Chapter 3 The Invisible Intruder by Carolyn Keene
The Floating Ghost
NANCY stood very still. The singsong voice had stopped speaking. Had the person who had given the warning left? Continuing to move cautiously, she peered around the corner of the cabin. No one was in sight. She looked down the line of cabins, then hurried to the next corner and peered around it. Still she saw no one.
Suddenly Nancy realized that the bright moonlight made her a target for an attack. “I’d better get out of sight,” she said to herself.
The shadow from the next cabin offered some protection. Nancy scooted over to it and hugged the rough wall, while still looking in the direction from which the strange voice had come.
At that moment a filmy white figure floated from the woods. It seemed to be the ghost of a woman in a long flowing garment. The young detective’s heart began to beat faster. Was this a hoax? Or was there some truth to the legends about Lake Sevanee?
“Shall I go out and confront it?” Nancy asked herself. “Or will it come to me?”
In the meantime Bess was awakened by the moonlight which suddenly shone full in her eyes. In turning over to avoid it, she noticed that Nancy’s bed was empty.
“Now where did she go?” Bess wondered. “Nancy must have gone sleuthing, but she shouldn’t be out alone. I’d better find out where she is.”
Bess went to the window and looked outside. Not far away was the ghost. It was floating slowly in her direction. Bess shrieked.
The cry awakened George who jumped up. “What’s the matter?” she asked. “And where’s Nancy?” she added, noting the empty cot.
“I—I don’t know.”
Bess pointed a trembling finger toward the filmy figure.
George’s pulse quickened. “Let’s go out and see what it is.”
“Not on your life,” her cousin declared. Then she remembered about Nancy. “But we must find Nancy. She may be in danger from t-that spooky thing!”
Within seconds the camp was in a turmoil. All the ghost hunters emerged from their cabins, talking excitedly.
“What happened?”
“Who screamed?”
Bess explained, but everyone looked around in disbelief. The ghost was gone!
“Are you sure you weren’t having a nightmare?” Dave asked her.
“Certainly not,” Bess replied indignantly.
Just then Nancy walked up to the group and told what had happened. Her story sent shivers through her listeners.
“I’m sure it was not a supernatural incident but someone playing a joke on us,” she stated.
“Joke!” Bess exclaimed. “Aren’t you going to take that warning seriously?”
Nancy put an arm around her chum. “Not until I find out who or what was responsible. We can begin by scouting the woods where I first saw Lady Ghost.”
She and her friends hurried along the same wooded route the man with the bellows had taken.
In a short time Burt called out, “You win, Nancy. Here’s the lady.”
He picked up a mass of white chiffon. Rita stared at it in disappointment.
“How can we be sure this was the ghost?” she argued.
“We can’t,” Nancy replied, “but I feel pretty sure about it. Let’s carry this to the lodge and examine it.”
When they arrived the door was locked, but Mr. Leffert had heard their voices and came to open it.
“I thought I heard a scream,” he said. “Were you people disturbed by something?”
As they trooped inside, Nancy told him what had happened and showed him the mass of chiffon.
“Amazing,” he remarked. “Just another in a long series of strange goings-on here.”
Nancy said, “I want to examine this carefully.” She began to lift up the layers of chiffon. Underneath them was a long balloon.
“I guess when this is blown up it will be a woman’s figure,” Burt said. As he clasped the object, he eyed George and grinned. “My new doll,” he said, then spoke directly to the balloon. “How about a date tomorrow night?”
The others laughed. Jim blew up the balloon. Nancy carefully fitted the chiffon robe and veil over the “doll.”
“This is exactly what I saw,” she said.
“Me too,” Bess added. “Isn’t it ghastly? But what made it walk?”
“Maybe,” said Nancy, “the bellows man urged it along.”
“But what made it go back into the woods?” George asked. No one could give an answer.
Suddenly Nancy wondered why there had been no comment from either Ned or Dave. Looking around, she realized they were not there.
“Didn’t Ned and Dave come back with us?” she asked.
“No,” Jim Archer answered. “I saw them dashing through the woods. They must have seen something pretty important.”
Nancy said that she was fearful the person who had rigged up the ghost might have been lying in wait for anyone who followed.
“Do you think we should go look for the boys?” Bess spoke up.
There was no need to do this, because at that moment Ned and Dave walked into the lodge. They stared in amazement at the filmy figure which Burt was holding.
“Is that the ghost?” Ned inquired.
Everyone nodded. “Didn’t you see the pile of chiffon on the ground?” George asked him.
He shook his head and said that he had spotted twinkling lights some distance ahead of the searchers and decided to find out what they were. “I asked Dave to come along.”
“Did you learn anything?” Nancy questioned.
Dave answered. “We didn’t catch anyone but we did see two people. They had flashlights and were running like crazy through the woods toward the lake. Before we could overtake them, they got into a canoe and paddled off furiously.”
“What did they look like?” Nancy asked.
Ned said, “All we can tell you is that they wore slacks and sweaters and had bushy short hair. We don’t know whether they were men or women or one of each.”
Nancy took the ghost doll from Burt and examined the balloon carefully, hoping to find some form of identification. Faint marks on the sole of one foot indicated a name or number.
The balloon was deflated and then she read aloud, “J. B. Newton. Have any of you ever heard of a balloon company by that name?”
No one had, but Mr. Leffert spoke up. “There’s a stationery-and-novelty store in the town of Sevanee owned by Mr. J. B. Newton. Perhaps the balloon came from there.”
Nancy glanced at her watch. It was already three o’clock. “I doubt that anything else will happen tonight,” she said. “Let’s get back to bed.”
“Good idea,” said Bess, yawning.
Mr. Leffert said he hoped there would be no more disturbances. “I guess you’d all appreciate a late breakfast.”
Bill said promptly, “We sure would.”
“Eight-thirty then?”
“Okay.”
As Nancy started for her cabin she told Ned, “See you at eight-thirty breakfast. After that, let’s drive into town and talk to J. B. Newton. Bring the boys, will you? I’ll ask the girls.”
Nancy, Bess, George, and their dates arrived at Newton’s Novelty Shop soon after it opened. The affable proprietor asked, “May I help you?”
Nancy smiled and said she had found a balloon in the shape of a woman’s figure with the name J. B. Newton on it.
“I thought maybe it was purchased here. I’d like to find the owner. Did it come from this store?”
“I reckon it did,” the stout, jolly man replied.
Nancy said, “Could you tell me who bought it?”
Mr. Newton smiled. “I remember the purchase very well. A couple came in here a few days ago. They took a whole box of white balloons in assorted figures. Said they were giving a big children’s party.”
“Do they live around here?” Nancy queried.
“No. I’m acquainted with all the regular inhabitants. I think they’re vacationers and may have rented one of the cottages around the lake. The person for you to ask is Mrs. Jane Tarpey. She’s in the real-estate business. Her office is right up the street.”
“I’ll do that,” said Nancy. “Do you happen to know the names of this couple?”
“They didn’t say, but I can tell you what they looked like. The man was tall and slender and he had the kind of eyes which are real deep set and look right through you. I’d say he’d take no nonsense from anyone. Wouldn’t want to tangle with him.” Mr. Newton laughed.
As Nancy smiled, he described the woman as shorter and “pretty in a tough sort of way.” Both of them had dark bushy hair.
The shop owner went on to say that the woman was very respectful to the man with her; in fact, she seemed to be afraid of him.
Nancy thanked Mr. Newton for the information and the group went to Mrs. Tarpey’s real-estate office. She proved to be pleasant and talkative.
Nancy said they were staying at Pine Grove Camp. Then she asked if any visitors had rented a cottage in the area recently.
“Only one,” the woman replied. “A couple with eight children. They rented a house on the other side of the lake opposite your camp. By the way, the man asked me if Pine Grove was for sale. When I told him no, he muttered, ”I’ll see about that.’”
Nancy said, “Would you mind telling me the names of these people? I think I found something near the camp that may belong to them.”
“I’ll be glad to tell you,” Mrs. Tarpey answered. “They’re Wilbur and Beatrice Prizer.”
“Did you see the couple’s children?” Nancy asked.
The realtor shook her head. “No. The Prizers were going to go back home and bring them here yesterday.”
Nancy told Mrs. Tarpey how much she appreciated the information and the group left her office.
When they reached the street, George said, “Well, what next?”
Nancy grinned. “I suggest we call on the Prizers. I have a hunch they do not have eight children and aren’t going to have a party.”