The Beast Read online

  Contents

  Chapter 1

  Chapter 2

  Chapter 3

  Chapter 4

  Chapter 5

  Chapter 6

  Chapter 7

  Chapter 8

  Chapter 9

  Chapter 10

  Chapter 11

  Chapter 12

  Chapter 13

  Chapter 14

  Chapter 15

  Chapter 16

  Chapter 17

  Chapter 18

  Chapter 19

  Chapter 20

  Chapter 21

  Chapter 22

  Chapter 23

  Chapter 24

  Chapter 25

  Chapter 26

  Chapter 27

  About R.L. Stine

  To Joe, who seldom gets off the track

  1

  I shut my eyes as a shrill scream escaped my throat.

  Bouncing hard, I opened them in time to see the trees fly by in a jarring blur. “Whoa!” I was tossed forward as I roared straight down into darkness.

  A sudden spin made me cry out again. The car tilted hard to the left and I slammed into my cousin, Ashley Franks. She was screaming, too. Her blond hair flew out wildly behind her head.

  We swooped down once more, a sharp dip. I yelped in surprise as I felt myself fly up from the seat. The trees whirred by, shadowy in the dark night light. The car clattered noisily as it began to climb again.

  “This is great!” I screamed to Ashley.

  Her face was bright red. Her blue eyes were wide, staring up to the top of the track. She grinned at me and started to reply. But instead, she let out a startled whoop as our car plunged down.

  Down, down with a deafening roar.

  The wind battered my face. I gripped the bar tightly with both hands. Down, down—and into total darkness.

  “Huh?”

  A tunnel. We whirred through the tunnel, then back out into the dim light filtering through the dark, leafy trees. Then a jolting turn pushed me into Ashley again. My cousin was screaming too hard to notice.

  Another tunnel. Another climb. Another swooping, roaring spin that made the car squeal.

  And then we slowed to a stop.

  Over my thudding heartbeat I could hear screams and laughter behind us. Ashley and I had been riding in the front car.

  I turned to her. She was still breathing hard. Her hair was wild, standing almost straight up. She was trying to brush it down with both hands.

  “You were right, James!” she exclaimed. “The Beast® is awesome!”

  “It’s the best! I told you!” I cried breathlessly. I climbed out of the roller coaster car onto the platform. “Hey—I’m dizzy!”

  “You’re always dizzy,” Ashley teased, following me out. She staggered for a few steps, then grabbed my shoulder. She laughed. “Whoa! I’m a little dizzy, too, I guess.”

  We staggered off the platform and followed the exit path. I turned back to stare at the enormous roller coaster, the wooden tracks rising up darker even than the night sky.

  My heart was still racing. As Ashley and I walked, we were surrounded by laughing, shouting voices. “I—I thought the ride was over,” Ashley said, still trying to untangle her hair. “But then we started to climb again.”

  “That has to be the longest roller coaster ride anywhere!” I exclaimed. “Other roller coasters last only a minute or two. But this one takes over four minutes!”

  I’m an expert on roller coasters. I ride them whenever I can. And I never ride just once. I always go back and ride again and again.

  The third time is usually the best. By that time, your screaming muscles are limbered up and you can howl like a pro all the way.

  I’d been to Paramount’s Kings Island twice before. And I had ridden The Beast at least half a dozen times. But this was Ashley’s first time.

  She’s twelve and I’m twelve, but I think I look older. She’s about four inches shorter than me, even with all that wild blond hair. She’s skinny, too. I guess she’s kind of pretty. She has great blue eyes and a nice smile.

  People always tease me because I don’t smile much. I’ve got dark brown hair and dark eyes, and I just look serious, that’s all.

  Ashley and I don’t get to see each other very often. Our families live about three hundred miles apart. But when we do, we get along pretty well.

  We like to tease each other and get on each other’s case. Sometimes we play pretty mean tricks on each other. But I guess that’s normal.

  We stopped at a food stand and bought sodas. All that screaming can make you thirsty.

  After gulping down half her cup of soda, Ashley glanced up at the dark sky. A pale half-moon had risen above the trees. “It’s getting pretty late,” she said. “Past your bedtime, James.”

  “Ha-ha,” I replied, rolling my eyes.

  She took another long gulp from her cup. Some of it trickled onto the front of her sleeveless blue T-shirt, but she didn’t notice. She pushed her hair off her forehead with her free hand.

  “What do you want to do now?” I asked. We had been at the park since early afternoon. We had already been on most of the other roller coasters.

  “Let’s ride The Beast again!” Ashley cried. Her eyes lit up as an excited grin crossed her face. “Come on!”

  “The line is pretty long,” I told her, motioning to it. I glanced at my watch. “And the park is going to close soon.”

  “Come on!” she cried, not listening to me. She tugged at the sleeve of my T-shirt. “Hurry!”

  I pulled back. “No. Really. There isn’t time, Ashley,” I insisted.

  “Please! Let’s just try—okay?” she begged, tugging at me again. “Let’s get in line again. Please?”

  “Well . . . okay,” I agreed.

  And that was when all the trouble began.

  2

  Ashley and I jogged side by side to the end of the line. It stretched along a low wall in front of a line of trees. We were breathing hard by the time we got there.

  Up ahead, we could hear the clatter of roller coaster cars and we could hear kids screaming their heads off. But we couldn’t see them. The Beast stretches off into the woods. It’s almost entirely hidden from view.

  We stepped up behind two teenage boys. They both had long black hair. One of them wore a Cincinnati Reds cap. The one with the cap shoved the other one playfully against the wall. Then they both laughed.

  A blue-uniformed guard stepped up suddenly behind Ashley and me. She set down a sign that said LINE CLOSED.

  “We just made it!” Ashley cried happily. “We’re the last ones!”

  I glanced at my watch. I was a little worried about the time. I was supposed to call my mom when we were ready to be picked up.

  But we were so busy riding all the roller coasters, I’d completely forgotten about calling. We’ll have to phone her as soon as the ride is over, I told myself.

  A cool breeze blew over us. I could hear high-pitched screams coming from the roller coaster up ahead.

  “This is great!” Ashley cried. “I can’t believe we’re the very last ones in line!”

  “Yeah. We just made it,” I said.

  The two guys ahead of us were goofing around. “Hey, Gary, give me my hat!”

  “Who’s going to make me?”

  They started wrestling for the hat, laughing and shoving each other. The one named Gary bumped Ashley hard.

  “Hey—” she cried out angrily.

  “Sorry,” he said, grinning at her. He pointed to his friend. “Ernie pushed me.”

  Ernie grabbed the Reds cap from Gary and pulled it over his dark hair. “You ever ride The Beast before?” he asked Ashley.

  “Sure. About a hundred times,” Ashley lied.

  “You ever sit in the front seat?
” Gary asked.

  “Lots of times,” Ashley told him.

  “Were you scared?” Gary asked, grinning at me.

  “No way!” I told him.

  “You know, The Beast is haunted,” Ernie said, adjusting his cap. His grin faded.

  “Huh?” I stared back at him, trying to get the joke.

  “Really,” he insisted. “It’s haunted.”

  “Everyone knows that,” his friend chimed in.

  “Give us a break,” Ashley said, rolling her eyes.

  “It was on the news,” Gary told her. “On TV. I saw it.”

  “There’s a ghost,” Ernie said. “Late at night after the park is closed, he rides The Beast. Again and again.”

  “Oh, sure,” I replied sarcastically. “Hey, we’re not little kids, you know!”

  “I’m not joking,” Ernie said, his expression serious.

  “It was on the news. Really,” Gary added. “The ghost rides late at night. The security guards—they hear the clatter of the wheels. But when they run to check it out, none of the cars has moved.”

  “It’s a total mystery,” Ernie said, adjusting his cap again.

  “No way!” I cried. “There’s no ghost—”

  But at that moment I felt icy fingers close around the back of my neck.

  3

  I let out a frightened yelp before I realized that Ashley had grabbed the back of my neck.

  Everyone laughed.

  Ashley laughed hardest of all. She thought it was a real riot.

  “How’d you get such cold hands?” I demanded angrily.

  She held up her cold cup of soda. “Gotcha!” she cried.

  She could be a real pain sometimes. I could feel myself blushing. Luckily, the line had started to move, and the two teenage guys turned away.

  “Do you think there’s really a ghost that rides The Beast?” Ashley whispered as we followed the line forward.

  “Of course not,” I replied angrily. “Do you think there’s really a tooth fairy?”

  “You mean there isn’t?” she cried, acting startled. “Then how do those quarters get under my pillow when I lose a tooth?”

  She laughed, but her expression quickly became serious. “Those two boys believe in the ghost,” she whispered. “They weren’t kidding.”

  “There’s no ghost,” I insisted.

  “But they saw it on the news,” she replied.

  We stepped onto the platform. The breeze felt cool and damp. I could still feel Ashley’s cold fingers on the back of my neck. I shivered.

  I glanced at my watch again. Nearly eleven o’clock. I had promised my mom I would call before ten. How could I have forgotten?

  “We didn’t call. Everyone will be furious,” I muttered.

  “Don’t be such a nervous nut,” Ashley replied.

  “I’m not a nervous nut,” I insisted. “Don’t call me a nervous nut.”

  “You’re a nervous nut,” she repeated.

  I tugged her blond hair hard.

  She punched my shoulder.

  I grabbed two of her fingers and stretched them till they cracked.

  She punched me harder.

  Luckily the line moved forward before we got out of control.

  A few minutes later we were eagerly scrambling into a car. We were the last ones on The Beast. This time we were in the middle row of the last car.

  When we were all on board, the heavy car began to roll. Up, up the steep track.

  I knew what was ahead. I knew what would happen as soon as we reached the top.

  And I couldn’t wait.

  I took a deep breath and prepared to start screaming.

  ♦ ♦ ♦

  The ride was even more awesome the second time. We swooped and swirled through the dark trees. The tunnels whirred around us. Then we climbed into the purple sky—and back down into the woods.

  I felt as if I were on some kind of spaceship, hurtling into darkest space.

  Suddenly I couldn’t hear the screams and happy cries of the others. I couldn’t see Ashley beside me or the kids in the seat in front of us.

  I was in my own world.

  A world of whirling shadows. A world of speed and wind.

  When the car jolted to a stop, I groaned in disappointment. I didn’t want the ride to end. I wanted to keep flying, soaring through the trees, the cold wind rushing against my face.

  I just sat there for a long while with my eyes shut.

  Even though we had stopped, I could still feel the movement of the car, still feel the jarring turns, the swooping slides, the steep climbs.

  I don’t know how long I sat there. Probably just a few seconds. Maybe it was close to a minute.

  Then I opened my eyes and climbed out. “Wasn’t that excellent?” I turned to ask Ashley. “Wasn’t that the best?”

  I gasped when I realized she was gone!

  4

  “Ashley?”

  I gazed up and down the platform.

  People were hurrying to the exit, laughing and shouting. I didn’t see her anywhere.

  “Ashley?”

  I turned back to the roller coaster car. Was she still there?

  No.

  Had she somehow managed to climb out on the other side of the car? No. That was impossible.

  So where was she?

  “Ashley?” I cupped my hands around my mouth and shouted. My voice came out kind of trembly. I was still shaky from the ride.

  She must have hurried to the exit, I decided. She would be waiting for me outside the gate.

  My heart was still pounding and my knees were a little wobbly as I started jogging down the platform and out of the roller coaster.

  My shadow stretched long and dark in front of me as I ran. The overhead lights flickered on and off. A woman’s voice suddenly blared out from a nearby loudspeaker. “Paramount’s Kings Island is now closed,” she announced. “Please make your way to the front exit.”

  The announcement repeated a few times as the overhead lights continued to signal everyone to leave.

  “Ashley?” I stopped in front of The Beast’s exit, searching the shadows for her.

  No sign of her.

  I made my way past a T-shirt and souvenir stand, closed now for the night. Several yards up ahead, I saw Gary and Ernie, bumping each other as they made their way toward the front of the park.

  I stopped and made a full circle, turning slowly, studying each person I saw, searching for Ashley.

  But she had totally disappeared.

  “I don’t believe this,” I muttered out loud.

  How could she do this to me? If this is some kind of joke, I thought, I’ll pound her! I really will!

  The lights flickered one last time, then remained dimmed. The announcement about the park being closed repeated a few more times.

  We’ve got to get out of here, I told myself.

  But where was Ashley? Where?

  The ghost got her!

  That thought popped into my head.

  The ghost that haunts The Beast grabbed her during the ride!

  I was so angry at Ashley, I almost wished it were true. But of course, it was a stupid thought.

  Without realizing it, I had started to walk toward the front of the park. I found myself in a large group of people who had just come off The Vortex, the roller coaster next to The Beast.

  The Vortex was a wild ride. It swirled you upside down about six times. At least, I think it was six times. After a few spins I lost count.

  Ashley and I had ridden The Vortex right after dinner. Not exactly the best timing. But our stomachs survived.

  Except maybe the ride had scrambled Ashley’s brain! I thought angrily. What else could explain her disappearing like this?

  I’ll wait for her at the front gate, I decided. She’s bound to show up there sooner or later.

  Sooner, I hoped.

  I remembered there was a row of pay phones near the ticket booths. Maybe that was where Ashley had headed. I could call my
mom from there.

  I made my way down International Street, the broad walkway at the front of the park. The long reflecting pond in the center of the street lay dark and still. The fountains that sent up tall geysers of water during the day had all been turned off.

  How could she just disappear? I asked myself. I was growing angrier and angrier.

  What is her problem?

  It felt strange walking through the dim light, stepping through shifting shadows. The enormous park had been so bright and noisy. Now it was nearly dark and empty.

  On the other side of the gate, car headlights rolled past, casting bright spotlights on the hundreds of people heading to their cars.

  I jogged to the row of telephones, my heart pounding. My eyes searched the shadows, darting rapidly over the crowd.

  No sign of my cousin.

  I had a heavy feeling in the pit of my stomach. Like a rock holding me down. I stopped a few yards from the pay phones.

  I took a deep breath and held it, waiting for the heavy feeling to fade away.

  “Ashley—where are you?” I murmured.

  Why wasn’t she waiting at the gate for me? Why wasn’t she standing by the pay phones?

  Taking another deep breath, I watched the last stragglers head out to the parking lot. The park grew even more silent. The loudest sounds were the hum of car engines as they pulled away.

  The heavy feeling in my stomach didn’t go away. I knew it wouldn’t. It was worry. I always got that heavy feeling when I was worried. Really worried.

  Something must have happened to Ashley.

  Something bad.

  She wouldn’t just disappear. Even Ashley wouldn’t play a dumb joke like that.

  A cold shiver ran down my back.

  Yes, I decided, trying to force back my panic. Something has happened to Ashley.

  But what?

  5

  All kinds of crazy thoughts roared into my head. Without realizing it, I started back into the park.

  I hurried past the long reflecting pool. A tall replica of the Eiffel Tower stood at the far end, black against the starless purple sky.

  The electric lights had all been dimmed. A damp mist had lowered over the park. I felt as if I were moving through a cloud.