Ghost Cave by Barbara Steiner Read Free Book Online Page A

or keeping his mind on work, he might go along with the excuse. But many times when he’d come into the office in the front of the house, he’d found his dad staring into space. Unopened letters were piling up on his desk, and Marc had been there once when a client had stopped to complain about no one coming to check on a claim.
    It got quiet again, and Marc switched on the radio. The Crewcuts were singing “Sha-boom,” one of his favorite songs, but he felt his mind drifting before it was over.
    Something kept Marc from telling his father about the new cave. He knew what it was. He was afraid his dad would say he couldn’t explore it alone. And if he wouldn’t go with them, that meant Marc would have to forget they’d found it. He knew he couldn’t do that, and Eddie wouldn’t—Eddie would go in alone.
    Marc decided right then he was going in, no one was going to stop him. But he was going to be careful. He was no chicken, but there were about a thousand ways you could get into trouble exploring a cave; also, he was responsible for Hermie, who’d never done any exploring.
    There was another reason Marc kept the cave secret, too. It was time he started doing things on his own. He didn’t always need his father along as if he were a little kid.
    Marc watched as his dad picked at his food, then got up, taking his half-full plate and scraping it into the trash can. He didn’t even think about Bluedog; leftovers were her favorite. As Marc finished and took his plate to the sink, he heard the television set come on in the living room. Only a few people in Pine Creek had television sets. His father had bought this one for Mama at Christmas. She hadn’t gotten to watch it for long before she had to leave. Now, every night after dinner, his dad turned it on and watched until after the ten o’clock news. Sometimes Marc wondered if he really watched or if he just used it as an excuse to sit and do nothing—an excuse not to think about what had happened to their family, which had once been so happy.
    Running hot water into the sink, Marc watched the soap turn into foamy bubbles. He thought about Mama way off in that place, missing them as much as they missed her.
    It was January when the doctor decided the cough Mama had wasn’t just a cough. He had run some tests and diagnosed tuberculosis. Marc had hardly heard of it, except when he read the name in his health book at school. He’d looked up the word again when Mama told him about it. What he really wanted to know was what no one seemed to want to tell him. Could Mama die of it?
    Then she’d told Marc she couldn’t stay at home anymore. She didn’t want to risk his or Dad’s catching it. And she needed rest and full-time care to get over it.
    It had snowed the day they took her to the sanatorium at Boonville. Marc would never forget that trip back home over slick highways, the world as cold as his insides. After that his dad hadn’t said a word for three days.
    At least Boonville wasn’t that far from where they lived. They could go to visit Mama. It was hard to leave her there every time, but Marc had started to get used to it. Mama was so cheerful when they were there. If she ever did any crying or complaining, she did it after they left.
    When Marc finished the dishes he walked quietly into the office part of the house. Quickly he dialed Hermie’s number. “Hermie,” he said, after his mother had called him to the phone. “I have to postpone tomorrow. I’m sure that will break your heart.”
    â€œIt sure does, Marc. For how long? About two years?”
    â€œDon’t you wish. Where’s your sense of adventure, Hermie?”
    â€œI guess I lost it out there in the woods today. Sorry. I’ll look for it while you and Eddie explore the cave.”
    â€œThat’s another thing. Will you call Eddie for me? Make him promise—swear—he won’t