The Smoky Corridor

59

Zack and Malik agreed to keep their discovery of the stone double-triple super secret—especially since the decoded warning had the word “treasure” in it.

“The thought of treasure and untold riches can drive people mad,” said Malik, “make them do things they’d never think of doing.”

“Yeah,” said Zack. “Like eat bugs on TV.”

Friday morning, Zack and Malik noticed that Azalea seemed extremely sad when she climbed aboard the school bus.

“Everything okay?” Zack asked.

She glared at him. “Not really. But then, we all can’t have the perfectly happy little home like you do, with your live-in dad, your famous stepmom, and your stupid dog, can we, Zack?”

Oh-kay. That was not the answer he’d expected. But Zack didn’t say anything in reply. Neither did Malik.

Azalea stormed to the back of the bus and fiddled with her cell phone. She kept staring at the screen and, when she thought no one was looking, wiping her eyes.

Zack realized he was pretty lucky. Ever since Judy Magruder had come into his life, most of the sadness had gone out. The same couldn’t be said for his two new friends. Malik’s dad was out of work, his mom sick. Azalea looked like she’d just gotten some really bad news.

Uh-oh.

Her dad was in the army.

Soldiers sometimes got killed.

Maybe that was what her guardian ghost, Mary Jane Hopkins, had meant when she’d said, “She’s in grave danger.”

In danger of losing her father.

Between first and second periods, exploring a new shortcut, Zack heard piano music coming out of a classroom. It sounded so haunting he figured one of the guardian ghosts had learned to manipulate piano keys. So he followed the music to an empty classroom, where Azalea sat at a piano.

She saw Zack and immediately slammed the keyboard cover shut.

“What are you doing here?” she snapped at him.

“Nothing. I just heard the music. What was it?”

“Nothing. A song I made up.”

“Really? Wow! That’s incredible!”

“Yeah, right. Look, Zack, if you tell anybody …”

“I won’t. I promise.” He moved closer to the piano. “So, what’s going on?”

“Huh?”

“Well, you’ve been acting kind of weird.…”

“Weird is what I do, Zack.”

“I mean weird weird. What happened?”

She pried up the keyboard cover. Plunked a couple of sour notes.

“Oh, nothing. Just my dad almost got killed. Again.”

“How?”

“A bullet. It killed his best buddy. Six inches to the left, it would’ve killed him.”

“But he’s okay?”

“Yeah. Well, this morning he’s okay. Tonight, who knows? I don’t want to lose my father, okay? I hardly even know the guy, he’s gone so much.”

Zack wondered if her dad’s being in the army was why Azalea was so obsessed with death.

“It could happen any day, any second,” she said softly.

Zack sat down. He could tell that Azalea needed to talk.

“I guess it’s why I do the stupid Bloody Mary bit and visit graveyards and try to look like a vampire or a ghost. I want to believe in life after death, Zack.”

He nodded.

“I want to believe that if … if the worst happens … that, I dunno, that somehow I could still maybe talk to my dad … tell him stuff. Crazy, huh?”

Zack thought long and hard before he spoke.

“You could,” he said.

“What?”

“Your father’s spirit won’t die with his body.”

“Right. Like you know.”

“Azalea, I’m going to tell you something I’ve never told anybody, except my stepmom.” He took a deep breath. “I see ghosts.”

Azalea’s raccoon eyes opened superwide.

“It’s true. Honest. It started over the summer. Now, everywhere I look, I see them.”

“Really?”

“Well, if they’re there. This room is empty. Although at first I thought there might be one in here, a ghost who taught himself how to play the piano.…”

“Uh-huh.”

“I didn’t ask to be a ghost seer. It just sort of happened.”

Azalea nodded. Very slowly.

“Yesterday, when I zoned out in the bathroom? I did see somebody in the mirror and her name, believe it or not, was Mary, but she wasn’t Bloody Mary.…”

“Oh-kay. Thanks for sharing that with me, Zack. Good to know. Well, we better book. Don’t want to be late for class.”

“Are you feeling better?”

“Oh, I’m feeling fine, Zack. Just fine.” She backed away from the piano bench toward the door. “See you in history class.”

The way Azalea bolted out of the music room, Zack wasn’t sure telling her the truth had been the smartest idea.