Free The Mandie Collection by Lois Gladys Leppard

it.”
    â€œMissy ’Manda, I don’t be thinkin’ we oughta be gwine up dere tonight,” Liza objected. “It be past my bedtime, too.”
    â€œOh, Liza, you go on wid my chile and show her whut you be talkin’ ’bout,” Aunt Lou said. “You oughta not astarted sumpin’ you can’t be finishin’.”
    Liza looked at Aunt Lou without replying.
    â€œCome on, Liza. We could have been up there and back by now,” Mandie insisted.
    â€œJes’ you and me?” Liza asked.
    â€œYes, just you and me, because everyone is gone to bed and we have to be quiet,” Mandie replied. “Now come on. Let’s go.”
    â€œGo on, Liza. We listen out fo’ you, and if we heahs anything we come see you all right,” Abraham told her.
    â€œYou be sho’ you listens real good, Abraham,” Liza told him as she slowly followed Mandie out of the room.
    Mandie led the way up the staircase. She looked at Liza and whispered, “Don’t forget. We have to be quiet.”
    â€œI knows,” Liza told her.
    When they got to the landing on the second floor, Mandie picked up the lamp kept on a table there and took it with her as they continued their way up to the third floor.
    Liza was right. It was awfully dark in the third-floor hallway. Mandie walked on down to the door to John Shaw’s office and stopped there. Liza stayed close by her side. “Now show me where you were when you heard the noise,” Mandie said.
    â€œGo dat way,” Liza said, motioning down the hallway. “To de next do’.”
    Mandie moved on, and Liza told her to stop in front of the next door.
    â€œI thinks I wuz heah,” the girl said.
    Mandie pushed open the door to the room and said, “This is a guest room that is never used.” She stepped inside the room and held up the lamp to look around. There was a huge bed with the headboard almost reaching the ceiling. The mattress was covered with a heavy counterpane. Portable steps sat by its side to be used when getting into the high bed.
    â€œMissy ’Manda, let’s jes’ go. We done seen ev’rything up heah,” Liza told her as she hovered near Mandie.
    â€œJoe and I searched all the third floor, including this room, before we worked on the attic, and we didn’t find anything unusual anywhere,” Mandie said as she stepped across the room and opened the double doors to the huge wardrobe standing there. “You see, even the wardrobe is empty.”
    At that moment there was a scratching sound, and both girls jumped.
    â€œWhut dat?” Liza asked in a whisper, moving closer to Mandie.
    â€œWhatever it was, it sounded like it was upstairs in the attic,” Mandie said, clutching the lamp without moving. “Listen and see if you hear it again.”
    The girls stood still, listening for any other noises. Mandie silently debated whether she wanted to explore the attic in search of the noise, and finally decided not to. She doubted that Liza would go with her, and she didn’t want to be alone up there this time of night.
    â€œKin we go now, Missy ’Manda?” Liza asked in a nervous voice.
    â€œI suppose so, Liza. I can’t hear anything else,” Mandie said as she stepped back into the hallway. Liza stayed right next to her. “We can come back in the daytime when we can see better.”
    â€œYou git dat doctuh son t’ go wid you next time,” Liza told her as they went down the hallway to the stairs.
    â€œJoe came back with us, and we’re going to finish searching the house for the will,” Mandie told her as they arrived at the second floor and she placed the lamp back on the table. Then she remembered her cat. “I came down to the kitchen looking for Snowball, Liza. Have you seen him tonight?”
    â€œHe wuz in de kitchen one time tonight. I don’t rightly know whether he still be dere or not,” Liza