Free Midnight Games by R.L. Stine Page B

Why not? Because he thought I killed Ada?
    If not, who did he think was the murderer?
    Jamie was standing by me. When Whitney glared at me in the hall at school, Jamie glared right back at her. Lewis believed in me too.
    And I wanted Nate to trust me. I really did. I needed someone to rely on, and I hoped that someone was Nate.
    The doorbell rang. Jamie and Lewis were at a movie. Danny was staying with a friend. Jamie’s parents were out too. I was the only one home.
    I ran down the stairs and pulled open the front door.
    Nate had a smile on his face. But when he saw me, his eyes went wide and his mouth dropped open.
    I realized he was staring at my chest. “Nate? What’s wrong?” I asked.
    â€œThat pendant,” he said, pointing. “Where did you get it?”
    My hand went to the necklace. “I made it,” I said. “Why? What’s wrong with it?”
    He didn’t answer. He grabbed it gently and smoothed his hand over it. The pendant was made of silver wire with blue glass cut to look like jewels.
    â€œIt’s not old?” he asked finally. He let go of it and took a step back.
    â€œNo. I told you. I made it,” I said.
    It was a cold, blustery kind of night, black storm clouds low in the sky. Nate stood there with his denim jacket open, a black T-shirt underneath. “Aren’t you cold?” I said.
    I stepped aside and motioned for Nate to come into the house. I closed the door behind him. He was still studying the pendant.
    â€œIt just looks old,” I said. “I copied the design from old photos of Angelica Fear.”
    He swallowed. “You did? You have photos of Angelica Fear?”
    I nodded. “Well, yes. I told you I’ve studied the history of the Fears. It is my family, after all.” I tugged his arm. “Want to see the photos of her?”
    â€œFor sure,” he said.
    I led him up to my room in the attic. He looked around, ducking his head under the slanting ceiling. “Cozy,” he said. He grabbed my arms and tried to pull me on top of him on the bed.
    â€œHey, I thought you wanted to see old photos,” I said.
    He kissed me. We kissed for a while. I held the sides of his face, held him there, needing him, needing someone to care about me.
    Then, breathless, I pulled away and dropped down to my file drawer. He sat on the bed and watched me as I searched for the Angelica Fear photos.
    â€œHere.” I handed both of them to him. “The date on the back says eighteen ninety-five. They’re pretty faded. I had to tape that one back together. It kinda crumbled.”
    He studied the first photo for a long time, then moved to the second one. “That’s the amulet,” he murmured.
    â€œDo you know about it?” I asked.
    He didn’t answer. Just stared from one photo to the other.
    â€œAngelica Fear was obsessed with immortality,”I said. “I read a lot about her. She was one of the most interesting Fears—and one of the most evil. She was into all kinds of witchcraft and sorcery. She did a lot of experiments, trying to bring dead people back to life. She said she would live forever. She told people she had found the secret.”
    Nate finally put down the photos. He gazed at me. I didn’t know if he’d heard a word I said. “Why did you copy her amulet?” he asked.
    I shrugged. “I just thought it was kinda cool. You know. Mysterious looking. I was really into jewelry-making for a while. Jamie isn’t the only artistic one in the family.”
    He turned back to the amulet. “Did Angelica wear it because it had magical powers? Was that her secret for living forever?”
    I shrugged. “Beats me. Maybe she thought it had powers. I didn’t read about that anywhere.”
    I turned the amulet over in my hand. “Do you believe in that supernatural stuff, Nate?”
    He snickered. A strange smile spread over his face. “I may know more about the