Asher stared into the hole as he ran a hand through his hair. “We have to find it, but let’s make sure it’s not down there.”
“I’m coming with you.”
Asher jumped into the small space. It was about a five-foot drop, which was nothing for a kid and probably part of their fun. He imagined they only pushed the board aside a little before hopping in.
They probably got the ladder to close it again after all their friends were in. It would be more fun to have their underground fort completely shut off from above. Which meant there would be flashlights….
He found them near the ladder and turned them on to get a better look at their surroundings. The fort went deeper beneath the earth than he’d expected; they were ingenious little kids, but the deeper it went, the lower the ceiling became, and they had to duck to get beneath the tree roots.
Brie spotted a couple of magazines no kid should have in the corner. She wasn’t touching those magazines, but when she leaned closer, she saw the date on the top one was fifteen years ago. With technology nowadays, she didn’t realize these kinds of magazines still existed or that kids would have any use for them when they had phones and computers.
But seeing the date, she suspected one of these kids had probably raided their dad’s or grandfather’s stash. A set of comic books sat beside the porn mags, and she bent to examine them more closely.
As she flipped through the pages, she realized these comics were written by the children who played in this hole, and a stab of longing pierced her heart. She’d never wallowed in the hideousness that was the latter half of her childhood—it was pointless to do so when it couldn’t be changed—but she couldn’t help wondering what it was like to experience the freedom and joy these children lived.
But as she thought it, she realized appearances were deceiving. Even this perfect suburbia could hide nightmares that would make the bogeyman cry.
She didn’t think that was the case with these budding artists, as the pages were filled with superheroes who fought for good. The hero children were called home every night for dinner, and they ran there once they changed out of their costumes. Unhappy children wouldn’t consider the end of a comic the joy of returning home, or at least she didn’t think they would.
Smiling, she carefully closed the pages and turned to inspect the rest of the contents in the little reading and writing nook. All that remained were a couple of bottles of water, some crackers, and three bags of Swedish Fish.
“I don’t see any stones,” Asher said. “If you’re close to it, can you sense it?”
“I don’t see it either, and no, I just know where to look for it. Come on, let’s get out of here.”
Asher lifted the ladder and went to set it up against the side of the fort, but Brie leapt up, grasped the side of the pit, and pulled herself easily over. She leaned back to look into the hole and grinned at him.
“Try to keep up,” she said.
Asher chuckled and put the ladder back where he found it. Then, he ran and jumped at the side of the fort. When his hands grasped the solid earth, he swung his legs to the side and pulled himself from the hole.
Once he was back above ground, he slid the plywood back into place and settled it over the hole. He tossed and kicked leaves back onto it before discovering Brie had taken a couple of steps away. She was staring through the woods and toward the cul-de-sac.
She pointed to a cheerful blue house with yellow shutters. “I saw that in the vision I had earlier. I think the stone is there now. One of the kids must have found it and taken it home.”
“Wonderful,” Asher said.
“We have to get it back,” she said.
“We do,” he said. “But they’re not going to welcome us into their home.”
“If someone opens the door, I can take control of their mind, and we can go inside that way.”
“What if no one’s home?”
Brie sighed as she stared at the house; she had a very strong suspicion no onewashome. There was a reason she’d seen herself unable to enter the house and a reason she’d come out of the vision knowing that ifshecouldn’t enter, ahuntercould.
He would enter the house alone; she didn’t doubt it. “Then, you’ll have to break in.”
“That sounds like fun,” he muttered.
“You’re the one who offered to help.”
“I’m not saying I’m against it, but there are probably a lot of cameras around those houses.”
“I know, but we have to get the stone.”
Asher looked at the house and nodded. There weren’t many other options, but he wasnotin the mood to get shot or go to jail today. At least he was with a vamp who could heal him with her blood or break him out.
