I heard Eli call out, “Amelia! Wait!”

Then the dark water of my nightmares enveloped me entirely.

UNCORRECTED E-PROOF—NOT FOR SALE

HarperCollins Publishers

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Chapter

Twelve

I bolted upright, gasping.

I couldn’t process any rational thought. I could only swallow panicked gulps of air. Soon, though, my instincts reminded me to protect myself from any nearby threat.

Such as Eli, or his “masters.”

A quick scan of the area showed no sign of Eli. Still, my heart sank. I now sat in a field of headstones, each throwing a shadow in the bright sunlight. There was no mistaking my location. I was in the graveyard in which I always woke after a nightmare.

I sighed and closed my eyes. This nightmare—my first since meeting Joshua—had been different from the others. This time when I struggled against the river, I’d heard things. Voices, much like the desperate whispers in the dark netherworld. Except that in my nightmare the voices sounded more raucous. Almost frenzied.

I shook my head. Voices or not, this dream had the same effect on me it usually did. I’d lost valuable time while thrashing about in that stupid river. Opening my eyes, I assessed the sunny day—so welcome after all that darkness and ice—and prayed it wasn’t too late to keep my promise to meet Joshua. I pushed myself up into a standing position and stretched each hamstring, although I hardly needed to.

“Speed, Amelia,” I told myself aloud. “Think speed.”

And I began to run, as fast as I possibly could, in the direction of Joshua’s school.

I breathed an enormous sigh of relief when I finally came upon the Wilburton High School parking lot, which was still crowded with cars. I wove between the back rows of them to get a better view of the school itself. Outside the low buildings students milled around, waiting for the end of the lunch period, I hoped.

I turned my attention to the cars, searching. A number of black sedans filled the parking lot, but soon I managed to spot the most familiar one. I walked over to it, moving as quickly as I could while simultaneously giving my dress a brief look-over. Once I was relatively certain I didn’t look like a crazy person who’d just woken up in a graveyard, I stood next to the driver’s side window of Joshua’s car and clasped my arms behind me.

Joshua sat in the car with his head resting on his arms, which he’d laid upon the wheel. After only a few seconds, he looked up. The noon sun lit up his face and, for a moment, I blinked in surprise.

He looked terrible, at least as terrible as someone like Joshua could look. His hair was a mess, dark circles ringed his eyes, and he could have used a good shave. But when those midnight blue eyes caught mine and he smiled, I couldn’t help but sigh happily.

Wait, he mouthed, and then leaned over to the passenger side. I heard a metallic pop as the passenger side door opened, so I circled behind the car and slipped into it. Joshua pulled the door shut beside me.

Still leaning across me, his mouth dangerously close to my ear, he murmured, “Hey, Amelia.”

“Hey, Joshua,” I murmured back, keeping my hands firmly planted in my lap instead of wrapped around his neck, where they wanted to be.

Joshua leaned back into his seat and unsuccessfully tried to stifle a yawn. The attempt made me smile and helped me refocus on what we needed to discuss. Taking in his rumpled appearance, I decided to start with the obvious.

“Um, Joshua? You know your shirt’s inside out, right?”

He looked down at his gray T-shirt. “Huh. How about that.”

In one swift move Joshua pulled the shirt over his head and flipped it to the correct side. I now had a full view of his chest and abs, and, suddenly, I couldn’t remember how to breathe. Which wouldn’t have been a problem, obviously, except for the fact that I also started to choke. Joshua watched my entire struggle from the corner of his eye, grinning as he pulled the shirt back over his head.

I tried desperately to compose myself. Finally, I managed to calm down enough and ask, “So, something makes me think we should talk about your night first?”

Joshua laughed and rubbed one hand over his stubbled jaw. “Okay, me first then.” He stretched out his legs and then gave me a strange, appraising look. “My night was . . . interesting.”

“How so?”

“Well, the Mayhews had a long debate about Ruth’s mental health, which is ironic if you consider I’m the only one who knew for sure she wasn’t crazy.”

I grimaced. “Sorry.”

“Don’t be,” he said, smiling grimly. “It didn’t even compare to the ungodly long lecture I got from Ruth after she convinced everyone else of her sanity.”

“She lectured you about being late for dinner?” I asked hopefully, foolishly, although I already knew the answer.

Joshua’s smile turned gentle, but his expression made it clear what he was about to say. “No, Amelia. She lectured me about you.”

I sucked in a sharp breath. Calm, I told myself. Stay calm.

In my most nonchalant voice, I asked, “Oh? And what did she have to say?”

Joshua laughed bitterly. “What do families usually say? ‘Stay away from that one, she’s trouble.’ Of course, in this case, the ‘trouble’ is something a little weirder than a girl who smokes or has too many body piercings.”

I grimaced again. “To put it mildly, right?” I moved for the door handle, even though I couldn’t use it. “If you would just open this for me, I can get out of here and stop screwing up your life. . . .”

“Amelia.”

Joshua’s tone made me turn back to him. He gave me another gentle smile. “Why don’t you listen to my whole story before you go running off?”

Warily, I settled back against my seat. “Okay. I can do that. For now.”

He angled his body toward me and, betraying his exhaustion, closed his eyes as he spoke. “For the sake of timing, I’m just going to give you the main points. Point number one you already heard: Ruth thinks High Bridge and the river under it are evil.”

“No argument here,” I muttered. Joshua popped an eye open, so I added, “I’ll tell you about that later.”

He nodded, shutting his eyes again. “According to Ruth, after my dad was born she basically insisted the family move to this area for the sole purpose of guarding the river . . . keeping people safe from whatever controls it. Supposedly, lots of people have done the same thing, including her friends and their families. Because the area’s so ‘supernaturally charged’—Ruth’s words, I swear.”

Joshua snorted and shook his head. After another long pause he went on. “That’s point number two, and the real reason Ruth’s friends have always acted so spooky: they really are a group of—I don’t know—ghost hunters. Their whole mission is to keep on the lookout for ‘unclaimed’ spirits and banish them. Exorcize them. They’ve been hunting a specific unclaimed ghost for years. Some guy, Ruth said. But when you showed up at the house . . . well, you can just imagine Ruth’s frenzy, right?”

I leaned back in my seat, shocked.

Were “claimed” spirits actually the recruited souls Eli had confined to the supernatural world? Would that then make Eli an “unclaimed” spirit, one that could walk between worlds?

Eli had to be the ghost they’ve been hunting. So . . . did that mean they would start hunting me too?

Was I also an unclaimed spirit?

Shaking my head with a weak laugh, I asked, “Doesn’t it feel good to know your grandma isn’t actually crazy?”

The corner of Joshua’s mouth lifted, but not very high. “Not really, Amelia. Not when we get to point number three. Apparently, the Witches of Wilburton want me to join their little coven.”