GHOST GAL: The Wild Hunt Read Online Free PDF Page B

knew they were important and she thought she understood their purpose, if not how they worked. The jars were different, some older than others, different sizes, different colors, but all used a frosted type of glass and all had tall necks with cork stoppers and thick globs of wax to hold them in place.
    “Can you keep him busy a few more minutes?” she called to Joshua, who reclaimed his dropped bat.
    “I can try,” he said.
    “See if you can draw him away from the shelves.”
    “You got it.”
    As Joshua ran to the opposite side of the room, waving the bat and shouting to the ghost above, Alexandra moved quickly toward the shelves. Kneeling next to the lowest level, she touched one of the jars. It was cold to the touch and she wondered if the glass was frosted or ifthe contents inside were causing the frost. Using her palm, she rubbed the frost off of the one nearest her and peered inside. For long seconds she saw nothing and was beginning to doubt her theory.
    Then an eye blinked inside the bottle.
    Startled, Alexandra lurched backward and lost balance. Landing on her backside was undignified, but there was no permanent damage done. Only her pride was bruised. There was no time to worry about bruised backsides or pride though. The jar wobbled on the shelf so she moved quickly to steady it. Her guess had been correct.
    These jars acted as prisons for ghosts.
    “Unbelievable,” she muttered. Both she and her father had often discussed the possibility of creating a containment vessel for those spirits that couldn’t easily integrate into the great beyond or were simply too dangerous to let roam the Earth. Thus far, all attempts at creating a stable containment unit had failed, but now she knew it was possible. Someone a long time ago had learned the secret that eluded her and her father.
    Whoever ran the church before the tower was sealed off knew how to imprison malevolent spirits. It was an important breakthrough. Alexandra was excited at the prospect of researching it further. She was equally excited about the prospect of sharing this newfound information with her famed father.
    “Alex!”
    But first, she and Joshua had to deal with their immediate problem.
    “Lead him toward me!” she shouted as she scooped up the empty jar from the floor in one hand and the cork topper in the other. “This way!”
    Not needing to be told twice, Joshua was at her side in a shot. “What’s the plan?”
    “We’ve got to get him…” she pointed toward the entity that was still eyeing them from high above. “…in here.”
    Joshua looked at the jar with its opening of roughly two inches and then up at the ghost who had attacked him. “You really expect to fit that thing in there?”
    “Yes,” she said. “All of these jars are full of ghosts just like our friend up there.”
    He spun to look at the jars. “There’s dozens of them! Are youtelling me that––?” His voice trailed off and he didn’t finish the thought.
    “Yes, I am.”
    “This is insane, Alex!”
    She smiled again. “That’s what makes it fun.”
    “You call this fun?”
    Before Alexandra could answer, their shrieking friend summoned up his courage and was once more on the attack. He flew straight toward her and she wondered if it understood what was about to happen. She wasn’t exactly sure she understood it herself.
    The water spirit’s facial features shifted as it tried to veer away but couldn’t. As though being pulled by some unseen suction, the water spirit was pulled inside the lip of the jar. It struggled to escape, clawing at the air, the jar, at anything solid it could hold on to.
    In the end, it was futile to resist and the ghost was sucked completely inside.
    Alexandra slammed the cork in place and held it there with her hands, putting all of her weight on it. From inside, she could feel the ghost pushing against the cork and the force of her hand.
    “We need to seal this thing quickly!” she shouted.
    “How?” Joshua asked,