Anima's Ghost: The Summer Before (Song Line Echoes, book 2)

Chapter 13: Preparations

When Spyro's cell phone rings that night, "HOME" is on the caller ID. For a few seconds, I just stare at that word, startled by how strange it looks to me. But then I answer the call and lay back on my bed at Grandma Powell's as Spyro says, "Wow, you actually answered."

"Was I not supposed to?"

"Well last time I had to message you online to get you to talk to me when I wasn't there. Did you read that book?"

"What book?"

"Wow. The Bridgewater one I gave you earlier."

"Some of it," I nod even though he can't see me. Ghastly jumps up on the bed, curling up against my side. I want to ask about the camping trip, but instead I just say, "But then I wanted to get back before Grandma Powell went to bed so that she wouldn't worry about me being out late."

"Not sure 9 o'clock is late," Spyro points out. "Especially in the summer, when it's just barely dark that time." I smile, agreeing with him but not quite wanting to say it for some reason. After a few seconds, Spyro asks, "You didn't take the book home with you?"

"I didn't know I could."

"Why not?"

"Isn't it Gatsby's book?"

"The books at the warehouse are fair game to all of us. We've all put books there that we've gotten one way or another. Pretty sure that one, Borden stole from the library."

I open my mouth, but nothing comes out. I'm not sure whether or not I should take him seriously and not sure whether or not I should ask.

Spyro doesn't say anything to fill the silence. I wonder if he's in his room, laying on his bed like I am. I don't know anything about his home life. Not even his house or his family besides Grandma Powell. For all I know, he has half a dozen siblings. Maybe younger ones are crawling all over him now. Or he's hiding from them and that's why he's so quiet.

I close my eyes, wondering why it's so much easier for me to picture a home and a life for someone else than it is for me.

"Hey, you okay?" Spyro finally asks, as if he can sense the shift in my mood even from somewhere in town.

"Yeah," I say, but my voice comes out quieter than I mean it to. Not as sure sounding. "Yeah, I'm fine," I say again, more convincingly this time.

Spyro doesn't say anything at first, and I'm not sure if I hope he believes me or not. He doesn't say anything else about that though when he finally does speak up again. Instead, he tells me, "The camping trip is for us."

"Us?" I ask, not sure what exactly he means by that.

"You, me, Gatsby, Borden, Rune." Then he adds, almost laughing, "Leylina too if you want." I open my mouth, but I'm not sure what exactly to ask anymore. There's too many questions now. Maybe Spyro understands that much, at least, because he continues even though I don't ask. "I gave you that book because that's where we're going. We're going to spend the rest of the summer camping out in the Bridgewater Triangle. Scoping out all the ghost sightings. Except Gatsby's more concerned with the bigfoot sightings."

"Does bigfoot count as paranormal?" I wonder, because it seems more like strange science to me.

Spyro laughs, "I don't know, but Gatsby's obsessed." Once he's not laughing anymore, he says, "I should have told you sooner. I figured all along this would be the plan. I mean, I wasn't sure, nothing's ever really decided until it's summer and we're all back at the warehouse. But I should have known. It's been a long time coming. Look, you don't have to come if you don't want. You can stay here in Fall River, with Grandma. I know she wouldn't mind, she loves having you around."