Free The Stuffing of Nightmares (The Mysteries of Bell & Whitehouse Book 7) by Nic Saint

cook’s idiot brother. Or the manor’s handyman. Whatever the case, he didn’t ask questions, so she didn’t feel obliged to give him any answers.
    The moment they were out in the corridor, she and Rick were hurrying along, Tony and Spot right on their tail. “Tony said he’s locked up in the dungeon,” she whispered, “so where’s the dungeon?”
    “Won’t be hard to find,” Rick replied. He pointed to the two ghost animals. “We’ve got our secret weapons!”
    They were moving along the corridor, which was a gloomy affair. So much for restoring this place to its full splendor. It felt as if no one had bothered to install central heating. Even though outside a balmy summer was warming the world, inside it was cold, dark and dank.
    “Lead the way, Tony,” Alice said.
    “And hurry. We don’t want that horrible cook to catch us!” Rick hissed.
    “Or tell the master of the manor that some weird bakers are running amok in the house,” Alice added.
    Then Tony paused in front of an iron door, and they halted in their tracks.
    Unlike the other doors they’d passed, this one looked new and had a small keypad set in the stone jamb.
    “Are you sure this is it?” Rick asked.
    The pony inclined his large head. “Yep. This is where they keep Reece.”
    Rick gave the door a hefty pull, then put his shoulder against it, but all to no avail. He and Alice shared a look of concern as they eyed the keypad.
    “Do you happen to know the combination?” Alice asked Tony.
    The pony plunked down on his hindquarters, placed his head on his hooves, and closed his eyes. “Just gimme a minute,” he muttered.
    “What’s he doing?” Alice hissed.
    “Beats me!” Rick hissed back.
    “Aren’t you supposed to be the pet whisperer?”
    “What’s that supposed to mean?”
    “Can you people shut up for a minute?” Tony asked. “I’m trying to focus.”
    Spot gave a happy yap, and Tony said, “That’s right. Getting in touch with the universal ghost consciousness is not something easily accomplished.”
    For a pony who was only recently introduced to the phenomenon of an afterlife, he sure was learning fast, Alice thought. To her surprise, Tony promptly dozed off, and the next moment soft snoring filled the air. Then Spot plopped down next to the pony and nodded off as well.
    “I can’t believe this!” Alice lamented. “Reece is probably getting stuffed as we speak, and these two decide to take a nap!”
    “Not a nap. They’re connecting to the universal ghost consciousness.”
    “What does that even mean?!” Alice cried.
    Just then, footsteps approached, and Alice and Rick hoofed it, leaving the two ghost animals to their joint meditation. Hiding behind the next corner, Alice stole a look back and saw that a woman was approaching. She halted in front of the door. She was a gorgeous young blonde with long wavy hair, dressed in frayed jeans shorts and a crop top that left a remarkably flat tummy bare. She punched in a code, and the door swung open with a click. She quickly entered, and the door closed behind her with a hiss.
    They heard the woman call out, “Dad! We’ve got company!”
    “Dammit. I’ll bet she’s one of the kidnappers,” Alice said.
    They tiptoed back to the door, and Alice saw that Tony had opened his eyes. “I’ve got it,” he announced cheerfully. “The code is 21232.”
    Spot yapped in acknowledgement.
    “Did you find that out from the universal ghost consciousness?” she asked, thoroughly impressed.
    “No, I saw that woman type in the code just now.”
    Alice shook her head. So much for spiritual mumbo-jumbo. At least they had the code. But now what? Possibly there was an army of people stuffers in there, and if they ventured inside, they would capture them as well and—
    “You can go in,” Tony interrupted her thought process. He’d stuck his head through the door and was looking in on the other side. “Coast is clear.”
    Alice and Rick shared a grin. The advantage of