Midnight Games Read Online Free

down over black yoga pants. Her hair fell in loose strands around her face, tied in a single ponytail.
    Her skin was paler than I remembered. When she smiled at me, I could see tiny, blue veins pulsing in her temples.
    She limped badly as she led the way to the front stairs. I realized she was still not fully recovered from her accident.
    I wanted to ask her a million questions about it. What were she and Lewis doing at the wreck of the Fear Mansion? How could they ever fall into such a deep hole? Why were they there so late at night?
    The questions could wait. Maybe Jamie didn’t even remember the answers.
    I followed her up the front stairway. “Dana, you have the whole attic to yourself,” she said. “It’s very cozy. I think you’ll like it. Is that a hamster in there? Better keep him away from my mom. She’s allergic to all kinds of animals. What’s his name?”
    â€œHammy,” I said. “Clever, huh?”
    She laughed. “How did you ever come up with that?”
    We were both breathless by the time we dropped the suitcases to the floor in my new attic room. I set the hamster cage down on a table in front of the window. Gazing out, I could see the long, front lawn with its two flower beds, empty now since it was November. Two tall, old trees stood on both sides of the driveway, mostly bare except for a few clumps of dead, brown leaves.
    Jamie lifted one of the suitcases onto the narrow bed against the wall. “Sorry about your mom,” she said.
    â€œYeah, sorry,” I muttered. “Sorry, sorry, sorry.”
    She wasn’t expecting me to be so bitter. I could see the shock on her face.
    â€œSuch a bad year for our family,” she said softly. “First, cousin Cindy died, then your mom. How is your dad doing? Your mom died so suddenly. He must still be in shock.”
    â€œHow should I know?” I asked. My voice trembled. I didn’t want it to. I wanted to sound calm and controlled. But sometimes I just can’t hold in my anger.
    â€œHe won’t talk to me,” I said. “He can’t deal with me, I guess.”
    Jamie put a hand on my shoulder. “Just because he sent you to live here . . . ”
    â€œHe didn’t want me!” I cried. “He didn’t want me to live with him. My mom dies. So he sends me off to a cousin I haven’t seen in seven years. How should that make me feel? You tell me, Jamie. How should I feel about that?”
    I was talking through gritted teeth. I looked down and saw my hands coiled into tight, red fists.
    Jamie took a step back. Her face went even paler. I could see she was surprised. She studied me for a long moment.
    â€œDana, you’re scaring me,” she said. “I’m serious. You look so angry, like you could kill someone.”
    Kill someone?
    No way. What a strange thing to say.
    Did I really look like that?
    Kill someone?
    Me?

7
    It was an excellent party. Jamie had the music cranked up. And the dining room table was loaded down with pepperoni and onion pizzas and long submarine sandwiches.
    No beer. Jamie’s parents were home. But everyone seemed to be having a good time, anyway.
    Danny, Jamie’s seven-year-old brother, printed out a banner on his computer: WELCOME, DANA —each letter in a different color. It was strung up over the piano.
    Danny is a cool little guy. He has short, blond hair and bright, blue eyes, and a killer smile, even with two front teeth missing. Tonight, he had a fake tattoo of a dragon on one cheek.
    Everyone was making a fuss over him. Oneof Jamie’s friends was trying to teach him how to dance. But he kept stomping down on her feet. He thought that was a riot. Each time he did it, he giggled like a fiend.
    The first two guys I bumped into at Jamie’s party were Nate and Shark. I’d met them a few nights before at the bar everyone goes to late at night.
    Shark told me his real name is Bart Sharkman but