THE MYSTERY OF ROANOKE; CHAPTER 9: JOHN SHOWS THE TWINS THE STONE BY THE RIVER (NINTH OF 14 PARTS)

THE STORY SO FAR: As they sit in a secret cave on the river, the twins listen to their ghostly new friend, John, tell his sad, frightening tale. He had been a slave at their very house -- and had drowned in the river in 1858 while trying to escape.

Brian and Melissa stared at John in astonishment.

"You can help me get back to my family," John said.

Brian asked, "You mean all these years you've been trying to find them?"

John nodded. "It wasn't supposed to happen the way it did," he said. "I couldn't find my way in the dark. And then, when I fell in the river. . . . It was over quickly."

He was quiet for a moment before he continued. "Ever since then, I have been waiting to finish my journey. You see, every Christmas Eve, I have a chance to try my escape again. My spirit travels back to the time when my family was waiting for me. But nothing happens."

He explained that Melissa and Brian were the first truly sympathetic spirits he had found at the house in nearly 150 years. He knew they would help him. They would believe in him.

"Grandma and Grandpa would believe," Brian said.

Perhaps, John said, but probably not enough to get involved. Adults were like that sometimes. "When your grandfather was a little boy, I tried to reach him. But he was afraid. And, later, when I appeared to your father, he was afraid, too."

Brian was stunned. "Grandpa and Dad know you, too?"

"Not really," John replied. "They saw me but were too frightened, so I went away. They never knew the whole story. But I know you two can help me find what I need." John looked at them earnestly. "In all these years, I have never been able to find the box I left behind. And the map. There must have been a map. Without it, I don't know where to meet my family on the river. And they won't know where to go."

Melissa leaned forward. "We have your map," she said.

"You have it?" John said.

"Yes, but we can't figure it out," Melissa said. "It's full of symbols and things."

John looked away, as if he were seeing far into the distance. His eyes shone with tears.

Melissa said, "It was hidden in the bottom of the box, under your Bible."

John murmured, "So that's what Rev. Baxter was trying to tell me." He wiped his eyes with the back of his hand.

Melissa said, "We have the box, too. And the Bible. Now you can find your family."

"Yes, but I need more than that," John said. "I need you to light the way."

Brian's eyes opened wide. "What do you mean?"

Part of the problem, John explained, was the darkness. Under the new moon, their escape was less likely to be seen, but it also made the journey more difficult and dangerous.

"There are houses and street lights all over the place. Won't you see them?"

"No," John replied. "You see, there are some things that can pass through time, like sounds and smells. And light, too."

Melissa thought about the music and scent of lilacs in the library, and the way she had smelled lilacs again when she found the box in the wardrobe. Was Miss Elizabeth in on this, too?

John explained that, because he was between worlds, he could see both modern things and old-fashioned things. But when he joined his family, it would be 1858 again. And they would only be able to see what was there in 1858. The river. Creeks. Mountains. Trees. The houses and buildings that stood then. And light.

"But it must be the same kind of light that existed in 1858," he said. "Lanterns, for instance. Or candles."

He added that the first night he saw them he was drawn by their candle on the front steps.

Melissa said, "Yes, but why were you just a wisp and not real-looking like you are now?"

John said, "I was just trying to see you, to see if you looked trustworthy. I didn't mean for you to see me yet."

Brian asked, "So what do we need to do?"

"If there are lights along the way -- just a few -- it will make a difference," John said. "Ask Amy. She'll help you."

"Amy?" said Melissa. "Does she know about all this?"

"Oh, yes," John said with a smile. "She believes in me, too. The lights were her idea." Amy was scientific, he explained, so she understood about the eternal qualities of light. "But she knows that sometimes you have to blend science with magic, and faith in something," John said.

"Wow," was all Brian could say.

John's face turned serious again. "Listen, please. I need to depend on you. I must see my way so that I don't fall in the river again." He paused. "If I fall in, well --"

Brian jumped up. "What if you knew how to swim?"

"But I don't," John said.

"But I do," Brian said. "What if I taught you how?"

John said, "Well, I suppose it's worth a try." He chewed his lips and looked scared.

"Tomorrow is Tuesday," said Brian. "Meet me here at four o'clock, after school. It's still warm enough to get in the water." Brian stepped out into the thin rain and dipped his hand in the water. "It's not too cold."

John had a look of pure fear on his face. "This river is colder than you think," he said. He pointed toward the bend in the river, where it disappeared into the trees. "That's where it happened. Come. I'll show you."

The three of them walked under the trees around the bend. The water swirled and rushed past them, as if it were alive.

John said, "Right here." The twins were quiet.

Under a giant old elm tree, amid the waving grasses, they saw a gray stone. The twins walked over to it.

Brian called out, "John, what's this?"

They looked back for John, but he was not there.

In the grass stood a plain, worn tablet, like an old gravestone. Melissa knelt and pushed aside the grass. It read:

In memory of

John O'Donnell

1845-1858

Next week: Lessons.