She led the way over to the cellar door. It was secured by an eye hook that always seemed to pop free when someone walked across the kitchen floor. This time, it stayed put and Amber had to lift it and really tug on the door to free it from the frame. The light was already on down there. Still, Amber pulled a flashlight from her pocket and added her light to what was coming from the bare bulbs.
While Vernon made his way to the electrical panel, Amber scanned the beams overhead, making note of the cobwebs and looking for a spiderweb that was inhabited. She found a spider over near one of the tiny windows. It hunched and the scurried to a corner when she blew on it.
“Can you hold this?” Vernon asked.
He had fashioned a piece of wood to bridge against the circuit breakers and he was using tape to hold them in place.
“We’re going to have to be careful tonight not to draw much current. Looks like a bunch of the wires in this place have never been updated, and what I’m doing here is not exactly safe. Remind me to dismantle all this in the morning.”
Amber nodded.
“And don’t let Ricky near the toaster. He uses the smoke detector as a timer.”
“Got it.”
“We should board up these windows, too. Any objections?”
“Nope.”
When they were done with the power, Vernon moved on to inspect the furnace and make sure it was still going strong. He explained everything as he went. Amber learned what to look for on the furnace and the water pump. Vernon kept claiming that he was no expert on such things, but he definitely knew enough to answer all of her questions.
They found a box of scrap wood and Vernon picked up a couple of the planks and turned them in the light.
“Looks like your uncle was way ahead of us,” Vernon said.
“Oh?”
“These are already cut to length and it looks like they’ve been used for just this purpose. See these nail holes? They match the holes in the window frames.”
“Huh,” Amber said.
“He lived here a long while, I imagine.”
“Yeah. Long time,” Amber said.
“During his years, I imagine he survived one of every type of crisis.”
Amber nodded and frowned. The idea wasn’t comforting to her at all. The thing that had finally killed her great uncle was after her. If he had managed to survive all that time, what chance did she have against the thing that had eventually taken him out. Amber reminded herself that she had already lived through the threat more than once. She knew what to do, and had the strength to do it.
“You kids are going to figure this thing out, I’m sure of that,” Vernon said. “There’s something about Ricky, and I see the same thing in you. There’s nothing out there strong enough to stop you.”
“Thanks. I’m afraid that a lot of luck is involved too though. We lost good people at the hotel.”
They finished boarding up the windows without saying much else.
George called down from the kitchen to let them know that food was ready. Amber took one last look around before she climbed the stairs.
# # #
They had maps and books spread out on the table in the living room. George was reading “Unique Fauna of New England: A Field Guide and Memoir” and grunting occasionally at what he found in the handwritten pages.
“So, let’s say we’re right about the train,” Ricky said. “That means they could have jumped on the one that went through the junction at about eight, that would have put them at the crossing on the Bartlett Road before midnight, which gives them enough time to walk to Alan’s and it puts them on schedule to cut down the tree back at our house.”
“Moving with complete certainty,” George said.
“Sorry?”
“I mean, that leaves them absolutely no time for guesswork. They had to have known exactly where they were going and exactly how to get there.”
“And they wouldn’t have moved on roads, would they?” Amber asked. “You wouldn’t make good time if you had to hide every time there was a car on the road.”
“There are a ton of trails for snowmobiles and ATVs through there,” Ricky said. “Between those and logging roads, there are bunches of ways to get around.”
“Do those trails cross moving water?”
“Of course. There are bridges. Sometimes a trail will join a road to cross one of those bridges, and sometimes there are purpose-built bridges that are just big enough for a snowmobile.”
“Jan said that he can’t cross moving water. It pulls at him or something. Maybe a tall enough bridge…”
George looked up from the journal. “That’s actually pretty common with a lot of unearthly spirits. Water is a big issue.”
Ricky sat back.
“You’re missing the obvious point,” George said.
“Which is?” Ricky asked.
“Based on your calculations, it took them most of the night to get from up north down to harass Mom and Dad and the Harpers. Why are we going back north to look for them tomorrow? Don’t you think they might still be around here?”
“We’re not necessarily looking for them tomorrow,” Amber said. “Just information and maybe to disrupt their home base, like we did with the mill.”
“Okay,” George said, raising the book again. “Whatever.”
“Don’t you have school work?” Ricky asked.
George pointed to the sign on the wall and said, “Work is the curse of the drinking class.”
Amber smiled.
“There was something special about that place. I think Alan and I both sensed it. Actually, I’m pretty sure that Jan knew it too. The little graveyard was the resting place for Prescott’s loved ones and there was freshly turned dirt. I think that he stays there in order to feel close to the family that he lost. It’s just a guess, but I really believe that his graveyard is sacred to him. If we want to hurt him, that’s where we need to start.”
“Well, maybe we can learn more up there anyway,” George said. “I mean, even if they are
