Skeleton Tower by Vanessa Acton

Author:Vanessa Acton [Acton, Vanessa]
Language: eng
Format: epub
Tags: Action, Action & Adventure, action/adventure, Adolescence, Adventure, Adventure, Bravery, Courage, Cursed Places, Curses, Danger, Family, Family and Relationships, Fear, Fiction-Young Adult, Ghost, High Interest, High School, Lighthouse, Mysteries, Mystery, Occult, Paranormal, Scary, Secret, Secrets, Spooky Story, Supernatural, Survival, Suspense, Teen, Teenagers, Teens, The Atlas of Cursed Places, Thiller, Thrillers, Thrillers & Suspense, Young Adults
ISBN: 9781512419535
Publisher: Lerner Publishing Group
Published: 2016-09-30T16:00:00+00:00

Chapter 9

We skim through the rest of the lighthouse’s history. “Seems like the curse calmed down after the skeleton tower was built,” Morgan notes. “No more fires or whatnot.”

“Well, there weren’t any keepers after that,” I say. “And the curse was targeting the keepers. So it makes sense that all the weirdness would’ve stopped. At least until a few years ago, when the old lighthouse reopened.”

“Didn’t you say earlier that Mom and Dad aren’t real keepers, though?”

“I’m not sure the curse cares.”

Based on what’s happened today, Morgan can’t argue with that.

We read the last paragraph of the entry.

Emma Blake Shields (1871–1967), the daughter of keeper Seth Blake, mentioned the curse in several family letters. Shields herself worked as a lighthouse keeper. She tended the Martine Bay Lighthouse for more than fifty years and had a spotless record. She is thought to have kept a diary during her family’s time at Point Encanto Lighthouse. This diary, which has never been located, may contain further references to the curse.

Morgan’s been running her finger along the page as she reads. When she reaches the final period, her finger flutters, like it’s not sure what to do now.

“Wait, that’s it? It doesn’t tell us how to break the curse?”

“Apparently not,” I say.

“But we have to figure out how to break it,” says Morgan.

“Or we could just leave,” I suggest. “I mean—convince Mom and Dad to leave.”

She glares at me. “You’re the one who’s always complaining that we never stay in one place.”

“Yeah, well, most places we’ve lived haven’t been cursed!”

Morgan makes a disgusted noise in her throat. “That’s no excuse.” She slams the atlas shut.

“How is that not an excuse? We could get seriously hurt if we stay here, Morgan!”

“I get that, Jason. But Mom and Dad aren’t just going to pack up and leave. We haven’t even been here twenty-four hours. And you know they wouldn’t buy into the supernatural stuff. Besides, even if we could get them to quit, we’d be leaving this mess for the next keepers to deal with. That’s not exactly fair, is it?”

Morgan’s a fan of fairness. And of disagreeing with me.

“Our best bet is to try to break the curse,” she insists.

“Before it breaks us,” I say darkly.

“Exactly.”

“And how do we do that?”

She stands up and crosses her arms, like she’s cold again. “I don’t know. I don’t even know if we can get back into our rooms.”

I check the time on my phone. “The atlas said the curse is most active between sunset and midnight, right?”

“Right. So?”

“So, it’s 12:02. Let’s see if our apartment door is unlocked again.”

***

We make our way back down the winding stairs of the lighthouse. Each metal step clangs under our feet. The acoustics in this lighthouse are pretty good. We’re creating a massive echo.

The front door is still open, letting in a brisk sea wind. We sprint outside. Behind us, I hear a creak of hinges, and then a bang. The lighthouse door just shut itself.

***

We have no trouble getting back into the cottage.

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