The Ghost at the Fire Station Read online

  “Sparky, come!” RJ added.

  Even Kaz tried to coax the dog into the kitchen. “Come on, Sparky. Follow me.” He swam back to Sparky, spun around, and hovered in the doorway to the kitchen. “I’ll even let you pass through me. I know you like to pass through ghosts.”

  Sparky stayed where he was. “Aroooooooo!” he howled. “Ar-ar-arooooooo!”

  RJ sighed. “He was just in here ten minutes ago. What happened in ten minutes to make him not want to be in the kitchen anymore?”

  “The fire alarm sounded!” Kaz and Claire said at the same time.

  “Could that be it?” Brynlee asked Claire. “Is that why Sparky doesn’t want to go into certain rooms in the fire station? Because he heard the fire alarm when he was last in them?”

  “He was in the garage when that other alarm went off,” Claire pointed out. “Remember? That’s when he ran out!”

  Kaz thought Sparky had run out because he was chasing the fire truck. But maybe he ran out because he didn’t like the alarm.

  “Animals’ ears are very sensitive,” Claire added.

  “You know,” Brynlee said, tapping her chin. “Now that you mention it, I was here with Sparky another time the fire alarm went off. We were in the TV room that day.”

  “I bet that’s it,” RJ said. “The fire alarm hurt his ears, so he doesn’t want to go into any room where he heard the alarm go off.”

  “What can we do about that?” Brynlee asked. “This is a fire station. Alarms go off here.”

  “We have lots of books about dogs in the library,” Claire said. “Maybe one of them will have some ideas.”

  “Maybe,” Brynlee said.

  The next morning, Brynlee and RJ walked Claire back to the library so they could look at the dog books.

  “Most of what you’re looking for is right here,” Grandma Karen said as she pointed at a couple of shelves in the nonfiction room.

  “Thanks, Grandma,” Claire said as she pulled out a stack of books. She dropped to her knees, and Brynlee and RJ plopped down beside her.

  Kaz hovered above and watched as they each chose a book and started reading.

  After a little while, Brynlee said, “It says here that if your dog is afraid of loud noises, you’re not supposed to comfort him during the noise.”

  “My book says that, too,” RJ said. “It says that if you comfort your dog, then that rewards him for showing fear. It’s better to distract him by playing with him or giving him dinner.”

  “This book talks about what to do if your dog is afraid of thunder,” Claire said. “A fire alarm is kind of like thunder. You don’t know when it’s coming.”

  “What does it say to do?” Brynlee peered over Claire’s shoulder.

  “It says to record the sound of thunder, then play it back really soft for your dog while you’re playing with him,” Claire said. “The next time you do it, play it back just a little louder. It might take a while, but eventually your dog should get used to the sound and learn that good things happen when he hears the scary sound. You have to be careful that you don’t make the fear worse, though.”

  “Let’s try it,” RJ said. “We can record an alarm and play it back.”

  “Maybe we should talk to the vet, too,” Brynlee said. She closed the book in her lap. “Thanks, Claire, for solving our case!”

  “I’m happy to help,” Claire said.

  “Me . . . too . . . ,” Kaz wailed.

  RJ’s jaw dropped.

  “Who said that?” Brynlee asked, looking all around.

  Claire shot Kaz a quick look, then smiled sweetly at Brynlee. “Said what?” she asked.

  “You didn’t hear that?” RJ asked. “It sounded like someone said ‘me too.’”

  Brynlee nodded.

  “Must’ve been another one of those twin things,” Claire said with a shrug.

  Brynlee and RJ glanced at each other. “Must’ve been,” they said at the same time. Though neither one looked entirely convinced.

  Kaz was okay with that. He was just glad they’d solved the case of the ghost at the fire station. And he was glad Little John wasn’t really lost. But he sure wished one of these cases would lead to his mom or Pops or Finn.

  Maybe next time . . .

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