Read Online Fear Street 5 - The Fire Game by R. L. Stine - Free Book Online Page A

alive and well, curled up next to her on the covers.
    She clutched the soft little cat and hugged her close.

    I'll never get back to sleep, she thought. She got up and went downstairs to the kitchen. There was no trace of fire. Not the slightest smell of smoke.
    She opened the refrigerator and poured a glass of milk.
    It was only a dream, she thought again. A nightmare. But part of the nightmare was real. The part that had to do with the fire game.
    It had to stop. It just had to.
    I hate algebra, Jill thought, staring at a page full of mysterious symbols. It was going to take her the entire study period just to get started on these stupid problems. "I hate it," she whispered aloud.
    Behind her, someone whispered in her ear, "What do you hate?" It was Nick. It was the first thing he'd said to her since he hung up on her the other night.
    "Algebra," Jill said, surprised and relieved. "I hate algebra."
    "It's not so bad," whispered Nick, slipping into the empty seat beside her. "You just have to look at it the right way. I bet you were never good at fractions, were you?"
    "No," said Jill. "But so what? I'm just missing the part of the brain that does math."
    "Probably," agreed Nick. He looked up, then was silent a moment as Mr.
    Borden, the study-hall monitor, walked by. When the teacher had gone, he resumed whispering. "Hey, bet I can show you some things about fractions that will make algebra a snap."
    "Really?" Jill couldn't help smiling. "I'll believe it when I see it. But if it works, it would be great"
    "It'll work," said Nick. "Why don't you come over to my house tonight and we can get started?"
    Jill thought a moment. "Sure. Why not? Thanks, Nick."
    Driving over to Nick's house, Jill felt optimistic once again. Not only was she going to get help with her algebra, she might also be able to talk to Nick about the fire game. To get him to promise never to set another fire.
    She'd decided that was the best way to do it--to get the guys one by one to agree to stop.
    Nick really liked her, and even if he had set Gabe's car on fire, she was sure he would listen to her.
    She turned the corner onto Front Street and was about to pull up in front of Nick's house when she saw a familiar car backing out of the driveway.
    It was Nick's father's station wagon, and Nick and Max were in the front seat.
    "Hey!" she called, rolling down the window. "Hey, guys!"
    Either they didn't hear her or they were deliberately ignoring her, because the car continued roaring down the street.
    What's going on? she wondered. Had Nick forgotten the study date, or was he playing some kind of mean trick on her?
    She decided to find out.
    Staying behind the brown station wagon but not getting too close to it, she started to follow the boys. At first she was afraid that they would see her, but they were busy talking to each other, not paying any attention to who might be behind them.
    For a moment, going through the center of town, she lost the car, but then picked it up again as it turned north on Old Mill Road.

    Where are they going? she wondered.
    She continued to follow the car until Nick signaled for a right turn onto Fear Street.
    It was a dark, cloudy night, and the area seemed to be more deserted than ever. The street lamp at the corner of Old Mill Road and Fear Street had burned out, and huge shadows grew on every side of her.
    I don't really need to follow them anymore, Jill thought. I know they've gone to Fear Street.
    But she still didn't know why, and she had an idea it might be important.
    She pulled the car over and checked to make sure all the doors were locked, then turned onto Fear Street.
    There was no sign of the wagon or the boys. It was as if they had disappeared into a black hole. Worried, she squinted to see as far down the street as she could.
    They must have pulled into a driveway somewhere, she thought. The only thing she could do was cruise the street, checking out each driveway as she passed.
    Driving as slowly as she could,