Free Reunion (A Psychological Suspense with Murder, Mystery and the Paranormal) by Jeff Bennington Page B

curiosity. With his face pressed against the door, and no one around, his breath fogged up the glass. He stared down the long hallway that had served as a conduit for generations of students. He recalled the days when he and his classmates had roamed the halls free of fear. He remembered the days when teachers smiled and his classmates proudly hung their projects on the walls for public display. While he reminisced, he wiped the moisture from the glass with his sleeve and continued the healing moment. He closed his eyes and pictured the multitude of kids who had walked and pranced in and out of the hallways, joyfully soaking up their fortunate and blessed education. Yet, while he reflected upon his youth, there arose a sudden shift in his disposition.
    Somehow, the jovial thoughts that raced through his mind became fatalistic. The images that engaged his memories turned back to the day of the massacre. As he stared down the long hallway, the happy children disappeared. They were dispersed after a shadowy figure that resembled Gavin’s description entered his vision. The figure turned its murky head in Bryan’s direction. It stopped to study Bryan’s presence as if it recognized him. Bryan suddenly felt cold. The figure cocked its head to one side as if thinking. Startled by the apparition’s willingness to interact, Bryan watched it turn and walk away. His heart pounded violently, and he felt an eerie sensation of malevolence run across his skin. He jumped away from the entrance and briskly walked back to his car.
    For the first time in a long while, he felt scared to the core of his being. His strong hands trembled from dread of the phenomenon as he jumped back into his patrol car. He locked the doors and leaned back in his seat, his heart continuing to pound. He tried to minimize the experience, searching for some justification or explanation, but the image had already burned itself into his memory.
    No way. This can’t be happening, he thought to himself. This has got to be my imagination.
    But he knew it wasn’t.
    • • •
    Nick Tooley stopped at a local bar while on his way home from work. He strolled in as usual and made his rounds, visiting his drinking buddies. Then he sat down at the bar and ordered a tall draft beer. While he waited for his drink, he lifted his head to watch the news on the flat screen mounted above the “Wall of Blame,” which contained a bottle of every type of liquor imaginable. He watched the weather report and the sports segment. By the time Nick threw back his second drink, the anchorwoman announced a special prerecorded report. Moments later, she stood near the old Crescent Falls High School.
    Wearing a trench coat, and with her hair perfectly in place, she began the broadcast.
    “The day that went down in infamy is on the heels of its twentieth anniversary here at Crescent Falls High School in Crescent Falls, Idaho. Good evening. I’m Julie Divulge, and I’m standing in what appears to be a war zone. But this abandoned building was once a thriving and highly rated high school only twenty short years ago. Sadly, it will forever be remembered as the place where David Ray, a troubled eighteen-year-old, shot and killed eight of his classmates and wounded many others, followed by his own suicide. Our viewers were curious about how the town has changed since that day, so I interviewed some of the residents to find out how they have coped over the years.”
    The video cut to a clip in downtown Crescent Falls.
    “I’m talking with Brenda Day, a local here in Crescent Falls. Brenda, how do you think Crescent Falls has been affected by the massacre twenty years ago?”
    “You gotta be kidding me?” Nick protested. “I’m so sick of all the David-Ray-this, David-Ray-that crap!”
    Nick tried to shake off the pain. He tried to drink it off. Yet for twenty years his mind and body had been mutinous to his wishes. The visions and flashbacks came regardless of his desires. After hearing