Ghoulishly Yours

Jimmy sat down on the bunkhouse porch steps and contemplated what it was that they were about to do. It was foolish! They had gotten away from the strange noises and spooky woods, and now they were about to run back to a house that was said to be haunted?

Talk about a stupid plan, he thought to himself.

Everyone but Cody seemed game for the adventure, and he wondered why the sudden change in his behavior. Normally he would have been one of the first people out the door, but today he sat secluded in the corner minding his own business.

"You ready, Jimmy?" Kid interrupted his thoughts.

He turned around, "Yeah, whenever you are."

Lou walked out a couple of seconds later, pulling her jacket over her shoulders. The crumbled letter was clutched in her hands. "Let's go."

"I think she's the biggest fool of us all," Noah commented, shaking his head.

"I may be a fool boys, but at least I've got guts," she smirked back at him.

Cody sat on his horse and continuously rubbed the side of his face. All of the riders watched him with mild curiosity, but none of them asked him about it. It was when he brushed his finger across his teeth that they began to worry…but again, bit their tongues.

The trek back into the woods was not as frightening that afternoon as it had been before. Perhaps it was the power in numbers or the golden sunshine that was now penetrating into the forest, giving them a clear view of the path. The oddest part was that even though it wasn't intimidating to be riding, they still did not speak to each other and rode so closely that their legs constantly brushed together.

Jimmy, Kid, and Lou had given them a brief rundown on what had happened the night before…everything except that Kid had slept next to a strange fuzzy beast. That was one detail that they figured would be best to keep to themselves…not to mention the teasing that would become a repercussion of telling the others.

"Can I see that letter?" Buck asked, extending his arm across Jimmy to grab it from Lou. She leaned over as far as she could and stretched her arm in front of his face.

Buck tried to snatch it, but at the same time that he did so, Lightning picked up a brief jolt of speed and Lou toppled over sideways. She fell to the ground, and rolled over on her stomach.

"Oh," was all that she could say.

Everyone leapt down at the same time…all except Cody, who was checking his finger nails.

"Lou!? You all right?" Jimmy asked.

"Give us a signal if you are," Kid added.

A few seconds later a weak index finger rose up and they breathed a sigh of relief. "Just give me a minute," she stated.

Noah stared down at her oddly and offered to help her stand up. Lou remained frozen despite their pleading to get her to stand.

"Get down here!" she said suddenly, her eyes staring off to the side as she bent her head down further.

Kid and Jimmy raced to her side at the same time, fearing that her injuries were severe.

"What?"

"What?"

The look that Kid shot Jimmy would have been frightening, but he was too concerned about Lou's condition to carry it further. Jimmy shrugged off the short scowl. What was so wrong with echoing anyway?

Lou pointed over to her right. "Over there."

Kid followed her finger from his crouched position, "I don't see anything," he replied staring off through the thick trees.

"Get down, on your stomach," she ordered.

Kid glared at her suspiciously. "Come on, Lou, get up, you're starting to worry me here. Let's get you back to a doctor. We shouldn't be out here in the first place."

Lou turned to him for the first time since her fall. Her face was just as natural as it always was. The only difference now was the far off look she got when she was on to something. "Kid, I'm fine…would you quit asking? Get down on your stomach and tell me if that is what I think it is."

Slowly and with much resistance, he lowered himself down. Obviously he didn't move fast enough for her liking, and she placed her hand on his back, shoving him face down as he let loose with a, "Oof."

"There, see it now?" she pointed, while he rested his face on the ground.

Kid squinted and stared through the long-endless rows of trees. At first he saw nothing except darkness…but just as he was about to say as much, he spotted the same luring object that had drawn her attention.

"Woah, what is that?" he gasped.

"What is what?" all of the riders asked in unison, dropping from their horses and falling flat on their bellies.

Noah, Buck, Cody, Jimmy, Kid, and Lou all squiggled on the ground for a better look. No one was able to say much of anything, still trying to make out precisely what it was that they were staring at.

"Boys," Lou finally said, propping herself up on her elbows, "I think that we've found our haunted house."

The forest was too thick and wooded to even attempt to ride horses through, so the only alternative they had was to walk. After convincing the boys that their horses would be fine, Lou persisted that they walk on as quickly as possible.

As they trod deeper into the trees, the sun's light was blocked. Darkness surrounded everything, and a chilling breeze began to encompass them. It was the same sharp cold air that one might feel emanating off of a frozen lake or snow covered mountain. But again, they said nothing and drew their jackets tightly around their fronts.

The view of the house came and went with every step. At one glance it would appear enormous in size, and from another angle, it would seem small and condensed. When it was visible, they would see several windows but never any light. A hushed stillness seemed to forbid anyone from coming closer, but at the same time, it had an intoxicating enticement.

Without any sound, except for the occasional crunching of the leaves beneath their feet, it remained still and quiet. Nobody spoke a word for fear of something dreadful occurring if they did.

Then, as swiftly and sharp as it had become silent, another scream streaked through the air. Cody jumped, and at the same time that he did he tripped over a log on the ground and fell harshly. He wanted to shout for help, but with the wind knocked out of him, he was unable to.

None of the other riders seemed to notice what had happened to him, and so he scrambled to his feet to catch up.

"Did you hear that?" Lou asked casually, hastily grabbing her own trembling hand.

Kid and Jimmy nodded, while the whites of Noah's eyes almost glowed in the darkness and Buck's mouth hung open. "Yeah."

"Okay, just checking," she replied not taking her eyes off of the house.

The group moved deftly across the debris in the woods, and as suddenly as they had begun their venture, the house appeared in front of them. Its tall dark wooded door was cracked open, and the inside of the structure was darker than the forest.

"Do any of you fellas think we ought to turn back now? We've seen it. Seems to be your average haunted house," Cody noted, his voice trembling as he slowly turned his back and began to walk away.

Cody was suddenly pulled back as a hand forcefully grabbed his jacket and he remained stuck with his leg up in the air in mid-stride. "Or, we can always stay around for a while," he finished.

"Don't be so yellow," Jimmy barked.

The boys were so preoccupied with what was happening around them, that they didn't know that Lou had already made her way into the building. She had just been there a few seconds before, but now she was gone and out of sight.

"Where's Lou?" Kid asked nervously.

"No, we're not going to do that one again, Kid." Jimmy shook his head. "She was right here."

Kid ignored the comment and began walking towards the house. He removed his hat and timidly walked up the steps and pushed on the door. It creaked loudly and he jumped back at first…Noah, Buck, Cody, and Jimmy doing the same thing. "Sorry," he apologized before stepping into the darkness.

Once they had entered the main entrance to the house, and were standing closely together, the door slammed shut with a mighty force and a loud crack. Again, they leapt from their feet and squealed in their own boyish ways.

"Lou?" Kid said softly, his word carried out three and four times as it echoed through the stone walls.

There was a silence yet again, and he turned to the others. "There's nowhere else that she could have gone, so she's in here somewhere. I want everyone to spread out and start looking. She may be lost."

Kid was not surprised when they all didn't willingly decide to spread out and do their search alone. "You cowards," he whispered. "Go in groups of two then. Cody with Buck, Noah go that way, Jimmy you're with me."

Noah couldn't help how easily Kid gave commands, but wasn't willing to explore the house on his own either. "Wait a second. That means that I'm going alone!"

Taking a deep breath, Kid let go of the desire to have someone with him as well. But of course being the ringleader of this search party, he had to pretend to be brave. "Jimmy, you're with Noah. I'll meet you boys back here…and if anyone finds her, tie her up or something, but don't let her go wandering off again." He hesitated, "And watch yourself…it's dark out there."

Kid was not afraid to admit that he was a bit freaked out being there alone. All of the walls seemed to be watching him as he climbed the staircase straight ahead. Each step he took was enhanced to twice its normal volume, and somehow he felt as if he were being followed. But of course as he tried to remind himself that such a feeling was silly…and should be pushed out of his thoughts.

He felt his way through the darkness, still calling out an occasional "Lou" now and then.

After taking a few steps, Kid was relieved beyond comprehension to hear her voice come towards him. "I'm up here!" she replied, the phrase repeating three times.

"Where's 'here', Lou? I can't see anything," Kid asked, trying to follow her voice the best that he could.

"Upstairs! You boys have got to get up here!" her voice sounded excited, and Kid was glad that it wasn't a cry of terror.

"Buck, Jimmy, Noah, Cody!" he yelled. "She's upstairs! Meet us up here!"

A series of acknowledgments followed, and he began walking up the steps again, grasping onto the wooden railing for support. "Don't these ever end?" he wondered aloud. "Or is it just because it's so dark that they seem so long?"

Lou called down. "Did you say something?"

"Yeah, but I was talking to myself," he responded.

"Oh. Well stop because you're giving me the creeps. This is bad enough."

Kid tried to smile through gritted teeth. "Well I would stop if I could ever reach the top."

Lou bent down and examined some of the other things on the floor. An assortment of everything and nothing covered the ground…but what caught her attention most passionately was the large item in the center of the floor.

"Stop whining," she retorted, knowing that she would get a rise out of him.

"I'm not whining Lou, it's just that…"

Not paying attention to his last words, Lou sensed movement on the ground and she backed up slowly, wanting to tell Kid to hurry up. But as she took a step, something struck behind her legs and she fell backwards, falling for a split second before landing flat on her back.

The crash that followed came above her head, and the room grew dark…while she was trapped with no way to move. Lou knew that she had been placed in something, although she was not sure what. The small space that she was confined in grew stifling and hot. She couldn't breathe and claustrophobia set in. Lou tried to scream, but there was not nearly enough air to whisper.

He heard the spine tingling sound and yelled her name. When she didn't respond, Kid began a frantic pace up the stairs and tripped, landing on the edge of the top step with his knee. He bellowed a cry of pain and took off at a limp run.

Kid could distinctly make out the pattering of the others racing up the stairs, but the noise that frightened him the most was the muffled scream that came from Lou…

To Be Continued...Chapter IV