“Tell whoever wants to know that I’ll be there,” Boo said. “I have to be there anyway.”
“Oh?” Sam said.
“Yeah, got a score to settle.”
A shiver ran down my spine. This wasn’t funny anymore.
“You know, Aaron, I’ve heard you’ve made it a little difficult on a couple of students at school. If I were you, I’d concentrate on my studies and cut out the extracurricular activities. You get my drift?”
Boo paused. “Extra what?”
“The fighting and bullying.”
“Hey, who is this?”
“Just a friendly reminder,” Sam said. “Good luck on the CATs Monday.”
Chapter 35
I burst out laughing, but I could tell Bryce was upset.
“If Boo is telling the truth about being home, he wasn’t the one outside,” Bryce said.
Sam paced. “What happened back in Gold Town? Did you two buy anything or pick up anything?”
“You mean like a souvenir?” I said.
“Anything.”
“The only thing we came out of there with that we didn’t walk in with was the miner’s hat you bought Dylan,” Bryce said. “Unless you bought something, Ash.”
I closed my eyes and tried to remember. “We walked in, got in line—Dylan put on the hat, you took the picture, the guy erased the photos, and then they asked us to leave.”
“Wait,” Bryce said. He put a hand in his pocket. “When I dropped the camera, the memory stick flew out. A kid handed it to me.” He frowned, then snapped his fingers. “I know where it is. I’ll be right back.”
“Where are you going?” Sam said.
“The stick is in the back of the SUV—”
“But what good will that do?” I said.
“Pictures. Maybe this has something to do with the pictures. The guy at Gold Town erased the camera but not the stick.”
Chapter 36
The Land Cruiser was locked. The sun was still high, but the pine trees cast long shadows. I ran back inside, and as soon as I opened the door, Sam tossed me his keys before I could even ask for them. They say great minds think alike.
Once in the SUV I crawled over the front seat, opened the flap behind it, and found the memory stick. When I locked the door and closed it, I heard something behind me. A car? Someone in the woods?
“H-hello?” I called.
Something fluttered overhead, and my heart jumped into my throat. I had the same feeling the summer before on a 3-2 count with the bases loaded in the bottom of the seventh. And the time Ashley and I set up the bike jump in our front yard in Illinois—I had the same feeling just as I was about to go airborne.
I dashed to the house and didn’t turn around until I was inside.
Chapter 37
Bryce was out of breath and looked like he had seen a herd of ghosts. He hurried over with the memory stick and put it on the table. “I heard someone out there,” he said.
Sam peered outside. “A car?”
Bryce shook his head. “I don’t know.”
Sam opened the door. “Hey!” His voice echoed off the hillside. Snow fell from a pine tree nearby and whooshed as it slapped branches on the way down. Sam stood watching and finally closed the door. “Go get your camera, Ashley.”
I looked all over the cabin. When I told Sam I couldn’t find it anywhere, he gritted his teeth. “Must’ve been what they were after.”
He plugged the memory stick into his computer and brought up the shots on the screen. The first showed Bryce mugging, as usual, tugging his ears and sticking out his tongue. The second was me pulling my hair out to both sides, doing the helicopter. I thought we should go to the thumbnails so we could see all of them, but Sam said he wanted to see them in order.
When he reached the last picture, we hovered over the computer, studying the shot. The gold nugget was out of focus at the front.
“Looks like the real thing to me,” Bryce said.
Sam went back to a shot I had taken outside the trailer before we went inside. “What’s this?” He enlarged it, and I noticed two men at the right of the picture. One had his back turned to the camera. He was talking with another man wearing a hat.
“Is there a way to zoom in on that guy’s face?” Bryce said.
Sam clicked the mouse and moved the cursor around. I didn’t know being a pilot made you good at computers, but he really had skill.
The man’s face filled the screen. Blondish red hair stuck out of a red hat with a C on it.
“Cincinnati,” Bryce said.
“How do you know?” I said. “Could be Chicago or Cleveland, couldn’t it?”
He shook his head. “Wrong color. Wrong shape C. It’s Cincinnati all right.”
“Could they have been looking for this picture?” I said.
“How would they even know it existed?” Sam said. “Seems strange, unless . . .”
“Unless what?” Bryce said.
Something banged downstairs.
Chapter 38
My heart raced as I followed Sam downstairs, Ashley right behind me. The pinball machine was going wild. Dylan was flipping flippers and smiling from ear to ear. I was sure relieved. We watched him awhile, then left him to have his fun.
Back upstairs Sam studied the picture again. “We’d better take this to the police.”
“They’re probably too busy,” Ashley said.
I felt really important. To think that we might help solve a gold heist with a picture . . .
“Know how to copy the pictures to my computer?” Sam said.
“No problem,” I said.
Sam went downstairs to pry Dylan from the pinball machine, and Ashley went to her room. I copied the pictures, then logged on to our family Web site. I typed in Mom’s e-mail address and attached the pictures so she could see the cabin.
Ashley came back just as the power went out and the house went dark. The only thing that gave any light was Sam’s laptop computer, which was running on the battery.
Dylan cried out, but I couldn’t tell if he was scared or just mad that the pinball machine didn’t work anymore. I heard Sam shush him. “I’m here, big guy,” he said.
The front door flew open, and a thin man hurried in. From the light outside I could see that he wore camouflage pants and a tan jacket. He had a C on his hat. Ashley screamed, and the man cursed at her.
Before I could do anything, he rushed me and I slid off the chair without thinking. Ashley ran to the stairs, calling for Sam. But the man wasn’t after us. He seized the computer and made for the door.
I scrambled to my feet. From the top of the stairs something shot like a cannon and hit the man, sending him sprawling. He dropped the computer.
Sam had sprung through the air like a cat and overpowered the man. He scooped up the computer and memory stick, grabbed Ashley who was holding Dylan, and shouted, “Get to the SUV, quick!”
We raced outside, expecting the man to come flying out any second.
“Give me the keys!” Sam said, gripping a door handle.
I patted my pockets. “I don’t have them!”
“You brought them out to get the memory stick!”
I looked inside the Land Cruiser and my stomach fell. There were the keys, on the backseat.
Chapter 39
Dylan was pale and shaking in my arms as he buried his head in my neck. I held him tight, keeping an eye on the cabin, ready to run into the woods if the intruder came out.
“Got to break the window,” Sam said.
“Call the police!” Bryce said.
Sam looked at the cabin. “My cell phone’s inside.”
“You can’t go back in,” I said.
Sam put the computer on the hood of the Land Cruiser and jammed the memory stick in his pocket. “Listen, if that guy gets past me, let him have the computer. Run that way. Promise?”
“Promise,” Bryce said. “Hurry!”
I wanted to go with him, to tell him to be careful, to tell him
I loved him. But he was through the door and gone. I held Dylan tighter, closed my eyes, and prayed.
Chapter 40
I wondered if we were losing our second dad. I couldn’t believe I’d left the keys in the SUV.
Ashley said, “We’re going to be okay.”
“That guy could kill him.”
Seconds ticked by. Something moved to the right of the cabin.
Ashley whispered, “Look at that!”
A deer walked slowly at the edge of the trees. It glanced at us, dipped its head, picked at something on the ground, and kept moving. Suddenly, it jerked its head and leaped into the woods.
Sam burst through the door, and I was never so glad to see him in my life. I’d never noticed how athletic he was. He moved like the deer, loping over the yard and reaching the driver’s-side door. He grabbed a rock and smashed the window.
“What about the guy?” I said.
“Still on the floor.” Sam reached through the shattered glass to unlock the SUV.
Dylan squirmed. “Nuh-uh,” he said, pointing over my shoulder. “He’s right there.”
Chapter 41
I whirled to see the thin man stagger through the door, waving the long metal poker from the fireplace. I grabbed the computer, and we all jumped in the Land Cruiser, Dylan and me in the back.
By the time Sam got the key in the ignition, the guy was at the SUV, raising the poker over his head.
I pressed back in the seat, but in the next second I lurched forward as Sam started the engine, slammed the Land Cruiser in reverse, and floored it. The man fell.
Snow and mud flew from the tires as Sam spun backward toward the road, slipping and sliding down the driveway.
“The chain!” I said.
Sam slid to a stop and bolted from the SUV.
The man ran toward us, skidding along the path, still holding the poker.
I closed my eyes, hoping this was all a bad dream, but when I opened them, the guy was still coming.
Sam unlatched the chain and jumped back in the Land Cruiser, spinning around in the road before finally regaining control. “Ashley,” he said, “get Dylan in his car seat.”
We bounced around so much, it was all I could do to finally get Dylan buckled.
“Look,” Bryce said, pointing to a thicket of trees. A green car sat by the road. The man raced toward it. Sam drove fast, but the road was snow covered and slick.
We skidded around a corner. I could see jagged rocks below us. There was nothing between us and the cliff but trees that hugged the edge of the road.
“Why do they want that picture so much?” I said.
“Must have something to do with the gold,” Bryce said. “Think he’ll leave us alone if we give him the memory stick?”
“I’m not giving him anything,” Sam said.
Wind blasted through the broken window. I unbuckled and rooted around in the back until I found a blanket to drape over Dylan and me. My teeth were doing a tap dance because none of us had coats on. I found another blanket and tried to plug the open window, but it flew out.
We came to a fork in the road, and Sam turned left onto Gold Camp Road.
“They’ll expect us to go toward town where the police station is,” Sam said, “but we’re going home.”
Chapter 42
Gavin Winkler drove wildly. No sign of the man and the kids. His head felt light from the conk the man had given him and he tasted blood. The guy knew what he was doing. Former military, Gavin guessed. He clicked on his handheld radio. “They got away. They’re heading down the mountain.”
“Did they see you?” the other man said angrily.
“Guy came out of nowhere. They could have gone through my wallet if they wanted to.”
Winkler came to a fork in the road and slowed.
“Take care of him,” the other man said over the radio.
“I don’t even know which way they went,” Winkler said.
“How about you, Travis? Where are you?”
“Other side of Gold Camp tunnel,” Travis said.
“Good. Gavin, stay on the main road. Travis will take Gold Camp. Don’t let them get away.”
Chapter 43
Why did I have to lock the keys in the SUV? I’m always doing stupid things or saying stupid stuff.
“I almost got you killed,” I said.
Sam clapped a hand on my knee and seemed to force a smile. “We’re going to be okay.”
“I think we lost the guy,” Ashley said from the backseat.
“Who’s that?” Dylan said, pointing to the front.
A pickup truck barreled toward us and swerved into our lane.
Sam grimaced. “Oh no.” He jerked the Land Cruiser around the truck, but the driver pulled a U-turn and followed.
If only we hadn’t come up here. If only Ashley hadn’t taken that picture. If only I hadn’t gone to Boo’s school. If only Dad hadn’t gotten on that plane . . .
But there was nothing I could do to change any of that now. One of these days I would have to quit wishing away the “if only’s” and stand up to them.
The pickup following us made Boo’s threats seem like nothing. “Let’s get these guys, Sam,” I said.
Chapter 44
The truck gained on us. I had my arm around Dylan’s car seat and hoped he didn’t know what was going on. My fingers trembled as I gave him his miner’s hat and helped him turn on the light.
I prayed silently. Please, God, help us get out of this. You know how scared we are.
Then I prayed God would let the truck run off the road or crash into a tree. Before you decide that’s not a very nice thing to pray, you should look in the Psalms where David asks God to break his enemies’ teeth and kill them all. The Bible will surprise you.
I missed Mom. She was miles away and didn’t even know we were in trouble.
Sam handed me his cell phone and told me to dial 911. I wanted to call Mom, but I punched the three numbers. Nothing happened.
We went into a tunnel and everything went dark. When we came out, we hit a straight stretch and Sam floored it. Still the truck drew closer.
I hit Redial and the phone stayed dead. Finally it rang.
“911, this is McLarty. What is your emergency?”
“A truck’s chasing us and we need help! We’re on Gold Camp Road—”
“Sorry, ma’am, you’re breaking up. What’s the nature of your emergency?”
“Gold Camp Road!” I shouted. “We’re coming up on a reservoir.”
“Sorry, I didn’t hear that. What is your location?”
The phone cut out. I dialed again, but Sam said, “We’re in a dead spot.” I didn’t like the sound of that.
Most of the snow had melted from the road so we went faster. The truck was about a football field behind us. A sign showed a curve ahead with a suggested speed of 20 miles an hour. Sam yelled for us to hang on. We raced around the curve doing at least 60, and I thought the Land Cruiser was going to fly off the road. I prayed the truck would.
My mouth was dry as cotton. A funny feeling settled over me, and I blurted out, “My medicine!”
Bryce turned around. “What about it?”
“I forgot to take it. Last night and this morning.”
Sam banged the steering wheel. “I should have reminded you. Where is it?”
“Back at the cabin,” I said.
Chapter 45
Ashley looked pale, and the memories flooded back of the night years before when Dad found her in my closet, staring at the ceiling, her eyes fixed on something none of us could see. She had thrown up by her bed and wandered into my room and just stood there like a zombie.
I remembered the ambulance and lots of crying and months of trying to forget that awful night. Before her EEGs—brain tests, they told me—she got to stay up late with Dad watching movies so she would sleep once she got to the doctor’s office. I was actually jealous of that part, but there was no way I wanted her problem and no way I could take the bi
g pills she did.
They called what she had “complex partial seizures,” something about what happens in her brain while she sleeps. The doctor said it was like a computer giving wrong commands. He was trying to stop the bad stuff before her brain got used to it and it started happening while she was awake. Looking at her you wouldn’t know anything was wrong, but if she didn’t take her medicine, she could get the seizures again.
“Can you hang on, Ashley?” Sam said.
When she didn’t answer I turned again to look at her. Her lips trembled, and she was paler than ever. “You okay, Ash?”
“I don’t think so,” she whispered, her gaze darting around.
This was worse than being chased. And way worse than Boo Heckler. “Sam,” I said, “she needs that medicine.”
He flew around another curve, craning his neck and looking for something. He hit the brakes and swerved onto an old road that went straight up a hill. He turned left and crashed through some scrub oak at the side of the road. The SUV came to a rest and we all sat, listening. We couldn’t see the road from here, but when he rolled down his window, we heard the truck pass.
I gave Sam a thumbs-up, and he backed out of the oaks. I thought we were going to get stuck, but the four-wheel drive took over and we zipped out and back onto the road. We headed back the way we had come.
“We’ll get Ashley’s medicine, then go to the police station,” Sam said. He glanced in his rearview mirror. “Try 911 again.”
Ashley shakily handed me the phone and I dialed, but it was dead. Still, I was feeling a lot better about our chances.
My head jerked back as something slammed us from behind. Ashley screamed and Dylan burst into tears. Sam fought to keep control of the Land Cruiser.
I whirled around. The green car was on our tail.
“Seat belts tight!” Sam said.
Haunted Waters Page 6