A Summer of Sundays Read Online Free

Bo” before I shut the door. The giggling started back up immediately. Standing in the empty hallway, I looked at the closed doors.
    I didn’t belong in any of them.
    Still, I needed to find somewhere to sleep. That’s when I remembered the little round window I’d seen when we first pulled up. The one where an attic should be.
    The door at the top of the stairs looked like all theothers in the house except for the large brass knob. I twisted it and found a dark stairway leading up. The air was mustier than in the hallway, but the smell made the dark space above me seem more enticing—maybe even magical. The thought of finding an old wardrobe like the one Lucy went through into Narnia filled me with excitement. The stairs creaked with each step. At the top, I found a light switch and flipped it on. There was a bed, neatly made, a fan that whirred when I plugged it in, and fine dust covering an old beat-up trunk where clothes peeked out from the lid.
    A small bookshelf against one wall held two rows of worn books. After glancing at the spines, I pulled out a paperback copy of
The Secret Garden
, fanning out the yellowed pages before turning back to face the room.
    The room was perfect and I had it all to myself.
    Setting my suitcase down and placing the book on the nightstand, I bounced on the bed a few times and then went to the little window, pushing the pane open to let the air blow in. My eyes were level with the tops of the trees. Our van was below, and Dad was emptying the small trailer onto the driveway. A squirrel looked on and chattered as birds swooped from one tree to the next. Beyond, I could see the library, the crazily mowed lawn, and the tops of the buildings in town.
    And then I looked across the field and saw a house.
    It was off to the right, old looking, maybe even condemned. The door opened and a man walked out, placed his hands on his hips, and stared in our direction. He had thick white hair and seemed too big for the small porch.
    He stood just like that for a few seconds, then turned and walked back inside. Curtains fell across two windows, and I could almost hear his door lock.
    Our next-door neighbor. I guessed that was what he was even though there was a pretty big field separating us. Well, he didn’t have to worry about me snooping around. Maybe CJ, but not me. I had plans for this summer.
    It was going to be a summer of Sunday’s.

LATER that evening, after all that remained were the bits of pizza crust that lay scattered on our plates, Dad asked if anyone wanted to walk over to the library with him. “We won’t do anything tonight, but I’d like to see how many of the new light fixtures still need bulbs.”
    CJ, Bo, and I volunteered.
    The sky had darkened to a deep and eerie blue, giving the trees, our house, and the library thick black shadows.
    “I bet the library is haunted,” CJ whispered low.
    Bo squeezed my hand tighter. “Really? Should we go back?”
    “It’s not haunted. CJ’s just trying to scare you.” But I stepped closer to Dad, just in case.
    The stone steps were shrouded in darkness. “Just wait at the bottom of the stairs for a minute while I turn on the outside light,” Dad said. “We don’t need anyone tripping and falling.”
    He walked up, unlocked the door, and slipped into the blackness of the building.
    My heart sped up as the door closed. I glanced back at the house, keeping my eyes glued on the light pouring out through the windows. Mom stood at the sink in the kitchen. May chattered on her cell phone up in her room. My small round window was black.
    A twig snapped and I whirled around.
    “What was that?” Bo whispered. He leaned against me.
    “I don’t know.”
    Leaves rustled, and my eyes found the house across the field. The blinds were drawn, but a single window was lit dimly. It clicked off.
    I shivered.
    “I bet it’s a bear or … or …” CJ’s voice shook. “Or the ghost of someone that died in the library.”
    I clenched my teeth