It's All Downhill from Here by P.J. Night

to—”
    Sophie stopped in midsentence. Her jaw fell open, and she pointed down at the snow. Together, Maggie and Sophie watched the last letter being written. Another E .
    â€œI see it, Mags! I see it!” she cried. “‘Leave this place.’ That’s what it says. ‘Leave this place.’”
    â€œNice to know I’m not completely crazy,” Maggie replied. “Come on. We have to show the others. This proves that Old Man Wharton’s ghost is haunting the house.”
    â€œWait a minute, Mags,” Sophie said, rubbing the sleep from her eyes. “Your parents might not believe that a ghost wrote it. They didn’t see the letters being written as if no one was there. What if they think that Karina Walcott came back? She was very upset that your parents want to turn this house into a ski lodge.”
    â€œThat’s why I had to have you as a witness,” Maggie said. “Now, come on. Let’s get a closer look.”
    Snatching up her flashlight, Maggie tiptoed downstairs, followed closely by Sophie.
    â€œLeave this place!” the voice said again, now clearly coming from right outside the front door.
    Reaching the door, Maggie gripped the knob, tooka deep breath, threw it open, and stepped out into the swirling snow. Please still be there, she thought, having finally found an ally in Sophie, who stepped outside beside her.
    She could barely see anything through the moving wall of white snow. Maggie’s flashlight beam reflected right back against the snow, making it even harder to see.
    â€œWhere are you, Jonas?” she called out. “Why do you want us to leave?”
    â€œLeave this place!” the voice repeated, sounding like it was coming from someone standing right next to her. But as best as Maggie could make out, she and Sophie were alone, standing in the freezing cold and raging snow.

Chapter 7
    â€œWhere are you?” Maggie shouted through the blinding snow. “Show yourself! Stop torturing me!”
    The fierce howling of the wind was the only reply she received.
    â€œWe’ve got to show the others,” Maggie muttered. She turned around and ran through the open the front door and pounded up the stairs, tracking snow as she ran.
    She burst into the room her parents were sleeping in and flipped on the light. “Mom! Dad! Get up!” she screamed, panic evident in her strained voice.
    â€œWhat is it?” her dad asked, throwing the covers onto the floor and scrambling clumsily out of bed. “Is the house on fire? Did you get hurt? Is Simon okay?”
    â€œJust come!” she yelled. “Both of you. You’ve got to come with me.”
    â€œAll right, let me throw on my robe,” Mr. Kim said, sliding his feet into his slippers.
    â€œThere had better be a good reason for waking us up in the middle of the night, young lady,” Mrs. Kim said, rubbing her eyes and glancing at the clock. “I was sound asleep.”
    Maggie ran back out into the hall, then into Simon’s room.
    â€œSimon, get up!” she shouted.
    â€œWhaaaa—” Simon mumbled.
    â€œGet up!” Maggie yelled again, this time yanking the covers off her brother.
    â€œHey!” Simon shouted, sitting up and rubbing his face. “What’s wrong with you? Have you gone insane? What do you want? I’m trying to sleep!”
    â€œGet dressed and come downstairs. Mom and Dad are already up.”
    â€œGreat time for a family picnic, Mags,” Simon groaned, searching the floor for his robe.
    Bounding back down the stairs, Maggie was soon joined by the others. Simon had put on his snow boots,still untied. His striped bathrobe peeked out from under his winter coat, which he had buttoned incorrectly. Adding to the comic picture was a floppy-eared hat resting on his mop of unkempt hair.
    Sophie had now slipped her long down coat over her pajamas, but she still wore her slippers, having been unable to find