Back Cover Dee Days
A Middle Grade Mystery Novella by Lora Richards
Complimentary Copy of Dee Nights Included
Twelve-year-old Deedee is much taller than her peers. This alone sets her apart, never mind the fact she is unable to participate in the latest fashion trends due to the rules set by her overly strict father. Her world is turned upside down when she meets a mysterious old lady named Isabelle in an abandoned skating arena, who enlists Deedee’s help to find her missing daughter Shawna. A series of incidents on her search have Deedee wondering if there really is such a thing as ghosts.
Dee Days
by Lora Richards
Published by MuseItUp Publishing at Smashwords
Copyright 2012 Lora Richards
Smashwords Edition License Notes
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Dedication
Dedicated to two special young ladies,
Jordan & Alexxis.
Chapter One
Sunlight streamed through the branches of my favorite hiding place, casting shadowed spots to dance on my arms. Every morning, I climbed this old oak tree and straddled one of the thicker limbs I’ve dubbed my spot. From here, I could search out the many treasures littering the ravine between my house and the river—tires, broken furniture, car parts, and old bottles.
For three summers, we pretended to be anyone we wanted to be and filled our days making the perfect house. Six of us formed our club: Steven, Russell, Cindy, Sandy, MJ, and me, Deedee. This year, Steven’s parents forced him to bring his little brother, Russell. Being the youngest kid, Russell got bossed around a lot.
Long ago, I used to complain about having to take my little sister everywhere all the time, but to be honest, I liked having her with me. If it wasn’t for her, I’d probably spend most of my days all by myself.
Cindy’s parents owned the neighborhood variety store so she always brought good stuff to eat. Sandy, the youngest of six brothers and sisters, probably hung out with us every day just to get away from a houseful of people.
None of us had money, so our only rule was for everyone to find a rock or a piece of wood…something on his or her way over each day. We cleared a huge area and used rocks of various shapes and sizes to outline each of the rooms in our house. Two discarded tires and a big piece of wood made a great table, and plastic pails turned upside down made ideal chairs.
Cindy ran toward us, carrying a big box in her pudgy hands. Her cheeks were stained red and puffed out like she might explode any minute.
I pulled back a few branches to get a better look.
“What do you got there, Cindy?” MJ skipped over to meet her.
Cindy knelt down and reverently opened a box filled with pots and pans of various shapes and sizes. “Somebody just up and left them on the side of the road! Can you believe that?”
Russell turned one of the pots upside down and placed it on his head. He took a stick and another pot and marched in a circle, hitting it like a drum. Cindy laughed and took another one from the box. She found a stick and joined Russell on his march, drumming and singing a song made up as they went along. It wasn’t long before MJ and Sandy ventured out in a parade-like formation.
“Kids!” Steven’s bangs fell over one of his brown eyes. He put his hands on his hips and smacked his lips exactly like our sixth grade teacher did.
I jumped down from my spot in the tree and laughed so hard my sides hurt. Thankfully, Steven would be in my seventh grade class this year. We never hung out together at school, but when things got tough, I could always count on a secret glance from him. If nothing else, it made me feel less alone, which helped more than I would ever tell him.
I dreaded the first day of school. I’ve grown at least three inches over the summer, and would now be taller than some, if not all, of the kids in my class. Even the boys were shorter than me! To make things worse, my parents still made me wear stupid dresses to school every day. Who ever heard of anything so crazy?
My father always gave us the same speech. “That’s what’s wrong with the world today, boys acting like girls, and girls acting like boys.”
How ridiculous! He still thinks it’s the Stone Age, and I’m the one who has to pay the price. It made me so mad that I couldn’t do anything about it. In my house, what father says is law.
* * * *
Days whizzed by, and before we knew it, it was almost time to go back to school. Going back to school also meant it would soon be my twelfth birthday, which meant a party in my backyard. MJ never had a party because her birthday is too close to Christmas. She always got a present at my party so she didn’t feel left out.
Days before summer holidays ended, my parents informed us we were moving to the other side of the city. My father got a promotion, and the new house came with the job. Even worse, we would start at our new school a week after everyone else.
My life is over!
“What about my birthday party?” I cried.
“Sometimes we have to do things we don’t like, Deedee,” my mother spoke firmly. “This will not be easy for any of us. I’m sorry we won’t be here for your birthday, but you’re not a little girl any more. You’re almost a teenager. Maybe you’re a little too old for parties anyhow.”
Great! I’m losing the only thing I have all to myself. Wait…
“If I can’t have a party, can I have a pair of jeans for my birthday?” I tried to sound like a teenager. “All of the other kids my age have them.”
I truly thought my heart stopped, waiting for an answer.
“If all the kids jumped off a bridge would you jump too?” My father spoke with the compassion of a rock. Once he made up his mind, there wasn’t much hope of changing it. “There are kids in Africa who don’t even know when their birthdays are, never mind crying about the things they don’t have.”
I’ve heard this speech a million times, so I just sat and listened. When he finished, he sent me to my room to think about how lucky I am.
* * * *
Life as I knew it ended. A week before the new school year started, I sat on our front steps watching strangers in overalls load up all of our possessions in a big truck, while my friends attended their first day back to school
I didn’t even get a chance to say goodbye to anyone before we left. Right after lunch, we piled in our car and drove to the new house. No one spoke a word the entire ride. MJ sat on opposite ends of the back seat, staring out the window at our new neighbourhood. There wouldn’t be a gully behind the house, which meant no more summer fun with Steven, Russell, Cindy, or Sandy. Will they even remember us next summer?
Chapter Two
A dark cloud followed me around for the next week while we cleaned and unpacked our boxes. Our old house had one floor. At this one, the bedrooms and bathroom were upstairs. I still shared a room with MJ, but it was a much bigger room with bright, yellow flowers on the walls.
My father must have seen me walking around as if the world came to an end. “If you’re going to mope around with a pout on your face, you can do so in your room. You can stay there until you can come out with a smile on your face.”
My dad wasn’t one for conversation.
Fine with me. I’ll probably never smile again anyhow.
Later, MJ and I ventured out to explore the new neighborhood after my dad left for work.
“Make sure you stay on our street, at least until you’ve had a chance to find your way around the neighborhood.” Mom wiped her sweaty hands on a tea towel and brushed back a stray strand of her dark blonde hair. “I think I saw a park at the end of our street. Why don’t you go there?”
Four blocks away, we saw what might be the park. The only things visible from the street were a bunch of trees and a path. Curiosity got the best of us, and we made our way down the narrow trail.
We’d only gone a few feet before we spotted what looked to be an old barn through the overgrown weeds and bramble.
“Come on, let’s check it out.” I stomped down a patch of weeds.
“I don’t think we should, Deedee.”
“Don’t be such a baby. I’m not going inside. I just want to get a closer look.”
“Okay, but if we get caught, I’m blaming everything on you.”
“What else is new?” I snickered. “Help me clear a path.”
We couldn’t get as close as I would’ve liked. The weeds were too thick, and I might as well have been alone for all the help MJ put out.
“What does that say?” MJ pointed to a big board only hanging from one corner on the wall.
The letters were faded and paint chipped, but one of the words read pretty clear, Skating. “I guess it’s an old Skating rink.”
“Okay, you found out what it is. Can we please go now? This place gives me the willies.”
I shook my head and followed MJ back the same way we came. I’d definitely come back another day to explore. We kept to the path until it yawned open to a clearing—to the right, a baseball diamond, and to the left, a park. A creek ran along the length of the field. It looked like a pretty cool place to hang out. Too bad every other kid on the planet was at school. MJ and I climbed the equipment before we checked out the water. The creek looked about four feet wide and had stepping-stones to cross over without getting your feet wet.
A shiver ran up my back, and I turned to find the space behind me empty. I could swear I felt warm breath on the back of my neck.
Not wanting to freak out MJ, I said, “Maybe we should head home. Mom will worry if we’re gone too long.” I scanned the length of the park and wiped my damp hands on MJ’s shorts.
“Hey!” MJ shook her head, setting her blonde curls in motion.
It’s funny, I’d always wanted her curls, and she always wished for straight hair like mine. The only thing we shared was the light blonde color.
On the way back home, I couldn’t stop thinking about going back to explore the arena. It wasn’t the same as our old neighbourhood, but at least we found someplace cool to hang out.
“I guess we start our new school on Monday.”
MJ skipped alongside me until I mentioned school. She stopped and bowed her head but not quick enough to hide the tears filling her big blue eyes.
“Don’t worry, sis.” I put an arm around her shoulders. “If we stick together, everything will be fine.”
I didn’t tell her I was scared. At least with the nice weather we wouldn’t need to wear tights with our skirts. Maybe it won’t be too bad. I felt sorry for MJ being a little plump and very sensitive about it. Anytime someone teased her about it, she’d cry. I hoped she wouldn’t cry on the first day.
Sometimes I think about something way too much and make it out to be far worse than it really is. Maybe, just maybe, we’ll like this school better than the old one.
* * * *
Sunday night, we sneaked into the cupboard before we went to bed and took a couple packets of gummy bears each to hide in our backpacks. “At least we have lots of snacks to share with the other kids,” I said.
When MJ turned away, I let her have mine too. She’d need them more than me. After that, we lay in bed, dreading the next day.
Well, at least we didn’t have to match each other’s clothes like our father usually made us. For once, we were allowed to pick out our own dresses. I tried my hardest to stay happy, but the closer we got to the school, the harder it became.
We walked in the shadow of a school much taller than our old one. When we passed the playground, not many kids looked our way. My mom came along to register us in the new school. How embarrassing.
MJ and I sat on display outside of the office while Mom went inside to sign papers and stuff. Kids walked by and whispered to each other.
Please, oh please let us go into our new classes at the same time everyone else does. I’d rather die than start a new class after everyone already sat at their desks.
I stared at the clock, willing my mom to come out and for them to tell us where to go. Of course it didn’t happen. The first bell rang, telling everyone outside to come in and go to his or her classes. I stared at a poster on the wall while all of the kids filed past us. What is taking them so long?
Finally, my mom came out with a tall man who wore black-framed glasses resting on a nose far too big for his face.
“Girls, meet your new principal, Mr. Hammond.”
Mr. Hammond extended his bony hand, and in turn, we shook it. “It’s nice to meet you, ladies. I trust you’ll enjoy your time here at King Henry Public School.”
“Yes, sir.” MJ and I chimed.
The second bell rang. Ugh! Oh, great. Now we couldn’t slip in our classrooms undetected. I just knew in my heart of hearts the teacher would make me stand in front of the class and be humiliated. MJ’s bottom lip quivered. I touched her hand, and she looked my way. I smiled and tried to tell her with my eyes it would be okay. She forced a smile back.
My mother left, and we followed Mr. Hammond down the empty hallway.
“I’ll see you at recess. You’re going to be just fine,” I whispered to MJ, relieved we took her first. She might have lost it if she had to walk to class without me. The door opened, and noisy chatter spilled out. The principle escorted MJ inside while I waited in the hall. Everything got real quiet as Mr. Hammond introduced MJ. Thankfully, the kids didn’t erupt with laughter—definitely a good sign. I caught a glimpse of MJ as she walked past a couple of kids who whispered to each other behind their hands.
Now it’s my turn. I imagined running down the hall and out the doors. Maybe I’d be okay if I didn’t look at anyone in the classroom. Unfortunately, my plan blew up in my face when my new teacher, Miss Ogilvy, made me introduce myself to the class. I couldn’t remember much of what happened next. I just desperately wanted it to be over with. My teacher sat me at the back of the room. Normally, this would suit me just fine except she added that she did so because of how tall I am!
Gee, thanks a bunch for pointing that out!
The rest of the day went better than expected. Nobody talked to me, but nobody laughed at me either. Which suited me just fine.
MJ, on the other hand, ran over to me at last recess with a small skinny girl close behind, all excited for me to meet her new best friend, Dale. “Can you believe it? She lives right across the street from us!”
After school, we both went to Dale’s house to hang out. Dale turned out to be very bossy. I didn’t like her much, but I wasn’t about to ruin MJ’s fun. It wasn’t too bad as long as everything went Dale’s way.
One day, Dale pretended to be the baby, MJ the mom, and I played the dad. Well, Dale fell down, and we took her to the make-believe hospital. I pretended to be the doctor, and we used popcorn for medicine. I don’t know why I did it, but instead of putting the popcorn in her mouth, I pushed it up her nose. Of course it got stuck, and Dale cried to her mother. I ran home and straight upstairs. Boy, I’m in big trouble.
About an hour later, my mom came to my room. Did she ever flip out! Her face turned beet red, and the vein on her forehead popped out like it did whenever she got real mad. “They had to take poor Dale to the hospital and have a doctor take the popcorn out. Honestly, Deedee. What kind of example are you for your sister? Why would you do something so childish? Consider yourself lucky I’m not telling your father. You are not to go over to Dale’s house ever again. Do you hear me?”
I nodded. No problem. I’d do anything she asked to keep her from telling my dad.
Chapter Three
For the next couple of weeks, I went to school, came home, did homework, watched TV, and went to bed. MJ and Dale were always together. MJ didn’t seem to care if I had anybody to hang out with or not. She and Dale stuck their noses way up in the air whenever I came near them.
Saturday morning, MJ asked to pack a lunch to go with her best friend down to the park. I hopped on my bike and got there before they did in the hope of catching MJ doing something wrong to get her in trouble.
I hid my bike in the bushes and crouched down beside it. Not long after, MJ and Dale skipped down the path. The sensation of warm breath on the back of my neck prompted me to spin around and find a girl about my age standing behind me.
“What are you doing?” she asked.
“Shh.” I pulled the girl by the sweater so she knelt beside me. “The one with curly hair is my sister, and that's her friend, Dale. I’m not allowed to hang around with her.”
“Why?” she asked.
“It’s a long story, and I’d rather not talk about.”
“What’s your name?”
“Deedee. What’s yours?”
“Anita.”
We sat for a few minutes while MJ and Dale spread out a blanket and ate their lunches.
Anita brushed the grass from her knees. “I’m bored. Do you want to ride bikes?”
“Sure. I don’t know my way around very well yet. We just moved here.”
I found out Anita lived a block away from my house and went to a school where they wore uniforms. I felt sorry for her, but she didn’t seem to mind.
For the rest of the day, we rode bikes. We stopped at Anita’s house, and her mom gave us both a Popsicle. Anita had two older brothers, a younger sister, and a baby brother. She reminded me of Sandy with her shoulder-length brown hair and far too big, hand-me-down clothes. I didn’t think they were poor. Her mom wore her hair done up all-fancy like and wore sparkly rings on her fingers. The neatest thing about Anita was her height. I loved having a friend as tall as me.
* * * *
I wasn’t surprised to see MJ come home from Dale’s in tears one day. Dale sent her away after they got in a fight while playing house. Now MJ didn’t have anyone to play with and asked to come with Anita and me. I told her no because she didn’t care when I didn’t have anybody to play with. Then she did what little sisters do best. She went crying to mom. So, of course, I had to take her with us.
I wasn’t very happy about it. Not happy one bit, and MJ knew it. I made her walk behind me all the way to Anita’s house. When her mom saw MJ with me, she thought it was a good idea for Anita to take her little sister too. Oh great. Things went from bad to worse in ten seconds or less.
We’d have to explore the old arena another day. MJ turned into a regular tattletale since she and Dale became friends. She always told on me for the stupidest things, like not doing my homework or throwing things under my bed. If MJ told on us for going in the arena, I’d be grounded for life—especially after the note sent home from school told of the arena’s condition. Once my father read the note, we were forbidden to go near it. We went to the park anyhow, hoping to sneak a peek inside while Jane and MJ played on the equipment.
No such luck! Jane stuck to Anita like glue. No matter how hard we tried to get her to go play, Jane wouldn’t budge from Anita’s side. She definitely won the prize for the biggest nine-year-old baby ever. I never thought anybody could be more annoying than Russell, but she took first place.
“Don’t you even think about hanging on me.” MJ knew I meant business and sat on the swings alone. I didn’t feel sorry for her. It wasn’t my idea for her to tag along. Served her right for being such a whiner!
Eventually, Jane sat on the swing next to MJ, and they started talking. Before long, they laughed and ran around on the equipment. Anita looked at me, and I nodded in the direction of the arena. We sat on the picnic table behind the equipment and waited for the perfect time to sneak off into the trees.
I had to admit to being more than a little scared. Just the look of the old arena gave me the creeps. Every window had at least one broken pane of glass, and boards were nailed across the fronts of them in a poor attempt to keep unwanted visitors out. As always, I wore a skirt, so Anita agreed to go up if I gave her a boost. I crouched down on my knees, and Anita climbed aboard my shoulders. She wasn’t very heavy, but I still struggled to stand. “Can you see anything?”
“It’s too dark inside!” Anita made her way down, and we walked slowly back to the park.
“We need to bring a flashlight next time.” Anita frowned.
“Well, we need to come without the kids next time. We’d have more time to check it out.”
We stepped out of the bushes to find Jane and MJ no longer on the equipment. Anita shouted out their names, and I ran down to the creek to see if they wandered down there. There wasn’t any sign of them anywhere.
“Oh great! Where did they disappear to?” My pulse raced, and I wiped my damp hands on the hem of my top. I’d be in so much trouble if I showed up at home without MJ.
“Maybe they saw we weren’t on the bench and left for home. Let’s try and catch up to them before they make it back.”
I prayed we’d reach them in time. We ran up the path leading out of the park. There wasn’t any sign of them down our street.
“My mom is going to kill me.” Anita shook her head.
“That’s nothing compared to what my dad will do to me!” Panic set it in, and tears filled my eyes. I will not cry, I will not cry, I will not cry…
Just then, we heard our names being called from behind us. We turned around to find MJ and Jane running up the path.
“Hey! Wait for us!” MJ took the lead as they ran toward us.
Jane’s dirty face was streaked with tears.
“Where were you two? We looked everywhere for you?” Heat rushed to my face the angrier I got.
“Where were we? You mean where were you?” MJ lashed back. “We looked everywhere for you two. We thought you were playing a joke on us and were hiding in the bushes, so we went in there to try and find you!”
MJ cried. Jane already sat on the grass and bawled. Anita just stood there with her hands on her hips, listening to MJ explain.
“Okay, you two can cut the tears right now. If you can get your faces cleaned up before we get home, we won’t tell on you.” Anita winked at me without either MJ or Jane seeing her. “Now quit acting like babies and let’s go!”
“Promise you won’t tell?” MJ asked me and tried to wipe her face clean with her shirtsleeve.
“Yes, but just this once. Next time, I want to go anywhere with Anita, you do not want to go…right?”
MJ nodded in agreement.
“All right then, let’s get home before we’re all in trouble for being late.”
Jane and MJ followed us close behind as we walked up the street. Anita had a smirk on her face, and I’m sure I did too. It felt good to turn the tables on MJ after all the times she tattled on me.
Chapter Four
Two more days until my birthday, and for the first time ever, I wasn’t very excited about it. Since moving, I wondered what kind of a birthday I’d have. Mom said I was too old for parties now. There was nobody but Anita to invite anyhow. When I had suggested inviting my friends from the old neighbourhood, my mom just shook her head. She told me to try harder to make new friends. She didn’t understand. The kids at school stayed away from me right now, but they’d eventually start laughing.
Did my dad even care what MJ and I went through at school? He often said “It’s what’s on the inside, not the outside that counts.” In theory he might be right, but try convincing a bunch of kids my age! He didn’t understand the importance of keeping up with the currents styles. Wasn’t it the same when he went to school? I’d rather have to wear uniforms like Anita did. At least then everyone wore the same thing. Too bad only Catholics were allowed to go to her school.
As for MJ, she made up with Dale, and the two were once again inseparable. MJ hadn’t tattled since the little episode at the park. As a matter of fact, she hardly spoke to me. Mom must have noticed because she asked if there was anything wrong. She gave us one of those looks and reminded us we were sisters and to start acting like it.
Nobody mentioned my birthday. Is it possible they forgot with everything going on since we moved? Just in case, I wrote on the calendar, “Deedee 12th B’day.” With a red magic marker, I circled the date on the fridge door. There was no way anyone could miss it.
I had homework almost every night. I never had so much before. We couldn’t watch TV after supper until we’d finished all of our school work. I don’t think I watched television once since the first day at our new school. Of course, MJ never had homework. How fair is that? It made me so mad to see her watching my favourite program while I sat at the kitchen table night after night! She knew it too, and every now and then, she’d wait until I glanced her way to stick out her tongue at me.
How juvenile!
* * * *
On my birthday, I woke up earlier than usual, dressed, brushed my teeth, and hurried downstairs. In front of my place at the table sat a present. They didn’t forget!
“Well don’t just look at it, open it up, birthday girl.”
My mom stood at the kitchen counter with a big smile. She seemed excited for me to open my present. What can it be?
I ripped it open to find two pairs of corduroys. They weren’t jeans, but they were pants. My mom laughed before I asked the question.
“Yes, you can wear them to school.”
Can she read my mind? I hugged her quick and ran back upstairs. I never changed clothes so fast, ever! It felt kind of strange wearing pants, except in a good way. I wished for jeans but knew it took some fancy talk for my mom to get him to agree to even this. I admired my birthday gift in the mirror and wished the mirror was full length. From what I could see, they looked so awesome, I almost cried. MJ pouted. I couldn’t resist sticking my tongue out at her before leaving the room.
I grabbed my lunch from the kitchen and heard MJ ask why she couldn’t wear pants to school too.
“Maybe when you’re twelve, MJ. You know how your dad is.”
MJ stomped off, throwing her backpack over her shoulder. Without another word, she ran out the door and crossed the street to call on Dale. Big deal! She didn’t want to walk with me. I wasn’t going to let her ruin my day. For the first time ever, I wore pants to school, and I could swear everyone noticed me. I must look even better than I think I do.
The school bell rang the same instant my foot hit the school yard, and everyone filed inside. As I walked between the rows to my desk, kids giggled and whispered to each other. What’s so funny? For once they weren’t laughing at me. The second bell rang, and class began. I think I smiled the whole morning, never having been so happy. When the bell rang for recess, everyone hurried outside. Some kids laughed amongst themselves in passing. Surely they’re not laughing at me. What’s going on? No matter how hard I tried to ignore them, their continuous laughter made it impossible. I turned in their direction only to have them point and laugh. For once I’m dressed the same as everyone else. Just what do they find so funny?
The bell rang to go back inside. The same group of kids stood by the doors and waited for me to get there. The second I reached them, they pointed and laughed again.
“What’s so funny?” I yelled. I’m real mad now.
“What’s the matter, giant? Do you expect a flood?” a girl named Leah taunted.
“What are you talking about?”
“You’re so dumb. You really don’t know, do you? Your pants! They’re so short! Flood pants!”
The group of girls were all in hysterics now. My face must have gone beet red! Oh my God! I never even thought to look at the length. To make matters worse, I had white socks on! I hurried back to my desk and didn’t look up for the rest of the day. At lunch, I hid in the bathroom. When the final bell rang, I ran the whole way home. I’ve never been so humiliated in my life!
* * * *
I opened our front door, and the tears fell. I saw the balloons and the cake on the table…
“This is the worst day of my life!” None of it mattered. I ran upstairs to my room and threw myself on my bed.
“Deedee, what’s wrong?” asked my mother.
“How could you do this to me?” I cried. “You knew how much I wanted pants. How could you give them to me too short! I’m the laughing stock of the school!”
“Now, Deedee, how could I know they’d be too short?” She gathered me in her arms and stroked my hair. I didn’t remember her ever being this way.
“I’m sorry, Mom, but they were so mean! I can’t ever go back to school!”
Mom made me come downstairs for my cake and sit there while my sister and mom sang Happy Birthday to me. Of course, my dad was at work. After we ate some cake, my mom spent the rest of the night letting down the small hem of my pants. Despite her efforts, they still weren’t long enough but definitely better than before. I thanked her, even though I’d never wear them to school again. Now that I was twelve, I could find a babysitting job. I’d save my money and buy myself some jeans. Real long jeans!
I don’t care what Dad has to say about it.
The walk to school the next day seemed a hundred miles long. I didn’t wear pants to school. I’d never give them another reason to make fun of me again. I passed the group of kids who caused all the trouble, and they laughed at me again. I’m not sure what got into me, but I stopped and glared down at the main troublemaker, Leah. She looked up at me, and when I matched her gaze, she looked away.
“Do you have something to say to me?”
“N-no. Why would I want to talk to you?”
“That’s right. So keep your mouth shut. You hear?”
The girl nodded, and without another word, I stormed off. My heart hammered against my rib cage. I’d never stood up to anybody before in my life. Enough is enough. I will never let anyone laugh at me again.
Word got around the school about what happened. At recess, a few kids came up and asked to sit with me. I wasn’t sure why all of a sudden they wanted to, but I said okay. They all asked if I planned to fight with Leah. How funny is that? I’ve never even been in a fight in my life.
“If she keeps her mouth shut, she has nothing to worry about.”
So that’s how it all began. After that, everyone knew me as the tall girl who nobody wanted to mess with. Every time I walked by Leah, I glared at her until she looked away. It was hilarious because I didn’t think I’d even know what to do if anybody really wanted to fight me. If they thought I did, I guessed it would keep them away from me. Besides, a group of kids liked to hang around with me now. Who cared why?
I couldn’t wait until Saturday. Anita and I made plans to explore the old arena.
Kim, one of my new friends, knew more of the story behind the big old barn. “It’s been abandoned for years. Most kids are strictly forbidden to go near it—not because it isn’t safe—but because a lot of people believe it’s haunted.”
“Haunted? You mean like ghosts and stuff?”
“Yup, I’m not sure if it’s true or not, but some say those who went inside never returned!”
I laughed nervously. Oh great! I’m already nervous enough about going inside, and now I’ll be worried about ghosts!
I kept our plans a secret. If word somehow made it to MJ, she wouldn’t be able to move fast enough to tell Mom and Dad.
Ghosts!
The only time I even remotely thought of ghosts was during our summers playing in the ravine. A few times the fog filled the gully, and it looked pretty spooky. Ghosts or not, I wasn’t letting a bunch of nonsense stop me. What is the worst thing that can happen? Casper appears before us? I chuckled the entire way back to my desk.
Chapter Five
Finally Saturday came—the day Anita and I were going to explore the arena. I had to admit to being more than a little scared to go inside. Anita managed to get two flashlights from her dad’s workbench. I took two pairs of gloves from a box of winter things we kept on a shelf in the laundry room. It’s probably pretty dirty inside. I grabbed a couple of water bottles and jogged out to meet up with Anita. The pants I got for my birthday came in handy after all.
Anita waited on the corner for me. We left our bikes at home because we didn’t want to leave them outside alone while we were inside. Anita wore overalls at least three or four sizes too big for her. They made her look even more like a boy than she already did with her short mousy brown hair.
“Are you sure this is a good idea?”
“You’re not chicken are you?” Anita punched my arm. “C’mon, don’t be such a fraidy cat!”
“I’m not scared.” I put on a brave face even though my legs trembled more and more the closer we got.
We walked around to the back, in search of the best window to go in through. One of the bottom rows didn’t have a board nailed across it, and all the glass was knocked out. We should be able to squeeze through the empty space, but how are we going to get up there to do it? Anita’d stood on my shoulders last time and barely reached high enough to look inside.
“How about the picnic table?” I suggested. “If we can drag it through these bushes, we can lean it up against the side and climb up to the window.”
“Good idea, Dee.” Anita ran to the picnic table. “C’mon!”
It took some doing to get the table through the bushes. Branches scraped our arms as we pushed and pulled it through the thick foliage. Afterward, we sat with our backs against the wall and gasped to catch our breath.
“Here, drink this.” I handed Anita a bottle of water. “Don’t drink it all. Save some for later.”
A few minutes later, we climbed the table up to the window ledge. Thankfully, the table wasn’t as hard to climb as to move. We stood on the top end of the picnic table, and Anita pulled a flashlight from each of her side pockets and passed one to me. We tuck our heads through the empty space and shone our flashlights into the darkness.
“What do you see?” Anita asked.
“It looks like a hallway of some kind. It looks pretty empty to me.”
“Well, let’s go in then!” Anita already had her body halfway in.
I took a deep breath and followed her lead.
Please don’t let there be any ghosts!
Anita jumped to the floor, and I landed with the same feeling you get when you step in mud. As my feet slid from under me, I reached for the wall to steady myself.
“Ewwww! Yuck!” My hands touched the cold slimy walls “What is this? Gross!”
Anita fell flat on her butt. Totally grossed out, I still couldn’t stop from laughing. She looked hilarious sitting in the middle of all the slime.
“Ha ha, very funny! Are you going to stand there all day laughing at me, or are you helping me up?”
Gloves. I gave her a pair to put on and offered my hand to pull her up. The slimy substance dripped from Anita’s butt. She tried to brush it away but only managed to smear it around. Unable to contain myself one second longer, I doubled over in hysterics.
“You can stop any time, you know!”
“I’m sorry. I guess we better get a move on.” I wiped the tears from my eyes.
Particles of dust and small bugs danced in the rays of our flashlights as we inched our way down the dark hallway. A terrible stench came off the slime-covered walls and floor.
“Which way should we go?” Anita shone her light down one way and up the other.
“Doesn’t look like it much matters. Let’s go in the direction of the front doors.” From outside on the street, I saw they were boarded up pretty tight.
“Okay,” Anita agreed, and we made our way down the hallway, side by side, neither one of us wanting to lose sight of each other.
I gagged as the odor grew more and more disgusting. One thing I knew for sure, I’d never smelled anything like it before. The hall curved. I shone my flashlight up ahead and pointed to what looked to be a doorway. “Wonder where that goes?”
“I don’t know. You want to find out?” Anita shone her light on the door.
“I guess I do.” My pulse raced. Thoughts of ghosts filled my mind. I wished I never asked anybody about the place. What if we go through the door and see a ghost like Kim talked about? I stopped dead in my tracks
“C’mon Dee! You can’t change your mind now!” Anita begged me to follow her.
“Okay, okay!”
As Anita eased the door open, cold air rushed at us from inside. The hairs on my arms stood straight up, and goose bumps covered my body from head to toe—fear paralyzed me. My feet stuck to the floor. I suddenly realized Anita had already ventured inside and forced my feet to move. Anita stood in the middle of the room, her flashlight hung down by her side. I moved slightly to see what scared her.
We stood in what once served as a change room. Lockers lined one wall; all the doors stood open to reveal them empty. On the floor, directly in front of Anita, sat a mattress covered in blankets with a big mound in the middle.
“What is it?” I shone my flashlight on the pile.
“I’m not sure, but I think I saw it move.” Anita reached for my hand. “Maybe we should get out of here.”
“Wait, do you hear something?” I could swear it sounded like crying.
“I don’t hear anything.” Anita looked real scared. Her hand trembled in mine.
I moved toward the makeshift bed, only to have Anita pull me back.
“Who’s the fraidy cat now?” I pulled my hand from hers and inched closer. The pile of blankets stirred, and the noises got louder with each step.
“Wait a minute.” I’d heard the sound before. I pulled the blanket aside to find a box full of black baby kittens all huddled together, making it almost impossible to tell how many there were.
“Awww. Look, Anita. They’re so cute!”
“Don’t touch them!”
I stopped, my hand mere inches away.
“Why not?”
“Well, they didn’t get here by themselves, did they?”
I shone my flashlight around the room. Other than a box of crumpled clothing at the end of a bed, I saw no sign of anyone in the room.
“We better put the blanket back and get out of here!” Anita headed for the door.
At the same time, we heard the sound of footsteps approaching.
“Let’s hide, hurry!” Anita grabbed my hand, and we ran behind the lockers. We crouched down, and I could swear we both stopped breathing for fear we’d make a sound.
“The blanket,” I whispered. The blanket that once covered the kittens lay in a pile on the floor. I squeezed Anita’s hand as tight as I could. The footsteps squished through the slime as they entered the room. Neither one of us moved a muscle, too scared to try and sneak a look.
“Who’s there?” The creepy, deep rattle resounded in the room. Then the voice grew louder. “I know there’s someone out there. You better show yourself!”
Nothing could have made us leave our hiding spot. It might be a killer or an escaped convict. I heard a crinkling sound—the same sound paper made on Christmas morning.
“There, there now. There’s plenty of dinner for all of you. You little darlings will catch your death of cold. Now behave yourself while I find whoever took this blanket off you all.” She cackled like the witch from the Wizard of Oz.
The muffled noise the kittens made as they licked food of some kind filled the room. Next, we heard the stranger walk through the slime and out of the room, closing the door behind.
“Did you get a look?” I whispered.
“No, I didn’t dare move.”
“How do we get out of here?” I’ve never been so scared.
“I’m not sure, but we need to find a way out and fast!”
Anita opened the door a crack.
My heart thumped so loud I feared it might pop out of my chest. “Can you see anyone?”
“It’s too dark. Do you think it will be okay to use the flashlight?”
“We have to, Anita.”
Anita shone her flashlight from left to right. She waved for me to follow her. Quickly and quietly, we made our way down the dark hallway until we finally came to the window we climbed in through. We can’t reach that high.
“How are we going to get up there? Maybe if you stand on my shoulders.” I bent down, my hand flat against the wall for support. “Quick, climb on and get up there. You can pull me up from there!”
Anita didn’t argue, and seconds later, she reached down to pull me up.
“Hah! I knew it!” The voice from back in the locker room came out of the darkness of the hallway.
“Hurry, Anita! Pull me up!”
The dark outline of someone or something came toward us. My hand slipped from Anita’s, and I fell back and landed in the thick slime covering the floor. I looked up, and Anita stared back at me in horror.
Just then, someone grabbed my arm.
Chapter Six
“Anita!”
Anita vanished from the window and left me alone in the dark hall of the arena with the stranger. The hold on my arm tightened, and I was jerked to my feet. I felt hot breath on my face. I opened my eyes.
Hidden behind a big hooded cloak, an old wrinkled lady glared at me. “Well, young lady, what do you have to say for yourself?”
I tried to talk but instead my emotions betrayed me and tears slipped down my cheeks. The old lady let go of my arm.
“No reason to cry now, missy.” Her voiced cracked. “What are you two up to in here? This is no place for the likes of you!”
“I-I-I’m sorry.” I said. “We just wanted to see inside. We didn’t mean any harm.”
Where did Anita go? How could she just leave me like this? How will I get out of here? Maybe the old lady will tie me up and hold me captive. I wish I never agreed to do this. I scanned the area for a way to escape. She must have read my thoughts and grabbed hold of my arm again.
“Let me go!” Anger and fear rolled up in a tight ball inside of me. I tried to pull away from her, but for an old lady, she had a firm grip. Crazy thoughts filled my mind. I pictured myself tied up in the room with the kittens.
“I have to go home,” I pleaded. “My parents will be worried!”
“I bet your parents don’t know about you sneaking in here! Do they now?”
“No…if you let me go, I promise I’ll never come back here again.”
The old lady threw her head back and laughed, showing her yellow and broken teeth. Her breath smelled like the kittens weren’t the only ones eating scraps. “Now, you listen to me. I can’t have you leave here and tell people about me. How can I be sure you won’t do just that?”
She stood there for what seemed to be forever, her dirty hand stroking her chin. I tried to speak, but she raised her finger to her cracked lips, telling me to shush. Her eyes narrowed. “I’ll tell you what. I’ll let you go, but under one condition.”
“Anything, you name it!”
“It’s been a long time since I’ve eaten a decent meal. If you bring me some food, I won’t be forced to let your parents know what you’ve been up to. I’ve lived here for a very long time, and I see everything that goes on. I know where you live, deary. If you don’t come back here…let’s say…next Saturday morning before lunchtime, I’ll contact your parents and tell them everything.”
She reached for me, and I closed my eyes. The chain holding the locket around my neck snapped as she yanked it
“I’ll just keep this for insurance purposes!” She laughed, once again sounding like a cackling witch. “You can have it back when I’m sure you won’t tell anyone about me.”
“It’s a deal! Please take care of my locket. My grandmother gave it to me. If my parents find out it’s gone, I will be in big trouble!”
“You don’t know what trouble is. Try not showing up here next Saturday!”
“I’ll be here! I promise!” Tears of relief fell from my eyes. “How can I get out now?”
“Follow me.” The old lady walked down the hallway in the opposite direction we came.
“Where are you going?”
“You want out of here, don’t you?”
I stayed right behind her as she hobbled down the dark hallway. Anita better be waiting for me. How could she just leave like she did? In no time, the old woman and I stood in front of a big set of doors. She struggled to push a long piece of wood that secured to the frame on one side; it looked to be some sort of lock. Light poured in as she cracked the door open enough for me to squeeze through.
“Come to these doors next Saturday. Just sit outside of them until I come. Do not knock, and if anyone sees you, not a word about me. You hear?”
“I promise. Thank you!”
I shot off like a rocket the second my foot hit the ground. A quick look over my shoulder showed no sign of the old lady. I rounded the corner of the building in search of Anita and found her standing on top of the picnic table, stretching her neck to look inside.
“A lot of help you are!”
Startled, Anita jerked backward, off the table, and hit the ground hard. “Dee!”
Anita sat with her head in her arms.
“We both look like we’ve been making mud pies.” I tried to make light in spite of my heart threatening to pound out of my chest.
She looked up—a smile tugged at the corner of her mouth—before letting loose a million questions. Her jaw dropped as I tried to answer each one.
“Let’s try and clean up some of this slimy mess.” Anita suggested as we joined hands and ran off toward the creek.
“So, who do you think she is?” Anita asked, as she scooped some water and splashed it in her face. “Brrrr!”
“I don’t know. I’m just glad she let me go!” I followed Anita’s lead and cupped my hands full of cold water. “Now I have to figure out a way to get some food here for next Saturday.”
“We’ll figure something out.”
The sticky slime from the arena ruined both of our clothes. Anita kept watch while I rinsed mine in the creek, and I kept an eye out for Anita as she did the same. We looked better but nowhere near good enough to go home without a ton of questions. Hopefully, the hot sun would dry us on our way home. How would we explain this one to our parents?
After a brief discussion, we agreed on our story. We’d tell everyone we tried to catch frogs for our science project and fell in the creek. Our story had to work. If either of our parents found out the truth, we’d be in major trouble.
As we reached my front porch, I prayed my mom would believe me and my dad wasn’t home. I wasn’t confident enough to pull off a lie to him. We both shivered, and our teeth chattered as we talked about what happened.
“I wonder who she is.” Anita’s lips almost turned blue.
We had a million questions and no answers.
“Good luck, Dee,” she said through clenched teeth, arms across her chest to keep warm.
I took a deep breath and walked inside. I managed to sneak upstairs to the bathroom unseen.
As soon as the door shut, my mom called up the stairs, “Deedee, is that you?”
“Yes, Mom, I’m in the bathroom!”
“When you come out, put on something nice. Dad will be home soon, and we’re going to Grandma’s house.”
“Okay, Mom!”
Phew! Maybe I didn’t have to lie to anyone. I washed up and took my dirty clothes off in the bathroom. I wrapped a towel around myself and rolled my clothes together before tiptoeing down the hall to my room. There was no saving my clothes. How was I going to talk my way out of this one? For now, it would have to wait. I knelt down beside my bed and pushed them as far back as my arms could reach.
It was probably the first time I actually wanted to wear a dress. Long sleeves and tights covered all of the scratches and small bruises. The mirror above my dresser showed I just might pull this off—that is except for my hair. A little baby powder, a good brushing, and a tight ponytail gave me the courage to head downstairs.
“You look nice, Deedee,” my mother said on her way upstairs. “Your hair needs to be washed though. Remind me when we get home you need a bath.”
Man, am I lucky! I hope Anita is too. A shiver ran up my spine as the wrinkled old face from the arena flashed in my mind. I prayed it all turned out to be a bad dream, but the absence of the locket around my neck confirmed it to be very real…now, to get through the afternoon without my grandmother noticing it wasn’t there.
The whole time we stayed at Grandma and Grandpa’s, I thought somehow my parents would find out what happened.
“Are you okay? You seem a little pale.” Mom asked.
I curled up in the corner of the couch.
My mom put a hand on my forehead. “You are a little warm. I hope you’re not sick.”
Chapter Seven
I peeked out from behind my blankets, and the bright morning sun sent a piercing pain from my eyes to the back of my skull. Mom made me stay home from school since my temperature was hot one minute and cold the next. After she filled the hot water bottle and put it under my blankets, I slept away the day. I tried to eat the soup she brought up to me at suppertime, but my belly did strange flip-flops, and she left me sleep.
MJ slept on the couch so she didn’t catch my bug. Anita came to the door and asked for me, but my mom told I was in bed sick. I guess she didn’t get grounded. Maybe we both got lucky, and no one would ever know about our trip to the arena.
Little did the old lady know, if she’d just let me go, I wouldn’t have told a soul a thing. Now I had to figure out how to get food, and how to get it to the arena without anyone asking questions. MJ would be the hardest to keep this from. She stuck her busybody nose into everything I did.
* * * *
I missed two days of school. From the amount of homework you’d think it was a month! There was no chance of finishing in time to meet up with Anita tonight. I would be lucky to get it all done by the weekend.
After supper dishes, I sat down at the kitchen table and got to work. MJ sat parked in front of the TV. I’d bet money she did it just to bug me.
My dad came home from work in a bad mood. When he saw me, he told me to sit up straight. He always reminded me, “Nothing looks worse than a tall girl who slouches.” He told MJ to turn the TV off and go find something constructive to do or he would. It’s about time he got on MJ’s case. She gave me a dirty look as if it was somehow my fault and went upstairs. My dad suggested she clean our room.
Lucky for me, he went to his room, and MJ didn’t make another appearance until almost bedtime. She came downstairs with the bundle of clothes from under my bed. I ran to where she stood and grabbed them from her. She opened her mouth to speak, and I put my hand over it.
“Shut up!” I whispered. “Don’t you dare say one word, MJ! I’ll make you so sorry if you say even one little word!”
I took my hand away, and MJ just stood there. “Promise me you won’t say a word?”
“What’s in it for me?” MJ knew she had something on me.
“Whatever you want! Now go back upstairs and let me take care of this!”
MJ did as asked, but the smirk on her face wasn’t a good sign of things to come. Downstairs in the laundry room, I moved a few boxes out of the way to stuff my soiled clothes to the back. Once everything looked exactly as it had, I hurried upstairs to finish my homework.
Mom leaned over the table, looking over my homework. “Why were you downstairs?”
“I…ah…took some laundry down there for MJ.”
“That’s nice of you. Are you almost done with your homework?”
“Not quite.” I looked at the clock and yawned. “Guess I’ll have to finish it tomorrow night.”
I gathered up my books and kissed my Mom goodnight. MJ lay on her bed when I got to our room.
“So what’s really going on?” MJ said a trifle too loud. The smirk on her face told me she knew exactly what she was doing.
“Keep your voice down, or you’ll wake up Dad! There’s nothing to tell, I fell in the creek with Anita.”
MJ snorted. “You expect me to believe you?”
“I don’t care if you do or don’t! I just don’t want mom or dad to know.”
“Sounds kind of fishy to me.” MJ frowned.
“You have to promise you won’t tell. If you do, I’ll be grounded for life and won’t be allowed to go to the park anymore!”
“And I should keep quiet why?”
I wanted to wipe the smirk right off her face! I pictured the wheels turning in her little head.