Ripple Effect: A Novel (30 page)

Years ago I had a peculiar dream. I am standing in the church looking down at my father’s corpse lying still in his casket. Suddenly his brown eyes pop open and he stares at me. But they’re lifeless eyes and I’m all alone, with my corpse father who is eerily staring at me. Neither of us moves. At last, his eyes close and the casket bangs shut. I wake up shivering and so cold, like nothing in the world could bring the warmth back into my body.

That same cold fills me now.

Laughter is practically stifled by fear. The occasional smile that we crack is like a beam of sunlight straight into a darkened day. Regardless, we gather together. Darien and Kelly are here, as are Daphne and Jema, who know
some
of the story. They sit in the living room talking, but I’m by myself.

I’m standing at the kitchen sink, staring out the window into the darkened backyard. The old wooden fort my father built remains out there, even though it is over a decade old. Leaves have gathered on the old rusted tin roof. Aged wood that once held the mini-murals of Adie and Cecily has lost its color and now splinters off in large pieces. The inside is filled with random odds and ends––mainly Papa’s old things––where little beanbags used to sit.

It’s as if I can see Papa nailing that old roof on while I paint suns and butterflies along the walls of the fort. Adie always drew flowers and stars. Mom would bring us fresh lemonade to quench our thirst after working on the fort all day. Then at night, Papa grabbed his big lantern and we’d lay down pillows and blankets on the wooden floor. Adie and I would be sandwiched between Mom and Papa and they’d tell us stories of faraway lands as we stared up at the old tin roof.

It’s amazing how drastically my father changed in just a single memory. From a lifeless corpse to the man who built forts with us. I wish he were here, guiding me through this real-life nightmare. I wish he were here to shoot Leison till he was dead.

“Cecily.” Sabrina has entered the room, bringing me from my thoughts.

Now shadows fill the abandoned yard, mainly shadows of overgrown shrubs and trees. I hate how dark it has become, how desolate the fort is now that Papa is dead. It terrifies me. I look back at the fort, sitting beneath the old willow tree, aged and forgotten.

I turn to look at her. “Sabrina, what if the map isn’t there tomorrow?”

I stare back into the darkened yard. All I feel is dread. Tomorrow we’ll chase a serial killer, or be chased. Either way, our fates rely on the hands of an overly cocky FBI agent who thinks she knows everything about everything. It is the only way to stop Leison, though.

Sabrina comes over to lean on the white countertop next to me. She sighs as her head tilts to the side. “Do you really think he’d run for it? Like, he got his oil and skipped town?”

My head drops to my chest and I close my eyes. “No, he’s here. Creeping around.”

“Cecily, what if it’s not the right map?”

I look at her coldly. “If it’s not there, I think I’m done with this. I’m tired of being scared–– Aren’t you? They can hide me away until they catch him for all I care.”

Sabrina leans closer to me. “You can’t give up.” I look down at my hands, knotted up in each other. “You know that those girls are dying, starving to death, probably bound and tied up. Can you imagine?”

Knots take over my stomach and I want to puke. Just the thought of something so inhumane, so horrible, makes me sicker than a dog. I look into my yard again to avoid Sabrina’s disappointed gaze. “If the map isn’t there, then there is nothing else we can do.”

“If it’s not at the school, it could be at his house. What if we send Darien and Landon over to his house to snoop around?”

“We’re talking about the redhead, freckle-face, paler-than-a-vampire Landon?”

“He knows everything that has happened. He’d put his life on the line for me.”

“I won’t allow it.”

Sabrina shrugs. She acts far calmer than I expect. “The map is the only way to catch Leison. It’s the only way to get the FBI to take the their heads out of their––”

I give her a look. “Chasing a serial killer . . . it’s already stupid. Going to his house is flat out suicidal. Sabrina, think about what you’re saying!”

“Do you want him caught and behind bars, or would rather have him hunt you for the rest of your life?” Sabrina stares at me. “Personally, I want the creep dead.” She leans even closer, poking the counter with her long finger. “If we don’t do this, those girls are as good as dead.”

“They’re dead anyway,” I hiss. “So, shut up about it already!”

Sabrina looks out the window and into the darkened back yard. “As are we if we don’t stop him.” She stands up. “Don’t let fear override logic.”

“I’m not scared!” I blurt out, louder than I meant to.

She leans toward me and whispers. “You will be when he gets his hands on you . . .” My limbs feel heavy. Leison wants me and he’ll do whatever he has to in order to get me. “You’ll never feel whole again, not after what he’ll do to you. Living with a shattered psyche and a beaten body stripped of all things virtuous is worse than death.”

“I get it. I know he’ll rape me if he gets the chance,” I hoarsely whisper, bravely.

“Worse than that, Cecily . . .” Sabrina suddenly stands beside me, grasping my bicep because I’m somehow falling to the floor. “Come on, you’ve got to get up and fight!”

Arms wrap firmly around me and hold me up. “Breath with me, Ces,” Kelly whispers in my ear. He begins to breathe in and out in a calming motion. “It’s okay—nothing is going to hurt you.”

I close my eyes and do as I’m told. Soon, my throat opens once more and the air feels so good in my lungs. When I turn around, Kelly’s glaring at Sabrina, eyes full of blame. Blame for all of it.

“This all ends tomorrow, Cecily,” Sabrina says before leaving the kitchen.

“What was that?” Kelly says in a low and concerned voice.

I inhale once again. “You know what that was.”

“Leison,” he says. I nod. Kelly’s eyes hold worry. “Don’t chase after that map, Cecily. Just don’t. I’m scared of losing you.”

My blood begins to boil and my lips purse into white lines. “That crime scene they found is a fake! It’s a distraction, Kelly. Your uncle is an idiot for not listening to us!”

“How can you be so sure about this map, about the girls being alive?” Kelly stares at me, serious. “The FBI agents are the ones with all the information, not Sabrina.”

“I’ve seen the map!” I run my hands through my hair, pulling it from my face. “If they had found the girls they were looking for . . . they would have been still decaying! The girls the FBI found were practically skeletons, months old. Plus, Leison told me he had three hostages—not four!”

“Have you ever considered that Sabrina might be lying to you?” he whispers. “That she still works for him?”

“All the time,” I whisper back. “I don’t think she is, though. I’ve seen her bruises, the ones that hide under her clothes, on her back and legs and stomach—the bruises we share. She has been beaten black and blue. She’s a victim, like me.”

He rubs his forehead as he thinks through everything. “Something is wrong here.”

“We’ll get the map tomorrow. Then we’ll find them, lead the agents there, and it will be over.” I exhaled my worry. “Then I’ll be safe again.”

Kelly holds my head in his hands. His blue eyes pierce through me. “Cecily, please don’t do this. The FBI won’t let him near you—trust them.”

I stare down at our bare feet and fight back tears. I can’t take the horror anymore. I am tired of being terrified.

“I can’t live in fear,” I mumble. “I have to get the map.”

“Reinhardt is adamant about not taking you two seriously. She says you guys have funny motives.” He tilts my chin up so that he can see my eyes. “She thinks you’re chasing shadows and wasting her time.”

“She’s one to talk! What if she’s the one working with Leison?” I spit. “No one here trusts her, not even my mother! She could be leading your uncle straight into the lion’s den!”

He waves the idea away. “What about the other victim? The one he bought the rose oil for?”

I shrug. “He works in bouts of three, Kelly. Sabrina, me, and number three.”

“If I didn’t love you, Cecily Wolf,” he says as peers into my eyes, “I would walk away from this.” Kelly softly caresses my cheek with his thumb. “But since I do, I can’t let you walk into hell alone, can I?”

My words are lost in emotion and all I can do is stare at Kelly and try to breath. He lifts my chin and stares into my eyes. I want to get lost in those blue eyes, swim away in his gaze and never return. I lean my face towards his, and in an instant, our lips meet for the first time. I hold my breath as our lips mold to each other’s perfectly and a surge of emotion races through me, as if it has happened before. Every touch from Kelly, every thud of my racing heart, every bump that swarms my skin . . . I swear I’ve felt this before, but this is better––so much
better!

Our lips part and I stare at him. His hands hold my face in his and I touch his chest before covering my mouth. A giddy laugh escapes.

“Cecily,” Mom says. I turn and see that she’s entered into the kitchen. My cheeks flush red and I back away from Kelly instantly. He manages to look totally cool about the whole thing. She’s worried, but it has nothing to with the kiss that Kelly just laid on me.

“Mom,” I reply. “Is everything okay?”

She smiles but I can see past it. “I’m taking Adie to the hospital. She’s not feeling well.”

I frown. “What is it?”

“She has a fever, a sore throat, and tremors. I’m sure it’s just a bacterial thing, nothing major.” She continues to smile, but she’s terrified. “She probably got it from you when you had strep.”

I go to her and wrap my arms tightly around her. “Adie’s going to be okay,” I whisper.

“I know,” she whispers back. “Love you, baby.” Her soft lips meet my forehead before she lets go. “No crazy parties while we’re gone.” She manages a laugh.

“Don’t worry, Adie, we’ll be here waiting for you!” Daphne yells happily.

“Love you!” both Jema and Daphne say together.

Adie looks at me and smiles. “Love you, Ces.”

“Love you, Adie.” I blow her a kiss. “You’ll be home really fast!”

Once the door closes, my mouth opens wide for a yawn. It’s bed time.

After agreeing that now is a good time to end the night, Kelly and I wander outside and he uses ninja skills to sweep me into his arms, kissing me once again. We both laugh.

“Promise you’ll keep me updated?” Kelly’s eyes trace my face, as if to remember it forever and ever.

I kiss him, leaving my lips lingering near his. “I swear.”

After nodding once, he steals another kiss. “Goodnight, Cecily.”

“Goodnight, Kelly.” I give him a giant hug and ensure he’s in his car.

I head back inside, turning around about eighty times to check for the monster that might lurk behind me in the darkness.

It’s too early and I’m too tired to come to school today. But I have to. Yeah, I want to hide under my bed from the evil boogey man that haunts the halls, but I can’t. I just have to—I have to face the monster that haunts the once-pleasant place in which I live.

Groggily, I drag my feet down the hall towards Math. Lingering gray clouds fill the sky, threatening a dark storm. They aren’t light gray either . . . I am talking dark gray, almost black clouds that cover the sky. This doesn’t help my mood or my fatigue.

A clap of thunder hits outside and the school’s lights flicker eerily. It’s only after my lungs feel like they are burning that I realize how scared I am. I inhale a much needed breath of air.

I stand in the middle of the hallway—surrounded by a few straggling students—basking in fluorescent lighting, my heart doing flips in my chest. My gaze is focused on the hall, which seems to get longer and longer by the second.

As if he appeared from the walls, he stands there. Staring at me. I cover my mouth with both hands.

Leison . . .

I do a double take and see that it’s only an officer—one the Sheriff put here.

Whoa, I am seriously paranoid today.

But as I head down the hallway, the officer comes toward me. His face is hidden under a cap and I can’t exactly see his features, but they are dark. I pause and stare at him, my heart beginning to pound again.

Could it be? Would he have the nerve?

The officer bumps into me on “accident” and strides away quickly. A scent, pungent and disgusting and oh-so familiar, lingers in the air.

Oh, yes. He would.

There’s a sour taste in my mouth. I think I might have thrown up a little.

My stomach clenches and I swear that I’m going to puke. I cover my mouth with my hand and run to the restroom, luckily empty. All of my breakfast comes up, burning my throat. Once I open my eyes I notice that Stacy is holding my hair out of my face.

She hands me a few paper towels to wipe my mouth. “Are you okay?”

“I don’t know,” I say quickly. “It must be nerves, I guess. You know, thunder . . .”

Hardly believing my stupid excuses myself, I stand up and wash off in the sink.

In the foggy mirror is a very pale looking Cecily, the color of my skin only accentuated by my auburn hair that is pulled into a messy bun behind my head. In the corner, I see the reflection of Stacy as she watches me. She seems different since the last time I saw her, more timid and sickly.

Looking back at the mirror, I see the strangle mark on my neck from yesterday and shudder. I recognize that scent finally.
Rose oil.

Tears sting my eyes and I run for the toilet again to start dry heaving. He’s here! Dressed as a cop! I’m practically dead!

Stacy is holding my hair again. “Cecily, what’s the matter? You’re as pale as a ghost.”

I stand up and turn around to face her, staring straight in dimming blue eyes. Funny that she calls me pale. She looks almost as bad as I feel, but why?

Pushing past her, I aim for the sink again and rinse my mouth out. “
Kelly,
” I whisper to myself. I need to call and tell him.

“Who’s Kelly?” she asks, the noise of her voice making me jump.

“Stacy,” I say, and catch my heart from pounding out of my chest. “I’m sorry. You shocked me.”

“Cecily,” she replies. “What’s going on?”

We stand there in silence. Drops of water leak from the old faucet and ding against the metal sink. The fan comes on and warm air blows through a vent near the ceiling with peeling white paint. It starts to feel like nothing could brighten this dark bathroom, not even the fluorescent lights mounted in the red brick walls.

“I was watching you,” she says finally. She looks around slowly, as if searching for prying eyes. “You were fine until that officer came near you.”

“So?”

“So there are lots of them here, but I recognized him too. I knew his smell.” My mouth goes dry. Stacy leans forward and whispers, “You’re not crazy. Mr. Leison’s here––”

“Shh!” I put my hand out to silence her. “
Don’t
say his name.”

Another clap of thunder rattles the building and the lights flicker again; but this time, darkness is what remains. Instantly fear and panic flow through me and I want to puke again. I’m scared and can’t see anything at all. Did I just hear something scrape against the metal stall behind me?

Stacy turns her phone on to help us see in through the darkness and realizes that she has no reception. Panicked, and feeling vulnerable, I check my phone and find that I have two bars. First thing I do is send Kelly a text message saying that Leison is here and to meet me at my house ASAP. He’s going to freak.

“We should get out of here and to our classes,” she says quietly. “I don’t want to get into trouble.” Stacy steps forward to leave the bathroom.

“Stacy,” I say, stopping her. “Are you sick or something?”

She clears her throat. “I have the flu. Not a big deal.” She leaves the bathroom, leaving me in the dark alone.

Sabrina is pacing the hallway waiting for me. She pulls me into a dark, eerie classroom filled with rows of empty white desks and closes the door quietly. On one wall is the Periodic Table of the Elements; on the other are windows that reveal stormy skies.

“Where have you been?” Sabrina asks, worried.

“Throwing up. You?” I wonder, not so worried, just annoyed.

Someone passes the classroom and casts a shadow by the door. Quickly, Sabrina and I huddle against the wall and remain quiet until the shadow’s gone.

“We have to get out of here,” I whisper. “Leison is here, dressed as a cop. Molesterstache and all, Sabrina. He’s here to take us!”

“I know, I saw him too,” Sabrina whispers, barely audible. “I was being the TA for his sub this period. He walked into the classroom as a cop, pretended to be looking for Mr. Leison, and walked out. It was his way of letting me know that he is here.”

“We have to get out of here.” I shudder.

Her eyes light up. “Cecily, this is our time to get the map,” she whispers. “Right now.”

My brow furrows. “Are you crazy?”

“They are letting us go home because the power is out,” she says. “Students will be lining the halls soon. It will be the perfect diversion to get past Leison.”

“This is the stupidest thing I’ve ever done.” My phone goes off and I read the text. It’s from Kelly.  Basically he’s freaking out something fierce and has threatened to come to the school to get me. I tell him to just cool off and I’ll see him soon.

“Just trust me,” she says, annoyed, and points at the phone in my hands. “Text Hazel, tell her to meet us outside in ten minutes with the car.”

“Fine,” I say, doing as she wishes. She’s right. We’d be idiots to not get the map right now.

Sabrina touches my arm. “Don’t worry, okay. We are going to rock this.”

Sabrina was right. The students had been released and were heading home. Our school thought it was a waste to keep us sitting around in the dark when the power was out, so they just sent us home in times like these.

We weave through the students and keep our heads low. Some give us odd looks––and some don’t––as we run toward the World Civ classroom. We have no idea where Leison is, but Hazel claims he is at the front of the school.

“Hurry,” I say anxiously to Sabrina as we enter the World Civ classroom. The door was ajar, so we keep it that way.

The only light we have comes from a corner window in the back that’s not covered. Even then, it’s dingy and gray light, of basically no use to us.

Sabrina throws me a black light flashlight. “Check it out while I push some desks over to the wall,” she whispers.

I do as she says and lift the bottom of the map up. I’m already freaking out, losing faith that we’ll find it.
Please
, I beg silently. The light flashes on and a purple ray covers the white surface. My eyes start to fill with tears. I move the light around and finally . . . I find a set of coordinates, fluorescent against the white surface. My tears become tears of joy and I shriek in excitement.

“Shh,” Sabrina motions, her face cross. “Silence yourself.”

We both move desks to the wall with the giant map, and stand on them to reach the pins that hold the world map up. I notice that only two sets of pin holes are punctured in the map, which is odd to me––if he is truly taking it down every night.

I jump on to a desk. It creaks beneath me, startles me, and makes me lose my balance for half-a-second. A curse word threatens to sound from my mouth.

“Whoa,” Sabrina says with caution as she catches my arm.

In the corner of the room something rustles. Instantly we both look over and see a figure standing in the shadows. I shake my head in fright. It can’t be Leison! The person stalks toward us eerily and I am frozen in horror.

“What are you doing, duchess?” Roy asks as he walks into the dim light. “Why are you up there, taking Leisons map?”

Sabrina lashes out at him angrily, almost kicking his shoulder. “Who creeps around in dark corners, Roy?”

I stare down at him. “You’re Cecily, aren’t you?” he asks me.

“No,” I say quickly.

Roy laughs and rolls his eyes. “Jeez, you girls are sure jumpy. What—is the boogey monster coming to slaughter you?”

“Shut your mouth or be kicked in the face,” Sabrina threatens, her features turning pure evil in the dim lighting. “Get out of my sight, or I will ruin the rest of high school for you.”

Roy scowls. “Bit—“

“OUT!” Sabrina commands, with the authority of a lifetime of royalty. Roy throws her one last sour look and exits the room.

“Drake, you’re, like, evil,” I say.

Sabrina laughs. “Wolf, don’t act so naïve.”

I reach up and pluck the pin from the wall that holds my side of the map up. “Let’s get out of here!”

Sabrina undoes her pin and we both jump from the desks to the floor. I take the map and start rolling it up as Sabrina heads toward the door to take a look into the hallway.

On the way she bumps her hip into a desk and lets out a quiet moan as she rubs the place, already bruised I’m sure. “Curse these desks.”

I become completely silent as I hear something. It sounds like echoing footsteps, running. The queasy feeling in my stomach is returning and I cover my mouth to keep the vomit from emerging once more.

Sabrina looks back to me, frightened, and I stare back, feeling the exact same way.

The footsteps are just outside the room now.

“Officer!” Stacy yells from the hallway. The footsteps stop. “There’s a kid who’s tripped and needs help!”

Our heads peek into the doorway and we see “Officer” Leison walking away from the classroom, talking to Stacy. His back is turned to us and just behind him is the girl’s restroom, laid with red brick. We should be able to sneak in there and hide until he leaves.

“What’s wrong with him?” Leison asks, his voice deeper than usual. “Anything major?”

Sabrina and I grab each other’s hands and squeeze once for good luck before letting go. I carry the map in my arms, cradling it like an extremely narrow, four-foot-long fragile infant.

Together we gently touch our feet to the linoleum floor as we inch our way to the bathroom. There’s no other way. If we run away, the echoes from our feet slapping the linoleum floor will be like thunder. The bathroom is our safest bet.

“No, I guess he’s okay now. But since I have you here, may I ask a question about law enforcement?” Stacy is milking it for all it’s worth now, trying to earn us some more time.

In slow motion, the map slips from my grasp, unrolling little by little as it falls to the floor. My heart pounds in my throat and I do everything I can to not scream out.

Sabrina stares at the ceiling as a clap of thunder shakes the building and echoes down the abandoned halls. The sound covers ping the map makes upon hitting the ground.

I glance at Sabrina and she points to the map, as if saying—
Pick it up , idiot!

In one swift movement I collect the stupid thing and we race quietly into the bathroom.

There we stand, once again, in almost total darkness. Creepy, terrifying, eerie darkness. We listen desperately to the hallway, trying to gauge whether we fooled him. A second later, Stacy yells, “Um . . . someone in the World Civ classroom . . .”

A loud slam came from the hall. I feared he had hit Stacy, but then
he
spoke. “They think they can slam the door and lock me out . . .”

Sabrina answers the confusion I feel internally. “It was just a draft. No one else was in that room.”

“That’s the part that creeps me out.”

Angry footsteps sound as he stomps toward the classroom.

“We have to run, Wolf.” Sabrina barely pushes me. “Come on. We don’t have a lot of time.”

When emerge from our hiding place, I turn to Stacy, who is staring after Leison and trembling. “You know who he is . . .” She looks down. Right then, I catch on. She knows him better than I want to believe. That’s why she helped us. I grab her and give her a huge hug. “Come on, you’re not safe here. Not after that move you made.”