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Updated: September 4, 2025
"All right, all right," grumbled the driver, disgruntled at having his ideas treated in this highhanded manner. "You can laugh all you're wanting to. But I tell you, if it was me " "Which it isn't," Mrs. Gilligan interrupted shortly. "I wouldn't stay in that there haunted place for a farm, I wouldn't." "What makes you think it's haunted?"
Morris the man had been killed as he was mending the ditch, and Captain Clayton found that the tone of the people was varied in the answers which they made to his inquiries. They were astounded, and, as it were, struck dumb with surprise. Nobody knew anything, nobody had heard anything, nobody had seen anything. They were as much in the dark about poor Pat Gilligan as they had been as to Mr.
Gilligan decided, adding, as she turned toward the door: "Where have those men gone? I told them to bring in the things." She went out to see about it with the girls at her heels and found the old man and the boy in a heated argument over something. "Well, if you want to go into that there haunted house, it's your concern," the old man was saying in a querulous voice.
Gilligan good-naturedly, "it's him that I wouldn't be trusting. But what," she asked, looking curiously at Billie, "did your brother mean by saying not to scare away the ghosts before he gets there?" "Oh," laughed Billie, "he has a sort of idea that the house at Cherry Corners is inhabited by spirits just because mother said that the halls and rooms were spooky.
"Yes, when you're in civilization," put in Laura. "But not out here." "I've found another one!" cried Billie, who had been prospecting on her own account. "And here's another! Why we'll have a big illumination before we're through." "That's the way to talk," said Mrs. Gilligan approvingly, as she crossed over to Billie's side of the large hall and began to light the other candles.
"We girls were just about scared to death." "Speak for yourself," said Laura, who, whether she had really been frightened or not, never liked to have anybody tell her about it. "You were scared too, what's the use of denying it?" Violet demanded hotly, but Mrs. Gilligan interrupted them. "Never mind about that," she said, with a smile. "Just tell me about this noise you thought you heard."
"I don't believe there's a bit of mystery in the whole thing." "Then what made the piano play?" Teddy insisted. "You said yourself that you heard it." "Oh, I heard it all right," said Mrs. Gilligan, helping herself to more jam. "There isn't any doubt about that. But I have an idea what caused it, all right." "Oh, tell us," they cried eagerly.
Gilligan to go with us?" asked Violet, holding back. "After last night I've had enough spooky experiences to last me a week." "Oh, come on," cried Laura, running ahead of them up the stairs. "I'll show you two 'fraid cats " "Who's a 'fraid cat?" cried Billie, starting in hot pursuit. "I'll have you know that nobody dares call me such names and get away with it. Come on, Vi, let's murder her."
They had gone only half the way, however, when they were startled by a tremendous crash and explosion outside and stood still, their hearts in their mouths. "Oh, now what has happened?" cried Violet as they rushed down the rest of the steps and started for the front door. Half way to the door Mrs. Gilligan met them, holding a rat trap in her hand from which hung, suspended, a dead rat.
It was whispered about that one of the family, the poor man's wife, probably, had seen the attack made upon poor Pat Gilligan, and may, or may not, have uttered some threat of vengeance; may have shown some sign that the murder ought to be made known to someone. Was not Pat Gilligan her sister's husband's brother's child?
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