Haunted Clock Tower Mystery (2 page)

He sat down on the carillon bench and the Aldens gathered around him. After placing the music on the stand, he opened to the first page. Then he began to play. The Aldens watched, fascinated. Ezra’s hands, closed into fists, moved rapidly up and down the row of knobs. His hands crossed over and under each other as he pressed one knob after another with the sides of his fists. At the same time, his feet worked the pedals. From above, they could hear beautiful music.

After Ezra finished the first piece, Jessie said, “That looks like hard work.”

“It is,” Ezra said. “I’ve got calluses on the sides of my hands.” He showed them how his hands had grown tough on the sides he used to press the knobs. “When I first started playing, I used to wrap my hands in bandages and wear gloves. But now I’m used to it.”

Ezra went on to play several more pieces, each more beautiful and difficult than the one before. After half an hour, he played a piece the children recognized.

“That’s the school anthem, isn’t it?” Henry asked. “We’ve heard Grandfather singing it.”

“Yes, it is,” said Ezra.

As the hum from the last notes hung in the air above them, the Aldens applauded.

“Thank you,” Ezra said, bowing his head slightly.

Just then there was a creaking noise from up above.

“What was that?” Benny asked, his eyes wide open. “I thought we were the only ones up here.”

“This old tower creaks and groans all the time,” said Ezra. “Some say it’s haunted.” His eyes twinkled, but his voice was serious.

“I remember those stories,” Grandfather said. “The ghost in the clock tower.”

“Aren’t you scared to come up here by yourself?” Benny asked. “Like at night?”

Ezra looked sharply at Benny. “Well, I certainly don’t come up here at night. No one does. Ever.”

After the Aldens left the tower, they picked up the key to their suite and drove to the dormitory.

“That tower was really neat,” Henry said as they were driving.

“But a little spooky,” Benny said.

“You don’t believe there’s really a ghost, do you?” Henry asked.

“Um, no,” Benny said, but he didn’t sound too sure.

“Ezra was just teasing,” Jessie said. “He was nice.”

“Yes, he was,” Violet agreed. “Except when he was talking about his assistant, Andrea Barton. Then he seemed so different.”

“That’s true—he said that nothing has been the same there since she started working,” Jessie remembered. “He said she messes everything up.”

“He did seem like he was very neat and orderly about everything,” Henry said. “You could tell by the way he was dressed.”

When they arrived at the dormitory parking lot, Grandfather looked up at the red-brick building in front of them. “Good old Sage Hall,” he said softly.

“It’s about time you showed up!” said a man striding across the parking lot, his arms held out wide.

“Joel Dixon!” said Grandfather as he and the man embraced, patting each other firmly on the back.

“And these must be your grandchildren,” said Joel, stepping back to look at them. “Don’t tell me. This is Henry, and Jessie, and Violet.”

Each child nodded and smiled as Grandfather’s friend said his or her name.

“And this young fellow must be Benny,” Joel said.

“You’ve got that right!” Benny said with a smile.

“This is my old college buddy Joel,” Grandfather said.

Joel was a large man with dark hair, a friendly smile, and a big belly.

“We’ve heard a lot about you,” Henry said.

“On the car ride up here our grandfather told us about all the crazy things you two used to do,” said Benny, grinning.

“Your grandfather and I had a good time, didn’t we, Jimbo?” said Joel. The children smiled. They weren’t used to hearing their grandfather called by a nickname. “You didn’t tell them about the time I lost the key to our room and had to climb in the window—did you?”

“He sure did,” said Benny with a laugh.

“Oh, he did, did he?” asked Joel. “Well, then, did he tell you about the time he took some frogs from the science lab and hid them in my bed?” Joel asked.

“You screamed so loud!” Grandfather said, laughing.

Everyone laughed, and Grandfather thumped Joel on the back affectionately.

“So, when did you get here?” Grandfather asked.

“Just a few minutes ago,” Joel replied. “I was just coming back to check my car and make sure my son and I hadn’t forgotten anything. Don’s upstairs in our suite. He had some business in this area, so he’s joining me for the reunion.”

“That’s great—I haven’t seen Don in a long time,” said Grandfather. “Let’s go on up.” He quickly got the suitcases out of the back of the car. “We’re in Suite B-8,” he said, leading the way.

“Great—Don and I are right next door, in B-10,” Joel said.

The children followed their grandfather and Joel into Suite B-8.

“Oh, look—we can even cook here!”

Jessie said when she spotted the kitchen area at the end of the room. It had a small refrigerator and stove, and a small round table.

“Yes, that way we won’t have to eat all our meals at the dining hall,” said Grandfather.

Off the living room were three smaller rooms, each containing two twin beds.

“One room for the girls, one for the boys, and the third for Grandfather,” said Jessie.

“That’s right,” said Grandfather as they each put their suitcases in their rooms.

“These rooms are nice,” said Violet.

“This was where the upperclassmen—the older students—lived,” Grandfather explained. “It looks like they’ve fixed them up a lot since I was here,” he added with a chuckle, admiring the new windows and carpeting.

“Look!” Benny said, pointing out the window. “You can see the clock tower from here!” The Aldens looked up the hill and saw the tower at the top, outlined against the darkening sky.

“Come next door,” Joel said. “We’ll get Don, and then we can all go to dinner together. They’re having a special welcome meal in the dining hall.”

“Great!” said Benny. “I’m starving.”

“You’re always starving,” said Jessie.

Everyone headed next door. Sitting on the couch in Joel’s suite was a large, dark-haired man reading a book. The children knew he had to be Joel’s son because he looked so much like him.

“Don!” Joel said. “The Aldens are here.”

Don stood up quickly. He looked concerned, but his face quickly brightened when he saw Grandfather. He closed his book and tucked it quickly behind his back. “James Alden, good to see you,” he said. He awkwardly transferred the book he’d been holding to his left hand and put out his right to shake Grandfather’s.

“It’s been too long,” Grandfather said.

“I was just, uh … reading,” Don said. He looked slightly uncomfortable.

“Still reading that book I got you?” Joel asked his son. He turned to the others. “It’s so funny. For years I’ve been trying to get Don to come visit my old school, and he was never interested. But then I gave him this book, and suddenly he couldn’t wait to come!”

Joel laughed his big, friendly laugh. He went to take the book from his son and show it to the Aldens, but Don didn’t seem to want to let go of it. Instead Don held the book up for them to see. Printed on the faded leather cover were the words GOLDWIN UNIVERSITY.

“That book looks really old,” said Jessie. “Where did you find it?”

“In an antique store,” Joel said. “It’s over one hundred years old!”

“Wow!” said Benny. “Can I look at it?”

“I thought we were going to dinner,” Don said quickly, putting the book out of reach on a high shelf.

Benny was sorry not to get a look at the book, but he was always ready to eat. “Dinner sounds great!”

Goldwin’s main dining hall was right next to the clock tower. A large sign over the heavy wooden doors said, WELCOME ALUMNI!

Grandfather looked around as they walked inside. Then he smiled at Joel. “Hasn’t changed a bit,” he said.

“What are alum—alum—whatever that word is?” asked Benny.

“Alumni are people who graduated from this school,” Grandfather explained. “Like Joel and me. Look, Joel—there’s where we sign in.”

They stopped at a table that was set up by the door and were given a schedule of the week’s events and name tags for the whole family.

“Something smells good!” Joel said after he’d put on his name tag.

“Sure does,” Benny agreed.

Joel led the way over to the counter and handed everyone a tray. One by one, they all walked down the buffet line, selecting what they wanted to eat. There was pot roast, chicken, potatoes and vegetables, fresh fruit, and Jell-O in all different colors.

When they’d filled their trays, Grandfather noticed an empty table near the windows. “Let’s go sit over there.”

They had just sat down when an elderly woman walked by holding a tray. As she passed their table, she stopped short and her eyes opened wide. “Well, if it isn’t Jimmy Alden!” she said, smiling broadly. The woman was wearing a brightly colored dress, a floppy hat with a large pink flower on it, and bright pink sneakers to match.

Mr. Alden looked at her for a moment before realizing who it was. “Professor Meyer!” he said at last. “My favorite history teacher.”

“I hoped my star pupil would remember me,” she said, resting her tray on their table. “You know, you can call me Julia now that you’re not in my class.”

“And I hope you remember me, too,” said Joel.

“Of course I do—Joel Dixon!” said Professor Meyer. “I rarely saw you and Jimmy apart. I’m so glad to see you’re still good friends.”

Jessie giggled. “It’s funny to hear people call Grandfather ‘Jimmy.’ ”

“So you’re Jimmy’s grandchildren, are you?” the professor asked her.

“Yes. I’m Jessie, and this is Henry, Benny, and Violet.” Jessie motioned to each of her brothers and her sister in turn.

“It sure is nice to meet you,” Professor Meyer said, adjusting her hat.

“Professor Meyer knows everything about this college,” Grandfather told the children.

“Everything?” Don asked, leaning forward in his chair.

“I probably do,” Julia agreed. “After all, I’ve been here a long time—over fifty years! I always thought I’d leave one day, maybe get a job where I could make a little more money. But that’s okay. Now I’m working on—oh, let’s just call it my special project—maybe I’ll be able to make a little money without ever leaving Goldwin.” She smiled and raised her eyebrows as she picked up her tray. “I’m sure I’ll see you again this week!”

“It was nice meeting you,” Violet said as the professor walked away.

“I wonder what her special project is,” said Henry.

“It certainly did sound a little mysterious,” Joel said.

“Don’t start talking about mysteries with these kids,” warned Grandfather. “They are master mystery solvers!”

“Really?” said Don. “I’m a mystery solver, too.”

“Yes, Don was always playing detective as a kid,” Joel agreed.

“Tell us about yours,” Don said to the kids.

As they ate, the Aldens told Joel and Don about some of the exciting adventures they’d had, like the time they traveled to England and found the queen’s jewels, and the time Jessie joined a hockey team coached by a hockey superstar. Don told them about the mysteries he’d solved when he was young. After they’d all finished eating, they still sat and talked for a long time. Grandfather and Joel Dixon recognized many people walking by who had been their friends years before.

“Grandfather sure did have a lot of friends in college,” Benny said.

It was dark when the Aldens and the Dixons finally left the dining hall. As they came out of the building, they saw the clock tower directly in front of them, lit up against the night sky. A golden fall moon shone high above the tower.

“Wow, look at that!” said Jessie, her eyes wide. “It looks even cooler at night than during the day.”

“It sure does,” Henry agreed.

“I wouldn’t be surprised if it really was haunted,” said Benny. He stared up at the windows of the clock tower. The room at the top looked dark and empty.

“Haunted!” Joel said. “That boy sure has a good imagination, Jim.”

“Yes, he does,” Grandfather agreed, tousling Benny’s hair.

Benny laughed with the others. But as they walked back down the hill, he couldn’t help taking one last peek over his shoulder at the moonlit tower.

When the Aldens got back to their suite, they were worn out from their long day. In no time they were all asleep.

In the middle of the night, Benny woke up feeling thirsty. He rubbed his eyes and looked at the clock beside his bed. It was midnight. Benny slowly walked to the bathroom and got himself a drink of water.

As he was heading back to bed, Benny walked past the window. He stopped to look at the clock tower standing at the top of the hill. The fall moon was now directly behind it. The clock face was shining brightly, as before, but something had changed. A dim light was glowing in the window at the top of the tower. Benny could see a shadowy figure moving around.

“Oh, my goodness!” Benny said softly to himself. “There’s someone up there! But Ezra said no one’s up there at night.”

Suddenly Benny had another thought. “What if it’s the ghost?”