Ghost Squad: Chapters 17–23

“This is the Spectral Master 4000. It’s made of haunt-proof leather and can catch up to one hundred ghosts before needing to be purged,” Babette said.

“The best magic always has a personal element to it. This was my favorite book growing up, and its power lies not only in the spell I cast over it but also in the book’s significance to me. I can do the same for the two of you with objects of sentimentality.”

Syd scratched the cat’s chin, and she immediately rolled over to show her ample belly, purring as she did.

Babette flourished her hand and a small blue wisp of light appeared above her fingertips.

Her name was Eliza Braggs, a member of the Daughters of the American Revolution with a staunch hatred for anything that she deemed ‘unnatural.’

“And maybe it was fear making me hallucinate, but I’m pretty sure the dragon-mist-monster looked just like him before he transformed into Drago,” said Syd.

Stay away from Mayor Anderson. Even if he doesn’t seem like a bad guy, it’s possible he may be wrapped up in something nefarious, whether this has anything to do with Eliza Braggs or not.

“The magic contained in this tree is ancient,” Babette said. “Much more powerful than anything I’m capable of conjuring. But I hope this helps a little.”

The mason jar had a slight, glittery sheen to it, and it smelled like dried roses.

They posed with their respective ghost catchers, Chunk sitting smack in the middle of them on the floor.

But as they got closer to the cemetery, Babette turned the radio down and a somber mood fell over them.

Things seemed pretty bleak, but the gesture filled Lucely with hope.

Babette pulled the rolled-up paper from a pocket in her gown and unfurled it on the table in front of them.

“Do you think the spirit map is trying to point us to the next destination?”
“Certainly seems plausible,” Babette said. “It looks like those are the only two locations that have been marked..."

Babette’s backyard was enclosed by a dense perimeter of trees and hedges, concealing it from what she liked to call Nosy Nellies. Strings of light spanned the width of the lawn, making the property look like Lucely imagined a fairy glen would.

“I call these beauties my Razzle-Dazzlers. They are capable of stunning any supernatural being within a ten-foot radius. You don’t wanna get caught in the beam though or um...” Babette rubbed her neck. “Let’s just say it wouldn’t be pretty.”

“For this spell to work, you will have to close your eyes. I want you to pour every ounce of good energy, thoughts, and feelings you can muster into the circle.”

“Oh my gosh. Is this...a catacomb?” Lucely sucked in a breath as she shook her hand to get the bone germs off her.

“Go back to the hillside, you dolts.”

They read through dozens of Babette’s books, splicing bits from one spell and parts of another.

Somehow, they had managed to make the entire facade of the building look like an actual haunted house—creepy lighting, sound effects, and all.

They pulsed, heat lightning flashing within like strobe lights as thunder softly began to thrum a steady bass line.

As their eyes adjusted to the darkness, Lucely and Syd could see that the clouds seemed to be made up of not just mist and shadow but the writhing, wailing bodies of the undead.

Mayor Anderson’s skin began to fade into a murky, translucent color like he was made of swamp water, his eyes glowing a sickly green, as he raised his arms like the conductor of an orchestra readying for an overture.

Then Babette turned toward the fireflies and held out her hands, beckoning them to her.

She seemed to be harnessing their light as they enveloped her.

The horde of ghosts shrouded the monster like the hood of a king cobra, keeping her deep in their shadow and away from the light.

Babette stumbled to her knees, weakened by the amount of magic she had just expended.

Las Brujas Moradas once convened at the old lighthouse.

“Our only hope of putting an end to what Eliza has set in motion rests with whatever residual magic we can draw from that place.”

But now, it was the dead they were up against. Not Mayor Anderson, but a monster and her spirit army made of pure malice.

They rushed forward and for a moment Lucely held up her Razzle-Dazzler instinctively, but instead of attacking her, they dove for the ghosts keeping her trapped.

Babette raised her arms and began to intone a spell, her voice booming in the night sky so loudly that Lucely wouldn’t have been surprised if all of Florida could hear her.

A massive, swirling gateway formed in the sky above the lighthouse, dragging the spirit storm across its threshold as if Tía Milagros were vacuuming them all up.

You girls saved the town from a vengeful mega-ghost with an army of nasty spirits.

“The Gazette delivered a special issue to every house in St. Augustine yesterday morning. You two made the front page!”

At just twelve years old, best friends Lucely Luna, daughter of Simon Luna, owner and operator of the remarkably charming Luna Ghost Tour, and Syd Faires, granddaughter of Babette’s Baubles proprietor Babette Faires, have already made their mark on St. Augustine.

According to her firsthand account, by the time the girls reached the lighthouse, the sky had opened up and rain was coming down in torrents.

Rebuilding will take years, but if we’ve learned anything from our past, it’s that those who gather around a unifying cause and help one another create a stronger and more resilient community, prepared to weather any storm that dares to try to divide them.

“Anyone with, say, a talent for the craft of deception can bend the truth just enough to turn one’s memory of events into something more...palatable for the general public.”