Spooked Read online

  Mick stepped forward and held Irene by the shoulders to steady her.

  “Where did you get her?” I asked Kerry.

  “I stole her from Maddy’s Thrift Shop a little while ago. Took off out the back and into the laneway, where Mick was waiting for us.”

  I eyed Mick. “The getaway car driver? What’s next? A bank?”

  Mick dropped his gaze and even in the dark I could tell that his skin had gone a little red.

  “I’m a bad influence,” Kerry said. “Just look at what I’ve got the two of you doing right now.”

  This was true. Kerry seemed to have a way with people. Well, certain people—people dying to do something a little crazy.

  “Hand me that bag, would you, Lorelei?” she said to me.

  I scooped up the bag for her and once more her pale hand disappeared into it. She had a captive audience. Mick and I watched her with a kind of morbid fascination.

  She pulled a black scarf from her bag. “Last but not least.” She knelt before Irene and tied the scarf around her head, covering her eyes.

  Stepping back from Irene, she surveyed her work, nodding and smiling. “Yeah. That’s what I’m talking about.”

  Mick and I looked at Irene, hanging by her hands from a tree, legs bent, and blindfolded. The scene was downright ghoulish.

  And she looked real. She looked just a like a girl who had been tied up, blindfolded, and murdered.

  I felt the small hairs at the back of my neck rise, and the eerie feeling that we were starting something that would turn out badly crept over me.

  And I was right.

  Chapter Two

  I awoke the next morning with a gnawing sense of dread in the pit of my stomach. Our stunt was only meant to be a practical joke—just some mischief on Devil’s Night. But it still wasn’t sitting right with me. Like a dark premonition, the sense of foreboding crept over me, and made me break out in a cold, shaky sweat.

  Maybe we could take it back. If nobody had gone out to Frenchy Pointe last night, there was a chance we could just take the mannequin down and no one would ever be the wiser. This glimmer of hope lifted my spirits somewhat and made it slightly easier for me to breathe.

  I showered, brushed out my long tangles and dried them with the diffuser Delia had bought me for Christmas, and pulled on a pair of black jeans and a burnt orange turtleneck in recognition of Halloween, which happens to be my most favorite time of year. Strangely, I remembered that it was Halloween but the fact that it was also my birthday almost escaped me.

  I pushed out a long breath. I was tired; I hadn’t slept well. I stopped in front of a photo that Wentworth had taken of Delia and I last Halloween at my small birthday party of the three of us. She stood smiling next to me, one arm around my waist. I leaned into her, tilting my dark, wild-haired head toward hers.

  I looked at my image in the picture for a long moment. Was I pretty? I’ve got my father’s thick, black lashes and my mother’s naturally red lips, so I don’t feel the need to use makeup. The women’s magazines say that some earthy-toned eye shadow would bring out the green of my eyes, but I really don’t care. I’m white as a ghost, too, but because I have no patience for properly applying blusher, I don’t bother.

  “Whatever,” I said under my breath as I started downstairs. Something smelled heavenly. Pumpkin spice. My favorite.

  “Good morning,” Delia said, a cheerful lilt in her tone. “Happy Halloween and happy birthday!”

  “Thanks,” I said, trying to smile past my anxiety. “Happy Halloween to you.”

  She frowned. “What’s wrong, Lorelei?”

  I shook my head. “Nothing.” I sniffled. “I think I’m catching something, that’s all. A cold, maybe.”

  She watched me for a moment, those large, blue eyes assessing my words. “Well, if you get worse, call me and I’ll come and get you.”

  I nodded. “Okay. I’m sure I’ll be fine, though.”

  She handed me a chocolate protein shake. “Breakfast, just as you like it.”

  I smiled my thanks. My belly can’t stomach anything solid for a couple of hours after I wake. This morning I wasn’t sure whether I could stomach even the protein shake, but I took a sip anyway.

  “For later.” She handed me a baggie, orange frosting smearing the inside of it and covering the pumpkin muffin. I love pumpkin muffins.

  “Delia, you are way too good to me.” Suddenly, I felt terrible for sneaking out the night before. I felt as if I’d lied by omission. This woman had been nothing but wonderful to me, and I’d snuck out and participated in a stupid teenage prank.

  But how bad was it, really? It was just a mannequin. It wasn’t like we’d actually murdered anyone.

  “Lorelei.” Delia’s brows were furrowed as those big blue eyes stared at me.

  I’d been standing there, staring at the pumpkin muffin in my hand. Just staring at it. I looked up at her and tried to crack a grin, which I knew looked sickly, as if I had a bad taste in my mouth. “Sorry. Did you say something?”

  “You’re not yourself today, girl.” Delia’s concern was growing into outright worry.

  I knew she was about a second away from insisting that I stay home. But I had to know whether anyone had seen our staged killing. Whether anyone knew it was us. Was I in trouble?

  “I’m okay. If I really don’t feel well I’ll call you.”

  Delia watched me a moment longer before nodding her head. “Okay.”

  “I’d better go,” I said. “I’ll miss the bus.”

  Her eyes lit up. “Oh! I almost forgot. Your witch’s hat is hanging on the coat tree next to the door.”

  I felt a smile cross my lips. Every year she got me a new witch hat. Every year I loved it. She’d pick out a plain one from a bargain store, and then embellish it, making it amazingly unique and just wicked cool. Delia was a party planner, and on the side she designed and sewed costumes. Once in a while I’d help her with the sewing, and she did employ others to sew for her if she had a particularly large order. She was a wizard when it came to designing costumes.

  I headed through the living room and then down the stairs and spotted it, hanging on the coat tree, as she’d said it would be. There it was: a black witch hat with orange boa feathers around the brim. Larger orange and black feathers adorned the hat, and finally, a large, black spider sat on a patch of black lace.

  I laughed. “Delia. You’ve outdone yourself.” I pulled the hat from the coat tree, placing it on my head. “What do you think?”

  “Positively perfect!” she said, her hands clasped at her chest in glee. “I love it.”

  “Me, too.” I went up the few steps to where she stood and pecked her on the cheek. “Thank you.”

  “You’re welcome. Thanks for indulging me.”

  “Delia, what are we going to do with all the witch hats you’ve made over the years?”

  “Keep them, of course. Or give them away as Christmas presents.”

  This made me giggle. But I’d never give them away. I love each and every one of those hats, because Delia made them. “See you later. Have a good day planning parties,” I said, heading back down the stairs.

  “Lots of Halloween parties tonight, with Halloween falling on a Friday this year. Most of the work is done.”

  I turned to look up at her, my hand on the doorknob. “That’s right. It is Friday. I forgot.”

  “I may not be here when you get home, because I have to run out to put the final touches on decorations for a couple of parties, but the Halloween candy is in the cupboard, like always, and you know where the Halloween bowls are. I’ll decorate the house before I go.”

  Delia wouldn’t throw a party for me, because she knew that would be the very last thing that I’d want. I like to spend my birthday celebrating Halloween. But I knew that she’d be picking up a gorgeous Halloween/birthday cake for me, as she always did. I felt a genuine smile cross my face. “You’re the best, Delia.”

  She grinned and waved a hand at me. “Agh.
Go on. See you later.”

  “Okay.” I opened the door.

  “And remember to call me if you want to leave school. I’ll have my cell on.”

  “Okay. Don’t worry about me. I’ll be fine.”

  “Lore, I’ll worry about you until I’m dead, and then probably afterwards, too.”

  “You’ll probably outlive me, Delia.” The truth was I wanted her to outlive me, because I couldn’t imagine my life without her.

  Something dark crossed her face.

  I was reminded of why I lived with her in the first place. Terrible things happened to people with my “gift.” Me—I thought it was more a curse than a gift. Although I loved Delia and loved living with her, the fear of being found and the need to be extra cautious so that no one found out about my ability was like a constant dark cloud following me around. We were aware that people like me disappeared, never to be found again. Or if they were found, they were not found alive.

  We are dangerous creatures—too dangerous to be allowed to live out in the open—with our power to discover dark and horrible secrets. God knows what we may discover.

  So if I were caught, it was possible that Delia might outlive me. That she, in fact, probably would.

  Then she smiled at me again. “Go on. You’ll be late.”

  I blew her a kiss and went out the door into the chill autumn air.

  ***

  I knew the moment I went through the school doors that something was wrong. Constant, hushed whispers and low murmurs came from shocked faces, concerned and somber.

  In times like this I had to be very careful not to use my talent to try to connect with someone to find out what the deal was. I was tempted, but I refrained.

  If any one of these kids found out what I could do, it would spread like wildfire and I’d be done. I’d have to leave Delia. And I honestly didn’t know whether I could do that.

  So I kept my head down so as not to inadvertently send out psychic fingers and probe the minds of anyone near me.

  “Lorelei,” a voice said.

  I looked up to see Kerry standing at my locker a few feet away. Her eyes were haunted.

  “What is going on?” I asked her.

  “It’s not good,” she said, her face paler than usual.

  “For God’s sake, Kerry. I’m really getting freaked here. Tell me what happened.”

  She took a deep breath before saying, “Eliza Ford is missing.”

  ***

  “What?” I stared at her, dumbfounded.

  “She’s missing.” Kerry’s huge, raccoon eyes watched me as she nibbled a thumbnail.

  “Oh, shit. That is not good.” I chewed my bottom lip. “When was the last time she was seen?”

  “Just before last period yesterday. She had a study period that she apparently skipped out on. Nobody even saw her leave the school. Her car is still in the school parking lot.”

  Eliza drove a cute little powder blue Honda Civic.

  “She never made it off the property?”

  Kerry shook her head. “Not in that car, she didn’t.”

  “Her parents must be worried out of their minds,” I said.

  “I guess her father sat in her car all night while her mother stayed home, waiting for her.”

  “What about the boyfriend? Devin?”

  She nodded. “Devin Moran. Football hero.” She rolled her eyes. “He said he hadn’t seen her since third period. They broke up. He said he was done with her and has a new girlfriend so he doesn’t pay attention to where she goes now.” Kerry lifted her brows at me to punctuate how much of a jerk she thought he was.

  “Nice.” I looked around at the students gathered in small groups in the hall, and others that walked by slowly, as if they were caught in a dream. Everyone was shocked.

  Kerry sighed and looked around, as if she were looking for Eliza just in case she decided to show up late and make a grand entrance. “The princess is missing. There’s going to be a huge hunt for her. They’re organizing search parties as we speak,” Kerry said.

  “Jesus,” I murmured. It was unbelievable. Dread crept over me and settled in my belly, clutching at my insides.

  “I want to go and see whether Irene is still there,” Kerry said. “Take her down, if we can, before anyone sees her.”

  Thank God. I nodded. “Yeah. Let’s do it.”

  “I think we can slip away while they’re organizing the search party. You game?”

  “Absolutely. Where’s Mick?

  I heard spooky music that I recognized but couldn’t place coming from her leather jacket pocket. Then it came to me: the theme to an old eighties horror movie, a classic. Under the circumstances, it lifted the small hairs from the back of my neck.

  Kerry pulled the cell phone out of her pocket. “That’s him right now.” She lifted her cell to her ear. “Where are you?”

  I scanned the halls again. The Pretty Pack huddled in front of Eliza’s locker, eyes wide with fear. They knew more than what they were letting on. I was certain of it. Eliza probably texted them before, during, and after she peed. She’d definitely tell them where she was headed if she were skipping study hall.

  I pulled my gaze away from them. Again, I had to make an effort to block them from my thoughts. I could easily find out what they knew, but if I did that, I made myself and Delia targets. I’d never forgive myself if something happened to her because of me.

  “Come on,” Kerry said, shoving her cell into her jacket pocket. “He’s parked in back of the school waiting for us.”

  We headed down the hall, taking a set of stairs that were not used much. The stairs led to the basement, where the cleaning supplies were kept. Dark, it smelled of heavy industrial cleanser and mildew that wouldn’t quite stay away. We headed out the exit and down the metal set of stairs at the back of the school.

  Mick’s car was waiting in front of the stairs. There weren’t parking spots, but just a paved area. Nobody ever parked here.

  I slid into the back seat, mechanically pulling the seat belt around me and clicking it into place. I was one of those kids who pretty much always did what I was supposed to do. I followed all the rules. Never stepped out of line.

  Except last night.

  “Hey, Lorelei,” Mick said over his shoulder, giving me a small grin.

  “Hey.”

  “Don’t worry. It’ll turn out okay,” he said.

  “We hope,” Kerry said. “We just need to get that mannequin back. Get her down.”

  The mannequin seemed so unimportant to me, in light of the fact that Eliza was missing. “Where do you think she is?”

  Mick shook his head. “No telling, really. She wasn’t a friend of mine. But I’m sure she’s okay. She must be.”

  Kerry stared out the window. “It’s all over the news.”

  “Someone knows where she is,” I said. “I bet her friends do.”

  “Or that jock ex-boyfriend,” Kerry said.

  I chewed my bottom lip, my stomach clenching. I was thankful that I hadn’t eaten anything. The pumpkin muffin was still in the front compartment of my backpack.

  We rode the rest of the way to Frenchy Pointe in silence. Getting Irene back wasn’t really going to make any of us feel any better. We were guilty of harmless mischief, not of actually hurting anyone. Still, for some reason I felt somewhat responsible for Eliza’s disappearance. As if our prank had somehow led to it, or aided it in some way. Like we’d started something dark in motion.

  “What the hell?” Kerry said, sitting forward in her seat.

  I sat forward too, following her shocked gaze.

  “Holy shit,” Mick murmured.

  My mouth dropped open. Irene was still there, but she wasn’t wearing the jean jacket and jeans that she’d been in when we’d hung her from the tree.

  She was wearing Eliza’s clothes. Right down to her pink hairband.

  Chapter Three

  “Oh shit,” Mick said. “We can’t take her now. She’s part of an investigation. She
’s evidence of a crime.”

  “Oh, my God,” I said. “Mick’s right. This is a crime scene. We’re the first at the scene. We can’t just leave. We have to call the police.”

  “No!” Kerry said. “We can’t! They’ll think we’re involved.”

  “What are we going to do?” Mick said. “Take the mannequin, which is wearing Eliza’s clothes, and not say anything? We can’t.” He shook his head.

  The whole thing seemed so surreal to me. But one thing was certain—Mick was right. We couldn’t just take the mannequin down. Somebody had dressed her in Eliza’s clothing and now Eliza was missing. That mannequin was evidence. Whether we liked it or not.

  “Shit.” Kerry looked at the mannequin, and then down at the ground.

  “We didn’t really do anything wrong, Kerry. We hung a mannequin from a tree on Devil’s Night. So what,” I said, shrugging. I didn’t believe this for a second, but I wanted to get her to back off.

  “Yeah,” Kerry said. “A mannequin that I stole.”

  Kerry would get into trouble for that part of it. I looked at Mick. Our eyes locked for a moment before his gaze slid away. His mind was working.

  “Shit,” Kerry said. “I’m screwed. They’ll send me back to juvie.” Her eyes were huge and fearful.

  Mick placed his hands in the pockets of his jeans and walked a slow circle, looking at the ground. “What if we just found the mannequin like that?”

  I looked at him. “Then what are we doing here?”

  He let out a breath. “Right. Good point. Damn.”

  We were all part of this. I couldn’t let Kerry take the brunt of the fall. “Look, if we’re not going to fess up to having her at all, then we blow this place right now and let them come up on her themselves.” I looked at Kerry and Mick.

  They looked back at me, and then at each other, wheels turning and hope glimmering in their eyes.

  Mick nodded his head slowly, thinking. “Yeah. Let’s do that.”

  Kerry looked at the mannequin, apparently undecided.