Awakening: The World Dreamt and Imagined by Otto Mäkilä Page #4

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I know you're all upset and

frightened at the moment.

Well, Miss Cathcart is here

to put your fears to bed.

She's one of the cleverest people

in England. Miss Cathcart.

Stand.

- Good evening.

- Good evening.

Sit. Please sit.

How many of you did

Walter Portman talk to about this ghost?

Well, did any of you

see this ghost boy for yourselves?

I did, miss. I saw it.

Stand, boy.

Would you like to come with me

and describe...

It was horrible.

It was on the upper corridor.

- Wouldn't you rather...

- His face was twisted.

Blurred and sort of twisted.

Like in the photographs.

But he was in pain. Crying out.

It was him. Please kill it, miss.

Yes, please. Kill it, miss.

Silence.

Pocket Premo,

Sound recorder, part Bell-Tainter.

Fumigator for measuring contact traces.

Can Walter's dormitory sleep

elsewhere in the house?

We could move their mattresses

to the dining room.

Marconi magnetic field detector.

Third of an ounce of magnesium

and potassium chlorate per tray.

As the wire is tripped the aperture

opens for a thirtieth of a second,

and an electrical charge

ignites the powder.

- What about these?

- Those are footprint catchers.

Ghosts have footprints?

No, people pretending to be ghosts do.

They must hate you.

Who? The spiritualists?

No, the ghosts.

Be quiet.

You'll be quiet or so help me!

Victor, you did the run today.

- What's the matter?

- Nothing.

What's this mess?

Will she do what they say? The lady?

And what do they say?

That she'll kill the ghost.

And that one boy a night will die

until she does.

She's not here to catch ghosts.

She's here to catch

naughty boys up to mischief.

Silence now. Eyes closed.

It'll be dark soon.

Pary.

Parry.

Nobody...

Likes...

You!

Be quiet.

You'll be quiet or so help me!

Shh! Keep still.

Hello?

I heard bells. Are you all right?

First bell!

First bell!

Next three boys, please.

Quieten down.

Next.

Boys who have been seen

can go to their classrooms at once.

They couldn't have

been made with socks?

The prints I followed

were definitely barefoot.

- Get back!

- Come on. Come on.

Why are we here, sir?

All right, turn around,

stick your feet up.

Headmaster.

Parry.

- Sir.

- Parry.

What would your father have thought?

The night Walter died,

he got up to use the latrine.

He wasn't wearing his spectacles.

Mr Parry here frightened him,

using this to blur his face.

I didn't. I didn't do it to Walter.

And last night he tried to do

the same thing to me. Didn't you?

Victor.

They said if I did it

then they'd be nice.

- Stop snivelling.

- Malcolm, please.

Who?

- Them.

- Scab!

- Quiet!

- But I didn't do it before.

Not to Walter.

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