Spindle Lane. Mark Reefe

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СКАЧАТЬ attention to the television and away from his taunts. After watching SNL, Paul and I crashed out in sleeping bags in the family room, and Perry headed upstairs.

      As we drifted off to sleep, I whispered to Paul, “See, I wasn’t imagining things on the bike trail.”

      “I know. Sorry about that.”

      Silence fell upon the dark room and lingered for a minute until Paul said, “What now?”

      Whatever wickedness was stirring up had all started at White Marsh. Yes, it was more of a gut feeling than a brain feeling, but it was still a powerful feeling. “I kind of want to go back there.”

      “What? You mean to the place you were almost killed? You crazy?”

      “I won’t go alone, and I won’t go so close to nightfall. You’ll be with me and maybe a few others. I don’t think whatever is there will attack a group of people. Too many witnesses.”

      “How can you be sure it won’t kill us all?”

      “I think it’s trying not to attract too much attention. That’s why it hid from me at first. It didn’t make a move until it knew I was alone. Like I said, no witnesses.”

      More silence.

      Paul yawned. “Well if you want me to come, you’re going to have to wait.”

      “Why?”

       “Thought I told you. Tomorrow we’re heading to Ocean City. Won’t be back until Friday.”

      “Dude! I need you there with me. You’re the only person that knows about this.”

      “Then I guess you have stay cool for a week.”

      “What the heck am I supposed to do while you’re gone?”

      “Don’t know… maybe you can try and convince Steve to come with us.”

      “Please?” I begged. “Steve has zero interest in anything I have to say. Now that he’s gonna be a senior, he wouldn’t be caught dead hanging out with his fifteen-year-old brother. Not that we were hanging out much anyways.”

      “Yeah, same with me and Perry. Guess they think they’re big shots ’cause they can drive and go to parties that have beer and stuff. Anyway, don’t do anything stupid while I’m away,” Paul said.

      “Nah, I’ll wait till you get back.”

      I thought about telling Paul about the walk over to his house, but the details were already getting fuzzy. The sad truth of it was, I wasn’t entirely sure what happened myself. Being a little nuts could be frustrating at times—especially when monsters were after you.

      Chapter 4

      Sunday opened with a gray sky that darkened—along with my mood—as the day progressed. I was bored out of my mind. Although I could hang out with other neighborhood kids, most were older like Steve and Perry or much younger like my sister. I was nibbling on the crust of a PB&J while zoning out in front of the television when I heard my mom’s voice coming from the kitchen.

      “Chris, I would like for you to do something nice for me today,” she said.

      A soft groan slipped from my mouth. “Oookay, what is it?”

      “A new family has moved into that white rancher on Spiral. They are very nice, and there is a young man there who is about your age. Kevin McNamara is his name. I told his mother you would pay him a visit.”

      Only eleven-thirty and the day was getting crappier by the second. In response, I released one long, loud sigh.

      My mom, Maureen Dwyer, was a sweet and loving mother, but she was nobody’s fool and had no tolerance for whining from any of her children. Her New England accent grew thick along with the sternness in her voice. “Christopher Brennan Dwyer, he is new here and has no friends! You will go over to his house and you will welcome him to the neighborhood. As I recall, his mother said he enjoys some of the same games that you do. What is that one called, Dragons and Wizards?”

      Parents were so clueless. “It’s Dungeons and Dragons, Mom.”

      “The name isn’t important. What is important is you going over there and being a gracious neighbor. Understood?”

      “Yes.”

      “Good.”

      Dragging my feet along the pavement, I started the two block walk to the new kid’s house. Why my mom had to assign me Welcome Wagon duties on today of all days I’ll never know. With the way my luck was going, this kid was going to be some kind of glue-sniffing weirdo who’d want to be best friends.

      “Hi, Chris.”

      I smiled at the sound of Tracy Staubach’s voice. With her sparkling blue eyes, long brown hair, and perfectly pointed nose, Tracy held the unofficial—and most likely unknown to her—title of Queen of Spindle. At eighteen she was the oldest of our crew. Sure, she had friends her own age, but she always made some time to hang out with the rest of us schmucks, hence her honorary title. And there she was getting out of her convertible VW Rabbit and waving at me.

      A high-pitched, “Hey!” escaped my mouth. She caught me off guard, and I didn’t have time to think up anything clever to say.

      “Where are you heading looking so low?” she asked.

      “Oh, um, I’m heading over to say hi to the new kid that moved in on Spiral.”

      “Gee, Chris, I think that’s way cool. Who knows, maybe you’ll make a new friend.”

      My moronic smile widened. She said what I was doing was cool. “Yeah, well, it’s important to make friends. I have a lot of friends.” Good Lord. I have a lot of friends. More like, I’m a complete spaz.

      “Well, that’s great. Tell him hey for me. I have to go now—already running late. Smell ya later!”

      With that, she disappeared in her house, leaving me with a stomach full of butterflies and a face the color of a baboon’s butt. In a goofy voice, I mumbled, “I’m Chris, and I got lots of friends. Adurrrr.”

      I walked the rest of the way in embarrassed silence. When I arrived at the new kid’s house, I hesitated before knocking, dreading what was sure to be a waste of the next several hours of my life.

      The door opened. A boy my height with sandy blond hair parted down the middle flashed a metallic smile and said, “Hey.”

      “Hey, I’m Chris Dwyer. I live over on Spindle.”

      The glint from the new kid’s braces caught my eyes, causing me to blink. “I’m Kevin. You wanna come in?”

      “Sure,” I shrugged.

      I followed him from the front hall through the kitchen to a huge addition built on the back of the house. A monster television sat in front of a pair of leather upholstered couches on the opposite side of the room, and a full-sized pool table occupied its center. To my left was a dartboard and to my right a pair of crossed СКАЧАТЬ