Vacations from Hell

Cecily said nothing. She couldn’t even look at Kathleen for fear of revealing that she knew the truth.



It was funny, sort of: she’d always thought Kathleen Pruitt was a horrible person. And now it turned out she hadn’t known the half of it. Kathleen wasn’t just vain, shallow, and cruel—she was really and truly evil.



Cecily stole a sideways glance. Kathleen sat with her head against Scott’s shoulder, and she smiled smugly when she saw Cecily watching.



Somehow Cecily managed to smile back, but she was thinking, Smile while you can. Because you won’t get away with it.



Part Three



SELF-IMPROVEMENT GOALS: NOW TOTALLY REVISED DUE TO STATE OF EMERGENCY



At this time of crisis I will:



talk to Mom about how best to handle freeing Scott from the enchantment, because breaking a magical tie strong enough to make a great guy like him fall for Kathleen is probably out of my league



resist the urge to say “I told you so” to Mom when the evil of Kathleen Pruitt is finally demonstrated to be objective, verifiable fact



enjoy my moment of triumph over The Loathsome One, but not so much that I don’t pay attention to the enchantment-breaking, because that is going to be high-level magic of the first degree



“Cecily, honestly.” Mom folded her arms. “We’re out having a good time, and you’re making another of your lists on a napkin?”



“We need to talk,” Cecily said, quickly tucking the napkin in her skirt pocket.



“No, we need to enjoy ourselves.” Mom put her hands on Cecily’s shoulders, pushing her to turn and look at the small stage in the corner of Mario’s Karaoke Pizzeria. Several of the fathers from the group, with Theo standing in front of Dad, were all bellowing, “We Are the Champions.”



This would normally have been enough to make Cecily cringe with embarrassment, but larger concerns were at stake. “Mom, it’s about Kathleen. She—I—well, we have to do something, because—”



“Do what, Cecily? Break it up every time you two start to squabble?”



“That’s not what I’m talking about.”



Her mother didn’t seem to hear her. “You act like Kathleen’s the most horrible human being who ever walked the face of the earth. You’ve always acted like that, ever since the two of you were four years old and she knocked over your sand castle.”



Cecily had been proud of that sand castle. “But Mom—”



“I don’t want to hear it. Yes, I know she says catty things; I have ears too, you know. Kathleen has never been as mature as you are, and I guess it’s going to take her a few more years to catch up. But I really wish you could act like an adult and let that kind of thing roll off your back.” Mom lowered her voice. “I realize that you seem very…well, taken with Scott, so it must be difficult for you. But that’s no excuse to keep obsessing about Kathleen Pruitt. Now come join the rest of us, all right? You don’t have to sing if you’ll just listen to everybody else.”



Mom walked off, leaving Cecily alone at the end of the long table, her cheeks flaming with both anger and shame.



The anger was because her mother hadn’t listened to her. The shame was because Cecily knew it was her fault Mom hadn’t listened.



Every year, as long as she could remember, she had griped about Kathleen. She’d tried to skip the Outer Banks vacation altogether; once she’d locked herself in her room when Kathleen arrived; she even remembered holding her breath as a very small child until her mother agreed that she and Kathleen didn’t have to sit next to each other at dinner. Their dislike had always been mutual—but Kathleen had never made a scene.



Too late Cecily realized that she’d complained about Kathleen so often, and for so many trivial (if entirely valid) reasons, that not even her mother would listen to her on the subject any longer.



The witch who cried wolf, she thought. Great. Now Kathleen’s actually gone evil for real, and nobody will believe me.



She glanced at the group and saw Scott sitting next to Kathleen, a vague smile on his face. He squirted ketchup on her French fries in the shape of a heart. Clearly, for the sake of his dignity, something had to be done.



Cecily would just have to do it herself.



“We Are the Champions” concluded, with the men holding their fists over their heads and Theo jumping up and down with excitement. Everybody in the place applauded, and Cecily absentmindedly joined in. She almost didn’t hear the announcer say, “Next up is—Cecily Harper!”



Wait—what?



“Cecily Harper? Where is she?” The announcer peered out into the group, then smiled as Theo pointed out his sister. “Let’s give the lovely young lady a hand!”