“I hope you’re proud of yourself,” said Katie as she stalked off toward the stairs, shaking her head. “What you’re doing to that poor little girl is a crime and don’t think I won’t be telling your parents!”
What could I say? I knew how lame it sounded, blaming everything on a ghost. But it just happened to be true, even if none of the grown-ups could see or hear what was going on.
So I didn’t say anything. I just stood there watching Katie walk away. And that’s when it happened.
Evil laughter echoed deep inside the walls. That mean, cackling witch laugh I’d heard before. The laughter Katie couldn’t hear.
But this time she stopped in her tracks and turned back to look at me. “Cut it out,” she said. “You think that stupid laughter is going to scare me? What is it, a tape recording of a Halloween laugh?” Katie rolled her eyes and tossed her head, turning her back. “Spare me.”
Things were bad. It was night and things might get much, much worse.
Yes, things were bad all right, but for some reason I felt like jumping for joy.
Because unlike my parents, Katie could hear the haunted laughter coming from the walls!
I wasn’t alone after all!
11
I was sound asleep, dreaming about a baseball game, when a bolt of lightning woke me up.
The flash of light made my bedroom look inside out, like a photographic negative. Then it was pitch black again and I was sitting straight up in my bed with my heart pounding hard enough to bust my ribs.
I couldn’t see a thing.
But I could hear things.
Outside the leaves were rustling. A branch banged against the house.
And then KER-WHAM! thunder exploded like a bomb, shaking the whole house.
As lightning flashed I saw a face looking at me.
A pale, tense, terrified face. The mouth was open, like it wanted to scream but couldn’t make a sound.
The face was me.
My own frightened face reflected in the mirror on the closet door.
Suddenly the sky broke open and it was raining. Raining so hard it sounded like all the oceans of the world were crashing over the roof. The rain poured over the window glass as the lightning flashed again.
It was only a storm. A summer storm. I was safe inside. Nothing could hurt me.
My pounding heart started to slow. I lay my head back down on the pillow and closed my eyes, determined to go back to sleep.
Then I heard footsteps in the hallway.
Little running footsteps. I pulled the covers over my head. I was not going to get up, no matter what.
Another jolt of lightning glowed right through the blanket, making my bedroom walls look as white as bone.
Something knocked on the door.
I peeked out from under the covers.
Was the doorknob wiggling or was that my imagination?
The knocking noise came again, louder.
This was how it always started. Noises in the hall. Scratching fingers outside my door.
It wanted me to open the door and let it in. Then the horror would start all over.
Slowly the door opened wider and wider. I scrambled to get out of bed. The thing wasn’t going to find me defenseless.
My legs were caught in the bed clothes. I couldn’t get free. I kicked and pushed frantically but it seemed to take forever.
At last my legs were untangled. I looked toward the door. It was wide open now.
A dark shape came through the doorway and glided into the room.
Coming to get me.
Quickly I dropped to my knees beside the bed. There was a baseball bat under the bed if only I could find it in the dark. My fingers groped blindly.
No bat.
The thing in the doorway was a black shadow against the light from the hall. It was small but seemed to be growing larger.
At last my fingers closed around the handle of the bat.
I stood up.
The shadowy figure lurched toward me. Reaching out, trying to grab me.
Trembling, I raised the bat.
12
“Jason, help!”
My arm turned to rubber and my knees to water.
I collapsed onto my bed. I’d nearly brained my little sister with a baseball bat!
This house was getting to me. As if it wanted me to hurt my sister.
Sally tugged at my arm. “Come on, Jason. Hurry!”
“Sally, what’s wrong?” I asked. “What are you doing out of bed? You’re not afraid of the thunder, are you?”
“No, no, no,” said Sally, stamping her feet. “Bobby says you have to come. Right now, before it’s too late. Come on!”
“No way,” I said firmly, pulling my arm free. “I’m not going anywhere.”
“But you have to!” Sally urged. “You have to come downstairs. It’s important.”
Had Sally forgotten what happens at night in this house? Well, I wouldn’t remind her—she was already scared enough. But you’d have to be brain-dead to wander around this place after midnight.
“Jason, you have to, you have to.” Sally was near tears.
“But why?” I took hold of her arms. “What is it that can’t wait until morning?”
“Bobby needs you,” said Sally. “Bobby can’t do it by himself.”
“What about Katie?” I suggested. “She’s the baby-sitter. She’s responsible, right?”
Sally looked down at the floor. “Bobby hates the baby-sitter.”
I gave in. I always give in. When Sally wants something, she never gives up. Just yammers on forever until you agree. A definite one-track mind.
“I’ll go as far as the top of the stairs,” I said. “That’s it. Then it’s back to bed for both of us.”
Sally considered this. “All right,” she said, taking my hand.
The storm hadn’t let up a bit.
The hall light flickered and went out.
But Sally forged ahead, pulling me along.
The top of the stairs was as black as a witch’s cat. I couldn’t see a thing—and I wasn’t going any farther.
“Everything seems fine to me,” I said, trying to sound like I meant it.
It was true enough, at the moment. At least there were no weird ghostly lights and no furniture flying through the air like before.
Something sounded funny,
