Lockwood & Co.: The Screaming Staircase

friend. Could’ve been her mum.’
    ‘No way,’ I said. ‘Look at the symbol. Besides, you wear these things so you can have your loved one’s message next to your heart.’
    ‘Like you know anything about that,’ George said.
    ‘Like you do either.’
    ‘Let’s have a look at it,’ Lockwood said. He perched on the chair next to mine and took the necklace from my hand. He held it close, brow furrowing.
    ‘Latin phrases, a loved one’s gift, a long-lost girl . . .’ George flipped his damp tea towel over his shoulder and headed for the sink. ‘Bit of an exotic mystery . . .’
    ‘ Isn’t it? ’ Lockwood said. ‘ Isn’t it, though? ’ We looked at him. His eyes were shining; he’d sat up suddenly. The gloom that had enveloped him all morning had suddenly dispersed like white clouds on the wind. ‘George,’ he went on, ‘do you remember that famous case that Tendy’s had, a year or two back? The one with the two entangled skeletons?’
    ‘The Wailing Tree affair? Of course. They got an award for it.’
    ‘Yes, and masses of publicity. And the reason for that was they figured out who the Visitors were, didn’t they? They found a diamond tiepin on one of the skeletons and traced it back to the jeweller who made it, and that told them that the owner—’
    ‘– was young Lord Ardley,’ I said, ‘who’d gone missing back in the nineteenth century. Everyone thought he’d run off overseas. But there he was, buried in the family garden, where his younger brother must’ve put him, in order to inherit the estate.’ There was a pause; I looked at them.‘Why so surprised? I read issues of True Hauntings too.’
    ‘Fair enough,’ Lockwood said. ‘And you’re spot on. The point is, it was a great story, and by solving that old mystery Tendy’s did very well. They became a much more prominent agency off the back of it; they’re fourth biggest in London now. So I’m just wondering . . .’ He trailed off, gazing at the locket in his hand.
    ‘Whether Annabel Ward might do the same for us?’ George said. ‘Lockwood, you know how many Visitors there are in London? Across the country? It’s a plague. People don’t care about the stories behind them. They just want them gone.’
    ‘You say that, but good cases make big headlines,’ Lockwood said. ‘And this one could be good. Think about it. A glamorous girl, brutally slain and lost for decades, two tragic lovers, a small but enterprising agency uncovering the truth behind the killing . . .’ He grinned at us. ‘Yes . . . if we play it right, we might make a splash with this. We could turn our fortunes round after all. But we’ll need to get moving. George – that Latin dictionary is on the first-floor landing, I think. Fancy fetching it down? Thanks! And Lucy,’ he continued, as George padded away, ‘maybe there’s something you can help with too.’
    I gazed at him. His transformation from the grumpy, woebegone figure of a few minutes previously was utterly complete. His movements were quick and light, his injuriesforgotten; his dark eyes sparkled as he looked into mine. In that instant it was as if nothing in the world fascinated him as much as me.
    ‘Tell me something,’ he said. ‘I almost don’t want to ask this, given our experiences these last two days, but when you held the locket just now, I don’t suppose you . . . felt anything, did you?’
    I nodded slowly. ‘If you mean a psychic residue, yes I did. Voices, laughter . . . Not much. I wasn’t trying.’
    ‘And do you think,’ Lockwood said, smiling, ‘if you did try . . .?’
    ‘You want me to see what sensations I can get?’
    ‘Yes! Isn’t it a great idea? You might pick up something vital; a clue that we can use.’
    I looked away, embarrassed by the intensity of his gaze. ‘Sure, maybe . . . I don’t know.’
    ‘If anyone can do it, you can, Luce. You’re brilliant at this. Give it a go.’
    Moments before, he’d been promising to incinerate the locket. Now it was the key to all our troubles. Moments before, he’d been giving me a rollocking; now I was the apple of his eye. This was the way it was with Lockwood. His shifts were sometimes so sudden that they took your breath away, but his energy and enthusiasm were always impossible to resist. I could hear George thumping eagerly around upstairs; and I too felt a sudden unbidden thrill – excitement at theprospect of uncovering the ghost-girl’s story; hope at the thought of maybe helping save