Who Killed the Homecoming Queen? (14 page)

Cherise raised the knife higher.

“Cherise!” Tania shrieked.

Jeremy kicked the magazines out of the way and raced across the room.

Eva reached out, trying to grab Cherise's arm.

Too late.

With a furious scream, Cherise plunged the knife toward Keith's chest.

Chapter 29
 

“N
oooo!” Jeremy bellowed.

Tania and Eva both screamed.

Keith raised the camcorder to shield himself.

The knife clattered against the metal casing of the camera.

And bounced out of Cherise's hand. It landed on the living room rug.

With a cry of anger, Cherise whirled around and dived for it.

Eva kicked it away from Cherise's grasping fingers.

The knife spun across the rug, skidded under a chair, and banged up against the far wall.

Furious, Cherise turned back to Keith and swung her fist at the camcorder.

Keith shifted the camera to his other hand, raising it out of her reach.

“Give me that!” Cherise shouted. “Give it to me!” She drew her arm back, ready to swing again.

Jeremy caught her by the wrist, spun her around to face him and grabbed her by the shoulders. “Stop it!” he shouted into her face. He shook her, hard. “It's over, Cherise. It's over!”

Cherise struggled, screaming and trying to hit him.

Keith set the camera down and helped Jeremy drag her to the couch. When they pushed her down, she collapsed against the cushions, sobbing in fury.

But she didn't try to get up.

Jeremy and Keith backed away from the couch, breathing hard.

Cherise curled her feet up and buried her face in one of the pillows.

Eva slowly let her breath out. It finally
is
over, she thought. She turned to Jeremy.

Still breathing hard, he held his arm out.

Eva hurried to his side and hugged him. Tania joined them. Then Keith slung his arms around the whole group.

They stood that way for a moment, shocked and relieved.

Keith finally broke the hug. “Now what?” he asked in a shaky voice.

Eva turned to the couch. Cherise still lay curled up, her face in the pillow, crying softly.

Eva sighed. “Now we call the police,” she told him sadly.

When the two police officers arrived a few minutes later, Cherise had stopped crying. She sat stiffly on the couch, staring straight ahead, while the others explained what had happened.

The officers were the same ones who had come when Tania disappeared. One sat in a chair near the couch, writing in a small spiral notebook. The other stood behind the couch, listening.

They know part of the story, Eva thought. But not the worst part. Not the part about Sandy.

“Cherise was trying to get back at us,” Eva told them. She sat on a footstool near the policewoman's chair. “She thought we were laughing at her behind her back. She sawed the bleacher railing so I'd fall. You can go check it out. But before that …” She paused.

The policewoman glanced up from her notebook. “Before that?”

“She killed Sandy Bishop,” Tania said. “And she was going to kill Eva and Keith. And blame Jeremy for everything.”

The policewoman gazed at Cherise. “Is that what happened, Cherise?”

Cherise shrugged.

“Is that a yes or a no?” the woman asked.

“It's a yes,” Keith declared. He sat cross-legged near the door, holding his camcorder. “Cherise
admitted that she killed Sandy, and all the other stuff, too. We have her confession.”

Both officers shifted their gaze to him.

Keith hoisted the camera. “It's all on tape.”

The policewoman stared at the camcorder for a moment, then turned back to Cherise. “Is this true?” she asked.

Cherise started to shrug again. Then her shoulders sagged and she let her breath out in a long sigh.

Finally, she looked at the police officer. “Yes. I might as well admit it.” She gazed at the camcorder and her mouth twisted in a bitter smile. “It's all on tape.”

The officer finished writing and snapped her notebook closed. “Where are your parents?” she asked Cherise. “We have to call them. Then we'll take you down to the station.”

“They're at a business convention downtown.” Sighing again, Cherise rose to her feet. “The number is on the refrigerator door.”

While the policeman followed Cherise to the kitchen, the other officer carefully placed the knife into a plastic bag. Then she turned to the others. “We're going to need statements from all of you,” she told them. “Come down to the station tomorrow and we'll write them up for you to sign.”

The officer and Cherise returned from the kitchen. “I made the call,” the man informed his partner. “Her parents will meet us there.”

“Right. Let's go.” With a nod to Eva and the others, the policewoman strode out of the living room. Her partner followed, his hand wrapped around Cherise's arm.

At the living room door, Cherise stopped and gazed back at them.

Eva stared at her. What should I do? she wondered. Wave good-bye? Wish her good luck? What do you do when someone you know turns out to be a murderer?

But before Eva could do anything, Cherise walked quickly through the doorway.

“That was awful,” Tania murmured with a shiver as they heard the front door slam shut.

Keith suddenly scrambled to his feet. “The cops forgot to take the tape!” he cried. “It's still in the camcorder!”

Clutching the camera, Keith dashed out of the living room and down the hall.

He was back a few seconds later, still holding the camcorder. “They already left,” he announced.

“It's okay. We can take it to them,” Eva told him. “But before we do, let's look at it.”

“Good idea,” Keith agreed. He glanced around and spotted the VCR on a wall unit above the television. Quickly, he removed the tape from the camcorder, slid it into the VCR, and turned on the TV.

“I hope the thing is in focus,” he muttered as he joined the others across the room. “It was starting
to get dark. But I didn't want to do anything to stop Cherise from talking.”

“Ssh,” Tania told him. “It's starting.”

Bouncing snowflakes covered the television screen.

Static crackled from the speakers.

Everyone waited.

But the snow and the static remained.

Eva and Keith exchanged glances. “I don't believe it!” he cried. “The camcorder jammed again.”

R.L. Stine is the best-selling author in America. He has written more than one hundred scary books for young people, all of them bestsellers.

His series include
Fear Street, Ghosts of Fear Street
and the
Fear Street Sagas.

Bob grew up in Columbus, Ohio. Today he lives in New York City with his wife, Jane, his teenage son, Matt, and his dog, Nadine.

THE NIGHTMARES NEVER END … WHEN YOU VISIT

Next …

INTO THE DARK

Paulette Fox refuses to let her blindness stop her from living a full life. But one thing she's never done is fall in love—until now. Paulette knows Brad Jones is the only guy for her.

Even when her friends see Brad commit a horrible crime, Paulette is sure that he's innocent. Her friends tell her he's out of control. That she will be his next victim. But Paulette knows that he would never hurt her.

Is Paulette right about Brad? Or has her love put her in terrible danger?

Students are dying to get out of …

FEAR HALL

Don't miss this shocking two-part story!

F
EAR
H
ALL:
T
HE
B
EGINNING

The horror is just getting started …

F
EAR
H
ALL:
T
HE
C
ONCLUSION

Welcome back to the scariest dorm on campus.

Nobody lives here for long!

Come hang out at Fear Hall, where life is a scream!

You can't get the whole story unless you read both books!

R.L. STINE

Available from Archway Paperbacks

Published by Pocket Books

1390

COLLECTOR'S EDITIONS

DO YOU DARE READ THEM ALL?

THE BEGINNING

The New Girl

The Surprise Party

The Overnight

NIGHTMARES

The Sleepwalker

The Secret Bedroom

Bad Dreams

SECRETS

The Confession

What Holly Heard

The Face

DANGEROUS GIRLS

The Rich Girl

The Dare

The Prom Queen

EVIL POWERS

Runaway

The Mind Reader

The Thrill Club

SUMMER POWER

Sunburn

The Dead Lifeguard

One Evil Summer

DEADLY GAMES

The Fire Game

Night Games