Free The Burning by R.L. Stine

you’ve done
quite
enough,” Hannah replied coldly.
    Lucy appeared stung by Hannah’s words.
    Hannah immediately felt sorry.
    Lucy was red-faced and breathing hard because she had hurried up the stairs to help me, Hannah realized. I have become so frightened of her, so suspicious of her, that I really believed she had come to attack me!
    â€œI am sorry you are in pain, miss,” Lucy said, lowering her eyes to the floor. “If there is anything I can do for you …”
    â€œThank you, Lucy,” Hannah replied, softening her tone. “You may clean up the floor. There was quite a lot of blood. Then take that shoe down to Mrs. MacKenzie. Ask if there is any way it can be cleaned.”
    â€œYes, miss,” Lucy said, still avoiding Hannah’s gaze.
    Limping gingerly, Hannah made her way past Lucy and headed downstairs to dinner.
    The picnic was Hannah’s idea. She had been cooped up in the house for three days nursing her injured foot. Now the foot was nearly healed, and she was walking normally.
    â€œWhat an excellent idea,” Julia said brightly. “I shall have a basket lunch made up. We shall go out to the woods and enjoy this beautiful day.”
    Joseph, Brandon, and Robert begged to come along. “I promise we won’t be any trouble,” begged Robert. “And I shall watch Brandon and Joseph carefully.”
    Fluff also seemed excited by the idea. The littledog leapt eagerly at the pantry door, whimpering to go out into the sunshine.
    â€œGo get dressed,” Julia instructed her sister. “I shall go speak to Lucy about preparing our lunch basket.”
    The mention of Lucy’s name gave Hannah a chill. She had avoided the maid for three days. Hannah realized that she was perhaps being unfair. Lucy
couldn’t
be deliberately trying to hurt the two Fear sisters. What reason could she have?
    Just the same, Hannah had decided to avoid Lucy and to have as little to do with her as possible.
    Pushing Lucy out of her mind, she hurried upstairs to get changed for the picnic.
    â€œWhy do they call it Indian summer?” Brandon asked.
    â€œI am not sure,” Hannah told him. “But today is certainly the most beautiful Indian summer day.”
    The sun was high, seeming to float above tiny puffs of white cloud. Leaves shimmered brightly on the tall trees at the back of the lawn. They were still summer green although autumn was here.
    Despite the sunshine, the air carried a chill. Hannah wrapped her light blue shawl around her as she watched Fluff scamper through the tall grass.
    â€œJoseph, don’t chase Fluff!” Julia ordered. “You’re getting the poor dog all excited!”
    â€œI am afraid that Fluff is already excited,” Hannah told her, laughing as the dog rolled onto its back and frantically kicked at the air with all fourpaws. Joseph rolled on the ground, imitating the dog.
    â€œRobert, hold the picnic basket straight. You are going to spill everything!” Julia cried.
    â€œBut it is so
heavy!”
Robert complained. “What did Lucy pack in here—an elephant?”
    â€œThe flowers are beautiful,” Hannah said, pleased to be out of the house. “Look, Julia, we still have roses.”
    Julia didn’t reply. She was distracted by Fluff and Joseph. “Joseph!” she called. “Look out! Do not let the dog fall into that hole!”
    At the edge of the woods they all stopped to watch Fluff as he neared a burial plot.
    With Joseph close behind, the dog ran to the edge of the freshly dug grave, sniffed along the sides at the moist, dark dirt, then came trotting back toward Robert, Brandon, and the girls.
    â€œWhy is there a new grave?” Robert asked, shifting the heavy picnic basket to his other hand, his eyes on the deep hole.
    â€œDid you not hear about Jenkins, the gardener?” Julia asked. “He passed away in his sleep two nights ago. He is to be buried this