Dead Ringer (12 page)

October
10

Sasha

Sasha reread the article for what
must have been the twentieth time.

She didn’t think it would feel quite as amazing as it did to
see those words in print, and now on more than a dozen local news websites, but
she was more than happy to be wrong. This was the riskiest, but most clever
move she’d made to date, and now it was time for her to take a break.

The goal had always been for the police to take over when
Sasha gathered enough evidence to warrant reopening the case. She wanted
answers, but now that she’d done the difficult work of peaking interest, the
authorities could step in. That was the best way to get the mystery solved
while remaining safely on the sidelines. Sasha could not run the risk of the
police finding her. They would want to know how she found the information she
was threatening to reveal, and right now the answer made her a criminal. She
wanted justice, but the ripple effect of what that could do to her was too
intense. The wheels were in motion. Professionals could handle the rest.

* * *

It was hard for Sasha to concentrate
on anything but the Sarah case as she tried to answer each interview question
for the new part-time job she’d just lined up. There had been costs involved in
getting to this point with all the hacking. Also, any day now her parents would
ask what after-school job she found. But she’d thought of a clever way to kill
two birds with one stone.

“So, tell me more about your experience working with
children,” Karen asked. She was a naturally beautiful woman, but expensive
clothes and expertly applied makeup made her even more radiant.

“I took a babysitting course at Robert Wood Johnson Hospital
that covered first aid for kids, but I also grew up with lots and lots of
younger cousins,” Sasha said. She was trying to use her most mature voice and
kept reminding herself to sit up straight during the interview.

The original posting on MothersHelper.com had been for a
sitter who was sixteen or older, and she was only fourteen. If she was going to
get this job, she needed to help this seemingly detail-oriented mom forget that
fact.

“Are any of your little cousins girls?” she asked.

“Most of them are,” Sasha said. “That’s really why I applied
for this job with your daughters. I feel like I can be a good match.”

“I hope so, because this job involves walking them from
school to home for a quick snack and then taking them off to ballet. My girls
can be tornados when it comes to walking, eating, and dancing.”

“I promise I can keep up.”

“Great. And you know the neighborhood here well? Even though
you don’t live right here in Englewood?”

“I do. I used to take ballet at the Center Stage dance
studio for years. I know exactly how to get there and around town.”

“Wonderful. So I guess my only question is, why should I
hire you as opposed to the other girls and boys I’m interviewing?”

Sasha thought about the question for a second before
answering. She wanted to get the response just right because this felt like the
make-or-break moment.

“Because I will be incredibly committed to your family. I
don’t have any siblings of my own, so the reason I’m applying for a babysitting
job instead of just something at the mall is because I feel like I’m missing
out on what it would be like to have two little sisters to run around, play
with, and teach things to. I promise I’ll be like an awesome big sister to them—well,
another
awesome big sister.”

“They could use that,” Karen said. “Amanda’s just so busy
this year.”

Sasha smiled to herself. “Well, then count me in, Mrs.
Hunter,” she said.

“Fabulous. Let me talk to my husband tonight, but I think
this is going to work out perfectly.”

Sasha reached her hand out for a very professional shake.
This was going to be the beginning of a beautiful work relationship, though it
was admittedly a little one-sided. She was going to get time inside the Hunter
household for completely legal eavesdropping and fact-finding, and in return
Mrs. Hunter was going to pay her good money. All Sasha had to do was walk two
little rascals around town and take the bus back and forth. There was a strong
chance she’d get to meet Charlie, Kit, and Miller in the process, only
increasing the odds for one of them to reveal yet another clue. And none of
them would have any idea they were among the enemy. None of them knew who she
really was.

Of course, if the cops came up with something first, Sasha
would quit the job in a heartbeat. This was just a security measure in case
they failed yet again.

And what if one of the four recognized her? That was
unlikely, but well, then that would be even better. They would be tortured by
seeing her, but they wouldn’t be able to say anything at all.

October
14

Laura

Laura forged a sick note from her
parents on Tuesday and Wednesday morning after Sarah Castro-Tanner’s story
resurfaced. Once the police announced that they were reopening the investigation,
every local media outlet started covering the story. Everyone at Englewood High
School was obsessed, and it only took until eight o’clock on Monday morning for
Laura to realize that their obsession extended to her.

“I think this is all happening because
she
reminded
someone about Sarah,” a girl she didn’t even recognize whispered to a friend as
they passed each other in the hall. The comment made Laura want to run out the
school doors and all the way back to California.

Charlie texted on Wednesday night when she said she wasn’t
sure if she’d be well enough for homecoming:

The joke made Laura laugh for the first time in a long time.
She replied:

Ten minutes later, Charlie was at her doorstep.

“You have a real habit of showing up uninvited,” she said. The
first week they were dating, he’d come over unannounced after she told him that
she overheard a rough fight between her parents. He suggested some pizza and an
old episode of
The Twilight Zone
as proper medicine. This time Charlie
was trying to play nurse, but all he had when she opened the door was a handful
of trashy celebrity magazines.

“The lady at the drug store said these would make you feel
better,” he said.

Laura laughed. “Thank you. I think the standard gift is
cough drops and tissues, though.”

“Damn… I need to know that if I’m going to be a doctor,”
Charlie said, slapping his forehead.

“It’s fine,” Laura said. “I’ve been taking care of myself since
forever. I made chicken soup and grabbed some lemon verbena tea from the Stop
N’ Shop.”

“You should just move out and get your own apartment,”
Charlie said, teasing. “You do everything for yourself anyway.”

“True,” she said, “I also made myself some caramel popcorn
so I could watch TV all day on the couch.”

“
Please
say there’s some left for me?”

Laura gave him a quick smile as she turned and ushered him
into the living room. Seconds later she was wrapped inside his arms under a
nice, warm afghan on the couch.

“I’m not going to go the homecoming dance if you don’t go,”
Charlie said as they flipped between two shows.

“You have to,” Laura said. “You’re on the executive
committee of the student council, plus Amanda planned the whole thing. I feel
like you don’t need an opportunity to make her more mad.”

“But I’d rather just hang with you.”

Charlie’s sweetness made Laura want to confess that the
whole sick-girl thing was a charade, but she was too embarrassed to admit it.
She’d been strong and independent since Charlie met her, and she didn’t want
him to start seeing her as a weak, anxious girl who cared more about what
everyone else thought than her own boyfriend. She clicked from channel to
channel again, hoping Charlie would fill the awkward silence, but instead a
booming voice on the television made them both jump out of their skin.

“We’ll have the latest on the reopened suicide case in
Englewood tonight at ten o’clock.”

It was a newscaster. The DVR must have flipped back to live
TV. Laura quickly grabbed the remote and switched it back.

“It’s okay,” Charlie said.

“I know,” Laura said, “but we still don’t need to see more
of it.”

She had called Charlie the minute the crazy news hit,
knowing that Sarah’s story was already a tough subject. Charlie said he was
just upset for the Castro-Tanners, but that he was okay. Laura decided not to
press any further, even though she still wanted to know so much more about how
Charlie felt, and what that whole experience was like for everyone at
Englewood. He never said more about the fact that Sarah had been in love with
him at one point, and it was hard for Laura not to press about what exactly he
meant.

Laura looked down at the two strong arms holding her around
the waist. This moment was a dream come true—just like every moment with
Charlie—but nothing could compare to the idea of walking into that homecoming
dance on his arm. Laura knew it was silly, but she’d never been “that girl”
before in her life—the one with the love and attention of the single most-popular
guy in the class. She couldn’t give up the chance to attain such a great memory
just because a few people might stare at them on the dance floor; that was
letting them win again, and Laura had promised herself she would take a
different approach to life now that California was in the past.

There was also the fact that she already had a totally
fabulous, red dress from the 1960s with gold spaghetti straps and a big, gold
belt at the waist. The dress deserved to be at that homecoming dance, and so
did Laura.

* * *

A giant shadow projection of the New
York City skyline greeted Charlie and Laura as they walked up to the school
gym. The theme for the homecoming dance was “Nights in New York” and the social
committee had clearly gone all out. There were certainly benefits to being at a
rich school in a rich town, but there were negatives, too—like the fact
that every single girl walking into the event was wearing a brand-new, insanely
short, super-trendy dress.
Obviously dressing to impress is more important
than dressing to the theme,
Laura thought as she looked down at her
Breakfast
at Tiffany’s
-inspired
attire. This was yet another element of life
in Englewood that was not worth getting anxious about. Plus, there was no
saving her entrance. It was less than one week after the big Sarah Castro-Tanner
story broke and she was making her first public appearance with Charlie. The
Audrey Hepburn costume was the least of her problems.

It took a minute or so for the three hundred people inside
the transformed gym to register the fact that Charlie Sanders had just walked
in holding hands with Laura Rivers, but once they did, it was fascinating to
watch how poorly they hid their delight. Everyone knew that Charlie had started
the school year doing a lot of canoodling with one Amanda Hunter. Everyone also
knew that Charlie had removed himself from the homecoming-king and -queen race
when things between them got rocky. Now they all knew why, and it was
conveniently tied to the girl they were already gossiping about. Laura laughed
to herself for a quick second as she took it all in; she had given the rumor
mill of Englewood a whole lot of material to work with during her brief time in
town. Then Laura’s eyes locked with a pair of big, blue saucers made up so
perfectly that they looked like a still shot in a fashion magazine. Naturally they
belonged to Amanda, and from the furious look in them, Laura could tell she was
about to give Englewood one more amazing moment to talk about.

Amanda was wearing a little, black bondage dress that fit
her so perfectly, it must have been custom made. Laura silently turned her nose
up at the obvious style choice— those stretchy dresses had been
everywhere for years—but she could not deny how amazing it looked on her
long, lean figure. Amanda wasn’t hard to hate, but she was impossible not to
envy.

Laura hoped that their “hello” had been accomplished with
that steely stare, but unfortunately she was wrong. Amanda began to stride
over. Charlie squeezed Laura’s hand a little tighter. She wasn’t sure if he was
being supportive or if he also needed a little extra courage.

He hadn’t said much about how Amanda reacted when he told
her that they were dating, but from the intense look on her face now, Laura
thought she was getting a pretty good sense. She braced herself for any onslaught
and tried to put herself in Amanda’s shoes. Laura had essentially stolen her
boyfriend, even if Charlie went willingly. There was a lot of history between
them, and this moment had to be hard. No matter what, Laura was going to remain
calm.

“Hi, you two,” Amanda said, now one foot from both of their
faces. Her expression was impossible to read. Laura wouldn’t have been
surprised if she pounced on them both like some kind of wild cheetah that
stalked its prey silently until finally going in for the kill. “Carly, you look
fine,” she continued. “Laura, you look
gorgeous
. I’m glad someone
followed my New York theme. I was too much of a wuss to wear something vintage.
Are you feeling better? I heard you had a cold.”

Laura was pretty sure that if she opened her mouth even a
millimeter her jaw would drop directly onto the ground. There was no sugary
tone in Amanda’s voice like there’d been at Jeff Haskell’s party that first
week of school. She was being…legitimately nice. It was weird.

The next thing Laura knew, Kit and Miller were standing
among the group—Kit in a flirty, floral minidress and Sean in a dark suit
with a purple tie to match.

“Where are you always getting these amazing clothes, Laura?”
Kit asked. “I thought I knew every boutique in this town…”

“She shops at these vintage places,” Charlie said, an air of
pride in his voice.

“Like old shit?” Miller said.

Kit promptly smacked him across the chest. When she did, Laura
instantly noticed her nails. Kit’s signature nail art was missing; in fact, her
fingers had actual scab marks around the cuticles where they’d been bitten to
the quick. “Like
classic
style
,” she said. “Girls, fashion shoot
in the photo booth?”

“Yes,” Amanda said. “The props my committee put together are
killer. Boys, see you later. Maybe.”

And with that, Laura let herself be whisked off into the
crowd.