AUTHOR: Texas Aries

RATING: FRC

AUTHOR’S NOTE: Texas Aries created the Spirit Bay concept and is set in a small town in Maine during the early 1950s where a group of boys live.

DISCLAIMER: All rights reserved under International and Pan American Copywrite conventions. This story is a work of fictions.  Names, characters, places, and incidents are the product of the author’s imagination or used fictitiously.  Any resemblance to actual events, locations, or persons, living or dead in coincidental.

Tommy and Martin moved through the deserted school building cautiously, looking for their youngest friend and not sure they wouldn’t find trouble before they found him.  Tommy whispered to Martin, “I know he’s still in here somewhere.  I saw that bully Fisher picking on him at lunch.”

Martin opened one of the classroom doors, checking to see if his friend was hiding inside the empty room as he replied, “Yep, Sarah said that he and his gang were waiting for him after school, but she didn’t see  A.J. leave.”

Tommy took a quick look inside a supply closet.  “Fisher was just waiting until we were busy with baseball practice to pull this.”

The two eleven year olds continued to search, and finally as they ventured down into the basement they heard what sounded like AJ’s voice.   “AJ, are you down there?” Martin called out.

“Martin?” came AJ’s panicked voice.  “Martin, let me out!”

“Just hang in there AJ, we’ll get you out ,” Tommy called back.  They followed their friend’s voice to the back of the basement where a set of old lockers was propped against one damp wall, and saw that one had been jammed shut by a chair wedged under its handle.  The two boys quickly freed  A.J. from his confinement, but when the door opened and the younger boy squinted against the new light Tommy’s brown eyes flashed with anger.  He turned AJ’s face to the side, exposing the beginnings of a black eye.  “Did Fisher give this to you?”

AJ nodded.  Martin gave a sharp whistle as he got a good look at the injury, and  A.J. winced when the older boy gently probed the bruised skin around his right eye.  “Fisher is so dead when Chris and the others see this,” the young Texan commented, pushing back his hat.

“Guys, don’t tell the others,”  A.J. pleaded quickly.  “Please?”

Tommy snorted.  “AJ, they couldn't not notice what that jerk did to you. Your going to have one heck of shinner.”

The younger boy looked crestfallen.  “I guess you’re right, Tommyh.  It’s just that Fisher called me Taylor’s little crybaby, said he knew I’d run right to him if they let me go.”

Martin wrapped one arm around him.  “AJ, you’re not a crybaby; Fisher is just a big bully.  Besides, you’re our friend and no one picks on one of our friends and gets away with it.”

AJ sighed.  “I just wish I could take care of Fisher by myself without having you guys get involved.”

Tommy patted his shoulder.  “Don’t worry AJ, one day you will.  But we will have to discuss it another time, because right now both of us are late getting home.”

“Yeah,” Martin chimed in.  “And Aunt Rosy will be looking for me if I ain’t back soon.”

“Just let me get my books.”   A.J. reached back into the locker to retrieve his books and then followed his friends back to the stairs.  “So, did Billy tell you where I was?”

The two older boys exchanged a puzzled look.  “Who’s Billy?”

AJ shrugged when he saw that the two older boys had no idea who he was talking about.  “Well, when Fisher locked me up down here I kept pounding on the inside of the locker and yelling for help.  It seemed like forever before I heard someone answer.  He told me his name was Billy and he tried to open the door but he couldn’t do it, so he said he was going to try to find some help and I told him to get you guys or one of the others.  Then he went away and it wasn’t too long after that that you showed up.”   A.J. hesitated before continuing, “You know, I wasn’t so scared after talking to Billy.   I think it helped, that I knew someone knew where I was so I wouldn’t die like that other kid.”  His friends looked even more puzzled and he added, “You know, the kid that died down here.  When Fisher caught me trying to sneak out of the school he said he was going to lock me up down here with the ghost.”

Martin shook his head.  “Ain’t no one ever died down here, AJ.”

AJ shook his head right back.  “He said it happened about ten or twelve years ago, that this kid disappeared on the last day of school before Christmas.  The whole town looked all over for him and no one found anything, but when the janitor came down here to check the boiler a week later, after everyone had stopped looking, he saw all these chairs and stuff piled up in front of one of the lockers and when he moved it all and looked inside he found the kid’s body.”   A.J. lowered his voice and whispered, “They say he froze to death.”

Tommy drew himself up to his full height – which still left him half an inch shorter than Martin and not that much bigger than AJ.  “A.J.  theres no such things as ghosts.  Fisher was just trying to frighten you.”

“Yeah, folks just tell stories like that for a scare, ain’t nothin’ to any of ‘em,” Martin agreed.  “Now come on, we gotta get goin’ on home.”

Tommy nodded his head.  “We’ll just have to find Billy tomorrow and thank him for helping you  AJ.”

AJ agreed, his voice drifting down the stairs behind him as his friends led him out of the basement until the door shutting behind them left the room in silence again.  Then there was a rustle, and a boy of about ten faded into view, gazing up the stairs with a wistful look on his face.  “You’re welcome, AJ,” Billy whispered.

The End