“I feel as if we’re being watched,” Mindy whispers as she worriedly glances from side to side.
“I know what you mean. I feel it too, Min. But if we–” I suddenly stop and glance over my shoulder at the others. “Did you hear something?”
After Mindy and the dogs rush up, I signal for everyone to be quiet so we can listen. Yet we hear nothing but the oppressive silence which most likely has been playing with my imagination. So we continue on for a few more yards until the corridor branches off to either side.
“Which way?” Mindy asks. “Do we go left or right, or do we continue straight ahead?”
“We should probably go the way that looks the safest, but none of them do.” I shrug and point left. “Let’s try this way first.”
We cautiously turn down the new corridor, but barely move a few yards when Mindy halts and grabs my arm. “Did you hear that? It was a faint rustling noise. It almost sounded like–”
“Like that!” I say, quickly aiming my flashlight down the long hallway. There, walking slowly toward us, is the pumpkin patch scarecrow, its crooked smile fixed upon us as bits of dried straw poke out of its coat sleeves and collar.
“We should have gone right!” Mindy shouts as she tightens her grip and turns us around. “You were hearing things, Griffin!” We flee and bolt down the right corridor as the dogs follow like shadows. But we don’t get far.
There, advancing toward us down the other end of the hallway is another former enemy, the werewolf, its disturbing growls filling the air like a poisonous gas. We turn and rush back to the central corridor and sprint toward the main door, knowing we’ll never find the vault if we can’t get past those two hideous guards, or worse yet, are taken prisoner.
“Run!” I shout out to Alpha, Beta and Gamma as Mindy and I flee down the hall to the exit. I glance back once, only to see to my dismay that the scarecrow and werewolf have entered the main corridor as well and are slowly advancing our way as if– Slowly? As if we’re–trapped?
I lunge toward the door and grab the handle, turning it at the same instant and pulling it toward me. But the door doesn’t budge this time. It’s locked.
“Going somewhere?”
Someone with a low, snakelike voice poses the question from behind, a voice both sinister and paralyzing in its tone. I detect faint laughter too, as if the situation is merely a playful sport to this particular individual. But I don’t need any more clues to know who this someone is. My heart starts to beat wildly and my breathing grows unsteady. I know only too well what fiendish being is lurking behind me, and I slowly turn around to face it. And there, floating above the floor in all its gruesome glory, is the Silver Swamp monster.
Rising Water
I grit my teeth as I bravely face my adversary. Mindy turns around and eyes the Silver Swamp monster with equal courage. Alpha, Beta and Gamma spin about and growl at the ghastly being, but they remain close to us, not sure as to what precisely is blocking their path.
“Welcome to my humble abode, Griffin Ghostley,” it addresses me, its words laced with smug assurance, no doubt believing it has already defeated me. It studies me for a moment as if trying to read my mind. “I didn’t expect you to bring along company, but as they say, the more, the merrier.”
“There’s nothing merry about this dreary place,” I remark as the beams from the two flashlights illuminate the strange looking creature rising in the air in front of us.
The tall, thin figure floats just above the floor, its tattered, dirty gray robes concealing its feet, if it even has any. Wet, dripping, leafy vines in various shades of green are twisted about its head, arms, shoulders and chest as if a naturally growing part of the swamp monster. Its eyes glow with a burning bright orange color, and its thin lips frame a crooked and spiteful expression. The scarecrow and werewolf stand quietly behind him on either side like attentive guards.
“Merry or not, you are now stuck in this place–perhaps forever–unless you are smart enough to find a way out,” the swamp monster tells me.
“I’m here to unlock the vault, just as you challenged me by sending me that map,” I tell him, recovering a bit of my courage. “I have faced you before and I can do so again!”
The creature laughs at me as if I were a mild annoyance, a mere housefly that it could easily shoo away with a flick of its hand. Alpha barks loudly a few times, showing his displeasure.
“You have faced me before, Griffin Ghostley, but this is my most difficult test yet. I wonder if you are up for the challenge.”
“He is!” Mindy boldly shouts, stepping forward. “And he found all the numbers to the combination.” She glances back at me with a worried look. “Well, nearly…” she whispers with a hint of uncertainty.
I take Mindy by the arm and gently pull her back to my side, not wanting her to get too close to our adversary. Then I take a step forward to address the wet, floating mess.
“I am up to the challenge,” I say, “unless, of course, you are reluctant to lead me to the combination vault so I can try to open it. Are you afraid that I might succeed, having gotten this far? Are you afraid that I might open the vault and save the others you referred to in your challenge? Though how opening a vault door will save them is still a mystery to me. But I will make the attempt.”
The Silver Swamp monster glares at me as if I have wounded its pride. But then a smug grin slowly reappears upon its face and it laughs with contempt, apparently only toying with my emotions.
“Afraid? Of you?” It laughs again. “Oh, Mr. Ghostley, I eagerly look forward to seeing if you can solve this next puzzle and open that vault door. Because rest assured, the fates of you and so many others are at stake if you don’t.”
But before I can ask him to explain, I pause to listen to a distant, strange sounding noise that has caught my ear. Though I can’t see far beyond where the scarecrow and werewolf are standing, somewhere in the darkness much farther into the building, an unusual, though somewhat familiar sound is drifting through the air. I can’t quite place it yet as I glance Mindy’s way. She looks back, similarly distracted, no doubt hearing the same faint noise. Even Alpha, Beta and Gamma appear a bit more nervous now as if something ominous is approaching. But I set aside my concerns for the moment and address the swamp monster, needing to get more information if I am to succeed.
“What could possibly be inside this vault that would affect so many other people?” I skeptically ask. “I’m beginning to suspect that all this business with the map is just some sort of trick for your amusement.” But the swamp monster simply stares back at me with eyes blazing, making me realize that none of this is a joke.
“Do not doubt my sincerity in this matter, Griffin Ghostley!” The swamp monster’s voice booms through the corridor. Alpha and Beta bark at the floating creature while Gamma howls in fright, but Mindy and I quickly calm them down.
When all is quiet again, I look up. “And just how am I supposed to find this vault with your two creepy guards blocking my way?” I ask, indicating the scarecrow and werewolf still standing obediently at their posts.
“Oh, they will not hinder you anymore,” the swamp monster replies. Then with a swift wave of its arm, both the scarecrow and the werewolf fade into nothingness before our eyes as if they were only soap bubbles.
“What happened to them?” Mindy asks with astonishment.
“Their assignments are over for now,” the swamp monster replies. “Besides, they were never going to harm you. I just sent them out as obstacles to see how determined you really were to solve the answers to my little puzzle. And I must grudgingly admit, Mr. Ghostley, that you have impressed me with your dogged persistence.”
“No pun intended?” Mindy quips as she pets Beta on the head.
“Make your jokes, Miss Mayhew, but you are still trapped here unless your friend–this so-called brilliant Halloween detective–can solve my three clues. And no dogs are going to help him do that, I’m afraid,” it replies with an arrogant laugh.
; “Alpha, Beta and Gamma have always been there for me,” I tell it, marching a few steps forward and growing less afraid. “So if I am to complete this task, then quit stalling! Show me where this vault is and tell me what’s inside that’s so important.” I breathe heavily, feeling my face turning hot with anger. But I calm down when Alpha, Beta and Gamma gather around me in support. Mindy walks up to my side and we become a united force.
“I’ll tell you exactly what’s inside the vault, Mr. Ghostly. It is something crucial to the outcome of future events,” the swamp monster calmly replies. “It is you.”
I look up puzzled, furrowing my brow. “Me? What are you talking about?”
The Silver Swamp monster begins to laugh again as its eyes grow brighter, their orange color glowing intensely like a fire being fanned by a pair of huge bellows. “It is obvious that you are clueless about your situation, so I will show you what I’m talking about. Observe!”
After waving its vine-wrapped arm through the air as if casting a magic spell, the corridor suddenly becomes lighter as if invisible flames are somehow illuminating the area. Mindy and I no longer need our flashlights and put them away. But what happens next astounds us.
We suddenly turn back around after hearing another strange noise that sounds like the slow bending and creaking of metal. We face the main door, only now it is not the same door we originally walked through to enter the Kensington Circle Corporation. It is changing its appearance before our very eyes as it turns into an iron door to a combination vault.
Slowly, a dozen fanged metal snakes begin to rise up through the surface of the door near the top, bottom and along either side, their bodies slithering back and forth until they suddenly freeze in place, all now welded to the door as ghastly ornamentation. Then the gaunt face of a steel skeleton pushes up through the center of the door as a circle of numbers forms around it running from zero to ninety-nine. At once I can see that this is the combination dial to the vault. And to its right near the edge, the regular door handle transforms into a metal, bone-shaped lever to complete the bizarre and eerie appearance of the new door.
But if that wasn’t strange enough, the windows and doors visible in other sections of the factory fade away, instantly replaced by the same type of stone blocks of which the rest of the building is constructed. I slowly look around as a frightening chill runs up my spine. I suddenly realize the horrible truth. This entire building is the vault, and my friends and I are trapped inside.
“Ah, by your troubled expression, I can see that you have at last figured out my devious plan, Griffin Ghostley.” The swamp monster smiles with sinister delight. “I finally have you trapped, and unless you dial the correct combination on your first try, you and your friends will be stuck inside here forever. The Silver Swamp will continue to grow until it consumes you and then the entire world!”
The swamp monster emits another terrifying laugh, pleased with its cleverness. I try to appear unfazed, but deep down I am worried that the Silver Swamp monster may have at last gotten the best of me. But I will not give up.
“I have the three numbers to the combination!” I defiantly shout. “So I will escape.”
“He does!” Mindy adds, trying to boost my confidence.
“Do you?” it asks while eyeing me suspiciously, as if somehow knowing I’m not quite sure of that third number carved upon the tombstone. “Well, then good luck to you both. But in the meantime, I must be off. I have more territory to claim, unless, of course, you care to stop me.”
With a quick wave of its wet, vine-covered arms, the Silver Swamp monster disappears in a flash of green light, leaving Mindy, the three dogs and me all alone amid the eerie glow in this dank and cavernous tomb.
The Final Seconds
Mindy looks at me in horrified silence. Alpha, Beta and Gamma circle about uneasily, whimpering as they eye me for an answer, expecting a quick fix to this problem. And though I know what must be done, I’m not sure if I have the mental power to complete the task.
“Some fix we’re in, huh?” I casually comment to Mindy to calm her frayed nerves. Mine are quickly fraying, too.
“I’d say so,” she remarks, staring blankly at the snake and skull adorned vault door. “We have to get out of here, Griffin. And I mean now.”
“I know, Min. I know.” I’m about to reach for the piece of paper inside my pocket with the gravestone rubbing, but then suddenly freeze. I hear it again, that distant yet familiar noise I had heard earlier. Only now it seems closer. “Do you hear that?” I ask, slowly turning around.
Mindy does likewise and listens intently as the faint noise gently echoes up the corridor. “It sounds like–” Instantly her face grows pale. I’m sure mine does too as I finally recognize what we’re hearing and finish her sentence.
“–water!”
We hurry down the corridor to the back of the building. Alpha, Beta and Gamma spring into action and chase after us. But we stop at once several yards before we reach the end. The walls are bathed in an eerie green glow and we notice that several inches of swamp water have seeped into the building from outdoors. Water also trickles in from a few small cracks that have formed in parts of the wall like a series of mini waterfalls.
“Mindy, it’s happening!” I shout. “The Silver Swamp is still growing, and it’s–” This time I can’t complete my sentence and Mindy does it for me.
“–it’s swallowing the building whole!”
The five of us slowly back up as the foul smelling water inches forward, stretching farther up the corridor with every passing second. We have no time to lose.
“Hurry! To the vault door!” I motion the others to follow me back up the hallway.
“Griffin, you need to get that door open so we can get out of here!” Mindy exclaims. “You need to solve that last clue.”
“I know! I know!” I reply, not wanting to let down my friends. It’s the last thing in the world I’d ever want to do.
We reach the vault door in seconds flat, facing the array of iron snakes and the glaring metal skull. The dogs circle about anxiously, wanting to leave at once. I remove the slip of paper with the gravestone rubbing and study it, clearly seeing the number three, but still unable to make out the rest of the figures.
“Any luck?” Mindy asks.
“Not yet,” I reply. “But I know the first two numbers. Let’s start there.”
As all look on, I slowly turn the skull clockwise until a small black mark on the middle of its forehead lines up with the number ninety. Then, as if opening my locker at school, I dial the skull counterclockwise, passing the number thirty-two and then turning it another full revolution until I reach thirty-two a second time. I pause and step back, still needing that third number in the combination. That elusive third number. And I only have one chance to correctly dial it.
“What should we do now, Griffin?” Mindy asks, knowing that I’m stumped. “Do we make a guess and take our chances? Or is there some logical way to figure this out?”
I look at the paper rubbing without replying, staring at the figure 3 and the line of blurry numbers to its right. But besides being blurry, something still isn’t right about this. “It looks like there are two more digits after the three,” I say, talking more to myself than to the others. “But then that would make the number at least three hundred.”
“And the numbers around the skull only go up to ninety-nine,” Mindy replies. “So there must be–”
“–a decimal point after the three!” I jump in, completing her thought. Yet I scratch my head, still no closer to an answer. “But there is no way to dial such a number on the vault. There are no decimals listed, only whole numbers. Yet I still need to know it. I still need to solve this clue.”
Then I hear it again, the noise of the water getting louder behind us. We spin around and our eyes widen in horror when seeing that the swamp has nearly reached us, now only a few yards away. The stench of the growing Silver Swamp fills our nostrils as the dogs furiously bark.
“Think, Griffin!” I whisper to myself. “You’re running out of time!”
The dogs continue to bark, but more at me than at the approaching water, as if trying to tell me something that might help me solve this riddle. But what is it? What are they trying to say? For an instant, I think about eating apple pie, but that strange thought quickly passes. Maybe the fumes from the swamp water are making me delirious. But when I feel the floor move, my full attention is again focused on the problem at hand as our worst fears are imagined.
“What’s happening now?” Mindy cries.
Our worst fears quickly multiply when we realize that it isn’t just the floor moving–it’s the entire building. The Kensington Circle Corporation is slowly tilting backward as the Silver Swamp grows around it, prepared to devour it like a shark feasting on a tiny fish. We attempt to steady ourselves, each placing a hand upon the wall as the water rises, but I fear that our time will soon be up regardless. I must make a final guess right now and live–or die–with the result. I reach for the metal skull as the gears in my mind spin at breakneck speed, searching for that last number.
“What is it? What’s the number?” Mindy frantically asks as the dogs continue to bark and the water nearly laps at our feet. “Please, Griffin, tell us the number,” she pleads. “Griffin! Griffin?”
“Griffin, you’re next, please. Griffin. Griffin?” The sound of someone clearing her throat filled the sixth grade classroom at the Franklin W. Fitzgibbon Middle School. “Earth to Griffin Ghostley–you’re next.”
Slowly those words worked their way into the inner chamber of Griffin Ghostley’s mind, pulling him out of his daydream. His head snapped up. He eyed his teacher’s desk in the left corner of the room, momentarily unable to see her because he sat slouched down in his chair, causing her face to stay hidden behind a potted fern resting on the edge of the desk near a small ceramic frog.
Search for the Silver Swamp Monster (A Griffin Ghostley Adventure Book 1) Page 5