A Whisper To A Scream (21 page)

Some were neat freaks. Adam is a neat freak.
He can’t even stand a ball of fuzz on the backseat of his car. Some
were so perfect that you automatically knew something was off about
them. Realistically, not one person on this planet is perfect.
Everyone has at least a few flaws if not more. Adam exudes
perfection. Apart from genetics, he excels in everything. He has to
try really hard to be perfect to cover up what he really is. The
Adam whose eyes show no emotion. The Adam who just does things and
doesn’t think about the consequences. The Adam who kills.

Kills. Murders. Slaughters. Just thinking the
words makes my stomach hurt. He’s killing innocent people. Those
people are someone’s children. Those people belong to families.
Deep down in my gut I know what Adam is doing isn’t right, but the
love I feel for him still blazes inside of me. I’m torn by my love
for him and my hatred for what he is. He’s a beautiful disaster. My
beautiful disaster.

Adam warned me about the other side of him.
The part of that’s consumed by darkness. The monster inside of him.
He thought I’d be afraid of the monster, but I’m not. He thought
I’d run away screaming, but I won’t. He thought I’d turn on him,
but I can’t.

Adam and I in a way are similar. I used to be
just like him, a hollow shell of a person. He changed that for me.
He showed me what it’s like to feel.

Maybe I’m stupid. Maybe I’m just as evil as
he is by keeping my mouth shut. But he told me once that I was
different. And I can’t help but hope that me being different is the
one thing in this world that can save him from what he fears the
most…Himself.

Chapter 29: In The End

Saturday morning Mom has a schedule mapped
out for me. After breakfast she takes me to Carol’s Crimps &
Curls, the only salon our town has to have my hair and nails
done.

I don’t usually pamper myself and I’m so
caught up in all of the drama going on in my life that I can’t even
enjoy it. Adam haunts me. Adam and his beautiful smile, his
infectious touch, his deep voice that makes my insides smolder. And
the other Adam. The Adam I should hate, but don’t. The Adam I
should push away, but can’t. And the Adam I should put behind bars,
but won’t.

“There aren’t they pretty,” gushes the
manicurist who’s wearing a pound of make-up.

I look at my hands briefly. “Yeah.
Thanks.”

After my nails dry, I’m ushered over to
Carol, the salon owner’s chair. As I sit down, I notice Megan
White’s reflection in the mirror. She looks out of it, staring
straight ahead a dazed look on her face. She’d probably be doing
this with Katie if she were here.

Guilt feeds on me, rips at my skin, and picks
my bones clean. What do I do? Keeping Adam’s secret is going to
eventually kill me. I am sure of it.

Carol finishes my hair in exactly one hour.
Mom then rushes me home and she helps me get into my dress. Yards
of gold satin adorned with a thin sheer golden glittering top
layer.

Mom took me to some swanky contemporary store
in The North Place Mall to get it. Luckily, the goddess-like dress
with one shoulder strap was on clearance. I lift my arm and Mom
zips me up the backs away, gasping. “Oh, Ellory.” She places her
hands in the corners of her eyes to keep the tears from falling.
“You look stunning, sweetheart. Just stunning.”

For someone who doesn’t like to wear dresses,
I am loving this one. I love the way the soft fabric clings to my
skin, and when I spin in front of my floor length mirror, the
sunlight beaming in from my window hits the tee-length dress and I
look like I’m sparkling.

“Hold on,” Mom says as she dashes from my
room. She returns a minute later carrying a pearl necklace. I turn
around and she fastens them around my neck. “These were great
grandma Reva’s,” she tells me. “I wore them when I married your
father.”

I face her and pull her in for a hug. “I love
you, Mom.”

She beams as a tear slides down her pale
cheek. “I love you too, sweetheart.”

Our mother-daughter moment is interrupted by
a knock at the door. Mom exits and I finish up, applying a little
make-up. I take one last look in the mirror. “Well, Ells this is as
good as you are gonna get.” Then I shut off the light and walk into
the living room.

Wren claps her hands together excitedly when
she sees me. “You look awesome!”

“Thanks,” I say. “You don’t look to bad
yourself.” Wren spins and the champagne mermaid style gown with a
sweetheart neckline hugs every inch of her.

I feel Adam’s eyes on me, scorching my skin.
Peeking over my shoulder I meet his gaze, apprehensively. I’m
nervous and panicked, but at the same time over-joyed and thrilled.
He struts toward me, taking my hand and my heart pounds against my
ribs. Inside I’m screaming. I’m a piece of glass. I’m shattering.
I’m broken.

Adam leans in and caresses my ear with a
whisper. “You look gorgeous.”

I smile and my fingers tremble in his grasp.
“Thanks.”

All the mothers crowd around us. Isabelle
steps forward. “Everyone get together!”

Wren poses with Mike and Adam wraps his arms
around my waist. His touch makes my heart sing and my skin crawl at
the same time. I exhale. I can’t freak out now. I need to talk to
him first. Then I need to develop a plan of action.

Mom puts her eye to her camera. “Okay guys,
smile.”

I put on the best fake smile I can and then
we’re blinded by a series of flashes.

We arrive at the school sometime later and I
feel like I’m still seeing white dots from all the pictures. Mom
was the worst of the bunch. She was snapping her camera up until we
pulled out of the driveway.

The entire gym decorated in crepe paper
splendor is something I’ve never experienced. I marvel at the thin
wisps of silver and black and the tiny twinkle lights that encircle
the entire perimeter. A glistening disco ball hangs from the
ceiling, plastering an afterglow along the muted yellow walls. I
stop my observation when I see Mrs. Miller standing behind the
punchbowl with a scowl on her face. I look away quickly. Somehow I
feel like she’s Medusa. One look in her eyes and I’ll turn to
stone.

Wren and Mike are already on the dance floor,
surrounded by a sea of swaying couples. Adam steps away from me,
extending his hand. “What do you say, Ells? Wanna have a go?”

I take his hand as he guides me out onto the
dance floor. I do my best to remain calm even though my stomach is
in knots. Adam places his hand on my back and the warmth from his
touch radiates through the fabric of my dress. I love him. I love
him. I love him. An overwhelming sense of desire surges through me.
Adam holds me tighter and I’m twisting in half.

I don’t want to lose this. I feel welcomed in
his arms. I place my head against his chest and expect to hear
nothing. A person so consumed by darkness can’t be human. But I
hear the soft thumping loud and clear. I hear his heart and I feel
it because his heart beats for me.

He takes my face in my hands. And I swear I
see a spark of emotion in his eyes. “Adam, I—”

“I think I love you,” he blurts out.

“That’s not possible,” I whisper. “You
can’t.”

His eyes are the waters of the Caribbean,
clear, crystalline, and sparkling. “I can.”

A strangled gasp clogs my throat. I swallow.
“No you can’t. I know you can’t.” He brushes my lips gently. It
amazes me how such a soft peck can swallow me whole and dilute my
perception of what’s really happening. “Adam I know.” I spew the
words out like spilled milk. Fast and runny spreading out along a
countertop.

He scrunches his eyebrows, confused. “Know
what?”

I stand on my toes and he puts his ear
against my mouth. “I know about Regina.”

Adam’s body goes rigid. He backs away from me
slowly, stunned. He doesn’t say anything in return, but he doesn’t
need to.

A bomb goes off inside of me and I feel every
part of me explode. Adam turns to walk away and I clutch his hand.
He peeks over his shoulder, a pained looked tugs on his features
and I think he might fall apart. I close my eyes, panting. When I
open them Adam is inches away from my face and as he opens his
mouth to speak a shrill piercing noise ricochets off the walls of
the gym.

I plug my ears while Principal Anderson taps
the microphone. “It’s time to announce the homecoming queen and
king and the court.” I keep a tight grip on Adam’s hand, but he
refuses to look at me. “Adam.” I yank on his arm. “Adam.”

“And the first two members of the court
are….”

He still won’t look at me. I yank on his arm
harder. “Adam.”

“Ellory Graham and Adam Jacobs!” Principal
Anderson announces.

I drop Adam’s hand as the entire student body
faces us. I feel awkward. I hate being the center of attention. But
Adam is used to this. He gives everyone a toothy grin and holds out
his arm to me. I lace my arm through his and we walk up the stage
steps.

Molly greets us and places a sash over my
head and then she places one over Adam’s head. I’m still in shock.
“Who the hell would nominate me?” Molly laughs and nods to the
crowd. Wren smiles brightly and waves. I shake my head and hold
myself up against Adam because I feel like I’m going to be
sick.

While Principal Anderson announces the next
couple Adam finally glares at me. “How did you figure it out?” His
voice is cold and steady. I can’t understand him. Why does he feel
like he has the right to be angry?

“Megan White and Blake Forrester!” Principal
Anderson yells.

“Someone has been sending me letters!” I
snap. “And you didn’t exactly keep it a secret, telling me that I
don’t want to see the other side of you.”

Megan White and Blake walk up the steps and
breeze past us. Adam bites his bottom lip and his eyes shift to the
floor. “Letters?” he whispers.

“Yes. Someone sent me letters. And the last
thing they gave me was a photocopied article from a newspaper in
Chicago. About you and Regina’s murder.”

Principal Anderson goes on. “And the next
couple is…Corinne Connor and Josh Tanner.”

Adam stares out into the crowd and I follow
his gaze. “I try so hard not to be that guy,” he says in a monotone
voice. “I don’t want to be that guy.”

Pain tears through my chest and my heart
sinks. “Adam,” I whisper. I’m cut off by Principal Anderson’s
voice. “Wren Thompson and Mike Roberts!”

My moment of despair is interrupted by a
flutter of excitement that whips through me when I see the look on
Wren’s face. My attention averts to Molly and the glint of
happiness in her eyes tells me she’s the one who nominated her.

Adam trembles in my grasp and I slide my hand
up his arm, trying to console him. His hand is slick with sweat and
I notice a crazed look in his eye. He even starts mumbling. “I
don’t know who could have sent them? Who could it possibly be? I
didn’t want you to really know. I just wanted to make you aware
that there’s a dangerous side to me...”

Principal Anderson cuts into Adam’s rants.
“And the 2011 homecoming king and queen of Logan High are...”

“I’d never hurt you, Ellory.” Adam glances at
me with desperation in his eyes. “You know that right?”

I know he means it. I’ve always known that no
matter what or who Adam is, he will never hurt me.

“Megan White and Adam Jacobs!” Principal
Anderson booms as the entire gym erupts in applause.

Adam freezes his eyes full of uncertainty. I
urge him to go and watch as Molly places another sash over his
head. The hollering in the gym gets louder and I timidly scan the
row of people on stage and it occurs to me that if Katie were here,
she’d probably be up here too.

Megan White steps forward as Molly lifts the
sash over her head. Adam stands next to them in a trance-like
state. His lips move, but no words come out. Megan bends down and
Molly places a crown on her head.

The next sequence of events seem to occur in
slow motion. A second after Megan White is crowned queen, she steps
forward, waving and that’s when Katie Halston’s body falls down
from the rafters, swinging by a thick noose. The stiff body smacks
into Megan and sends her flying off the stage and that’s when all
the chaos breaks out.

Chapter 30: Let The Bodies Hit The
Floor

Adam panicked. His initial reaction was to
jump off the stage and get away. And there were two reasons that he
decided to do that.

One, the sight of Katie’s blood sent him into
frenzy—even though it was dried blood. The moment he saw it, the
blood against her throat, he found himself combing the gym for a
sharp object. If he could locate one, he’d slaughter everyone in
the gym and give himself a blood bath.

The second reason was that he was enraged. So
enraged that he thought about screaming out— showing the monster
inside of him to the whole student body.

Someone was mocking him. It made Adam’s blood
boil that someone was mocking him, trying to play copycat. He hated
to admit he was not the person who killed Katie Halston. Yes, he
kidnapped her. Yes, he left her alone in his cabin. And yes, he
planned on killing her himself, eventually.

Feet away, he glanced up at the body that was
hanging from a rope on the stage. Whoever performed this hack job
of a murder was sloppy.

Adam was anything but sloppy. All of his
crimes were precise and planned out thoroughly planned. He would
never put the body on display like that. It was a sure shot way of
getting caught. And getting caught was the last thing Adam
wanted.

Then Adam came to the realization that
whoever had done this was trying to send him a message. They were
trying to say, I figured you out, Adam Jacobs. I know what you are.
But who? Was it Ellory? She knew what he was, but was she capable
of this?

Adam shook his head. No. There was no way
Ellory could have anything to do with Katie Halston’s murder. He
knew she wasn’t capable of murder; there was no monster lurking
inside of her.