The Rules for Disappearing (25 page)

Frump’s ugly half-sister.” She gets out a brush, a clip, and a bottle of S—

hair gel and lines it on the counter next to the sink. Catherine then N—

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unloads a fully stocked makeup bag. “Especially if you and Ethan are over.”

“How’d you know?” I shouldn’t be in here with her—no one is

safe around me—but it feels so nice to have a
normal
moment.

“Ethan told Will. Will told me.”

“What did Ethan say?” I don’t know why I’m doing this to

myself. The sooner I get over him, the better off everyone will be.

Catherine manages to kick my short hair up in the back and

pulls the front part to one side in a clip. “Will wants to rent a limo for the Mardi Gras Ball. He asked Ethan last week if y’all wanted to go with us. Ethan said it wasn’t working out between y’all. And then you all but disappeared.”

Even now, he’s still protecting me.

Catherine keeps working on me and I get the full face treat-

ment with the makeup, finishing up with a little gloss. She eyes my clothes and shakes her head in disgust. “It’s like you’re trying to wear the ugliest shit out there.”

Catherine pulls the hoodie over my head and has to fix my hair again. “Here, shove this in that big-ass bag of yours.”

She digs in her bag and pulls out a soft, black, V-neck sweater.

“Put this on.”

She pulls out a red and black scarf and puts it around my neck, forming it into a low hanging loose knot.

She stands back to survey her work. “Much better. So what hap-

pened with Ethan?”

“It’s all my fault. I freaked. Everything was kinda moving fast, ya know?”

—S

—N

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Catherine looks at me like I’ve lost my mind. “No. That’s the

craziest thing I’ve ever heard. Do you like him?”

I roll my eyes. “It’s not that simple.” God, if it was only that simple.

“Yes. It is.” She holds up her hand when she sees I’m about to protest. “I don’t mean to get all up in your business. If you don’t want to be with Ethan, fine. But I’m not going to let you walk into this school looking like some bag lady.”

I turn and look in the mirror. Unbelievable. And what’s even

crazier is I feel better. The makeover was like a slap in the face. No more poor, pitiful me moaning and groaning about how sucky my

life is. I want a regular life. I want my family safe. I want to be with Ethan. I want to stop running. I even want to stay in this crazy ass town. And Catherine’s right, Mrs. Frump’s ugly half-sister is not going to be able to accomplish that.

But the old me will.

We both look back at the door when it opens. It’s the girl with pink stripey hair again and I get a funny feeling. Like déjà vu or something but I usually only catch her when she’s leaving. I never see her when she first gets here.

The girl throws all her stuff down on the floor and starts

picking at the wall. I glance at Catherine in the mirror. Catherine mouths the word
loser
and shakes her head. The girl goes about her business, unconcerned about the two of us watching her. She wiggles a brick out of the wall. It’s slow going and I can’t tear my eyes off of her. The brick wall blurs and the pattern makes me dizzy.

S—

My mouth gets dry.

N—

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Once the brick is loose, she balances it in one hand while

shoving a plastic bag in the hole. She turns back and looks at us for the first time.

“If my stash disappears, bet your ass I’ll come after you,” she says to Catherine and me.

Catherine turns around with her hand on her hip. “If I really

wanted your stash, I’d have taken it years ago. Everyone knows that’s where you hide it.”

I lean against the wall near the sink and feel my knees get weak.

I stare at the girl as she shoves the brick back in place. But that’s not all I’m seeing. Price’s image is superimposed on top of hers. I can see him . . . shoving something in the stone wall behind his desk.

The bell rings and the girl flees the bathroom.

“What a freak.” Catherine stuffs her things back in her bag. She turns to me and her expression changes. “Are you okay?”

I’m close to falling on the ground, but I manage to hold myself upright. I don’t want to fall apart in front of her.

“Yeah, fine. Not feeling 100% yet.” I manage to squeak out.

Catherine’s face scrunches up. “You look pale. Are you sure

you’re all right?”

I nod. “I’ll see you in class.”

Catherine leaves the bathroom only after looking back at me a

few times first. The second the door shuts, I hit the floor.

Oh. My. God. I know where the ledgers are.

I squeeze my eyes closed and focus on that night. I start at

Brandon’s house, combining all the pieces I’ve recalled over the last week. After I search upstairs, I step inside Mr. Price’s office. He’s

—S

—N

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facing the back wall, shoving some thin books inside a small hole there, then picks up a stone from his desk and stuffs it back in the wall.

Just as the stone slides into place, I hear footsteps and jump behind the couch.

I open my eyes and stare at the bathroom wall where the girl

stuffed her drugs.

The ledgers are probably still in the wall in Mr. Price’s office.

I sprint out of the bathroom and quickly get to homeroom

before the second bell rings. I need time to think, to plan. I slide in a desk in the back and Ben moves to sit near me.

“I hear you broke poor Landry’s heart.” And then he bursts out laughing.

I hold up a hand. I’m so done with this. “Quit being an asshole.

Whatever it is you’ve got against Ethan, drop it. Or don’t. I don’t really give a shit. Just leave me out of it. And leave me out of your little games with Emma. It’s getting old.”

Ben’s eyes get big. He’s trying to stutter something out but

nothing makes it past his lips. I glance behind him to the minions watching. “Did you get all that?”

They look shocked, too.

Good.

I turn back to Ben. “About the project. We can get together

either tomorrow night or Thursday at Pearl’s. You pick. I’ll have the packet.” I could care less about this, but I’ve got a plan brewing and I’m hoping in the end we can stay here. At some point, I’ll have to S—

salvage what’s left of senior year. And hopefully there’s something N—

between Ethan and me that can be salvaged, too.

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He shakes his head and goes back to the seat he was originally sitting in.

I’m on fire. I can’t tell Dad I know where they are. He’d never let me go with him. And then what if the ledgers aren’t in there anymore? No, Dad needs to stay with Mom and Teeny. I got us into this, so I’ll get us out.

—S

—N

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RULES FOR DISAPPEARING

BY WITNESS PROTECTION PRISONER #18A7R04M:

Avoid conflict at all costs. Even if that means letting some bitchy cheerleader get the best of you.

Teenyheads straight to the kitchen when we get to Pearl’s. It

feels really good to be back. Grabbing a phonebook and the cordless phone, I pick a booth close to the front. It’s pretty dead this early in the afternoon, so I figure I have a little time to start putting my plan together before we get too busy.

How will I get to Scottsdale? Car, bus, or plane? I call the bus station and the airport to find out how much a ticket back home will be, and how long it will take to get there.

Okay, first problem. No airport or bus station in Natchitoches.

I have to get to Shreveport. And then I would have to get back here from Shreveport if, I mean when, I recover the ledgers.

Second problem. Greyhound doesn’t require an ID to buy a

ticket but the airlines do. Showing an ID is the sticky part. I don’t have a driver’s license but I do have a state-issued ID in Avery Preston’s name. I told the suits I lost it when they yanked us out of S—

Florida. I’m a little nervous about using the ID even though a plane N—

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some system? Will it flag someone in the Marshals Office?

It’ll take forever to get there by bus. More than a day. I drum my pen on the table and go through my options. I don’t have a car.

I can’t take the station wagon because I have no intention of telling my parents what I’m doing. I hoped to leave on Friday and possibly be back by Monday with ledgers in hand. This is a very ambitious plan but it’s balls to the wall time.

Pearl spots me in the booth when she comes out of the kitchen.

I give a ridiculous little wave and she scrunches her forehead. I’m sure she’s wondering why I’m sitting here. She finally walks back to the kitchen.

Third problem. Either by bus or plane, a ticket round trip is

over three hundred dollars. I have maybe a hundred and twenty-

five in my bag that includes my paycheck Pearl just gave me. I’m really regretting the splurge on that jacket. I can get some money from Dad, and maybe ask Pearl for an advance on my next check.

That won’t leave much money for when I’m there. I could call Elle or Laura once I get there, but that is a last resort.

Fourth problem. This plan doesn’t even take into consideration what I need to do when I actually make it to the Price house. It’s not like I can walk up and ring the doorbell. Mr. Price was remarried—

would his wife still be living in the house her husband and stepson were killed in?

I drop my head on the table. Every time I think about Brandon

and the fact that he’s dead, it hurts. Moments later someone slides in the booth in front of me. It’s Catherine.

“So, I’m dying to know if Ethan’s jaw dropped when he saw you.

—S

Dish. I want to know everything.”

—N

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“Nothing. He hardly looked at me today.”

“This is bullshit—y’all belong together.” Catherine rubs her

hands together and smiles. “We’ll figure out a way to work this out.

We just need a plan.”

She’s got no idea.

Catherine claps her hands quickly. “And then we can all go to

the ball together.”

“I don’t know about that. He’s pretty pissed off at me.” I cringe.

I may not even be here next week much less by the time the ball comes around. And then a lightbulb goes off. “Catherine, do you ever go shopping in Shreveport? Maybe we could cut out early on Friday and have a girls’ day.”

“Only if we look at dresses, too. I have complete faith y’all will work it out!”

She seems really excited and we make plans. If there’s some-

where we can shop close to downtown, I can get to the bus station.

I don’t know if I’m gutsy enough to use the ID at the airport. I’ll have to tell her something before I ditch her, so she doesn’t have the police out looking for me, but I’ll cross that bridge when I get to it.

I hate doing this to her, but if everything does work out, I can make it up to her later.

Okay, so I have half of problem one sort of worked out. This is going to take a miracle.

Catherine leaves once customers start walking in. Luckily a

steady stream of business keeps me from obsessing over everything that I haven’t figured out yet.

S—

In the front dining area, I spot Teeny cleaning up a table;

N—

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she’s been so skittish lately—I hope she doesn’t freak when she sees them. She picks up her rag and the cleaning spray bottle, takes one look at them, all dressed in dark suits and overcoats, and runs out of the back of the store, crying.

Shit. I knew it! She must have thought they were here for her

instead of just looking for a place to sit.

Pearl sticks her head out of the kitchen, “What in the world was that?”

I’m in a panic. Teeny is gone and I need to go get her. I’ve got a fistful of money from one customer and another couple waiting to place their order. I clear the line in front of me as quickly as I can, then call to Pearl as I run and push open the back door, “I’m sorry, Pearl. Mary ran away, I’ve got to find her.”

“Of course, girlie. Go,” she says, concern etched all over her face.

The cold air slams into me. The alley behind Pearl’s is empty

and I listen for a moment for her footsteps, or crying, or anything, but there’s nothing. She’s only had a few minutes’ head start—she’s got to be close.

Picking a direction at random, I run toward Front Street. It’s dark and it’s cold. And I’m really scared for her right now.

I cover almost all the streets near the river, calling her name, by the time Ethan’s truck turns the corner and I can’t stop myself from running to his truck.

“Mary’s gone! She ran out of Pearl’s and I can’t find her. She doesn’t have her coat.”

I don’t realize I’m crying until Ethan brushes a few tears from

—S

my cheek. “We’ll find her. Hop in.”

—N

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We cover some of the same ground but I don’t know what else