Read Conjure for Free Online Page B

door and race down the porch steps into the steamy June night. Laughing, Cooper veers away from the still charging golf cart and instead slows down to walk toward the wooded path that leads to the caretaker’s cottage.
    The woods are thick with tall, spiky cabbage palms, leafy cypresses dripping with resurrection ferns, and small, scrubby post oak shrubs. It’s so dense, it’s nearly impossible to glimpse the sapphire sky and its silver constellations. Cooper and I grow quiet, walking in time to the sounds of summer, supplied by the rattling cicadas and croaking toads.
    Suddenly Cooper breaks the silence. “I’m sorry my dad’s such a jerk.”
    Truer words have never been spoken. But Beau’s the last person I want to think about right now, so I wave it away. “That’s okay.”
    “No, it’s not.” He sighs. “I guess it’s just one of those things.”
    “What things?” When it comes to Beau, I’m almost afraid to ask.
    He stares at the path, avoiding my eyes. “An example of how not to act when I’m older. He’s given me lots of those lately.”
    “Maybe he’d be different if your mom was still here.” My words are soft to lessen the blow.
    “As much as I’d like to think that, even though I was young, I remember things weren’t great between them. Before she, well, you know.” He mashes his lip, swallowing years of regret and pain.
    There’s so much longing in his voice, I want to reach out and hold his hand, or hug him—anything to share the burden. A year ago I might’ve been able to. But now, even though it’s exactly what he needs, I can’t. I don’t want to just be his friend anymore. I want more.
    But he’s not interested. So I keep my hands to myself and offer a few useless words instead. “I’m sorry, Cooper.”
    He shakes his head. “Nah, it’s in the past. Nothing you can do about it.”
    A snap, loud and cracking, ricochets in the woods.
    My heart seizes, and I stop short. “What was that?”
    Cooper shakes his head. “I didn’t hear anything.”
    “Are you sure?” The echo of the sound still rings in my ears. I stand stiff, straining for any sound. Night creatures sing, filling the night air, but theirs are the normal sounds of summer. Crickets and toads aren’t big enough to crunch things in the forest.
    He grasps my arm and smiles. “Trust me, Emmaline. There’s no boogeyman waiting to eat us.”
    Warmth fills my quivering chest, easing my tense shoulders. I’m being silly. It’s been a long day. Between Jack, his burn, and that creepy letter, I must be going nuts.
    I start down the path again, passing sedge brooms and saw palmettos. As crazy as the day has been, I don’t want the night to end. Maybe I can get Cooper to stay awhile, watch a movie or something. It’s not like he’s dying to get back home to hang with Missy and Beau in the hot tub.
    Another snap, sharper than the first, slices the night.
    My pulse charges. Cooper and I freeze.
    The night critters suddenly stop mid-song, leaving a heavy silence in the sultry air. My heart threatens to leap from my chest.
    Dead leaves rustle just a few feet away. It’s right behind us.
    Forgetting to breathe, I sink my nails into Cooper’s arm. Together, we pivot on our heels.
    Two enormous, glowing yellow eyes flash in the pitch black.

Chapter Five
    I scream.
    Cooper snatches my hand and bolts down the path, dragging me behind him.
    Twigs break and crack in the woods behind us. Heavy, quick footsteps pound. Whatever it is, it’s keeping pace, following us.
    “Run faster!” Cooper yells and tugs on my hand, navigating us around the thick roots that cut across the path.
    I try to keep up, but my flip-flops and flapping bandage trip me up, and my short legs struggle to match Cooper’s long stride.
    “I’m going as fast as I can!”
    The footfalls gain speed and draw closer.
    “Not fast enough! Come on, dig in!” He yanks hard on my hand and flings me in front of him, launching me farther down the path. Still