Read Souls in Peril for Free Online Page B

’ d cleaned last night was a mess again. Pop cans and empty burger wrappers littered the floor once more. “ I ’ m guessing Tim has an aversion to trash cans. ” Max scrambled up some eggs since the only other option was Sugar Mania, a cold, sugar packed cereal. He also took the pain pills and flushed them down the toilet. “ Not taking these again. ” He hated the groggy feeling he got from them.
    Hoisting JD ’ s backpack up on his shoulder, he stepped outside and realiz ed he had no idea where the bus stop was. He hoped to see other kids waiting nearby, otherwise he ’ d have a long hike to school.
    “ Although a forty-five minute walk would be good for this body. ” As Max poked his flabby stomach, a powerful surge of fear propelled him back against the door. “ What the heck? ” he muttered, righting himself. He glanced around, but saw nothing out of the ordinary. “ Weird. ” Max stepped off the porch and headed toward the school. He came around the first corner and saw a group of kids he recognized. The same feeling of impending doom from a few minutes ago rushed him again. JD ’ s afraid of getting on the bus, Max thought. No, this is beyond fear. He ’ s scared spit-less.
    Max approached the kids with a smile on his face, convinced JD just needed a little self-confidence. “ Hey. ” He knew several of them, but since he didn ’ t know who exactly JD knew, he didn ’ t call any by name.
    “ Hey, butthead, ” said a tall kid Max didn ’ t recognize . “ Heard you killed our star pitcher. ” The kid came up to him, shoving his face into Max ’ s. “ We lose the championship game, you can kiss your fat butt goodbye , ‘ cause yours will be the next funeral around here. ” He rammed his shoulder into Max, knocking him back a few steps. Out of pure instinct, JD ’ s instinct , Max threw his arms over his face as if to block a punch. The tall kid laughed and several others joined in.
    A gentle tug on his arm had Max spinning around defensively. Icky Izzy. Max had forgotten about her. “ Hi. ” Her voice came out timidly. “ Why are you over here? ”
    “ What? ” Max looked at her, confused.
    “ We stand over t here. ” She pointed across the street to a corner covered in thorn bushes. “ Are you okay? Your mom said you had a concussion. I tried to come and visit, but you know my dad. ”
    No, actually , I don ’ t.   He followed her over to the thorn bush, noting how skinny she ’ d gotten. It was the thinnest he ’ d ever seen her. A good strong wind, heck, any kind of a breeze would blow her right over. Her pale skin was translucent and her watery gray eyes were ringed. She needs a good night ’ s sleep and a good meal.
    “ I ’ m doing better today, thanks. I did some stretches and that helped with the stiffness. The head ’ s a little sore still, but that will get better with time. The doctor said it could take six months to a year for the headaches to stop. ” He rubbed his temples , th e pounding lighter today.
    “ Did he give you any pain pills? ” Her pale face lit up as she asked. The thought crossed Max ’ s mind that maybe her thin body was the result of drug use and , not anorexia.
    “ Yes, Percocet. But they fogged up my mind too much. I flushed them down the toilet this morning. ”
    “ You did what? Did you forget about the pact? ” She looked at him frantically. “ JD, I can ’ t believe you. Sometimes I don ’ t think you care one bit about it . ”
    Before he could question her about the ambiguous pact, the bus came. Max turned to go, but Izzy tugged on his arm. “ We get on last, remember? ” She dipped her head at the tall kid.
    Max stepped back next to Izzy and waited for everyone else to get on the bus. He then followed her on, padd ing down the aisle toward the back of the bus. Max felt like he was walking the gauntlet. Feet shot out to trip him and Izzy, hands delivered punches low on his thighs, too low for the bus driver to see, and