Blue Bonnet tied the string to her arm, but she had to wait until Joy fell asleep before she could put it through the transom, and Joy was unusually wakeful. Blue Bonnet heard her tumble and toss upon her bed while she tried to ward off sleep herself. She gave up in despair finally. It would never do to get up on a chair and put the string through with Joy awake. She fell into a doze thinking what she should do, and the next thing she knew she was being shaken rudely while a voice in her ear whispered:
"Get up, quickly! You're late. We couldn't find the string anywhere."
Blue Bonnet got into the sheet and bath-robe and sped across the hall to number fifteen.
Number fifteen presented a weird appearance. Heavy black cloth had been tacked over the transom to shut out all light and two or three candles burned about the room dimly. On the wide couch six ghostly figures rocked back and forth mumbling an incantation.
"Is the candidate ready for initiation?" a voice from the couch asked. "If so, let her speak."
Blue Bonnet nodded.
"The master of ceremonies will then conduct her to the middle of the room and blindfold her."
The ghost in the centre of the group rose, and stretching out her arms, gave forth an edict of some kind in a stage whisper. Blue Bonnet couldn't catch it all—it was purposely jumbled—but it began:
"Oh, spirits of all departed lambs, attend! attend!
Hear me call! Hear me call!"
When the last note of the incantation had faded into silence, a strange stillness settled upon the room. This lasted for several minutes. Blue Bonnet stood quietly, wondering what was to happen next. She had not long to wait. A slender little ghost slid from the couch and pattering about the room softly, extinguished each light. Then came a command.