Cheerleaders: The New Evil Read Online Free PDF Page B

here in this room. But now it has gone.”
    â€œI don’t believe this!” Corky cried, standing up. Her legs weak and rubbery. “We really called up a spirit!”
    The room had stopped shaking. Only the damp chill remained.
    Kimmy let out a sigh. “Sorry I screamed like that,” she said, smoothing her hair down with both hands. “I—I just got so scared!”
    â€œMe too,” Corky confessed. She stared down at the ring of still-smoking candles. “I was terrified.”
    â€œSomething was here in this room,” Debra said with surprising calmness. “If we hadn’t panicked, it would have stayed. It wouldn’t have vanished. Gone back to wherever it lives.”
    â€œPut the book away!” Kimmy insisted. She picked up the big book, slammed it shut, and thrust it at Debra. “Hide it. The man in the bookstore was right. It’s too dangerous.”
    â€œWe have to try to forget about chanting and magic spells,” Corky urged, starting to breathe normally again. “We have to try to put it all in the past. It’s just too frightening. We have to try to lead normal lives.”
    A bitter laugh escaped Debra’s throat. Her cold eyes locked on Gorky’s. “Normal? After all that’s happened here?”
    â€œCorky is right,” Kimmy insisted heatedly. “Hide the book, Debra. We were only looking for trouble.”
    â€œOkay, okay.” Debra rolled her eyes. “I’m outvoted. I’ll put it up in my room. I’ll save it for a rainy day.”
    Corky and Kimmy let out relieved sighs.
    They had no way of knowing that the rainy day would come so soon.
    Tigers claw!
    Tigers ROAR!
    Send the ball down the floor—
    Two points MORE!
    Ivy Blake finished her cheer with a forward flip, landing on her feet. Then she ran off the floor clapping loudly, her long, streaked hair streaming behind her.
    Corky and Kimmy watched from the bottom row of the bleachers, making notes on their clipboards. “She’s good,” Corky said, watching Ivy trot over to the other cheerleading candidates.
    â€œI like her,” Kimmy agreed. “She’s very strong. Very physical.”
    Ivy was a big girl, Corky observed. Tall and athletic looking. She had a dramatic face, framed by long wavy hair, brown with blond streaks through it. She wore bright pink lipstick.
    â€œSo we’ve narrowed it down to three girls,” Kimmy said, studying her clipboard. Ms. Closter had been called to a teachers’ meeting on the third floor. As co-captains, the choice of Hannah’s replacement was up to Corky and Kimmy.
    Corky nodded. She started to say something else about Ivy. But a man interrupted.
    â€œHey, girls—get away from the bleachers! Can’t you see we’re working up here?”
    Corky turned and saw two men in blue coveralls at the top of the bleachers, working on the metal frame that supported the wooden benches.
    â€œSorry!” Corky called up to them. She and Kimmy whispered about the candidates as they stepped away from the bleachers and made their way across the gym floor to the group of girls.
    â€œYou were all great!” Corky told them. She could see the tension on their faces. Ivy seemed to be the only one who remained calm. She applied a fresh coat of pink lipstick to her lips as Corky talked.
    â€œWe’ve narrowed it down to three,” Corky told them. She glanced down at her clipboard. “Ivy Blake, Lauren Wilson, and Rochelle Drexler.”
    â€œWe want to thank you all for trying out,” Kimmy told them. “You were all terrific. It was a tough choice.”
    She turned to Ivy, Lauren, and Rochelle. “If you three will stay,” Kimmy said. “The rest of you can pick up your stuff and leave. Thanks again for trying out.”
    A few girls grumbled, disappointed. A couple lingered to congratulate the three finalists. The others hurried over to the far wall to pick