ماسک روح زده فصل 10

The Haunted Mask - Chapter 10

Carly Beth crept silently through the front door and tossed her coat onto the entryway floor. The house felt stuffy and hot. A sweet smell, the aroma of hot cider on the stove, greeted her.

Mom really gets into holidays, she thought with a smile.

Tiptoeing through the front hallway, holding the mask in front of her, Carly Beth listened hard.

Noah, where are you?

Where are you, my little guinea pig?

Noah was always bragging about how he was so much braver than Carly Beth. He was always putting bugs down her back and planting rubber snakes in her bed—anything he could think of to make her scream.

She heard footsteps above her head. Noah must be up in his room, she realized. He’s probably putting on his Halloween costume.

At the last minute, Noah had decided he wanted to be a cockroach. Mrs. Caldwell had dashed frantically all over the house, finding the materials to build pointy feelers and a hard shell for his back.

Well, the little bug is in for a surprise, Carly Beth thought evilly. She examined her mask. This should send that cockroach scampering under the sink!

She stopped at the bottom of the stairs. She could hear loud music coming from Noah’s room. An old heavy-metal song.

Gripping the mask by the rubbery neck, she raised it carefully over her head, then pulled it slowly down.

It was surprisingly warm inside. The mask fit tighter than Carly Beth had imagined. It had a funny smell, kind of sour, kind of old, like damp newspapers that have been left for years in an attic or garage.

She slid it all the way down until she could see through the eyeholes. Then she smoothed the bulging, bald head over her head and tugged the neck down.

I should have stopped in front of a mirror, she fretted. I can’t see if it looks right.

The mask felt very tight. Her breathing echoed noisily in the flat nose. She forced herself to ignore the sour smell that invaded her nose.

She held on tightly to the banister as she crept up the stairs. It was hard to see the steps through the eyeholes. She had to take the climb slowly, one step at a time.

The heavy-metal music ended as she stepped onto the landing. She crept silently down the hall and stopped outside Noah’s door.

Carly Beth edged her head into the doorway and peeked into the brightly lit room. Noah was standing in front of the mirror, adjusting the two long cockroach feelers above his head.

“Noah—I’m coming for you!” Carly Beth called.

To her surprise, her voice came out gruff and low. It wasn’t her voice at all!

“Huh?” Startled, Noah spun around.

“Noah—I’ve got you!” Carly Beth shrieked, her voice deep, raspy, evil.

“No!” her brother uttered a hushed cry of protest. Even under his bug makeup, Carly Beth could see him go pale.

She darted into the room, her arms outstretched as if ready to grab him.

“No—please!” he cried, his expression terrified. “Who are you? How—how did you get in?”

He doesn’t even recognize me! Carly Beth thought gleefully.

And he’s scared to death!

Was it the hideous face? The deep rumble of a voice? Or both?

Carly Beth didn’t care. The mask was definitely a success!

“I’ve GOT you!” she screamed, surprising herself at how scary her voice sounded from inside the mask.

“No! Please!” Noah begged. “Mom! Mom!” He backed toward the bed, trembling all over, his feelers quivering in fright. “Mom! Hellllp!”

Carly Beth burst out laughing. The laughter came out in a deep rumble. “It’s me, stupid!” she cried. “What a yellow-bellied scaredy-cat!”

“Huh?” Still huddled by the bed, Noah stared hard at her.

“Don’t you recognize my jeans? My sweater? It’s me, you idiot!” Carly Beth declared in the gruff voice.

“But your face—that mask!” Noah stammered. “It—it really scared me. I mean—” He gaped at her, studying the mask. “It didn’t sound like you, Carly Beth,” he muttered. “I thought—”

Carly Beth tugged at the bottom of the mask, trying to lift it off. It felt hot and sticky. She was panting noisily.

She tried pulling the bottom with both hands. The mask didn’t budge.

She raised her hands to the pointed ears and tried lifting it off. She tugged. Tugged harder.

She tried pulling the mask off by the top of the head. It didn’t move.

“Hey—it won’t come off!” she cried. “The mask—it won’t come off!”