نفس خون آشام فصل 05

Vampire Breath - Chapter 5

I felt my heart skip a beat.

I wasn’t scared. But my body started to tingle all over. A cold tingling. Excitement, I guess.

Cara and I both aimed our flashlight beams at the coffin in the middle of the floor. The light circles bounced up and down over the dark wood. Our hands were shaking.

“I’ve never seen a coffin before,” Cara murmured.

“Neither have I,” I confessed. “Except on TV.”

The light reflected off the polished wood. I saw brass handles at both ends of the long box.

“What if there is a dead person inside it?” Cara asked in a tiny voice.

My heart leaped again. My skin tingled even colder.

“I don’t know,” I whispered. “Who would be buried in a secret room under my house?” I raised my light and swept it around the room. Four bare walls. Smooth and gray. No windows.

No closet. The one and only door led back into the tunnel.

A hidden room at the end of a twisting tunnel. A coffin in a hidden, underground room… “I’m sure Mom and Dad don’t know anything about this,” I told Cara. I took a deep breath and made my way closer to the coffin.

“Where are you going?” Cara demanded sharply. She hung back near the open doorway.

“Let’s check it out,” I replied, ignoring my pounding heart. “Let’s take a look inside.” “Whoa!” Cara cried. “I… uh… I don’t think we should.”

I turned back to her. The light from my flashlight caught her face. I saw her chin quiver. Her dark eyes narrowed at the coffin.

“You’re afraid?” I demanded. I couldn’t keep a grin from spreading over my face. Cara afraid of something? This was a moment to remember!

“No way!” she insisted. “I’m not afraid. But I think maybe we should get your parents.” “Why?” I asked. “Why do we need my parents around to open up an old coffin?” I kept the light on her face. I saw her chin quiver again.

“Because you don’t just go around opening coffins,” she replied. She crossed her arms tightly in front of her.

“Well… if you won’t help me, I’ll do it myself,” I declared. I turned to the coffin and brushed my hand over the lid. The polished wood felt smooth and cool.

“No—wait!” Cara cried. She hurried up beside me. “I’m not scared. But… this could be a big mistake.” “You’re scared,” I told her. “You’re scared big time.”

“I am not!” she insisted.

“I saw your chin tremble. Twice,” I told her.

“So?”

“So you’re scared.”

“No way.” She let out a disgusted sigh. “Here. I’ll prove it to you.” She handed me her flashlight. Then she grabbed the coffin lid with both hands and started to lift it open.

“Whoa. It’s really heavy,” she groaned. “Help me.”

A shiver ran down my back.

I shook it off and set the flashlights down on the floor. Then I placed both hands on the coffin lid.

I leaned forward. Started to push up.

Cara and I both pushed with all our strength.

The heavy wooden lid didn’t budge at first.

But then I heard a creaking sound as it started to lift.

Slowly, slowly, it raised up in our hands.

Leaning over the open coffin, we pushed it, pushed it, until it stood straight up and came to a rest.

We let go of the lid.

I shut my eyes. I didn’t really want to look inside.

But I had to.

I squinted down into the open coffin.

Too dark. I couldn’t see a thing.

Good, I told myself. I let out a sigh of relief.

But then Cara bent down and picked up the flashlights from the floor. She slipped mine into my hand.

We aimed our lights into the coffin and stared inside.