Prologue

Young Harry Gladstone was startled by the banging on his family’s door. Whoever was out there knocked so hard that the whole door shook. His father, Mayor Hal Gladstone headed for the door. “Keep your shirt on. What the heck’s wrong with you?” He jerked the door open no doubt to give the person a piece of his mind, but one look at his brother’s face stopped that. “What’s wrong?”

Uncle Henry looked scared, but what could scare a grown-up, Harry thought. “It’s Sammy, she’s lost in the woods.”

That was all that needed to be said. Harry’s mom and dad were instantly grabbing jackets. “Get your jackets, kids. We need to go find your cousin Sammy.”

That was all that was said because that was all that needed to be said. This was Gladstone and when a citizen of Gladstone was in trouble, the whole town showed up.

Once they arrived at the old covered bridge, Harry saw Nancy, Sammy’s sister, crying and saying, “I’m sorry. I didn’t mean to lose her.” Over and over. Harry and Leanne, his sister, ran over and hugged her.

Dad looked at the three of them together. “You kids don’t need to worry about Samantha. I know it’s scary to think of her lost in these woods, but Grandpa Harold will watch over her. You’ll see, he’ll bring her back to us safe and sound. Now you three stay here by the fire and wait. I’m going to go see how the search goes.” He then hugged each of the kids and walked toward the covered bridge that was now part of the walking and riding trail through Phantom Horse Park.

Nancy looked at her cousins and tried to wipe her tears. Why hadn’t she obeyed their dad and watched Samantha? It was her fault her sister was lost all alone in the woods. If Uncle Hal was wrong then she’d have killed her sister. Her baby sister. “Do you think Uncle Hal is right?” She asked her cousin, Harry, “Do you think Grandpa Harold’s ghost will bring Sammy back to me?”

Harry pulled her into a hug and she climbed on his lap. She really was too big to sit on her cousin’s lap, but he knew it made her feel safe. “Dad’s always right, Nancy, you know that. After all, he’s the Mayor, he knows everything there is to know about Gladstone. If he says Grandpa Harold will bring her back to us then that’s what will happen, just you wait and see.”

Almost as in answer to Harry’s statement, they saw a flash of glowing white over on the far side of Phantom Horse Bridge and then heard a shout of joy and the two quick blasts of a rifle signaling that Samantha had been found safe and sound. But Nancy and Harry looked at each other. Had they really just caught a glimpse of the Phantom Horse and Rider of Gladstone, Grandpa Harold himself?