One Hundred Candles [2] by Mara Purnhagen Read Free Book Online Page A

ponytail. Hard, like someone wanted my attention badly. My sister and I ran as fast we could to get out of there.
    “The thing is, when I asked my sister what she had felt, she had a different story. Her hair wasn’t pulled. Instead, she said it felt like someone’s cold fingers lightly grazing the back of her neck.”
    Afterward, Annalise had demonstrated what the touch had felt like, and it still sent shivers down my spine. The sensation made me think of a tarantula climbing down my back. I lit my candle and added it to the circle. Then I passed the lighter to Avery, who started telling her story without hesitation.
    “My mom and I were on vacation a few years ago. We used to always rent a bungalow near Myrtle Beach. One year, the house we were staying in felt weird. There was something not quite right, you know?” She tucked a lock of hair behind her ear. “The sink would turn on by itself, usually late at night, but sometimes in the daytime, too. We had a plumber come out and everything, but he couldn’t find a problem. The faucet would start running, and it wouldn’t stop until one of us got up and turned it off. We didn’t go back to that house.”
    I tried to look around the room without moving my head much. About half the faces were familiar to me, mainly seniors I had classes with. I was surprised to see Bliss Reynolds sitting in the circle. Bliss and I had AV class together, and we weren’t exactly friends. I was under the impression that she was not a believer in anything even remotely paranormal, but she was sitting there with three lit candles placed directly in front of her.
    Noah was next. I cringed, wondering if the events of Charleston were about to be revealed to our classmates. If people heard about the Circle of Seven and the ethereal lights we had witnessed, I would be inundated with questions and the kind of odd and unwelcome attention I thought had been put to rest for a while.
    “We’ve lived in the same house since I was a baby,” Noah began. “And while I was growing up, we had the same neigh bor. Her name was Agnes, and she used to babysit me while my mom was at work.”
    I felt relief as I listened to Noah. I was also curious. We’d had several discussions about the paranormal, but he’d never mentioned anything about his neighbor.
    “Agnes was old, and we always made sure she was okay. My brothers would run errands for her and change light bulbs, stuff like that. In return, she was always giving us peaches.” He smiled. “She grew peach trees in her backyard, and she’d can the fruit and make jam and preserves and pies. Her house always smelled like peaches.
    “She got cancer and died five years ago. We all took it hard, my mom especially. About a month later, we were talking about her, and after a few minutes, we could smell peaches. It was the strangest thing because it was winter and we were inside and there was just no way, you know? It was like someone had sprayed peach air freshener in the room, it was so strong.”
    Noah reached for his candle. Before he lit it, he stopped. “It happened a few more times after that. We would be talking about her, and the room would smell like peaches. And once, when I was just thinking about her, it happened.” He lit the candle. “But it hasn’t happened in years. I think she went away.”
    Bliss reached across the circle, and Noah gave her the lighter. “Last year, I went with the girls’ basketball team to a school about thirty miles from here for a game. I was covering the game for the school paper. It was raining really hard, and when we got to the school, the roof over the gym was leaking, and they were going to have to forfeit.
    “We had to wait in the school library to see if we were going to play or not. Everyone was kind of grumpy. We were sitting there when we heard a thump. It sounded like something fell and hit the carpet, but we didn’t see anything. Every few minutes, though, we’d hear another thump.”
    Everyone