shoulder toward the front door. An empty taxi was sitting by the curb.
Charlie looked at the suitcases again. Things were starting to make sense to him.
âI think we need to go back up to the ninth floor,â said Charlie. âThereâs something else missing from the bathroom in Room 909.â
âI donât hear the voice,â said Tyler.
âMe either,â Charlie said. âJust wait.â
They were walking through the hallways again on the ninth floor. When they reached Room 909, Tyler unlocked the door with the passkey. Heâd grabbed it while Rocky was busy with the heavy suitcases that had just arrived.
âOkay, Hitch,â said Tyler. âWhatâs the deal with Mr. Thursdayâs bathroom?â
âLook at the curtain rod,â said Charlie. âSee anything?â
âUh, no,â replied Tyler. âI already told you that the ghost, or whatever it was, stole the shower curtains.â
âRight,â said Charlie. âBut I remember something from the other bathrooms. Since I have acute visual memory, I remember â¦â
âYeah, yeah, I know,â said Tyler, with a frown. âYou remember everything you see.â
âAnd the other rooms donât match this room,â Charlie said.
Tyler frowned, but he took off and ran to one of the other hotel rooms.
Charlie followed as Tyler rushed inside the other room and disappeared into the bathroom.
âWow!â came his voice.
âSee it?â asked Charlie.
Tyler walked slowly out of the second bathroom and stared at Charlie. âYou did it again, Hitch,â he said. âThis bathroom has the curtain rings still attached.â
âThey all do,â said Charlie. âExcept for the curtain rod in Mr. Thursdayâs bathroom. The shower curtains and the rings are missing.â
âBut why?â asked Tyler. âWhatâs the difference?â
âLetâs see, there are about twelve or so rings on each rod,â Charlie said thoughtfully. âSomeone wanted those rings.â
âTheyâre not valuable,â said Tyler. âJust made out of metal.â
Ooooooh-ooooooohhhhhh!
The boys stared at each other. The voice had returned.
âThis guy is starting to tick me off,â growled Tyler. He rushed out of the room and strode down the hallway.
âWhere are you?â he called out. âWhatâs your problem?!â
Charlie followed him, listening closely to the phantom sound.
â Mister Ken ⦠ahhhh ⦠uhhh ⦠Mister Ken ⦠â
The moan echoed through the hall.
âWait here,â said Charlie.
He rushed back to the hallway where he had earlier noticed the ghostâs voice growing softer. Yes, it was still soft in that area.
Charlie walked down the hall until the voice seemed louder again.
There has to be a logical explanation , he thought.
He dropped his backpack onto the carpet and knelt down. He fished through one of the pockets to find his notebook and a pen. He wanted to write down all the clues they had discovered so far.
Then he noticed something. When he was kneeling down on the floor, the sound was louder.
What is going on? he thought.
Staying on his knees, he crawled to one side of the hall. No, the sound was normal. Then he crawled to the other side. The voice was louder.
Charlie stared at the dark wall. The wallpaper design of big black flowers stretched all the way to the floor. But in the dim light, Charlie could see that there was a small vent disguised in the black petals. He pressed an ear to the vent and heard the ghostly voice loud and clear.
He sat up and called out, âHey, Tyler! Come here!â
Tyler rushed into the hall. âYou saw it?â he asked.
Charlie shook his head. âNo,â he said, âbut I heard it.â He pointed at the vent. Tyler bent down and listened closely. They both heard Mister Kenâs name cried out again.
âI know