Secrets of Redemption Box Set

by Michele Pariza Wacek

  But deep inside, I knew that wasn’t true. Deep inside, I knew the truth. I had always known the truth.

  I had to remember.

  For everyone’s sake including, and especially, Brittany’s.

  So, now what? Were Pat and Aunt Charlie right? I wasn’t remembering because I truly didn’t want to remember? Was it as simple as deciding that I really do?

  You can’t make me remember.

  But maybe I could make myself remember.

  The real question was, did I want to?

  I felt (more than heard) the rustle as Oscar stood up from his place on the wooden chest at the foot of the bed and padded his way up to me. He lay down, staring at me, his green eyes blinking in the grey light. He rubbed his face against mine, leaving a streak of cold wetness from his nose. He blinked again at me, and suddenly opened his mouth and meowed.

  I jumped. He almost never meowed. In fact, I couldn’t remember the last time he had. Other than that time in my dream ...

  As if in a trance, I found myself getting up and moving to the window. In the darkness, the trees and bushes were shapeless masses. The fire pit where we had lit a fire all those years ago was a grey hole. The table where Mia had sat when she was sick was still in the same place next to it.

  My eyes traveled to the edge of the woods where I had disappeared, returning with alcohol poisoning and nearly dying. The woods where Jessica had vanished … never returning.

  The woods knew what happened. The trees had watched—silent witnesses of the whole event.

  Those same trees were silent now, too. Not even a breeze stirred them. They weren’t giving up their secrets.

  I turned back to Oscar, who was lying stretched out on the bed watching me, his green eyes faintly glowing. Oscar. When I had gone into the woods in my dream that night, it was to follow him.

  And I had found dead Jessica.

  Maybe the secret to unlocking my memories was in that dream. I thought back, trying to remember the details. Aunt Charlie and Pat had been in the kitchen. Mia in the backyard. Oscar stayed in front of me as I searched the woods.

  And Maude. Maude was there pushing her shopping cart through the woods. Maude, who had shown up at the search site babbling about seeing the devil.

  What had she meant?

  Suddenly, I knew I had to find her. I had to talk to her.

  Quietly, I threw on a pair of jean shorts and an old green-and-white striped tee shirt before heading to the bathroom to wash my face, brush my teeth, and pull my hair back into a low, messy ponytail.

  When I returned to the bedroom, the sun was barely peeking over the horizon. It was way too early to find Maude. She was probably sleeping … somewhere.

  But I was too agitated to sit still. Instead, moving as silently as I could so I wouldn’t wake Chrissy or Mia, I made my way down to the kitchen to put the coffee on. Oscar came with me, a black ghost padding beside me.

  I drank coffee and forced myself to eat a couple of pieces of toast as I watched the sun creep across the sky. It felt like time had slowed to a crawl. To give myself something to do, I went into the kitchen and made a little to-go breakfast for Maude—an egg salad sandwich, a cheese and tomato sandwich, an apple, potato chips, and a bottle of water.

  When I couldn’t stand it anymore, I dashed off a quick cryptic note to Mia and Chrissy, collected my purse, keys and phone and quietly let myself out. After all, I reasoned, it could take a while to find Maude. And, once I found her, I didn’t have to wake her if she was still asleep. I could just sit and wait.

  I started my search around Aunt May’s, remembering how she had stopped there for dinner, but there was no sign of her. I bought myself a to-go coffee in the diner and contemplated asking the waitstaff if they knew where to find her but I chickened out at the last second. What reason could I give to explain why I wanted to find a homeless woman that didn’t sound completely crazy?

  I searched downtown next, walking up and down the streets, but no luck. I was checking my phone and wondering if it was too early to call Mia to see if she had any ideas when I remembered the grocery store. I had seen Maude in that parking lot at least twice—it was definitely worth checking.

  And that’s where I found her—in a little alcove of an alley behind the store, near another brown brick building. There were a couple of blue dumpsters off to one side and as I caught a faint whiff of rotten milk and urine, I forced myself to breathe through my mouth to keep from vomiting.

  Maude was curled up on a stained mattress, snoring softly. I couldn’t even see her head. She was a bundle of colorful rags that rose and fell as she breathed. Her shopping cart was between her and the back of the store, protecting it even in her sleep.

  I was searching for a place to sit and wait for her to wake up when she suddenly shot up, her face twisted in fear.

  “Go away. This is mine. You can’t have it.” She scurried backward, pressing herself against her shopping cart.

  I held my hands up, the cup of coffee in one and the little bag of breakfast in the other. “I just want to talk, that’s all. I didn’t mean to scare you.” I made my voice as soothing as possible.

  She eyed me suspiciously. “It’s mine,” she said again but some of the fear and aggression had drained from her voice.

  I nodded. “I know it’s yours. And I’m not here to take it. I just want to talk. Here, see.” I thrust the bag forward. “I brought you breakfast.”

  Her eyes narrowed, but she inched forward a little. “What is it?”

  “A couple of sandwiches. An apple. Potato chips. I hope you like it. I wasn’t sure what you liked to eat, so I guessed.”

  She inched forward a little more. “Why would you bring me breakfast?”

  “I just wanted to ask you a few questions,” I said. I slowly inched forward myself until I reached her mattress. She didn’t move, but her eyes tracked my movements. I lowered the bag in front of her before backing up a few steps.

  She waited a moment for me to move away before pouncing on the bag and tearing it open. She unwrapped one of the sandwiches and stuffed it in her mouth. “What do you want?” she asked, her mouth full of egg salad.

  I crouched down until I was at her eye level. “I wanted to know about Brittany.”

  She froze, her half-open mouth revealing partially chewed sandwich. A piece of egg was stuck to her chin. “The devil,” she said, her voice dark.

  “Yes,” I agreed. “The devil. Can you describe him?”

  “See the devil,” she said again.

  “I know. You saw the devil.”

  She shook her head furiously. “No. See the devil,” she said again, her voice louder, bits of egg flying out of her mouth.

  “Yes. You saw the devil,” I said again. “Can you describe him?”

  “No, no, no,” she said, her voice growing louder as she continued shaking her head. She dropped her sandwich in her agitation. “See the devil! See the devil!”

  I didn’t know what to do. I was agreeing with her. What could she want me to say?

  Her eyes focused on my face, noting my agitation. She pushed her food aside on the mattress and crawled forward toward me, her eyes locked with mine. I noticed that they were hazel, and for some reason, I found it surprising.

  She stopped at the edge of her mattress, close enough that her hot breath grazed my cheek. I could smell the sulfur-like scent of eggs mixed with something rotten, maybe a decaying tooth. “See. The. Devil,” she said slowly, enunciating each word. “See. The.”

  I was about to tell her again that I got it, she saw the devil, when suddenly something clicked inside me.

  She wasn’t saying “see the devil.”

  She was saying “CB Devil.”

  My mouth opened in a silent scream as my memories violently crashed into me.

  It was like drowning in a dark sea of pain. />
  What have I done?

  Chapter 33

  “Daniel and Barry are here,” Daphne announced from the living room. “I think Rich is right behind them.”

  “’Bout time,” Mia said.

  “Let’s get this party started,” Jessica yelled, her previous anger at her mother magically transitioning to excitement. She wore a pale-pink, frilly halter top that only she could pull off. With her long curtain of shiny, blonde hair and eyes the color of a deep, still lake, she was the epitome of an old-fashioned southern belle. Anyone else likely would have looked more like an Easter egg.

  I smiled tightly. This was a bad idea. All of it. The party. Daniel (the jerk). I never should have agreed to this.

  But Mia and Jessica had been very persuasive. And they were right—with Aunt Charlie gone, I didn’t want to be home ... alone ... in this house. Something wasn’t right. Sure, CB was likely the one moving my belongings around even if he had been denying it. Just yesterday, I found my paintbrushes in the freezer, but that wasn’t the only weirdness going on.

  The dreams. The sound of footsteps. The feeling of being watched.

  It was especially bad at night. I couldn’t remember the last time I had a decent night’s sleep.

  Yet I had just invited all my friends into this house.

  At night.

  What was I thinking?

  Daphne glanced over at me. She must have seen something in my expression because she gave me a reassuring smile, which didn’t reassure me at all. Why did she agree to this party? She had seen it, too—the message in the mirror when we did that stupid seance.

  Beware. It’s coming.

  Maybe she thought there was safety in numbers or something. I wasn’t so sure.

  Jessica tipped back her glass, finishing the last few drops of her spiked punch. “Uh oh,” she said in a sing-song voice, pursing her perfect, pink rosebud lips. “I’m out of punch.”

  “We can’t have that,” CB said, swooping in and taking her glass from her hand. “Allow me.”

  Jessica dropped down in a little curtsy. “Why, thank you.”

  Mia draped herself over CB’s opposite shoulder, dangling her glass in front of him. “I could use a refill, too.”

  “Your wish is my command,” CB said, taking the glass. I rolled my eyes. Daphne saw it and made her own face, crossing her eyes and sticking her tongue out.

  I couldn’t help but grin. Maybe everything would be okay.

  Barry and Daniel appeared at that moment and my grin faded. Seriously, what a jerk. Standing me up the way he did. I couldn’t even believe he had the balls to show up. Well, if he thought I was going to give him the satisfaction of asking him why he did it, he was going to be sorely disappointed. Instead, I focused all my attention on pulling a couple of frozen pizzas out of the freezer.

  “Aren’t you even going to say hi?”

  I froze. He was right behind me.

  I half-turned my head, catching a whiff of his scent—the fresh, woodsy smell of his soap combined with that unique scent that was just all him. I could feel a jolt of electricity shoot through me and I bit my lip to push it down. “Hi,” I said, taking a few steps away to put the pizzas on the counter. I couldn’t help but feel proud of my outfit choice—an emerald-green peasant top that brought out the green in my hazel eyes and the red in my hair and tight, white denim shorts. Eat your heart out, Daniel.

  “Seriously?” he asked. “What’s your problem?”

  “My problem?” I whirled around. “What are you talking about?”

  From across the room, I heard Mia shriek “CB! Look what you did!” I glanced over Daniel’s shoulder to see Mia staring down at her new cream blouse, now dripping with red punch. I couldn’t hear CB but I saw him lean in closer to her. She shook her head, running out of the kitchen.

  “You heard me,” Daniel said, glaring at me. He lifted the can of beer to his lips as he turned away, dismissing me.

  I could hardly believe it. He stood me up, got back with his former girlfriend and then had the balls to ask me what my problem is? What the hell? “You are such a jerk.”

  His jaw dropped open. “I’m the jerk?”

  “This is stupid,” I said, turning back to the pizzas. For the first time ever, I couldn’t wait to get back to New York. How could I ever have thought I liked him? “Just go away, Daniel. I don’t want to talk to you.”

  “Fine,” he snapped. “I don’t want to talk to you either.”

  “Obviously,” I said under my breath, ripping open the cardboard from the pizzas. “You made that pretty clear.”

  “What the hell is that supposed to mean?”

  Crap. He heard that?

  I glanced up at him. He was glowering at me, his hands clenching into fists and then unclenching again. His expression was a strange combination of anger, hurt and confusion.

  If I didn’t know better, I would think he was the one who had been stood up.

  For some reason, that thought made me even angrier. I slammed the pizza down on the counter before turning to face him. “You heard me,” I said, mimicking his voice.

  He shook his head, his expression turning to disbelief. “You’re crazy. I’m done here.”

  My eyes widened. “You’re ‘done here’? No one forced you to be here. You can go anytime.”

  Daniel opened his mouth to answer, but the sound of screaming stopped us both.

  “Is that Jessica?” Daphne asked, peering out the kitchen window. Barry and CB joined her. I couldn’t make out the exact words, but it sounded like she was saying something to the effect of, “Get away from me! You don’t understand! Leave me alone!”

  “What’s going on out there?” Mia asked, shoving her way to the window, her blouse now soaked through with water but still stained a watery pink.

  “I don’t know,” Daphne said, dropping the curtain and pushing past Barry and CB. “We better get outside. I think she’s out there with Rich.”

  “Rich?” Barry’s voice floated past us as I hurried after Mia and Daphne to the backyard.

  Jessica was standing by the fire pit screaming at Rich. “You don’t understand.” Rich’s back was to us so I couldn’t see his expression but Jessica’s face was streaked with tears. The orange flames from the fire cast a red glow over her, lighting her face with uneven, ugly shadows. I didn’t think I had ever seen Jessica look so unattractive.

  Mia was the first to reach her side. “What happened? Rich, what did you do to her?”

  “I didn’t do anything,” Rich started to protest, but Jessica cut him off. “You don’t understand,” she snapped. “You have no idea what you’re asking.”

  “Asking? Rich, what’s going on?” Daphne asked, also moving to Jessica’s side.

  Rich just stared at her, looking completely bewildered, his mouth hanging slightly open. “I have no idea,” he said, his voice puzzled.

  “He just doesn’t get it,” Jessica said, to no one in particular. “He doesn’t understand the evil that was done here.” She buried her head in her hands.

  I felt a chill, despite the fire and sticky, humid night.

  The evil that was done.

  Oh God. I never should have agreed to this party. I knew there was something off in this house, and now I’d exposed all my friends to it.

  But I couldn’t think about that. I had more than enough to deal with in the chaos of the moment. Calming Jessica down, reassuring Rich that Jessica had had too much to drink and wasn’t thinking clearly, refilling everyone’s drinks, getting the pizzas into the oven and setting more snacks out on the table.

  Jessica wobbled slightly as she plopped herself into a chair. Even though her face was still streaked with tears, there was no trace of the ugliness I had seen before. She was back to looking heartbreakingly sweet and innocent. She smiled at Barry, waggling her empty cup u
ntil he refilled it for her.

  Everyone gathered around the table talking about safe topics but I was only half-listening. Should I tell my friends the truth about what we had seen in the mirror? About everything that had been going on? Should I kick them out and avoid all of it? Or should I just let the party run its course? I had no idea.

  And it didn’t help that Daniel was sitting directly across from me, right in my line of sight. No matter who I was looking at, he was still there, hovering in the corner of my vision. I couldn’t even pretend he wasn’t.

  Was he looking at me too? Was he as hyperaware of me as I was of him? Was my presence keeping him from thinking clearly too? Or was I just some pathetic girl with a crush?

  I felt like a complete idiot.

  I was so fixated on my thoughts, it took me a while to realize the conversation had changed. CB was trying to convince Mia and Jessica to move to New York.

  “Just come to New York,” he was saying. “Your mom shouldn’t have a problem with that.”

  “You don’t understand,” Jessica said, her words just slightly slurred. “My mom doesn’t want me to leave. At all. It doesn’t matter if I’m going to New York or California.”

  “Yes, but you’ll know more people in New York,” he said. “I’m there. Becca is there. And you can stay with Becca’s family.”

  “CB,” I said warningly.

  “I don’t know,” Jessica said, but I could see she was warming to the idea. “I think it’s more me leaving.”

  “Yeah, but Becca’s apartment is in a secure building uptown with a doorman and everything,” he said. “You can’t get much safer than that.”

  “CB, that’s enough,” I said.

  Jessica elbowed Mia. “Whaddaya think, Mia? Would my mom go for it?”

  Mia had a funny look on her face. “Becca, you got any soda?” she asked.

  “Sure. What kind do you want?” I asked, relieved to have something else to do as I got out of my chair.

  “Whatever. Coke is fine.”

  “Mia,” Jessica said again as I dug around the refrigerator. “Do you or don’t you think this New York idea is a good one?”