Read Night Things: A Novel of Supernatural Terror for Free Online

you mean?”
    “You said the same thing about some of your other boyfriends, and looked what happened.”
    His remark angered her. “If you mean Tim, we’ve already been through all that. I know it was a mistake to let him move in with us, and I’m sorry. But you can’t continue to hold that against me forever.”
    He looked down stubbornly, but before he could say anything else she put her arm around him and sat him down beside her on the bed. “Listen, Garrett, you and I have always had a sort of understanding. We’ve always respected each other’s wishes. I know it hasn’t been easy on you with me being away so much on writing assignments, but you’ve been really good about it. And strange though some of your interests are, I’ve always supported them and tried to see that you’ve had everything you’ve needed for your hobbies. Now I know it’s not going to be easy, but you said you were going to give Stephen a chance. So for my sake, won’t you put this idea out of your head and at least try to meet him halfway?”
    Her request merely caused the sinking in his stomach to intensify, but as he looked into her eyes and saw how much it meant to her, he realized he had no choice. He knew that if he continued on his tack of moody obstinacy he would only alienate her further.
    “Okay,” he said quietly, hoping she did not detect the pessimism in his voice.
    She hugged him. “I knew I could count on you.”
    Almost on cue, there came the sound of Stephen clunking his suitcase down in the bedroom down the hall, and Lauren stood up. “Well, I’m going to go do some unpacking. Do you want to come with me or do you want to stay and tinker with your new telescope?”
    “I’ll stay,” he said.
    “Okay.” She kissed him on the forehead and then went out.
    Left alone, Garrett looked back at the telescope. Knowing now it had been purchased with Stephen’s money, he considered never touching it again. But then he looked at all of its special features and recalled how remarkable its powers of magnification were. He approached it slowly and allowed his finger to trace down its sleek black exterior. What could he do about his failure to convince his mother about Stephen? Since simply telling her had proved so unsuccessful, he had to find another way to accomplish the task. And although he did not know what that was, something told him it was going to require every last ounce of resourcefulness he possessed.
    When Lauren reached the master bedroom, she found Stephen unpacking his suitcase.
    “That was Marty,” he said when she entered. “He called to tell me that the new single jumped ten places on the charts last week.”
    “Oh, you knew it would,” she said happily as she sat down on the bed and bounced a couple of times to test its firmness. To her delight, despite the obvious age of the bed its mattress seemed new.
    “Did you get Garrett settled in his room?”
    “Yes.”
    “Did he like the telescope?”
    “He loved it,” she murmured distantly as she thought again of Garrett’s assertion that Stephen did not like him.
    “But...?” he countered, sensing her pensiveness.
    “Oh, it’s nothing. It’s just something Garrett said.”
    “What was that?”
    She pursed her brow, not wanting to hurt his feelings. “Well, you know how difficult all this has been for him. Somehow he’s gotten into his head this crazy idea that you don’t like him.”
    As she had expected, Stephen seemed surprised. “He thinks that?”
    “Yes, but you know how eleven-year-olds are. He was probably just seeing how I would react. Gauging my feelings. I’m sure it had nothing to do with you.”
    “No, maybe it does,” Stephen said unexpectedly, and this time it was her turn to be surprised. She looked at him silently, waiting for him to continue.
    “The truth is, I’m not really used to kids. That’s probably why I forgot all about the telescope downstairs when you were dropping all those hints about it.” He turned