Catching Temptation (In Darkness She Fades (Book 1) Read Online Free PDF Page B

to make you hallucinate, then you can
pretend you have friends.”
    The crowd snickers. Daniel
shouts, “She doesn’t need any help with hallucinations. Two days ago she swore
she saw monsters in skeleton masks.” Daniel and most of the crowd laughs; the
twins, however, stare at me as if frightened and fascinated by what they heard.
The brunette girl shifts and wraps the orange-haired twin’s arms tighter around
her pale shoulders.
    The restraint in me snaps. “Go to
Hell, Daniel! The rest of you can join him.” I thrust the classroom door open
and inwardly curse the creatures who resurrected me from the dead, as well as
the monster who scolded my suicide attempts. It’s not fair.

 
     
     
    Chapter Three
    Tormented
     
    The bell rings, excusing me from
the teacher’s monotonous lecture. I sigh. Murmurs and tantalizing stares never
cease. Several of the girls snickered behind me in class and I vowed I would
start sitting in the back row to avoid their repetitive taunts.
    My phone rings.
    Crap. I forgot to change the ring
tone to vibrate. Rushing into the nearest bathroom, I hide in one of the
stalls, and check my messages.
    Karma sent me the text, What’s
wrong? Call me.
    It still amazes me that Karma
knows when I am upset, even at a thousand miles away. A few months after I
befriended Karma, I hit another wave of depression, and seriously debated
jumping from my third-story window. Karma arrived in ten minutes with pizza and
soda to drown my sorrows. Once she brought over an Ouija board when I thought
about using one to talk to my parents. It ended in disaster. Turns out it is
the creature’s favorite tool for pranks.
    I punch in Karma’s number.
    “Hey, is everyone really that
mean to you today? I swear my heart is bleeding and turning to stone at the
same time. I know it’s you.”
    “Karma, I hate it here. These
people are weird. Weirder than us in some ways.”
    “Who on earth could be weirder
than us?”
    “These twin guys. They freak me
out. Everyone idolizes them.”
    “Typical high school jocks.”
    I lean against the metal stall,
trying not to inhale too much. “No. They’re not full Goth, but they have a Rock
star edge.”
    “Maybe it’s what’s cool in
Michigan. Remember you’re in another state.”
    Voice shaking, I say, “They know
something about the creatures.”
    Silence.
    “Daniel kinda blurted out my
hallucination problem in front of half of the students–”
    “The little punk! Oh, I wish –
no. No. Sorry. I’m not evil.”
    Karma carries a deep fear of
wishing harm on people. I suspect the things she wishes will actually come
true, but I never press the subject.
    “Sorry. Had a moment. Tell me the
rest.”
    “Everybody in the crowd laughed,
but not the twins. Karma they looked scared. Like I’d discovered some huge
secret.”
    “Maybe you did. Didn’t the
monster from your dream say Rosewood needed you? It might be a good idea to
snoop a bit. See if you can find any info out about Rosewood’s history. Never
know. Might find something about witchcraft or even paranormal sightings.”
    “Good point.”
    “Are the creatures at least
staying away.”
    I stop fiddling with my hair.
“You know, I haven’t seen any except for the one in the woods and the one in my
bedroom. But I haven’t seen them anywhere in school. I didn’t even realize it.”
    “Guess it’s a small blessing.
Since I’ve calmed you down, I gotta go. Late for class.”
    “Didn’t mean to get you in
trouble.”
    “Anything for you, Temptation.
Miss ya.”
    “Miss you, too.” I stash the
phone back in my bag and exit the bathroom. I stroll into the school library
prior to my last class before lunch. Thousands of adventures locked away in
crisp yellow and white pages greet my aching eyes. The scent of the aging books
drains my problems away. My books at home are still stashed away in a box. At
least one way to escape from reality without getting stoned encircles me with
endless options.
    Picking