SHADOW KEEPER
by
M. K. Yarbrough
Chapter One
After the flash of lightning, I waited for the peal of thunder, but instead, a long pitiful shriek echoed from outside the house. A shiver rippled through me, making my flesh prickle. I threw back the covers and crawled from the bed.
Thunder crashed overhead as I searched for the pullcord in the heavy folds of the curtains. I yanked them open, but only a black void stared back at me. Dark storm clouds blocked all illumination from the stars and moon.
I cracked open the window and pressed my ear against the mesh screen. No shrieking howl, no gusting wind, not even a drop of rain on the patio outside disrupted the silence.
A bolt of lightning streaked across the sky and the night turned bright as day. I squinted to shield my vision from the burst of light, but not before glimpsing a shadowy figure lingering at the edge of our yard near the alfalfa field. A mournful howl ripped through the air and mingled with the clap of thunder. The creature twisted lower to the ground and disappeared into a clump of oak trees.
A cold chill snaked up my back. I blinked my eyes. Was that an animal, or a man scurrying into the cover of the trees? Not certain what I'd witnessed, I scratched at the stubble on my neck while backing away from the window.
"Ow," I yelped when my foot scrapped against a sharp object. I hopped around on one foot while rubbing at the heel of my other.
"Brendon?" my little brother mumbled from the upper bunk.
"Yeah, Stevie. It's me. I think I just stepped on your dinosaur."
"Give it back," he said in a sleepy voice.
The digital clock on the desk gave off a dim, bluish glow, but the light only extended a few feet. I searched around on the floor until my fingers stumbled across the hard plastic toy. After picking it up, I swung my hand in the direction of the upper bunk. "Here you go."
A spark of lightning flashed outside. With the curtains opened wide, the brilliant light flooded the room. Tyrannosaurs Rex seemed to come to life. Sharp, white plastic teeth jutted out of its furious mouth a few inches from my brother's face. Stevie's scream filled the air as his hands flew over his eyes.
"It's just your toy dinosaur."
"Close the curtains," he shouted.
"Pipe down. You're going to wake Mom." I headed for the window. "Lightning can't hurt you."
"Yes, it can. It can kill you."
"Maybe, but it can't get you if you stay in bed with your head under the covers."
I grabbed the pullcord for the curtains, but before yanking them shut, I glanced around the yard. Nothing. Whatever lurked outside had disappeared. The creepy tingling up my spine had also vanished.
Thunder rumbled right after I shut the curtains. "The storm's moving farther away. Go back to sleep."
"Can I sleep with you?" he asked.
"No." I sat down on the edge of the mattress and rubbed my hand across the muscles in my shoulders. "I'm still sore from Friday's game. I've got football practice tomorrow and I need sleep. I can't do it with you thrashing around all night."
"But, Brendon-"
"No," I said a little sharper than I intended.
Muffled sobs came from the bed above me.
