Chapter Eleven
I barely slept that night. In the morning, I was half awake as I pulled on a clean pair of pants and a sweater.
As I walked to school, I couldn’t stop thinking about Steven and Andrea. I still hadn’t checked my phone. In fact, I hadn’t even brought it with me. I wondered what Steven would do. Although he didn’t seem like the cruel type, I couldn’t help but feel nervous. Was he going to start a rumor that I was some kind of slut?
And how the hell was I supposed to act around Andrea now?
But the biggest shock of all came when I walked into homeroom. Monica was sitting in her usual seat, her attention turned to a piece of paper in her lap. Gasping, I ran over and grabbed her shoulder.
“Oh, my god!” I yelped. “Where the hell have you been?”
Monica slowly tilted her head and gazed at me. “I’m fine,” she said. She narrowed her brown eyes. Her blonde hair was messier than usual, styled in two small buns at the top of her head.
“Jesus!” I slid into my chair and scooted closer so the other kids wouldn’t hear me. “I missed you so much, I was so worried!”
Monica shrugged. “I’m fine.” She smiled sardonically. “You worry too much, Elizabeth.”
My heart was thudding in my chest, and I pinched my thigh to make sure I wasn’t dreaming. The pinch hurt, but still, this didn’t feel real.
“I missed you,” I repeated. Tears came to my eyes, and I blinked them away, not wanting to cry in public. “I was really scared that something horrible had happened.”
“I was probably sick, you know,” Monica said. “Like, in bed the whole time.”
I stared at her. “What do you mean, probably?”
“Like, I probably had the flu.” Monica tossed her head. “We probably shouldn’t have gone on that walk after the party.”
My jaw dropped. “I…I went to your house,” I said slowly. “On Tuesday afternoon, after school. You weren’t there. I know that’s not true, Monica. Where did you go?”
“I was with David.”
“Monica…” I trailed off. “You don’t have to lie to me. We’re best friends, remember? You can tell me the truth.”
“That is the truth,” Monica said stubbornly. “Did I miss a lot?”
I blinked. “I know you’re lying,” I said unsteadily. Monica’s brown eyes flashed with anger, but she didn’t speak. “I know because I spent a lot of time talking to David this week. He even drove out on Wednesday, and we went looking for you at the lake. We drove everywhere in town. Both of us were really, really worried.”
Monica still didn’t reply. She bit her lip, looking angry and defensive.
I reached out and took her hand. “Look, I know it was really weird, okay? Your parents were like, not really too into the idea of looking for you. I know that has to hurt. But you have to know that David and I did everything we could. We were both so, so scared that something was really wrong. I…” I trailed off. A lump formed in my throat, and I swallowed. “I’m just so glad you’re back.”
“Of course, I’m back,” Monica sniffed. “I live here, don’t I?”
I sighed, deflated. “What’s wrong?” I asked quietly. “What happened, Monica? What’s on your mind?”
Monica didn’t reply. She sat up straighter. Despite her short stature, she suddenly cut an intimidating figure, like someone much older, or much more confident.
“David’s really worried, too,” I said gently. “He feels awful about not being able to come last weekend. Have you talked to him?”
Monica stayed silent.
“And did you see my texts?” I pressed. “And my calls? I probably left you, like, sixty voicemails. You can just delete them, it’s fine. I was probably babbling the whole time, anyway, like a real crazy person.”
Monica stared.
“Please,” I begged. “Please, just tell me you’re okay.” I frowned. “I’m really worried. I mean, I know you don’t have to tell me everything that happened – I’ll ask my mom to help find a good counselor for you – but you need to talk to someone, Monica!”
“I don’t need to do anything,” Monica said icily.
The bell rang, and I jumped in surprise. Monica snickered. “You’re so jumpy, Elizabeth,” she said. “Can’t you just relax?”
I stared at her. “I was so worried,” I said softly. The room around us had quieted with the ringing of the bell, but I knew I wouldn’t be satisfied until I got some real answers.
Monica didn’t reply. She turned to face the front of the classroom and put her hands in her lap, ignoring me. As the teacher called roll, I tried hissing her name to get her attention, but nothing worked. She completely ignored me for the whole fifteen-minute period before our first class.
The second bell rang, and kids leapt out of their seats, grabbing their bags and scattering around me like a messy, smelly river.
Monica stayed firmly in her seat, staring straight ahead at the blackboard. Soon, we were the only two left in the room.
“Um, hey, aren’t you going to class?”
Monica turned to me. Her brown eyes were icy cold.
“Elizabeth?”
“Yeah?”
“I’m done talking about last week,” Monica said.
“But–”
“I said I’m done,” Monica snapped. She grabbed her backpack and stalked out of the room, leaving me confused, unhappy, and filled with regret.
The rest of the day dragged by. The few classes we had together, Monica ignored me. She even moved seats to the other side of the room. At first, I was determined to figure out exactly what had happened. I wanted to know what was bothering her so much. But after a while, I figured I had to let it go. Monica was stubborn – this wasn’t exactly a new development – and she wasn’t happy until she got her way.
I decided that I’d back off, at least for a while until she was ready to talk about what had happened. I shivered as I thought about that cold look in her eye. I knew that whatever had gone on, she must feel terrible. Horrible scenarios paraded through my head all day, each worse than the last. Kidnapping, abduction, rape, torture…all of these seemed likely. I shuddered.
‘She must be so embarrassed and horrified,’ I kept thinking. ‘I have to find a way to make her understand that none of this was her fault. That’s what victims think, but Monica has to know how much she’s loved, even if her parents don’t care.’
The only odd thing was that Monica seemed stronger than ever before. She didn’t exactly seem like she’d been victimized – if anything, she seemed like she’d undergone some powerful transformation.
And then there was the whole matter of Steven and Andrea. I desperately wanted to tell Monica, but with her acting like this, I didn’t know if that would be a good idea. The old Monica never would have betrayed my secrets. But I thought that if she’d undergone something really and truly traumatic, she might be thinking a little differently.
When the last bell of the day rung, I slowly walked out to the parking lot. Normally, Monica and I always met to walk home together. I didn’t expect to see her there. In fact, I was almost shocked when I saw her leaning against the brick wall, staring up at the sky.
“Hey,” I said softly as I jogged up. “Thanks for waiting.”
Monica nodded. “Yeah,” she said. “You wanna walk home?”
I nodded. “Sure.”
The space between us felt tense as we started walking slowly out of the parking lot. Monica stayed silent. I felt an overwhelming pressure to speak, to apologize, to make sure she knew I was still her friend – to say anything. But no matter how I tried the words in my head, everything sounded overblown and ridiculous.
Finally, I stopped walking. “Look, Monica, I’m really sorry if I made you so uncomfortable,” I said slowly. “I didn’t mean to pry. I just missed you, and I’m glad you’re back.”
Monica gave me a small, secretive smile. “It’s okay,” she said. I waited for her to say more, selfishly hoping she’d break down and tell the truth. Instead, she started walking again, faster this time.
“How are Jamie and Brian?”
Monica shrugged. “They’re fine.”
“My parents are so busy right now,” I babbled. “I feel like I haven’t seen my dad in weeks. He barely comes home from the office. My mom is so freaking tired of taking care of Aidan by herself, she’s got, like, these perpetual dark circles.”
Monica nodded.
Out of the corner of my eye, I saw Steven and Andrea walking toward us. I groaned.
“What?” Monica frowned. “What’s going on?”
“Um,” I paused as a fine sheen of sweat broke out over my forehead. “I don’t know. I mean, I can’t talk right now. I have to tell you something.”
Monica narrowed her eyes. “You’re being weird, Elizabeth,” she said. “Just tell me. I don’t understand why you need to be so secretive!”
“It’s about Steven,” I hissed under my breath. “We should go. I really don’t feel like talking to them right now.”
Monica looked at me suspiciously. “Why?”
I groaned. “Just come on,” I hissed through gritted teeth. “Let’s go. I’ll tell you later.”
“Hey, Monica!” Andrea called. She jogged over, grinning. “I’m so glad to see you! Oh, my god, we were all so worried!”
Monica gave her a dark look. “I’m fine,” she said.
“So, what happened?” Andrea smiled. “I’m just so glad you’re back!”
Monica stared at her. As I watched, Monica’s brown eyes began to glow golden. Then they turned into two liquid pools of black. Andrea gasped and pointed her finger at Monica’s chest, brushing the front of her shirt. Monica yowled, leaping into the air like a scalded cat.
Monica started hissing something in a foreign language under her breath. I was horrified as she advanced on Andrea, staring her down with her black eyes and growling in a guttural tone.
“Monica, chill,” I said softly. “It’s Andrea, remember? She’s our friend.”
Monica’s hand shot out and grabbed my wrist before I had a chance to pull away. She twisted her fingers tightly until hot pain shot up my arm. I cried out and tried to yank my wrist back, but Monica held firm. She twisted her fingers, and I groaned, dropping to my knees in sudden pain.
Monica threw her head to the sky and howled. She released me, then spun on her heels and sprinted away toward the woods.
Steven and Andrea stared at me, their mouths hanging open in shock.
“So,” I said weakly, rubbing my wrist. It still ached from Monica’s tight grip. “Monica’s back.”
Steven cleared his throat. “Elizabeth, what the fuck is going on?”
“I don’t know,” I said softly. “I have no fucking idea.”
--
As I walked home, I couldn’t get the freakish look in Monica’s eyes out of my head. It was hard to believe that her eyes had suddenly changed color. ‘I must have been imagining that,’ I thought dully. ‘It must have been a trick of the light, or maybe she’s getting sick.’
But no illness I could think of would have led to such a dramatic change in my friend’s appearance. And thinking about the way she’d twisted my wrist sent shivers down my spine. The fragile bones of my wrist were aching, and it was swollen. For a moment, I’d thought she was trying to rip my hand clean off my body.
Mom was sitting in the kitchen when I got home. “Hey, honey. Some guy named David has been calling for you.” She cleared her throat. “He’s been calling all day – something like fifty times.”
My jaw dropped. “What?”
Mom tapped her chin. “He said his last name was Spring,” she said. “Does that ring a bell? I don’t know any Springs in Jaffrey.” She chuckled. “I thought you were dating Steven. Did something happen between the two of you?”
“He’s Monica’s boyfriend,” I said quickly. “He lives in Vermont.”
“And why was he calling here?”
“I don’t know.” I shrugged. “I’ll call him back as soon as I get upstairs.”
Mom frowned. “Okay, honey,” she said.
I took the stairs two at a time, leaping until I was out of breath. As soon as I was in my room, I called David.
He answered on the first ring. “Where the fuck were you?”
“I was at school,” I said. “Jesus, what the fuck is the matter?”
“I need to talk to you,” David said. “I’m driving to Jaffrey now. I’ll be at your house in ten minutes or so. Come outside and get in my car.”
I raised my eyebrow. “Can you tell me what’s going on?”
“No,” David said, “not on the phone.”
“Monica’s back,” I said quickly. “Isn’t that great?”
David didn’t answer. “Ten minutes, Elizabeth,” he said firmly.
“I don’t know that I can,” I said. I bit my lip. Even though David and I had bonded (well, sort of) while Monica was still missing, I wasn’t exactly thrilled at the idea of spending more time with him. He still bothered me, and his intensity right now was freaking me out.
“You have to,” David said. “You don’t have a fucking choice.”
He hung up, and I stared down at the phone in my hand, unable to fathom what he needed to tell me so badly. After a few minutes, I went downstairs.
Mom was still sitting at the table. “How was school?”
“Monica’s back,” I said. “She was in homeroom this morning.” ‘And then she freaked out and almost broke my wrist and ran into the woods like a total nutcase,’ I added silently in my head.
“Oh, honey, that’s wonderful!” Mom sighed. “I bet her parents are so relieved.”
I nodded slowly. “Yeah,” I said. “I bet.”
“Did she tell you what happened?”
I bit my lip. “Not exactly.”
Mom sighed. “That poor girl,” she said slowly. “I can’t imagine how terrifying it must have been for her.”
I nodded. “Yeah,” I said.
“Well, I’m sure she’ll take some time to adjust,” Mom said. “But in the meantime, until the police have it figured out, you’re not allowed to go out unless you’re with a parent, okay?”
“Mom,” I groaned. “Come on!” I wouldn’t have admitted it to anyone, but secretly I was glad. At least this way I’d have an excuse when Steven asked me out again.
If Steven asked me out again.
A horn blared from the front yard, and my mom jumped in surprise. “What the hell was that? Sorry,” She said quickly, covering her mouth.
“It’s David,” I said. “He said he needs to talk to me.”
Mom stared. “Can he come in the house?”
“Let me just go sit in his car for a few minutes, okay?”
Mom stared at me for a long time before nodding. The horn blared again, and she winced. “Just make him stop doing that,” she said. “It’s so rude!”
My heart was in my throat as I ran outside and climbed into the passenger seat of David’s car. I kept staring straight ahead at my parents’ front door as he started rambling about something.
“Elizabeth, you’re not even listening,” David growled.
“Monica’s back,” I said. Finally, I turned to him and stared. “What do you want me to say? She’s acting super weird,” I added. “She’s not talking about what happened, and she grew really angry with me earlier when I told her that I’d been worried.”
David pushed his messy black hair away from his forehead. He was even paler than usual, and there were dark circles under his eyes.
“Something weird happened,” David said. “Some kind of ancient evil.”
“What?” I narrowed my eyes. “What the fuck does that even mean?”
David sighed impatiently. “The ancient evil, in the woods – it abducted Monica, and used her as a vessel for power.”
I swallowed. My heart was thudding in alarm. There was something scary about the fervent, glittering look in David’s eyes.
“That doesn’t make any sense,” I said softly.
David spun around, twisting until he was groping at the floor of the backseat. When he emerged, he was holding a leather-bound book. The covers were moldy, and the pages were falling apart. When David cracked it open, a musty scent filled the air.
“It’s here somewhere,” David said. He fumbled through the pages until he stopped on an illustration. It had been painstakingly done, and I gasped at the intricate image. A woman with blonde hair was hovering over a fire, surrounded by a group of dancing people, all clad in long, black robes. There were symbols painted around them.
“What are those?” I pointed down. “Like astrological symbols? What kind of book is this?”
“They’re witches,” David said. He pointed to the blonde woman. “And that’s Monica.”
“Come on,” I said. I rolled my eyes. “David, you know witches don’t exist. That’s all fake. It’s meant to scare people into behaving. Or at least, it was, like a few hundred years ago.”
David stared at me. “No!” he growled. “That’s Monica. Look closer.”
I sighed. “This is crazy, I’m going–”
David grabbed my wrist. I yelped in pain. “Ouch!”
“Just look,” he said. “Elizabeth, you have to believe me.”
I took a deep breath. “Fine,” I said. David gingerly passed the book to me, and I looked down, studying the image. The blonde woman’s eyes were closed, and she wore a contented smile. She was drawn in remarkable detail, with the same symbols from the outside of the page tattooed on the inside of her forearm, a mole on her shoulder, and one toe missing from her left foot. A chill crawled down my spine. The longer I stared, the weirder I felt – almost like something was changing inside of me. The people dancing around the blonde didn’t have the same serene expressions on their faces. If anything, they looked tortured. Unhappy. Like they’d been forced to perform for a powerful witch.
“It’s her,” David said woodenly. “I know it. I just know.”
“This is a dumb coincidence,” I said. My palms felt cold and damp, and my voice was shaky. “It can’t possibly be her. This book is ancient!”
“It’s from the eighteenth century,” David said. “I found it last night.”
“David…what exactly are you saying?”
David swallowed dramatically. “I’m saying, something bad happened to her while she was gone. Something supernatural. Something paranormal, even.”
“Like what?”
“I don’t know!” David said hotly. He grabbed the book from my lap and slammed it shut.
“Well, what do you want me to do?”
“Something happened,” David repeated. “And it’s up to us to figure it out.”
--
I felt numb as I went inside and trudged up the stairs to my room. My mom had disappeared from the kitchen, but I only felt a sense of relief that I wouldn’t have to argue with her over David’s weird behavior. I felt exhausted, almost wrung out. Like I could have gone to sleep for a decade and still needed more rest.
I pushed open the door to my room and gasped. My feet were rooted firmly to the spot, and a shiver inched down my spine.
Monica was sitting lotus-style on my bed. When she saw me, she smiled.
“Hey,” Monica said. “God, you took forever to get home! I feel like I’ve been waiting for hours!” Her cheeks were flushed pink.
“I was just outside,” I said slowly. “How did you get here? I’ve been in the driveway the whole time.”
“Elizabeth, come on,” Monica said. “We both know you’re not exactly the most observant person in the world.”
I stared at her. “But…I just…I just went outside a few minutes ago. I didn’t see you come in,” I added. “What’s up?”
Monica grinned. “You’ve been anxious over Steven and Andrea,” she said softly. She raised an eyebrow. “But I know how you can win Steven – for good.”
My jaw dropped. “What?”
“I know all about what’s going on,” Monica continued. “And I know how you can come out on top.” Her grin turned sinister in the low afternoon light.
I felt myself begin to tremble and shake with fear.
“Come here, Elizabeth,” Monica said. She beckoned me with a slender finger. “Don’t you want to know?”
To be continued….
THE END