flame extended She leaned back and shivered She was glad she’d brought her sweatshirt What said Stan Nothing Amy stared into the fire The claw was gone Are you seeing things Amy asked Jared Maybe Amy laughed Or it’s just my imagination She watched the flames which were bright orange with streaks of yellow A burning log rolled gently and a few sparks shot into the air 10
Mitch started telling a ghost story It reminded Amy of an encounter they’d had at Evergreen Cemetery behind his house Remember that ice-cold pocket of air It was a hot night like tonight But we walked through that icy ghost stream You can’t deny that The other boys chimed in with recent scares Amy had been with them for some of those events They tended to exaggerate but she had no doubt that ghosts were real She had seen them herself many times 11
There it was again A claw Or a gnarled hand Bony and stiff It wasn’t reaching for her It seemed to be resting in the flames Amy leaned in 12
The hand was touching a face Yes a chin resting in the hand and she could see traces of a mouth The mouth was beginning to open
