I strained to listen, but I still couldn't understand what was being said.
I would have to go closer.
I had just made up my mind to edge further into the chamber when I felt fingers lace around my wrist, and I was pulled backward forcefully.
I nearly cried out – but I quickly thought better of it – the two figures in the cave chamber didn't seem terribly friendly. In the dim light from the white smoke, I could just see a large, dark shape looming beside me. I tugged on my imprisoned wrist, but I found that I was held in a grip of iron.
I was pulled forcefully to my feet, and then dragged back along the cave tunnel away from the lit chamber. The tunnel was soon dark except for the luminescent smoke trail. The pace of my captor was too fast for me, and I stumbled.
A hand encircled my waist and pulled me to my feet. I was pressed firmly against a strong, hard body and half carried up the tunnel. My heart was pounding – I feared what I would discover when my captor and I broke daylight.
The mouth of the cave soon yawned up ahead of us, and I was dragged into the clearing in front of the cave, the now-black smoke swirling around me once again.
My captor released me, and I whirled around to face him. I was shocked to see who it was.
"William?" I said breathlessly.
"What are you doing?" William demanded. "Do you know what's in that cave? Do you have any idea?"
I felt a flash of anger. William had interrupted me when I was on the verge of a discovery. Now I would have to spend more precious time creeping back down the cave. There was no way I was going back to GM without finding out what was going on in the cave.
"I'm going back in," I said. I turned and walked back toward the cave.
William followed me and grabbed me by the arm, pulling me back.
He leaned close to my ear. "This is not a joke. That thing will kill you. I will not allow you to go back into that cave."
He began to pull me away from the cave.
I tried to pull out of his grasp. "Where are you taking me?"
"Back to your house," he said.
"How did you know I was in there?" I asked.
"It's my business to know," he said, continuing to pull me along.
"You have to stop," I said, digging my heels into the earth. "My grandmother is waiting for me. If I go home without her, she'll be worried."
William stopped and let go of my arm. "Go to her then. As long as you are wearing the charm I gave you, you'll be safe."
I shifted my weight uneasily. "What if I'm not wearing it?"
"Then get out of here. You and your grandmother should get out of here immediately. The creature is weak during the day, but it's still strong enough to kill you. And it can track you at night."
"What creature? What is it? Was that Gleb in there? What is all that smoke?"
He stared at me in surprise. "You can see the smoke?"
"Yes," I said. "It's black in the dark and white in the light."
"I can't see the smoke," he said in wonder. "I know it exists, and it clouds my senses. But I can't actually see it."
"Does the smoke come from Gleb?"
My question seemed to shake William out of his shock.
"Katie, I'm telling you to get out of here now. It's for your own safety."
I cast a mutinous glance over his shoulder in the direction of the cave.
William took an ominous step toward me as if he expected me to try to skirt around him.
I knew I wouldn't make it.
I turned resignedly and walked back in the direction of Mrs. Hannity's house.
I stopped once, looking over my shoulder to see if William was still there. I could see him, just at the edge of my vision, standing guard over the path to the cave.
I turned and ran the rest of the way to Mrs. Hannity's. I was going to be terribly late, and I had discovered nothing. But I had seen William. Even though he was angry with me, my heart felt lighter now that I had seen him.
I reached Mrs. Hannity's back yard, and I hurried into it, racing around to the front past the grazing plastic sheep.
I hurried up to GM's car and threw myself into the passenger's seat.
GM scowled at me. "What have you been doing in there? It's been over an hour."
Her expression changed to one of horror as she took in my appearance. "You are scratched and bleeding. What happened to you?"
I took a deep breath. I had to think quickly. Though I felt terrible about making up a story, there was no way I could tell GM about the cave. "I-I was helping Mrs. Hannity clean up her back yard."
I was pretty sure that the back yard was obscured by the house. I resisted the impulse to turn and look to double-check.
I continued. "She had a lot of leaves and branches that needed to be cleared out and placed into lawn bags. I fell while reaching for a loose branch on a tree."
GM was incredulous. "She had you clean out her back yard?"
I shifted uneasily. "Yes."
GM shook her head and started the car. "Unbelievable. The nerve of that woman. To ask you to do something like that when you are visiting her to cheer her up. No more visits for you – today or ever again. You have done enough already."
I was tired and was inclined to agree with GM about the visits.
As GM started the car, I felt a horrible wave of guilt wash over me. I was telling stories to GM, and I had just made an innocent woman look bad. If only I could figure out what was going on and how to stop it. It seemed pretty obvious to me that the two men in the cave were involved in the disappearances somehow. At least I thought they were two men – I hadn't been able to see the face of either – William had rather firmly gotten in my way.
GM drove us home quickly, and I went upstairs to change my torn jeans and clean my cuts and scrapes. I made sure to put the iron charm on, too.
After that, I sat down at my desk and turned to my homework, but I had a difficult time concentrating. The events at the Old Grove kept crowding into my thoughts.
Eventually, I gave up and went to my bed where I'd where I'd thrown my coat. I pulled the charred photo out of my pocket and examined it. Mr. Del Gatto, Irina, James, me. I couldn't help but think once again that this was a lineup of victims.
I sat down on the bed, still holding the photo.
I wondered who had dropped the yearbook photo from the tree. Someone had clearly meant me to find it. Since William had been in the area, he was the most likely candidate to have dropped it. But if it had been him, why hadn't he spoken to me about not going into the cave at that very moment? Why would he wait till later and waylay me in the dark as he had done? I had a feeling that it wasn't William who had dropped the photo on me.
Whether or not William had dropped the photo, he certainly seemed to know who was down in the cave. I frowned. What had he said? 'That thing' and 'the creature.' Could one of the two figures in the cave have been a reanimated dead man who was walking the earth, looking for victims? An involuntary shudder shook me.
I thought back to the strange faint smoke I'd been seeing around town. I wondered where Mr. Hightower lived, and I wished now that I could go to see the place. I had a feeling that I would see the smoke there, too. The smoke trail seemed to be exactly that – a trail. It seemed to me that I somehow had the ability to see where the person who had caused the disappearances had been. Perhaps the ability to see the smoke was related to my visions. If I could see where Mr. Hightower lived, and I spotted the smoke trail again, I would know for sure that the smoke marked the perpetrator's passage.
Of course, I could check Simon and James's house for the smoke, too. Maybe I could suggest to Simon that we stop by his house before going to the movies.
Thinking of Simon and James reminded me that James had seen a man in furs with another man burning something in the Old Grove. Had I seen the same two men? What had they been burning? I looked down at the charred yearbook photo. Could the two of them be behind the theft of the yearbooks and school records? Could t
hey have been burning pages from our high school yearbooks? And why would they do such a thing?
The cave was not too far from the Old Grove where Mr. Hightower's body had been found. Could they have killed Mr. Hightower?
Were the missing people even now hidden in that cave?
I set the photo down on the bed, and I tried to organize my thoughts. If it really was possible that there were people trapped down in the cave, I had to do something about it. I wondered if William had gone back in there. Maybe he was trying to rescue them himself at this very moment. Of course, it was also possible that the two men were in the cave alone.
I didn't know what to think. I just hoped that William was safe.
I went back to my desk and tried to work again.
Eventually, GM called me for dinner. As I walked down the stairs, I wondered if GM would still let me go out to see Simon tonight. She had agreed to it earlier in the week, but GM had been upset ever since the school had called warning parents and guardians not to let their children go anywhere unescorted. I realized that she might have changed her mind about letting me go.
I entered the kitchen and was greeted by the savory aroma of pot roast.
GM and I sat down to dinner.
"GM," I said uncertainly.
"Yes, Solnyshko?"
"Simon had asked me to go to the movies with him tonight – do you remember? Is it all right for me to go?"
GM gave me a stern look. "No. I don't think it's safe – not at night – not since that poor man was murdered. Once the terrible person who is stalking our town is caught, you may go out again. But not while it is so dangerous. You'll have to call Simon and tell him you can't go, Solnyshko."
I nodded. I was deeply disappointed, but I recognized the look on GM's face. There was no way I would be able to change her mind. Maybe I could ask her if I could go over to see Simon tomorrow. And it probably would be safer in the day. I would miss seeing him tonight – his presence usually warmed me.
After dinner, I helped GM with the dishes and then went back to my room.
I sat on my bed and called Simon.
He answered on the first ring. "Hey, Katie."
"Hi, Simon."
"So, what do you want to see tonight?"
Simon sounded so happy that I suddenly felt really terrible. The last thing I wanted to do was to ruin his good mood. He'd been through a lot lately because of James's disappearance, and he deserved to be happy.
"I'm sorry, Simon," I said. "I was just talking with GM. She's asked me to stay at home at night until things get better in town. I think Mr. Hightower's death really freaked her out."
There was a long pause on the other end.
I felt even worse as the silence stretched. I couldn't think of anything to say.
"I understand," Simon said at last. His voice was low and mournful. "I'm going to miss seeing you, though."
"I really am sorry," I said. An apology didn't feel like quite enough. I wished he didn't sound so sad.
"Have a good night, Katie," he said. "Stay safe."
"I will. You stay safe, too. Good night, Simon."
After Simon had hung up, I fell back against the pillows and lay still for a moment, clutching the phone.
Then, I called Charisse.
I waited nervously, listening to the phone ring.
I hadn't spoken to Charisse in a long time, and I just wanted to hear her voice and know that she was okay. I wasn't sure, though, if Charisse would answer.
The phone rang and rang, and then went to voicemail.
With a heavy heart, I gave up and set the phone down.
I leaned my head back and closed my eyes. I could feel tears stinging my eyelids. I willed them not to fall.
They fell anyway.
I was hurt by Charisse's continued silence. I didn't understand how she could shut me out so completely. At this point, I didn't even care if Charisse went through with her marriage plans. I just wanted my friend back.
I breathed in and out deeply, trying to push the pain away. Soon, I felt myself relax. It wasn't late, but I suddenly realized how tired I was. I thought maybe I should take a nap, and then try to figure out what to do next about the strange men in the cave. I kept my eyes closed, and before long, I sank into sleep.
Some time later, I woke with a start. I sat up. I had a strong feeling that something had woken me, and I held my breath, listening.
The house was still.
I glanced at the clock next to my bed. I was shocked to see that it was a little past 11:30 p.m. I'd intended only to take a nap and had ended up sleeping for hours.
I felt unnaturally alert. I'd left the light on when I'd settled down for my nap, and I looked around my room, as I listened for signs of movement.
But there was no sound, and I figured I'd been awakened by GM coming up to go to bed.
I shook my head and tried to push the strange feeling I had aside. I stood up and stretched. I figured I should get ready for bed properly. I changed into my nightclothes, and I decided to keep William's charm on instead of placing on my nightstand like I usually did.
As I was running a brush through my hair, there was a scrabbling sound on the roof above me, and I froze. Though I could not have said why, my heart began to beat very fast.
I told myself that I was being silly – there was probably just a squirrel on the roof.
There was a long stretch of silence, and then the scrabbling sound came again. It was followed by a series of short, sharp stomps.
It sounded very much like someone was on the roof.
The stomps ran all the way across the roof and then disappeared.
I stood still, hoping very hard that the noises would stop. Somehow I knew I wouldn't be that lucky.
The house was mercifully silent for a few moments.
Then a rhythmic rattling began at the back of the house.
I hurried to my door and stepped out into the dark hall, every nerve in my body raw and tingling.
I looked toward GM's door, but everything was quiet in that direction. The rattling went on and on. It was clearly coming from below.
I crept down the stairs.
The rattling sounded louder and more forceful at the bottom of the stairs.
I stood in the dark hall with a bone-deep chill spreading through me, looking toward the back of the house. Someone was at the back door, trying to get in.
Horrorstruck, I remembered that all of the missing people had been stolen from their homes at night after their doors had been ripped from their hinges. Was that about to happen to me?
Suddenly, there was a loud pounding on the front door.
I was closer to the front door, and I whirled to face it.
The rattling in the back grew louder, and the pounding on the front door increased.
My blood turned to slow ice in my veins. Both exits were being attacked.
There was no way out.
With a terrifying crash, a section of the front door splintered, leaving a small gap.
I felt a scream rise to my lips, but I stifled it, my heart pounding painfully.
"Katie!" cried a voice from the front door.
Through my haze of fear, I realized the voice sounded like William's.
"Katie!" the voice cried again.
More of the front door splintered, letting in light from the street, and I inched toward it on shaking legs.
"William? Is that you?" I asked.
William's face appeared in the gaping hole in the broken door.
I felt relief flood through me. How had William seen me in the dark through that first small hole in the door? Of course, somehow he had also spotted me in the dark cave tunnel. He must have eyes like a cat.
There was one more terrific crash from the front door, and William battered his way through it. He was beside me in an instant.
His fingers dug into my arms.
"What are you doing here?" he whispered fiercely. "Why didn't you leave like I told you?"
"What do you mean?" I asked. "I left the Old Grove just like you said."
"When I told you to leave, I meant you should leave town – get as far away as possible."
Disappointment lanced through me sharply. "I didn't realize that's what you meant. Why don't you want me here?"
"It isn't that I don't want you here," he hissed. "After you were in the cave, the creature caught your scent. It hunts you now."
"But I put on the charm," I protested. "How can it find me?"
"You left a trail without it. It followed that trail to the house. It can't scent you now that you wear it, but here in the house it won't need to. It can hunt by sight."
"What is it?" I demanded. "If it's hunting me, I think I have a right to know."
William pulled me back toward the front door. "If it will help to convince you to leave, then I will tell you. The thing out there is a kost – an evil spirit. It inhabits the body of a man who was named Gleb Mstislav, and it has an active grudge against the living. It seeks only to kill. It is more than capable of tearing you and this house apart. Right now, it is just toying with you. It is trying to scare you before it comes in for you."
A cold so profound that it shook me from head to toe spread through my body. "What can we do?"
The rattling at the back door grew louder still.
William tried to pull me through the broken front door. "I have to get you out of here now."
I struggled in his grasp. "I have to get GM," I said frantically. "She's upstairs."
"I'll see that you both get out of here safely," William said. "But you have to hurry."
He took my hand in a firm grip and ran with me up the stairs. When we reached the top landing, he released me.
Pure (Book 1, Pure Series) Page 13
