Graveyard Slot, Michelle Schusterman [top novels to read txt] 📗

like a trial to see how you’d be on the show,” Mi Jin replied, and my stomach flipped over. I ignored it and bit off a large chunk of my ice pop. “And everyone kind of has a role, you know? Jack’s the journalist. Sam does the contacting. Roland cracks jokes and occasionally offers actual psychological insight. So what can you two bring? Besides pranks,” she added, gently kicking Oscar’s leg.

His eyes brightened. “Wait, why not pranks?” he asked eagerly. “The fans leave lots of comments when Kat posts about them. Like that time I locked you in the prison van.”

Mi Jin smiled. “Yeah, but we have to be careful with playing pranks on camera. Everyone knows about the trick light bulbs they used in the first episode, thanks to Emily. Viewers don’t want to be tricked. Fright TV wasn’t thrilled about it, either.”

“Aw.”

“What do you think, Kat?” Mi Jin asked, turning to me. “Any ideas for tonight?”

“How about not going?” I said dryly.

She laughed. “Come on, I bet you’ll have fun. I honestly think you two would be great together. On the show, I mean,” she added teasingly. I wondered if Oscar was rolling his eyes, too.

“Why, though?” I couldn’t help but ask. “We might be really awkward on camera.”

“Speak for yourself, Doctor Pain,” Oscar said. “I’ve seen myself on video, and I found myself quite charming.”

“Mmm. The question is, will the viewers will love you as much as you do?”

Mi Jin was still giggling. “See, this is exactly why it’s going to work. It’s the same reason the fans love watching Roland and Sam. You two have chemistry.”

“Ew,” Oscar and I said at the same time. Mi Jin sat up, waving her ice pop like a wand.

“Wait, I know—my Ouija board! You guys could bring it to the cemetery tonight. Try to make contact near one of the graves or something.”

“That’s a pretty good idea,” I admitted. We’d had success contacting ghosts with Mi Jin’s homemade electronic Ouija board before. Although that was mostly thanks to Jamie and Hailey, Thomas Cooper’s kids. Jamie especially had a knack for contacting ghosts. He also had a knack for being extremely adorable.

“But what if nothing happens?” Oscar was saying. “A video of us just sitting around a Ouija board isn’t going to be very entertaining.”

I hopped off the hammock and slid my sandals back on. “Then we have to make it entertaining,” I said. “But without tricks.”

“Where are you going?” Mi Jin asked as I picked up my bag.

“Back to the hotel. I have to e-mail someone.”

From: jamiebaggins@mymail.net

To: acciopancakes@mymail.net

Subject: Re: Ouija advice (also hi!)

KAT! I can’t believe you and Oscar get to be on P2P. Hailey’s so jealous. I might be a little jealous, too. :)

About your Ouija question—the more you know about the ghost you’re trying to contact, the better your chances. So if you guys go to this cemetery and just pick a random grave, it probably won’t work. Remember when we contacted Sonia? We knew a lot about her, how she rescued her brother from Crimptown, and how Red Leer killed her. We even knew what she looked like. Is there any way you could find out more about the people buried at the cemetery? I think that would help a lot.

One more week until winter break! I can’t wait to get to Buenos Aires. Hope you guys are enjoying the beach while Hailey and me are freezing to death here in New York. See you soon!

Jamie

Cemitério do Céu Infinito wasn’t one of those creepy old graveyards with ancient, cracked tombstones and overgrown weeds hiding the names of the deceased. Instead, it was a sea of beautiful white statues, ornate tombs, and stucco arches that Dad called “perfect examples of late Baroque architecture.” He was up ahead with Jess and Mi Jin, who were both getting footage of the cemetery.

Oscar and I trailed behind. “Still nervous?” he asked me.

I didn’t answer. My plan for getting over my anxiety was to just not think about it until it was happening. Shyness had never been my thing. I reminded myself that this was not the same as my mom’s Maid of Horror slideshow.

“Do you have that picture?” I asked instead. Oscar held it up in response. It was a photo we’d printed of a tabloid magazine cover. A glamorous woman with thick, wavy black hair had her arm around a skinny girl in a hospital gown. Both were beaming, even though the girl was clearly sick. The headline read Tragédia Segredo de Flavia.

“All right, kids!” Jess called, camera hanging at her side. “I think we found it.”

She gestured to one of the larger headstones, and Oscar and I hurried over. He shined his flashlight so we could read the name: Flavia Arias. Several dozen bouquets of flowers were piled on the tomb and the ground. A few feet away, several more bouquets lay in front of a smaller tombstone. I moved closer to read the inscription just as Jess cleared her throat.

“So here’s what I’m thinking,” she said, and I looked up. “First I want to start with Kat talking about why she chose this particular grave, then we’ll set up the Ouija board.” Handing her camera to Mi Jin, Jess took my arm and positioned me next to the larger headstone. “Mi Jin and I are going to film from different angles,” she told me. “But I want you to face your dad, okay? You’re not talking to the camera or viewers or anything like that. You’re just telling your dad what you know about this person like we’re not even here. Very casual, very relaxed. Sound good?”

I nodded, taking the picture from Oscar. He moved next to Mi Jin, while Dad took several steps back from the tomb and faced me. He smiled, and I tried to smile back and ignore Jess and Mi Jin and their cameras.

“Whenever you’re ready,” said Jess, and I took a deep breath.

“This is the grave of Flavia Arias,