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I fell into the room with a thud, only to stare into the angry eyes of my father.
Pulling myself from the floor, I gave him an apologetic smile. “Uh... hi?”
His jaw ticked and he crossed his arms. “What in God’s name are you doing sneaking out at this hour?”
“Um, well, I wanted to go outside for a bit. I couldn’t sleep.” I winced a little. My excuse didn’t sound convincing even to my own ears.
“Through your window? You know, most people use the door to leave the house.”
I grimaced. “I’m really sorry. I just couldn’t sleep.”
“If I didn’t know any better, I would think you snuck out to hang out with your friends. Where did you go?” he asked, narrowing his eyes.
I rushed out, “Not far. Just around the yard and stuff.”
“No, you didn’t. I checked when you weren’t in your room. Now, Jazmin Daniella Evans, don’t you lie to me!” His voice rose an octave. “Where in Pete’s sake did you go?!”
What do I say? Well, Dad, you’re right. I did sneak out, but not to meet up with friends. I went walking down the road. Being the smart teenager that I am, I went into the woods in the middle of the night. I saw a ghost, who pointed to some crazy people worshiping in Latin with blood and a sharp knife while I watched. Then this hot boy from school came and walked me home. Can I do it again? Yeah, right. That wouldn’t go over very well.
Instead, I repeated, “I just took a walk down the road and then came back home.”
He pointed at me, his jaw ticking again. “We’ll talk about this in the morning. Right now I’m too tired and upset to do anything about it.” He made his way to my door. “Go to bed.” With that, he slammed my door, my open window rattling from the force.
Crap. Probably in more trouble than I had ever been, I was caught sneaking out. Not that I hadn’t ridden the grounded train before, but I had a feeling there would be a butt chewing along with the grounding. I threw myself on the bed and stared at the dark ceiling until I fell asleep, the images of devil worshiping and ghosts fresh on my mind.
*****
“Help me,” said small a voice muffled by dark, murky water.
The dress floated in my vision and an outstretched hand snatched my wrist. Only this time she dragged me into the depths of the lake, her cold fingers tight and relentless. I struggled against her hold, only to see her face in the water for the first time. The same face from the apparition I saw last night. Bubbles from my scream underwater tickled my skin, and the ring I wore burned against my finger.
I woke with a strangled cry, sitting up in bed so fast I felt disoriented for a moment. Running a hand over my face, I muttered, “These dreams are getting old.”
Still, the girl from the water was the same one from the road pointing toward the crazies in the woods. What did it mean? I glanced down at the silver ring with Sophia engraved on the inside, twisting it around my finger. Something about this ring was connecting me to the ghost.
I reached over to grab my laptop and sat cross-legged on the bed as it loaded. Then I clicked the internet icon and debated on whether what I was about to search was insane. However, I typed in “missing girls in Indiana” anyway. A page of missing girls with police contact info popped up my screen. I looked at each individual face, hoping my suspicions were wrong.
Then I saw the picture of a smiling blonde girl and went cold. Sophia Lauren Carver had been missing for over a year, her whereabouts unknown. Last seen in a city about twenty minutes from here, the local police had labeled her a runaway. Her hometown listed was Crawstone. And the worst part of it all? Her face was the same one from last night, except she hadn’t been alive when I saw her.
I sat back in shock. No freaking way. What were the odds? I glanced back down to the ring currently situated on my right pinky finger. This was her ring. Did that mean we had the same locker and had attended the same school? I thought back to Derek stating that girls disappeared when they left town, most likely kidnapped in the next town over. However, I had suspicions on how she’d disappeared.
Shivering, I slammed my laptop shut. There was no way I could tell anyone about this or about the ghost I’d seen. They’d think I was crazy. Insane. Lost my marbles. Instead, I decided I’d find out exactly what had happened to her and then bring it to the police, but I had to be quiet about what I knew until I had absolute proof. Otherwise, I may end up in a home for the mentally ill.
Today was Saturday, and I was supposed to swim with Derek, Allie, and Kate, but I didn’t think I would be going after what I’d learned. Then again, how would I get out of it? Hey, guys. I’m not going to swim in a lake where a potential dead body is, so I’m out on this one. Yeah, that would go over really well.
My father knocked on my door, waking me from my internal thoughts. “Are you awake?”
I told him I was and he opened the door. He frowned and scratched the salt-and-pepper stubble on his chin. “Jaz, your mother and I talked about what happened last night. Even though I should ground you until you’re thirty, your mother disagreed. If we grounded you and took away your electronics and friends, you would rebel even harder. That’s not what I want to happen; even though you know what you did is wrong. I know this move has been hard on you, but I want you to promise me that you’ll never sneak out of this house again. And if you do, so help me God, I will ground you until you’re thirty.” When I just stared at him, he said, “Promise me, Jaz.”
“I promise,” I lied. I didn’t intend to stay in this house when I needed to figure out what happened to Sophia. I felt I owed her that much. My phone beeped with a text from my nightstand. “Can I still go swimming with my friends today?”
Dad rolled his eyes and shook his head. “I suppose. But you text me when you get there and when you’re headed back. Okay?”
I nodded in agreement. If I could go swimming, which I wasn’t sure I would even do with what may lie beneath the water, I’d go on principle alone. And maybe I could ask the gang about Sophia.
He glanced at me one more time, and then he quietly shut the door behind him.
I pulled out my phone and read the text from Allie. U still on 4 today? Pick u up in 20?
I sent a text back yep and began to get dressed. The clock read almost noon, and I’d wasted enough time. Throwing on the same bikini from the other day, I rushed to grab a towel and slip on my flip-flops. I didn’t know what I may see today, or if I wanted Sophia to show herself, but my heart pounded with anticipation. Was I really hoping to see a ghost again? Yes, I was.
