A Winter of Ghosts by Christopher Golden, Thomas Randall Page A

asthough erasing the words. "I assure you, I am not entirely discounting thepossibility of a supernatural explanation for all of this. I simply think wecannot assume one exists without further exploration."
    "What of the storm?" Professor Harper asked. "I know that violent changes in weather and freakstorms are not unheard of, but those of us who were on the mountain yesterday
felt
something."
    Kara shot her father a look. Thiswas new information. He must have talked to Mr. Yamato and Miss Aritomo aboutit, but had not mentioned it to her.
Protecting me
, she thought, bothloving him for it and frustrated with him at the same time.
    "A feeling is not evidence,Harper-san," Captain Nobunaga said. "And even if the girls did seeghosts, that does not mean that what happened on the mountain is supernatural. Theboys were lost in a blizzard. The one you have found, Sora, is already thesecond to die in such a fashion this winter."
    Kara realized he was talkingabout the woman who had frozen to death in the first storm of the season. Sheglanced at Miho and Sakura and saw that they had both reacted to the captain'swords.
    "Could her death berelated?" Kara asked.
    "How do you mean?" thepoliceman said.
    Mr. Yamato quietly cleared histhroat. "Captain, it does seem a bit unusual. I have lived in Miyazu Cityfor a quarter century and have never heard of anyone freezing to death in asnowstorm, on a mountain or otherwise."
    The principal glanced at MissAritomo. "Some of us have encountered demons before. That is why we arehere together now, after all. And there are winter demons, are there not? Spiritsof ice and snow?"
    Miss Aritomo began to nod, andthen her eyes widened.
    "What is it, Yuuka?" Kara'sfather asked worriedly.
    The woman's gaze dropped. "Ican't believe it didn't occur to me before," she said, and then looked upat Mr. Yamato. "But you've already guessed, haven't you?"
    The principal cocked his head,studying her. "There are many different legends, stories about variousspirits. But I was thinking of one in particular, yes. These boys have gonemissing in a snowstorm. How could I not think of the childhood stories I readabout Yuki-Onna?"
    Kara frowned. She had neverheard the name before. But it seemed obvious to her that Sakura and Miho knewit well. They looked confused and then almost amused.
    "Yuki-Onna is only a story,"Sakura said.
    "So was the Hannya,"Mr. Yamato replied.
    Kara thought they all shudderedat that.
    "What is Yuki-Onna?" she asked. "I don't. . can one of you tell me, please?"
    To her surprise, it was herfather who spoke. "I've read the story, or one version of it, at least. Yuki-Onnais the Lady of the Snows. She's sometimes referred to as a witch or a demon — "
    "Like in
The Snow Queen
,"Kara said.
    "She is a popular figure inJapanese stories," Miss Aritomo said, her eyes haunted, her face pale, asthough she might be sick at any moment. "But my favorite version of hertale is one of the rarest, an ancient story in which a woman is killed by thewinter's first snow — "
    Kara gasped. "Oh my God."
    Miss Aritomo nodded and went on." — and the spirit of winter joins its essence with the ghost of thedead woman, inhabiting her corpse and transforming it from within to become Yuki-Onna,the Lady of the Snows. The Woman in White."
    They were all staring at her asif entranced, and Kara realized that none of them had known this variation onthe legend.
    The policeman broke the trance,rising quickly to his feet. He pulled out his cell phone and hit a singlebutton, speed-dialing.
    "This is Captain Nobunaga. Sendsomeone to the family grave of Etsoku Reizei immediately," he said intothe phone, turning to regard the others in the room. Kara thought even thecaptain's eyes look haunted.
    "Why?" he said. "Tellhim I want to know if the urn containing her ashes is still there."

Chapter Seven
    M r. Sato had spent his entirelife striving for an inner peace and balance that would make his parents proud.At forty-seven years of age, he had found