Call Me Grim Read Online Free PDF

bathroom door and stumble in the direction of the pull. The headache disappears. What the hell?
    I’m here in this awful place, and I’m ready to go, the woman’s voice in my head speaks up again. Please, take me and make it stop. I’m ready.
    Soon, Rosie. Soon, a different voice says.
    I stop walking and clutch my temples in my hands, praying for the agony to be gone for good, but it returns full force. A few more steps in the same direction and the headache disappears again. Weird. Aaron said in his letter that things would get weird. Is this what he meant? But this is beyond weird. This sucks.
    Weird, sucktastic, or all of the above, I don’t want the headache to come back, so I follow the pull down the hallway, through the living room to the front door. I rest my hand on the doorknob.
    Where the heck do I think I’m going? I can’t leave Max here alone just because my headache insists I leave the house.
    Oh Bruce, it’s so good to see you. I’ve missed you so much.
    Pain explodes behind my eyes and I have to go, with or without Max. If I don’t, the pain will kill me.
    “Max, I’ll be right back.” I snatch my purse off the table beside the front door. “Eat as many chicken nuggets as you want, but don’t touch the stove. Call my cell if anything happens. Don’t call Mom. She’ll kill me.”
    “Where are you going?” Max follows me down the hallway.
    I don’t answer. I have no clue where I’m going. I turn the knob and follow my headache out the door.
    The cool breeze lifts the ends of my hair and covers my bare arms with chill bumps. I forgot my hoodie, but I don’t care. There’s no way I’m going back inside to face another blast of head-splitting pain.
    I stop on the top step of the porch, unsure of what to do. Another torturous wave of pain hits me, and I double over. My stomach lurches and vomit threatens to color the stairs. I choke it down and stumble forward.
    All right, all right, Headache, I think to myself. You want me out here? Here I am. Do I need my car or should I walk?
    I know the answer before the thought fully forms in my head. Wherever I need to go, it’s too far to walk. And I have to hurry.
    I slip behind the wheel of my car, and the cracked pleather seat pinches my butt. Rosie speaks in my head again. She says something about how pleasant it is to spend time with Bruce—whoever Bruce is. Hell, whoever Rosie is. I ignore her.
    Other than the occasional pair of headlights, Hell’s Highway is deserted. It’s seven thirty on a Thursday night. In a small town like Carroll Falls, people are home from work by now and are either eating supper or getting ready for bed. This is the time of night when Hell’s Highway is the safest. It will stay fairly empty and safe for a while. Well, at least until the bars close.
    I back out of the driveway and slam my foot on the accelerator. I have no idea where I’m going or even if I’m heading in the right direction, but my head feels better. It’s still tugging at me, leading me forward, but the pain is almost completely gone. A nervous chuckle slips from my lips when it occurs to me I’m using a headache as a GPS system. I’m probably the most dangerous driver on Hell’s Highway tonight.

5
     
    The headache leads me across town to an oak-tree-lined driveway. I take the last turn, and my headlights sweep the brick facade of a large building. A well-lit sign in the carefully tended lawn reads: Oak Valley Assisted Living.
    My head reels and spots burst in my vision. That can’t be right. I blink and look again, but the sign remains the same. Keeping my eyes on the curving driveway, I slide my fingers into my pocket and remove the letter Aaron left for me. I almost rip the paper as my shaky fingers unfold the squished origami. I find what I’m looking for halfway down the page.
    …Meet me at Oak Valley Assisted Living at six tonight.
    He wanted me to come here. And somehow, despite my absolute refusal, he got me here. It’s way past