SHORTLY AFTER SUNRISE, Gabe awoke to a violent knocking on his bedroom door. He sat up, but before he answered, the door swung open.
Glen stood in the hallway, dressed in dark overalls with his arms crossed over his chest. He did not look pleased. “Morning, Gabe,” he said. “Is there something you want to tell me?”
Wiping sleep from his eyes, Gabe asked, “What do you mean?”
“Were you not in my studio last night?” Glen stepped into the room.
Gabe clutched the blankets closer to his chin, as if that could protect him from his father’s wrath. He hadn’t thought to check the puppet for damage. What if it there was something seriously wrong with it? “I’m sorry, Dad. Malcolm wanted to look at him.”
Glen sighed, relieved. “You know the rules. If you want to show your friends my work, just put the puppets back where you found them. Although I’d really prefer you didn’t touch Milton at all. He’s delicate, and if he breaks, I won’t have time to make repairs before my presentation for the producers in Boston tomorrow.”
“Oh,” said Gabe, feeling his face burn. “But we did put him back where we found him.”
Glen turned white. “He’s not in my workshop.”
“But that’s where we left him.”
Glen stared at Gabe for several seconds, searching his face for a lie. “So you’re suggesting that Milton just got up and walked off by himself?” he said, clutching the doorknob.
Gabe clenched his jaw. Milton walking off by himself? It wouldn’t have been the first time.
A half hour later, after revealing everything that had happened the night before, Gabe sat at the dining room table, surrounded by the rest of his family. They stared at him in disbelief. Gabe wasn’t sure if their expressions were in reaction to the spontaneous house party or to the idea of Milton growling from the shadows.
“And you’re positive that Seth Hopper had something to do with this?” Dolores asked. She bounced a wide-eyed Miri in her lap. Glen hung his head and paced aimlessly around the room. Elyse simply stared out the window as if lost in another world.
“Well, not really,” said Gabe. “Not positive.” He felt guilty pinning this on Seth without any actual proof. The return of the black figurine to the library certainly seemed like a clue. But why would Seth have stolen the figurine? When? Why return it now? And most importantly, why take Milton in its place?
“I’m going to have a talk with his mother,” said Glen, standing. “Gabe, put on your shoes.”
Gabe felt his face heat up. “What for?”
“I want you to tell her what you told us.”
“B-but you might upset her.”
“I don’t care! If her son is a thief, maybe she deserves to be a little upset.”
“Glen,” Dolores whispered, holding her hands over Miri’s ears. “Hush.”
Gabe’s father shook his head. “If we don’t get that puppet back today, we can forget about selling this show at all. We’ll be right back where we were three months ago, after the fire.”
Elyse turned from the window. “If you must go, please don’t walk through the woods.”
“No, Mom. Of course we’ll take the car.”
Gabe stared at Elyse as she nodded, appeased, and he wondered what she knew that the rest of them did not. Now was not the time to ask.
“PLEASE DON’T MAKE ME go in there,” Gabe said.
Glen pulled up along the side of the house and parked behind Mrs. Hopper’s blue Honda. He didn’t often show anger, but today he glared at Gabe with fire in his eyes. Glen pushed open the car door and stepped outside. Gabe knew that meant he was supposed to follow. He was frightened to find out what might happen if he disobeyed. And as he made his way up the lopsided steps toward the front porch, he worried also what might happen when Seth found him standing on the welcome mat.
Glen pounded on the storm door. The glass rattled, loose in its frame. “Dad,” Gabe whispered. “Careful.”
“Don’t speak,” Glen said.
The inner door opened a crack and a sleepy voice came from inside the darkened entry. “Can I help you?” Seth’s mom opened the door a bit more and added, “Gabe? Is that you?”
“Yes, ma’am.”
“Seth’s not here right now,” she said. “I’m not sure where he went.”
“Actually, Mrs. Hopper,” said Glen, “we’ve come to talk to you.”
Sharon slipped outside into the cool morning air. She stood barefoot between Gabe and Glen. Her fuzzy pink robe was dingy at the hem. Her eyes were puffy and red. Either she had just woken, or she’d spent the past hour in tears. Her matted hair lifted from her scalp in an unintentional bouffant. She sighed and crossed her arms.
“What did he do now?”
Sitting uncomfortably on the porch, Gabe repeated his story to Sharon. Glen stood over them, grasping the wood railing at the bottom of the steps. Gabe told Seth’s mom about their game, about the figurine, about Seth’s strange behavior at school and their falling out, about Seth’s threat, and finally about Glen’s missing monster puppet. She listened, albeit glassy-eyed and slightly aloof. When he was finished, she said, “So what do you want me to do about it?”
Glen spoke up. “It would be nice if you let us check his room.”
Sharon shook her head. “I can’t let you inside.”
“Why not?” Glen asked. His face was flushed the color of raw meat.
“It’s a total mess. I’m in no shape for guests.”
Gabe wondered if she’d meant to say, “My house is in no shape…”
“I mean no offense,” Glen said, “but we’re not your guests. Your son took something of mine, and it’s very important that I get it back. Now.”
As if waking from a dream, Sharon finally looked at him. “But we don’t know for certain that he took it.”
Glen scoffed. “Could you at least check?”
Sharon stood and tightened her robe. “Fine. Gimme a minute.” She disappeared inside the white cottage, leaving Gabe alone with Glen, who trampled crabgrass as he paced in front of the porch steps.
When Sharon returned a few minutes later, she said, “I couldn’t find anything out of the ordinary. You say that this puppet thing was big?” She held her arms out wide and glanced between her hands.
“Huge,” said Glen, holding his arms out wider. “Larger than I am.”
“There’s no way my son could have hidden something that size in this house.” She glanced toward the barn. “Unless…”
MOMENTS LATER, after Sharon went back inside to put on her worn-out Keds, Gabe and Glen followed her across the yard.
They peeked into the stable on the way to the barn. The few stalls were empty except for spiderwebs and hay.
Sharon struggled with the barn’s rusted lock for several seconds before the latch gave way and the door swung open. The barn was not large compared to others in the area, but it seemed vast as Gabe stepped inside. Shafts of sunlight broke through small holes in the high ceiling. Dust clouds glinted and swirled as Sharon walked through them.
“Seth?” she called out, and stared at the rafters as she waited for a reply. “Are you in here, kiddo?”
“Wouldn’t the latch on the outside of the door have been open when we came in?” Gabe asked. Sharon tossed a confused look at him. “I mean, he couldn’t have locked himself inside when the lock is on the outside.”
“Good point,” said Glen. “But that doesn’t mean Seth didn’t hide Milton in here. He could have locked the door on his way out.”
“Look around, then, why don’t you?” Sharon suggested. She pulled her robe tighter and shivered, obviously wishing to get back to the shelter of her cottage.
“Is it safe?” Glen asked, looking up at the ceiling. “Structurally?”
“Probably not,” Sharon said.
“And you let your son play around in here?” he went on. Sharon pursed her lips, refusing to answer. “You haven’t been in here before, have you, Gabe?”
“No,” s
aid Gabe, feeling the need to defend himself. “Seth suggested it, but it always seemed like it was about to fall down.”
“Better hurry up, then,” said Sharon. She leaned against a nearby wooden beam and crossed her arms, glaring at Glen.
Despite the size of the space, there wasn’t much to explore. It was open and mostly empty, except for an old tractor that looked like it hadn’t been run in twenty years. Through a dark doorway, they found a room full of stacked cages. Feathers were stuck in some of the rusted wires.
Back in the main room, a broken ladder climbed the rear wall, leading to a platform about fifteen feet above them. “What’s up there?” Gabe asked.
“No clue,” said Sharon. “Never had a reason to check it out.” She called out as Gabe approached the ladder. “Careful. I don’t think the rungs are sturdy.”
Gabe paused. “So it would’ve been difficult for Seth to drag the Milton suit up there?”
“No clue.”
Gabe grasped a rung and shook it. When he stepped up, Glen shouted out a warning, but Gabe only made it a few feet before the wood twisted in its socket and splintered. His foot crashed through several other rotten rungs below. “Sorry,” he said, dropping down, brushing himself off, and glancing guiltily at Sharon and Glen.
“Well, I guess that answers that,” she said. “No puppet up there.”
But something creaked across the loft floor above them. The group froze, staring at the cobwebs hanging over their heads.
“Probably a squirrel,” Sharon said. “Maybe a raccoon.” If she were protecting Seth from Glen, her face gave away nothing. “Also, the building settles sometimes,” she added. “I’m just waiting for it to collapse.”
“Why wait?” Glen asked.
Sharon snorted a cold laugh. “You wouldn’t believe the amount of time and money it costs to simply tear things down.” She led them toward the exit, then stepped onto the grass outside.
Glen followed, but Gabe turned back to the loft. For a moment, he struggled to hear through the peculiar hush of the barn. After all the things he’d experienced lately, it wasn’t difficult for him to believe that someone—or something—was up in the loft, straining to be quiet.
IN THE SEVENTH-GRADE HALLWAY the next day, Gabe noticed Seth standing at his locker, his shoulders stooped, his blond hair sticking up in the back. He flinched at every door slam, every catcall, every footstep, as if he were expecting someone to sneak up on him and attack. When he noticed Gabe approaching, he shut his locker and darted around the nearest corner.
Surely, they’d have another chance to talk before the end of the day. Gabe dreaded the prospect, but he knew it was necessary. Neither Seth nor his mother had returned any of Glen’s calls the previous afternoon. Eventually, the Hoppers’ phone line went dead. It was at that point that Glen called the police. Later, when the pair of officers showed up at Temple House, they asked Gabe to tell his story again. The cops pledged to visit the Hoppers next, but they also explained that there was no guarantee they could get past Sharon without a warrant. Glen waited all night for a call that never came.
At his locker, Gabe felt the heat of staring eyes burning through the back of his head. He turned to find a few of his classmates glance quickly away. He leaned forward into the tight, dark space, swallowing down nausea.
Wow, he thought, they worked quickly here. Had it been Felicia who’d spread the word about his father’s puppets? Or Malcolm? Or maybe Mazzy, whose betrayal would hurt the most. He never should have allowed any of them to come to Temple House. Now he’d have to pay the consequences.
Strong fingers clutched Gabe’s shoulder and he tensed, turning to find a couple of kids from his homeroom standing behind him. “You okay?” asked a tall boy.
“Yeah,” said another boy, who was shorter and had a runny nose that he wiped with a tissue. “You don’t look so good.”
“I-I’m fine,” said Gabe.
“You heading to class?” said the tall boy, looking unsure. Gabe nodded. “Wanna walk together?”
Confused, Gabe headed down the hall with the pair.
“I heard that your grandmother is Elyse Ashe,” said the short boy.
“Uh-huh,” said Gabe, unsure where this was going.
The short boy’s face lit up. “I told you!” He nudged his friend. “Her drawings are so cool. She did all the covers for the Olmstead books.”
“Yup,” said Gabe. “She did.” He blushed, hoping he didn’t sound obnoxious.
But the boys didn’t seem to care. “Word is your dad works on television shows,” said the tall boy, turning the corner. “He builds monsters?” Gabe stopped short, his sneakers skidding on the linoleum. Were they making fun of him? What was next? I also hear that you’re a big fat loser?
The boys continued on but paused, then glanced back, concerned. “What’s wrong? You forget something in your locker?”
Was it possible that they were being genuine? Were they truly impressed that his house was filled with puppets…that his grandmother was the creepy old lady who lived on the hill? Gabe had a strange and surprising thought: What if the things that had made him the weirdo at his old school made him interesting to the people here in Slade?
“Where’d you hear all this stuff about my family?” Gabe asked.
The boys grew sheepish. “People talk,” said the short boy as the three found their way into the classroom.
People talk? That was what Gabe had been afraid of. But maybe now, for the first time, it wasn’t a bad thing.
BY LUNCH PERIOD, Gabe’s anxieties had evaporated. The group at the table went on and on about what had happened at Temple House on Saturday night, rehashing all the scariest moments. No one blamed Gabe. In fact, they were amazed that he’d actually stood up to the intruder in the monster suit.
When Gabe mentioned that Milton went missing on Sunday morning, the rest of the group called Seth a criminal, a thief, a stalker. They laughed and whispered and made promises to get him back for messing up Mr. Ashe’s presentation. Only after the bell rang did guilt creep into Gabe’s conscience. Yes, Seth had been an absolute weirdo for the past month or so, but did he really deserve what they were saying about him?
Halfway through science class, a girl named Melanie Gilder raised her hand and asked the teacher, Mr. Hamill, what he’d done with Vincent Price, the albino rat that lived in a terrarium at the back of the room. “What do you mean?” Mr. Hamill asked. Melanie pointed to the glass case. It was empty.
Chaos erupted. Screaming. Scuffling of chairs. Several students even stood on their desks. Though Vincent Price was as tame as any pet rodent could be, Gabe lifted his feet off the floor in case the rat decided that his pants leg would make a good hiding place.
Mr. Hamill raised his hand to hush the class, then swiftly closed the classroom door. “He can’t have gone far.” Gabe wondered how the teacher could remain so calm. “Everyone stand up. I want this rodent found.”
The class searched every inch of the room, but apparently, Vincent Price had escaped. Secretly, Gabe was happy for him.
A half hour later, as Gabe wandered into the hall someone grabbed his elbow. He knew who it was before he even turned his head. Seth glared at him, his face as red as a cherry. Gabe pulled away. “What do you want?” he asked, sounding harsher than he’d meant.
Seth stepped into an alcove doorway just outside of the school auditorium. Keeping his voice low, he said, “Since you asked, I’d really love it if you and your new friends stopped telling people that I broke into your house and stole some sort of stupid puppet from your dad.” Gabe felt his own face burn. “Yeah,” Seth continued. “Thanks to you, today, my nickname is Stalker. I wonder how long this one’ll stick.”
“I-I had nothing to do with that.”
“Maybe not.” Seth squinted. “But I’m pretty sure you had something to do with the police showing up at my house last night.”
Other students streamed past the doorway where they stood, not noticing the argument. Or pre
tending not to notice. A tightness pressed at Gabe’s chest, but he tried to stay calm. “My dad was furious. He was blaming me.”
“So you told him I took it?”
“Can you honestly say I had no reason to think you might have? The last time we talked, you said some pretty nasty things.”
“Like what?”
“Well…You said, ‘The Hunter will come for you.’”
Seth’s face went blank. “And so what? You think the Hunter has come for you?” Gabe said nothing. The words sounded silly now. “It’s just a game. Remember? I was angry that night. So were you.”
Just a game? Well, he was willing to play if Seth wanted to keep it up. “Listen…something strange is going on,” Gabe said slowly, struggling to keep his voice even. He explained how someone wearing the Milton suit had growled at his group of friends inside Temple House on Saturday night. A real growl, like something you’d hear in the woods at night. He shared that the person inside the suit disappeared into thin air. How, later, someone had snuck into the house and returned the missing black figurine to his grandmother’s library. Gabe thought it was most likely the same person who’d crept back upstairs and taken Milton from the workshop.
“Well, it wasn’t me,” said Seth. He stared at Gabe with a look that said, You deserved this. “I was home Saturday night watching TV. You can ask my mom.”
Gabe tucked his hands into the pockets of his jeans. “Can you at least check David’s room for the figurine? Maybe there was some sort of mix-up.”
“A mix-up?” Seth blinked. He looked confused. “Whatever. Yeah, I’ll check, but on one condition.”
Gabe nodded.
“Tell your friends to stop calling me Stalker.”
The Haunting of Gabriel Ashe Page 8