A Grave Conjuring Read online

  “What happened?” Aunt Claire rose to her feet while Ashley and Leah rushed out to him.

  Henry grimaced. “I stepped on a sharp rock or something. I was underwater and pushed myself up and something cut into my foot.”

  Ashley and Leah each took an arm, draping it over their shoulder and helping him hobble to the shore. He flopped down on the grass to examine his injury. “Hmm...it’s funny, but my foot—it’s not that hot sting kind of feeling like when I’ve gotten cuts before this. My foot feels cold.” He rubbed the top. “Really cold.”

  Leah looked over at Ashley. There was no need for words in the silent communication.

  It was Henry who had poked fun in the fairy circle. It was Henry who had been hurt.

  ELEVEN

  IT WAS AROUND FIVE that Ashley stood in the driveway alongside Claire waving goodbye as Carol’s jeep backed out.

  Claire turned to her. “I’ve got to get changed into something decent. Lucas will be out soon.” She turned and looked where Henry and Preston were huddled with Maya on the lawn. “I hope Henry’s foot doesn’t get infected. Maybe I should have insisted on taking him home.”

  Ashley shook her head. “You tried, Aunt Claire. He’s stubborn. Plus he didn’t want to seem weak in front of Maya. Mason will give him and Preston a lift home. I’m sure if he thinks Henry needs a stitch in that foot he’ll take him to emergency or a clinic.”

  Her aunt sighed. “I feel so bad. Like it’s my fault. From now on, you guys are wearing water shoes when you go swimming.” She was about to leave but her lips twitched in a smile, “Good thing Mason’s job is nearby to pick his brother up...again.”

  “He’s got a girlfriend, Aunt Claire.” Ashley felt her face grow warm, and she looked down, kicking at a stone in the driveway.

  “She’s in Wilmington. And he sure wasn’t thinking of her when he asked for your cell number last night.” This time Aunt Claire outright grinned. “But even if he’s taken, he seems like a nice guy to have as a friend.”

  “Yeah, I guess.” Ashley was still a little disappointed but she managed a smile. “I’d better get Maya. We should get out of these wet bathing suits.”

  She wandered over and looked down at Maya and the boys. “How’s the foot, Henry?”

  “It’s fine. It’s just a cut. Although it’s gonna make riding my bike kind of hard for a day or so.” He looked up at her, his dark eyes grinning. She could see the resemblance to Mason in the smile and set of his chin. It was no wonder Maya liked him.

  “If you come out for a swim again, you have to wear water shoes. Aunt Claire’s new rule.”

  Preston nodded. “For shu...sure. Funny to hit that ruh...rock when the buh...bottom’s kind of silty.”

  Maya shot a look at him. “You’re still thinking of that fairy circle, Pres? It’s just coincidence that Henry got hurt. Not everything is supernatural like Leah would have us think.”

  At the sound of a car driving up the driveway, Ashley turned. She groaned inwardly seeing the red sports car. Lucas was here and he was early.

  “Puke Ass.” It was barely audible. Maya’s whispered name for him.

  “Can you go let Aunt Claire know he’s here? Get changed out of that wet suit when you’re in there, Maya. I’ll go say hi.” She started out, her feet feeling heavier with each step toward him.

  Lucas got out and waved before looking up at the house and over to the lake. “Hi Ashley. You girls enjoying the place?” His arms crossed over his chest and his legs spread standing there waiting. His sunglasses crowned the top of his head and his eyes darted around at the property.

  “Hi Lucas. Yeah, it’s okay.” She paused as he came across the lawn to meet her. Even the way he walked was annoying—kind of cocky like he owned the place.

  He stopped next to the boys and looked down at them, “I didn’t know you guys lived nearby. Say, what’s with the foot?” He looked at the bandage wrapped around Henry’s foot.

  “I got attacked by piranha fish!”

  “What?”

  Henry laughed. “Gotcha’! It’s just a cut, that’s all. I stepped on a sharp rock when we were swimming.” Henry rose to his feet, testing his hurt foot on the soft grass. “My brother’s coming to pick us up.” He looked at Lucas. “You’re in investments aren’t you? You must be making a killing on the market right now with the recent surge.”

  Ashley did a double groan inside. Henry was fascinated by anything to do with banking and investment. Most kids his age read Harry Potter. Henry read the Wall Street Journal. She shot a look at Preston only to see the same slump in his shoulders knowing that Henry was about to go into some sort of investment spiel.

  Lucas nodded. “Yeah, things are good in the market all right.”

  He started to turn away, looking at Ashley, but Henry continued, “What company do you use on the floor?”

  “I do everything myself.”

  Henry’s face brightened. “You got your own seat? Where?”

  “Wherever I plant my butt, man.” Lucas looked away before turning to Ashley. “What’s your aunt doing?”

  Before she had a chance to reply, Henry peppered Lucas with another question, “What’s your position with treasuries? Are you shorting? We’re about two ticks from serious trouble right?” Henry peered at him, his face a picture of earnest interest.

  Lucas’s eyes widened and he sputtered, “Don’t let all that doomsday clock nonsense scare ya kid. Two ticks, ten ticks, there ain’t going to be any wars; nothing’s gonna blow up.” When Henry stared at him, Lucas cut the conversation short. He turned to Ashley. “I think I’ll go in and make myself a drink and see what Claire’s doing.” With that he hustled across the lawn to the back door.

  Henry’s face was in a knot watching Lucas depart. “That guy’s a hedge fund manager? Remind me never to give him any money to invest.”

  “Yu...you don’t ha...have any money, Henry.” Preston laughed as he got to his feet.

  Henry spun on him. “He didn’t know what the hell I was talking about, bud! The ticks I was referring to wasn’t the doomsday clock. It was fractional percentage points on bonds. He should have known that.” He looked at the door Lucas had gone through. “Shit. He probably thinks a T-bill is some kind of steak!”

  Preston’s cheeks seemed to color a bit, and he quickly countered, “You don’t th...think he’s le...legit?”

  Henry’s face clouded. “No… I don’t think he is. When I asked him who he uses on the floor, he said he did it all himself!”

  “So?”

  Henry rolled his eyes. “You can’t! Each exchange—NYSE, NASDAQ, all of them have listed brokers who have seats on the exchange and you gotta trade through them!” He looked back at the house where Lucas went in. “That guy says he’s a fund manager and doesn’t even know the basic terms?” He shook his head. “No. Way.” He looked back to Preston. “He doesn’t do business with Wall Street, that’s for sure.”

  “Bu..but…”

  Henry looked at Ashley and then he shrugged. “I don’t know where he makes his money. Look at his car. He has money obviously, but it’s not from investments.”

  Ashley looked over at the door which banged shut after Lucas. He had sure hightailed it away when Henry started asking questions. What was Puke Ass up to?

  But she didn’t have long to think about it when the sound of another vehicle’s tires rolling over the gravel caught her attention. She turned and saw a black pickup truck come to a stop, towering over the small sports car. Mason got out and waved to them before walking over.

  He smiled at Ashley. “Hey there! Didn’t think I’d be back so soon!” His smile fell when he looked at Henry. “Cut your foot, huh? It must be pretty bad that you couldn’t ride your bike. Let me have a look at it.”

  Henry sank back onto the grass and started peeling the bandage away, “I don’t think it’s that bad. I just thought I’d make it worse and the bleeding would start again if I applied any pressure with my foot on the bike pedal.”

&
nbsp; Mason went down to one knee and took Henry’s foot in his hand, peering at the slash. It was about an inch long and had sliced through a few layers of skin. Just the pressure of Mason’s fingers near it made a line of blood gush from the wound.

  “Aunt Claire wanted to take him in to have it looked at but—”

  “I don’t think they could put a stitch there. Not on the sole of his foot.” Mason rewrapped the bandage around Henry’s foot. “You’ll live. But we’ll put some antiseptic on it when we get home and change the bandage.” He reached out and pulled Henry up from the grass.

  “More antiseptic? Claire already doused my foot with it.”

  The screen door banged and then Maya sprinted over. “Hi Mason. You guys are leaving now?” She’d changed into a jean skirt and tank top and pulled her damp hair back into a ponytail. It made Ashley feel pretty self-conscious standing around in her tankini.

  Preston spoke, “Yeah. Re...remember your aunt said wuh...we could bu...build a raft?”

  Maya nodded. “Yeah. What about it?”

  Preston turned to Mason. “Thu...there’s some plastic ba...barrels that my neighbor sa...said I could have. We only nee...need four. And we’ve got a sheet of ply...plywood in our garage. You cu...could bring them out, maybe?” He looked over at Maya. “If your aunt can buy four, two by ten pine buh...boards and a couple tuh...two by fours, we could buh...build it. I luh...looked it up on the ih...internet.”

  Ashley grinned. Preston had this all figured out. He’d do anything to spend more time out there with Maya.

  Mason smiled. “Sure I’ll bring them out for you. If you can wait till Tuesday when I’m off, I’ll help you build it. And...” He looked at Ashley. “...We’ve got some lumber left over from the deck we built last year. We can use that and save your aunt buying more.”

  “Cool!” Maya’s face lit up. She glanced over at her sister before looking back at Mason. “You can stay for dinner afterward. It’s the least we can do since we’re getting a free raft.”

  Ashley thought if her chest expanded anymore she was going to float off into space. Especially when Mason looked at her and nodded. His whole face seemed to light up when he spoke, “Make that burgers, and it’s a date. I mean deal.”

  Had that been a slip of the tongue or had he just kind of, sort of, asked her on a date? Okay, there would be a bunch of people there too, but still....

  She smiled. “Like Maya said, it’ll be fun. But remember your water shoes.” She kicked herself mentally. ‘Remember your water shoes?’ Brilliant comeback.

  “Hello?” Henry shot a look at everyone in turn. “If you’re finished making plans to build the ark, I need to get going. Remember?” He pointed a finger down. “Amputated foot?”

  Mason looped Henry’s arm over his shoulder and smiled down at him. “Like you’d ever let us forget.” He looked over at Ashley. “I’d better get going. See you Tuesday.”

  “Can’t wait!” It popped out of her mouth before her brain had a chance to engage. Immediately her cheeks warmed, but Mason’s smile only grew bigger.

  “Suh...see you later, Maya!” Preston went to Henry’s other side helping him limp across the lawn.

  Maya turned to Ashley and in a low voice, “Wasn’t that clever of me? Asking Mason to dinner?” Her grin was impish as she nudged her sister with her shoulder.

  “And Henry being here too would have nothing to do with it, right?” Ashley looked over at the back door where Lucas and her aunt were coming out. The wind whooshed out of her sails. “I wish it were Tuesday and this dinner with Puke Ass was over.”

  “Me too.”

  ***

  The dinner was...odd.

  Something was up with Aunt Claire. Normally she laughed a lot even if Lucas’s attempt at humor wasn’t all that funny. She was still nice, but when she talked to Lucas there was a reserve in her manner. Aunt Claire was fine with Maya and her but there was a definite strain when she talked to Lucas. She glanced at Maya, but her sister’s face didn’t register as anything except mild boredom.

  Aunt Claire finished her glass of wine and smiled at Lucas. Well, her mouth smiled but not her eyes. “So what did you do for excitement this week? Don’t tell me you worked nonstop. That’s not good for anyone. All work and no play and all that.”

  He jerked back slightly but then his smile returned, “You know me. I’m a self confessed workaholic.” His hand covered hers. “Besides, if you’re not with me I’d just as soon work. It’s not only profitable, but the time passes more quickly.”

  Aunt Claire looked down at his hand and then pulled hers away, shifting back in her chair. “Oh? You stayed put all week? No night out at all?”

  His eyes narrowed and he leaned in. “Well, I may have went to the store for a few things. Filled up the car with gas...that’s about it. Why do you ask?”

  Aunt Claire looked over at Ashley and Maya. “If you girls are done, you may be excused.”

  Ashley’s eyes widened but she rose to her feet. Her aunt wasn’t even asking them to clear the table? It was obvious that whatever she had to say to Lucas, she didn’t want them there. Shit. It looked like he was in trouble and she couldn’t get to watch.

  “C’mon, Ash.” Maya smiled and almost skipped out of the room.

  “You don’t want me to stack the dishes?” Ashley lingered a little, her gaze flitting between Lucas and her aunt.

  “No. Not tonight. I’ll get them.” Her aunt’s face was set, not even a smile.

  Ashley shrugged and then walked across the kitchen to join her sister. She squeezed Maya’s arm and pulled her toward the stairs, “I think there’s trouble in paradise. Didn’t you catch the chilly vibes from Aunt Claire?”

  Maya’s eyes twinkled. “We can only hope.” She darted up the stairs ahead of Ashley. “Let’s get the you-know-what out.”

  Oh God. Not the Ouija board. And after Leah warned them too.

  TWELVE

  ASHLEY HURRIED AFTER HER SISTER. “Maya!” When she got to her sister’s bedroom the younger girl was bent over grabbing the board from the dresser drawer. Ashley went into the room and closed the door behind her. “Remember what Leah said. We should wait till she’s here tomorrow.”

  As if Leah was somehow telepathically connected, Ashley’s cell phone vibrated with a text message.

  “How’s the dinner going?”

  She grit her teeth and her fingers flew typing an answer.

  “I wish I knew. I think Aunt Claire is mad at him. We just came upstairs.”

  Maya pulled her curtain closed to dim the room from the fading sunset outside. She stepped over to the bed and opened the box, setting the board before her. “C’mon Ash.”

  The cell phone buzzed again with another message.

  “I hope you’re not using that board. What happened last night was bad. I told my Facebook group about it.”

  Ashley looked over at Maya. “She says that what happened last night was bad.”

  Maya’s face screwed up into a scowl. “What’s that supposed to mean? Bad. Let’s just do this. She doesn’t have to know. Tell her you’re going to take a shower or something and can’t talk.” Maya set the planchette on the board and placed her fingertips on it.

  Ashley sighed. Maya was going to do this with or without her it seemed. She turned the cell phone on “Airplane mode” and then went over to join her sister. She wasn’t going to lie to Leah, not if she could help it. But on the other hand, Leah was acting so high and mighty it was downright annoying.

  She looked over at Maya. “I’ll do this with you, but I’m asking the questions. If something like last night happens, we quit this for good, okay?”

  Maya nodded.

  Ashley’s fingers rested on the small wooden reader and she took a deep breath. “If you’re out there Mom or Dad, can you let us know.” She waited, staring at the reader.

  “You’re supposed to ask for benign spirits, Ash. That’s what Leah did.”

  She huffed an irritated sigh. “Fine. If ther
e are benign spirits here, please communicate with us. Is anyone here?”

  The planchette began to vibrate a little and then slid in a small circle in the center of the board. Ashley looked over at Maya and then back at the reader. “Is that you, Mom?”

  The reader jerked to the “Yes” and stopped. It had happened so fast that Ashley’s heart skipped a beat. She took a few breaths and continued, “Is Daddy with you?”

  The planchette slid away from the “Yes” and then jerked back to it, coming to a stop. Her gaze fell to the side. What should she ask him? How could she be sure it was him? “Daddy, if that’s you, tell me the name of my first softball coach.” It was something that Maya wouldn’t know since she’d been too young.

  The planchette slid over to the letter “N,” “I,” “C” and then shot back to the “K.” Nick! Yes! It had to be her father they were communicating with.

  She felt tears sting the back of her eyes remembering the Saturday morning practices that her dad took her to, standing on the sidelines and shouting encouragement. She looked over at Maya and then swiped a tear from her eye.

  “Ask him if he’s happy?”

  She shot a look at Maya. “How could he be happy? He’s dead and we’re here.” She looked down at the planchette. “Are you at peace, Dad? With Mom?”

  The planchette started doing circles again, going faster and faster in the center of the board. Ashley hung on and sneaked a quick glance at Maya. Her sister’s mouth had dropped open and the whites of her eyes showed. Maya was as freaked out by this as she was.

  The planchette shot off the board and landed on Maya’s bedspread. Ashley stared at her, their hands still hovering above the center of the board.

  Maya gasped. “That wasn’t supposed to happen, was it? Dad seemed like he was angry or something.”

  But Leah’s words sounded in Ashley’s mind. They were supposed to end a session with “Goodbye.” They hadn’t had a chance to do that. Did the planchette flying off count as a goodbye?