sigh.

Henry glanced at his watch. “Close enough,” he said. “We could use a break.”

Soon enough, the Aldens were sitting down to lunch at the local diner, studying the menus. When the waitress came over, Henry ordered a grilled cheese sandwich and a cola. Jessie had chicken on a bun, coleslaw and milk, and Violet ordered a toasted tomato sandwich and lemonade. Benny decided on a cheeseburger, fries, and chocolate milk.

While they waited for their food to arrive, the children turned their attention to the mystery. “Whoever is behind these pranks,” said Jessie, “he—or she—sure knows a lot about Alice Duncan.”

“That’s true.” Violet handed everyone a napkin from the shiny dispenser. “They know that Alice took her knitting and a bag of popcorn to the theater with her.”

“And that she sat in the first row,” added Benny.

“I’m sure most of Elmford knows that about Alice,” said Henry.

As the waitress brought their food, Benny saw someone he knew. “Isn’t that Gil Diggs?”

Sure enough, the owner of the local movie theater was sitting at a table in the corner. He was sipping coffee and talking on a cell phone.

“What choice do I have?” Gil was saying. “My business is going nowhere fast.”

“He sure looks upset,” Violet said, keeping her voice low.

“Yes, of course the whole thing makes me nervous.” Gil was talking loudly now. “But I have to shut it down. That’s all there is to it!”

“Uh-oh,” whispered Benny. “Is Gil talking about the Trap-Door Theater?”

The Aldens looked at one another. None of them liked the sound of this.

When the Aldens returned to the theater, they found Ray outside by the back door. He was standing at an old table covered with tools and rags. The container filled with plaster of Paris was nearby. He looked over at the children and gave them a cheery smile.

“How did you make out?” he asked them.

“Good,” Henry told him. “We found a spot for every poster.”