Read Spooksville 17: The Thing in the Closet Online
Authors: Christopher Pike
Spooksville 17: The Thing in the Closet (2 page)
Cindy shook her head. 'This was real. I saw it with my own eyes. What do you guys think it could have been?'
'I have never heard of anything like this before,' Watch said.
'Perhaps there is an interdimensionai portal in your bedroom closet,' Bryce suggested.
'There's one in the cemetery.'
'And Cindy's bedroom is like a morgue,' Sally added.
'This was not like the Secret Path,' Cindy said, referring to the magical portal that they had used before to travel in time and other dimensions.
'How can you be sure?' Bruce asked. 'You say the light had no obvious source. Maybe its source was another dimension, that for some reason closed when you opened the door.'
Cindy was thoughtful. 'I suppose that is possible.'
'How did this green light feel?' Tira asked. Because she was still getting used to the modern world, she spent more time watching and listening than giving suggestions. But they had all learned from experience that Tira was intuitive. She often knew things she had no way of knowing. The others suspected this ability was a lingering effect of her having been with a No One for two hundred years. They didn't say that to her, however, since she seemed reluctant to talk about the No Ones at all.
'What do you mean?' Cindy asked.
'Did the light feel good?' Tira asked.
Cindy hesitated. 'No. It felt cold. It felt . . . evil.'
Tira nodded. 'I thought so.'
'Wait a second,' Sally said. 'How can a light feel evil?'
Cindy shrugged. 'Maybe evil is too strong a word. But it definitely didn't feel like a good thing. I was glad when it vanished.' She paused and glanced at Tira. 'Why did you think it was evil?'
Tira's eyes were far away, as they often were.
'I just felt it was not good,' she said quietly.
Cindy smiled nervously. 'Now you're scaring me.'
'Maybe a little fear is good,' Adam said. 'Maybe Tira or Sally should sleep over with you tonight.'
'I don't want to sleep over at her house,' Sally said. 'Not if she has green goo dripping out of her closet.'
'I told you, it was green light,' Cindy said. 'Anyway, I don't want you to sleep over.' She paused, and added, 'I'll be all right.'
'Are you sure?' Tira asked. 'I don't mind staying with you.'
Cindy forced a smile. 'I'm not afraid of a little green glow.'
'But it is possible this glow is the tip of the iceberg,' Watch said. 'A radioactive nuclear bomb can give off a faint green glow. It can also wipe out an entire city. I would like to examine your closet, Cindy, right now.'
Cindy stood up. 'That's fine. I think my mother and brother are out shopping. Now is a good time.'
The gang gathered around the closet, as if peering into a strange realm, and yet they saw nothing unusual. The rear of the closet seemed as substantial as ever and none of the clothes showed any lingering effect of the glow. Sally picked up one of Cindy's woollen hats and tried it on.
'How do I look?' she asked, posing for the others.
'Go for the whole effect and pull it down over your face,' Bryce suggested.
Sally made a face. 'Very funny. Cindy, I didn't know you had so many hats.'
'It is a hobby of mine to collect them,' Cindy admitted.
'I like to collect watches,' Watch said.
'Who would have guessed?' Sally said.
Adam stepped into the closet and felt along the walls.
'There don't seem to be any hidden trap doors,' he said, running his fingers along the wood. 'At least none that I can feel.'
Watch nodded. 'But that is not necessarily good news. It might mean the light has a supernatural origin.'
Cindy cringed. 'Are you saying my closet is haunted?'
'Not necessarily,' Watch replied, turning to Tira. 'Do you feel anything strange here?'
Tira stood still for a moment.
'No,' she said finally. 'But it is not dark. That might make a difference.'
'Why do you say that?' Cindy asked.
'You mentioned on the way over here that your lamp went out while the green light was there,' said Adam. 'It only came on when the glow left. There might be a connection.'
'Maybe you just need a nightlight,' Sally said to Cindy. 'Sissy.'
'A battery-powered nightlight might not be a bad idea,' Watch said.
'Why battery-powered?' Cindy asked.
Watch shrugged. 'The glow appeared to short the wall socket the last time.'
'Personally I think we are making a big fuss about nothing more than a bad dream,' said Sally, trying on another one of Cindy's hats. This one was like a Girl Scout's cap, only the emblem was missing.
'But you're the one who is always warning us about every little omen,' Cindy said.
'Maybe I am getting more sensible in my old age,' Sally said.
'I don't know,' Adam said. 'I don't like leaving you alone tonight, Cindy.'
Cindy put on a brave front 'That's not necessary. If the green glow returns, I'll call you immediately, Adam.'
He nodded reluctantly. 'I'll be over straight away.'
'Sounds like true love to me,' Sally said, with a smirk on her face.
Three
That night, unsurprisingly Cindy had trouble falling asleep. She had not told her mother or little brother about the light. When it came to fighting ugly aliens and other evil forces of darkness, the gang usually kept to themselves. Cindy could hear her mother and brother sleeping peacefully in their adjoining bedrooms. She only wished she could do likewise.
But she could not keep her eyes off the closet, even though she had closed the door firmly.
She had even propped her desk chair against the door knob, to prevent anything from trying to break into her room. She was just being foolish, she knew, but she wanted to be safe.
But safe from what?
She wished she had bought a nightlight.
Cindy hadn't even lain down yet, at least not for any length of time. Each time she relaxed she thought she heard a faint sound from the direction of the closet and it would make her
sit up with a start. Of course each time there would be nothing there. Yet it did not stop her from jumping up the next time as well.
'This is stupid,' she said aloud. 'I'll be exhausted in the morning. And I have to study all day tomorrow.'
She glanced at the clock.
It was already one in the morning.
Outside the window it was very dark. Something scratched at the glass but it was only the branch of a tree, moved by the wind. Gathering her blanket close to her chin, she tried lying down again.
It was then she noticed the green glow.
Coming from beneath her closet door.
Cindy practically flew out of her bed, she sat up so quickly.
She reached for the lamp switch. But the lamp would not go on. She grabbed the phone beside her bed, and was grateful to hear the dialling tone. But she had trouble dialling Adam's number in die dark, in her terror. It was true, the green glow seemed much more horrible tonight. Finally, though, his phone began to ring. It took Adam three long rings before he answered. He sounded sleepy.
'Hello?' he said.
'Adam!' she hissed. 'It's back!'
He took a moment. 'The green glow?'
'Yeah! It's on right now in my closet.'
'Wow.'
'What should I do? Can you really come over?'
'Yeah, I can come. I can be there in ten minutes. But don't do anything until I get there.
Stay away from the closet.'
'Should I call the others?'
Adam considered. 'Not yet Let me look at it.'
'All right.'
'Stay cool, Cindy. It's only a light It can't hurt you.'
'Then why do you want me to stay away from it?'
He hesitated. 'You can never be too careful in this town. I'm on my way.'
They exchanged goodbyes and then Cindy was alone again, with the green glow. Even though the closet door was closed, it definitely seemed brighter than the previous night.
That just scared her all the more. Yet she was hesitant to leave the room, to just leave the glow to its own devices. Even though she got out of bed, she found herself pacing almost helplessly in front of the closet. It was if the green glow had some kind of sick hold over her. She was afraid to be near it and afraid to let it out of her sight.
Then she heard a faint sound.
A faint rustling. Inside the closet.
'Oh no,' she gasped.
It was alive. Maybe that meant it was hungry.
Summoning her courage, Cindy stepped to the closet door and checked to make sure the top of her chair was wedged tightly against the door knob. Every muscle in her body quivered. There was definitely something moving inside the closet. Although it was not making much noise, it sounded big. It even sounded as if it was rubbing up against the door.
Trying to get out Trying to get to her.
Cindy let go of the chair and took a step back.
'Please hurry, Adam,' she whispered.
Then there was a sharp bang inside the closet.
A bang against the door. The chair rattled.
Every nerve in her body rattled.
'Oh,' Cindy moaned.
Another hard bang. The chair fell to the side.
Cindy stood frozen in terror.
The green glow blazed from under the door.
Tears rolled down Cindy's face.
'Somebody help me,' she cried softly.
But no one heard her. No one helped her.
The closet door slowly opened.
The thing came out of the closet. The horrible thing.
And it grabbed Cindy. Grabbed her as she went to scream.
Then it took her away. Back into the closet.
Down into a dark place where no one could hear her scream.
Four
When Adam reached Cindy's house, he did not knock on the front door. He was afraid of disturbing her mother or little brother. It was an unspoken code among them that they did not bring family into their private business, which largely consisted of staying alive in Spooksville. Instead, Adam slipped down the side of the house and knocked lightly on Cindy's bedroom window. The night was cool and she had her window shut tight Still, he was surprised when, after a minute, she did not answer. He knocked again and waited.