Ghost at the Drive-In Movie (3 page)

“I wonder what that was all about,” said Grandfather.

“He sure looked like he’d seen a ghost,” said Henry. Everyone agreed.

“Wait—what’s that?” Violet asked.

Just then, they all heard footsteps coming out of the darkness behind the road. Benny held his breath.
Was it the ghost?

But it was only Joey Fletcher. “What was all that racket?” he asked his uncle.

“Nothing,” said Uncle Flick. “I thought you’d finished cleaning up the snack bar an hour ago. What took you so long?”

“Oh … I was just being extra careful. I wanted to make sure nobody was trying to make any more trouble,” Joey said. He shrugged and went inside the house.

By now it was past bedtime. Jessie and her brothers and sister went back upstairs. They all sat on the big bed Jessie and Violet were sharing and looked out the window towards the dark drive-in theater. They could see the screen in the moonlight.

“There really is a lot of trouble here,” Jessie remarked.

“Yes,” said Violet. “So many strange things are happening.”

“I think it
is
haunted!” Benny said. “And I want to see the ghost.”

“Benny, you know there’s no such thing as ghosts,” Henry said. “Now let’s go to bed.”

Jessie added, “Yes, Mr. Brinker was just seeing things that weren’t really there.”

“Maybe you’re right,” Benny said. But he also thought to himself:
Maybe not.

“Uncle Flick, is there anything we can do to help out while we’re here?” Henry asked. “Besides fixing breakfast, I mean.”

They were eating breakfast with Uncle Flick in the kitchen of the Fletcher house. Grandfather had brought back muffins from a bakery in town, and the children had helped wash and cut fresh fruit.

“Yes, we can lend a hand around the theater,” Jessie added.

It was true—the Aldens always liked being helpful. But they also hoped that by helping out around the theater, they could figure out why so many odd things were happening.

“Why, thank you,” said Uncle Flick. “There are plenty of things you can do before the theater opens tonight. Pick up litter, check to make sure the car speakers are working, stuff like that.”

“I can test popcorn!” Benny said. “I can taste it to make sure there’s enough butter!”

Uncle Flick laughed at this. “No need to do that, Benny! But we’ll figure out a job for you.”

After lunch, the children got right to work. Henry carefully checked the cords on all the speakers. Jessie and Violet picked up litter with special spiked poles. And Benny’s job was to bring everyone water and supplies. Uncle Flick found Joey’s old dirt bike for Benny to ride. They filled the front basket with water bottles and trash bags.

“You can ride over to the projection booth and see if Amy needs anything,” said Uncle Flick.

“I’ll head right over!” said Benny. He pedaled off across the lot.

But when he got to the booth, Amy wasn’t there. So he got back on the bike to find Jessie and Violet.

Meanwhile, Henry had finished checking the speakers. He went to the snack bar to ask Joey if he needed any help. When he walked inside the lights were on, but the place was empty.

“Hello?” he called. But there was no answer.

Jessie and Violet had picked up all the litter they could find on the lot. They had nearly filled a whole bag of garbage.

“I’m getting thirsty,” Violet said. “I think I saw Benny riding his bike over by the snack bar. I’ll go find him and get some water for us.”

“Good idea,” said Jessie. “It’s getting hot out!”

Violet walked off across the lot. Jessie looked up at the movie screen, which was shining brightly in the sun. She realized there would be shade on the other side of the screen, so she walked behind it.

It was nice and cool behind the screen. Jessie picked up a few pieces of litter and looked around. She noticed a large bundle near the back of the screen—it was something rolled up, like a tent. She would be sure to ask Uncle Flick what it was. Just then, she heard Henry calling her name, and she went out to the front of the theater.

“Have you seen Joey?” Henry asked. “He was supposed to be at the snack bar, but he’s not there.”

“No,” Jessie said. “What about Benny? Violet’s looking for him. He’s got the water, and we’re thirsty!”

“So am I,” said Henry. He turned and looked around the lot. “Look, there he is now!”

They both saw Benny riding his bike near the front gate.

“Benny! Over here!” Jessie called. But Benny wasn’t paying attention. He liked the bike very much.

Henry groaned. “We’ll have to go over there to get our water,” he said. So he and Jessie ran across the lot to Benny.

Over on the other side of the theater, Violet hadn’t seen Benny at all. She was still looking for him by the snack bar. She was walking along the edge of the building when she heard a voice around the corner. “Benny?” she said.

But it wasn’t Benny. Amy and Joey were there, and they had been talking. They both jumped a little when they saw Violet. Violet jumped, too.

“Gosh! I didn’t mean to surprise you,” said Violet.

Joey stood up straighter and pushed the hair out of his eyes. “Uh, what do you mean, ‘surprise?’”

“Oh … well … I thought I interrupted you while you were talking,” Violet replied.

“We weren’t talking!” said Amy. “I mean, we weren’t talking about anything important.”

“Like, why would we be?” said Joey.

Violet thought they were acting oddly. “I’m sorry. Never mind,” she said. She was turning to leave when suddenly Amy said, “Wait!” and ran up to Violet.

“What is it?” Violet asked.

Amy’s voice was sharp. “Do you see that storage shed over there?” she asked. She pointed to a long low building on the far edge of the theater grounds.

“Y-yes,” said Violet.

“You and your sister and brothers need to stay away from there. If any of you go in there you’ll … you’ll be in trouble. Do you understand?” Amy sounded very serious.

Violet nodded.

“You be sure to tell them,” said Amy. She marched off towards the projection booth. Joey went back inside the snack bar. And Violet took a deep breath. She was glad to see Jessie and Henry walking back across the lot.

“What was that all about?” Jessie asked her.

Violet told her sister and Henry what had just happened.

“There’s something strange about Amy,” Jessie remarked. “She always acts like we’ve caught her at something.”

“Well, she’s never where she’s supposed to be,” Violet said. “Come to think of it, neither is Joey.”

“And neither is Benny!”
said Henry, looking around. “Did he ride off on his bike again?”

Benny had indeed ridden off again. After he’d given Henry and Jessie their water bottles he’d decided to find Violet, too. He wondered if she was on the other side of the theater, so he rode along the edge of the lot until he saw something he hadn’t noticed before. It was an old storage shed. Benny got off his bike and walked up to the open door to peek inside.

What he saw inside made his eyes widen. He couldn’t believe what he saw. “I have to tell Henry and Jessie and Violet about this!” he whispered.

He ran back to his bike and rode off across the theater lot. Soon he saw Jessie running up to him.

“There you are!” said Jessie. “You shouldn’t ride off like that without telling anyone where you’re going,” she said firmly Jessie often acted like a mother to Benny

“I’m sorry” Benny said.

“It’s important,” she added. “Because there are places where you’re not supposed to go. Like the storage shed. Amy told Violet that if any of us go in there we’ll all be in trouble. Okay?”

“O-okay,” said Benny. He did not want anyone to be in trouble. So he did not tell Jessie that he’d been to the shed. He would not tell anyone what he’d seen inside.

Evening came, and the drive-in theater opened for the night.

“Are you sure you don’t mind seeing
Island of the Horses
and
Pirate Spy
again?” Grandfather asked the children.

“We don’t mind,” said Jessie. Sometimes the children liked watching the same movie more than once. But they also wanted to find out more about the pranks at the drive-in—and the ghost, too.

“Let’s find a spot for the car,” Grandfather said. “And then I’ll walk back over to the Fletcher house and read my book on the porch. You can call me on my cell phone if you need anything.”

Soon the minivan was in a good spot in the third row of the drive-in. It was still twilight, and the Alden children decided to walk around to look for anything unusual. Henry walked with Violet and Benny. They saw Dan Brinker in the second row. Tonight he had a shiny silver car decorated with green and blue balloons.

“Maybe he can tell us more about the ghost,” Violet replied.

“Let’s talk to him at intermission,” Henry said.

“What’s in-ter-mish-un?” Benny asked.

“That’s the break in the middle of a show,” Henry said. “Here at the theater, it’s the break between the first movie and the second one.”

Meanwhile, Jessie was walking Watch. They were near the projection booth when she heard a voice call, “Jessie?”

It was Amy Castella. She was standing in the doorway of the booth. “Hi. Er … could you do me a favor?” Amy asked. “Could you just keep an eye on the booth while I run and get a soda?”

Jessie didn’t know what to say for a moment. Amy hadn’t been very friendly.

“Listen,” Amy went on. “I’m sorry about today. I guess I wasn’t very nice to your sister. It’s just that things have been crazy around here lately.”

“What happened with the sound last night?” Jessie asked.

Amy looked sheepish. “I wish I knew,” she said. “But I know it wasn’t an accident. There’s no way the sound could have just switched like that! I need to be truthful with Uncle Flick and tell him …”

“Tell him what?” asked Jessie.

“That someone must have played a trick last night. Someone was in the booth when I was out.”

“Oh, no,” said Jessie.

“So will you please stay here for a moment while I get a soda?” Amy begged.

Jessie nodded.

“Thank you so much. I’ll be right back!” Amy ran off towards the snack bar.

Jessie sat on the front steps of the booth with Watch. “Amy’s being friendlier,” she told Watch. “But why does it seem like she’s still hiding something?”

After Amy returned to the booth, Jessie and Watch went back to the minivan. As the first movie began, Jessie told Henry, Violet, and Benny what had happened.

“Perhaps Amy is behind the pranks,” said Henry. “After all, she lied to Uncle Flick yesterday. She said the sound problem was an accident when it wasn’t.”

“Or maybe she feels guilty about leaving the booth,” Violet said.

“Both she and Joey keep sneaking off for some reason,” Jessie pointed out.

“And what about the ghost?” Benny asked.

“Benny, there’s no such thing as ghosts,” Henry reminded him. “But … maybe someone is trying to make the place look haunted.”

“They are!” Benny said. “I mean, maybe whoever is doing the pranks is making the ghost, too.”

“That’s true,” said Jessie. “When the movie is over, let’s find Dan Brinker and ask him about the ghost.”

Violet started giggling. “Oh my gosh! I almost forgot we were watching a movie! With people all around!”

Henry laughed, too. “But since we’re in a car, nobody else can hear us. So nobody is saying ‘sshhhhh!’”

“Drive-in movies are the best kind!” said Benny.

An hour later,
Island of the Horses
had ended. Jessie and Violet thought it was even better the second time around. As soon as the lights came up over the theater lot, they set out towards Dan Brinker’s car to talk to him about the “ghost” he had seen the night before.

The balloon-covered car was still in the second row. But Dan wasn’t there.

“Maybe he went to the snack bar,” said Jessie. “Let’s go see if he’s waiting in line.”

As the children walked towards the snack bar they heard a funny sound behind them.
Zzzzt-zzzzt-zzzzt!
It sounded like a bug zapper.
Zzzzt! Zzzzzzzt!
Watch heard it, too, and started barking.

Everyone in the theater was looking and pointing towards something in the sky near the screen. The children turned around and saw what it was. It was the neon sign for Duke’s Dogs. Something was very wrong with it.
Zzzz, zzzt,
it went, as it flickered and sputtered.

And then it went dark!

“What just happened to the Duke’s Dogs sign?” Jessie said.

“I don’t know,” said Henry. “But I’m sure Mr. Duke isn’t happy.”

“Look, there he is now,” said Violet. “He just walked through the front gate.”

Mr. Duke wasn’t just unhappy—he was angry. The children watched as he marched up the center aisle of the drive-in theater. “Flick!” he yelled. “What’s all this about?”

Uncle Flick came out of his office scratching his head. “What’s all what about?” he replied.

“My sign!” barked Mr. Duke. “I know you always hated that sign. So you cut the power to it, didn’t you? You broke it!”

“I did not!” Uncle Flick said sharply. “I’ve been here in the office all along! “

“Then maybe that nephew of yours did it,” Duke said. “I’ve seen him sneaking around the theater after hours!”

“Joey has every right to be on my property,” Uncle Flick growled.

“But not on mine! I promise I’ll get to the bottom of this!” Mr. Duke shouted. He turned around and marched back towards his hot dog stand.

“Can you believe that?” Jessie said. “Mr. Duke thinks someone here broke the sign!”

“Maybe it was just an accident,” said Violet. But even she didn’t think it could be an accident. None of the Aldens did. Suddenly they heard a voice behind them.

“What happened?” It was Joey Fletcher.

“Weren’t you just at work at the snack bar?” Henry asked him.

“Nah, I was on break,” Joey said. He shuffled past them and walked back towards the snack bar.

The Aldens all looked at each other. They were all thinking the same thing: if Joey wasn’t at his job when the sign went dark, then where was he?