Beware, the Snowman by R L Stine & R. L. Stine

Author:R L Stine & R. L. Stine
Language: eng
Format: mobi
Tags: Horror & Ghost Stories, Juvenile Fiction / Action & Adventure - General
ISBN: 9780439863933
Publisher: Scholastic Paperbacks
Published: 2006-10-01T22:00:00+00:00

17

I shouldn’t have laughed. But I just couldn’t help it.

I mean, Rolonda seemed like a really smart girl. She couldn’t really believe that story—could she?

It’s a joke, I decided. A story the villagers tell to scare people who move here.

I stopped laughing when I saw the startled expression on Rolonda’s face. “Hey, come on,” I said. “You’re kidding—right?”

She shook her head solemnly. Her dark eyes glowed in the dim light. Such serious eyes.

“You don’t really believe that a snowman can walk, do you?” I demanded. My voice echoed shrilly in the small room. “You don’t really believe that a snowman can be alive!”

“I believe it,” Rolonda replied in a low, trembling voice. “It’s not a joke, Jaclyn. I believe it. And everyone in the village believes it.”

I stared at her. The ceiling creaked, probably from the weight of the snow on the roof. I shifted my weight on the hard wooden bench.

“But have you ever seen it?” I asked. “Have you ever seen the snowman walk?”

She blinked. “Well… no,” she confessed. “But I’ve heard him late at night, Jaclyn. I’ve heard his howls and his angry cries.”

She climbed to her feet. “I won’t go close enough to see him. I’m too afraid,” she said. “I won’t go up to the ice cave. No one will.”

“But, Rolonda—” I started.

Then I stopped. Her chin trembled. I could see the fear in her eyes.

Just talking about the snowman had frightened her.

I wanted to tell her that the story couldn’t be true. I wanted to tell her that it sounded like a silly superstition. A fairy tale.

But I didn’t want to insult her.

She might be my only friend here, I thought.

I stood up and pulled on my coat. Then the two of us made our way out of the church.

The snow had stopped. But a gusting wind blew down from the mountain. The wind made the fresh snow swirl and dance around our boots.

I pulled my hood over my hair and lowered my head into the wind. No way I could ever believe such a wild story, I thought. Why doesn’t Rolonda see how crazy it is?

We made our way up the road, our boots sinking into the powdery, fresh snow. We didn’t talk. Our voices wouldn’t carry over the loud rush of the wind.

I walked Rolonda home. We stopped at the bottom of her snow-covered driveway. “Thanks for telling me about the snowman,” I said.

Her eyes locked on mine. “You had to be told,” she said solemnly. And then she added, “You’ve got to believe me, Jaclyn. It’s true. All of it.”

I didn’t reply. I said good night. Then I turned and, leaning into the wind, headed for my house.

I was nearly there when I heard a sound over the roaring wind.

A heavy THUD THUD THUD coming up rapidly behind me.

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