Childish Spirits Read online

  She found herself wearing a Victorian girl’s dress in pale pink.

  Sally took Ellie’s hand again.

  “Come with me. And don’t be afraid.”

  They stepped forward and straight through the panelled wall.

  Ellie blinked.

  They seemed to be back in the nursery. Yet the room was different. She couldn’t hear the flood or the fire alarm. The faces on the soldiers looked more sinister. Everything was a little darker.

  “We are no longer in the house,” Sally said. “This is Miss McKendrick’s Realm. This is where you saw her before. It’s an echo of the real Inchwood. A copy she created for herself within the spirit world.”

  She opened the nursery door. Ellie followed.

  “Where will she be?”

  “Somewhere deep, and secluded.” Sally paused and concentrated. “Somewhere close to the epicentre, where this and all other worlds meet. She’s trying to screen herself… but I can sense Edward. We must go down …”

  She glided across the corridor.

  “The cellar.”

  They started to descend the stairs to the ground floor.

  “Welcome!”

  Ellie jumped as the voice of Miss McKendrick boomed out from nowhere.

  “Welcome, Miss Sally. And Eleanor. I must congratulate you both. You have seen the fate of the house. Now you’ve arrived just in time to see that of Master Edward.”

  “Miss McKendrick.” Sally spoke calmly, but firmly. “You have misused your position as a Spirit Guide. You no longer have the authority to pass judgment on the departed.”

  “You seem to be showing a sudden interest in me, Miss Sally.” The voice sounded amused. “If only your family had done the same.”

  Sally hesitated.

  “What my family did to you… was wrong. But it’s too late now, Miss McKendrick, we’re all gone. Edward knew nothing. Taking him away from his home will not give you revenge.”

  There was a chilly silence. Then Miss McKendrick was heard again.

  “As you say. It’s too late.”

  Ellie heard a low, creaking sound.

  Snap!

  Ellie leapt back as the flat part of the next stair shot upwards, as though on a hinge. It caught her firmly across the legs.

  Another stair lashed out at her. Then another.

  “Hurry!” Sally squeezed Ellie’s hand and led her down. “She’s putting obstacles in our way. She must be afraid.”

  They fought their way downward. All the stairs were now snapping at them. Ellie stamped them down.

  “Now!” Sally reached ground level a step ahead of Ellie. “The cellar! Quickly!”

  Ellie gave a yell, as one of the white floor tiles dropped away beneath her. A black tile followed. The whole of the hall floor had become a kind of causeway that was crumbling piece by piece beneath their feet.

  “Keep moving!” Sally was shouting. “We’re almost there!”

  Before them was the door to the cellar steps. Ellie reached for the handle.

  She screamed as she found herself clutching the head of a hissing snake.

  She heard Miss McKendrick’s mocking laughter from beyond the door.

  “Don’t give in to her!” Sally grasped Ellie by the arms. “There’s nothing there! She’s simply playing on your fears.”

  Ellie concentrated hard.

  The snake’s head became a door handle again.

  “Now!” Sally flung open the door. “Down!”

  They ran down the steps.

  They found themselves standing in darkness, illuminated only by a single beam of light right in the centre of the stone-walled chamber.

  And in the lightbeam, standing immobile, was Edward.

  “Edward!” Ellie ran forward, then stopped.

  Edward’s eyes stared wildly at her. But he gave no response.

  “What’s wrong with him?”

  “He can hear us,” Sally answered. “But not answer. She’s using her power as a Spirit Guide. He’s about to be judged.”

  “And you,” said a voice, “have arrived just in time to hear the judgment.”

  They turned to see Miss McKendrick standing behind them. She was holding her cane, and had her book open and ready.

  Ellie looked from one young woman to the other. In life, they must have been about the same age, yet Miss McKendrick now looked so much older than Sally – tired and drawn, with hurt in every line of her face.

  “You may preach at me, Miss Sally,” Miss McKendrick said. “But can you deny that Edward’s trial is long overdue? No. His sins must now be judged.”

  She took a step towards Edward.

  “And tonight, he comes with me to the place of all sinners.”

  She began to read from the book.

  “Misuse of Spiritual Powers. Theft of Mortal Property…”

  Ellie put her hands to her ears, as a hideous noise came from somewhere deep beneath the cellar. It was a mixture of all the worst sounds imaginable – screaming, and weeping, and moaning. She could hear the sound of someone falling downstairs… a young woman’s horrified cry… Mingled in were sounds from other eras… swords connecting on the battlefield… and the distant roar of gunfire.

  Miss McKendrick stood for a moment, absorbing it all, like someone basking in the sun. With every sound, she seemed to grow taller and stronger. Her voice became louder as she addressed Edward.

  “Master Edward, as the final Fitzberranger you are the symbol of every sin committed by your family. And the victims are always those weaker than yourselves…”

  With a yell of fury, she threw down the heavy book, sending it crashing to the stone floor.

  She could no longer hide her pain. Tears were streaming down her cheeks. She screamed into Edward’s face.

  “You obnoxious child! I was unhappy for three whole years because of you! And your family abandoned me! They drove me to my death!”

  Sally caught Ellie’s eye. Her lips mouthed two words:

  The brooch.

  Ellie slipped it to her.

  Sally swooped for the book and picked it up.

  Miss McKendrick turned back. Her eyes gleamed. Her face was set.

  “Very well,” Sally said. The background noise faded a little. “My family had to atone for what it had done. And punishment has been served. Ellie explained to me. Our home is destroyed. But that must be all. Edward must still have a fair hearing.”

  She held out the brooch.

  “And he can call several witnesses to support him.”

  She looked at the book.

  “Others have seen Edward, throughout the decades. As recorded here. 1938… the youngest son of the Harvey family. 1954… a gardener. 1969…”

  Ellie strained to hear. There were voices. A babble of distant speech.

  She looked at the brooch. It was glowing.

  “And those spirits…” Sally continued. “Are now coming back.”

  She held the brooch high.

  “Veritas vos liberabit!”

  Miss McKendrick leapt at Sally, knocking the brooch from her hand. But too late.

  Around the cellar, figures were appearing. A boy in a 1930s suit and school cap. An elderly man dressed in gardening clothes. A long-haired young woman in a flowing dress and beads.

  “All of them lived or worked or stayed at Inchwood,” Sally continued. “All of them saw Edward in their lifetime. They saw what he did, the good things as well as the bad. And all of them are now his allies.”

  Miss McKendrick turned, as the group of ghostly figures closed in on her. There was a soldier from World War One. An elderly woman in a print dress. More children.

  As she stared at the other spirits, Miss McKendrick’s expression changed. The face of a different woman appeared – younger, more vulnerable. She looked at Edward, and then at Ellie, as though seeing them for the first time.

  “They will now escort you, Miss McKendrick,” Sally said. “They will escort you to your rest.”

  The figures clos
ed in further. Their faces were not threatening, but friendly. They reached out their hands in welcome to Miss McKendrick.

  Ellie met Miss McKendrick’s eye. For a moment, Ellie was transported back to the picnic where they had sat and laughed together.

  Then Miss McKendrick disappeared into the centre of the crowd.

  At the same moment, the lightbeam surrounding Edward vanished.

  And the ground beneath their feet began to shake.

  Sally made a grab for Edward’s hand and pulled him over to her. With her other hand, she grabbed Ellie’s arm.

  “Run!”

  Ellie paused just long enough to snatch up the brooch. Then she followed Sally.

  They ran for the steps. The whole of the ghostly house was shaking and disintegrating. As they reached the hall, the walls and floor fell away around them. They found themselves flying into total darkness.

  A light appeared, in the distance.

  Sally clasped Ellie and Edward to her.

  “Hold tight!”

  Ellie found herself lying very still, in a silence interrupted only by the distant sound of water.

  She opened her eyes. She was lying on the nursery floor, next to the rocking horse.

  She sat up. Nearby, by the train set, lay Edward.

  And standing over them was Sally.

  Slowly, shakily, Ellie got to her feet.

  “Sally.” Edward rose and moved forward. “Well. Er… How awfully nice to see you again.”

  Sally embraced him.

  “I say, steady on!” Edward squirmed. “Mortal watching.”

  He paused.

  “Thank you. Both of you. Jolly grateful, and all that…”

  He looked around.

  “Has she gone now?”

  “Yes,” Sally answered. “At last, she can rest.”

  Ellie hesitated.

  “In spite of what she did. I really hope she can.”

  “Now.” Sally held out her hand, and the book reappeared. “Your trial is not finished, Edward. I think it’s time you did receive judgment. From a more reliable Spirit Guide.”

  “Oh, Sally!” Edward whined. “Must I?”

  “Until you receive judgment,” Sally told him, “the barrier around you remains in force. You’ll be trapped forever. Remember the family motto? The truth will set you free. As Miss McKendrick has just discovered.”

  She smiled, a little mischievously, as she read the book.

  “Dear me, you have been a bad boy, haven’t you? Stair carpets… pudding basins… motor car tyres…”

  Edward stood like a prisoner in the dock.

  “But what about the other pages?” Sally looked at the opposite page, and at other left-hand pages. “The ones Miss McKendrick didn’t mention? 1940. A small girl, just five years old, evacuated here from London, went a whole week without sleep. She was homesick, and cried from dusk ‘til dawn. Then one night, she slept. And the next morning, she was happy. When asked why, she said: “The funny boy came and made me laugh. He told me a nice story, and did some magic. And then I was all right again.””

  Edward smiled modestly.

  “Well, anything but the waterworks.”

  “1963,” Sally read another example, “in the winter-time. All the paths to the house mysteriously cleared themselves of snow. 1968, a cricket match played here was won for the village. Players on the other team said the ball seemed to take on a life of its own…”

  Edward grinned.

  “Well, they were a man short.”

  “Of course,” Sally said. “I am your sister. And therefore, hardly the most impartial judge. What I really need, to make the decision a fair one, is some kind of independent witness, someone who can vouch for the fact that you’ve reformed. Someone… different from our kind. Maybe even someone from the mortal world itself?”

  Ellie became aware that Sally was looking at her.

  “Ellie,” Sally said. “I see Edward behaved badly towards you to begin with. But…”

  “Oh, that’s all changed now!” Ellie rushed forward, then remembered her ankle, which was growing sorer by the minute. She winced. “Edward only went with Miss McKendrick because of me. If it wasn’t for him, I’d still be trapped in the priest’s hole downstairs. I’d have drowned, probably! And he helped me get off the island, too. I’d say he’s definitely reformed.” She looked at Sally. “Well, as much as he’s going to.”

  “Thank you, Ellie,” Sally said. “Well, Edward. Weighing one side against the other, there is really only one judgment to which I can come. And that is –”

  “Ellie!”

  Ellie spun round. It was Charlie’s voice.

  She turned back.

  Edward and Sally were nowhere to be seen.

  She looked at the portrait across the room. Sally stood there again, motionless, a painted canvas.

  “Ellie! Where are you?”

  Ellie opened her hand. The brooch was still clutched there.

  She hid it again quickly.

  “I’m here!”

  The door flew open.

  “Where have you been?” Charlie demanded. “We’ve been looking everywhere for you! Have you seen what’s going on down there? We almost drowned! Are you OK?”

  He stared at Ellie.

  “What are you wearing?”

  For once, he wasn’t acting. He looked genuinely worried. And his trouser-legs were wet.

  Mum stood behind him, equally wet, her face strained and anxious.

  “We couldn’t get the door open! There was water pouring underneath! Mum and I have been standing on the kitchen table for the last hour! We’ve only just got out –”

  He paused, and turned.

  Marcus stood there, in a voluminous dressing-gown, yawning.

  “What’s going on?”

  Chapter Seventeen

  Ellie held out her paintbrush to the canvas, adding the last dab of black paint to the timbers of the Manor.

  She sighed.

  The painting was finished. Just like her stay at Inchwood.

  Marcus had confirmed it to Mum a few days ago. The damage would take months, and require millions of pounds, to repair. There was no chance now of Inchwood opening to the public this summer – if ever.

  Ellie had accompanied Mum and Marcus on a visit to Miss Harvey. For once, Marcus wasn’t able to find much to say. Miss Harvey didn’t seem angry, or upset, or even particularly surprised to hear the news. She listened to what they had to tell her. Then she went on planning the roster for the church flowers. Ellie quietly left the brooch for her on the mantelpiece.

  There had been plenty of time for Ellie to finish her painting. Everyone was preparing to go. Their belongings – those that had survived the flood – were packed and ready to be loaded into the car. Thankfully, little of the water had reached the scullery, or any of Ellie’s own things.

  Ellie stepped out of the flat into the hall. Furniture had been ruined, chairs soaked, damp absorbed into the panelling. All around the tunnel entrances were piles of waste and mud. Some areas of the house were fenced off altogether, with red and white striped tape that said: DANGER. DO NOT PASS. Marcus had managed to round up one or two volunteers to assist with the clearing up, but it was an impossible task.

  She walked up the staircase for the last time. On the lower stairs, the rich red carpet was wet and had turned to a darker shade.

  She winced a little as she crossed the corridor. Her ankle still felt tender.

  She entered the nursery slowly.

  She was surprised to see Edward standing there, quite openly, not even bothering to hide. He was at the window, his back to her, staring out at the tops of the tall chestnut trees.

  Ellie couldn’t resist it. Very softly, she crept up on him.

  “Boo!”

  Edward took a violent leap. He spun round.

  “What –? What are you doing?”

  Ellie wasn’t prepared for his reaction. He looked shocked… hurt. Almost ready to cry.

  �
�Sorry… I thought…”

  “Very funny,” Edward said. He moved away quickly towards his damaged train set. “I ask you… Of all the things you could have landed on, you had to pick this.”

  “Well,” Ellie said. “It helped us solve the mystery.”

  There was a long silence.

  Eventually, Ellie said:

  “So. Did you…”

  Edward hesitated.

  Then he smiled. He looked at the portrait of Sally on the wall.

  “Yes. The judgment went my way. I’m free now.” He looked down again at the toy engine. “Even though I’ve nowhere to go.”

  He blinked.

  “Thanks for sticking up for me. I doubt it would have gone the way it did, without you.”

  There was another silence.

  “I suppose you’ll be leaving soon?”

  “Yes,” Ellie said. “Journeyback’s pulling out. For now. They haven’t quite given up, though. Marcus is determined this place will open one day. And there’s loads of cleaning up to do. You’ll still have some people to scare.”

  Edward brightened a little.

  “Good.”

  He turned back to Ellie.

  “Where do you go next?”

  “Back to London,” Ellie answered. “Journeyback want Mum to stay on. They’ve got a new project for her. A town house. It’s only twenty minutes from home. And it’s not far from where my Dad lives.”

  “I’ve got my wish, then,” Edward said. “To be left alone. In my own house.”

  Ellie moved closer to him.

  “You’re free now. You’re not trapped here any more. You could have gone with the other spirits… with Sally…”

  “And to what?” Edward demanded. “What is there for me, away from here? No. This is where I belong.”

  He looked down at the remains of the signal box.

  “Oh, don’t worry about me. You still have your life… enjoy it. I’m just part of history.”

  He turned his gaze towards the bookshelves.

  “I died a long time ago.”

  There was another silence.

  “I want to come back,” Ellie said. “Once they start the restoration. I’m sure I can find an excuse…”

  The clock on the nursery mantelpiece struck the hour.

  Reluctantly, Ellie moved away.

  “I’ve got to go now, Edward. Mum wants us to set off straight after lunch.”