Nightfall (Devil's Night 4)

I squealed, laughing as Will dragged me through the trees, around a tomb, and past the fountain.

I dug in my heels, trying to keep up as the cold air whipped across my face.

Will yanked me behind a massive headstone, and we hid, Will peering around the corner to see if we’d made it.

He’d left the truck parked just on the other side of the tree line, otherwise anyone would’ve known his vehicle. It was a pain in the ass, dragging all that stuff in three trips, but man, that was worth it.

I hugged his arm, still shaking with laughter.

He turned, smiling as he gazed into my eyes. “I love seeing you laugh.”

I dipped my forehead to his, my body filled with excitement and more freedom than I’d ever felt in my whole life.

“More,” I begged.

He took my hand in his, caressing my jaw. “Yeah? I have just the place.”

• • •

An hour later, I laughed, squeezing his hand and feeling that drop in my stomach as the pirate ship swayed back and forth.

Shit. I squealed, butterflies swarming my stomach as the ride slowed, the tires screeching against the bottom as we went up, caught air for a split second, and then fell back down, the wind blowing through my hair.

Why the hell didn’t I come here more often? How many people could have roller coasters in their lives every day?

It was kind of pricey, I guess. The cost for a ticket kept getting more and more expensive as Adventure Cove struggled to stay open over the years.

The bars came up, and Will and I climbed out, laughing down the steps.

“It’s my favorite ride,” he said. “Nothing quite like the sensation of free falling.”

Nope. It was better than the best roller coaster. I looked up at Will, seeing him pull cash out of his wallet and then take a stick of pink cotton candy, handing it to me as he took his change.

“You want my jacket?” he asked as we started to walk again.

I picked off some of the fluffy sugar. “I’m okay.”

I stuck the candy in my mouth, honestly a little chilly, but I was loving the wind too much. I was like my grandmother that way.

We walked, the sounds of the park raging around us—screams and coaster tracks and bells ringing from the game booths…

The sea air wafted through my nostrils, and I looked past the Ferris wheel, deep into the dark where I couldn’t see it, but I knew it was there.

The coast and the ocean and Cold Point—the edge that dropped off onto the rocks and into the sea.

Will leaned over and picked off some candy, and I did the same, warming when his arm brushed mine. His other hand rested on the small of my back, and I felt his eyes on me.

“Have you ever heard of The Carfax Room?” I asked, picking off more candy and eating it.

“Sure,” he said. “It’s like Edward McClanahan and Blackchurch and EverNight. Another Thunder Bay urban legend.”

I turned my head, looking up at him. “What’s Blackchurch?”

“A house.” He shrugged. “Supposedly.”

He paused, eating more, and we passed game booths where a few people played. The park wasn’t too crowded tonight, some middle schoolers making it louder than normal.

He continued, “No one knows where it is, if it’s even real, but stories abound of rich, young men who can’t behave being ferried away there to be hidden.”