Phantoms Page 4

  “But you can’t just leave,” Cordelia said. “You’re the principal. Who’s going to run the school?”

  Mr. Derleth raised his hand. “I have an administrator’s license. We should be able to survive for a few months.” He swallowed nervously and looked at Dr. Roqueni. “But no longer than that. You seriously have to come back.”

  “Where are you going?” Agnes asked.

  “Uncle Darius has graciously arranged a trip to Europe. It’s always been a dream of mine. Visiting the most famous museums in the world. Drinking espresso in outdoor cafés. Seeing Paris from the top of the Eiffel Tower.”

  There was a giddiness in the principal’s voice that Cordelia had never heard before. It made her seem younger.

  “I’m sorry you had to wait so long,” Mr. Shadow said, “but better late than never.”

  “You’re still joining me in Italy, right?”

  “I wouldn’t miss it for the world.”

  It had been a strange day. First a phantom, now a European vacation. Cordelia was surprised but happy. Dr. Roqueni definitely needed the break, and it seemed like this might make her and Mr. Shadow a family again.

  “I’ll miss you,” Cordelia said. “Both of you. But you’re going to have the best time ever.”

  “I’ll miss you all as well,” said Dr. Roqueni. “I’m afraid I’ve sidetracked our very important conversation. I’ve heard bits and pieces from Mr. Derleth, but tell me what happened today in your own words. Don’t leave out a single detail. I’m especially interested in these two strangers who appeared out of nowhere. They don’t know you can see ghosts, right?”

  Cordelia heard the fear in her voice and knew she would have to lie. “No way. We never even talked to them.”

  Agnes flinched a tiny bit but played along. Cordelia would explain later: If Dr. Roqueni thought the kids were in the slightest danger, she would never go on her trip. For that reason, Cordelia told a slightly revised version of events, leaving out the part where the kids helped Laurel and Kyle or had any sort of interaction with them whatsoever. The adults listened carefully, asking the occasional question.

  “You were smart to stay out of sight,” Dr. Roqueni said. “It’s a relief that they captured the ghost and no one got hurt. But something about this feels off.”

  “I agree,” Mr. Shadow added. “All that fancy equipment means deep pockets. I don’t like that. If they’re somehow making money from their dealings with the ghosts, it gives them a motive for wanting someone with your gifts. A bad motive. People don’t say ‘money is the root of all evil’ just because it’s catchy.”

  Dr. Roqueni gave her uncle an appreciative look for backing her up. Cordelia thought they were both being paranoid. Laurel and Kyle were obviously the good guys; they had helped save the students from an angry phantom!

  “It doesn’t matter,” Cordelia said, trying to sound as blasé as possible. “We’ll never see them again.”

  She thought that would put any reservations to rest, but judging from the suspicious looks the adults exchanged, she had grievously misplayed her hand.

  “These people seem to know even more about the ghosts than we do, and you don’t have the slightest desire to find out who they are?” Dr. Roqueni asked. “That’s very unlike you, Cordelia. You’re not going to do something foolish like try to contact them while I’m gone, are you?”

  “No,” Cordelia said, doing her best to recover. “Of course not. I would never—I mean, I am curious. Duh! It’s me, right? But I already tried to track them down online and got nowhere. Whoever these people are, they’re determined to remain a secret.”

  This, at least, had one foot in the realm of truth. Cordelia had googled “Shady Rest” on the long bus ride back to school and tried to narrow her search with terms like “ghost” and “New Hampshire.” She had found a number of graveyards, and one hammock store, but nothing that related to Laurel and Kyle.

  Good thing she had their phone number.

  “You’re positive they don’t know you can see the ghosts?” Dr. Roqueni asked. “Maybe I should delay my trip just a few weeks. . . .”

  “We’re fine,” Cordelia said. “Nothing dangerous is going to happen while you’re gone. Promise.”

  6

  Two Phone Calls and Some Texts

  Cordelia waited until she was alone in her room that night before calling the number on the business card. The phone rang only once before someone answered.

  “Hey there.”

  Cordelia instantly recognized Laurel’s voice. She sounded like a rock singer whose throat was scratchy from a recent set.

  “Hi. It’s Cordelia. We met today at the ark.”

  She heard the squeaking of a rolling chair on the other end of the line and pictured Laurel leaning back, maybe putting her feet up on a desk. “Cordelia. I’m glad you called. That was something today. You handled yourself like a pro.”

  Cordelia’s chest swelled up with pride. Unlike more traditional extracurricular activities, rescuing ghosts had never led to applause or trophies. It was nice to have her skills recognized. “Thanks. You were really awesome. With the ghost tent and movies and all that.”

  “It’s what I do. But this can’t be your first experience with ghosts. Give me some backstory. I don’t even know your last name.”

  “Liu.”

  “Cordelia Liu. I like it. Tell me some things.”

  She didn’t know where to begin. Archimancy? Brightkeys? Ghost scavengers? There was something effortlessly cool about Laurel—like the big sister Cordelia had always wanted—and she felt an intense desire to impress her. But talking about Shadow School would shine a light on conversational paths she wanted to keep dark. It was bad enough that she was disobeying Dr. Roqueni by calling Laurel in the first place. Giving away the Shadow family secrets would be a different sort of betrayal altogether.

  “I’ve seen ghosts before,” Cordelia said.

  “Where?”

  “Here and there.”

  Laurel waited for Cordelia to continue. She didn’t.

  “I get it,” Laurel said. “I’m a stranger. Why would you trust me? I’d be the same way. I hope to earn your trust in time, Cordelia, but I know it’s a two-way street. So why don’t you ask your questions first? I’m sure you have a ton of them after what happened today.”

  “What’s Shady Rest?”

  “It’s a company dedicated to saving ghosts.”

  “How?”

  “By moving them to safer locations.”

  “Safer for who? The ghosts or the living?”

  “Both.”

  Cordelia asked, “What does that mean, ‘safer locations’?”

  “New houses where they won’t be disturbed. Or disturb others.”

  “How many ghosts have you moved?”

  “Forty-three.”

  The number staggered Cordelia for a moment. “Whoa. Regular ghosts? Or special ghosts like Gideon?”

  The squeaking chair again—perhaps Laurel sitting up this time. “So you know there’s a difference?”

  Cordelia winced. “Now I do. Gideon was different from the other ghosts I’ve seen. They were kind of chill.”

  “I see. Well, there’s nothing to worry about. Most of the ghosts we deal with at Shady Rest are completely harmless. The special ones like Gideon—we call those phantoms in our biz—are very, very rare.”

  We call them phantoms too, Cordelia thought. She asked, “Is the company just you and Kyle? Or are there others?”

  “Kyle and I are the only ones who go out in the field, but there’re quite a few people who work at Shady Rest.”

  “What do they do?”

  Laurel sighed in a way that made Cordelia feel like an annoying little kid who had asked too many questions. “This is so hard to explain over the phone. It would be much easier to show you in person. You and your friends—what are their names again?”

  “Benji and Agnes.”

  “All three of you should come to the village on Saturday. I�
��ll give you a complete tour.”

  “Maybe,” Cordelia said. This was all happening faster than she’d expected. “I have to talk to my friends first.”

  “You do? I’m a little surprised. You have such a rare gift, and I thought for sure you’d want to use it to help those who can no longer help themselves—”

  I do, Cordelia thought. More than anything.

  “—but maybe I read you wrong. Maybe you’re okay with letting your gift waste away, unused.”

  Cordelia clenched the phone, terrified that if she hung up, she’d never get another opportunity like this again. “I’ll be there. I can’t speak for my friends, though. I’m pretty sure Agnes will come, as long as you let her press a few buttons. I’m not so sure about Benji. This isn’t really his thing.”

  “I saw the way he looks at you, Cordelia. I’m sure you can talk him into it.”

  They spent a few more minutes ironing out the details. When the call ended, Cordelia texted Agnes and gave her a full report. Her friend was excited to visit, but she had two concerns. First: How were they going to convince their parents to drive to a random “village” thirty minutes away and leave them there? Fortunately, Cordelia didn’t think this was going to be a problem. Laurel had already concocted a cover story, and it sounded fairly plausible.

  Agnes’s second concern was one Cordelia shared as well: They had promised Dr. Roqueni they wouldn’t contact Shady Rest, and now they were going behind her back. Cordelia assured Agnes—and, to a certain degree, herself—that they were keeping this a secret for the sake of Dr. Roqueni. After all, if they told her the truth, her once-in-a-lifetime trip would be ruined! The logic of this sounded reasonable in Cordelia’s head, but more like a lame rationale when she said it out loud.

  In either case, it worked. Agnes agreed to come.

  Next up was Benji.

  Cordelia knew he would be far harder—maybe even impossible—to convince, so she decided to call instead of text. It took him a long time to pick up the phone.

  “Hey,” he said. “Give me a sec.”

  She could barely hear him over the background noise. A TV was blasting, Sofia was practicing her trumpet, and Benji’s two younger sisters were arguing in Spanish. Cordelia heard a door close and the sounds grew muffled. Benji had stepped into one of the bedrooms for a little privacy.

  “I can’t talk long. I still have to make dinner and help Eva with her homework.”

  Benji was always watching his three sisters. His parents found work when they could get it, which sometimes kept them out at odd hours. Although Mr. and Mrs. Núñez would have loved to hire a babysitter, they simply didn’t have enough money. It had to be Benji.

  Besides, he was good at it. His sisters adored him, and he was a great cook.

  Thinking about the demands placed on her friend always made Cordelia feel spoiled and lazy. She was an only child whose only chore was taking out the trash, which she often forgot to do.

  “I’ll be fast,” Cordelia said. “I talked to Laurel.”

  Benji’s tone instantly became guarded. “Okay.”

  Cordelia filled him in on their conversation. Benji had to leave once to settle some sort of conflict involving an iPad, but other than that she had his complete attention. When she was done, he said, “I understand why you and Agnes want to check it out. But I’m going to pass.”

  “Laurel asked for you specifically.”

  “Good for Laurel. I’m not interested.”

  “Aren’t you curious?”

  Benji hesitated. “This is your thing, not mine.”

  “You can see them, Benji. It’s your thing whether you like it or not. This feels like it could be something really cool. Laurel wants you—”

  “I don’t care what Laurel wants!”

  “Fine. I want you to be there! Do you care about that?”

  Silence on the other end.

  “When?” Benji asked.

  “Ten. I’m pretty sure my dad can drive us.”

  “I have to be back at two to babysit.”

  “No problem. You won’t regret this, Benji. I think—”

  There was a loud thunk in the other room, like something falling off a shelf, followed by a scream of “Sofia!”

  Benji said, “I have to go.”

  “I’m sorry about today.”

  “It’s not your fault I can see the ghosts.”

  “That’s not what I meant. The other thing. When you asked me . . . what you asked me. And I said no.”

  One of his sisters started to cry. Maybe two. It was hard to tell.

  “I really have to go,” Benji said. “I’ll see you tomorrow, okay?”

  “Bye, Benji.”

  Cordelia held the phone in her hand and leaned back in her seat. She wondered if Benji had only agreed to go because he liked her. The possibility made her feel guilty, like she had tricked him into it. Did being the object of someone’s affection convey a kind of responsibility? It was a new and confusing concept. She considered calling him back but decided against it. Benji had his hands full with his sisters. If she still felt guilty tomorrow, she could talk to him in school.

  Cordelia spent the rest of the evening mining the internet for any additional information about Shady Rest. She found nothing.

  7

  Shady Rest

  By the time Cordelia woke up that Saturday, her dad had already returned from Ludlow Bakery with a half dozen of their fabled bear claws. The box was still warm.

  “Just in case your friends haven’t had breakfast yet,” he said.

  “You didn’t have to do that,” said Cordelia, who already felt guilty enough for lying to him in the first place.

  “You deserve it. I think it’s great you three are giving up your entire Saturday to volunteer like this.”

  “It’s really no big deal.”

  “Are you kidding? Most of these spoiled kids won’t wake up until lunchtime, and then it’s nothing but their phone all day. But not my daughter! She’s working her tail off to help others. Do you know how proud that makes Mom and me?”

  “Thanks, Baba,” Cordelia said, kissing him on the cheek. She took the box from his hands. “We should get going.”

  She wished she could tell her parents about the ghosts. They might not believe her. They might be proud of all the good she had done. Or they might sue the school and ground her until she was eighty-five. But at least she’d be done lying to them. They deserved better.

  After graduation, Cordelia thought, we’ll sit down and have a really long talk.

  It was a morning made for hiding beneath blankets and adding extra logs to the fire. During the drive to Agnes’s house, the car shuddered at every stop sign and even stalled out once. Mr. Liu grumbled into his tea.

  Agnes was watching for them out the front window. She skipped to the car, all smiles. “Hey, Mr. Liu!”

  “Good morning,” Mr. Liu replied with a smile of his own. He was very fond of Agnes, who was his go-to for help whenever one of his Sudoku puzzles proved too challenging. “How are you?”

  “Are those bear claws in that box? Because if so, I’m about to be spectacular!”

  “Dig in.”

  “In a sec,” Agnes said. As Mr. Liu backed out of the driveway, she bent her head over her phone and texted someone.

  “Is that the mysterious Mark?” Cordelia whispered, just softly enough that her father couldn’t hear her. She and Agnes had perfected this sort of pinpoint volume control over the course of numerous car rides.

  “It’s not Mark,” Agnes said. “It’s Kedar.”

  “Who’s Kedar?”

  “Mark’s friend. He’s in the science program too.”

  “Does he have a question about quantum mechanics?” Cordelia asked, trying to peek at the phone.

  “Nah. We’re just chatting.”

  “Uh-huh,” Cordelia said.

  Agnes slipped the phone into her pocket and grabbed a bear claw, taking a napkin to make sure she didn’t get any crumbs on th
e floor.

  “I can’t believe Benji’s actually coming,” Cordelia said.

  “He’s trying to impress you. Let’s face it, Cord. Fastest way to your heart? Do something ghosty.”

  “I just want to be friends.”

  “Ha!” Agnes said, wiping a crumb from her mouth. “You’ve had a crush on Benji since day one. It’s inevitable that you’ll get together. You’re just being stubborn about it for some weird reason. Are you jealous because he can see the ghosts and you can’t?”

  “A little. But that’s not it. I don’t want things to change. The last three years have been perfect.”

  “Except for all the times we almost died.”

  “Except for that. And math.”

  They picked up Benji, who gave Mr. Liu a fist bump upon seeing the bear claws and downed one in five massive bites. He was starting on his second when Mr. Liu pulled onto the highway going south and drove toward Massachusetts, passing through a couple of nondescript towns before making a turn onto a private road. After crossing a wooden bridge too narrow for more than one car to pass at a time, they slowed before a white guardhouse with an attached boom gate that blocked further progress. A cheery sign announced that this was the entrance to Shady Rest: A Retirement Village.

  A man wearing a tan uniform exited the guardhouse and approached their car. There was an iPad in his hands, giving Cordelia the impression that no one was allowed to enter without being on some sort of list. He saw the kids in the back seat and gave Mr. Liu a smile.

  “These must be our volunteers,” he said. “Thanks so much for coming. The residents are going to be so happy to meet you.”

  The guard pressed a button that lifted the gate, and they drove into the village. The first house they saw was a simple Craftsman bearing a Main Office sign. Mr. Liu pulled in front of it. Cordelia kissed her dad goodbye and said they would text him when they were done.

  “Have fun hanging out with those old-timers,” he said. “I’m sure you’re going to hear some great stories.”