Read Online CnC 4 A Harvest of Bones by Yasmine Galenorn - Free Book Online

which people honored their ancestors. Halloween was a direct, though secular, descendant of that celebration.
    When I was young, after the Halloween parties were over, Nanna would take me to her room. My mother would come along sometimes, though she never showed much of an interest in what Nanna wanted to teach her. There, we would set up a small altar with candles and family photographs, and on the table in front of the pictures, we placed plates of food for the dead and wished them good journeys, wherever they might be headed. Then Nanna would read the tarot to divine what was going to happen during the coming year. As I grew older, I joined her in the practice.
    Once I married Roy, I had to make sure he was asleep before I’d sneak outside and sit on the porch. Bundled up in a thick jacket, I’d read the cards and talk to my ancestors. Nanna often showed up on these nights, patting my knee to let me know that I was doing the best that I could under the circumstances, and that my best was good enough.
    But the year that Roy and I split, I dragged out Nanna’s box, set up the altar, and began to teach the children their family heritage. Randa participated, though at first she’d been vaguely uncomfortable. But Kip loved the traditions, and they had become his favorite parts of Halloween.
    Randa played with her cookie, finally setting it down to pick up her tea. She stared solemnly at the cup. “Mom, can we add pictures of friends to the ancestor altar during Halloween? Or strangers? Maybe something we drew instead of a photograph?”
    Where had that come from? I thought about it, then nodded. “Well, if they’re dead and you want to remember them, I don’t see why not. Who were you thinking of?” I couldn’t imagine who she’d want to add.
    Randa’s gaze flickered up to meet mine and I saw a few tears staining her lashes. “The lady who was standing by my bed. I feel really sorry for her. She didn’t scare me. She just seemed lonely. Like nobody remembers her.”
    My stomach knotted as I stared at Miranda. My little girl wasn’t so little anymore. Fourteen, going on forty. Last year, this time, she’d been terrified out of her wits by ghosts. This year, she was feeling sorry for them.
    “I think maybe I’d better have a look in your room before I answer your question.” I wanted to run up there and demand to know who was prowling through my daughter’s room, but I forced myself to slow down. Right now, I needed to tell her about Gunner’s folks. “Let’s set your visitor aside for a moment. I have some news I need to tell you.”
    She gave me a quizzical look. “Yeah? What’s up?”
    I crossed around the table and embraced her, pulling her into my arms. “I’m so sorry, honey. Gunner’s parents were seriously injured in a fire tonight—Joe told me when he called. They’re in the hospital with third-degree burns and we’re not sure they’re going to make it. Gunner will be okay. He suffered from some minor smoke inhalation but he’s going to be all right.”
    Her look of bewilderment turned into one of horror. “Oh no, that’s awful! They’re really nice people. Are you sure Gunner’s okay?” Her shoulders began to shake and I held her as tight as I could and kissed her on the forehead.
    “He’ll be fine. But this is going to be very hard for him. Even if his parents recover, it’s going to be an uphill battle for a while. He’s going to need all the friends he’s got.” As I smoothed the hair away from her face, she bit her lip and nodded. “Life isn’t fair, honey. That’s one sad fact we both know.”
    After a few minutes, she wiped her nose with a tissue and took a sip of her tea. “What happened? Was it an accident?”
    I let out my breath slowly and steadied myself. She didn’t need gory details, but she’d hear about it from school or in the paper so I might as well tell her now. I told her as much as Joe had told me, leaving out the gruesome parts. After we drank our