Ripple Effect: A Novel

by Adalynn Rafe

  Sabrina drops to her knees and whines loudly, like she is in real pain. “I have no one!”

  Pacing the grass for a minute, listening to her cries, I debate running away or actually hearing her out. I look at the white building before me and my mother’s voice sounds off in my head. “What would our Redeemer do?”

  Angrily, I move to Sabrina and stand above her. “You sold me to those freaks, Sabrina! You think I want to help you?!” I yell, before pacing again. “I was some sort of bounty for you! You wanted to hand me to the sharks at that party.” I stand in front of her again. “You wanted to use me for your own personal gain . . .”

  Sabrina forces herself to her feet and I see a huge welt on her face, amidst the lines of black makeup that run down her cheeks. “I’m sorry, okay!”

  Sympathy tries to fill me, but I push it away with anger. “Liar! You’re not sorry!”

  “It was my last resort!” Sabrina screams. I’d never seen her like this. “He wanted you! More than he ever wanted me . . . !”

  I shake my head in disbelief as I fight back the vomit that burns my throat. I refuse to believe such horrible lies! What she said echoed through my mind over and over and I just stood there, frozen. Wanted me for . . .

  Sabrina grabs my shoulders, jolting me back to reality. “I’ve been jealous of you, Cecily Wolf. My entire life! And I wanted to get payback at you because you were happy and I was miserable!” I just blinked at her, confused. “My brother died. Then my mother ran away from me. And then my dad remarried. And then you took my best friend.” Covering her mouth, she stifles her whimpers and those pain-filled, gray eyes of hers are gleaming.

  “Hazel,” I whisper. “I didn’t take her––you chased her to me, Sabrina. You can’t control people!”

  “I know!” Sabrina screams. “I’ve already tried with you! The party was a fail. And now, I am left to beg and plead with you on my hands and knees for help!”

  “What was in it for you? Freedom? A soul for a soul?” I step back warily.

  Sabrina nods as her lip quivers. “He told me he’d replace me with you!” She gasps. “I was selfish! I didn’t think of what it could have done to you!”

  “That’s crap!” I yell. “You know exactly what he would have done!” My heart sinks in my chest as I stare at her, hurt. “Replace? Yes, Sabrina.” I get right into her face. “He would have killed you and I would have taken your place . . .”

  “I know,” she whispers. “I was so wrong!”

  “It’s not just you, Sabrina. He has others.”

  “So he says,” she replies. “He’s hiding them.”

  I bite my lip anxiously and look down. “He says he’s going to bury you alive.”

  A loud gasp escapes Sabrina. She shakes her head in fright. “Please, Cecily! Don’t let him do that to me!”

  “How do I know that you won’t turn on me,” I ask her, “to save yourself?”

  Sabrina begins crying again, her eyes red from all the tears. “I don’t cry. I don’t get scared. I don’t beg. Yet, here I am, begging you to help me. No one could have set me up to this. I’m not a beggar!”

  “Say sorry,” I demand. “For everything.”

  “Sorry for everything,” she says. “And most of all . . . for calling you a selfish slut.”

  I step away and examine her––bruised, broken, torn, and barely holding on. She seems legit, but Sabrina can’t be trusted. She is a master of lies and always has been.

  “If you see Leison once behind my back, I swear that I will personally bury you myself.” I point to the forest. “Or, if you can’t handle that . . . leave my sight. I know it’s hard to give up your selfish ways and think of others, but you’ll have to if you want my help.”

  Sabrina wraps her arms tightly around me. “Thank you so much!” She cries on my shoulder. “I’m so sorry, Cecily, for everything!”

  Slowly and with reluctance, I embrace her in my arms. Tears fill my eyes and I stare up at the full moon in the sky. “What have we gotten ourselves into?” I whisper.

  “How do we get ourselves out?” Sabrina releases me and wipes the tears from her cheeks.

  He has three girls kidnapped somewhere and she hasn’t told anyone. Did she just find out as well? My eyes narrow. “How long have you known about the girls, Sabrina?”

  Guilt is written across her face. “A few weeks.”

  I want to punch her. “A few weeks!? Well, they’re dead now, aren’t they? Why didn’t you tell anyone?!”

  “Shh!” she motions. “And risk dying too?” That was not an acceptable excuse in my book. “Besides, no one ever believes me––no one serious, at least.”

  She’s right. She’s a lying, cheating, attention-seeking brat. Honestly, I don’t know if I can handle her lies.

  “Did he say where they are?” I ask her quickly.

  “Maybe it’s a trick. To manipulate us . . .”

  “Sabrina, did he say where he’s keeping them?” I ask again, annoyed. She was right though. Perhaps it was a trick . . . perhaps not.

  “Somewhere dark where there is no light, food, or water. They’re still alive . . .”

  Silence fills the space between us as I think of where they could be. There are numerous abandoned mines around here and they could be trapped in any of those. Or they could be trapped underground. Or in an old colonial basement. Who knows where he put them?

  Maybe he feeds them just enough to keep them alive. Maybe there is hope. Or . . . maybe there are just piles of rotting and decaying flesh, skeleton, and left-over remains of the young women he’s attacked. If I could get the officers to help, maybe we could rescue the girls . . .

  “Don’t let him do to you what he’s done to me.” Sabrina is staring down, her arms wrapped tightly around her torso. She doesn’t look well.

  “I had no intention of letting that—”

  She lifts her shirt to show me her stomach. “Look.” Bruises cover it in all shapes and sizes. I touch my own stomach, recognizing only a fraction of the sight. “My father caught me coming in late and he saw my bruises and he flipped.” She shivers. “I had to lie to him, Cecily! I couldn’t cry on his shoulders or ask him for help, because Leison would kill us all! He even grounded me, but I had to go the party or I’d be in deep––”

  “You had to turn me in,” I say, cutting her off.

  She starts crying—again. “And you weren’t there. So I got a horrible beating. Then when I saw you, I was so angry. Something dawned after we fought and I realized that instead of using you to replace me, I could join forces with you to stop him.”

  “Why me?” I just want to rip my hair out. “Why does he want me?!”

  Sabrina grabs my hands. “Because you were dark then—a victim. You were the perfect target.” Her brow creases, like she’s confused. “But now . . . you’ve changed into something strong. You’re a fighter. He knows that if he wants to keep you silent, he’ll have to use death. He will have to threaten you with the lives of others, like mine or the three girls. He will dig a hole in your psyche and make his playground there.”

  “How do you know that?” I ask her.

  “He’s done it to me,” she whispers.

  My eyes close. “I was supposed to commit suicide that night.” I look at her seriously.

  Sabrina doesn’t believe it. “Why would you do that?”

  I look down. “The same reason you turned into a conniving brat. But instead of trying to rule everyone, I thought I’d be better off dead.” Our gazes met. “Everyone said I was turning into Sabrina.”

  “I guess we’re one and the same,” she says quietly. “Maybe that’s why he wanted you.”

  My jaw clenches. I am not Sabrina! “Did you really sleep with him, Sabrina?” It is my way of proving that the two of us are nothing alike!

  “It was supposed to be cool, posh. Sleeping with a teach––like wow, right?” Sabrina drops her head, ashamed of herself. “He’s a psychopath, Cecily . . .”

  “Ew.” I can’
t help but to judge a little.

  “Watch yourself, Wolf. You’re the one that asked about it.”

  My brow lifts and I give her a look to go on. Tender subject apparently.

  “The first time was something else, something amazing.” She’s referring to the experience with Leison. “No high school boy is that good in bed.”

  I gag. “Sabrina, that’s nasty!”

  Shrugging, she continues, “But then things got weird, like beyond kinky. How do I say no to the man when he threatens my life?”

  “Whips and chains?” I ask sarcastically. “Duct tape?”

  Sabrina sends me a terrified look. “That was the least of it.”

  My stomach twists into knots. What if he does it to me?

  “I’m eighteen and I should be chillin’ with my friends, having slumber parties. Instead I’m forced into horrible things. I have no friends! They ditched me!” Sabrina’s face contorts and her eyes fill with tears. “I’m alone . . .”

  It’s a miracle that she even wanted out, that she could seek a way out. Maybe it is possible for us to work together—for enemies to come together to stop a greater evil. Maybe it’s the only way to stop Leison from attacking anyone else. But we have to be smart; we can’t ask just anyone for help. Leison is smart, a serial killer who has had practice. He has made us practically invisible to the law enforcement in town . . .

  And that is why Kelly’s uncle is so important to us. He’s the outside man who hasn’t been corrupted by Leison––yet. If he wasn’t Kelly’s uncle, then we wouldn’t be using him either. I feel that we can only trust this guy because of his ties to Kelly.

  “And everyone knows that I do what I do, Cecily.” Sabrina brings my attention back to her. “At first I was so cool for doing it . . . well still am . . . but I am paying the price. Sabrina, the duchess, so cool, so skank . . . so dead.”

  At least she knew that she was an idiot––I didn’t have to point that out for her.

  “You really think we can work together? Though we swore we were mortal enemies?” I wonder.

  She almost laughs, but it turns into a pained grimace. “I promise you that I will do everything I can to help stop him.”

  I allow myself to smile. “Fine.” Then I tell her we’re going to my house, the place she’ll call home for the next few days. I need to watch her and make sure she isn’t going to do something to jeopardize our efforts, like see the enemy and turn me in.

  “Oh, and, there is this guy that is going to help us––” I add as we head for the pavement.

  “No cops!” she yells. I shush her. “I’ve had my chance to tell the cops at the school and I realize that we can’t solve this problem that way. Leison is a smart man, a tricky man, and if the principal or kindergarten cops go for him, he’ll kill the others. He’s dead serious, Cecily!”

  “This guy is different. He’s like a federal agent or something. We need the brains of the outsider, Sabrina. No one in this town can be trusted.” I pause and look down. “Not even Sheriff Copper will know what’s going on.”

  Sabrina nods, caving into my idea. “If this goes south, we do it my way.”

  “What’s your way?” I’m surprised she has something planned.

  Her eyes narrow. “We kill that sick freak by ourselves!”

  Chapter 37

  After retrieving Sabrina’s things, she told her father that she was having a sleepover at a friend’s house for a few nights and would call him later. Apparently her father had lost hope in her and swept her away with his hand. He said something about a coffin and picking one out, so that if they found her body she could be buried properly. All of this is according to her.

  This means that she is crying all the way to my house and that I have to grit my teeth and not smack her. And find sympathy, I guess. She is amazing at burning bridges and collecting enemies.

  I turn the car off and stare at the dash for a minute––filled with the speedometer, the temperature gage of the engine, the gasoline gage, RPM gage, and lights and stuff. I feel like I’m driving in a high speed chase, even though I am sitting in my car . . . turned off and in my driveway. Yes, an emotional high speed chase with a serial killer.

  Am I being an idiot to think that we can we really do this? With Sabrina? Can I rely on her? Am I being an idiot?!

  “Cecily,” Sabrina says, pulling me from my doubt-filled mind. I glance at her and wait for her answer. She’s like a dark shadow sitting in my car. “Do you trust me?”

  “Can I?”

  “I want you to . . .” She looks down at her hands.

  As I stare at the bruises on her arms and chest, an uneasy feeling seeps through me. She is an ill girl, with sunken eyes and pale skin. Maybe bringing her here was a bad idea. Allowing her to die would be an even worse one. I rub my face and sigh, then open my door to get out of the old car before panic threatens to completely take my sanity.

  My sights set on the white moon surrounded by stars and black sky. There is a particular star that shines brightly, near the eastern side of the sky. It brings me hope and I name it Diamond Heart––for a reason I can’t possibly explain. It just seems right.

  Sabrina stands in the shadow of the car and watches me. I get my head together, knowing that things are going to work out somehow, and turn around to help her carry a bag into the house. Once inside I set it down near the couch, where she’ll be sleeping. She seems grateful for my generosity and I’m more than positive that her gratefulness is not fabricated.

  Mom is instantly there, instantly wrapping her arms tightly around me and saying her thanks that both Sabrina and I are safe and home. I called her when Sabrina was in her house and told her the story of why I was inviting my arch enemy to stay at the house, though skipping the parts with mean words and ruthless fighting. It was all done so that we could reach a common ground. Mom wouldn’t be happy to hear that I had kind of been a brat.

  “Hello, Mrs. Wolf,” Sabrina says with respect. It was one of those things that needed to be replayed because I never thought I’d see such humility come from her.

  My mother smiles. “Hello, Sabrina. It’s been quite a while.”

  “Thanks for letting me stay here . . .” She smiles meekly.

  My eyes narrow as I read her. Is she just playing coy?

  Hazel bursts through the front door with Darien behind her. She’s laughing about something and carrying two pizzas. Her golden hair is twisted up above her head and she’s wearing a pair of pink sweats. Darien has the sodas and his dirty blond hair isn’t his usual; greasy like a used cotton swab filled with ear wax. Perhaps Hazel has worked her magic. Regardless, he still wears his old t-shirts with random phrases.

  “CSI: Can’t Stand Idiots?” I ask him, in reference to the shirt. It’s actually amusing.

  Darien shrugs and smiles. “My favorite one.”

  My face lights up and I teasingly—but not really—say, “You’ll need it.”

  He looks toward Sabrina and his eyes widen. With a questioning look directed at me, he points his finger at Sabrina, who is talking to my mother.

  Hazel is not as kind when she sees the surprise guest. As soon as she sees Sabrina, Hazel’s smile disappears from her face. The color goes red—and not because she’s just warm.

  Earlier, when I told Hazel about my fight with Sabrina, Hazel was fuming mad and red in the face, kind of like now. It was her only intention to go over to Sabrina’s house and dump a bucket of one hundred percent bleach on her black hair to make it orange. “Then she’ll have to cut it all off,” Hazel snickered. “Her beauty runs surface deep. If you ruin that, her exposure as an ugly and wicked person will be all that’s left!”

  At the time I was horribly pissed and vindictive toward Sabrina, especially for scratching my face. I was actively looking for a place to find that percentage of bleach. To my dismay, it was far too difficult for us to get our hands on it. And it would sear her flesh, which was a little more than what I thought she deserved.

  “Hazel,�
�� my mother says sweetly. Mom is no fool and saw the dagger-filled look that Hazel shot Sabrina. “Sabrina’s going to stay here for a few nights.” Mom smiles.

  Looking at me, Hazel shakes her head. “No! No a thousand times!”

  My finger points at her, a warning to behave herself. “She’s on our side now.”

  “Cecily Wolf! You freaking pushover!” Hazel storms past us with the pizzas.

  Not even Darien gives Sabrina recognition, being that he knows the whole story, I’m sure, and treats her as if she is just the trash in the garbage can. Actually, trash in a garbage can would be more fascinating than Sabrina to them. She isn’t exactly welcomed here.

  A pit of sadness fills me and I just might cry. I can’t please everyone, can I?

  There is a knock on the door. I grab it because I’m closest and in comes Kelly and a man, who is a replica of Kelly, but ten years older and wearing a black leather jacket and denim. A few wrinkles surround his blue eyes, perhaps holding secrets of his past. Based on their deep grooves, they aren’t pleasant.

  In all honesty, if that’s what Kelly looks like in ten years, I will have no objections.

  “Cecily,” Kelly says with relief. He looks at Sabrina and is just as shocked as Hazel. I sigh and fold my arms. “Finally, I can put a face to a name,” Kelly says to Sabrina, trying to be polite. After looking at the healing scratch on my face, he shoots me a wary look. He knows who she is. His hand glides through his spiked brown hair and he takes a breath when she looks away.

  I step to his side and rest my forehead on his shoulder. His cotton shirt is soft and he smells like laundry detergent. “Thank you,” I whisper. And he knows that I’m thanking him for being nicer to her than the others were.

  “Come and sit,” Mom says, leading the way to the living room.

  Everyone passes us and Sabrina leans in to say something to me. “You said just us, remember?” She sounds pissed. I would be pissed if everyone hated me, too.