The Terror Behind the Mask, page 9
“Chief Black Fox was the first great leader of the Cherokee Nation East in the early 1800s,” Beth reported. “He was one of the signers of the Holston Treaty and led the tribe for a decade.”
“Excellent,” her mom said.
Beth grinned proudly. Native American history was a topic that she really enjoyed.
“Let’s move on to the Lakota,” said her mother, but Beth made no move to turn the page. “Beth, are you okay?”
“What?” Beth replied absentmindedly.
“Am I boring you?” her mom asked, sarcastically. “You’re usually very interested in history.”
“What? Oh, I’m sorry, Mom. I just had a thought that took me away for a minute. It’s funny, but I know more about the history of people who lived hundreds of years ago than I do about my own history.”
Beth’s mom squirmed a bit in her seat. “But your memory has gotten so much better,” she said, unable to disguise the disappointment in her voice.
Beth felt bad, hearing her mother sound upset. She knew her mother wanted nothing more than for Beth to be happy, and she was. She just couldn’t help but wonder about her past. She also wondered if her missing memories would haunt her for the rest of her life.
“You’re right,” she told her mom. “It has, as far as remembering the events since we’ve been here. But it still feels weird not to remember anything before that.”
“I know, honey,” Mom said, her tone now much more sympathetic. “That accident robbed you of a lot. But think of all you have now. A nice home. A good friend.”
“Absolutely,” Beth said, smiling. “Okay, no more feeling sorry for myself. Back to history.”
WANT MORE CREEPINESS?
Then you’re in luck, because P. J. Night has some more scares for you and your friends!
HAUNTED WORD SEARCH
As Jasmine learns in this story, people can hide behind masks, both real ones and metaphorical ones. Thirty words or phrases are hidden in this word search below. Can you find them all? Words can appear up, down, backward, forward, or diagonally.
ANTHROPOLOGY
BASEMENT
BOGEYMAN
DAD
EVIL
GIFT
GUILE
HAUNTED
JAMBALAYA
JASMINE
JAZZ
LIBRARY
LISA
MARDI GRAS
MASK
METAPHOR
MOMO
MYRIAD
NANA
NEW ORLEANS
NIGHT-LIGHT
NIGHTMARE
PARADE
PHOTOGRAPH
POEM
SCAREDY CAT
TERROR
TRAVEL
TREE HOUSE
WRITER
YOU’RE INVITED TO . . .
CREATE YOUR OWN SCARY STORY!
Do you want to turn your sleepover into a creepover? Telling a spooky story is a great way to set the mood. P. J. Night has written a few sentences to get you started. Fill in the rest of the story, and have fun scaring your friends.
You can also collaborate with your friends on this story by taking turns. Have everyone at your sleepover sit in a circle. Pick one person to start. She will add a sentence or two to the story, cover what she wrote with a piece of paper (leaving only the last word or phrase visible), and then pass the story to the next girl. Once everyone has taken a turn, read the scary story you created together aloud!
The bell above the door chimed as I walked through the doorway. I’d always wanted to go into this famous mask shop, but I’d been a little scared at the lifeless faces staring at me from the window. Today I was feeling bold. How I wish I hadn’t been. Each mask was scarier than the next. And the scariest one of all was the one the mask-maker was carving at that moment . . .
* * *
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THE END
A lifelong night owl, P. J. Night often works furiously into the wee hours of the morning, writing down spooky tales and dreaming up new stories of the supernatural and otherworldly. Although P. J.’s whereabouts are unknown at this time, we suspect the author lives in a drafty, old mansion where the floorboards creak when no one is there and the flickering candlelight creates shadows that creep along the walls. We truly wish we could tell you more, but we’ve been sworn to keep P. J.’s identity a secret . . . and it’s a secret we will take to our graves!
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authors.simonandschuster.com/P-J-Night
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This book is a work of fiction. Any references to historical events, real people, or real places are used fictitiously. Other names, characters, places, and events are products of the author’s imagination, and any resemblance to actual events or places or persons, living or dead, is entirely coincidental.
SIMON SPOTLIGHT
An imprint of Simon & Schuster Children’s Publishing Division
1230 Avenue of the Americas, New York, New York 10020
www.SimonandSchuster.com
First Simon Spotlight paperback edition August 2014
Copyright © 2014 by Simon & Schuster, Inc.
All rights reserved, including the right of reproduction in whole or in part in any form.
SIMON SPOTLIGHT and colophon are registered trademarks of Simon & Schuster, Inc.
YOU’RE INVITED TO A CREEPOVER is a registered trademark of Simon & Schuster, Inc.
Text by Kama Einhorn
Designed by Nick Sciacca
ISBN 978-1-4814-0460-0
ISBN 978-1-4814-0461-7 (eBook)
Library of Congress Catalog Card Number 2013940838
P.J. Night, The Terror Behind the Mask
