The Demon Notebook (14 page)

Grace turned off the tap and turned toward the table, drying her hands on a tea towel as she went.

“Yeah,” she whispered. “I'm fine.”

Her mom's pork chops were not her favorite, but she ate them gladly, somehow feeling comforted by the warm dinner made lovingly for her.

“I'm going to see your aunt Janet on Sunday,” her mother said. “She finally got to bring the brand-new puppy home—a little cocker spaniel. He's gorgeous! Why don't you come over with me?”

“I don't know,” Grace mumbled. “If I can.”

“I thought you were dying to see him,” her mother said with surprise. “When I showed you that photo of all the puppies, you didn't shut up about them for the whole day. Don't you want to meet the little guy?”

“Yeah.” Grace sighed, stuffing another chunk of pork chop into her mouth. “Just might be busy with the girls, that's all. Sorry, Mom. I do want to see him though. Just maybe not this weekend.”

There was a pause, then Grace's mother reached over and stroked the back of Grace's hand.

“Are you sure you're all right, sweetheart?”

Grace looked up and managed a pained smile.

“Yeah, I'm fine.”

Beneath the deep dark blue of the night sky, sat the heavy silhouette of the Stone House. Even in the light of the full moon, the house was pitch black, like it sucked all the light out of its surroundings. There was no wind, no sound in the air at all. Huddled on Rachel's windowsill, the girls gazed mournfully out at the dreaded shape at the end of the field. Jenny held four matchsticks tightly in her fist. One by one, the girls picked. Grace exhaled loudly as she drew out one of the longer sticks. Rachel did the same. Jenny and Adie exchanged worried looks as Adie reached forward and plucked out a matchstick. She stared hard at the stubby piece of wood between her fingertips, and her bottom lip trembled.

“Sorry, Adie,” Jenny whispered, opening her hand to reveal the final stick.

Adie said nothing, but the tears were already dripping down her cheeks and onto the carpet. The others placed the chi orb and a wooden shaker, full of some powder made by Ms. Lemon, into her hands. They moved silently, without speaking, as if the slightest noise would somehow break their friend. Sniffing softly, Adie got to her feet. She turned to give one agonized look to her friends, then disappeared through the bedroom door.

Within moments they could see her in the garden, climbing over the fence. Grace felt a horrible pang in her chest as Adie walked slowly forward. Pausing now and then, Grace could see her shoulders shudder violently and knew that her friend was sobbing with fear. She felt hot tears run down her own face as she remembered Adie's grip on her wrist, pulling her to safety on the roof earlier. Before she knew it, she was on her feet and racing down the field toward the pale figure in the dark.

“Adie, stop!”

Adie swung around.

“Grace, what are you doing? I have to go in
alone
.”

Grace grabbed the orb and the wooden shaker, and pushed her friend back toward Rachel's house.

“I'm going in,” she said firmly, raising a finger as Adie began to protest. “I've decided, so don't bother arguing with me. I'm going in.”

Adie's tears began to fall afresh. She shook her head and hugged Grace tightly.

“Be careful,” she whispered.

Grace pulled back and smiled at her.

“See you in a little bit. Don't let the others finish off the marshmallows before I get back.”

Adie tried to smile in return as Grace backed away and turned to face the Stone House.

It was only a bungalow, but somehow it seemed to tower over her, its broken gabled roof reaching into the night sky. She heard the soft pad of Adie's feet on the grass get quieter and quieter until they were gone. Squeezing the magical items in her hands, she moved toward the building, close enough now to make out the individual stones in the walls. The roof was mostly gone. It had crumbled away with part of one wall, leaving a gaping hole in one side of the house that revealed nothing but more darkness.

Grace's footsteps seemed too loud. She slowed to a crawl and placed her feet carefully, trying to mute the sound. When she was close enough, she went around the house in a wide circle, until she was facing the front door. A broken, ancient rectangle of wood hung at a slight angle in the doorway. She jerked her head suddenly. Was that a whisper?

Glancing rapidly around, Grace couldn't see anyone. But there it was again. A soft, high-pitched whisper. There was another! And another!

Grace's knees weakened, but she stepped forward. As she got closer to the worm-eaten door, the whispers grew louder and louder. They were discordant and shrill. The sound hurt her ears. Squinting against it, she put her hand on the broken door and pushed. The door swung open, and there was sudden silence.

Grace couldn't see a thing inside the house. It was too dark. Willing herself forward, she felt the grainy stone floor beneath her feet. The moon shone through the dilapidated roof, but it wasn't until she stepped farther inside that she could make out the wooden furniture that lay in pieces around the room. There were no pictures on the walls, and no other evidence that anyone had ever lived in this house. Without warning, the door behind her slammed shut with a loud bang.

Grace let out a small scream and fell to her knees. A loud blast of piercing whispering exploded around her, making her cry out in pain as if her eardrums would burst. Her hands felt numb and useless as she fumbled with the wooden shaker, messily scattering the powder in a circle around herself. Sitting back on her knees again and shutting her eyes against the horrible noise, she cupped the orb in her hands and raised it above her head.

“Time,” Ms. Lemon had said. “There's no work involved here, it just takes time. The powder will pull them in eventually.”

Grace gripped the heavy blue orb in her hands and desperately wished for it all to be over. The first hit took her totally off guard. Her eyes shot open, and she felt another sharp smack across her face. There was nothing around her but thin air, yet she could swear the strike came from an open hand. She let out a shuddering breath as something behind her pulled at her hair.

Amid the violence, there were gentler attempts at interaction too. She felt something sweep over her arms, like silk being pulled across her skin. But then,
whack
! Another hit.

Grace's eyes were stinging with tears when, below the dreadful hissing whispers, she heard the dull sound of wood dragging over stone. She looked to her left in alarm, just as a chair leg flew at her head. She ducked, barely avoiding it, and struggled with all her strength to keep the orb in both hands. More wooden pieces flew. She managed to avoid two of them, but the third caught her painfully on the shoulder. Warmth trickled down her back, and she knew that she was bleeding.

Tears ran down Grace's face, stinging the cuts on her cheeks. The whispering became shrieking, so loud she was sure the whole town could hear it.

“Please!” she begged aloud. “
Please!
”

She squeezed her eyes shut again—and then the orb gave a powerful shake, heating suddenly until she could barely hold it. Relief flooded through Grace as the shrieking died down to a whisper, and then to silence. She looked up and exhaled softly. It was over.

But wait. Grace squinted. Was that something—something moving in the darkest corner of the room?

“Hello, Grace,” said a voice she knew only too well.

***

Back in Rachel's room, Jenny had switched off the lights so the girls could see as much as possible through the gloomy darkness outside. Adie sat on her knees, tucked between the other two, plucking worriedly at her socks as she watched Grace's small frame disappear into the blackness.

“She's gone in!” Rachel hissed.

“How do you know?” Adie whispered. “Can you see her?”

“Just about. Before she went inside.”

“I can't believe she did it,” murmured Jenny.

“What do you think is happening in there?” asked Adie.

There was a long moment of silence as they each imagined the worst—screaming ghouls, terrifying ghosts, and horrible specters wrenching at Grace's hair, scratching her skin, and pounding on her limbs.

“I can't think about it,” Adie's voice rasped in the dark.

“What's that?” Rachel said, sitting up suddenly.

“What?” said Jenny.

“There, at the back of the field.”

“I can't see anything.” Jenny was straining her neck and squinting.

“There!” Rachel pointed urgently. “Something's coming through the ditch.”

In the pale light of the moon, they could just make out a dark figure clawing its way through the overgrown brambles to the left of the Stone House. It stood slowly, brushing broken briars from its arms, then raised its face to the sky. Rachel sucked in a panicked breath.

“
It's her!
” she screeched.

***

Grace twisted around so quickly, she fell onto her back.

“Una!” she gasped. “Where did you come from?”

“What are you doing here, Grace?” The voice was a chilling monotone.

Grace got clumsily to her feet without using her hands. She held the orb to her stomach, trying to conceal it as best she could.

“The girls dared me to come out here,” she said, her voice strained. “Like you did that time, Una. Remember?”

The non-Una had stepped out of the corner and began circling the room, keeping her pulsing red eyes on Grace the whole time. Grace edged toward the doorway.

“I guess we both win the game this time, huh?” she said, trying to smile.

“I know what you're trying to do,” said the demon. It took a step forward.

Grace's legs suddenly took flight. She raced through the open door and sprinted toward Rachel's house. She ran so fast she felt sick, but she kept going and did not look back. Behind her, she could hear the pounding of feet. As she got closer to the garden fence, she faltered, squinting against the motion sensor light that suddenly flicked on.

Three figures emerged from the light, urging her on, and reaching out for her.

“She's right behind you, Grace,
run
!” screamed Adie.

But she wasn't quick enough. The non-Una grabbed a handful of her sweater and snapped her back, like a fish caught on a rod. She flew through the air, landing heavily on the ground. She scrabbled at the orb as it rolled away from her fingertips. Suddenly, Grace was flipped onto her back. Helpless, arms pinned by her side, she was now staring straight into the non-Una's terrifying red eyes…

Just when she thought it was all over, Grace felt someone barrel into the demon from behind, sending her flying into the grass. Someone else grabbed Grace's arms and pulled her to her feet.

“The orb!” Grace screamed. “I dropped it!”

“Got it!” she heard Jenny's voice shout in the dark.

Grace reached out for her, clutching Jenny's free hand before making a dash toward the house. She could hear Adie's terror-filled breaths just behind her as she ran. A sudden scream echoed around them.

“
Rachel
!
” Jenny shouted. She skidded to a halt, dropped Grace's hand, and raced back the way they had come. Grace and Adie followed, gasping for breath. Again Rachel's frightened cries rang out in the cold air. In the center of the field, she squirmed on her knees as the non-Una held her throat in a powerful grip.

“
Give
me
the
orb!
” the demon's voice growled, its burning red eyes glaring at the heavy paperweight in Jenny's hand.

Jenny stood paralyzed.

“Give me the orb!” it repeated, tightening its grip. Rachel made a painful gurgling sound as she struggled to breathe.

Jenny stepped forward.

“Oh no!” Grace whispered inaudibly, just catching sight of Jenny's left hand as it slipped something out of her pocket.

“Take it.” Jenny's lip quivered as she held out the orb.

The red eyes lifted in a horrible smile, and the grip on Rachel's neck loosened. The non-Una reached out to grasp the orb. But just as her fingers touched its smooth surface, Jenny jammed a small cloth bag between her teeth, pulling loose the tie that held it shut, and lunged forward, stuffing the bag into the demon's gaping grin.

The non-Una stumbled backward, spluttering as the powder escaped down her throat. She wiped frantically at her mouth, coughing huskily as tiny fires burned brightly before rolling off her outstretched tongue. She shook her head, coughing harder as she tried to bring up the teeny flames that had slipped down her throat. Staggering through the grass, she managed one wheezing growl before throwing herself through the briar-filled ditch and disappearing into the night.

The girls didn't waste a second. They turned and fled, their feet pounding on the damp ground as they sprinted back to the house.

They spent the night holding vigil at the window, each of them far too terrified to sleep. It was the longest night of their lives.