A Guest for Halloween: A Lex & Ricky Mystery Read online

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  Ricky and his mom were at the kitchen table eating supper when Lex walked in the kitchen door, “And where have you been!” glared Karen.

  “Well you wanted me to make friends, so I made a friend,” Lex retorted as he put on some oven mitts and retrieved his supper from the oven.

  “And why did your brother come home by himself?

  “It’s up to him, if he wanted to come home then he could come home. How is that my problem?” Lex replied indignantly.

  “You haven’t been very nice to Ricky since we moved here,” Karen wasn’t sure how to deal with the conflict between the boys but supposed it was a natural evolution as people do inevitably go their own way, no matter how close they once were. Still, it broke her heart to watch as they both used to be inseparable. It didn’t seem to bother Ricky right now though as he shoveled down his supper like he hadn’t eaten in days staring at that smooth stone in his hand. Karen decided to let the matter drop. “So you met a friend. Where did you meet them and what is their name?”

  “Tommy ah, I don’t know his last name. We followed the trail on the other side of the field and met up with him in the bush on the ridge,” responded Lex.

  “You were in the bush? I told you not to go too far into the bush. There are a lot of bears in this country, and other things. If you want to go in the bush, go with your Uncle Jeff, he will show you the ways of the forest,” Karen tried not to let her fear of their going into the bush alone be too obvious to the boys. She believed that the more she asked them not to do something, the more tempting the forbidden action would become to them.

  “OK, sure Mom,” Lex lied.

  “What other things?” piped in Ricky.

  “What?” Karen didn’t realize Ricky was even paying attention.

  “You said bears and other things were in the bush. What other things?”

  “Oh, I don’t know,” now Karen lied. “The point is there are real dangers in the bush that you boys haven’t been made aware of and are not prepared for. Your uncle can tell you all about the bush around here when he takes you to work with him in the morning.”

  Ricky considered telling his mom about his encounter in the bush but decided it would only upset her and she would become even more anxious regarding any future forays into the surrounding forest.

  Karen couldn’t help but notice Ricky’s fixation with the stone that he kept rubbing, “What is that you keep rubbing with your thumb, Ricky?” she asked.

  “I dunno, I found a pile of these smooth red rocks just off the trail,” replied Ricky.

  “Off the trail. How far off the trail?” Karen was agitated.

  “Not too far,” Ricky muttered getting the drift of where this line of questioning was heading.

  “I want you boys to stay out of the bush when you are by yourselves. Do you hear, me?” Karen waited for some sort of acknowledgement and they both bobbed their heads. “Now Lex, it’s your turn to do the clean up. And Ricky, you need a shower before bed. I have lessons to prepare since school starts soon and I am so far behind with this move and all. Let’s move boys, 06:00 comes early and I don’t want your uncle waiting on you.”

  Chapter 2: This Land is Your Land