I'd never been afraid of the dark, had never really thought much about it. But now, facing the unknown while searching alone through a creepy school, I was terrified. My jaw ached at how tightly I clenched it. My muscles pinched together so much it took every effort to peel myself away from the door and cross the entryway.

Grasping the handle of the classroom hallway door, I swallowed down my heart and then pulled the door open. A sliver of moonlight shined through the stained ...