by Dana Pratola
“Good idea. Hang on.”
He went back outside to the truck.
“Keep out of sight,” I whispered to Brenna. She didn’t respond, but something moved at the top of the stairs.
Ben came through the door again and I followed him up to the bedroom.
“You sure you want to do this?” he asked.
“Yeah, why?”
“Nothing … this bed doesn’t look much better than the couch, is all.” I heard him slap a palm on the mattress. “But sheets and a blanket might do wonders for it.”
“Yeah, and I won’t have to keep climbing the stairs to use the bathroom.”
“Right, I forgot,” he said. “It is better this way. I’ll make up the bed, then we can go into town.”
“Into town?”
“Or wherever. Let’s just take a drive or something. Get out of this house.”
“I was already at the hospital,” I said, half joking.
“You need fresh air. It’s so crusty and stale in here. Mind if I open a window?”
“Go ahead.”
He did, then made the bed up quick, before we walked out into the hall.
“What about the windows in here?” he asked, and I knew he meant Brenna’s room.
“Leave that. I won’t be in there anyway, that room creeps me out. In fact, just leave the door closed and we’ll pretend it doesn’t exist.”
He chuckled. “You’re not buying that haunted nonsense, are you?”
“Not at all. So, where are we headed?”
*****
I’d heard Ben mention town or driving around, so I took the opportunity to shower, praying they wouldn’t come back soon. I’d dried the tub and bottles and had just hidden the damp towels under my bed when my ears tuned in to the sound of car tires spitting out dirt and gravel as they came up the drive.
Oh no, not already! My pulse scrambled as my body did the same, racing from room to room to make sure everything concerning me was out of sight, and everything else just the way the men had left it—toilet flushed, lid up, bedroom door closed.
But as the tires drew closer, something else caught my ear. The high nasal tone of a female singer drifting through the air, carried on the current of bass and drums thumping from car speakers. Not at all the kind of song I’d expect men to be blasting.
I peeked out the window as a small lime green car came to a stop parallel with the front stairs. My heart hammered when the radio went off and a leggy brunette unfolded herself from the front seat, adjusted her tan cowgirl hat and stomped her booted feet up the stairs to the porch.
“Kash?” she called, knocking on the front door.
Oh, I hoped she didn’t come inside! “Please don’t come in, please don’t come in,” I muttered.
The front door opened. “Kash! It’s me. Tracy!” Boot heels struck the wood floor in the foyer. “Ka-ash….”
Oh great. Just great. I’d heard the men mention her. Josiah’s girlfriend, or ex. She walked around down there a minute or so, into the parlor, through the hall, to the kitchen, calling his name. I’m pretty sure she opened the cellar door, but her footsteps quickly returned to the other end of the house. Any minute she would come up here. I locked the door.
“Kash, where are you?” she asked, her voice growing louder as she climbed the steps. She walked around, then jiggled the knob on my door. “Kash, are you in there?”
I held my breath when she knocked, waited, and tried the knob again before finally moving on. Her phone rang and she answered it before the first ring ended.
“Hello?” she answered. “No, I’m looking for Kash. Doesn’t look like he’s here. Must be out with Ben.”
Her steps faded as she went back downstairs. I clicked the lock open, turning the knob ever … so … slowly. The door creaked slightly, but she was still on the phone.
“This is the creepiest place in the world,” she said. “No, it’s not haunted, don’t be stupid. There’s no such things as ghosts.”
She laughed, though it had that faint nervous edge to it as if she wasn’t as convinced as she wanted her caller to believe.
“It’s just as well Kash can’t see it,” she said. “Not that it matters. He’s a guy. What do they care if a place is a dump as long as they get their money’s worth? He’s gotten more than his money’s worth out of me, I’ll tell you that. I’ve been real nice to him. Now it’s time to make some moves. If he expects me to take care of his sorry butt, he better start forking over the green. He might not be able to see, but other people can, and it costs to take care of this body. My hair alone is over two-hundred dollars at the salon.” She paused, snorting with humor. “Come on, Pat, no one’s going to take care of a blind invalid out of the goodness of their heart. If not me, he’ll have to hire a nurse or something. At least with me he gets sex. He doesn’t have to see for that.”
My stomach turned in revulsion as she ridiculed Josiah, trading jibes with her friend at his expense. What would attract him to this woman? From what I saw, she was pretty, and had an okay shape, but that was true of a lot of girls.
I don’t know how long I stood there listening to her mocking him, laughing over how he would handle horses with no sight, when something in me just said, enough. I knew how scared Josiah was over what his future held. More than I was. Why not give her a tiny dose of fear right here, right now? Don’t believe in ghosts…?
I crept into the bathroom, turned on the faucet, and darted back to my room door, listening.
“Hold on….” she said.
She remained quiet for several seconds and I heard the faint voice on the other end of her phone from the bottom of the steps. Not close enough to make out what was said.
“I’m fine,” she answered. “Just … it sounds like the sink turned on. Yes, by itself.”
Floorboards creaked and I backed slowly into the room, shut and locked the door. I didn’t know if she was the type to come up or— Yup, I heard her footsteps on the stairs, slow, but persistent.
“It’s running,” she said. “Not a drip, full on.” She stopped at the top of the stairs. “Hello,” she called.
I relished the crack in her voice. A few hurried steps and the faucet went off, then more jogging steps down the stairs. I couldn’t very well leave it like that. I eased the door open listening carefully to make sure she was indeed downstairs. When I heard her voice from what sounded like the parlor, I went back into the bathroom and cranked the sink on again. This time, I gave the bathroom door a good slam before escaping to my room.
Tracy let out a squeal. “Agh! What the….? The door, a door, upstairs! No, I’m not kidding. The sink went back on and the door slammed. Stay on the phone with me, don’t you dare hang up!”
I sniggered into my hand as I listened to her hesitant steps coming closer. It irked me to have to give her credit for not having already run out the door, but I wasn’t finished yet.
“Kash, is that you?” she asked. “It has to be him, he’s messing with me,” she told her caller. “I don’t appreciate you messing with me, Kash, it’s not funny.”
There was a scraping sound just outside the door and I knew she would try the handle again. She did.
“I know you’re in there, Kash. Stop it! Come out here and stop trying to scare me.”
I couldn’t help it … really. I gripped the bed with both hands and dragged it across the floor. Then I lifted the heavy wood corner and let it fall to the floor with a bang! Tracy’s footsteps fled as far as the stairs and her voice trembled when she spoke.
“Real mature. Yeah … real mature.” I heard a foot land on a stair. “I don’t know,” she addressed her caller. “Of course it’s him, who else? I told you, there are no such things … I don’t care what she says.”
Another minute passed while Tracy tried to talk herself into a normal heartrate. When her voice faded, I pressed my ear to the floor. It sounded like she was in the area of the kitchen.
Once again, I went into the hall, this time closing the do
or behind me. She’d been too afraid to open the bathroom door or turn off the water, so I did. I also flushed the toilet, banged the door twice for good measure, and instead of running back to my room, hid in the small linen closet in the hall.
The sound of running footsteps carried to me and I could barely contain myself. I didn’t have to. Really, what could she do if she found me here? Make me leave? No. And scaring her was too much fun, even at the risk of discovery. I held my laughter in and pressed my ear against the door. She didn’t come up this time.
“This is crazy!” she said, either to Josiah or to her friend on the phone, but it sounded like she was at the bottom of the steps.
I know it was mean, yet after hearing her cut up Josiah, I wasn’t feeling very nice. Next to me in the dark closet was an old cardboard box I’d found my first day here. Among some other small odds and ends, there were at least three marbles inside. I felt around for the box, reached in and found a marble, then cracked the door open, just enough for it to stay out of sight of the stairway, but enough that if I did it right…. Yes, sure it would work.
She stood there yacking, calling Josiah rude, threatening to get him back for trying to terrify her, the whole time her voice shaking, not from anger, I would bet.
I couldn’t risk opening the closet door any farther, so I bent sideways, reached down as far as I could, and used my forefinger and middle finger to thrust the marble out into the hall with enough force to rebound off the rail and roll down the stairs.
Roll. Click. Roll. Click…
This time there was no mistaking the sound of Tracy’s boot heels running out onto the porch and down the steps.
“You suck, Kash!” she yelled, though I wasn’t convinced she thought it was him.
I left my hiding place and went to the small window at the end of the hall outside my room to see Tracy pacing, phone to her ear, hand waving in frenzy as she complained to her listener. Of course, I found it hysterical. Just for good measure, I slammed my door so that she heard, and froze for an instant.
She jumped into her car and started to pull away just as Ben’s truck started up the driveway. Her car stopped in a flurry of dust and she got out, grabbing tight to Ben’s door. Amid arm flailing and pointing, there were accusations of Josiah being mean to boobytrap the house to mess with her head, and if it wasn’t a joke, he was just plain crazy to stay here. I admit it was a proud moment.
Josiah wasn’t visible from this angle, but Ben rolled his eyes, turned off the engine and got out, nearly knocking her down with the door. More yelling followed from Tracy, stoic silence from Josiah, and a few lowered words from Ben I couldn’t make out.
Josiah got out of the truck and shrugged, letting his hands fall to his sides as Tracy hopped in her car and sped away in a rage. Ben waved bye bye over his shoulder.
I hurried to open the bathroom door, then went into my room to push the bed back into place before they came inside, but it was too heavy to move quietly and by the time I had a good grip, I heard them downstairs.
“She’s nuts,” Ben said.
“Not exactly news,” Josiah answered.
“You’ve been here for days. Have you heard banging doors or had sinks turn themselves on?”
“Not once.”
Josiah sounded amused, though it was hard to tell past the blood pumping through my ears.
“Be right back,” he said, and came up the stairs.
I spied out through the bedroom door. He had no way of knowing where Ben was if he wanted to say something, but he went straight into the bathroom, shutting the door. When he came back out, he turned his head toward my room, smirking.
“We’ll talk after,” he said under his breath, then went downstairs.
A few minutes later I heard the familiar strains of the Rocky theme song, sporadic remarks, then just the movie. I set my vibrating alarm for the morning, pulled my blanket to the floor and lay behind the closed door, listening through the crack at the floor, watching with my mind’s eye. I’d never been a huge Rocky fan, though it was better than listening to myself think.
*****
I don’t know how much time passed before a crash of thunder woke me by tossing my heart into my throat. Oh Lord, not now! It rumbled away only to have another follow close on its heels, and along with it, panic. My old nemesis. Suddenly, violently demanding, clawing at my chest, squeezing my stomach, crushing my lungs. I couldn’t have a panic attack now, not while the men were in the house! I had to hold it together.
A flash of light arched through the sky, illuminating the room, seeking me out. I grabbed fistfuls of blanket and scurried to the far corner on the window side of the wall, back where the bed had been moved away to reveal my safety spot. With my head tucked beneath the blanket, and my knees drawn in tight to my body, the terrible bolt of hot blue death wouldn’t reach me. Not here.
What did reach me, penetrating beneath my hands pressed tightly to my ears, was Josiah’s voice.
“Brenna.”
I heard him whisper so clearly in front of me. I peeked out from behind my cloth shield to find him standing a few feet away, his eyes searching uselessly for me.
“Brenna,” he repeated.
Of its own volition, my hand shot out grasping his, startling him at first, but he pulled me to my feet, into his chest. I released a helpless cry as he hugged me to him, solid, real, and safe.
“Shh,” he said, stroking a hand down my hair and back. “It’s okay, you’re okay.”
Another streak, and punch of thunder had me clutching at the back of his shirt and letting out a little squeal, which he tried to muffle against his shoulder.
“Shh. Ben’ll hear you.”
Even as he said it, Ben called out from below. “Kash, you okay?”
He released me and went into the hall as I pressed myself against the wall behind the door.
“Yup. Thunder woke me.”
“Yeah, me too,” Ben said. “Wild out there.”
Ben’s voice rose to the top of the stairs even as Josiah’s moved further away.
“Supposed to get a line of storms over the next week,” Josiah said.
There was a pause and feet shuffling before Ben spoke. “So, you’re good up here?”
“Yeah, fine.” Josiah yawned. “Night.”
“Uh … yeah … night,” Ben said.
I couldn’t be sure, but it sounded like his voice was aimed in my direction. He had to notice the door open. Though what was the worst that could happen if he found me? Josiah knew I was here. I admit, however, I still wondered why he kept me a secret.
Actually, Ben might shoot me. I was tempted to disclose my location now, but for all I knew, he had his gun out and might fire at the first thing that moved. I couldn’t move anyway if I’d wanted to, when a jagged line of light etched the sky in front of me, pinning me to the wall. I managed not to freak out—surprising myself—and held my breath until I heard Ben walk away. I turned, enough to catch a glimpse of him through the gap between door and jamb. He headed downstairs.
“Night,” he told Josiah. “If you need anything, let me know.”
“Will do.”
From my hiding place, I saw Josiah motion me toward him, somehow guessing Ben wouldn’t be looking and I would. He went into his room and I waited until Ben settled back on the couch before sneaking along the hall to Josiah.
As soon as I entered, he closed the door.
“Is there a lock?” he whispered.
“No.” I wasn’t overly worried about Ben at this point. My real enemy filled the windows with dangerous arrows of light and the night sky with the crackling sounds of death.
CHAPTER 14
I sat on the bed. “Come, sit.” I spoke gently so she wouldn’t fear me, and so Ben wouldn’t hear. “I won’t hurt you.”
“I know,” she replied, so softly I barely made it out.
She shifted next to me when the wind whipped against the windows and I knew I would find her hands gripped tight in her lap. I
reached for them, finding them just as I’d thought.
“The storm’s passing,” I whispered, giving them a squeeze.
“How did you know I was…?”
“I recognize the sounds of a girl trying to be brave when she’s terrified.” The restless shuffling, the not quite silent squeals at each bolt of light.
“I’m sorry. I didn’t mean to bother you.”
“You aren’t bothering me, Brenna. I just couldn’t stand the thought of you in there frightened. Alone. I have a niece who has astraphobia, like you.”
“Wow, you know the name for it and everything.”
“She’s twenty and won’t leave the house if it looks like rain.” It sounded like she sniffled. I hoped she wasn’t crying. “If you need me to hold you, I will.”
“No, it’s okay.” She turned her hand over to squeeze mine, then let it go. “I’m better, thanks.”
But she trembled still.
“Have you been afraid of lightning your whole life?”
Her shoulder moved against mine. “No. Not until I saw a bunch of my grandparents’ cows die.”
“That’ll do it.”
She chuckled, nervous laughter that usually preceded hysteria.
“Hey, let’s try this,” I said.
I didn’t wait for her to ask what, and I didn’t want to frighten her, but threw my arm around her and started massaging her upper back.
“You don’t have to—”
“It helps,” I interrupted. Thanks to my Aunt Jody, I knew exactly which muscles would release nearly all of that tension currently locked in her spine. “You know what would work better…?”
“No…?”
Her suspicion was evident. I pulled back. “Sit here on the floor.”
“What?”
It was a low bed—low frame, low mattress—so with her shoulders in front of me, she might feel more comfortable than with my hands all over her on the bed.
“Seriously. My aunt showed me this trick for relaxing. Works wonders.”
“I’m not sure I want to relax.”
“Brenna, I’m not going to try anything.”
