Truth or Dare . . by P.J. Night Page A

accepting that their lives were cut short, these spirits long for more—more time with their friends, more time with their families, more time with theirloved ones. They are overcome by the sense that they have been cheated of their due; the drive to live becomes like a drug, addictive and intoxicating. With all their strength, these spirits resist the pull of the beyond, desperate to cling to the lives they once lived.
    Abby felt a chill run down her spine. She hugged herself tight and glanced at her bedroom door to make sure it was still open . . . just in case.
    Sadly for these spirits, there is no going back; once the life force has been extinguished, they find themselves nearly powerless in the earthly realm, unable to be seen or heard (in most cases). This virtual invisibility grows increasingly painful for them, especially as they see their loved ones move through the stages of grief and eventually begin to resume their lives. With a sad and silent farewell, many reluctant spirits will, at this point, resolve to pass over; it is simply too painful for them to watch life from the sidelines.
    But some spirits find themselves enraged by these developments, especially if they thinkthat they are being forgotten or replaced. This small number of vengeful spirits should not be confused with those that are simply trying to relay one last, perhaps vital, message to a loved one. Rather, the spiteful spirit will do anything to reclaim his or her former territory, channeling large amounts of electromagnetic energy in an attempt to regain the power of the physical world. Highly charged ions are known to interfere with electronic devices, and clouds of electrons can alter the temperature of the air; scientists have proven this. What modern science has been unable to explain is why sudden, strong pockets of electromagnetism seem to develop out of thin air. Perhaps the air is not as thin as it seems.
    With enough practice and motivation, a spirit can summon a quantity of electromagnetism sufficient to scatter paper, knock down books, and create all manner of mischief that generally confuses, befuddles, or frightens the living. There have even been documented reports of “sightings,” in which the image of the deceased appears as real as if he or she were still alive. If you have found yourself on the receiving end of such unwanted interferencefrom a restless spirit, be assured that you are not crazy. Read on for suggestions on how to help this misguided spirit find its way to the other realm.
    Abby eagerly clicked on the link to read more. What she learned convinced her that she was not imagining things or overreacting. She sat back in her chair, deep in thought. Then she opened up her e-mail and started typing.
    To: Leah601
    From: AbbyGirl
    Subject: Sorry
    Hey Leah,
    First, I’m sorry I just disappeared like that. I’m really stressing out. So many weird things have been happening and some of them you don’t even know about. So I’m going to tell you everything. Please hear me out before assuming it’s just my imagination. I wish it was. Because then I could control it and make it STOP.
    So right before my party started, I was outside and I had the creepiest feeling that someone was watching me from the woods. And then I got that scary text message inthe middle of the night. And my phone was on—not the way I left it when we went to sleep. This afternoon, I had that creepy feeling that someone was watching me again—and I saw a red-haired girl running away from my window! When I got back to my room, my top was NOT where I left it and I found it shredded in my closet. All that stuff is VERY weird. Don’t you agree?
    Then things got even scarier. Leah, I got another freaky text message from that same strange number! And this time, I wanted to know who sent it, so that maybe I could stop them from sending another. But when I tried to look the number up online, my computer froze for