Read Online From Bad to Cursed by Katie Alender - Free Book Online Page A

was quiet for so long I thought she was ignoring me. But finally, she spoke.
    “Mrs. Streeter really loves that dog,” she said.
    Carter seemed all right on the drive, but when we got to Silver Sage Acres, he pulled past the guest lot and idled in the driveway, keeping his seat belt fastened.
    Kasey went inside, but I lingered in the front seat.
    “Want to come in?”
    Carter traced the underline of his jaw with his thumb. “I…I don’t think I should. I mean, you need a shower, and it’s getting pretty late.”
    “I can shower in three minutes,” I said. “I’ll put on a pot of coffee. We can watch a movie.”
    “Lex.” Carter turned to me and grabbed my hand. “I don’t want to lie to you. I really am tired, but…even if I weren’t, I’ve had enough for the night.”
    “What does that mean? Enough of me?” I pulled my hand away as a thought occurred to me. “Or enough of Kasey?”
    He sat back. “Out in the woods…did you see what was making that sound?”
    I counted three heartbeats before I could answer. “No,” I said. Technically it wasn’t a lie. I didn’t see what it was, after all.
    He rubbed his eyes. “I know this sounds mental, but I think I kind of did see…something. I heard more noises, and I thought I saw a shadow go by. The dog went nuts and I got really worried, but by the time I reached you, there was nothing around.”
    “Right,” I said. “Nothing.”
    He grabbed the steering wheel. “Except your sister.”
    “So, okay, if the noises were Kasey,” I said, “which maybe they were …then what’s the big deal?”
    “The big deal is…” He shook his head. “I think I saw her try to kill a squirrel.”
    I was pretty shocked that Carter thought my sister would be capable of attempted squirrel murder. But what could I say? No, it wasn’t Kasey, it was just the shadowy beast lurking in the trees.
    “No way,” I said. “There’s no chance of that. I know my sister.”
    His head jerked up. “Do you?”
    “Yes! Of course .”
    “I saw something out there,” he said. “I know I did.”
    “It was probably a raccoon,” I said archly.
    “Don’t get mad at me, Lex.” He raised his hands helplessly. “It’s not an accusation. I just thought it was weird. The whole thing was really…weird.”
    “Maybe it’s a full moon,” I said.
    “There’s no moon tonight,” he said.
    I sighed and leaned on my door; Carter leaned on his—and we were as far apart as we could be while still sitting in the same car. A shadow came to the front window of the town house and paused for a moment before disappearing.
    “Parents are stalking,” I said. “Better get inside. Thanks for driving.”
    He turned and looked at me, and his jaw finally relaxed. He reached for my hand and ran his thumb across my palm. “Of course,” he said. “I’m glad we found the dog.”
    “Yeah, me too.”
    “Oh,” he said. “That girl left her cane in the backseat. Can you give it to Kasey?”
    We smiled at each other shyly, like a pair of seventh graders parting after a school dance. I gave him a quick kiss and walked up to the front door, the cane hooked over my arm, thinking that this would all blow over soon. Maybe it already had.
    The next morning, I awoke to the sound of the gardeners mowing the grass in the median. The buzz of the leaf blowers and the sun streaming through my window made it impossible to get back to sleep, so I went to the living room. But Kasey was already sprawled out on the couch, watching TV. She moved over to make room for me, but I shook my head and went to the fridge instead, making a mental note to be the first one out to the living room on Saturdays.
    Kasey and I hadn’t talked at all about what had happened in the woods.
    It wasn’t a conversation I was dying to have, to be honest.
    Best-case scenario, Kasey thought what we saw was an animal, and she wanted to hide me from it. Worst-case scenario…I don’t know. I’m sure there was a whole range of