The Blue Ghost Mystery: A Rick Brant Science-Adventure Story Read online

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  THE BLUE GHOST MYSTERY

  A RICK BRANT SCIENCE-ADVENTURE STORY

  BY JOHN BLAINE

  BY GROSSET & DUNLAP, INC., 1960NEW YORK, N. Y.

  ALL RIGHTS RESERVED

  _Printed in the United States of America_

  [Transcriber's Note: Extensive research did not discover a US copyrightrenewal]

  Contents

  I A SPOOKY INVITATION

  II DEATH AT COSTIN'S CREEK

  III THE BLUE GHOST

  IV THE OLD MINE

  V NIGHT ALARM

  VI THE DARK PIT

  VII THE FROSTOLA MAN

  VIII PLAN OF ATTACK

  IX THE SPLITTING ATOMS

  X AN ASSIST FROM JANIG

  XI THE GHOST REAPPEARS

  XII THE DEAD WATER

  XIII THE NIGHT WATCHERS

  XIV THE COLD, COLD CLUE

  XV THE MISSING FACTS

  XVI TRAPPED!

  XVII IN DARKNESS

  XVIII THE FIRST FACT

  XIX THE FINAL FACT

  XX DEATH OF A GHOST

  List of Illustrations

  _There was no place the Blue Ghost could have gone_

  _"See a way up, Rick?" Scotty called_

  _"This calls for an expert," Rick said discouragingly_

  _The timber had given way. They were trapped!_

  THE BLUE GHOST MYSTERY

  CHAPTER I

  A Spooky Invitation

  Rick Brant moved with infinite care. With one hand he adjusted the focusof his microscope, while with the other he brought the sharp glass tipof the pipette into view. He released his thumb for a fraction of asecond and let a drop of blue fluid flow into the field of view.

  The microscopic monster shot out its defensive weapons, shuddered, andwas still. For a moment Rick inspected his work, then sat back with asigh. Staining microscopic animals was delicate work, but this specimenhad turned out perfectly. At the instant the stain hit the animal, ithad shot out its trichocysts, or stinging hairs. Rick hoped they wouldphotograph. He needed a good picture for the science project on which hewas working.

  To rest his eyes he turned in his chair and looked out over the broadhorizon of the Atlantic Ocean. It was a calm day, and the calmness wasreflected in the leisurely pace of life on Spindrift Island. The famousisland off the New Jersey coast, home of the Spindrift ScientificFoundation, had not always been so peaceful, Rick thought. Manyscientific experiments of world importance had taken place, or hadbegun, in the long, low, gray laboratory buildings on the southeastcorner of the island.

  Most recently, Rick Brant and his pal Donald Scott, nicknamed Scotty,had taken part in an expedition to the Sulu Sea. The quiet, scientificsurvey of human and animal life in the area had begun on SpindriftIsland, but had ended in a bloody fight on another island, in a farcorner of the globe, as told in _The Pirates of Shan_.

  Now, though, all was serene. The scientists were at work on reports, orteaching summer sessions at universities. No major experiments were inprogress, and no expeditions were being planned.

  Rick grinned. If he came right down to it, one reason for the peace andquiet was the absence of his sister Barbara. Barby, a year his junior,was visiting with the Millers, one of the island's scientific families,at their ancestral home in Virginia. Barby and Jan Miller had a way ofmaking life somewhat frenzied, or at least less quiet than at present.

  The sound of a fast-moving motorboat intruded on the quiet and Rickcocked an ear. It was one of the Spindrift boats, judging by the sound.That meant Scotty was returning from the mainland with the groceries andthe mail.

  Rick stood up and stretched luxuriously. He decided to walk down to thecove and meet Scotty. He could help carry the groceries. Besides, hehoped that Scotty would have a package for him from a biological supplyhouse.

  Rick's interest in microscopy had begun with Barby's present of acomplete microscope set. It was a beauty, with magnifications up tothree hundred times. It had its own light source, a substageilluminator, and even an "atomic energy" stage, which was actually adevice for viewing the scintillations caused when radioactivity hit asulfide screen.

  Barby's gift was far more than a toy, and Rick promptly put it to workon a science project, in which he planned to compare the life cycles oftwo common microscopic animals, the paramecium and the rotifer. Hislaboratory was a table on the front porch of the big Brant house onSpindrift Island, because the ocean breeze made it a comfortable placeto work, and because Barby's absence meant the porch wasn't clutteredwith half the female population of Whiteside High School.

  As Rick came within sight of the cove, Scotty was already docking. Thehusky ex-Marine threw a hitch over the dock cleat and jumped to thepier, waving excitedly as he saw Rick.

  "Hey! Wait until you see what I have!"

  Rick let his long legs carry him swiftly to meet the other boy. WhenScotty got excited, something unusual was up. He called, "What is it?"

  Scotty yelled, "We're going ghost hunting!"

  Rick stopped in his tracks. He waited until Scotty was within normalvoice range. "Come on into the house," he invited. "We'll get you someaspirin and put a wet towel on your head. The sun's got you, that'sall."

  The dark-haired boy shook his head vehemently. "Don't jump atconclusions in this heat, brother Brant. You'll get overheated. Justlisten to what's in this letter."

  Rick squinted against the glare. "Who's it from?"

  "Barby and Jan."

  Rick groaned. "Don't you know Barby's been gone on ghosts ever since shestarted watching that TV program on Sunday nights?"

  "This is different," Scotty insisted. "But since you're such a skeptic,you can wait until we've hauled in the food. Come on, scientist. Andunless you keep an open mind until you hear the evidence, we'll takeyour Junior Experimenter badge away."

  Rick had to grin. There was justice in his pal's comment. "Okay, we'llplay it your way. But the evidence had better be good!"

  Mrs. Brant was in the kitchen when the boys arrived with the bags ofgroceries Scotty had brought. She recognized her daughter's handwritingimmediately and pointed to the letter sticking out of Scotty's shirtpocket. "What's the news in Virginia?"

  "Barby found a haunted house," Rick said with a grin. "Scotty's allexcited."

  "He's handing out bum dope, as usual," Scotty added. "He hasn't evenread the letter." He grinned widely. "But I have. And he'll eat hiswords before we're through."

  Rick fielded a can of tomatoes Scotty tossed at him and put it on thecanned-goods shelf. "Never had indigestion from eating my words yet."

  "This time," Scotty said happily, "we'll paint them on an oak plankbefore you start eating."

  Mrs. Brant smiled. "Hurry up and get those bundles unpacked, you two. Iwant to hear about this mysterious business."

  In a short time the three of them had stowed the week's supply of food,and Mrs. Brant produced fresh doughnuts and cold milk.

  "Now," she said, "suppose you read the letter, Scotty."

  Dr. Hartson Brant, Rick's dad and head of the island scientificfoundation, came into the kitchen in time to hear the last remark. "CanI listen too?" he asked. "With milk and doughnuts to help, of course."

  Rick personally poured the milk for his father and added doughnuts tothe plate, just to save time. He couldn't admit it to Scotty, of course,but he was plenty curious in spite of his skepticism. He knew Scotty,and his pal wouldn't get excited over som
e silly business that Barbymight write about.

  Scotty produced the letter. "It's addressed to both Rick and me," hebegan, "and it's from both Barby and Jan. Shall I read?"

  "Go on," Rick said impatiently, and had to bear Scotty's knowing grin.Scotty knew that Rick's bump of curiosity was the largest thing heowned.

  "Okay. It starts with 'Dear Rick and Scotty.'"

  "Interesting," Rick said. "Unusual."

  "Uh-uh. Quiet, please. It goes on, 'You must come at once, both of you,because we have a ghost here. I know Rick will think I'm silly, but it'strue.' And Jan put in a sentence in her own handwriting at this pointthat says, 'Barby is right. It's not only true, it's unbelievable.'"

  Scotty continued. "'We heard about the ghost first thing we arrived,from Mr. Belsely, the Millers' tenant farmer. Of course we didn'tbelieve it, but last night we went to a picnic at the Old MineCampground, and we saw it too! Honestly, we're still both lumpy withgoose pimples. It was just ghastly, but it was kind of romantic, too. IfDr. and Mrs. Miller hadn't been along, I don't think we'd have believedwe had really experienced such a thing. But they saw it, too, and Dr.Miller says he has never heard of anything like it.'"

  Rick waited for more, scarcely breathing for fear of missing a word.

  "'So you had better come right away,'" Scotty read on. "'You can flydown and land right at the Millers'. We have shown on the map where toland, and we will put out white towels to make a panel so you can see usfrom the air. Please hurry. Barby and Jan."

  "Sounds pretty urgent," Hartson Brant said with interest. "Anythingelse?"

  "Yes, sir. There's a postscript from Dr. Miller. He says, 'The girlswere pretty excited when they wrote the above, and with excellentreason. Apparently this apparition appears fairly often. A number oftownfolk have seen it. I don't know what you can do, unless youringenuity can produce a super spook catcher, but you will enjoy tacklingthis problem. It is worthy of your best effort. Mrs. Miller and Iheartily endorse the girls' invitation."

  Rick took a deep breath. "I'll eat my words," he agreed. "Even if youinscribe them in deathless bronze, as the poet says. How about that,Dad? Dr. Miller isn't the excitable type, but he was pretty strong inhis statements."

  The scientist, who looked like an older version of his tall son, noddedagreement and stoked his pipe thoughtfully. "The letter was obviouslywritten in haste, because neither the girls nor Walter took time for adescription. What about it? Think you'll go?"

  Scotty spoke emphatically. "I'm going. But I'm not sure Rick can get hisnose out of that microscope."

  "No need," Rick said, grinning. "I'll just take it with me. Besides, Imight pick up a new species or two in Virginia."

  Scotty sighed. "Ever since you got that mike from Barby we've seenpractically nothing of you but the top of your head."

  Rick's mother spoke up. "I agree with Scotty, Rick. I know how anxiousyou are to do a good job on your project, but you've been at it forweeks now. Your eyes need a rest even if the rest of you doesn't."

  "Don't worry, Mom," Rick said. "After that endorsement from Dr. Miller,chains couldn't keep me from going to Virginia. After all, what's acollection of microscopic animals compared to a genuine, one hundred percent dyed-in-the-ectoplasm spook?"