Wicked (12 page)

And now he was being brave again. Scott felt rather proud of himself. He'd volunteered to be Angela's next victim, even though he'd been more than a little scared. He still was, but there was no way he'd tell anyone that.

When he thought about it rationally, Scott knew he didn't have any reason to worry. Angela had been true to her word, and she'd made sure that her chapter couldn't turn into reality. They didn't have an industrial-sized dryer, and no one could stuff a body in the small, apartment-sized model that the college had installed in their laundry room. And that meant Scott couldn't possibly suffer the same fate as his character in
Ten Little Writers.

CHAPTER THIRTEEN

At the first sign that dawn was breaking, Eve got out of bed. She hadn't slept very well and her eyes felt swollen and hot. Her first sleepy thought was that she might be coming down with the flu, but then she remembered the events of last night and knew it was only the result of crying.

Eve hated to cry, and she vowed not to do it again. Ryan was gone, but she would get over it eventually. At least that's what everyone said. Broken hearts mended, and time healed all wounds. The words were clichés, but people wouldn't repeat them so often if there wasn't some basis in fact.

When she caught sight of her reflection in the mirror, Eve groaned. Her eyes were red, her skin was blotchy, and her whole face was puffy. She looked like death warmed over, and no amount of makeup could hide that.

Even though she was hungry, Eve decided she wouldn't go to breakfast until the swelling had gone down. She didn't want anyone to see her this way. They'd ask questions, and she might start to cry again. It might be different if she looked beautiful when she cried, but she didn't.

Angela looked beautiful when she cried. Eve glared at her reflection, imagining what she'd say if Angela were standing behind the glass.
You stole my boyfriend, your stupid book is causing all these accidents, and now I can't even go down to breakfast. You're trying to ruin my life, Angela!

But she was the one who was letting Angela do it. She was a fool for letting Angela intimidate her this way. So what if she ran into Ryan and Angela, together at breakfast? They were all living here, under one roof, and she'd have to face them sooner or later.

Eve straightened her shoulders and marched to the shower. She turned it on full-blast and let the cool water rush over her face. Then she washed her hair, brushed it back, and got dressed in a pair of Cheryl's shorts and a tank top that had belonged to Tracie.

She was ready. Eve glanced in the mirror again and curved her lips up in a smile. She didn't look great, but she refused to let Angela and Ryan affect her life. If anyone asked her what was wrong, she'd tell the truth. She'd say that she'd broken up with Ryan and she'd been crying. If they couldn't understand, that was just too bad.

Eve opened her door and stopped cold as she saw what someone had left for her. It was a beautiful bouquet of roses in a glass vase and there was an envelope taped to the glass. Eve picked up the bouquet and carried it back to her room. Who had left her flowers? And why?

Eve's fingers were trembling slightly as she opened the envelope. The flowers were from Ryan, but she didn't understand his message at all.

Good morning, Eve.
The note said.
Meet me in the courtyard when you get up. I've got a surprise for you.

There was only one way to find out what that surprise was, and Eve rushed down the stairs. She was breathing hard by the time she reached the ground floor. and she took a few moments to calm herself. Then she stepped out into the courtyard and walked to the big, round table where Ryan sitting.

“Hi, Eve.” Ryan smiled at her. “Did you like the flowers?”

“They're beautiful. But why did you give them to me?”

“I'll explain everything. Sit down, honey.”

He pulled out a chair and Eve sat down. She still didn't understand what was going on. Ryan had broken up with her, and now he was acting as if nothing had happened!

“I'm sorry I was so hard on you last night, Eve.” Ryan looked very serious. “But I had to find out the truth and it was the only way.”

“The truth?” Eve felt like Alice in
Alice in Wonderland
when she'd met the Mad Hatter. Although she understood every one of Ryan's words, she had no idea what he meant. “The truth about what?”

Ryan reached out to take her hand. “Angela told me you were trying to sabotage her work.”

“Sabotage?” Eve was still feeling like Alice. She just didn't understand.

“That's right. Angela said you were jealous of the time I spent with her. And she was sure that was the only reason why you tried to convince everyone that there was a connection between her book and the accidents.”

Eve still didn't understand.

“It's like this.” Ryan put his arm around Eve's shoulders. “If you manage to convince everyone that there's a connection, Angela will have to stop writing. Then she'll flunk out of the program and she'll be out of your hair.”

Eve's eyes widened as she caught on at last, and then she started to laugh. “That's ridiculous! If I wanted Angela out of my hair, I wouldn't play mind games with her. I'd just boot her out the front door!”

“That's exactly what I told her.” Now it was Ryan's turn to laugh. “But Angela insisted that she was right, and she can be pretty persuasive. I just had to find out, for sure. And I did, last night.”

Eve wasn't sure she liked being tested by Ryan. He should have trusted her from the beginning.

“I know what you're thinking, Eve.” Ryan gave her a little hug. “I should have known you wouldn't do something like that, but . . .”

“But what?”

“Maybe I shouldn't say anything, but I've heard stories about some of the things you've done in the past. They weren't always very nice.”

Eve sighed. She knew she had a reputation for being ruthless, and now her past was coming back to haunt her. “You're right, Ryan. I can see how you'd think I might pull a dirty trick like that, but I didn't. I've changed, Ryan. It was different before I met you. It was like I was at the center of the universe and no one else mattered. I never cared about other people's feelings before.”

“And now you do?”

“Yes. I even care about Angela's feelings, and I really wish I didn't! She tried to break us up, Ryan!”

“I know.” Ryan hugged her again. “But it didn't work and I'm glad. Are you glad, Eve?”

Eve turned to smile at him. “Yes.”

“Good! Then I can give you my surprise.” Ryan reached into his pocket and pulled out a small box. “Here, Eve. This is for you.”

Eve opened the package with trembling fingers and lifted the lid. Inside was Ryan's fraternity pin, and Eve knew exactly what that meant. It was a custom that dated back to the turn of the century in Ryan's fraternity. A guy didn't give his fraternity pin to anyone except the girl he hoped to marry.

“Will you were wear it, Eve?”

Ryan looked anxious, and Eve threw her arms around his neck and gave him a big kiss. “Yes, I'll wear it, Ryan!”

* * *

Ryan, Eve, Beth, and Dean were all seated around the breakfast table when Angela came downstairs. If she noticed the fraternity pin that Eve was wearing, she didn't say anything about it. She took a piece of toast and spread it with strawberry jam. And then she sat down at the end of the table.

“Good morning, Angela.” Eve smiled at her. Now that Ryan had given her his fraternity pin, Eve had decided that she could afford to be charitable. Ryan had made his choice, and Angela was no longer her rival.

“Good morning.” Angela didn't meet Eve's eyes. “I was hoping Scott would be here. He's got tonight's chapter.”

“That's not tonight's chapter?” Ryan motioned toward the stack of printed pages that Angela had placed on the table.

“No. I couldn't sleep so I decided to stay up and write tomorrow's chapter. I just printed it out a couple of minutes ago.”

“Oh, oh!” Beth looked nervous. “Who's the victim for tomorrow night?”

“Marc, but don't tell him. I don't want him to get nervous. I took every precaution. I set it up so it can't possibly happen.”

“How did you manage that?” Eve was curious.

“I had the killer murder him in the cupola. And we don't have a cupola.”

Ryan nodded. “Very smart. But I think we'd better tell Marc. He's got a right to know.”

“Well . . . all right.” Angela sounded reluctant. “I'll tell him as soon as he finishes jogging.”

“I don't understand why Marc jogs in this heat,” Eve said. “It can't be good for him.”

“He's used to it.” Ryan smiled at her. “Marc jogs every morning, rain or shine. He says it keeps him in shape.”

Dean nodded. “It must work. Marc's in great shape. Maybe I should try it.”

“You're in great shape without jogging.” Beth blurted it out, and then she started to blush. “I mean . . . well . . . you know what I mean.”

Everyone laughed except Angela. She looked distracted, and Eve turned to her. What's the matter, Angela?”

“I don't know. I just feel uneasy, that's all. Has anyone seen Scott this morning?”

“I saw him,” Dean said. “He was in his room, working at his computer, when I came down for breakfast.”

“He wasn't nervous, was he?” Ryan looked concerned.

“No. At least I don't think he was. He told me he was going to take a shower and then he'd come down.”

Eve gave a relieved sigh. At least Scott was all right. But she wished that Angela hadn't written a second murder. It was almost like tempting fate.

“What's the matter, Eve?” Ryan put his arm around her shoulders. “You shivered.”

Eve thought fast. She didn't want to bring up her worries to the rest of the group. And perhaps she was just borrowing trouble. “It's just lack of sleep.”

“Maybe you should take a nap.” Angela's smile was perfectly innocent, but Eve thought she saw a hardness in her eyes. “You can't write well if you're tired, and you still haven't finished your chapter for tonight.”

Eve's eyes widened. How did Angela know she hadn't finished her chapter? But Eve didn't want to confront Angela in front of Ryan so she just nodded and stood up. “Thanks, Angela. That's a very good idea. I think I'll go up to my room for a while and relax.”

“I'm going to take a quick dip in the pool.” Ryan stood up, too. “Does anyone want to join me?”

Beth shook her head. “I've got to work on my poem.”

“Not me.” Dean looked disappointed. “I'd like to go swimming, but I have to write another song.”

Angela shook her head. “I'd love to, but I've got some proofreading to do. Who's making lunch?”

“I am,” Beth said. “We've got everything we need for a chef salad. Is that all right?”

“A chef salad sounds great, but it's a lot of work,” Eve said. “Do you need any help, Beth?”

“No thanks, Eve.” Beth smiled at her. “Dean's going to help me, and he's promised to make some muffins to go with it. Let's meet in the courtyard at one o'clock, and we'll eat on the deck around the pool.”

Eve wore a bemused smile as she climbed the stairs to her room. She'd never offered to help in the kitchen before, and it felt good.

Five minutes later, Eve was in bed, her alarm set for twelve-thirty. There was a slight breeze coming in through her open balcony doors, and Eve smiled as she nestled her head on the pillow. Ryan had given her his fraternity pin. Life was truly wonderful. Eve sighed in perfect contentment as she dropped off to sleep.

* * *

He was glad they'd all gone their separate ways. Scott walked down the hallway, hoping he wouldn't run into any of them. He just didn't feel like socializing yet. He had to check something out before he faced them. He'd been thinking about the murder that Angela had written and the size of the dryer in their laundry room. The best way to set his fears at rest was to go in and make sure that he was right.

There was no one in the kitchen, and Scott gave a relieved sigh. He didn't want to talk to anyone, not until he'd checked out the dryer. He walked quietly across the kitchen and opened the door to the laundry room. It was just as he'd thought. The dryer door was much too small to accommodate a human body.

“Yes!” Scott grinned as he shut the door behind him and walked closer. His head would fit in the dryer door, but that was about it.

Something was glittering in the bottom of the dryer. Scott leaned over to look. It was his grandfather's silver pocket knife with the etching of the pheasant on the handle. The knife was Scott's prized possession. His grandfather had given it to him, right before he died. It must have fallen out of his pocket when he'd washed his clothes yesterday afternoon.

Scott hesitated, his hand only inches from the dryer door. He remembered what had happened in Angela's chapter and he shivered slightly. Did he really want to open the dryer door?

Ryan was outside, by the pool. He could ask Ryan to open it for him. But then he'd have to offer some kind of explanation, and there was no way that Scott wanted to admit that Angela's chapter had scared him so much, he was afraid to even touch their clothes dryer!

He was being ridiculous. The clothes dryer couldn't possibly hurt him. Scott attempted to laugh at himself, but it was a very nervous laugh. He'd let Angela's story of his character's murder really get to him. It was affecting his judgement, and that wasn't right. There was nothing to be afraid of. He'd just open the dryer door, grab his knife, and get out of the laundry room.

Scott took a step closer and frowned. Someone had spilled water in front of the dryer. He'd mop it up, just as soon as he got his knife. Perhaps the hose on the washer was leaking. He'd check that out, too.

As Scott's fingers were about to touch the metal handle, he spotted a heavy-duty extension cord, coiled up on the floor. That was odd. But Scott didn't have time to wonder about the cord for more than a brief second. As his fingers touched the metal, a powerful zap of electricity jolted his body, electrocuting him on the spot.