Fright Wave Read Free Page B

guy was aiming at us. He never even tried to slow down."
    "You don't know that for sure," Jade countered.
    "No, we don't," Joe said. "But we will - once we find the driver of that car."
    ***
    "What do you mean you didn't get the license number?" Joe demanded as they headed back to the hotel in Jade's jeep. "You're the one who's supposed to think of those things, remember?"
    "I was kind of busy," Frank snapped. "Remember?"
    "Oh, well," Joe said. "It's a small island. How many blue sedans can there be?"
    "Lots," Jade said softly, as she pulled up to the front entrance. "There are almost a million people in Honolulu, and most of them have cars.
    "But nobody I know owns a car like that one," she added, "and I know almost all the surfers in the islands. So let's just drop the jealous surfer theory, okay?"
    The jeep rolled to a stop, and Frank climbed out the back. "Not jealous," he pointed out, "just greedy. Besides, it could have been a rented car - like the surfboard."
    Joe started to get out, too. Then he turned to look at Jade. "Will I see you again?" he asked, trying to sound casual.
    A smile passed over her lips. "Maybe," she murmured. "Now get out of here. My dad will start to worry if I don't get home soon."
    ***
    That night Joe dreamed he was surfing with a beautiful woman. At first she was a stranger, then she turned into Jade. They were having a great time until a blue sedan - with cheap, rented surfboards lashed to its wheels - came rolling across the waves, its horn blaring angrily.
    There was something wrong with the horn, though. It made a kind of ringing noise instead of honking. Joe thought it sounded just like a telephone. Slowly he realized that it was the telephone, and the dream slipped away as he drifted back to the waking world, groping for the receiver.
    "H'lo," he mumbled into the phone. "Whozit?"
    "It's Jade," the voice on the other end whispered hurriedly.
    Suddenly Joe was wide awake. "Jade! What is it? Where are you? What's wrong?"
    "I'm down in the lobby, but we've got to get out of here fast!"
    Joe was already reaching for a pair of jeans with his free hand. He cradled the receiver between his ear and shoulder and used both hands to wrestle his pants on. "We're on our way!" he exclaimed. "Hang on!"
    He dropped the phone and shook his brother awake. "Come on, Frank!" he shouted. "Jade's downstairs - and she's in trouble!"
    "Wha - " Frank replied drowsily. "What's the problem?"
    Joe threw some clothes in his brother's face and raced out the door. "I'm going to get the elevator," he called back. "I'll hold it for thirty seconds, and then I'm out of here!"
    "I'm right behind you," Frank assured him, swinging his legs out of the bed and onto the floor. He pulled on a pair of shorts, grabbed the shirt Joe had tossed at him, and slipped his feet into his beat-up deck shoes. Then he was out the door. A second later, he was back, snatching up the shoes Joe had forgotten to put on.
    Frank hit the hallway running, just in time to see the elevator doors start to slide shut. He put on a burst of speed, shoved his arm between the closing doors, and pried them open.
    "Come on, come on!" Joe urged once both boys were on the elevator. He jabbed the button marked L over and over again.
    Frank reached out and gently grabbed his brother's wrist. "Take it easy," he said. "Nothing's going to happen to her in the hotel lobby."
    "Right." Joe nodded, relaxing a bit. When the elevator doors opened on the ground floor, he bolted out.
    "It took you long enough!" Jade said, grabbing his hand and pulling him toward the door. "We've got to get going before it's too late."
    They hurried out into the morning sunlight and climbed into the waiting jeep. Jade turned the key and the ancient engine coughed to life. Frank hopped into the backseat, which was occupied now by two surfboards. "Too late for what?" he asked, wedging himself in. "What time is it?"
    "Oh, about eight-thirty, I guess," Jade responded. Her mood seemed to lift once