The Otherworldlies Read Online Free Page A

her.
    “Not like this, ya haven’t.”
    “I really should go,” Fern said, taking another step backward.
    “Well, I’ll be,” he said, looking Fern up and down. “The first Unusual’s a local girl. St. Gregory’s. The rumors were true. I weren’t sure, but thank my stars I’ve been preparin’ based on what I heard.”
    At first, Fern’s heart jumped. How did this man know this? But she then looked down at her uniform. The man had made an educated guess.
    “What’s yer name?” His watery eyes popped out of their sockets once more.
    “I don’t know.” Fern said.
    “Fine, fine. I don’t got time for this now—we gotta make sure this stays under wraps,” the man said. “What time did ya disappear?”
    “What?” Fern said.
    “What time did ya leave yer school?” The man displayed his gaping smile.
    Fern had no idea what the man was getting at. The last time she’d looked at the clock on the classroom wall, it had been 11:15.
    “Not very talkative, is ya? Well . . .” The man looked down at his left arm, scanning his seven watches. He twisted his wrist and the watches jangled together like metal bangle bracelets. Finally his eyes rested on the golden eighth watch.
    “Let’s see now,” the man said, bringing his arm close to his craggy face. “It’s eleven eighteen right as we speak. Now, supposin’ you did ‘appear’ here, out a da blue, I’d say you should hang around before ya go telling people where ya are,” he said.
    “What?” Fern asked, finding the man less and less threatening the more he talked.
    “Tell ya what. I’m gonna leave ya alone, and I suggest ya go into that there cave. Ya better allow enough time ta have walked here. No one’s gonna believe that ya just appeared here from that thar school of yours. Trust me.”
    Of all the things for this man to be concerned with, why would he care if Fern got in trouble? Though she was still scared of him, Fern couldn’t shake the odd sense of familiarity about him. Besides, he hadn’t tried to hurt her or even close in on her.
    The man picked up his metal detector, turned away from Fern, and began walking up the path to the parking lot. He was out of sight in no time.
    The wind kicked up, bunching Fern’s corduroys against her legs. The tide lapped a few feet away. None of the serene feelings the beach normally inspired passed over Fern today. She stared at the cave.
    Fern told herself she would just take a peek into the cave on her way up to the parking lot. She had to, while she was here, or she would always wonder. Just a peek, to make sure nothing had changed.
    Looking above her, Fern confirmed that there was no trace of the stranger. She wandered into the cave, which was only about seven feet deep and ten feet high. Fern scanned the jagged brown walls and sandy ground. Everything was still and silent. Fern kept turning around, afraid the sunburned man’s plan all along was to ambush her in the cave. She was almost panting with anxiety now.
    In the deepest corner of the cave, Fern noticed a hole about two feet wide. The hole had certainly not been there when Sam and Fern had explored the cave countless times before. She thought her eyes must be playing tricks on her, but a small amount of light was coming from this new opening. She crept closer.
    Many visitors to the cave had tried their hand at carving their initials into the sandstone walls. Most attempts were unsuccessful or were destroyed by time and weather. But the small trace of light made it easier to see many of the carvings. She began feeling around the rim of this new discovery.
    She jumped back when she saw it. There, etched deep into the stone wall directly above her, were two sets of initials:
    MLMPM
    Mary Lou McAllister. Those were her mother’s initials. PM? Could that be her father? It was probably a coincidence, but Fern was desperate to connect any dots she could.
    Fern jerked her head around as her heart began to pound fiercely again. She was all alone