“Maybe it was Lonely Boy.” Keith made a face.
“Who?”
“That’s not funny, Keith.” Abner looked at Holly. “Lonely Boy is what they call a killer that comes around now and then. Have you heard of him?”
Holly shook her head.
“He killed a young girl just last fall.”
“Right before Halloween,” Keith said. “Our parents all went trick-or-treating with us. They think he killed Connie Mendoza. She was a third grader and she lived on my street.” His eyes widened. “But they never found her body.”
“That was a long time ago,” Holly said. She remembered seeing a yellowed “missing” poster in the Humble Station’s window.
Abner shook his head. “Not so long. They think he’s killed a number of children. Once a year at first, then he killed two in 1966 and two more in 1967. No one this year.”
“It’s August already,” Holly said remembering the poster. “Maybe he’s gone.”
“He may be,” Abner said, “or maybe he’s dead. Or in jail. But he might live here, too. And if he does, he probably goes to the market and to the movies, just like the rest of us. He could’ve been in the drug store with us today. There’s no way to know.”
“But wouldn’t he have killed someone again by now if he’s here?” Holly asked.
“Maybe. Maybe not. It’s not like he has a schedule. I don’t recall many details, but he doesn’t do it at a certain time. In 1966, the two girls were killed within weeks of each other, and then nothing happened for over a year. Everyone thought he was gone until it happened again. So, Holly, you be careful. You make sure you’re with Keith or another friend when you’re out anywhere isolated like the playground.” Abner paused. “It would be best if you stayed off this trail by yourself, too. Take your bike to town. I can always give you a lift back up in the pickup if it’s hot out.” He smiled. “Or even if it isn’t.”
“Thank you, but I’m pretty safe. I’m from the city, so I know how to take care of myself.”
“I told you how she made those bullies run, Grandpa.” Keith’s eyes gleamed. “I bet Holly could scare just about anybody if she wants to.”
Abner nodded, then looked at her. “Is that true, Holly? Would you be able to think fast enough to scare someone if they surprised you?”
Thinking of her run-in with Arthur Meeks this morning, she looked at her feet. “Yes.”
“Look at me, Holly. Do you really feel safe because of your gift?”
She looked up, suddenly on the verge of tears. “Not really, not yet. I mean I probably need to learn more about using it. Adeline promised to help me.”
“Good. You talk to her. And you ride your bike and let me give you a ride back up the hill next time, okay?”
She opened her mouth to protest, but he cut her off. “Just until you know you can protect yourself.”
“Okay. Thank you.”
They began walking again and soon came to the cutoff masked by jimson weed. Keith halted. “Grandpa? Did you ever go inside the house?”
“A few times, a long time ago.” He chuckled. “When I was seventeen, a few of us guys came up after high school graduation and dared each other to go inside. We thought we were so smart.”
“Did you?” Holly asked. “Go in?”
“We went in through a window. Some of the guys were so drunk they didn’t notice anything at first, but I sobered up real quick because my grandfather and father had told me the stories so often. I was afraid, but I wasn’t about to say so.” His smiled grimly. “There were five of us. Two went upstairs and the rest of us started looking around downstairs. We didn’t have flashlights, just matches and Joe had a big lighter he’d filched from his uncle. It’s lucky we didn’t burn the place down. Or maybe not so lucky.” He looked from Keith to Holly. “To be honest, I don’t think we could’ve burned that house down if we’d tried. It wouldn’t let us.”
“The house wouldn’t let you?”
“Whatever was in the house.”
“Did you see it?” Holly asked. “The black cloud?”
“No. But we felt the cold. It was a warm night but inside that house, it was like ice. I went in one of the downstairs rooms and it was so cold my teeth chattered. Whatever made it cold came close to me. I backed out of that room so fast that I knocked one of the guys down. I saw his eyes as I helped him up - he looked like a spooked horse. Just then, there was a lot of noise on the stairs, and a yell. Joe - he was the varsity quarterback - tumbled down the stairs and broke his leg in five places.” Abner shook his head. “He said something pushed him.”
“What’d you do?”
“Well, we started to tell him to just stay still while we got a doctor, but he screamed and insisted we carry him out.” Abner shook his head. “He was the bravest guy I knew, and he was crying like a baby. We brought him out and ended up carrying him out of sight of the house before he’d let a couple of us leave to go up to the Clementine to get help. He was so scared that despite the pain, he begged us to carry him all the way up the hill. Maybe we could have if we hadn’t had so much beer that night.” Abner eyed Keith. “That was the last time I ever had more than one beer in a night.”
Keith nodded. “Did you ever go back?”
“Oh, I’ve looked at it a few times from the outside. I took your daddy there, Keith, and told him the old stories - and the story I just told you, hoping he’d stay away.”
“Did he?”
Abner looked sad. “I don’t know, but I doubt it. He wasn’t very cautious.” He smiled and squeezed Keith’s shoulder. “I’m glad you take after your mother. She’s sensible.”
Keith smiled then nodded toward the cutoff. “You want to go see it now, Grandpa?”
Holly half hoped he’d say yes.
Abner gave her a look that said he knew what she was thinking. “No, I don’t, not today. But if you both promise me you’ll never go there by yourselves again - not even to look - I promise we’ll go look together sometime. Deal?”
“Deal!” they echoed.
They hiked another ten minutes and finally emerged at the trailhead by the playground. “You two want to play for a few minutes?” Abner plunked himself down on a bench shaded by a struggling scrub oak. He’d forgotten how steep the trail was and wanted a short rest.
“Sure!” Keith said, “Come on, Holly!”
Abner watched the kids swinging higher and higher, laughing and shrieking, and marveled at how quickly the young recover from frights. Or seem to. He was genuinely concerned for Holly and was glad when she admitted she wasn’t as sure of herself as she acted. He hoped Adeline would be able to help the girl harness whatever power she had - and from what Keith had told him, it was considerable.
Abner was a lot younger than Addie Chance - he was barely older than Holly’s grandmother - but he remembered Addie and Carrie from his boyhood. He’d seen both young women around town - often with a little girl holding their hands - that must’ve been Delilah. They were pretty and kind but he noticed them mainly because of the gold in their eyes. His father had told him it meant they could see ghosts and that had fascinated him. When he was grown - long after Carrie’s death - he became friendly with Ike and Addie Chance and asked her if it was true. She said it was, so he told her about a problem at his house - the one his father and grandfather built, the one he still lived in. He was a newlywed, and he and Mary often heard whispering at night near their bed. They thought it might be a ghost, and it frightened Mary so much that they could not do the things most newlyweds enjoyed doing; the whispering became worse whenever they were intimate.
Adeline came to his house that very day and wandered through the stone and wood structure. She spent time in the bedroom by herself and he heard her talking to someone. When she came out, she smiled and sat down at the kitchen table with Abner and Mary. “Have you thought of adding on to the house?” she asked. Abner, surprised, nodded. Mary smiled and explained that her groom had promised to build on a nice new bedroom with a pic
ture window that looked out over Brimstone Valley. It was to be complete by their first anniversary. Smiling, Addie suggested he build it more quickly or move into the smaller bedroom for the time being if they wanted privacy. When Abner asked why, Addie explained that his mother - who’d passed away only two years before - had not yet moved on and remained in the bedroom she’d shared with her husband and that seeing her son in the bed with his wife disturbed her.
Abner and Mary had looked at each other, slightly horrified and mildly amused. That same day, he and Mary moved into his tiny boyhood room and shared his twin bed. The new bedroom was ready for their six-month anniversary. Mary left fresh flowers in the bedroom for his mother and sometimes he went in to talk to her, though his visits came less and less frequently. The last one was after Mary’s own funeral and he knew, without asking Addie, that his mother had finally moved on.
“It’s too hot!” Keith ran up to him, Holly trailing. Both kids looked like horses ridden hard and put up wet.
Abner looked the kids over. “If your grandmother says it’s okay, I’ll drive you two to the public pool over in Lewisdale for a swim next weekend. Would you like that?”
Keith grinned happily and Holly lit up like the fourth of July. “There’s a pool? I’d love it!”
“You ask permission and let us know. Just call Hala Metalworks. We’re in the book.” Abner stood, hands on hips, twisting his aching back. “I think I just might take a swim right along with you.”
“Will they make you wear a swimming cap?” Holly asked, her eyes sparking with curiosity.
“Of course,” he said somberly. My hair’s longer than yours.” He smiled. “Holly, Keith has promised to help me with a project this afternoon, so we’re heading back down now. Make sure and call us about going swimming.”
“I will. Thanks.” She turned and began trotting toward the hotel.
Abner, shading his eyes against the sun, watched her. He was about to turn, but just past the Grangers’ driveway, she stopped dead in her tracks. Her body was stiff, legs slightly spread, arms at her sides. He thought her hands were fisted.
“Something’s wrong,” he murmured.
“What?” Keith stared. “What’s wrong?”
“She sees something.”
“No!” Holly yelled. “Get out of my way!”
“Holly!” Abner began trotting, Keith following. “Holly,” he called. “What’s wrong?”
And then Holly started zigzagging back and forth as if she were avoiding something.
“Holly!” Abner cried. “Come here! Run!”
The girl turned to him, but before she could move, she flinched and screamed, then tore herself free of something he couldn’t see. “No!” she screamed. “No!”
Pearl Abbott glided from the brush onto the road, as if she’d been waiting for Holly. Her dark hair, severely pulled back from that hard-planed face, and the long black dress and white apron looked the same as always. Time stopped for Holly and she stared at the little red cross pinned to Pearl’s bosom; it seemed to glint in the sun.
Holly heard the woman’s harsh voice in her head even though the ghost’s lips never moved. “Come to me, girl.”
“No!” Trembling, Holly summoned all her courage and stared back defiantly. “Get out of my way!”
Dodging to one side then the other, Holly tried to run past her, but Pearl moved with her, gliding with preternatural speed, almost as if she knew where she was going before Holly knew herself. But Holly kept moving, dodging back and forth, trying to outwit the ghost.
Then she heard Abner’s voice. “Holly! Come here! Run!”
She turned and saw him trotting toward her and took one step his way before Pearl Abbott’s freezing fingers dug into her shoulders.
“No!” Holly screamed, tearing out of the painful grip. “No!” She heard Pearl roar with rage as she ran toward Abner, two steps, three. He was still so far away.
And then Pearl appeared in front of her, blocking the way. Holly smacked into her - a wall of frozen ice - and jumped sideways, heading for the center of the road. Just as Pearl grabbed for her, Holly leapt and ran - and her ankle caught in a rut. She fell flat, barely aware of the stinging gravel as she got up.
Pearl caught her by the arm and that frozen grip hurt more than the gravel or her ankle. She looked up into the ghost’s rock-hard eyes. Black and soulless, they drilled through her.
Get mad! Holly told herself. Get mad! She tried to concentrate but her arm felt full of icy daggers. Get mad! Get mad!
Pearl’s voice filled her mind. “You’re mine. You belong to me, now, girl. You belong to the Beast. You will ride with him!”
“Holly!” yelled Abner, coming at a run.
The phantom let go of Holly.
“Watch out!” Holly cried.
But Pearl pushed him with both hands.
Abner flew backward, grunting as he landed on his back.
Holly’s anger stuttered beneath her terror. She saw Keith helping Abner up, pulling him toward the side of the road. A car appeared in the distance.
Holly stepped back, keeping her eyes on Pearl. “You’re nothing. You’re nothing but a ghost. I’m not afraid of you!”
Pinching Pearl opened her mouth so wide she looked like a snake unhinging its jaw. Laughter exploded from that gaping black maw, so loud that Holly slammed her hands over her ears.
“You don’t know anything, girl. That will change.”
As the car approached, Holly took another step back, fear finally giving way to anger. “You’re just my great-great-grandfather’s assistant. You’re nothing. You just do what he says. And he’s nothing! He can’t even be seen - he’s nothing at all! He’s broken!”
Holly recognized the clarity coming into her vision, felt the power beginning to surge into her blood. She pictured her eyes turning to gold. “You’re just Pinching Pearl and you like to scare little kids. You’re just a bully, Pinching Pearl. Nothing but a big fat bully!”
And in that instant, Pearl’s contorted face turned cold and calm. Holly knew she’d rush her now and stood firm, hoping she was strong enough to stop her.
Before Pearl could move, the driver of the car - a big old Rambler - punched the gas and slammed into the ghost.
But Pearl, looking like she was standing in the engine compartment, simply glanced at the driver, then returned her attention to Holly.
The car door opened and Adeline Chance stepped out.
“Hey!” Addie called, her voice strong. “Pearl Abbott, you insufferable old bitch. Why don’t you pick on somebody your own size?”
Abner and Keith flanked Holly, as she watched the ghost turn and study Addie.
“The one that got away.” Pearl cackled again and Holly knew Adeline could both see and hear her. “You’ll get yours, old woman.” The ghost moved toward Addie.
The thought that Pearl would hurt her friend was just what Holly needed to get angry enough to stop her. She stepped toward the car. “Pinching Pearl!” she yelled, “don’t you hurt my friend!”
Pearl turned and stared hard at Holly as she neared. Addie came around the other side of the car, moving silently closer, and for the bare instant she dared look beyond the ghost, Holly saw the gold spot in Addie’s eye pulsing, and thought, I’m not alone.
“Pinching Pearl!” Holly said. “You go back where you came from. You leave me alone! You leave Adeline alone!” She had no idea what she could do to the ghost - none at all - but her vision became so clear and close that she could see a chipped spot on Pearl’s red cross pin. She could see the pores in her ghostly face and darkness sifting behind the mask. “Go away, you bully, go away or I’ll make you go away forever!”
The apparition wavered, staring at her. “You will not win.”
“Yes, she will win,” Adeline said. “And you will lose.”
Pearl Abbott let loose that horrible snaky laugh again, but slowly, like a degrading photo, she faded, the laughter with her.
Holly just stood there, breathi
ng hard, heart pounding, yet calm as Abner, Keith, and Adeline surrounded her.
“Holly?” Abner spoke softly.
She looked at him.
He stared into her eyes for a long time. “That was amazing,” he said at last. “You are truly gifted.”
Adeline gently hugged Holly and smiled at Abner. “She is.”
“You must teach her everything you know, Addie.”
Adeline nodded. “I will.” She looked at Holly. “Are you okay? Look at all those bruises. She gently touched one of the new fingerprints on her shoulder. “Cold as the devil.”
Holly nodded. “It hardly hurts,” she lied. “It’ll go away pretty fast. It did before.” She glanced at the five-inch wide reddish mark on her arm where Pearl’s whole hand had clamped onto her. That really hurt.
“Well, let’s go inside and clean up those skinned knees and elbows before your grandmother sees you.” Addie smiled. “I’ll bet soaking that arm in warm water would feel pretty good.” She smiled at Abner and Keith. “Are you here for tea?”
“Tea? No.”
“I think you should join us,” Adeline said. “We’re going to talk about Pearl Abbott and Henry Hank and the things that happened. It would be good for Dee to hear from you.”
“Yes, please come, Abner!” Holly said. “You and Keith. You know so much.”
“Okay, for a few minutes.” Abner rubbed his back. “Then I need a good hot soak. That ghost threw me a good six feet.” He touched his chest. “I couldn’t see her, but I sure did feel her. Like ice. For a second there, I thought she stopped my heart.”
“I’ll just get my car parked.” Adeline returned to the Rambler.
Holly stepped away from the car, realizing for the first time that her ankle hurt from the fall. Abner saw. “You want a lift?”
She tested the ankle and grinned. “No, I’m okay. I’ll walk it off.” It hurt, but not too bad, and she needed to move. She was so full of adrenaline that she could hardly stand still.
As Addie parked, a little delivery truck pulled up next to her, a Metro, white with the Gower’s Pharmacy logo painted on it. Holly smiled as Ben Gower exited. He nodded at them, then retrieved something from the vehicle - a big, slightly bedraggled orange cat.
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