Curse of the Granville Fortune Read online

  Chapter Seven

  What I was doing couldn’t really be called sleeping. Every time I closed my eyes, I heard something rustling in the woods and my eyes popped wide open to see what had made the noise. I felt like I was five years old again, lying in my bed and wondering if the boogie man was hiding in my closet or under my bed. So, when the sun finally came up in the morning, I was more than ready to start searching for the Granville fortune. I had to break the curse, even if it meant not seeing Noelle again.

  I nudged Holly’s shoulder. “Wake up.”

  “Don’t eat me!” she screamed. Her arms flailed in front of her face.

  There wasn’t much room, but I backed up as much as I could to avoid getting hit. “Holl, it’s me.”

  She sprang up and hit her head on the tree limb above her. “Ouch!” she yelled, placing a hand on the top of her head.

  She’d done it again! “Let’s not start the day with another injury. If you keep this up, I won’t have a shirt left to wrap your wounds in.”

  “Very funny.” She narrowed her eyes at me. “But I think I can take your shirt off my ankle. It feels a little better.”

  “Good, because we have no idea what the forest has in store for us today.”

  I hated not knowing what to expect. It would’ve been nice to think that as long as we didn’t voice our fears, we’d get through the woods with no problems, but I was willing to bet the heart of the forest was going to be the scariest of all. And I guessed we were pretty close to it.

  “I’ve never been this hungry or thirsty in my life,” Holly said, letting out a groan. “My stomach is past the point of growling. It hurts!”

  “I know what you mean. We could try to follow the vultures again—if we come across them.” I scanned the sky, but it was clear. “We don’t know which way they went after we left them last night.”

  “Ugh! Can’t something go right for once?”

  “At least it looks like the weather will be nice today,” I said, trying to be optimistic, but there really wasn’t any bright side to the situation. We were cursed, hungry, lost, and doomed to be grounded for life if we ever made it home. I couldn’t think of anything to say to cheer Holly up, so we walked in silence for hours until we heard mumbled voices.

  “What was that?” Holly asked, tugging on my sleeve.

  “Shh!” I warned her. The last thing we needed was her imagination getting us into trouble again. I pushed aside a large branch. Not more than twenty-five feet ahead was a small clearing and two kids. The taller one couldn’t have been more than seventeen or eighteen, and the shorter one was about my age. “Get down,” I whispered, pulling Holly behind a large bush. “There are two guys in that clearing.” The boys must be brothers. The resemblance was strong—tall, dark shaggy hair, and muscular.

  “Maybe they could help us.”

  “I don’t know. They look mean.” Both boys scowled as they talked.

  “You don’t think they’re the thieves, do you? The ones from the journal?” Holly said, reading my mind.

  “Don’t worry. If they are the Grimault thieves, they’re just searching for the Granville fortune. Besides, it’s not like we have any valuables for them to steal.” Holly opened her mouth to protest, but I cut her off. “Be quiet. I want to hear what they’re saying.” I leaned forward, but the boys were too far away. “I can’t hear them.”

  “Do they have any food with them?” Holly asked.

  Just like Holly, controlled by her stomach. “No, but the older one is holding—” My eyes widened.

  Holly poked me between my shoulder blades. “What?”

  “I think it’s the painting we left at the park.” What if they figured out they weren’t alone in the woods? That someone else was trying to find the fortune? I was sure that wouldn’t make them happy.

  “Mom would’ve taken the painting home with her.”

  “What if they found it before Mom did?”

  “What if Mom was in the park when they found the painting? They could have done something to her,” Holly said.

  “We have to follow these guys and see if that’s true.” I wanted to stay calm, but I couldn’t help agreeing with Holly. There were a million thoughts in my head, and not one was good.

  “What are they doing now?” Holly asked, tilting her head to see around me.

  I peered over the bush. “They’re leaving. Come on, but be quiet.”

  We followed the two guys to a campsite. Four green tents were pitched around a large campfire. The guys entered one of the tents.

  “What is this place?” Holly asked once we were safely hidden behind a large boulder.

  “I guess this is where the Grimaults are camping out while they search for the fortune. We should look around while they’re in that tent.”

  “What if someone comes out while we’re snooping?”

  “We’ll have to stay behind the trees and only go into the camp when it’s absolutely necessary.”

  Holly’s face lit up. “Look! There’s bread and water by the fire. Do you think we could get to it without being seen?”

  I surveyed the area, searching for the best path to the fire. “I think we should circle around to the other side by that tent. Then I’ll run out and grab the canteen and bread.”

  “There aren’t as many trees to hide behind over there,” Holly said.

  “You’re right. You better stay here. Hide behind this tree and keep out of sight. I’ll get the food.”

  “Be careful.”

  I crept from tree to tree, checking each of the tents to make sure no one was coming into the clearing. I made my way to the tent closest to the fire and gave Holly a little wave to let her know where I was. Then, I ran into the center of the camp, but as I was about to grab the food, I saw a look of panic on Holly’s face. I had no idea what was wrong, so I grabbed the food. As I turned around, I saw the boots of one of the thieves stepping out of a tent. It was the younger one. Luckily, he was looking at what I assumed was the painting of Braeden Forest that he held in his hands. I didn’t hesitate. I ran as fast as I could back into the trees.

  I ducked behind the nearest tree, leaning my back against the trunk and holding my breath in fear. My heart pounded so loudly I was sure the thief would hear it and find me.

  “Hey, where’s my bread and water?”

  My body trembled as I clutched the canteen and loaf of bread to my chest.

  “What are you yelling about, Edward?”

  I peeked around the tree and saw the older boy coming out of his tent, rubbing his eyes. “I was trying to sleep.”

  “Garret, did you eat my food?”

  “What food? I told you I’m trying to sleep. You know I’m on patrol tonight, so keep quiet and let me rest,” Garret grumbled as he disappeared inside the tent.

  I froze, afraid that even the smallest step would give me away. My eyes darted in all directions looking for Holly, but I didn’t see her anywhere. I took that as a good sign. If I couldn’t see her, hopefully neither could Edward.

  “Someone stole my food!” Edward kicked at the burning logs. His boot hit the flames and caught on fire. He yelled and jumped up and down, trying to stamp out the flames that were probably burning a hole through to his foot.

  I ran to the next tree and caught a glimpse of Holly, still backed up against the oak tree. I tried to motion to her, but she was looking the other way. Edward was still trying to put out his flaming boot, so I ran to Holly and grabbed her arm. Before she saw it was me, she let out a bloodcurdling scream.