The Summoning: A gripping psychological thriller (Secrets of Redemption Book 4)

by Michele PW (Pariza Wacek)

  “I don’t remember whose idea it was to ask the town to send him away, but we decided to give it a try. There had been rumors of other kids doing it over the years. We thought, why not? What have we got to lose?”

  “So, did you come here? To this house?” I asked, reaching for my wine glass.

  Claire shook her head. “It was the bar. The Lone Man Standing.’

  “The bar? I thought you were kids.”

  “We were. We weren’t in the bar, but in the woods outside of it.”

  This story was getting more and more bizarre. “Why there?”

  Claire sighed. “There’s a lot of rumors that whatever happened in 1888 leading to the adults disappearing was connected to this house,” she patted the table, “and the area around the bar. We wanted to try the house first, but we were too scared.”

  “Of the house, or Helen?”

  Claire laughed. “Probably both. And we didn’t know how close we had to be to the house. We thought Helen might see us and, I don’t know, cast a spell on us. But the bar was different. We could be in the woods without anyone seeing us. So that’s where we went.

  “We had to sneak out, because we wanted it to be dark. And we had to ride our bikes.” Claire shook her head. “Thinking back, I’m shocked it all worked out and no one got hurt. Anyway, it was just the three of us. Lou, me, and Gina. We lit the candles and asked if the town would send Butch away. Nothing happened. We blew out the candles, laughed a little, and went home, feeling oddly deflated it hadn’t worked.

  “Then, the next day, we were all hanging out at the lake like we normally did that summer, but Butch wasn’t there. We found out that something happened to his grandmother, and the family needed to move back home to take care of her.”

  “Wow,” I said. “That’s quite a coincidence.”

  Claire half-smiled. “Yes, it was. Of course, we didn’t think so. We were sure the town sent him home, and we were super excited about it.

  “Until Gina disappeared.”

  “What?”

  Claire reached for her wine glass. “It was about a week later. She just vanished. At the time, we had told Jesse about our night in the woods, who had told Jonathan, but they didn’t believe us, either. Said Butch probably would have left anyway. But when Gina disappeared?” Claire’s voice trailed off.

  “What happened to her?”

  “No one knows.”

  “She was never found?”

  “No, she was … it’s just ...” Claire took another deep breath. “It was a horrible time. The whole town was organizing searches, looking for her, and there was just no sign of her. So, we finally went back.”

  “To the bar?”

  Claire nodded. “We had to be more careful that time, because our parents were really freaked out and wanted to keep us close. But they were also distracted, making flyers and phone calls. So, we were able to sneak out again. But this time, Jonathan and Jesse joined us.

  “We asked the town to send Gina back to us. And that’s when we saw it.

  “A word appeared on the ground in between the candles.”

  Prickles of ice started to crawl down my back. “What word?” I asked, my voice barely above a whisper.

  “Lake.”

  “Lake? She was at the lake?”

  Claire’s eyes met mine as she slowly moved her head up and down. “That’s where we found her.”

  “You went to the lake? That night?” I was horrified. “What if whoever took her was waiting for you?”

  “You don’t think about those things as a child. You think you’ll be fine. There were four of us, after all. As an adult, it’s terrifying, I know. So, back on our bikes we went, and that’s how we found Gina, wandering up and down by the beach.”

  “Was she okay?”

  “Physically, yes. She was dehydrated and hadn’t eaten in a few days, but otherwise, she was fine. Mentally, though …” Claire shook her head. “She didn’t remember what had happened to her. Complete amnesia. The doctors thought she may have suffered some sort of fugue state. Like maybe she had fallen and hit her head, or had some sort of seizure, and was just wandering around. Epilepsy does run in her family. “

  “But how had no one found her? You said everyone was looking for her.”

  Claire raised her hands, palms up. “I haven’t a clue. She was really confused. She didn’t seem to know who we were or even what her name was. Luckily, we were able to get her to follow us to the police station.”

  “How did you explain finding her?”

  Claire laughed. “Yeah, that wasn’t a fun night. Everyone kept asking how we knew Gina was at the lake. We just had to say we were out looking for her because we were so worried. My parents were furious. They had explicitly told me not to go anywhere at night, so they ended up grounding me for three days. They told me it would have been longer, but they knew how worried I was about Gina.”

  “So what happened with Gina from there?”

  “Her mother was so freaked out about what happened, she took Gina and left. Her father stayed here. We haven’t seen her since.”

  “That seems a little ... excessive,” I said.

  “Yeah, it did. No one really understood why she reacted that way. There was talk about dreams, or nightmares, really, Gina was having. She would wake up screaming in the middle of the night. Her father thought they should get her some medical attention, maybe some therapy, but Gina’s mother was convinced it was Redemption, and that Gina wouldn’t get better until she was away from here. So, she finally packed up, and they left.

  “Gina was never the same. She never seemed to quite remember us. It was weird. I hope she did end up getting better.” Claire’s eyes were unfocused as she gazed at the darkened window. The blackness of night was already starting to press against the house, and I shivered, wondering if this séance thing was really something I wanted to do after all.

  “So, was that it? Those two times?”

  Claire didn’t immediately answer, instead taking another sip of wine. She put the glass down firmly. “There was one more time. Jonathan wanted to do it.”

  “Why?”

  Claire raised her eyes and looked directly into mine. They seemed darker than I remembered. “He wanted to ask the town to send his mother back to him.”

  My eyes widened. I pressed my hand against my mouth. “Oh no,” I breathed.

  She nodded. “She had just disappeared a few months before. How could we say no? So, we did it again. Got on our bikes and went out there. Did the whole thing again. We lit the candles, and Jonathan asked for his mother to be sent back to him.”

  “Did you get an answer?”

  Claire’s head barley moved. “We did. Just like with Gina. A word appeared on the ground between the candles.”

  My spine felt like it was encased in ice. “What was the word?”

  “Dead.”

  I dropped my fork, my suddenly numb fingers unable to grasp it, and it hit the plate with a clatter. “Oh my God.”

  “I know.”

  “What did you do?”

  She shook her head. “We all jumped back. I think Lou screamed. And then we heard someone calling from the bar parking lot, yelling ‘Who’s there?’ We just took off. It was a mad scramble for our bikes and, I can barely remember all of it, other than I felt like there was a monster chasing me the entire way home.”

  She went silent, as if reliving the frantic ride back—barely able to see in the dark, branches stretching out and snagging her clothes, a ball of terror in her young chest. No wonder I saw the fear flicker across her face in the bar.

  “Needless to say, we never did it again,” she said. “We never even talked about what happened.”

  “And Lou still wants to do this again now?”

  She seemed surprised. “Why not? It worked.”

  I
was at a loss. “Yeah, but look what happened.”

  “The town gave us what we wanted. Butch left, Gina was found, and Jonathan got an answer.”

  “But ... I mean, don’t you find it all a little more than creepy?”

  “Well, yes. But hey, whatever works.”

  I chewed on my lip as I mulled over what she said. “Do you think it’s safe?”

  She looked at me oddly. “Sure. Why wouldn’t it be? Nothing happened to us.”

  “Gina disappeared.”

  “The town didn’t have anything to do with that,” Claire said quickly. Maybe too quickly.

  “How do you know?”

  “Because we found her,” Claire said. “If the town wanted her, we wouldn’t have.”

  While that certainly seemed true, there was something about the whole thing that made me feel uneasy. “I don’t know, Claire ...”

  She leaned forward across the table. “Alan is dangerous. It’s clear you’re afraid of him. Even if this isn’t completely safe, which it is, but even if it wasn’t, wouldn’t it be worth the risk to keep Alan away?”

  I couldn’t argue with that logic, either. Still, it didn’t make me feel any better. “I guess. You have a point.”

  “Good,” she said, sitting back and glancing at the clock. “Oh wow, look at the time. They’ll be here any minute. Let me get freshened up, and I’ll help you clean up.”

  She was out of her chair and headed down the hall before I could say another word. She was right—everyone would be showing up shortly.

  Which meant it was probably too late to change my mind.

  Chapter 28

  The storm hit right as they arrived.

  I opened the door to a wet Lou on the porch. “It’s really coming down,” she said, shaking herself like a cat. Speaking of cats, Midnight had insisted on coming in hours before, and I suspected he was curled up on my bed, all dry and warm.

  I glanced behind her and watched as the rain came down in sheets. Somewhere in the distance was a flash of light, and then, an answering low rumble. The wind blew through my hair, bringing with it a shower of droplets and the fresh, clean scent of rain.

  A storm is coming. Beware.

  I shivered. It felt like the temperature had dropped another ten degrees.

  I started to shut the door when Lou stopped me. “Jesse and Jonathan are right behind me.”

  I paused, my hand on the door, my heart in my throat.

  Jonathan?

  Jonathan was here?

  Before I could figure out a response, or even sort out my jumbled thoughts, they were both inside, brushing the raindrops off their hair and clothes. Numbly, I shut the door behind them.

  “Man, is it coming down,” Jesse said.

  “At least it’s finally cooled off,” Lou replied.

  “Thank God for small favors,” Claire added. She was standing in the doorway of the kitchen, holding a glass of wine. She had reapplied her lipstick and fixed her smudged mascara. Her hair was a soft mass of waves draping across her shoulders. “Jonathan, I didn’t think you’d come.”

  “Wouldn’t miss it,” he said.

  “How could anyone turn down a chance to get an up-close look at the famed Witch House?” Jesse asked, gawking as he glanced around the living room. “Except for Bill, of course.” He winked at his sister.

  “Ha ha,” Lou said. “Oh my God, it smells so good in here.”

  “Charlie cooked,” Claire said. “Wait until you see the hors d’oeuvres.”

  “Mmm, can’t wait.”

  “You guys want something to drink?” Claire asked.

  “What you’re drinking looks good,” Lou said.

  “Got a beer?” Jesse asked.

  “I think so,” Claire said. “Charlie?”

  “Sure,” I said mechanically, heading toward the kitchen. Everything was happening so fast, and I just couldn’t get my head around it. Jonathan in my house. How creepy this séance thing was.

  The fact it was storming outside.

  A crack of thunder hit right then, as if the universe—or God Himself—was laughing at me. It made me think of the Shakespeare quote:

  All the world’s a stage, and all the men and women merely players.

  I was being played. We were all being played.

  The real question was, by whom? And for what purpose?

  “When’s the tour?” Jesse asked.

  “I can get the drinks if you want to show them around,” Claire said to me, her voice low. I shook my head. I needed a minute to collect myself.

  She must have seen something in my face, because she called out, her voice light. “Lou, you want to do the honors? We still have some cleaning up to do.”

  “You don’t have to ask me twice,” she called back. “C’mon boys, follow me.”

  I heard their footsteps clumping up the stairs and my knees buckled, causing me to sag.

  “Are you okay?” Claire asked, alarmed. She helped me into a chair.

  “I’m okay,” I said. “I just ... gimme a minute.” Everything felt a little woozy, and I wondered if the alcohol was making it worse.

  “Do you need anything? Water?” She looked at me worriedly.

  I shook my head. “No. I just ... I wasn’t expecting Jonathan.”

  Understanding dawned across her face. “Oh.”

  “It’s okay, I just thought ... I thought I’d have some time to digest what you told me is all.”

  “Do you want me to tell him to leave?”

  “Oh no. I’ll be fine. I mean, you’re all here. It’s just like sitting together at the Tipsy Cow, right? Minus Bill, of course.”

  “Right,” Claire said, but she didn’t look convinced.

  I heard the footsteps clattering down the stairs, and I took a deep breath, straightening my clothes.

  “You can stay there,” Claire started to say, but I brushed her off.

  “I’m good now. Thanks.”

  I headed over to the kitchen to pour wine for Lou and get the beers for the Jesse and Jonathan.

  I brought out the cheese-and-sausage tray, homemade hummus, a bowl of olives and another of crackers, and arranged the leftover garlic bread on a plate. I could hear Lou’s voice as she walked the guys through the family room and dining room. Everything was laid out on the kitchen counter when they arrived in the kitchen.

  “This is the coolest house,” Jesse said. “I’m starting to see why Helen didn’t leave.”

  I handed him a beer. “You didn’t see it before I cleaned it. Trust me, it looked very different then.”

  “I’ll second that,” Lou pipped in, picking up her wine.

  I handed Jonathan his beer, and when our fingers brushed together, those all-too-familiar electric currents shot up my arm. I dropped my gaze, feeling the heat in my cheeks, and wondered how long it would be before that would stop happening.

  “Wow,” Lou said, gazing at the food. “That is some spread. Do you want to eat now or after?”

  “I vote now,” Jesse said, popping an olive in his mouth. “We can scare her with what we did as kids in the meantime.” He waggled his eyebrows at me.

  “Too late,” I said airily. “Claire already did that.”

  Jesse gave her a hurt look. “You ruin all the fun.”

  She put her hands up. “Sue me.”

  “I think we do it first,” Lou said. “Then we can eat and talk about what happened.”

  That was fine with me. The sooner we finished, the sooner Jonathan would leave.

  Except I suddenly realized I didn’t have candles. “Oh no,” I smacked myself in the head. “I have no idea where Helen would have kept candles. I’ll have to dig around.”

  “No need,” Claire said. “I brought some with me.” She pulled out an oversized colorful tote bag, like somethi
ng for the beach, that she had tucked in the corner and I had somehow overlooked. “I’ll set them up on the dining room table.”

  “No, not here,” Lou said, putting a hand on her arm. “Upstairs.”

  Claire paused. “Upstairs?”

  “Yes,” Lou said eagerly. “In the room at the top of the stairs.”

  In that moment, a bolt of lightning lit up the kitchen, followed by a booming clap of thunder.

  Claire jumped, then pressed a hand against her chest. “Oh, that scared me.” She laughed a little self-consciously. “I don’t know if that’s such a good idea.”

  “Nonsense,” Lou said. “It’s the perfect place. We know it’s haunted.”

  “Yes, but we’re trying to talk to the town, not to Mad Martha,” Claire said.

  “I’ll protect you,” Jesse said, winking at Claire. “Lou’s right. It’s the perfect place.”

  Claire swallowed. “But ...”

  “We can do it down here,” I said quickly. “Helen told me to stay away from that room.”

  Lou rolled her eyes. “C’mon, both of you. Look, we want to make sure Alan stays away, right? If we’re going to do it, then why not do it right? Especially since we’re not kids anymore, and we actually have access to a more powerful location.”

  “Lou’s got a point,” Jesse said.

  Claire chewed on her lip. “Charlie, what do you think?”

  Everyone looked at me. “Um,” I said. I wasn’t sure what I thought, especially since a part of me was pretty sure all of this was nonsense.

  Although I had to admit I couldn’t completely discount it, either.

  Jonathan was watching me. He had changed out of his work clothes and was wearing jeans and a red polo shirt that brought out the richness of his dark eyes and hair. His hair was slightly damp, like he had just taken a shower before coming. “You know you’re safe, right?” he asked. “Nothing bad will happen. It didn’t when we were kids.”

  “I know,” I said. “But you have to admit the story was pretty creepy.”