Forbidden Secrets by R.L. Stine Page A

answer.
    I must find a candle. I must see how badly Lucy is hurt.
    Savannah struggled to her feet and made her way to the parlor. The fire in the hearth crackled and popped.
    She found the small stub of a candle on a nearby table and quickly lit it.
    Her blood thrummed through her temples as she hurried back to Lucy. Her knees quivered.
    Savannah gasped as the light from her candle fell on Lucy’s crumpled body. Lucy’s arms were pinned beneath her. A circle of blood surrounded her.
    And her face . . . her face was smashed in. Just like her porcelain doll’s.
    Savannah’s stomach lurched. I must find Tyler and tell him what happened. The garden. He was in the garden. She rushed outside.
    â€œTyler!” she called into the darkness.
    Only the howling wind answered. It blew her candle out.
    Savannah shuddered. “Tyler!” she shouted again. Then she saw pale yellow light escaping from beneath a door at the far end of the mansion.
    Where does that door lead? she wondered. She ran over and tried the latch. Unlocked. She slowly pulled the door open and slipped inside.
    She found a stairwell lit with huge torches. These stairs must lead to the cellar, Savannah thought. She headed down.
    When she reached the bottom of the stairs, she saw a man hunched over a table. A vial of steaming liquid bubbling beside him.
    â€œTyler!” Savannah gasped.
    He spun around quickly. “Savannah! I wasn’t expecting you.”
    â€œI had to find you. Lucy is dead!” Savannah cried.
    â€œYes, I know,” he said coldly. He stepped toward her.
    Savannah could see more of the table now. It wascovered with vials and jars. Then she saw something that made her scream.
    A severed hand—with Lucy’s ruby ring on one finger.
    â€œYou killed her!” Savannah cried. “You killed Lucy.”
    â€œI really had no choice,” Tyler replied in a calm voice.
    He advanced on Savannah with a grin. “You see, Savannah, I wanted you to be the last one to die!”

Chapter
    33

    S avannah backed away as Tyler moved toward her one slow step at a time.
    â€œYou killed Mrs. Mooreland too, didn’t you?” she cried. She remembered Mrs. Mooreland’s severed hand.
    â€œYes,” he confessed, his eyes glowing with triumph. “Yes! I killed Mrs. Mooreland. Yes, I killed Lucy! They tried to keep you away from me.”
    â€œVictoria was right about you!” Savannah cried. “She knew you were evil. And I killed her. I killed my own sister to protect you.”
    Savannah felt hatred pump though her body. “How could you do this to me?” she screamed.
    â€œThat’s not all I did,” Tyler told her. “I killed Zachariah too.” He held up his scarred palm. “He gave me no choice. We were on opposite sides of the war. He stabbed me with his bayonet.”
    Savannah shuddered. Zach was trying to warn me when he came to me that night at Whispering Oaks, she realized. He was trying to warn me about Tyler!
    â€œAnd if you hadn’t been on opposite sides of the war?” she demanded. “What then? Would you have killed us all at Whispering Oaks?”
    â€œI told you, Savannah. The war changed us. It changed us all.”
    He took a big step toward her.
    Savannah backed up and slammed against the wall.
    A victorious smile spread over Tyler’s face. “There is no one to help you, Savannah.” He held out his hands. “Only me. Come to me.”
    â€œNo!” Savannah shouted. She searched the room for a way to escape.
    Tyler is blocking the stairs, she thought. I must get him away from the stairs.
    And then she noticed a torch burning near her.
    Tyler stepped closer.
    Savannah held her breath and waited. Just come a little closer, Tyler, she thought. Just a little closer.
    Tyler took another step forward.
    Savannah grabbed the heavy torch and slammed it down on Tyler’s head. Tyler stumbled and fell to the cold stone