Camp Fear Ghouls (9 page)

The bag filled slowly. I kicked as fast as I could. Some of the rocks flew into the air. Some didn't—and I had to try again and again.

My foot ached. My sneaker smelled charred. But I kept on. Any second the Camp Fear Ghouls would be back!

“Just a few more,” Caroline huffed.

We heard a rustling sound from the woods.

“Oh, no!” Caroline gasped. “They're coming. The bag isn't full yet!”

I lunged for some rocks at the far edge of the circle. “Here come two!” I shouted, kicking them as hard as I could.

Caroline caught them both and dropped them into the bag just as the troop returned.

“Did you fail?” Amy cackled, stepping forward.

I gasped, so out of breath I could barely talk. I bent over and wheezed, “Look . . . in . . . the bag.”

Amy bent and peered into the bag. She said nothing.

Caroline and I stared at each other, waiting.

Trudy stepped out of the woods. The hole in her cheek gaped open. Larger than before, I saw with horror. “Did they fail?” she asked.

Amy slowly raised her head. Her mouth twisted in a gruesome scowl. “No!” she snarled. “They did it. They filled the bag.”

A low moan of disappointment echoed from the troop.

Caroline hugged me. I nearly fainted from relief.

Amy whirled to look at us. “You haven't won yet. It's time to earn your second badge.”

I groaned. I couldn't hold it back.

Amy bent her horrid face close to mine. “What's the matter, Lizzy? Can't take it?” she sneered.

I forced myself to stare right into Amy's bulging eyes. “We can pass any test you give us,” I replied through clenched teeth. “Right, Caroline?”

Caroline nodded shakily.

Priscilla thrust the badges in front of my face. “Choose.”

I shut my eyes and pointed.

“Ooh! She picked arts and crafts,” Priscilla announced. She rubbed her decaying hands together. “That's my
favorite.”

My stomach did a giant flip-flop. Oh, no. Why did Priscilla like arts and crafts so much? What horrible thing did they have in store for this test?

Violet led me and Caroline to a picnic table at the edge of the clearing. She placed two boxes in front of us. They were full of thin strips of colored plastic.

“We want you to make yourselves lanyard necklaces,” Violet explained. “You know what those are, don't you?”

I knew that to make a lanyard necklace, you wove the strips of plastic together. But I didn't know
how
to do it!

I gulped. Caroline squeezed my leg under the table.

“I've done this a million times,” she whispered. “I'll show you. It's just like braiding. Don't worry.”

But I
was
worried. Really worried.

I stared at the box of plastic strips. Lots of people knew how to make lanyards—even if I didn't. It was too simple a test. There had to be a catch. But what was it?

“All right, girls,” Priscilla said in a syrupy voice. “Get started. You have two minutes.”

Caroline reached into her box. She pulled out six strips. I did the same.

So far so good.

Caroline started braiding hers, weaving the strips over and under each other. I copied her movements.

Then I stared at the strips in my hand. Something wasn't right. The strips seemed to move on their own!

They began slithering all over my hands.

“Caroline!” I gasped. “They're alive!”

The strips had turned into worms.

Slimy, writhing worms.

They squirmed over my palm. Between my fingers.

Then they started to crawl up my arms.

“Get them off!” I screamed, shaking my arms frantically.

“Lizzy, ignore them!” Caroline ordered. “Here. Take my necklace. I'll make another.”

She shoved her hand into her box again. She pulled out several new strips of plastic. She took hold of them.

The moment she started to braid them, they began to pulse. To squirm in her hands.

“They're so slippery!” she groaned, fighting to braid the writhing creatures.

“Thirty seconds!” Priscilla sang out cheerily.

“Hurry, Caroline,” I whispered.

The worms crawled up Caroline's arms. Frantically she peeled them off. Added them back into the necklace. “Over. Under. Over,” she muttered tensely.

I watched helplessly as she struggled.

“Ten seconds!” Priscilla laughed. “Nine . . . eight . . . seven . . . six . . . ”

“There!” Caroline gasped, knotting the ends of the worms together. She slipped the slimy, wriggling necklace over her head.

I put mine on too. I shuddered as the worms touched my skin.

“We did it!” Caroline squealed, holding her hands in a victory sign above her head. “Yes!”

“Yes!” I tried to cheer—but my voice was suddenly cut off.

The necklace was tightening around my throat!

I reached up. I couldn't get my fingers under my writhing necklace of worms! It was choking off my air. Suffocating me.

I turned and stared, bug-eyed, at Caroline.

“Help!” I tried to scream. “Help me!”

But all that came out was a hoarse wheeze!

Caroline began to fade from my view. White lights burst before me. I was going to pass out!

“Can't breathe!” I gasped, clutching my throat. “Can't . . . ”

I
clawed desperately at my throat.

“Air,” I wheezed. “Need air!”

“Ha-ha-ha-ha-ha!”

The ghouls' laughter rang in my ears.

“You'll never get that necklace off,” Amy taunted. “You're ours now!”

The bursts of light swirled in front of my eyes. I slumped over the picnic table. This is it! I thought. I'm going to die.

Then I felt someone grab hold of my necklace and pull. Hard.

Caroline!

She yanked at it again. Harder this time.

Snap!

The necklace broke in half.

Cool air rushed into my burning lungs!

I fell to the ground, sucking in huge mouthfuls of air.

I raised my head to thank Caroline. But she had fallen against the picnic table.

Both hands were at her throat.

Her face was turning an awful shade of blue.

Caroline's necklace!
She
was choking too! Her mouth opened and closed as she struggled for air.

I leaped to my feet and stumbled toward her. My fingers grabbed for the deadly necklace. I pulled with all my strength.

Snap!

Caroline's necklace broke.

She leaned forward, gasping.

“Caroline,” I whispered. “You saved me. You saved my life!”

Amy lunged between us. She looked furious. There was an evil red glare in her hideous eyes.

“Enough of this!” Her voice boomed through the woods. “Time for your final test.”

“Oh, no!” Caroline groaned.

Amy pointed through the trees. A huge pool of shiny black water shimmered there.

“To earn your swimming badge,” she growled, “you have to swim across Fear Lake!”

F
ear Lake was blacker than any lake I had ever seen. Even the people in Waynesbridge knew that no one ever swims in Fear Lake. The lake is icy. It never gets warm. Even in the middle of summer.

And that wasn't all. People said the cold wasn't the worst thing about Fear Lake. But no one ever told me what the worst thing
was.

I shivered. What horrible things might be lurking in the freezing water?

The Camp Fear Ghouls led us to the shore. Caroline and I took off our shoes and stuck our toes into the lake.

I jumped back. Waves of cold shot through my body. “Ice!” I gasped. “It's ice!”

“Lizzy,” Caroline rasped, rubbing her foot to get it
warm. “That lake is too cold. We won't last five minutes in there!”

I glanced over my shoulder at the Camp Fear Ghouls. They stood in a line, watching us.

“We have to swim it,” I whispered back. “If we don't, we join them.”

“Let's get this over with,” Amy growled.

The ghouls moved toward us. With their rotting hands, they shoved us forward.

Caroline and I stumbled waist deep into the pitch-black water.

I gasped. “It's so c-c-cold!”

“Oh!” Caroline moaned. “This is terrible!”

“We have to g-g-go,” I cried through chattering teeth. “Have to s-swim t-to the other s-side.”

Don't think about the cold, I ordered myself. Just swim!

I raised my hand over my head to take my first stroke.

What was that?

Something brushed my leg.

I spun in a circle, frantically treading water.

“Lizzy? What's the matter?” Caroline cried.

“Something touched me,” I gasped, trying to see into the lake's murky depths.

There! I felt it again. Something brushing up against me.

“Caroline!” I yelled, thrashing my legs as hard as I could. “Something's in the lake!”

I jerked right. Then left. Trying to peer into the water.

I felt something wind around my ankle. Pulling me down into the water. “Help!” I screamed.

“What is it?” Caroline wailed.

“I don't know! I can't see anything!”

Desperately, I kicked—and freed my leg from whatever held it.

Then I took off for the other side.

Caroline swam right behind me.

My pulse thudded in my ears. The only other sound I heard was the splash our arms made as we cut through the water.

We swam as fast as we could—and all of a sudden the opposite shore was in sight. Yes!

Just a little ways more, I thought. I swam even faster.

Then I heard the scream.

“Help, Lizzy!” Caroline cried out. “It's got me!”

I whipped my head around.

Just in time to see Caroline sink under the surface of Fear Lake.

“C
aroline!”
I screamed.

The surface of the water was glassy. There was no sign of Caroline anywhere.

I sucked as much air into my lungs as I could—and dove under the black water!

I couldn't see a thing. I swam forward blindly, feeling for Caroline.

She wasn't there.

I turned and swam the other way, swiping at the water in front of me. The cold shot through me.

Where is she? I wondered frantically. I can't stay in here much longer. I'll freeze!

I reversed direction again, blindly searching. But I couldn't stay under for another second. My lungs burned. I had to go up for air!

With a kick, I shot to the surface.

I sucked in another huge breath, ready to go down again. But then something burst through the surface. Just a few feet away.

Caroline!

“Lizzy!” she sputtered. “It's . . . got . . . me!”

“
What's
got you?” I yelled.

“Get help!” Caroline screamed.