Chapter One (part b)

They picked up their suitcases and started up the front walk. It was a little like walking into a forest. Bushes grew wild on all sides and the grass beside the path was high and thick. The wind blew a breeze through the trees overhead and whispered in the leaves as Jennifer and her mother passed underneath. The house seemed to sense their approach. A curtain blew out through a downstairs window and waved as they came up the walk. The front porch creaked as they walked up the steps. When they stopped in front of the door, Jennifer heard a soft, friendly sigh from somewhere far away inside.

Daylight was darkening quite quickly now and the porch was filled with shadows. Jennifer noticed some movement out of the corner of her eye. She glanced over. A large raccoon was looking at them through the window.

"Maybe it's the wrong house," she told her mother uncertainly. "Maybe we shouldn't be here at all."

Her mother shook her head and pointed at the two numerals that hung rather crookedly next to the door.

"43, " she said, then she picked up the big brass door knocker and let it fall.

"Boom!"

The sound rumbled off into the house and Jennifer was sure she could hear it rolling down through the hallways and all through the rooms. Two more animals appeared at the window as if in answer to the call; first a fat groundhog, then a small baby skunk. A slim and rather elegant lizard slid down from the eaves trough and hung there by its tail while it looked over Mrs. Jones' shoulder with obvious curiosity. A spider dropped down on a silky thread just in front of her head. But Mrs. Jones didn't seem to notice at all. She was already knocking on the door again.

"Boom-boom" went the knocker on the door.

"Boom-boom-boom!" came an answer from somewhere inside.

"Did you hear that?" asked Jennifer.

"Quite an echo," agreed her mother.

But it didn't sound all that much like an echo to Jennifer. It sounded more as if the house were knocking back. She wondered if it might be trying to have a conversation with them. She glanced up at the lizard. He stuck out his tongue and waved it at her. Jennifer stuck out her own tongue and wiggled it back in a friendly sort of way. The lizard responded with a waggle of his head. Then he slipped up onto the roof and disappeared. Strangely enough Jennifer knew just where he was going.

"He's going to tell him we're here," she said.

"What's that, dear?" said her mother.

Jennifer didn't know what to say. She couldn't tell her mother she'd just had a conversation with a lizard She decided to shrug her shoulders instead and look confused. It wasn't too hard to do. It was just how she felt.

Her mother knocked on the door again. "Boom-boom-boom!" went the knocker.

"Boom-boom-boom-boom!" the house answered back.

"Woooooosh" came another sound high overhead.

"What's that?" said Mrs. Jones.

"Hellllllllo" called down a voice.