Lake Thirteen by Greg Herren Read Free Book Online Page B

whispering urgently.
    “Spirit, whoever you are, don’t be afraid of us. We aren’t here to harm you in any way. We’re here to help you cross from this plane to the next. Don’t you want our help?”
    Out of the corner of my eye, I saw Rachel make a face and shake her head. Logan was trying really hard not to smile, but I could see it on his face, the way the corners of his mouth were twitching. Teresa’s arms were crossed in front of her, and she looked bored, like she’d had enough and was ready to go.
    My teeth started chattering from the cold, and I took a few steps back and away from Rachel. It’s amazing how fast it can get cold here in the mountains, I thought again, rubbing my arms to try to get blood flowing through them and warm up. It bothered me they weren’t taking Carson’s ghost hunting seriously. Carson obviously believed, so the mocking was kind of mean.
    They probably mock me behind my back.
    I shivered again.
    “Can you communicate with us? Can you say something, so we know you’re there?”
    The flag was still waving.
    “Sometimes they speak in a tone we can’t hear,” Carson said softly. “That’s why I have this digital recorder—it can pick up tones humans can’t hear.”
    I opened my mouth to say something, but before I could get the words out, Carson, Teresa, and Logan all whipped their heads around in the direction of the end of the road, where the graveyard ended in a fog-wreathed fence.
    “What was that?” Logan asked, his eyes round.
    “I didn’t hear anything,” I said, and Rachel nodded agreement. “What was it?”
    “I heard someone—or something—growling,” Teresa said. “You didn’t hear it?”
    “I didn’t hear anything,” Rachel said.
    “I heard it too—a growling, and it sounded like it was coming from over there,” Carson said decisively. “By the fence, right? Come on, let’s go see what it was.”
    He started walking quickly down the dirt road, with Logan and Teresa right behind him.
    “No, thanks,” Rachel said with a slight shudder. “I didn’t hear it, and even if I did, something growling?” She winked at me. “It’s probably just a dog or something, you know, no matter how bad Carson wants it to be a ghost.”
    “Yeah.” I smiled back at her. “But, you have to admit, the flag is weird.” I pointed to it.
    And as soon as I did, it stopped moving.
    “ That’s weird.” Rachel frowned, moving closer to me. “I wish they’d come back so we could get out of here.”
    The other three were no longer in the light cast by the headlights of the SUV, but it looked like they were using the faint glow of their cell phones to see.
    “I don’t like cemeteries,” Rachel went on. “This isn’t a place where people are supposed to be, you know, after dark.” She shrugged off her light sweatshirt and tied it around her waist.
    “Aren’t you cold?” I asked, surprised.
    “Cold?” She gave me a funny look. “What do you mean, cold? I’m sweating. It’s so muggy up here.”
    I closed my eyes for a moment and said, “Feel my back.”
    Rachel reached over and placed her hand flat against my back. Her eyes widened. “Your back is cold.” She breathed out, pulling her hand away. “I—I don’t understand. How is that possible?”
    I bit my lower lip. “It’s not cold out?”
    “Scotty, it’s warm and muggy.” She grabbed my hand with both of hers, and I could feel how warm they were. “Are you feeling all right?” She put a hand to my forehead. “You’re cold as ice!”
    I looked back over my shoulder at the headstone. “I feel fine, I’m just a little cold.”
    It wasn’t true, though—I still felt that weird, overwhelming sense of sadness. I walked away from Rachel and knelt next to the headstone yet again.
    “How did you die, Albert?” I whispered as the sadness overwhelmed me yet again, my eyes filling with tears that I quickly wiped away before she could see them.
    “Scotty?” Rachel said from behind me, placing