Locker 13 (15 page)
Authors: R.L. Stine
And now I didn't feel afraid or nervous. I was eager to see what the fortune-teller would say about me.
She squeezed Judy's hand and gazed deep into Judy's dark eyes. “You have great love in you,” she announced. “Great love for ⦠animals.”
Judy gasped. “Y-yes!”
“You care for them. You work ⦠”
“Yes,” Judy said. “I work in an animal shelter after school. That's amazing!”
Miss Elizabeth ran a red fingernail down Judy's palm. “You also have an animal that you care about very much. A dog ⦠No. A cat.”
“Yes. My cat. Plumper.”
Judy turned to us, her face filled with astonishment. “Do you
believe
this? She's right about
everything
!”
“I know! It's so cool!” Jilly exclaimed. She swept back her blond hair with a toss of her head. She kept bouncing up and down. She seemed too excited to stand still.
The fortune-teller spent a few more minutes with Judy. She told Judy that she would have a long, successful life. She said Judy would have a big family someday.
“Of kids? Of animals?” Judy asked.
Miss Elizabeth didn't answer.
Next came Jackie's turn. Once again, Miss Elizabeth was right on target with everything she said. “Wow,” Jackie kept muttering. “Wow.”
Finally, I found myself in the chair across from the fortune-teller. Suddenly, I felt so nervous. My mouth was dry. My legs were shaking.
Miss Elizabeth looked older from close up.
When she smiled at me, the thick makeup on her face cracked. Tiny drops of sweat glistened at her hairline.
“What is your name?” she asked in a whisper.
“Maggie,” I told her.
She nodded solemnly and took my hand. She raised my palm close to her face and squinted down at it in the gray light.
I held my breath. And waited. What would she see?
She squeezed my hand. Brought it closer to her face.
And then ⦠then ⦠her eyes bulged wide. She let out a loud gasp.
With a violent jerk, she tossed my hand away.
And jumped to her feet. Her chair fell behind her, clattering to the tent floor.
She stared at meâstared in open-mouthed horror.
And then she screamed:
“
Get OUT! Get AWAY from here!!
”
“Huh? Waitâ” I choked out.
“
Get OUT! You bring EVIL! You bring EVIL with you! Get OUT of here!
”
Cover illustration by John Jude Palencar
Cover design by John Fontana
Â
THE NIGHTMARE ROOM: LOCKER 13
Copyright © 2000 by Parachute Publishing, L.L.C.
Go Deeper Into This Night-mareâ¦
& © 2000 Parachute Publishing, L.L.C.
All rights reserved. No part of this book may be reproduced in any manner whatsoever without written permission except in the case of brief quotations embodied in critical articles or reviews.
R.L. Stine asserts the moral right to be identified as the author of this work.
EPub © Edition MARCH 2001 ISBN: 9780061756962
First print edition, 2000. ISBN 0-06-440900-7
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