The Haunted - Jessica Verday [41]
“I don’t know how to process any of this,” I said. “So I’m just going to leave now and think about it. Can I… will you… be here tomorrow? Can I come back?”
“Yes,” he said. “If you want to.”
“I do.” My voice cracked, and I tried again, saying firmly, “I want to come back.” The Haunted
Chapter Ten
CRAZY BEAUTIFUL
He would delight them equally by his anecdotes of witchcraft, and of the direful omens and portentous sights and sounds in the air…
—“The Legend of Sleepy Hollow”
W hen I first stepped out of the mausoleum, the bright sun shocked me, rendering me temporarily blind. But now the darkness was fading, and I suddenly felt weary. I put my hands to the back of my neck and massaged the muscles. They were all tense and knotted up, and my head ached. I stopped for a moment to release my hair from its ponytail and ran my fingers through the tangled curls.
I didn’t pass anyone as I exited the cemetery. Not even the landscaper. Everything was still and silent, and I wondered where they’d gone.
The house, however, was not silent when I got home.
Mom was talking loudly on the phone, with the TV blaring in the background. I let the back door slam behind me and then angled toward the couch. Plopping down, I stretched out my feet. They were aching too. I picked up the remote and flipped through all the channels twice but there was nothing on. Summer television sucks.
Mom came into the living room, and I turned the TV off. She had that look on her face that said she wanted to “talk.”
“Where did you go?”
I shrugged. “Took a walk.”
She sat down beside me. “Abbey, I wanted to apologize to you for last night. I’m sorry your birthday dinner wasn’t to your liking.”
“You’re apologizing for the food ? What about the other stuff ?” She looked dumbfounded. “What other stuff ?”
“Well… how about the fact that you completely embarrassed me and got drunk in front of my friend?”
“I was not drunk,” she sputtered. “I only had a couple of sips—not enough to do any damage.”
“Could have fooled me,” I mumbled.
“What’s that?”
I stood up. “Nothing, Mom. I’m going to my room.”
“But don’t you want to hear what else I had to—”
“No. Not interested.”
That was clearly the wrong thing to say.
“Fine then… just fine. If you’re not interested, I won’t waste my breath.”
“Okay, Mom.” Whatever. I couldn’t believe she didn’t see anything wrong with the way she’d acted.
I left the living room and climbed the stairs, shaking my head the whole way. Once I reached my bedroom, I kicked off my sandals and padded over to the bed. Rolling my head from side to side, I slid down onto the edge and closed my eyes.
I felt all tight and itchy on the outside. I couldn’t tell what I was feeling on the inside.
A soft beeping noise sounded, and I opened one eye. My phone was on the desk, its red light flashing to signal that the battery was dying.
Getting up, I grabbed the phone and plugged it into the wall charger. Then I flipped it open and saw I had a voice mail. Hitting the button to connect me to the mailbox, I put it to my ear and listened.
“Hey, Abbey, it’s Beth. I just got back from babysitting the Wilson kids, and I heard that you babysit for them sometimes too. I wanted to let you know that they have this new trick to lock you in the bathroom. Whatever you do, don’t let Eli show you his magic numbers game.” There was a pause, and then, “So, uh, that’s all. I just wanted to tell you that. You can call me later…”
Beth rattled off her number, and the phone prompted me to press nine if I wanted to save, or seven if I wanted to delete. I hit nine, staring down at the keypad. How did she get my number?
I placed the phone back on the charger and pulled my hand away, but I accidentally knocked into a large bottle of apricot-kernel oil that