Response #3

As this section starts Josh decides to slowly make friends with the cat in the woods he calls Mr. Stray. He  bought cat food without his Aunt Ethel knowing and when he takes it back to the tree house he finds his book has been moved again. He wonders if someone has been there. Mr. Stray comes and Josh goes down to refill the cat dish. After he comes back up to the tree house he sees his book has been moved again and is shaken. He thinks he should read back at the house - and ask his Aunt, without alarming her, why Florence thought the tree house was haunted. He goes back to the house and tries to calm himself and thinks about everything that has happened since he came to Carbon City. He wonders if it was wrong to feed the cat when his Aunt told him not too.

The next morning he returns to the tree house and decides to read a different book. As he picks it up a voice tells him he won't like the ending. He sees a man outside the tree house window and wonders how he moved the ladder without him hearing. He wonders if he can escape and thinks the man might be an escaped mental patient. The man continues to him and he finds out that he is dead. Josh wonders how this is all possible and the man, named Willie, tells him a story of being killed in a coal mind accident over 100 years ago. Josh cannot believe what he is hearing. Willie tells him about coal mining in Carbon City and that he lost his leg is an accident and then lost his life due to one of the workers lighting his pipe before leaving the mine and causing an explosion. He tells Josh that fifteen men were killed in the accident. He tells him his leg is buried in the town graveyard but not his body. His wife knew Willie would not have wanted to be buried next to the man who caused the explosion because he didn't like him in life so wouldn't like to be buried next to him in death and so she buried him somewhere else. Willie is happy that Josh can see and hear him, only one little girl had done that before and that was Florence. He tells Josh that Florence got scared before he could ask her to dig up his leg and move it to the grave where the rest of him is buried, so asks Josh to do it. Josh tells him no way but then says he will think about it.

When he returns to the house he asks Aunt Ethel about what Florence said about the ghost. He also does research on the mine explosion and realizes that Willie really is a ghost. He goes back and forth about helping Willie because he doesn't want to be arrested and he knows it is against the law. The next day Willie tells him no one will see and he should check it out. He promises Willie that he will he help and begins making plans by visiting the graveyard and where Willie is buried.

Product Placement: page 80
Three books:
The Five Little Peppers and How They Grew
The Adventures of Sammy Jay
The Birds' Christnas Carol