“I’ll handle this. George, you keep working down here.” Mr. Miller walked toward George’s parents who were now approaching them.
From the boathouse, George could hear his parents yelling. His mother dialed the police on her cell phone. His father yelled his name and demanded to know what Mr. Miller had done with Eddie.
George was about to go talk to them to tell them he was fine, but Jake stopped him. “Don’t do it. If you go up there, they will just put you in the car and make you leave. Why do you think he went up there instead of you? I’ll go.” Jake went up to talk to his parents.
One by one, the rest of the kids approached his parents and introduced themselves, pleading with them to let George stay. Sarah went last, and offered his mother a candle. “Please, Mr. and Mrs. Morgan. Just give George fifteen minutes, okay?”
“You have until the police arrive,” his father addressed Mr. Miller. “Until then, George stays by my side. The only reason we’re staying is to make sure nothing happens to the rest of these kids.”
His mother accepted the candle. “Would it be okay if I looked in the boathouse?” Mr. Miller nodded while George watched his father shoot him a skeptical look. She continued with pleading eyes, “Daniel, our baby may be in there.” Without saying a word, George’s father looked at all the candlelit faces, one by one. He gave his silent approval with a quick nod.
George watched his mother walk into the boathouse alone. He wondered why his father had such a problem with his mom going in there when he’d wanted to look around the boathouse himself. It was oddly quiet while George’s mom was inside, as if nobody knew what to say. When she came out, his mother was crying.
Come on, Eddie. What do I do? Help me. George knew the police would be there soon and his time was almost up.
Chills suddenly ran through him as he felt a cold breeze blow across him from the lake. There usually wasn’t any wind this time of year. The wind carried with it a small voice. “Find me, George.”
George walked around the dock of the boathouse. Sitting on the ground, was Emily’s doll. He knew it hadn’t been there before, one of them would have seen it when they first got there. A small hair clip with pink diamonds sparkled in the moonlight.
He picked up the doll and took the hair clip off, staring at it for a moment. It was in the shape of a small shooting star.
Could it really be this simple?
He took the metal piece from his pocket and noticed the entire piece was glowing, almost pulsating. As he brought the two pieces together, the glow got brighter. George knew he had it now. The hair clip fit in as one of the constellations and snapped into place.
George took his new creation and fit it into the side door. It went in on the first try. As if the boathouse had been jumpstarted, a shockwave went out, and he fell backward. George backed away, still on the ground, inching toward the others.
Everyone stared at the boathouse in shock. George regained his footing. They could all feel what was happening. With the doll still in his hands, George walked back toward the boathouse.
Mr. Miller stopped him. “Not the front door. You must go through the side to reverse things. You only have one shot at this.”
“Why don’t you go? George doesn’t need to go in there!” his mother protested.
“It has to be me, Mom. I have a connection to both of them. I can get them out. Trust me,” George pleaded with his mother and could see the fear in her eyes. He looked to his father for help, but he knew he needed his mother’s support on this one.
After a brief pause, she simply nodded. Then she hugged him tightly, and when she let go, she whispered in his ear, “Bring him home.”
The boathouse was different than he had ever seen it before. The inside glowed a bright pinkish orange color, with a static vibration buzzing all around him. There was a loud humming noise that deafened.
“Take my hand. Close your eyes, George. Don’t let yourself get lost in here. The power is too strong. Don’t stop moving.” George felt Eddie’s hand leading him through the boathouse. The air was thick, as if he was trying to run through water.
The two brothers were almost at the door when George stopped. The boards cracked and shifted under his feet, and he could feel the vibrations of the boathouse through his entire body. It felt like it was about to swallow them whole.
“George, we can’t stop moving!” Eddie yelled above the noise.
“Where’s Emily?” George yelled in a panic.
“I don’t know. She went back for something. She didn’t make it back in time.” Eddie’s voice cracked. George could tell he was upset. “We have to go. You are my first responsibility. I can’t let anything happen to you.”
“I’m not leaving without Emily!”
“We can’t wait. It will take us all. We have to leave now, George!” Eddie demanded.
Just as he was about to protest further, he felt a hand on his shoulder. “I’m here. Go!” The three of them pushed open the front door of the boathouse and collapsed when they hit solid ground