Twisted (19 page)

“How could we? We're almost positive that we can contact Kelly, but we don't know what she's going to tell us.”

“Oh, that's good. That's very good!” Lexie cracked up. “Okay, Jen. I'll play along. Who else is going to be at the séance?”

“We're going to ask the whole drama class. We were all Kelly's friends.”

“You're going to ask everyone except Brian . . . right?”

“Brian? We're going to ask Brian. Why wouldn't we?”

“Special effects. If Brian's part of the séance, he can't jiggle the table, or make a smoke screen, or play a tape of Kelly's voice.”

“We'd never use cheap tricks like that! I told you, Lexie . . . this séance is going to be totally authentic.”

Lexie grinned. “Of course it is. But when you tell us to shut our eyes, I'm going to keep mine wide open. I want to see exactly how you and Tim are going to pull this off.”

H
e'd agreed to take part in the séance. It would have looked strange if he'd been the only one to refuse. But he didn't like it, not one bit. Why couldn't they leave Kelly's death alone?

Naturally, there had been questions. There were always questions when a beautiful young girl died in a horrible accident, especially since Kelly's car had exploded on impact and no one had been able to recover enough of her body to conduct any tests.

He shook his head, forcing away the gruesome picture. They'd called in a special disaster team to search the area, but there hadn't been much to find. And then Kelly's parents had mentioned how depressed she'd been lately, and they'd looked for a suicide note. They hadn't found it, of course. They should have known that Kelly wasn't the type of girl to kill herself.

Sheriff Newsome had called him in and asked him the same set of questions he'd asked everyone else. Had Kelly been acting any differently lately? Had she ever mentioned suicide to him?

He'd answered the questions quite honestly. Yes, Kelly had seemed a bit depressed to him. She was stressed out about her SAT scores, and she'd been working really hard at the appliance store all summer, trying to save money. But Kelly had certainly never mentioned suicide to him.

After Sheriff Newsome had left, he had thought about Kelly, pretty Kelly, so naive and loving. Her death was a terrible tragedy, but life had to go on.

It helped to look at the big picture. Time would pass and Kelly's tragic death would be almost forgotten. For the next few months, her classmates would shudder when they passed the spot where she'd died, and everyone would be a little more careful when the lights flashed and the crossing gates lowered. The garages would be busy for weeks, checking brakes and making sure that cars were in good running order, and the sound of a train whistle would bring tears to the eyes of Kelly's friends and family. Of course all that would pass as time erased the pain, and it wouldn't be long before Kelly's death would be relegated to the history of Foothill. A year from now, Kelly Bridges would be nothing more than a statistic in the courthouse records, and a name carved on a marble tombstone in the Foothill cemetery.

But Jennifer and Tim were stirring things up again by holding this ridiculous séance. He didn't believe in messages from beyond the grave, and trying to contact Kelly's spirit to ask her questions about her accident was in horribly bad taste. He'd really expected Miss Voelker to object . . . but she hadn't. And since the séance was part of Jennifer and Tim's skit, there was nothing for him to do but play along. He supposed they'd come up with some sort of stupid theatrics—Kelly's voice on a tape recording, or her image projected on a screen of smoke. Whatever they did, he'd have to take part, right along with everyone else.

He was sitting in the bleachers, overlooking the deserted football field. Football practice was over and he had the whole area to himself. This was one of his favorite places, and he came here often to think and dream of his future. Someday, perhaps even as soon as their first class reunion, these bleachers would be filled with people, all of them cheering for him. He needed the applause and the adoration, the grade-school kids clamoring for his autograph and the older residents shaking his hand and thanking him for putting Foothill on the map. That was the reason he'd been forced to kill Kelly. Perhaps she hadn't meant to do it, but Kelly Bridges had been holding him back from his destiny.

Jennifer hesitated as they approached the door of the Cosmic Eye. She knew she was being timid again, but she couldn't seem to help it. “Are you sure we have to do this? Maybe we should just make up the whole thing.”

“No, Jen. Let's get a book and do it right. There might be someone in the audience who's been to a séance before.”

Jennifer gave a resigned sigh. “Okay. You go in first and I'll be right behind you.”

Tim turned to look at her and Jennifer gave him a nervous smile. She'd never been in a psychic bookstore before, and it was bound to be weird. On the drive here, she'd tried to imagine the interior of the Cosmic Eye.

It would be dark and gloomy inside, with black candles sputtering in the corners. There would be shelves of dusty books with strange titles and the odor of pungent incense would hang in the air. The owner, Zada Tilitch, would have piercing eyes and hair as black as a raven's wing. When they told her that they wanted to hold a séance for a Halloween skit, she'd accuse them of treating the occult lightly. She might be so angry, she'd put a spell on them, mumbling incantations in some long-forgotten language and jabbing sharp pins into little wax dolls that looked like them.

Jennifer shivered, and Tim reached out to take her hand. “Hey, Jen . . . You're not really scared, are you?”

“Me? Scared? Of course not!” Jennifer forced a smile. “Come on. Let's go. I want to get in and get out, as fast as we can.”

“Don't worry, Jen. I'll protect you. You don't have to worry . . . unless you're a newt or a frog.”

Jennifer laughed. They'd just finished reading
Macbeth
in English class and she remembered the witches' scene. “You mean, ‘Double, double toil and trouble; Fire burn and cauldron bubble?' ”

“Right. Remember the potion? ‘Eye of newt and toe of frog. Wool of bat, and tongue of dog.' ”

Jennifer made a face. “What is the wool of a bat, anyway?”

“I don't know, but it's got to be something gross. Come on, Jen. Let's go.”

Tim opened the door and Jennifer's eyes widened as she followed him into the little shop. The inside of the Cosmic Eye wasn't at all what she'd expected! It was painted a sunny yellow, with white lace curtains on the big plate-glass window overlooking the street. There were lovely plants in baskets hanging everywhere and the walls were covered with books, all neatly dusted and arranged in alphabetical order. A round oak table and matching chairs sat in the center of the room, and there was a pleasant scent in the air. Jennifer realized that it was coming from a silver urn in one corner with a sign that read JASMINE TEA. PLEASE HELP YOURSELF.

“Feel better now?” Tim turned to her with a smile.

Jennifer nodded as she looked around. The little shop was charming. “I thought this would be creepy . . . but it's not!”

“Everyone thinks that, at first.”

Jennifer whirled around, and her mouth dropped open as a woman came through a beaded curtain at the rear of the store. She had to be an employee. There was no way this lady could be the exotic Zada Tilitch!

“Miss Tilitch?” Tim smiled at her.

“That's me. Just call me Zada. It's easier. What can I do for you two?”

As Tim explained about their séance, Jennifer stared at Zada Tilitch. She was about forty years old, with frizzy blond hair, brown eyes, and round, wire-framed glasses. She was short and plump, and she was wearing a faded blue denim skirt, and a pink T-shirt with a picture of a guitar-playing cow on the front. Under the cow was a slogan in bold black letters that read
I LOVE MOO-SIC
.

When Tim was through with his explanation, Zada smiled at Jennifer. “You look shocked, dear. Did you think I'd have bats in my hair?”

“I guess I was expecting something like that. You seem to be very . . . uh . . . normal.”

“God forbid!” Zada laughed. “Don't pass that around or I'll lose most of my customers.”

Tim started to laugh and so did Jennifer. Zada had a good sense of humor, and there was something about her that made them want to tell her their secret.

“Come here and sit down at the table.” Zada pulled out a couple of chairs. “I'll get you some tea and then you can tell me all about your séance. I can't help feeling that it's much more important than a simple Halloween skit.”

Jennifer glanced at Tim, and he nodded slightly. There was no reason not to tell Zada the truth.

It took quite a while to explain everything, but when they were through, Jennifer felt as if a giant weight had slid off her shoulders. She took a deep breath and looked over at Zada. “So what do you think? Are we doing the right thing?”

“I think you mean well. And I agree that you should hold the séance. But I think it's only fair to warn you that this could turn out to be much more than you bargained for.”

Zada looked very serious, and Jennifer frowned. “I don't understand. What do you mean?”

“If you follow the correct procedure, your séance could be successful.”

“You mean you think we might actually contact Kelly's spirit?” Tim sounded surprised.

“It's possible. And you're holding your dress rehearsal on Friday?”

Jennifer nodded, and so did Tim.

“That'll be fine. I'll close the shop early and I'll be there.”

“You mean . . . you're going to come to our séance?” Jennifer was puzzled.

“Of course. Dabbling with the occult can be dangerous, and it wouldn't be right to let you do this alone. An angry spirit has powers to transcend the boundaries between life and death. If Kelly's spirit is vengeful, she could wreak havoc upon those who call her from her rest.”

“But . . . what could she actually do?” Jennifer shivered slightly.

Zada was silent for a long moment. It was clear she didn't want to say. And then she reached out to take their hands, clasping them tightly in hers. “If Kelly's spirit is strong enough, she could kill us all.”

I
t was the Friday before opening night, and Jennifer was tired. They'd read all the séance books that Zada had recommended and they felt they were prepared. But the warning that Zada had given them weighed heavily on Jennifer's mind. She was ninety-nine percent sure that Zada was wrong and nothing bad would happen at their séance. But that one percent chance that Zada might be right had disturbed Jennifer's sleep for two weeks running.

Now they were on their way to Saddlepeak Lodge. Jennifer sighed as she leaned back against the leather seat of the twins' white Jeep. Tim and Tommy had pooled their money to buy the used recreational vehicle, and since it had all-wheel drive and antilock brakes, it was perfect to use for the trip up the mountain.

“So what do you think of it, Jen?” Tim turned to her with a smile. This was his week to drive, and Tommy and Lexie were riding in the backseat.

“It's great!” Jennifer smiled back. “It's got all the special features of a truck, but it rides like a car.”

“That's why we bought it. Tommy wanted a truck, and I wanted a car, so we got the Jeep instead. As far as I can see, there's only one drawback.”

“What's that?”

“Tommy and I have to go on double dates. Would you mind that?”

Jennifer could feel her cheeks turning hot and she knew she was blushing. Was Tim asking her to go out with him, or was this just a general question to find out how a girl would feel about double-dating?

“Yes, you would mind? Or no, you wouldn't?”

Jennifer decided to treat it like a general question. It was safer that way. “I wouldn't mind at all. But there might be some times when a girl would rather be . . . uh . . . alone with her date.”

Tim gave her a devilish grin. “I guess Tommy and I'll just have to take turns at times like that.”

“Hey, Tim . . .” Tommy tapped him on the shoulder. “You want to stop at the Hilltop Grocery and stock up on some snacks? Lexie's hungry.”

“Lexie's always hungry.” Jennifer turned around to smile at her friend. “But you don't have to stop. My mother packed a whole duffel bag full of snacks.”

Lexie groaned. “What did she pack? Rice cakes and trail mix?”

“Actually . . . no. Mom's off her health-food diet and she baked last night. I've got lemon poppy seed cupcakes, chocolate chip cookies, and a whole pan of fudge. And Dad threw in three different kinds of chips and some dip.”

“Sounds good.” Lexie licked her lips. “How about soda?”

“We've got that covered,” Tim said. “There's ten assorted cases in the back. And everyone else is bringing food, too. We'll have enough supplies to last us for a week.”

“We might need them!” Lexie sounded worried. “Did you hear the weather report?”

“Rain, and more rain,” Jennifer said. “But they said there was only a forty percent chance.”

“Not anymore. They upped it to sixty percent right before we left. My brother called from the station to tell me.” Lexie's voice had the ring of authority. Her oldest brother was a highway patrol officer and he always kept her informed of any hazardous road conditions. “He said if it started to rain while we were on the road, we should be careful between mile markers eighteen and twenty-four. It's a rock-slide area.”

“You don't have to worry. This baby'll go over anything.” Tommy reached out to pat the Jeep lovingly. “Right, Tim?”

“Right. And it doesn't look like rain yet.”

“Rain might not be all that bad.” Lexie looked thoughtful. “If we have a real storm tomorrow night, it'll fit right in with our haunted lodge.”

“That's true,” Tommy said. “And Brian won't have to rig any fake thunder and lightning.”

“Let's just hope the rain doesn't start until we've carried in all our—” Jennifer stopped and pointed out the window. “Look! They put up our signs!”

Tim pulled over to the side of the road, and they all got out to look at the sign. The shop class had cut a piece of plywood in the shape of a giant bat. It was painted black with Day-Glo red lettering that read FIVE MILES TO THE HAUNTED LODGE.

Everyone was smiling as they got back into the Jeep and headed back up the mountain. There would be five more signs, one every mile and one at the lodge, and they could hardly wait to see what other designs the wood-shop class had made.

“There's the next one!” Lexie pointed as they came around a curve. “It's a jack-o'-lantern! I think they did a really good job.”

Another mile and Jennifer spotted the next sign. “It's a ghost! The kids are going to love this! But will they be able to see the signs in the dark?”

“Sure,” Tommy said. “Ronnie rigged some batteries with timers so they'll light up. He drove up to look at them last night and he said they were pretty scary.”

The next sign was a pointed hat, the kind a witch would wear. And the one after it was a black cat. But the best sign of all was the one at the entrance to the lodge. It was a giant skeleton holding a sign in its bony fingers that read
WELCOME TO THE HAUNTED LODGE
!

“Ohmigod! What's that doing here?” Lexie's eyes widened as they pulled up the driveway and parked next to an old black hearse.

Tim laughed at Lexie's shocked expression. “That's the hearse from Pete's commercial. Central Motors let Pete drive it up here.”

“It's eerie, seeing it here like this.” Lexie shivered as she got out to walk past the hearse. “I just hope it doesn't give the kids nightmares.”

Tommy laughed. “It won't. Kids love to be scared, and they know it's all in fun.”

Tommy and Lexie went up the steps to the lodge, but Jennifer hung back to wait for Tim. She'd been feeling uneasy all day, and she'd decided to tell Tim about it. “Tommy just told Lexie that this is all in fun. But is it, really?”

“What do you mean, Jen?” Tim looked puzzled. “Of course it's all in fun. That's why we're doing it.”

“I know most of it is, but how about our séance? Maybe I'm just having an attack of stage fright, but I can't shake the feeling that something bad could happen.”

“Come on, Jen. There's nothing to worry about. You're just freaked over what Zada said.”

“Maybe . . .” Jennifer wasn't convinced. What if it really was possible to contact Kelly's spirit? And what if her spirit was angry enough to kill them?

“Jen?” Tim dropped their bags at the side of the door and put his arms around her. “If you really don't want to hold the séance, we can cancel. We've got time to work up something else.”

Jennifer stared up at him in surprise. That wasn't true! They didn't have enough time to work up another skit, and Tim knew it. And even if they managed to throw something together, their grades were bound to suffer.

“I'm serious, Jen. I don't mind . . . really.”

Jennifer could feel herself blushing. Maintaining his straight-A average meant a lot to Tim, but he was willing to take a low grade to make her feel better. That meant he cared about her much more than she'd realized.

“Thanks, Tim.” Jennifer hugged him. There was no way she'd let him sacrifice his grades just because she was freaked. “I appreciate the offer, but I'd rather do the séance. Everything'll be all right. I know it will.”

But as Tim opened the door and Jennifer stepped inside the haunted lodge, she had the terrible feeling that nothing would ever be all right again.

 

Jennifer's uneasiness faded the moment they joined the excited crowd of students inside. There were twenty rooms on the second floor and an equal number on the third. They'd decided that the second floor should be the girls' domain, and Tim carried Jennifer's bag up the staircase to her room.

Tim placed her bag on the bed and turned to smile. “My room's right above yours. If you need me, all you have to do is throw something at the ceiling.”

“Thanks, Tim. And if you need me, just knock on the floor.”

After Tim had left to get settled in his own room, Jennifer unpacked the things she'd brought. They were going to hold their dress rehearsal with Pete, stay overnight in the rooms they'd chosen, and make sure everything was ready for tomorrow night's performance. Miss Voelker would ride up the next afternoon on the bus with the children, and then grade their performances.

Jennifer had chosen a room that faced the front of the lodge. When she was through hanging up her costume and unpacking her makeup, she walked to the window and pulled back the curtains so she could look out. A light rain was beginning to fall and Jennifer frowned as she thought of Zada. If it was raining hard, would Zada come to their rehearsal as she'd promised?

As Jennifer stood there, watching the raindrops splatter against the pavement, she noticed that Pete had moved the hearse to the parking lot at the side of the driveway so that the other students could unload their things. Lexie would feel better now that it wasn't parked right in front. Jennifer could understand why Lexie had shivered when she'd seen the hearse. Her favorite aunt had died in September and Lexie's family had flown back east for the funeral. The hearse was a sad reminder that Lexie would never see her Aunt Leah again.

Surprisingly, the hearse didn't bother Jennifer at all. Perhaps she was finally getting over being so timid. But her imagination still kicked into high gear once in a while. It had happened today, when they'd arrived at the lodge, and she'd wanted to cancel the séance. If Tim hadn't snapped her out of it, they would have blown their grades and missed the chance to help Tommy.

There was a tap on her door and Jennifer went to open it. It was Tim, and she gave him a big smile. “Hi, Tim. Are you ready to go down and help?”

“I'm ready. Pete says it's cold downstairs. They turned up the heat and started a fire in the fireplace, but it'll take a while for a big place like this to warm up. Did you bring a jacket?”

“I've got my long parka coat, but that's kind of heavy. Won't my sweatshirt be enough?”

“No way. It's barely fifty degrees.” Tim glanced at her Foothill High sweatshirt and frowned. “You'd better put this on, just in case.”

Jennifer's eyes widened as Tim draped his Foothill High letter jacket over her shoulders. Did this mean what she thought it meant? At Foothill High, the students had decided to revive some of the customs of the fifties and sixties. When class rings were exchanged, it meant that a couple was engaged to be engaged. And letter jackets were much more than a simple award for doing well in athletics. When a girl wore a guy's letter jacket, it meant that she was dating him exclusively. What would Tommy think if he saw her in his twin brother's letter jacket?

“Thanks, Tim. But—” Jennifer stopped in mid-sentence and blushed. She wasn't sure how to ask Tim what the letter jacket signified.

It was as if Tim had read her mind, because he grinned at her. “Relax, Jen. You can tell everyone you just borrowed my jacket to keep warm. Unless you'd rather say something else?”

“Oh. Yes, that's fine.” Jennifer knew she wasn't answering the question, but she wasn't sure what she should say. Rather than risk hurting Tim's feelings, she just thrust her arms into the sleeves and pulled the jacket close around her. It was wonderfully warm and smelled slightly of aftershave, a scent she found very pleasing. “Thank you, Tim.”

“You're welcome.

Tim was grinning as they went down the stairs, and Jennifer hoped she hadn't given him the wrong idea. But wearing Tim's letter jacket made her feel very special, and she couldn't help smiling as they walked into the kitchen, where the other students had gathered.

Lexie didn't see them at first. She was busy, helping Susie and Tommy carve the pumpkins that Pete had brought in the back of the hearse. But when Lexie turned and caught sight of Jennifer in Tim's letter jacket, her eyes widened and she started to smile.

Jennifer shook her head slightly to let Lexie know that Tim's jacket didn't mean what she thought it did. Lexie's smile faded abruptly, and Jennifer thought she looked a bit disappointed.

Tommy didn't react to the letter jacket at all. He just handed her a hollowed-out pumpkin and cleared a space for them at the counter. Jennifer couldn't tell whether he just hadn't noticed that she was wearing Tim's jacket, or whether he really didn't care.

The art class had made some stencils and Jennifer took one from the box on the counter. She traced the stencil on her pumpkin with a black marking pen and handed it to Tim. She was tracing her third stencil when Tommy tapped her on the shoulder.

“Nice jacket, Jen.” He winked at her. “Does it belong to anyone I know?”

Jennifer was about to tell him that she'd only borrowed Tim's jacket because she was cold. But then she noticed that everyone was listening. She didn't want to embarrass Tim, so she smiled and settled for telling the absolute truth. “It's Tim's jacket. And I think it's very nice, too.”