me ever since I’d burst back into his life—like he wanted to punish me and pull me closer at the same time.
I yelped when I lost my grip on the heavy book, and it suddenly fell out of my hand, bonking me on the chin as it tumbled to the mattress. I swore and rubbed the tingling spot, sitting up so I could reach the small bedside lamp. The shift of my weight made the book and my phone slide to the floor with a loud thump. I sighed, throwing aside the covers and leaving my comfortable, warm cocoon so I could retrieve my phone from where it skidded under the bed. Luckily, my paranoia had me check underneath the bed pretty much every single day to make sure nothing had been in my space uninvited while I was at work and school. The area was just as clean as the rest of my room, so I didn’t have to worry about putting my hand in a pile of dust bunnies or something worse.
Once I had my phone in my hand, I lifted it triumphantly and let out a victoriously little, “Ah-ha!”
My small win was quickly overshadowed by stark fear when I caught sight of a shadow moving across the far wall. It was definitely shaped like a person. I gasped in alarm and immediately whipped my head around to look at the one window in the room. All that was coming in through the old glass was pale moonlight, but I could see the outline of the giant tree that sat on the side of the house softly swaying. Scrambling across the floor on my hands and knees, I pressed up against the window to see if there were any signs of life in the yard. I pressed my nose up against the cool glass and tried to slow my racing heart, dreading what I might find.
The yard was empty. There was nothing that would cause any alarm. The tree moved lightly, the leaves rustling softly in the late night breeze. For anyone else, it would be a calm and serene sight, but I was freaking out. I was sure that shadow had been shaped like a human, and if it didn’t come from outside, that left only one other option.
I whipped my head around, jumped to my feet, and frantically scanned all the nooks and crannies of the attic room. I’d felt inexplicably safe since I’d moved into this highly coveted space, but now I felt like I couldn’t get out of the room fast enough. I wasn’t even going to take the time to check the bathroom or any other good hiding places in the darkness.
Clutching my phone like a lifeline, I bolted from my room and hit the stairs at almost a full run. My plan was to pound on Vernon’s door; he was probably awake and playing video games. He wouldn’t be my first choice to check out what was going on upstairs, but at least I knew he would let me in. Harlen couldn’t care less about the things that went bump in the night, and there was no way in hell he was going to go out of his way to help or comfort me. His dislike of me was only slightly less apparent than Huck’s. However, since he was a stranger, I was still scared of him. With Huck, I couldn’t erase the kid who’d cared for me and replace him with the man who loathed me.
Bare feet slapping loudly against the wooden floor, I was ready to hurl myself against Vernon’s bedroom door. Only, my momentum was brought to a sudden stop as I barreled unsteadily into a warm body. Strong arms immediately locked around my waist as Huck stumbled back a step when the impact of my body slammed into his. I’d missed that Vernon’s door was already open and that the small, blond boy was standing in the entryway with a phone charger in his hand. I hadn’t heard Huck come home. If I had, it would’ve been his room I was running to.
“What’s up with you? Are you okay?”
Huck’s deep voice rumbled close to my ear while Vernon’s softer one asked, “Why are you running around the house in the middle of the night with no pants on?”
I was too scared to stop and think about what I was or wasn’t wearing when that shadow came to life on my wall. I’d been in bed trying to trick