Dastardly Bastard Read Online Free PDF

Kicking and screaming, she wrestled herself from the frigid embrace. Tripping over her own feet, she crashed into the tent.
    Darkness enveloped her as the fabric swallowed her whole. Diffused light from the morning sun filtered in, coalescing with the fabric, showing red. It seemed as though she was drowning in a pool of blood.
    Two arms broke through the crimson horror and sought purchase, but she rolled onto her stomach and scrabbled away. The hands caught her around the waist, pulling her off the ground. Her feet were placed under her as she punched at her attacker. Whatever beast it was, whatever terror had befallen her, Justine would make sure she went out with a fight.
    “Jesus, Justine, calm the fuck down!” Trevor yelled. His morning breath, thick and sour, brought her up and out of her nightmare. He had both arms wrapped around her, pinning her hands at her sides.
    “Wh-what happened?” Sweat rolled down her forehead, into her eyes.
    “Hell if I know. I was hoping you could tell me.” His blue eyes found hers, and her breathing began to return to normal. “You all right now?”
    “I don’t know.”
    He released her, and she stumbled back. He reached for her again, but she waved him off.
    “There was something calling me.”
    “Who? I was no more than five feet away from you the entire time, Justine. I didn’t hear anything.” Trevor’s eyes were scared. A shadow played over his face, and he grimaced.
    “What’s wrong?” Justine stepped forward, taking his hand in hers.
    “Just thought I heard something.”
    “What?”
    “I don’t know. Sounded like someone clicking their tongue against the roof of their mouth. Like this.”
    Only Nana Penance had called her Just . Nana had often made that same sound with her tongue, too. And the heart charm…
    Justine watched another dark patch pass over Trevor’s face. She looked up and found a roaming cloud gliding over the sun. A sigh of relief escaped her. Trevor wasn’t Throwing Shadows. Justine would have hugged him then, but all her strength had left her.
     
    ~ * * * ~
     
    Trevor packed everything while Justine got dressed. It had taken her almost half an hour to calm down. No more shadows played over Trevor’s handsome face, and she was glad. After the presence in the forest, she didn’t think she could handle any more visions.
    Nana Penance had no reason to come back and haunt her. Something else had caused the illusion. Justine knew that with all her heart. Mainly because any other explanation she’d come up with terrified her.
    “You sure you want to do this tour? I mean, we can head back into town. Just chill at the hotel. You know.” Trevor’s voice was soft. Justine could see the hesitation in his eyes, though. He didn’t want to leave, but he would. For her.
    “I’m fine. I just had a moment. All good now.” It was a little white lie, nothing that would hurt anyone. She stuffed her dirty clothes into her duffel bag, then zipped it and threw it over her shoulder.
    “Ready?” Trevor asked.
    “When you are.”
    “I just hope this tour of Waverly Chasm is all it’s cracked up to be.”
    She agreed, but no matter what, the tour would be a welcome distraction from what had just happened to her. Quietly, Justine prayed that Nana Penance didn’t make any more appearances.
     

5
     
     
    “FROM THE LOWEST CLIFF OF Waverly Chasm, you can look down and never see the bottom. Some say it’s over a mile deep, but that cannot be confirmed, as no one has ever been to the bottom.”
    Jaleel Warner waited for the questions, the normal inquiries of why no one had ever bothered going down, but they never came.
    “The chasm opens up three hundred yards from here and stretches for another two miles in length. At its widest, it is seventy yards across. The road you guys came in on, Highway 607, runs east to west from Chestnut to Bay’s End. Waverly Chasm, on the other hand, runs north to south. If you were to look at this area on a satellite