Read Online Ghost Island by Bonnie Hearn Hill - Free Book Online

a kid with a convicted murderer for a dad.
    At times, I still couldn’t believe what had happened, couldn’t believe I had lost my mom, my dad, and then my brother Drew. The loss of Drew was, in some ways, the most ironic. He had testified against my dad, and I had been a witness in Dad’s defense. After that, there was no way we could go back to even a civil relationship.
    At first, Grace hadn’t wanted to go to Norm and Peggy’s house. Finally I was able to convince her they were the only ones who could let us into the theater. When she still hesitated, I reminded her that I had seen them in the dreams too. I didn’t mention my confusion about whether or not they were human. We would discover that truth soon enough.
    “They better not live too far from here,” she said.
    “ Descanso Street,” I said, and echoed Peggy’s words. “One block from the beach.”
    “Do they know where my sister is?”
    “They might.” I didn’t have a c
lu
e what Peggy and Norm knew or didn’t know. “They take care of the theater and probably spend a lot of time there.”
    “Then let’s go talk to them,” she said.
    I couldn’t believe she had agreed to go with me, and I wasn’t about to wait until she changed her mind.
    “Ms. Gates has been watching us,” I said. “Let’s pretend we’re going to the bathroom.”
    We moved away from the others then hurried down the long hall toward the door.
    “Hey,” a voice called, and we both jerked around. Charles had followed us, make that followed Grace. “You’re not really going out in that, are you?” he asked.
    “Why not?” she said in that pseudo-snooty tone I had come to realize was the way she flirted. “It’s just water.”
    “Where are you heading?”
    “What difference does it make?”
    He gave her a lazy grin. “Listen, I’m as bored in there as you are. Whatever you two are planning, I promise it will be more fun if you let me come along.”
    “No plan,” I said. “Just back to our rooms. Sorry, Charles.”
    “But can’t I...”
    “You heard Livia .” Grace reached for the door. “Why don’t you go play cards with Emily?”
    She let the door snap closed behind us, and we stepped into the downpour.
    Grace pulled the rescued scarf around her hair. “You sure you want to do this?” she asked.
    I handed her my umbrella. “I don’t know what else to do.”
    “And you really did see Felicia?”
    “She said her name was something else—Caitlin—but I described her to you. I couldn’t have done that if I hadn’t seen her.”
    “I guess I screwed up again, then, by believing what she said.” She touched my arm. “I’m sorry, Livia . I mean that. I was just so worried that I wouldn’t see Felicia again that I exploded before I thought about it.”
    “Don’t apologize,” I said. “She got the reaction she wanted from you in that last dream. I don’t think she’ll try to hide from you. She wants to be seen.”
    We made our way down the hill and onto a path, both of us crouched under my black umbrella. The rain seemed to let up, or maybe I was just getting used to it. Impulsive as this impromptu mission was, it had given us a chance to talk, and I felt better knowing why Grace had been so angry. Caitlin, the blond girl in her dream, had tried to turn her against me.
    Descanso really did exist. It was located between Catalina and Claressa avenues, right off Tremont.
    “How will we know which one is their house?” Grace asked.
    Good question. “We’ll have to look in the windows,” I said.
    “Do you want to go to jail?” She went to the curbside mailbox, a rustic black metal rectangle on a wrought-iron base. Rain poured down and over the umbrella, but she flashed me a victorious smile. “They have last names and first initials. Who are we looking for?”
    I was embarrassed to admit that I didn’t know Peggy and Norm’s last name.
    “I’ll look,” I said. “You get out of the rain.” I was soaking wet in no time, but the