Snallygaster (Book 3, the Crytpid Chronicles)

Chapter 1

Night descended quickly on the backside of the mountain. The one functional headlight on Brad's rusty SUV barely lit up the dark road. But inside the vehicle, spirits were much brighter. Almost everyone was still buzzing from the basketball team's victory over their biggest rival— a feat their high school hadn't accomplished in years. Darlene wasn't as excited as her friends. She was scared. In fact, her knuckles were white from gripping the armrest as they sped along the narrow two-lane switchback.

A year ago, her family had moved to Macon, a remote Kentucky town, for her dad's military job. Maybe if she'd grown up here like the other kids in the car, it wouldn't bother her that outside her door was a fifty-foot drop. She tried to not act nervous when Brad casually rested a hand on her knee. Darlene didn't mind his flirting— he was her boyfriend, but right now she preferred he kept his full attention on the road.

Turning around in her seat, Darlene brushed Brad's hand from her leg. "Anyone care if I change the radio station?"

Brad's best friend, Marty, and his girlfriend, Kiley were in the back seat. Neither one wore a seatbelt. They sat hip to hip, with Marty's arm slung over Kiley's shoulder. They slid from one side of the vehicle to the other with each tight curve. Last semester, Kiley had been Darlene's lab partner, and the two had become fast friends. Darlene was grateful. Despite being an army brat who relocated often, she was not good at making new friends, and most of the kids in this little town stuck to themselves.

Kiley nodded. "Please. I hate this song."

There were few options up in the mountains, but eventually, Darlene found a station playing music from the last ten years. Marty said, "That's good. Leave it there."

Darlene sat back in her seat and chanced a look out the window. Thankfully, it was too dark for her to see exactly how far she'd plummet to her death if Brad drifted over the line. He placed his hand on her knee again and said, "I still can't believe we won that game."

"Yeah. It kind of makes up for them beating us in football," Marty replied.

"Not quite, but what do you expect when the refs hand Pineville the game?"

Kiley rolled her eyes. "You're not going to whine about that again, are you?"

"It's not whining when it's the truth," Marty exclaimed. "Their whole offensive line was holding on that last touchdown."

"And the rest of the game when they were kicking your butts?"

"I wouldn't call it a butt-kicking when the refs gave them good spots all night. Home-cooking is what I'd call it," Marty said with a loud snort.

"Whatever."

Brad turned around to sneer at Kiley. "No. He's right. I wouldn't be surprised if Pineville's coach had paid them off."

Darlene had been at the game, but she had no idea what they were talking about. Holds? Good spots? It was all Greek to her. She'd only gone because Kiley had dragged her there to watch the guys. Brad hadn't been her boyfriend then, but they'd started dating soon after, which had been a no-brainer after seeing the way he'd looked in his uniform. And since Brad was sweet and never pressured her to do anything, the relationship stuck. He was nearly perfect, but she did wish he'd keep his eyes on the road.

"Is that a rockslide ahead?" she said as calmly as she could.

"What?" Brad turned back around from correcting Kiley. "Shit!"

Several sharp rocks had slid down the mountainside to cover their side of the road. Brad jerked the wheel to the side, steering the vehicle into the oncoming lane. Thankfully, no one was traveling in the other direction, but it was a small blessing. Brad hadn't turned fast enough to avoid the rockslide, and the rear tire hit a jagged stone. The SUV bounced into the air. Darlene screamed and grabbed the edge of her seat with one hand and the SUV's ceiling with the other. Kiley squealed so loudly that Marty had to cover his ears. The girls' response was justified. The noise from the back end sounded like an out-of-balance washing machine.