Summer Of Fear Read Online Free PDF Page A
Author: Lois Duncan
such a carefree nickname, it did not seem possible that it could ever have been used for Julia.
“Julia,” I said haltingly, knowing that I must say something, but what? How could I reach through the wall of grief that separated us and give comfort? Julia’s attempt at making small talk was touching, but I knew the effort it must be taking.
“Julia,” I said again helplessly, and was interrupted by the sound of scratching at the door. Relief swept over me. Here was the diversion we needed!
“There’s somebody here to see you,” I said. “Another member of the family.” I went to the door and opened it. “Come in, Trickle. I want you to meet a new friend.”
“Who is it?” Julia asked, pulling herself to a sitting position. Her voice went strangely flat. “Oh. It’s a dog.”
“Don’t call him that,” I said. “You’ll hurt his feelings. He thinks he’s people. He won’t even eat dogfood because he thinks he ought to eat the same things we do. Mother and Dad gave him to me on my twelfth birthday.”
Julia’s body seemed to stiffen. “I’m not very good with dogs. They don’t like me,”
“Trickle will,” I told her. “He loves everybody, even the garbage men. Other dogs all bark at the garbage truck, but Trickle just wags his tail.”
“Keep him away from me,” Julia said. “I mean it, Rachel.”
“You can’t be afraid of Trickle!” I exclaimed incredulously. “Why, he wouldn’t hurt anybody! He’s the sweetest natured dog in the world. There’s this man who breeds wirehairs up in Santa Fehis kennel is where my folks got Trickleand he said that he’d never sold a puppy who was as”
“Get him out’er here!” Julia said. Her voice slashed through the room as sharp as a whip.
“All right,” I said, startled. “Of course, if you’re really frightened. But you’ll feel differently when you get to know him. You’ll love him, I promise.”
Then I heard another sound, low and gravelly. It was something I had never once heard in the entire three and eleven-twelfths years that Trickle had been with us. In amazement I turned and stared at my dog. His head was lowered and his ears were back and his lips were drawn away from his teeth. He was growling.
When I think back I realize that this was the moment I received my first hint that something was terribly wrong.
Four
At the time I realized nothing. How could I?
“Trickle, you bad thing!” I said. “What’s gotten into you?” And to Julia”I’m ashamed of him. I’ve never known him to act like this before.”
I took the poor dog by the scruff of the neck and dragged him out into the hall, growling all the way, and then picked him up and carried him down the stairs and put him outside.
“You just stay out,” I told him, “until you’re in a better mood.”
I re-entered the house through the back door and found Peter at the kitchen table, eating a bowl of ice cream and reading Down Beat. For a skinny guy, Pete never seemed to stop eating.
As I came in he lifted his head and tossed his hair back out of his eyes and said, “I see the folks got home. Mom was just pulling out of the driveway as I came in.”
“Probably headed for the grocery store,” I said. “The refrigerator’s down to nothing.”
“So I discovered.” He gestured toward the sink where he had tossed the empty ice cream carton. “Did they bring Julia back with them?”
“Yes. She’s up in my room, lying down. I mean, in our room,” I corrected myself. “Hers and mine.”
“What’s she like? Is she pretty?”
“No,” I said. “In fact, the opposite. “Very plain.”
“Nice?”
“I guess so. I didn’t talk with her very long. She doesn’t like dogs.”
“Maybe she hasn’t been around any.”
“That might be it,” I acknowledged. “Living at boarding school so much of the time, she wouldn’t have had much chance to have pets, would she? Are you rehearsing tonight?”
“Nope,” Pete said. “We don’t
“Julia,” I said haltingly, knowing that I must say something, but what? How could I reach through the wall of grief that separated us and give comfort? Julia’s attempt at making small talk was touching, but I knew the effort it must be taking.
“Julia,” I said again helplessly, and was interrupted by the sound of scratching at the door. Relief swept over me. Here was the diversion we needed!
“There’s somebody here to see you,” I said. “Another member of the family.” I went to the door and opened it. “Come in, Trickle. I want you to meet a new friend.”
“Who is it?” Julia asked, pulling herself to a sitting position. Her voice went strangely flat. “Oh. It’s a dog.”
“Don’t call him that,” I said. “You’ll hurt his feelings. He thinks he’s people. He won’t even eat dogfood because he thinks he ought to eat the same things we do. Mother and Dad gave him to me on my twelfth birthday.”
Julia’s body seemed to stiffen. “I’m not very good with dogs. They don’t like me,”
“Trickle will,” I told her. “He loves everybody, even the garbage men. Other dogs all bark at the garbage truck, but Trickle just wags his tail.”
“Keep him away from me,” Julia said. “I mean it, Rachel.”
“You can’t be afraid of Trickle!” I exclaimed incredulously. “Why, he wouldn’t hurt anybody! He’s the sweetest natured dog in the world. There’s this man who breeds wirehairs up in Santa Fehis kennel is where my folks got Trickleand he said that he’d never sold a puppy who was as”
“Get him out’er here!” Julia said. Her voice slashed through the room as sharp as a whip.
“All right,” I said, startled. “Of course, if you’re really frightened. But you’ll feel differently when you get to know him. You’ll love him, I promise.”
Then I heard another sound, low and gravelly. It was something I had never once heard in the entire three and eleven-twelfths years that Trickle had been with us. In amazement I turned and stared at my dog. His head was lowered and his ears were back and his lips were drawn away from his teeth. He was growling.
When I think back I realize that this was the moment I received my first hint that something was terribly wrong.
Four
At the time I realized nothing. How could I?
“Trickle, you bad thing!” I said. “What’s gotten into you?” And to Julia”I’m ashamed of him. I’ve never known him to act like this before.”
I took the poor dog by the scruff of the neck and dragged him out into the hall, growling all the way, and then picked him up and carried him down the stairs and put him outside.
“You just stay out,” I told him, “until you’re in a better mood.”
I re-entered the house through the back door and found Peter at the kitchen table, eating a bowl of ice cream and reading Down Beat. For a skinny guy, Pete never seemed to stop eating.
As I came in he lifted his head and tossed his hair back out of his eyes and said, “I see the folks got home. Mom was just pulling out of the driveway as I came in.”
“Probably headed for the grocery store,” I said. “The refrigerator’s down to nothing.”
“So I discovered.” He gestured toward the sink where he had tossed the empty ice cream carton. “Did they bring Julia back with them?”
“Yes. She’s up in my room, lying down. I mean, in our room,” I corrected myself. “Hers and mine.”
“What’s she like? Is she pretty?”
“No,” I said. “In fact, the opposite. “Very plain.”
“Nice?”
“I guess so. I didn’t talk with her very long. She doesn’t like dogs.”
“Maybe she hasn’t been around any.”
“That might be it,” I acknowledged. “Living at boarding school so much of the time, she wouldn’t have had much chance to have pets, would she? Are you rehearsing tonight?”
“Nope,” Pete said. “We don’t