The New Girl (Fear Street) Page 9

  As darkness settled, the air grew even colder and the wind picked up. He let go of her arms. She turned and started walking back in the direction of the high school. He followed, walking a few steps behind her. “I have to know the truth,” he said. “Why did your brother say that about you?”

  “I don’t know,” she answered without looking back. “I told you he was crazy.”

  “Someone called me before you did last Friday night and told me not to see you because you were dead, and if I did see you, I’d be dead too. Was that your brother?”

  “I don’t know,” she said. “I really don’t know. You’ve got to believe me.” She started walking faster. He had to hurry to keep up.

  “But why would your brother say a thing like that?” Cory demanded. “Why would he tell people you were dead?”

  She spun around, and he almost ran into her. “I don’t know! I don’t know! I don’t know! He’s crazy! I told you! He’s crazy—and he’s very dangerous!” she shouted, tears forming in her eyes. “I really can’t talk about it. Don’t you understand?”

  “Who else lives with you?” Cory asked, deliberately lowering his voice. He didn’t want to make her cry, didn’t want her to get hysterical. The poor girl obviously had a troubled brother who was making life difficult for her.

  “Just my mother,” Anna answered, wiping her eyes with the backs of her hands. “But she isn’t very well. It’s just the three of us.”

  They walked on a little in silence, side by side.

  “Don’t listen to Brad,” she said finally. “I’m here. I’m here with you. Don’t listen to him. Just stay away from him. He mustn’t know about … about us.”

  “Sorry for all the questions,” he said softly, putting his arm around her shoulder. “I didn’t mean to upset you. It’s just that I didn’t know what to think, and you—you called me Saturday night and then—”

  “What? No, Cory. You mean Friday night.”

  “You called me Saturday night, too, and I came as fast as I could and—”

  She turned and stopped him by putting both hands on his chest. She looked very upset. “Someone played a horrible joke on you,” she said, her blue eyes burning into his. “I never called you Saturday night.”

  “Then who—”

  “Shhhhh. It’s okay,” she said, putting her finger to his lips. “Let’s not talk anymore.” She tilted her head up. He leaned down and started to kiss her.

  “No!” she cried suddenly, startling him. She pulled away. She wasn’t looking at him. She was looking past him to the tall hedges that bordered the sidewalk. “I’ve got to go. Don’t follow. He’s watching me!”

  She turned and ran up the street toward the high school. Cory stood helplessly watching her flee for a few seconds. Then he moved quickly to investigate the hedges. He ran around to the other side.

  About a hundred yards away someone in a dark fur parka was running at full speed in the other direction along the hedge. Was it Brad?

  Could be.

  Anna was telling the truth.

  Now her crazy brother was spying on them.

  “Well, I heard the big news.”

  “What?” Cory looked up from the new issue of Sports Illustrated.

  “I heard the big news,” his mother repeated. She seemed annoyed that Cory didn’t know what she was talking about. “I was just talking to Lisa’s mother.”

  “Yeah?” Cory flipped through till he found the gymnastics article he was looking for. “And what’s the big news?”

  “About you and Lisa,” Mrs. Brooks said impatiently.

  “Huh?”

  She walked over and stood in front of the couch, forcing him to look up from the magazine. “Am I speaking to Cory Brooks of planet Earth?” she asked.

  He rolled his eyes. “Give me a break.”

  “Well, are you or are you not going out on a date with Lisa?”

  “Oh.” He suddenly remembered the Turnaround Dance. “Yeah. Yeah, I guess.” What was the big deal? Why was his mom smiling like that? Why did she seem so pleased?

  “I always knew it would happen,” she said, crossing her arms as if hugging herself and going up on tiptoes, then quickly back down, repeating it several times. It was her own peculiar exercise. She always did it instead of standing still.

  “What?”

  “I always knew the time would come when you and Lisa wouldn’t want to be just friends anymore.”

  “Mom, what planet are you from?” Cory asked disgustedly.

  “Well, I just think it’s nice that you and Lisa—”

  “I’ve got more important things to think about,” he said.

  “Like what?”

  Like Anna, he thought. But he didn’t say anything. He just shrugged.

  “Like your homework?” she asked.

  “Oh. Right. I forgot.” He climbed off the couch and started quickly up to his room. “Thanks for reminding me,” he called down. “Thanks a bunch.”

  “Anytime,” he heard her say from the kitchen. “Hey, your father and I are going out. So you’ll have peace and quiet for studying!”

  He sat down at his desk and tried to concentrate on ancient China. But his mind kept wandering. Anna’s face kept drifting into his thoughts, taking him away from the fourth Ming dynasty. Again and again he saw the look of terror on her face when she realized that Brad was watching them.

  Why was she so afraid of Brad? What hold did he have over her? What was he doing to her?

  He realized he hadn’t gotten satisfactory answers from her. In fact, he hadn’t gotten any answers. Anna really seemed too frightened to talk about it.

  He decided if he underlined the text, it might help him to concentrate. He opened his desk drawer and began to search for a yellow highlighter. The phone rang.

  He stared at it, a heavy feeling forming in the pit of his stomach.

  He used to look forward to the phone ringing. Now the sound filled him with dread.

  It rang a second time. A third time.

  He was alone in the house. He could just let it ring forever. He stared at it, his hand only inches away from the receiver.

  Should he answer it or not?

  chapter 16

  “Hello?”

  “Hi, Cory.”

  “David? Hi.” He was very relieved to hear David’s voice.

  “What’s happening?”

  “Not much. Studying. Reading stuff.”

  “What are you reading?”

  “I’m not sure,” Cory told him. They both laughed.

  They talked for a while about nothing at all. It was the most relaxed conversation they had had in weeks, probably because Cory was so glad it was David on the phone.

  Finally Cory asked, “What’s up? Why’d you call?”

  “I thought maybe you’d just like to talk,” David said, suddenly sounding uncomfortable.

  “Okay. So we talked,” Cory said, not catching on.

  “No. I mean—” David hesitated. “About why you’ve been so weird lately. Why you’ve been messing up, you know, cutting practice and stuff. I thought maybe—”

  “Nothing to talk about,” Cory said sharply.

  “I didn’t mean to interfere or anything. I just thought—” David sounded really hurt.

  “I’m okay,” Cory insisted. He really didn’t feel like getting into it. He just didn’t have the energy. “I’ve had other things on my mind, I guess.”

  “You mean the new girl?”

  “Well, yeah….”

  “She’s really cool,” David said, his highest compliment. “She’s … different.”

  “Yeah,” Cory agreed quickly. But he really didn’t want to talk about Anna with David. “Listen, I gotta get off.”

  “Sure you don’t want to talk … about anything?”

  “No. Thanks, David. I’m okay. Really. I’m getting my timing back, I think. I was much better at the meet on Saturday. And—”

  “I guess that wasn’t you who slipped off the bars a few sec
onds into your warm-up.”

  “Anyone can fall, David,” Cory said, becoming annoyed. “I just lost my concentration for a second—”

  “Lost your concentration! Cory, you’ve been in a dream world ever since you met Anna. You’ve been walking around like you fell off the rings and landed on your head!”

  “So? What’s it to you?” Cory heard himself whine, surprised at his own vehemence.

  “Well, I thought I was your friend,” David said, sounding as exasperated as Cory.

  “Well, friends don’t give friends a hard time,” Cory said. “See you around, David.”

  “Not if I see you first,” David said.

  Normally they would have cracked up over that stupid old line. But this time they both just hung up.

  Cory angrily paced back and forth in his room for a while. He couldn’t decide whom he was angry at—himself or David. He finally decided he was upset at himself for letting David get him so annoyed.

  He slammed his world history text shut. He paced a little while longer. He knew he should be studying, but he just couldn’t concentrate. He leaned down on the windowsill and stared out into the night. Across the yard the light in Lisa’s room was on. Cory decided to walk over and see how she was doing.

  His sneakers slid over the wet grass. He knocked softly on the kitchen door, then a little harder. After a short wait she appeared in the kitchen, looking confused. “Have you got the wrong house?” she asked, smoothing her long black hair into place as she pushed open the door for him.

  “I don’t think so.”

  She made a face. “Your sneakers are wet. Look at the kitchen floor.”

  He looked at the wet tracks he was making on the linoleum. Then in a quick easy motion he flipped himself up and stood on his hands. “This better?” He began crossing the floor on his hands.

  She laughed loudly. “That’s great!” she said, following along behind him. “You’re a real chimp. Can you eat with your feet?”

  He tumbled over when he reached the hallway and rolled to his feet. “Your turn,” he said, gesturing to the floor.

  “No way,” she said, backing away. “Want a banana?”

  He shook his head and plopped down on one of the overstuffed living room armchairs. He suddenly felt exhausted.

  “Come in the den,” she said, pulling his arm. “I don’t want you on the good furniture. What are you doing here, anyway?”

  “I don’t know. Wrong house, I guess,” he said.

  She laughed again as she dragged him toward the den. He liked her laugh, he decided. It came from so deep in her throat. It was a sexy laugh. She looked cute, he thought. She was wearing faded jeans and an old Shadyside High sweatshirt with the collar ripped and frayed.

  She pulled him harder, and he bumped into her. Her hair smelled of coconut. She must have shampooed it earlier. He inhaled deeply. He loved that smell.

  “How’s it going with you?” she asked. “Any better?”

  “Better than what?” he asked, shoving some newspapers aside so he could drop down onto the black leather couch. “Better than being hit by a truck? Almost”

  “That bad, huh?” she said sympathetically. She sat down beside him, her knee touching his leg.

  “If I could just get my timing back on the rings.” How many times had he said that lately?

  “You’ll get it back,” she said, putting a hand comfortingly on his shoulder.

  “Anna was waiting for me outside school,” he said. “That was a surprise.”

  She removed her hand from his shoulder and sighed.

  “What did she want—some tips on how to do a handstand?”

  He didn’t notice her sarcasm. Seeing an article that interested him, he picked up the front section of the newspaper he had shoved aside. A car had spun out of control on Fear Street and crashed into a tree. The confused driver had no explanation for what had happened. The road was dry, and he had been traveling at a very slow speed.

  “I love these visits of yours, Cory.” Lisa’s voice broke into his reading. “You tell me about Anna and then read the paper. You’re a fun guy.”

  Cor y put down the newspaper and started to apologize when the phone rang. “Who would call this late?” Lisa asked. She dived off the couch and got to the phone before it could ring a second time and wake her parents. “Hello?”

  There was silence at the other end.

  “Hello?” she repeated.

  “You’re dead too,” a voice whispered in her ear. “You’re dead too. You’re dead too.”

  Just like on the note tied to the cat.

  Chapter 17

  “It was Anna who threatened me, Cory. She killed the cat. She made the threatening phone call.”

  “No, that’s impossible,” he insisted. “Come on, Lisa. Let’s just dance and not talk about it.” Cory pulled her toward the middle of the gym floor, where several other couples were already dancing. The floor vibrated to the music, a Missy Elliott album with a driving, machinelike drumbeat and pulsating bass that nearly drowned out the singer’s voice.

  Lisa made a halfhearted attempt to dance with Cory, but after a minute or two she stopped and pulled him back to the side. “You’re just trying to change the subject,” she said, holding on to his hands. Hers were cold despite the heat of the gym.

  “No, I’m just trying to dance,” he said, exasperated. “Why’d you ask me to this dance? If all you wanted to do was talk about Anna, we could have gone to my house, or your house.”

  “But she threatened my life, and all you do is defend her.”

  “It wasn’t Anna,” Cory said. “I know it. When I told Anna about the dead cat in your locker, she was horrified. Really. She felt terrible about it.”

  “So. She’s a good actress,” Lisa said, sneering. “Good enough to fool you.”

  A couple of guys from the gymnastics team waved at Cory from across the gym. He waved back. He wanted to run across the floor and talk to them. Kid around with them. Have some fun. This first date with Lisa was not working out.

  “Why would Anna put a dead cat in your locker? Why? Why would she call and threaten you?” Cory asked, shouting over the music, a new album by Kanye West that was extremely difficult to shout over. “She doesn’t even know you.”

  “She’s jealous,” Lisa said. “I told you.”

  “Get real,” Cory told her, shaking his head in disbelief. He turned and started to walk away, but she followed right behind him. “Did she ask you to this dance?”

  “Maybe.”

  “Come on—did she? Tell the truth.”

  “Well … yes.”

  “And was she standing in the hall spying on us when I asked you to this dance?”

  “No. She wasn’t spying. She—”

  “She was listening, right? She was there in the hall. She saw us together. And then afterward I got the dead cat with the note.”

  “That doesn’t prove anything.”

  “Boy, are you loyal—to her!” Lisa snapped, her dark eyes filled with anger. Some kids standing nearby were staring at the two of them, startled to see what was obviously a heated argument grow even more heated.

  Cory was embarrassed. “Lisa, please.” He took her arm, but she pulled it away from him. “I know Anna. She wouldn’t—”

  “How well do you know Anna?” Lisa demanded. “How well?”

  “It’s got to be someone else who’s trying to scare you. Someone who knows you.”

  “Who then? Who is it?”

  “I don’t know, but it isn’t Anna!” Cory shouted. “Anna has her own problems. She doesn’t have time to be making up problems for you.”

  “Oh, doesn’t she?” Lisa’s anger was getting the better of her. She shoved Cory hard in the chest, pushing him backward against the crepe paper streamers that lined the gym wall. “Come on and sit down. Maybe you’d like to tell me all about Anna’s problems. Maybe we could spend all night discussing Anna’s problems. You’d like that, wouldn’t you?”

  “Cal
m down, Lisa. Everyone’s watching us.”

  “What are Anna’s problems, Cory? Come on. Let’s discuss them. What are her problems? Is she too thin? Is that her problem? Is she too pretty? That’s it. I’ve guessed it, haven’t I! She’s too pretty, poor thing.”

  “Lisa—please. You’re getting crazy over nothing.”

  “Nothing? Over nothing? Someone threatened my life. I guess that’s nothing!”

  “That’s not what I meant, and you know it. Come on. Don’t lose your temper. Let’s dance or something. I apologize. Okay?”

  “Apologize for what?”

  “I don’t know. For whatever.”

  She sighed and shook her head. “I should’ve known this wouldn’t work out.” The record had stopped. Her voice seemed to echo through the whole crowded gym. “You’re just totally obsessed with that girl. Oh. I’m embarrassing you, aren’t I, Cory?” Another record started.

  “No. I mean, yes. I mean—”

  “So sorry. I won’t embarrass you anymore.” She turned away from him and ran across the crowded dance floor. He started after her, then decided not to follow her. He watched her push her way through dancing couples until she made her way to the other side of the gym and disappeared through the double doors.

  Now what?

  Give her a little time to cool down and then go apologize to her? That was probably the best idea. He’d seen Lisa lose her temper hundreds of times before. She always flared up like a fire just taking hold, but her anger always faded as quickly as it came on.

  Lisa was the jealous one, he decided. The idea made him smile despite the fight they had just had. She was jealous of Anna. And, of course, she had good reason tobe.

  Anna. For a split second he thought he saw her across the dance floor.

  No, it couldn’t be. He pushed her from his mind. He decided to go over to the refreshment table and get a Coke, maybe shoot the breeze with some guys for a while, and then go apologize to Lisa.

  He was halfway across the gym when he heard the scream.

  It was a girl’s scream. A scream of terror.

  The music stopped. Everyone heard it.