Ghost Club 3 Read online

  ‘We understand, Endora,’ Edgar said. ‘Germaphobia is very real, and we could never be offended by anything you said.’

  Endora’s tense shoulders melted. ‘Thank you. I barely slept a wink last night thinking of all the fun you are going to have.’

  ‘I know.’ Angeline did a small jump on the spot. ‘A Ghost Club Convention in Transylvania! I can’t believe we’re finally going.’

  Dylan slumped into a chair beside the long research desk, wondering if it wasn’t too late to fake a terrible illness or hold his breath until he passed out. If he was lucky, he would bump his head on the way down and wake up forgetting he was the newest member of Ghost Club, who had the unfortunate trait of being afraid of ghosts . . . and tarantulas and poetry with bad endings, as he’d recently discovered.

  ‘Master Dylan, you look as if you’ve had a sleepless night as well. Is the excitement too much for you too?’

  Dylan didn’t have the heart to crush Endora’s enthusiasm, so he did what he thought would be right.

  He lied.

  ‘It sure is.’

  Endora clapped her gloved hands. ‘To help you prepare for your journey, I’ve uploaded information about the region of Transylvania and the Carpathian Mountains to your Trackers. The area has quite a history of hauntings.’ She sat at her computer and tilted it so they could see better. An image of a thin-faced man with a large moustache, long black hair and dark, haunting eyes appeared on the screen. ‘I thought you’d also be interested in knowing a little more about this man, Vlad Tepes, also known as –’

  ‘Dracula.’ Dylan’s face was almost the colour of snow.

  ‘Yes! The legendary merciless ruler who was also the inspiration for the novel by Bram Stoker, who made him into a –’

  ‘Vampire.’ Dylan moaned and rubbed his throat.

  ‘Indeed!’ Endora cried as if it were Christmas.

  ‘Also known in Romania as the strigoi,’ added Edgar. ‘The hills of the Carpathian Mountains are alive with their stories and legends.’

  ‘But, of course, the excitement doesn’t end there. At the conference you will meet fellow Ghost Club members from all over the world, witness new ghost-catching inventions to assist in our work and . . .’ Endora stopped, as if she needed to catch her breath. She placed a gloved hand against her heart. ‘You’ll also be in the presence of . . .’ Her and Angeline’s glistening eyes met in a moment of barely restrained joy. ‘Ripley Granger!’

  Angeline squealed and did a small dance.

  ‘And who is Ripley Granger?’ Dylan asked.

  The room fell into an immediate silence, one that filled Endora and Angeline with excited anticipation, Edgar with awe and Dylan with confusion.

  ‘Is anyone going to answer me?’

  Angeline turned to Edgar. ‘You tell him. I’m so excited I think I’ll scream if I say it.’

  ‘Only the most famous ghost-catcher in the history of the club,’ Edgar said. ‘Oh, and someone widely recognised as quite the handsome devil, but you may have picked up on that.’

  Dylan nodded. ‘I had actually.’

  ‘Only because he looks like this.’ Endora’s fingers flew over her keyboard before an image of Ripley appeared. He had a gleaming, mischievous smile, perfectly slicked-back hair and a pencil-thin moustache. His sparkling blue eyes seemed to stare directly at Dylan, almost as if they were hypnotising him, placing him under some kind of spell, as if he . . .

  ‘Aaah!’ Dylan recoiled as a cat landed with a thud on the table in front of him. His chair tipped backwards and he was sent tumbling to the floor.

  ‘Zelda!’ Endora shooed the cat away while Angeline and Edgar helped Dylan up.

  ‘Sorry about that.’ Endora sat down again. ‘She gets very excited anytime she sees him.’

  ‘Ripley does have a powerful effect,’ Edgar agreed. ‘Even on ghost cats.’

  Endora flicked through more pictures of Ripley: one looking into the distance with an Atomiser firmly in his grasp. Another shaking hands with the Prime Minister, and yet another where he is dressed in a dinner suit and surrounded by beautiful models.

  ‘Of course, it’s not only his looks that have made him so remarkable,’ Endora pointed out and Zelda meowed in agreement.

  ‘It’s his bravery, too,’ Angeline was quick to add. ‘He has an incredible record of catchings, and he always insists on working alone.’

  ‘Isn’t that dangerous?’ Dylan asked.

  ‘Only the best catchers are authorised to work alone,’ Edgar explained.

  ‘Ripley says it allows him to act quicker and more efficiently.’ Endora beamed.

  ‘He’s written books about his catchings.’ Angeline crossed her fingers. ‘I’m really hoping he’ll sign mine.’

  ‘He’s widely recognised within our community as a true master of ghost-catching,’ Endora admired, ‘with some of the most inventive catches in the history of modern paranormal apprehension.’ She tried to maintain an air of professionalism but couldn’t stop a wistful smile sneaking into her lips. ‘But he is dreamy.’

  This time both Angeline and Endora squealed.

  Dylan squinted at the two females in front of him, who were acting very unlike the usual, composed Endora and Angeline he’d come to know. ‘So he’s tall, handsome and brave.’ He shrugged. ‘We could almost be twins.’

  ‘No offence, Dylan, but there’s no one quite like the talented Ripley Granger.’ Angeline laughed.

  ‘And he’s a very fine dancer.’ Endora’s eyes twinkled. ‘I remember my first convention. I was quite nervous at the prospect of meeting all the grandmasters – saying or doing the wrong thing – when Ripley came right up and asked me to dance. There was something in his voice that made me feel instantly . . . calm.’

  Dylan frowned. ‘You danced with him?’

  ‘Back when I used to go outside. He was so light on his feet, and he told me lots of funny stories – I simply forgot to be afraid.’

  Her wide smile faltered a little and Dylan noticed her hands begin to shake before she held them together and rubbed them as if she was suddenly cold.

  Angeline’s Tracker beeped and a message appeared on her screen. ‘Dad says it’s time to go.’

  Endora’s face resumed its wide smile. ‘This is it!’ She led them to the door with an excited clap. ‘Enjoy every moment, my precious ones.’

  ‘Thank you, Endora.’ Angeline blew her a kiss, and she and Edgar hurried off.

  Dylan was about to follow when he asked, ‘Aren’t you sad not to be coming along with us to see Ripley?’

  ‘Oh, a little, but I’m –’ Endora’s eyes glistened and she pressed her fingers firmly against her lips as if she were trying not to cry. ‘You may be small, Dylan Fleischmann, but I feel there’s a very big heart in that chest.’

  Dylan blushed.

  ‘You will learn so much from this trip. Promise me that you’ll soak it all in, enjoy it as much as you can, and tell me all about it when you come home.’

  ‘I promise.’ Dylan nodded and turned to follow the others. He thought about the many years Endora had not left the Ghost Club for fear of the outside world, and how she now lived every moment of her life in the safety of the Depository.

  He stopped to say one final goodbye, but she had already closed the door and locked herself away.

  Dylan pulled the plane’s seatbelt even tighter, until he was in danger of cutting off the circulation to the lower half of his body. He reached into his backpack and began placing several small bottles onto his tray table. Angeline and Edgar buckled into their seats beside him.

  ‘What are they?’ Angeline asked.

  Dylan pointed. ‘That one’s St John’s wort. This is catnip, a herb that’s part of the mint family. This is chamomile, and this –’

  ‘What are they all for?’

  ‘Herbal remedies to assist in the calming of nerves,’ Edgar said.

  The plane’s engines started. Dylan tucked the bottles into the back of the seat and pulled out a very
large book called The Complete and Unabridged History of Mathematics.

  ‘Interesting choice.’ Angeline frowned.

  Dylan tried to bury his thoughts in the intricacies and logic of maths.

  ‘I don’t mean to pry,’ Edgar said, ‘but what exactly is it you’re worried about?’

  Dylan’s mind again filled with rampaging poltergeists, ravenous vampires and savage wolves, all with the one intention of ending his short, innocent life.

  But there was something else. Something bigger.

  ‘Flying.’

  ‘You have aerophobia?’ Edgar asked. ‘Which is more often a combination of claustrophobia, a fear of enclosed spaces, and acrophobia, a fear of heights.’

  ‘Whatever it’s called, I don’t like flying.’

  ‘You do know,’ Edgar said, ‘that phobias are strong, irrational fears of things that pose very little risk or danger?’

  ‘I know, but I needed something to draw my attention away from the fact that we are strapped into a flimsy metallic shell that will be flying thousands of metres in the air with the very real prospect of crashing to the ground in a fiery ball of flames should one tiny thing go wrong.’

  The plane jerked away from the gate and headed towards the runway. Dylan tugged once more at his overly tight seatbelt.

  ‘Modern aviation is actually quite safe,’ Edgar assured him. ‘It’s 800 times safer than being in a car.’

  ‘It’s true,’ Grandma Rose said from across the aisle, clutching her bag of inventions to her chest. ‘Have you seen how most people drive?’

  Dylan, who had been in a car while Grandma Rose was driving, had to agree.

  ‘In fact,’ Edgar continued, ‘more people are at risk of being hurt getting out of the shower than flying in a plane.’

  ‘But what if we’re one of those minority cases where flying is not only putting me at higher risk than having a shower, it will have me clinging to the last moment of my life where I –’

  ‘Land perfectly safely,’ Angeline said. ‘Edgar reads more than anyone I know. If he says we’re safe, we’re safe.’

  The plane jolted over a small bump in the runway. Dylan gripped his armrest. His legs trembled and beads of sweat formed on his brow. He wanted to believe Angeline, but his mind wouldn’t let him. ‘Yes, but it’s not impossible that we might crash, is it?’

  ‘Well, no, but –’

  ‘What if the engines stop working?’

  ‘Even if all engines fail at cruising altitude,’ Edgar answered, ‘the plane could glide for approximately thirty minutes.’

  ‘What if there’s a storm?’

  ‘Pilots are trained to avoid them, but if they did fly into them, planes are built to withstand the force of hurricanes.’

  ‘Hurricanes?’ Dylan hadn’t thought of that possibility. He reached into his pocket for a paper bag and began breathing into it.

  Angeline tried a different strategy. ‘Ripley Granger says, “In order to be stronger, we should do something each day that we fear.” ’

  Dylan lowered the bag. ‘So by the end of this trip I should be so strong you could build a bridge out of me.’

  ‘A bridge.’ Gloom chuckled. ‘This boy should have his own comedy show.’

  Arthur Usher poked his head between the seats. ‘Is everything okay?’

  ‘Dylan’s worried about the safety of flying,’ Edgar said.

  ‘He’s right to be worried.’ Arthur leant in closer. ‘None of us is completely safe.’

  Dylan felt his frayed nerves fray even further. ‘I knew it.’

  ‘I don’t want to alarm you –’ Arthur looked around, making sure he couldn’t be heard ‘– but I’m surprised most people survive modern flight after they’ve eaten the food on planes, which is why I’ve made these.’ He handed three paper bags through the gap. ‘They’re special treats to keep us going until we reach Transylvania.’

  ‘No offence, Mr Usher –’ Dylan had begun to turn a faint shade of green ‘– but I don’t think I’m going to be able to stomach any food during the flight.’

  ‘I’ll hang on to yours in case you change your mind.’ He held them out to Angeline and Edgar. ‘Kids?’

  They gingerly took their bags.

  ‘Thanks, Dad.’ Angeline hoped her smile wasn’t looking as forced as it felt. She loved her dad but his cooking should have been classified as a lethal weapon.

  ‘It’s my pleasure.’ Arthur Usher settled back into his seat.

  ‘Okay, I take it back,’ Angeline whispered. ‘Now that we have to survive Dad’s cooking, this flight just got way more dangerous.’

  Which was the precise moment when a large, hairy spider fell onto Dylan’s lap.

  ‘Aaah!’

  ‘Gertrude,’ Angeline said to the spider, ‘I think you might be in the wrong seat.’

  Dylan’s body shook and his breathing stopped as the tarantula began crawling up his chest towards his terrified face.

  Gloom’s towering figure loomed over them from the seat behind. ‘Dreadfully sorry about that.’ He scooped up his pet spider before dropping her gently into his coat pocket. ‘Gertrude gets a bit jumpy when she knows we’re going on a trip.’

  ‘She’s coming with us?’ Dylan wheezed.

  ‘Of course – she’s been looking forward to it for months.’

  ‘Isn’t that illegal or something?’

  ‘As long as the attendants don’t see her it isn’t.’

  As Gloom settled into his seat beside Lily and Arthur, and Angeline and Edgar snuck glimpses at the airline’s menu, Dylan, overwhelmed by the build-up of life-ending possibilities facing them all, finally passed out, his head falling on Angeline’s shoulder.

  ‘At least this way he’ll be relaxed when we arrive,’ Angeline said.

  And with that the engines roared and the plane pulled forward, speeding down the runway.

  Gloom’s voice could just be heard over the thundering noise: ‘Transylvania, here we come!’

  The carriage wheels clipped and bumped over the rocky path, carrying the Usher family, Gloom and Dylan deep into the Carpathian Mountains. Behind them, a line of similar carriages transported members of Ghost Clubs from all over the world to the annual convention. A grey sky sat heavy and bleak above them, as if the clouds themselves would fall down and smother the hills in a suffocating blanket.

  ‘Romania is a country steeped in legend, mystery and rugged beauty,’ Edgar read from the information Endora had sent to his Tracker. ‘It’s the home of ancient monasteries, medieval villages and fairytale castles. Its most well-known region is Transylvania, which is famous for its dark forests, snowy peaks and –’

  ‘Bloodthirsty vampires,’ Gloom said through a delicious smile.

  The carriage hit a particularly deep pothole and Dylan lurched sideways. His cheek pressed against the cold glass of the carriage window just in time to see what he thought was shadowy movement run behind a tree. He turned away only to meet Gloom’s delighted face. ‘And who isn’t fascinated by those mysterious creatures of the night?’

  Dylan repositioned himself back in his seat. ‘Me?’

  Gloom laughed. ‘And the most mysterious of those creatures, Dracula.’ He clutched his hands to his heart. ‘One of my favourite stories of all time.’

  ‘Why am I not surprised?’ Dylan mumbled.

  ‘It is such a wonderful novel.’ Lily Usher looked into her husband’s eyes. ‘We read it to each other on our honeymoon.’

  ‘Your honeymoon?’

  Arthur held his wife’s hand. ‘It was very romantic.’

  Dylan frowned. Nothing about reading a terrifying novel about a bloodthirsty vampire on your honeymoon sounded even vaguely romantic to him.

  ‘There are even days,’ Grandma Rose said, ‘when at certain crossroads it is believed vampires appear.’

  ‘St George’s Day on April 23 and St Andrew’s Day on November 29!’ Lily answered as though it were a guessing competition.

  ‘Yes, but luckily for us they
appear on other days as well,’ Gloom reassured Dylan, who felt anything but reassured.

  ‘Many villages hold celebrations to drive away restless ghosts and wandering werewolves,’ Edgar read from his notes, ‘whom some claim they’ve heard speak.’

  ‘Talking werewolves?’ Dylan asked. ‘Great – so they can say goodbye before they devour us.’

  ‘Oh, Dylan.’ Gloom laughed. ‘I never tire of your sense of humour.’

  ‘To protect their homes on these nights,’ Edgar read, ‘people often hung garlic around their doors.’

  Dylan sighed. ‘I’m trusting my fate to a vegetable.’

  The carriage entered a dark forest passage. Long, inky shadows fell across the faces of all inside.

  ‘What makes this place such a hub of paranormal activity?’ Angeline asked.

  ‘Transylvania sits on one of the earth’s strongest magnetic fields,’ Edgar said.

  Gloom stared directly at Dylan. ‘Which some say explains why there is such a strong connection with ghosts, vampires and the undead who roam the world at night.’

  Dylan tried to change the subject. ‘Doesn’t Endora’s research say anything about flowers or animals . . . or more pleasant parts of Transylvania?’

  Edgar flicked through the pages of his Tracker. ‘Oh, yes, here. There are approximately 3000 wolves and 5000 brown bears in the Carpathian Mountains, which means –’

  ‘We’re surrounded by savage beasts that can tear us apart like toy dolls.’ Dylan snuggled deeper into his coat.

  ‘But you needn’t worry about that.’ Angeline giggled. ‘Ripley will be there to save us.’

  Arthur nodded. ‘He once wrestled a bear during a visit to Alaska.’

  ‘From what I’ve read,’ Lily chimed in, ‘he doesn’t seem to have a single fear.’

  ‘And his natural ability to sense ghosts is one of the best in the business,’ Angeline sighed. ‘Hopefully I’ll be as good as he is one day.’

  As the Usher family and Gloom continued talking about the magnificence of Ripley, Dylan looked out the window of the carriage, which had become fogged with all their excited chatter.