End of last post:

"Do you think danger has left the world just because you left the 'Girls? Listen to the news; look around you, there is evil everywhere. You are not passing on the problem; it is already there. You have the solution, and that is what people need."

"I hear what you are saying," Nancy conceded. "But I just don't think I have it in me anymore. The flame went out on its own."

"You mean too much time has gone by?"

"I guess you can put it that way."

"Because these things have a time limit."

"Maybe," Nancy hesitated. "Where are you going with this?"

"You weren't the first to carry the torch were you?"

"I don't know what you are talking about. The girls and I formed a club in an old barn, and that's it. All we planned to do was help around the community, like organizing recycling drives, and cleaning up people's yard; that kind of stuff. The other things, the fighting supernatural beings, just happened."

"Really? How did it just happen'? Think back."

New Post:

Nancy closed her eyes, and for the first time in years, allowed herself to reflect on the first overnight adventure of five young friends in a clubhouse in Bunker Hill.

"What do you see?" Emily asked when Nancy fell silent.

"Tabby's old barn," she said dreamily. "You know the one we made into a clubhouse."

"Yes, I remember. It was rumored to have been part of the Underground Railroad--a hideout for runaway slaves."

"Yeah, that's the one. Tabby's parents owned it and let us have our meetings there. Of course, the night I'm thinking about was before we actually organized. We were just having a sleepover."

"Okay, who else was there?"

"Pretty much the whole crew, including Sally, since you always made me take her everywhere."

"She was your little sister."

"She was a spy."

"Maybe," Emily laughed, "but she was an important part of your group."

"Yeah, and she still is. Anyway, Elizabeth was there, too."

She remembered a group of girls lying on sleeping bags spread across hay she could still smell. Just like she could still faintly hear the hypnotic tapping of rain on the metal roof and feel the cool night air stirring against her young face.

Most of the original barn was still intact, but Tabby's father had replaced the old broken-down roof with metal once they bought the property.

That night, Nancy told her mother, the girls had nervously told ghost stories, and huddled under covers to ward off chilly March drafts. The beating of the rain acted as a lullaby, and one-by-one, the girls succumbed to the peaceful rainy night and grew quiet; several had drifted off to sleep.

"But something awoke you," Emily interjected. One of her favorite parts of the story was coming up.

"Yeah," Nancy said. "We heard a terrifying screech that sat us all upright and had us grabbing for flashlights and battery operated lanterns.

'"It was only a screech owl," Becky Rogers told us when she had breath enough to speak.

"Becky was your resident country girl," Emily said. "Poor kid always struggled in school, but she sure knew her wildlife."

"And just about anything else having to do with the woods."

"Remember how gangly and awkward she was back then?" Emily said. "Her legs had outgrown the rest of her."

"She was so self-conscious, but now she's a famous model. Who would have guessed it back then?"

"Not her," Emily said. "So what happened next? Please continue your story."

"Tabby agreed about the owl," Nancy said, "but turned on her flashlight and shone it around the room, anyway."

"That Tabby was the most level headed of the whole bunch," Emily interrupted again.

"Yeah, and accomplished, too. She was reported to be the fastet kid in the whole seventh grade, maybe even the whole school. Her speed came in handy many times in our adventures."

"So did her father," Emily said. "His being a doctor was a huge help with girls who tended to get in more scrapes than the average kids. Even though he was the only African American doctor in town in the early 80's, he was hands down the most popular. He still is. Anyway, sorry, go on with your story."

"Elizabeth was the next to speak up," Nancy continued. "You know how she always wanted to be first at everything."

"Of course, what did she call herself?"

"Cherokee Warrior Princess."

"Oh, yes, I remember now. She was orphaned at birth, poor thing, and raised by her Cherokee grandparents."

"She learned a lot from them. Remember the pouch she always kept around her neck with herbs in it?"

"I do, indeed. She was very serious about it. She also wore a red ribbon in her hair that represented the East and triumph. She was a sweet girl."

"Sweet and tough. Even though she was sort of short and chubby, she never had a bad self-image like so many of us at that age. She was all spit and fire. Anyway, she was the first to her feet that night to search for the source of the screech.

"'Let's go,"' Elizabeth had said, heading towards the source of the sound.

"'Not me, I am staying here,' Sally responded, holding her light to her chest like a shield.

"'Fine, don't come if you're scared,'" I said, switching on my light and falling in behind Tabby and Elizabeth.

"Poor Sally bounced to her feet, glaring at me. I remember grinning to myself. I knew exactly how to get to Sally. She didn't like being thought a chicken."

"You always did have a way with her, and that's one reason I had her go with you. You brought out the best in each other."

"Okay," Nancy admitted reluctantly.

"Anyway, what happened next?" Emily asked, changing the subject.

"Well," Nancy began again. "As though responding to an unspoken signal, we headed together in search of the eerie cry. The sound wasn't repeated, but what we did finally hear was a faint mewing sound. We crept towards it, lights grasped tightly in excited hands.

"Before long, we found ourselves in a part of the clubhouse we seldom went into. It seemed to be a storage room of some sort. There were decaying bags of grain and feed lining dilapidated shelves. We knelt on the old floor listening to the mewing sound seeming to emanate from beneath the rotting floor.

"'It sounds like a trapped animal,' Sally said."

"Sally has always loved animals," Emily said, "and especially at that age."

"Don't I know that?" Nancy laughed. "Well she was beside herself with worry that a kitten had gotten trapped."

Nancy waited a moment and then continued.

"'It could be a trapped animal,' Tabby agreed, long dark curls accenting her strong face, 'but I don't know how it could have gotten down there.'

'"Cats can get just about anywhere,' Becky said, 'and seem to do it anytime they can.'

We all nodded.

"'Hey look,' Elizabeth called out, her chubby fingers digging at the floor. 'This board is loose.'

"Try and pull it up," I suggested, stooping on the floor beside her.

"Elizabeth wriggled her fingers around until she got a firm grip, and then gave a big tug. The board gave easily away, tipping her backwards, and onto her bottom. I helped her back up, and then held my lantern down in the hole left by the board."

"What did you see?" Emily asked breathlessly.

"Oh, my, gosh," Nancy said. "It was a hidden room. The sight made my skin crawl."

"What did the other's think?"

"I don't know for sure, but Becky reacted first. She leaned beside me and looked in. One of her braids tickled me on the nose, and made me sneeze. I dropped my lantern and it landed with a thump on something soft.

"It's a room,"' I said, peering down after the lamp. "Come on everyone; let's see if we can pull some more boards."

"'I don't think we should,' Sally protested, shaking her head.

"'It's okay,' Tabby reassured us. 'My parents won't mind so long as we nail them back later. Besides, I'm pretty sure they would want to know about this place.'

"'Okay,' Sally relented, and then set to work helping us tug at the boards.

"It wasn't long before a hole big enough to crawl through had been opened up. We found a steep staircase leading from the pantry down to the room below. We looked down in wonder, our hearts thumping against excited chests.

"'So,' Sally whispered audibly, 'who goes down first?'

"Well," I said, winking at the other girls, "it is a small passageway. I say we send the littlest one. So, Sally, let us know what you find."

"No, you didn't," Emily interrupted.

"Hey, I'm a big sister. I felt it my moral obligation. Anyway, Sally's eyes got big around as saucers. Poor thing edged towards the hole.

"'Leave her alone,"' Tabby said, shooting a withering look at me. 'I'll go.'

"'No, let me,' Elizabeth insisted. 'Cherokee Warrior Princess to the rescue!'

"'That's what you always call yourself,' Becky said. 'What does it actually mean? I heard that Native Americans don't have princesses.'

"'It means that I am going first,' Elizabeth explained, moving over to the staircase. For a large girl, she was very agile, 'and I can be a princess if I want, traditional or not.'

"'I can live with that,' Becky said. There was no sense arguing with Elizabeth once she set her mind to something.

"Elizabeth lowered herself into the gaping hole, her way lit by her flashlight and the lantern I had dropped. Her feet found a precarious hold on the rickety staircase that was more ladder than anything, and then quickly disappeared. We leaned over the edge as far as we could to watch her progress.

"A few tense moments passed with no sound but the creaking of the ladder; even the mewing of the cat had stopped. Each girl, lost in our own thoughts, waited anxiously to find out what mysteries were in the secret room. Then finally, we heard their Elizabeth call out.

"'Oh, you've got to see this. Y'all come on.'

"Eagerly I followed, the others close on my heels, even Sally who had plucked up her courage to join us. We took great care with the old ladder, each waiting for the one ahead to reach bottom before joining them. Daredevil Girls were not just a team, we were cautious -- it kept us alive on more than one occasion.

"With all of our flashlights and lanterns turned on, the small room lit up quite nicely. We found a rotting cot standing in the middle, and just beneath the hole we came through. It was this that had actually caught my dropped lantern. There were tattered blankets and clothes scattered about a dusty floor. The room and its contents smelled of old harsh times.

"'Hey look,' Sally called out, pulling a shiny metal box from under the cot. In spite of her earlier fear, curiosity was boldening her. It often happened that way with her.

"Sally was always good at finding things," Emily said. "I think it was because she was particularly good at hiding them to begin with, and you're right, she would often start out rather scared, and then gather strength from the rest of you."

"Now that's the truth," Nancy agreed.

"What was in the box?" Emily asked.

"We couldn't tell at first because it had a lock on the front, but there was a key still wedged in it. Sally turned it carefully, and then gasped when the lid flew open with a swishing sound. Seemingly startled, she dropped it on the bed, and backed up like she thought it might bite her. Intrigued, the rest of us gathered around."