Hocus Pocus Hotel (7 page)

He turned and looked out the hotel's glass doors. Sheets of rain fell on the street and sidewalk. “I'm going to get soaked when I go home,” he said.

“When did you tell your parents you'd be home?” asked Tyler.

“Uh, I didn't say,” Charlie said.

“Good,” said Tyler. “Then come on. I'll show you the room where the ghost struck first.”

“But why do you think it's a ghost?” asked Charlie. “I mean, did someone see a spirit or something?”

“It's because of the voice,” said Tyler.

“Voice?” Charlie repeated. Without meaning to, he shivered. He hoped Tyler didn't notice.

“And because of stuff disappearing,” said Ty. “And because of what Mr. Thursday said.”

Why did I let myself get dragged into another mystery with Ty?
wondered Charlie.

Because it was another puzzle?

Because he was afraid Tyler would pound him into the dirt if he didn't help him?

Or some other reason?

“My mom doesn't believe in ghosts,” said Ty. “She thinks I'm making up excuses for not wanting to go to the ninth floor. And if I don't find the missing stuff, it comes out of my pay.”

Charlie knew what no pay would mean.

If Tyler didn't get paid, he couldn't buy the Tezuki Slamhammer 750, Edition 6, in cherry-pop lightning red.

But making you pay for things that had disappeared, when it wasn't your fault — that didn't seem fair to Charlie.

“What does your dad think about the ghost?” Charlie asked.

“He doesn't go up to the ninth floor either,” said Ty. “Especially since he heard the voice.”

Thunder crashed, and Charlie jumped. Tyler noticed, but he didn't say anything. He didn't even grin. Instead, he simply said, “Come on, Hitch.”

The taller, dark-haired boy led the way across the lobby, past tall marble columns and tall potted palm trees. A row of elevators lined the back wall. Their shiny metal doors shone like gold. Charlie pressed the button to call one.

“Dang!” said Ty. “Wait here. I have to grab the passkey.” He spun around and sprinted toward the lobby desk.

“Hey, take my backpack and put it behind the counter,” said Charlie.

“I'm not your assistant,” said Tyler. As he rushed away, his shoes made wet prints in the thick, blood-red carpet.

“Master Yu is always in a hurry,” said Brack, his elevator doors sliding open.

“He knows I can't stay that long,” said Charlie.

“Are you helping him solve another mystery?” asked Brack.

Charlie swung his backpack onto one shoulder. “I guess so,” he said.

“What draws you to the mysteries here at the Abracadabra?” Brack asked.

Charlie shrugged. “I like puzzles,” he said. “Well, actually, I hate puzzles. They bug me until I figure out the answer.”

Brack nodded thoughtfully. “Then prepare to be bugged,” he said. “Our hotel is full of puzzles. It was designed that way. Riddles and mysteries are built in the walls.”

No kidding
, Charlie thought.

Just then, Tyler appeared back at the elevator, breathing hard. “Got it,” he said, holding up the key. “Ninth floor, Brack.”

Thunder shook the building.

“Hey, Mr. Brack,” said Charlie. “You don't believe in ghosts, right?”

“Believe in them?” replied Brack. “Of course I do. Why, I've seen them.” He pushed a button, the golden doors shut, and the elevator car shot upward.

The boys were stunned. “You saw a ghost?” said Tyler.

Brack nodded. The elevator car hummed and shuddered as it rose toward the ninth floor.

“Where did you see it?” asked Charlie.

“In the elevator,” answered Brack. He pointed a finger toward the shining gold doors. “I had just dropped off a customer on twelve, and was coming back down to the lobby. And then I saw Abracadabra the magician standing right there, staring at me.”

The magician from the painting
, thought Charlie.

“Did he say anything?” asked Charlie in whisper.

“Not a syllable,” said Brack sadly. “And when I reached the lobby, he disappeared.”

“Wow,” said Tyler.

“But I've seen him many times since,” added Brack.

“On the ninth floor?” asked Ty.

“On many floors,” said the elevator operator.

The elevator stopped. Charlie watched his and Ty's reflections, with their mouths hanging open, disappear as the doors slid open. A dark hallway lay beyond.

“You don't have to leave right away, Brack,” said Ty. “We won't be long.”

“I'll wait as long as I can, Master Yu,” said the older man. “But if I hear someone else ring the bell, I'll have to go.”

Tyler nodded. He and Charlie started down the hallway, leaving the elevator operator behind. “It's Mr. Thursday's room,” said Ty. “Just around the corner, 909.”

At the first door around the corner, Tyler shoved the passkey into the lock.

“Don't you knock first?” asked Charlie.

“Relax,” said Tyler. “We moved him to a different room after the ghost thing happened. It was easy since he didn't have any luggage. The airline lost it or something.”

“Oh,” said Charlie.

After stepping inside, Tyler flipped on a light. “The bathroom's over here,” he said.

The bathroom was as big as Charlie's bedroom. Marble counters, fancy mirrors, a shaggy white rug, and a huge bathtub fit inside with plenty of room left over. “Notice anything missing?” asked Tyler, crossing his arms.

“Yes,” said Charlie. He stared at the bare curtain rod that hung across the tub. “The shower curtain.”

“Score,” said Tyler. “The same night Mr. Thursday checked in, he heard a noise in the middle of the night. He said that at first he thought it was a fire. Then as he listened some more, he said it sounded like someone crumpling up paper. And it was coming from the bathroom.”

Creepy
, thought Charlie.

“Creepy, huh?” said Tyler. “And when he got up to look, he switched on the light, but no one was there. And the shower curtain was gone.”

“The room door was locked?” asked Charlie.

Tyler nodded. “From the inside.”

“Had he seen the curtain before he went to bed?” asked Charlie.

“Yes,” said Ty. “He said he took a shower when he first got in. Then he went and had dinner.”

“Ah, and that's when the curtain was stolen!” said Charlie.

“Uh, no,” said Tyler. “He said that when he got back to the room, he brushed his teeth before he went to bed. The curtain was still there when he was brushing his teeth.”

“Why would someone want a shower curtain?” said Charlie.

“Especially a ghost,” added Tyler. “They don't need to take showers.”

“He didn't take a shower,” said Charlie, “he took a shower curtain. And I still don't see why you think it's a ghost.”

“Who else could get into a locked room?” Tyler asked, throwing up his hands. “Who else could remove a solid shower curtain without opening the door?”

“Hmm. Maybe Mr. Thursday did it himself and he's lying,” said Charlie.

“I thought of that,” said Tyler. “I'm not stupid. I searched the room. It wasn't here.”

Maybe he threw it out the window
, Charlie thought.
But why would anyone do that?

“And he couldn't have thrown it out the window, because the room windows don't open,” said Tyler.

Charlie stared at him. “How did you know I was thinking about that?” he asked.

“I saw you glance at the window with a funny look on your mug,” said Tyler. “And the first time I came in here, that's what I thought too.” A smirk spread across his face. “I'm not so dumb after all, am I?”

“I never said you were,” said Charlie. In fact, he was really starting to think that Tyler was pretty smart. It was just that Tyler never showed he had brains while he was in school. At school, Tyler pretty much only showed off his big arms and fists.

Tyler ran a hand through his spiky black hair. “It's crazy,” he said. “I just don't get it. Oh, and by the way, this isn't the only room where the shower curtain disappeared.”

Tyler led Charlie to five more rooms on the same floor, opening each one with the hotel's passkey. In each room's bathroom, the shower curtain was missing. Only the metal rings that once held the room's curtain in place still dangled on the curtain rod.

“The maids found these,” said Tyler. “They always check out the rooms once a week, even if no one has used them. Just to make sure everything is in place.”

“So no one is staying here?” Charlie asked.

Ty shook his head. “Nope,” he said. “Get this,” he added. “None of these rooms has had a guest for over a week. They've been empty. And the cleaning people all swore the shower curtains were still there when they cleaned them.”

“They couldn't have made a mistake?” asked Charlie.

“No way,” said Tyler. “The cleaning crew has a checklist for each room. If anything is missing, they have to report it. My mom's a real stickler for being organized and clean.”

“Six rooms without shower curtains,” said Charlie.

“There's other stuff missing, too,” said Tyler. “Now we need to go downstairs.”

“There could be more than one ghost,” said Charlie.

Suddenly, they both froze. A moan echoed through the dim hallway.

“There it is!” whispered Tyler. “The voice.”

A name was being called out over and over. “Mister Ken … Mister Ken …”

The voice was soft, but clear. “See what I mean?” said Tyler quietly. He motioned for Charlie to walk down the corridor with him. Even as they tiptoed past door after door, the voice seemed to follow them.

Charlie tapped Ty's back and whispered, “Where's it coming from?”

Tyler shook his head. “I can't tell. I've put my ears to the doors on this floor, but it isn't coming from inside anywhere. It's out here, in the hall.”