I swept the light around the cabin. I moved it from bunk to bunk to make sure no one was there.
I spotted Colin's shirt on a lower bunk against the wall. Keeping the light on the bed, I crossed the room to investigate.
He had left a pile of stuff next to the balled-up shirt. I saw his wallet, some keys, some change. I picked up the shirt and looked underneath.
No. No pendant.
I pulled up the bedsheet and blanket and searched under the pillow. The light trembled in my hand.
Please, let it be here. Please, let me find it.
I moved to the chest of drawers next to the bunk bed. I swept the flashlight over it and saw a stack of magazines and a box of tissues on the dresser.
Which drawer was Colin's?
I pulled open the top drawer. It was stuffed with underwear and socks and swim trunks. The second drawer had Colin's CD player in it and a bunch of CDs. I bent down to open the bottom drawer.
Empty.
Where else could I look?
I dropped to my knees and shone the light under the bed. Colin had shoved his suitcase under there.
He wouldn't put the pendant in his suitcase, I decided.
It's not here. He must be wearing it. He doesn't want me to get it, so he wears it wherever he goes.
I let out a sigh. This was a total waste of time.
Beads of sweat rolled down my forehead. With a groan, I climbed to my feet.
Then I felt a hard tap on my shoulder and I screamed.
15
STARTLED, I DROPPED to the floor. I turned and shone the light on the figure behind me.
“Jakey? What are you doing here?” I choked out.
“I woke up and saw you were gone,” Jakey said. “Then I saw the light in this cabin. What's up, Max?”
“Huh? What's up with you?” I demanded. “Are you following me?”
“No way,” he replied. He helped pull me to my feet. “I'm kinda scared,” he said. “The Wilbur brothers say they're going to take me out to the woods tomorrow and tie me to a tree.”
“I don't think so,” I said. “I'll protect you from those geeks, Jakey.”
“They're in my face because I'm little and because it's my first time at camp,” Jakey said.
“I'll watch out for you,” I said. “No problem.”
I swept the light one more time over Colin's bed. But no. The pendant didn't magically appear.
Then I put my hand on Jakey's shoulder and led him out of the cabin. Of course, I had no way of knowing the terrifying trouble Jakey would cause for me the next day.
16
I LOOKED FOR COLIN at breakfast, but he wasn't at the junior counselors' table. I ran over to Artie, who was pouring orange juice from a big pitcher. “Have you seen my brother?” I asked.
Artie set down the pitcher. “Colin? He went on a canoe trip.”
My mouth dropped open. “He already left? For how long?”
Artie shrugged. “Two days, I think. He took some guys with him. He left at dawn.” He squinted at me. “You need something?”
Yeah. I need the pendant around his neck. “No. Guess not,” I said.
Would those evil insect creatures follow Colin for the pendant? Would Colin ever return?
I slunk back to the table. I felt sick. I couldn't eat the watery scrambled eggs or the soggy hash browns.
The guys at my table were talking and laughing. But I didn't hear them. I couldn't think of anything but ghosts and that pendant.
Uncle Joey stood in front of the big stone fireplace and announced the morning's activity—a three-mile hike through the woods.
Some kids groaned.
That made Uncle Joey unhappy. “Bad attitude,” he said. “That's not the Snake Lake way! Come on, people. Let's hear the Snake Lake fight song!”
We all began to hiss like snakes. The hissing grew louder and echoed off the low redwood ceiling beams of the mess hall.
“That's what we want to hear!” Uncle Joey exclaimed. “Let's hear it again!”
We all hissed again.
“Stop spitting on me!” Jakey cried. He was sitting next to Billy Wilbur. And Billy was deliberately spitting into Jakey's face as he hissed.
Willy started spitting too. And then a couple of other guys decided to try it. And in seconds, there was a spitting war with everyone hissing and spitting.
Spit flew like a rainstorm—until Uncle Joey waved his hands frantically above his head and shouted for silence.
“We're mean as snakes—remember that!” Uncle Joey shouted. “That's the Snake Lake tradition, guys!”
Jakey was wiping spit from his hair and off his cheeks.
“Artie will meet you at nine-thirty in front of the lodge,” Uncle Joey announced. “Wear your hiking shoes. You're going up some steep hills.”
“Go, Snakes, go!” Artie shouted, slapping high fives as we left the mess hall. He was a gung ho kind of guy.
He never walked. He always ran. And he was always clapping his hands and cheering guys on.
Artie wore sleeveless white T-shirts, and he had big red and blue tattoos of eagles on both arms.
How old was Artie? I wondered. Sixteen or seventeen? And his parents let him get those tattoos?
Weird.
Back in my cabin, I changed into my sneakers and jeans. I rubbed sunscreen all over. Then I stuck a bottle of water in my backpack.
Across the cabin, Willy and Billy were talking to Jakey. “When we get to the top, you have to leap over Howler's Gorge,” Willy said. “It's a pretty far jump, Jakey—especially for a little guy like you.”
“And if you don't make it, you fall straight down. Into a pit of quicksand,” Billy said.
“Yeah, last year a kid didn't make it. He dropped like a rock to the bottom,” Willy added.
“They pulled him out of the quicksand, but it wasn't easy,” Billy said. “It was already up to his neck. And it was so burning hot, it turned his whole body purple.”
“And it stayed purple till the end of camp,” his brother said.
Jakey turned to me. “They're lying, right?”
I shrugged. “I don't know.”
The Wilburs tossed back their heads and laughed. “You'll see.”
“Why do they call it Howler's Gorge?” Jakey asked in a tiny voice.
“Because when you fall, you howl all the way down,” Billy said. He clapped Jakey on the back. “You'll see.”
And for once, the Wilbur brothers weren't lying.
17
IT WAS A LONG HIKE, but it wasn't bad. If you like a lot of trees, and shrubs, and grassy hills, and chickadees chirping, and hawks and crows and other birds swooping overhead.
Not my thing, really. Exercise always gives me hiccups.
It got really hot as we followed Artie up the hills. My T-shirt stuck to my back, and I had to keep wiping sweat off my face. I finished my bottle of water halfway up the first hill.
Artie kept making us sing songs and do the Snake Lake battle cry. He jogged up the hills, clapping his hands and shouting. Wow. He was like a gung ho machine.
There were about thirty of us, mostly guys. But Traci Wayne and four of her friends had some free time, so they tagged along.
I think Traci smiled at me once. But she may have been smiling at someone else.
Jakey and I walked at the back of the group. I tried to push low tree branches out of his way. And I helped tug him up the steep parts of the climb.
The Wilbur brothers kept swinging on tree limbs and throwing stones down the hills, shouting and hooting and doing cartwheels. They were trying to impress the girls. I was glad the two pests were leaving Jakey and me alone.
Breathing hard, my legs aching, I followed the others up a steep hill covered in tall grass. And at the top stood Howler's Gorge.
Believe it or not, it was just as the Wilburs had described it.
The ground flattened out at the top of the hill and ended in a steep cliff. The other side was four or five feet away.
Jakey and I walked up to the edge and peered down the cliff. We were looking at a long, straight drop to the bottom.
Was it burning-hot quicksand down there? I didn't want to know.
“This is an easy jump, guys,” Artie shouted. “No one has ever had any trouble with it. You just have to get a good running start. Watch me.”
Artie backed up a few feet, lowered his head as he started to run—and leaped easily over the gorge. Then he leaped back. Then he leaped across one more time. And leaped back.
“See? Easy,” he said. “I'm not even out of breath.” He clapped his hands. “Let's go, guys! Let's do it the Snake Lake way!”
Jakey and I stood far back from the gorge. Jakey chewed his bottom lip and kept tugging at his hair. I could see he was tense about it.
But everyone made the jump with no problem. The Wilburs went first. They jumped together, waving their arms above their heads and shrieking as if they were on a roller coaster.
Traci flew high over the gorge, her blond hair waving behind her. She landed gracefully with plenty of room to spare. She clapped for her friends as they jumped easily too.
Jakey and I moved closer and closer to the gorge. “Is there a taxi I can take from here?” I asked.
I was trying to lighten things up. But Jakey didn't crack a smile.
I tried again. “Anyone got a ladder?”
“Your turn,” Artie called to Jakey. He patted Jakey on the back. “Let's see what you've got, dude.”
Jakey had a wild look on his face. He stared down to the bottom of the gorge. He made a loud gulping sound.
“Fly, man!” Artie exclaimed.
Jakey took a few steps back. He glanced at me. I flashed him a thumbs-up.
He scraped his sneakers back and forth in the dirt. Then he leaned forward—and took off.
He was almost to the cliff edge when he slipped. His feet flew out from under him—and he fell headfirst. Headfirst over the edge.
“Ohhh!” I let out a cry as Jakey started to slide down.
Artie stared openmouthed, frozen in shock.
I had to grab Jakey before he fell. I had to grab his legs before he slid over the side.
I lunged forward. Leaped into the air to make a flying tackle.
Leaped too far!
And went sailing over the edge, into the gorge.
18
IT SEEMED TO HAPPEN in slow motion.
I felt a whoosh of warm air as I started to plunge down the narrow canyon. My hair blew back. No time to shut my eyes.
The sides of the cliffs whirred past, a blur of brown and green. The dark floor of the gorge appeared to rise to meet me.
The wind pushed against my face, my body, as if trying to send me back to the top.
But no. I was falling, sailing down head-first.
Finally, I shut my eyes. And waited for the crushing pain.
Waited …
And felt strong hands grip my arms.
In midair?
I opened my eyes—and saw Nicky and Tara. They floated at my sides. They both gripped me under the arms and held tight.
I was too frightened to make a sound.
I felt a strong rush of air against my body as I stopped falling. I hung upside down, the canyon floor not far below me.
Nicky and Tara held on to me until my legs dropped beneath me and I was right side up. Then they floated up, carrying me with them. And they dropped me back on solid ground.
Dazed and dizzy, I shook my head hard. I still had the roar of the wind in my ears. It took me a while to realize that everyone was clapping and cheering.
Jakey clapped the loudest. His cheek was scratched where he had scraped it against a rock. Otherwise he was fine. He had caught himself in time.
Artie put his hand on my trembling shoulder. He brought his face close to mine and studied me. “How did you do that, dude?” he asked.
“Uh … my dad got me flying lessons,” I said.
Artie stared hard at me, scratching his head.
After I'd caught my breath, I jumped over the gorge. Kids pounded me on the back and slapped me high fives. Even the Wilbur brothers congratulated me for my awesome feat. And Traci flashed me a big smile.
Jakey made the jump. Artie followed him. And we were all on the other side of the gorge.
I glanced around for Nicky and Tara. Where were they? How did they escape from those two evil insect creatures?
I let out a happy cry when I saw my two friends floating next to Traci. “There you are!” I cried, running over.
Traci squinted at me. “Where else would I be?” “Thanks for saving me,” I told Nicky and Tara.
“Huh? I didn't do anything, Max!” Traci said, taking a step back.
I gave Nicky and Tara a thumbs-up. “That was good timing,” I said.
“Max, did you land on your head down there?” Traci asked.
“I'm not talking to you,” I told her.
Traci glanced around. “I'm the only one here.”
“We can't talk now,” Tara said.
“We have to talk,” I told Tara.
“Excuse me? Talk? Talk about what?” Traci asked.
“Meet me later,” I said to the two ghosts.
“No way!” Traci cried. She made a disgusted face and stomped away. “Artie,” she called. “You'd better check out Max. I think he's gone psycho.”
“Okay, guys,” Artie called. “Let's all jump back over the gorge and head back to camp!”
19
LATE THAT NIGHT, I waited till everyone in my cabin was asleep. I grabbed a can of bug repellent off the dresser and sneaked outside to meet Nicky and Tara. As I sprayed myself with the bug spray, Nicky and Tara floated beside me.
“I'm so glad to see you!” I cried.
Nicky frowned at me. “Max, next time you take a dive, make sure there's water in the pool.”
Tara slid her arm around my shoulders. “Where would you be without us, Max?”
“Where have you been?” I cried. “I—I've been looking for you for days.”
“We just escaped,” Tara said. “We … we were so scared.”
“We're still scared,” Nicky said. “Those two creatures who pretended to be our parents? They're still here. Hiding in that abandoned cabin in the woods.”
“And so is Phears,” Tara added.
I let out a cry. Huh? Phears? Oh no. Oh wow.
I knew Phears. I knew he was the most frightening ghost of them all. He called himself the Animal Traveler. He hid inside animals. Then he blew the animals apart and came sailing out.
Phears has terrifying powers. His hobby is hurting people. He once pulled back my dog's skin and turned him completely inside out. Then he started to do the same thing to me.
“He's here. We saw him,” Tara said. She chewed her bottom lip.
“The two insects dragged us to camp. They really want that pendant,” Nicky whispered.
“Our parents have to be inside it,” Tara said. “Why else would they be so desperate to get their hands on it?”
“The insects hid in the empty cabin. They planned to go after your brother. But Phears appeared,” Nicky said. “Guess what? He's their leader. They work for him.”
“Phears has been here all along,” Tara said, glancing around the dark camp. “He's been watching you, Max.”
I swallowed. The night suddenly grew a lot colder.
“Phears got in a big argument with the two ghosts,” Nicky said. “He was furious because it was taking them so long to get the pendant. He called them all kinds of names. They started shoving each other. It turned into a real fight.”
“That's how we escaped,” Tara said. “Nicky and I slipped away while they were fighting. They didn't even see us go.”
“But we know what their plan is,” Nicky said, lowering his voice. “They're waiting for you to do the work, Max. They're waiting for you to get the pendant. Then they're going to pounce.”
I gulped. “Pounce?”
Tara nod
ded. “They're here. They're watching. They're ready to pounce.”
And then I heard a cracking sound behind me.
I spun around. And cried out, “Phears!”
20
NICKY GRABBED ME. “Shhh. Max, don't lose it. That was a tree branch creaking.”
My heart had leaped to my throat. I blinked several times, then glanced down the long row of cabins, all dark and silent.
“We have to get out of here!” I cried. “I can't face Phears again!”
“We can't leave,” Tara said. “We have to find that pendant. We have to find Mom and Dad. They are so close. I know they are.”
“Where is Colin?” Nicky asked me. “Maybe Tara and I can slip into his cabin and take the pendant away from him while he sleeps.”
I shook my head. “He isn't here. He went on a two-day canoe trip with some kids.”
“Was he wearing the pendant?” Tara asked.
“I don't know. He keeps teasing me with it. Pulling it out from under his shirt and showing it off to me. It doesn't belong to him. He's a total thief.”
“Thief?” a voice cried.
I turned and saw Uncle Joey standing beside me. “Who is a thief, Max?” he demanded. “Who are you talking to?”
Tara poked me in the side. “Tell him to mind his own business, Max.”
“I can't say that!” I told her.
Uncle Joey squinted at me. “You can't tell me who you were talking to? Was it a girl? Did you sneak out to meet a girl?”
“Is there room for us in your cabin?” Nicky asked me. “Do you have a lot of other guys in there?”
“No. Three,” I said.
Uncle Joey's eyes bulged. “You sneaked out to meet three girls?”
“I wasn't talking to you,” I said.
Uncle Joey studied me. “Max, did you hit your head when you fell down the gorge?”
Tara grabbed my arm. “Max, tell him to go away. We have to talk.”
“No,” I said. “Shut up.”
Uncle Joey's face twisted into an angry scowl. “You're telling me to shut up? Would you like to be on latrine duty and mop up the bathrooms for a week?”
“Tell him to get lost!” Tara said.