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Tori skipped class that afternoon, not surprisingly. The rule about not hiding out in your room apparently didn't apply to her, maybe because of her condition or maybe because of her mother's position. Between periods, I slipped upstairs to find her. She was in her bedroom, her sobs barely muffled by the closed door.
I stood in the hall, listening to her cry, yearning to do something.
In a movie, I'd go in there, comfort her, and maybe even become her friend. I'd seen it on the screen a dozen times. But again, that wasn't the same as experiencing it in real life, something I couldn't really appreciate until I was there, outside the door.
Tori hated me.
The thought made my stomach hurt. I'd never been hated before. I was the kind of kid that, if someone asked others what they thought of me, they'd say “Chloe? She's okay, I guess. ” They didn't love me, didn't hate me, just didn't think much about me either way.
Whether I'd earned Tori's hate was another matter, but I couldn't argue with her experience of events. To her, I had barged in and taken her place. I'd become the “good patient” she desperately needed to be.
If I walked into her room now, she wouldn't see a sympathetic face. She'd see a victor come to gloat, and she'd hate me all the more. So I left her there, crying in her room, alone.
* * *
When afternoon break ended, Mrs. Talbot announced classes were over for the day. We were going to make a rare trip into the outside world. We weren't going far—just to an indoor community pool a block away, within walking distance.
A great idea. If only I had a bathing suit.
Mrs. Talbot offered to call Aunt Lauren, but I wasn't about to interrupt my aunt for that, especially after she'd been dragged away for my misbehavior yesterday.
I wasn't the only one being left behind, though. Derek had to go to his session with Dr. Gill. That didn't seem fair, but when I said so to Simon, he said Derek wasn't allowed on the outings. I guess that made sense, considering what he was in here for. The day I arrived, when they'd taken the others to lunch while I settled in, he must have been confined to his room.
* * *
After everyone left, I took advantage of the nurses being gone and hung out in my room, listening to music. I'd been up there only a few minutes when I thought I heard a rap at my door. I pulled out one earbud. Another rap. I was pretty sure ghosts couldn't knock, so I called a greeting.
The door swung open. There stood Tori, looking . . . very un-?Tori-?like. Her dark hair stood in spikes, as if she'd been running her hands through it. Her shirt was wrinkled, the back untucked from her jeans.
I sat up. “I thought you went swimming. ”
“I have cramps. That okay with you?” Her words were clipped, with an undertone of her usual snottiness, but forced. “Anyway, I didn't come to borrow your eyeliner. Not like you have any. I just came to say you can have Simon. I've decided…” Her gaze slid away. “I'm not interested. He's not my type anyway. Too… young. ” A twist of her lips. “Immature. Anyway. Take him. He's all yours. ”
I'd have been tempted to shoot back a “Gee, thanks” if it wasn't obvious how much this was hurting her. Simon was wrong. Tori did really like him.
“Anyway”—she cleared her throat—“I've come to declare a truce. ”
“Truce?"
With an impatient wave, she stepped into the room, closing the door behind her. “This silly feud of ours. You aren't worth my . . . ” She trailed off, shoulder slumping. “No more fighting. You want Simon? Take him. You think you see ghosts? That's your problem. All I want is for you to tell Dr. Gill that I apologized for telling everyone you saw ghosts the first day. They were going to let me out Monday, but now they aren't. And it's your fault. ”
“I didn't—”
“I'm not done. ” A touch of her old attitude gave the words a snarky lilt. “You'll tell Dr. Gill that I apologized and maybe you blew the whole thing out of proportion. I thought it was cool you saw ghosts and you took it the wrong way, but that I've been nice to you ever since. ”
“About 'giving' me Simon… I'm not—”
“That's part one of the deal. Part two? I'll show you something you want to see. ”
“What's that?”
“In that—” a flip of her hand “—filthy crawl space. I was going downstairs to see when you were finally going to get my jeans washed, and I heard you and Rae looking for something. ”
I wiped any expression from my face. “I don't know what—”
“Oh, stuff it. Let me guess. Brady told Rae there was something in there, didn't he?”
I had no idea what she meant but nodded.
“It's a jewelry box full of old stuff. ” Her lips curled in distaste. “Brady showed me. He thought I might actually be interested in it. It's, like, antiques, he said. Gross. ” She shivered. “When I wasn't all 'Oh, wow, that's so sweet and romantic. I just love rotting necklaces and filthy crawl spaces,' he must have mentioned it to Rae. If you want, I can show you. ”
“Sure, I guess. Maybe tonight—”
“You think I'm going to risk getting into more trouble? I'll show you now, when I'll have time to shower after. And don't think you'll find it on your own, because you won't. ”
I hesitated.
Her mouth tightened. “Fine. You don't want to help me? That's just peachy. ”
She headed for the door.
I swung my legs over the side of the bed. “Hold up. I'm coming. ”
Twenty-seven
I CLIMBED ONTO THE LADDER, pushed open the door, and peered inside—into the pitch blackness. I pulled back and looked down at Tori.
“Rae had a flashlight. We need to get it. ”
An exasperated sigh. “Where is it?”
“I don't know. I thought you'd—”
“Why would I know where they keep flashlights? Do you think I sneak around at night? Read dirty books under the covers? Just go—” She stopped, lips curving in a mocking smile. “Oh, that's right. You're afraid of the dark, aren't you?”
“Where did you hear—”
She plucked at my pant leg. “Get down, little girl. I'll lead the way… and fend off all the nasty ghosts. ”
“No, I've got it. Just give me a sec so my eyes adjust. ”
Where was Rae and her matches when you needed them? Wait. Matches. She'd thrown them in here. I felt around, but the dark earth floor camouflaged the match-?book.
“Hello?” Tori said. “Petrified with fear already? Move or get out of my way. ”
I started forward.
“Head left,” Tori said as she crawled in behind me. “It's about halfway to the wall. ”
We'd gone around twenty feet when she said, “Swing right. See that pillar?”
I squinted and could make out a support post.
“It's right behind that. ”
I crawled to the pillar and started feeling around the base of it.
“Behind, not beside. Can't you do anything? Here, let me. ”
She reached for my arm, hand wrapping around my forearm and yanking me off balance.
“Hey!” I said. “That—”
“Hurts?” Her fingers dug in harder. When I tried to wrench back, she kneed me in the stomach, and I doubled over. “Do you know how much trouble you got me in, Chloe? You come here, get Liz sent away, steal Simon, ruin my chance to get out. Well, you're about to get out yourself. A one way ticket to the loony bin. Let's see just how scared of the dark you really are. ”
She lifted a ragged rectangle. A broken brick? She swung. Pain exploded in the back of my head and I pitched forward, tasting dirt before everything went black.
