he didnât help him?
Or some other reason?
âMy mom doesnât believe in ghosts,â said Ty. âShe thinks Iâm making up excuses for not wanting to go to the ninth floor. And if I donât find the missing stuff, it comes out of my pay.â
Charlie knew what no pay would mean.
If Tyler didnât get paid, he couldnât buy the Tezuki Slamhammer 750, Edition 6, in cherry-pop lightning red.
But making you pay for things that had disappeared, when it wasnât your fault â that didnât seem fair to Charlie.
âWhat does your dad think about the ghost?â Charlie asked.
âHe doesnât go up to the ninth floor either,â said Ty. âEspecially since he heard the voice.â
Thunder crashed, and Charlie jumped. Tyler noticed, but he didnât say anything. He didnât even grin. Instead, he simply said, âCome on, Hitch.â
The taller, dark-haired boy led the way across the lobby, past tall marble columns and tall potted palm trees. A row of elevators lined the back wall. Their shiny metal doors shone like gold. Charlie pressed the button to call one.
âDang!â said Ty. âWait here. I have to grab the passkey.â He spun around and sprinted toward the lobby desk.
âHey, take my backpack and put it behind the counter,â said Charlie.
âIâm not your assistant,â said Tyler. As he rushed away, his shoes made wet prints in the thick, blood-red carpet.
âMaster Yu is always in a hurry,â said Brack, his elevator doors sliding open.
âHe knows I canât stay that long,â said Charlie.
âAre you helping him solve another mystery?â asked Brack.
Charlie swung his backpack onto one shoulder. âI guess so,â he said.
âWhat draws you to the mysteries here at the Abracadabra?â Brack asked.
Charlie shrugged. âI like puzzles,â he said. âWell, actually, I hate puzzles. They bug me until I figure out the answer.â
Brack nodded thoughtfully. âThen prepare to be bugged,â he said. âOur hotel is full of puzzles. It was designed that way. Riddles and mysteries are built in the walls.â
No kidding , Charlie thought.
Just then, Tyler appeared back at the elevator, breathing hard. âGot it,â he said, holding up the key. âNinth floor, Brack.â
Thunder shook the building.
âHey, Mr. Brack,â said Charlie. âYou donât believe in ghosts, right?â
âBelieve in them?â replied Brack. âOf course I do. Why, Iâve seen them.â He pushed a button, the golden doors shut, and the elevator car shot upward.
The boys were stunned. âYou saw a ghost?â said Tyler.
Brack nodded. The elevator car hummed and shuddered as it rose toward the ninth floor.
âWhere did you see it?â asked Charlie.
âIn the elevator,â answered Brack. He pointed a finger toward the shining gold doors. âI had just dropped off a customer on twelve, and was coming back down to the lobby. And then I saw Abracadabra the magician standing right there, staring at me.â
The magician from the painting , thought Charlie.
âDid he say anything?â asked Charlie in whisper.
âNot a syllable,â said Brack sadly. âAnd when I reached the lobby, he disappeared.â
âWow,â said Tyler.
âBut Iâve seen him many times since,â added Brack.
âOn the ninth floor?â asked Ty.
âOn many floors,â said the elevator operator.
The elevator stopped. Charlie watched his and Tyâs reflections, with their mouths hanging open, disappear as the doors slid open. A dark hallway lay beyond.
âYou donât have to leave right away, Brack,â said Ty. âWe wonât be long.â
âIâll wait as long as I can, Master Yu,â said the older man. âBut if I hear someone else ring the bell, Iâll have to go.â
Tyler