The Howling Ghost by Christopher Pike Read Free Book Online Page A

hard, shaking his head. Adam didn’t need the lecture. He knew he was supposed to go up slowly. But without the weights, it seemed impossible to stay down. But drag him down Watch did, until they were floating beside the top of the reef. Watch reached over, grabbed a rock, and stuffed it in one of the pockets on Adam’s BC. Immediately Adam sank down, and Watch was able to let him go. Watch pointed to the place where the weight belt had disappeared and then pointed to himself. He was going to search for the belt. Adam was to wait for him. Adam nodded vigorously.
    Watch disappeared.
    Adam sat on the edge of the reef and wondered if it was logical to be searching for a ghost in shark-infested waters. With Watch gone, it was hard to stop thinking about sharks. He had heard that great whites could weigh more than three thousand pounds. The shark could have Adam for a snack and still be hungry. He wished Watch would hurry and get back with his weight belt.
    But Watch didn’t come back.
    Ten minutes went by. Fifteen.
    Still no Watch.
    Adam checked his air gauge: 500 psi. He assumed that meant he was almost out of air. He had to start back soon, but how could he without Watch? Sally would yell at him and call him a chicken again. Besides, he liked Watch and didn’t think his friend would leave him alone on purpose.
    Adam’s air gauge sank to 400 psi, then 300 psi.
    He would need what little air he had left to make it back to the surface.
    Maybe a shark got Watch.
    Adam groaned behind his face mask, unsure of what to do.
    It was then that he saw the wreck.
    At first he wasn’t sure what it was. Just a glimmer of white in the eerie blue-black. It was off to his left,almost behind him, which was why he hadn’t seen it earlier. But it didn’t look that far away; it couldn’t be if he was able to see it at all. He wondered if Watch had seen it on the way back from retrieving the weight belt. Maybe Watch was already inside the wreck, Adam thought. That would explain why he hadn’t returned.
    Adam made a decision. He would check out the boat for one minute, no more. Then he had to head back up, with or without Watch.
    Adam swam slowly toward the wreck.
    It grew in size. The boat had been a motor yacht maybe sixty feet long. Adam could see the gash in the front where the hull had hit the rocks. He had to assume that farther out the rocks were closer to the surface. He could even read the faint lettering on the side. Thirty years had not washed it away. He was definitely looking at the Halifax.
    Adam checked his air: 200 psi.
    He had to return to the surface. Now.
    But just as he turned to swim up, he thought he saw several small bubbles float out of the hole in the hull. The opening was three feet across. He wondered if Watch had swum inside and become stuck. If that was true, Watch’s air would be running out.
    Adam made another hard decision.
    He would swim into the hole.
    Just a quick look around and then back out.
    But Adam had to dive down slightly to reach the hole. He was now fifty-five feet underwater, and he vaguely remembered Watch saying he had to stop for three minutes at fifteen feet before going to the surface. Well, Adam thought, that was one stop he wouldn’t have time to make. Maybe his lungs would explode after all. Yet he wasn’t as scared as he had been earlier. He had to save his friend. He was doing what he had to do.
    Adam swam into the crack in the hull.
    His flashlight was out in front of him. He swam into the bow of the boat, into a storage room of some kind. He disturbed a mop and pail, and they floated up. The walls closed around him and it seemed that his light dimmed. He hoped Watch had checked the batteries before they went under. He hoped he found Watch soon. The storage room was partially crushed, and the way was narrow. Adam imagined how easy it would be to get stuck inside, without being able to turn around.
    Something jumped out at him.
    It had sharp