Danny.
As Nina had observed, Johnny and she were practically cousins. But they hadn’t gabbed this much in a while.
Johnny would never forget the day Nina came to live with them.
At first she had been shy and clung to Uncle Louie. But she’d lost both parents, too. So they had that in common. By and by the two kids began to talk, and they talked a lot about having no mom, no pop anymore. Before long they were hiking the woods together. Nina tagged along when Johnny took pictures, and he hovered over her shoulder when she monkeyed around with her radios. She impressed the heck out of him by actually flying the little floatplane that Uncle Louie owned—making her first solo flight when she was only eleven. Johnny had seen her do it.
Both kids were fascinated by gizmos, gizmos of any kind. And they sure did enjoy having adventures. But small adventures. Nothing like this, Johnny thought, nothing that could get you killed. And since he wanted to live to be a hundred, he preferred adventures that were exciting but not lethal.
“Hey, Johnny,” Nina said, as they studied a shop window full of exquisite ivory figurines. “Did you worry you were going to die on the Night Goose?”
Johnny regarded her with surprise. Could she read minds or something?
“Uh, not really. I just did what I figured needed doing. I had to keep that Steppe Warrior away from Mel as long as I could. If the colonel hadn’t arrived…” He shrugged. “I’d have done anything to stop that ghost.”
“But you could have gotten killed,” Nina said. “Both of you could have gotten killed.”
“Guess so. I could get hit by a truck this afternoon. Better to die for a good reason than no reason.”
Nina kept staring in the shop window. “Do you think we’re going to get through this whole thing alive?”
“Listen, Sparks,” Johnny answered, trying to sound self-confident. “Everything’ll be fine. No one’s gonna try to hurt us again. Promise .”
* * *
After taking some pictures in a market, Johnny paid for two bowls of rice, vegetables, and fish. He never could handle chopsticks, so the smiling cook found him a wooden spoon. Of course, Nina had no trouble with chopsticks.
The two youngsters gobbled up every bit, sitting on a couple of overturned wooden boxes. That’s when Johnny remembered to look at his pocket watch.
“Jeez Louise!” he exclaimed. “Almost seven. We’d better get back.”
It didn’t take Johnny long to realize that he had no idea exactly where they were. But he knew how to find out. Turning around, he addressed his troop of ghostly hangers-on. “Am I going in the right direction to get back to the Paragon Hotel?”
“No, young master,” said a pretty girl ghost, bowing. She could have been thirteen when she died, or eighteen. Johnny couldn’t tell. She had on a blue silk gown and elaborate headdress with dangling pearls. “The Paragon Hotel is on the other side of Jadetown, almost a full mile and a half from here.”
“Will you take me there?”
“Certainly, young master.” The dead girl lifted her daintily painted eyebrows. “May we know your name?”
He blinked. “Oh, pardon me. I’m Johnny Graphic. I’m a news photographer. This is my friend, Nina Bain.”
The wraith smiled and bowed modestly. “My name is Su Li.”
Johnny bowed in return, and then poked Nina in the ribs. She bowed as well, following his lead.
So off they marched, Su Li leading the way. Soon they found themselves in a larger marketplace. Johnny and Nina wove their way through gaggles of people. More ghosts had joined them.
They walked by a woman who had a table full of handsome watercolor paintings. Landscapes, flowers, that sort of thing. Her face revealed Steppe heritage. Johnny wanted to stop and look at the pictures, but he had no time to spare. He thought the woman stared at him a little oddly.
The two youngsters were halfway across the square when the watercolor painter came running after them, shouting,
As Nina had observed, Johnny and she were practically cousins. But they hadn’t gabbed this much in a while.
Johnny would never forget the day Nina came to live with them.
At first she had been shy and clung to Uncle Louie. But she’d lost both parents, too. So they had that in common. By and by the two kids began to talk, and they talked a lot about having no mom, no pop anymore. Before long they were hiking the woods together. Nina tagged along when Johnny took pictures, and he hovered over her shoulder when she monkeyed around with her radios. She impressed the heck out of him by actually flying the little floatplane that Uncle Louie owned—making her first solo flight when she was only eleven. Johnny had seen her do it.
Both kids were fascinated by gizmos, gizmos of any kind. And they sure did enjoy having adventures. But small adventures. Nothing like this, Johnny thought, nothing that could get you killed. And since he wanted to live to be a hundred, he preferred adventures that were exciting but not lethal.
“Hey, Johnny,” Nina said, as they studied a shop window full of exquisite ivory figurines. “Did you worry you were going to die on the Night Goose?”
Johnny regarded her with surprise. Could she read minds or something?
“Uh, not really. I just did what I figured needed doing. I had to keep that Steppe Warrior away from Mel as long as I could. If the colonel hadn’t arrived…” He shrugged. “I’d have done anything to stop that ghost.”
“But you could have gotten killed,” Nina said. “Both of you could have gotten killed.”
“Guess so. I could get hit by a truck this afternoon. Better to die for a good reason than no reason.”
Nina kept staring in the shop window. “Do you think we’re going to get through this whole thing alive?”
“Listen, Sparks,” Johnny answered, trying to sound self-confident. “Everything’ll be fine. No one’s gonna try to hurt us again. Promise .”
* * *
After taking some pictures in a market, Johnny paid for two bowls of rice, vegetables, and fish. He never could handle chopsticks, so the smiling cook found him a wooden spoon. Of course, Nina had no trouble with chopsticks.
The two youngsters gobbled up every bit, sitting on a couple of overturned wooden boxes. That’s when Johnny remembered to look at his pocket watch.
“Jeez Louise!” he exclaimed. “Almost seven. We’d better get back.”
It didn’t take Johnny long to realize that he had no idea exactly where they were. But he knew how to find out. Turning around, he addressed his troop of ghostly hangers-on. “Am I going in the right direction to get back to the Paragon Hotel?”
“No, young master,” said a pretty girl ghost, bowing. She could have been thirteen when she died, or eighteen. Johnny couldn’t tell. She had on a blue silk gown and elaborate headdress with dangling pearls. “The Paragon Hotel is on the other side of Jadetown, almost a full mile and a half from here.”
“Will you take me there?”
“Certainly, young master.” The dead girl lifted her daintily painted eyebrows. “May we know your name?”
He blinked. “Oh, pardon me. I’m Johnny Graphic. I’m a news photographer. This is my friend, Nina Bain.”
The wraith smiled and bowed modestly. “My name is Su Li.”
Johnny bowed in return, and then poked Nina in the ribs. She bowed as well, following his lead.
So off they marched, Su Li leading the way. Soon they found themselves in a larger marketplace. Johnny and Nina wove their way through gaggles of people. More ghosts had joined them.
They walked by a woman who had a table full of handsome watercolor paintings. Landscapes, flowers, that sort of thing. Her face revealed Steppe heritage. Johnny wanted to stop and look at the pictures, but he had no time to spare. He thought the woman stared at him a little oddly.
The two youngsters were halfway across the square when the watercolor painter came running after them, shouting,
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