Can You Keep a Secret?

by R. L. Stine

  “I’m kinda sick,” I said. I blocked the doorway, a subtle hint for him not to come in. But he didn’t pick up on the hint. He pushed past me.

  “Feel better? You look okay.”

  “Thanks for the compliment, Eddie.” I didn’t mean for that to come out so cold. I just didn’t want to see him. I was afraid of how much I’d say. If I told him the truth about me, he’d run. He’d be scared to death. Or, he’d think I’d gone totally nuts.

  He grabbed my arm. “I have to talk to you, Emmy. Can we go someplace?”

  “Who’s here?” Mom called from the kitchen.

  “It’s Eddie,” I shouted. “He brought me my homework.”

  “Hi, Eddie,” Mom called. “Did you have dinner. We have macaroni and ham.”

  “I already ate, Mrs. Tyler. Thanks.” He brought his face close to mine and whispered. “I need your help. We have to talk.”

  I led the way to my bedroom and closed the door. I knew that Sophie wouldn’t barge in. She would probably think Eddie and I were fooling around in here.

  I motioned Eddie to my desk chair. I dropped down on the edge of my bed, still all messed up from my long afternoon nap. He glanced tensely around the room. “I didn’t know you shared a room with your sister.”

  “Of course you didn’t know,” I snapped. “You’ve never been up here before.”

  He laughed for some reason. Just from nervousness, I think. I instantly felt bad for snapping at him. I decided to make an attempt to act more normal.

  But I sighed, realizing nothing would ever be normal for me again.

  “What’s up?” I said. “Did I miss anything in school?”

  He shrugged. “Who cares about school? I can’t stop thinking about the money in the briefcase, Emmy. I can’t think about anything else.”

  “I don’t care about the money anymore.” That’s what I felt like saying to him. “I’m an animal, Eddie. And I’m a killer. And a hundred bags of hundred-dollars bills isn’t going to help my life at all.”

  But I didn’t say any of that. Just gazed across the room at him, waiting for him to continue.

  “I hid the briefcase in my room,” Eddie said in a low voice. He had his eyes on the bedroom door. “But I don’t think it’s safe there.”

  I squinted at him. “You mean you think someone will steal it?”

  He shook his head. “No. But my mom is a clean freak. She cleans every room in the house five times a week, including mine. And I think she might find the briefcase. And then Lou will have a million questions for me. And he’ll turn the money in. He’ll be a hero for turning the money in, and he’ll get back on the force. And … and we’ll be back where we started. Totally broke.”

  “Maybe that’s a good thing,” I said, sweeping my hair back over my shoulders. I stood up. I felt so restless, as if my whole body was coiled tight. I started to pace back and forth in front of Eddie. “Maybe it would be good to be done with this whole thing. Maybe give it back to the guy who stole it. Or turn it in to the police.”

  “No way!” Eddie protested. “I’m obsessed, Emmy. It’s all I can think about. I’ve changed my mind about it. Why not try to keep it? We’ve worked too hard to lose the money. And it’s going to change our lives. All of us.”

  I stopped pacing. “So what do you want to do? Do you have a plan?”

  He nodded. “I want to bury it in the same grave in the pet cemetery.”

  I uttered a short cry. “Seriously? Are you crazy?”

  “No one would ever think of going back there. No one will ever think of looking for it there.” He jumped to his feet. “Sure, it sounds crazy. But it’s also smart.” He grabbed my shoulders. “Come help me, okay? Come with me. I want to do it tonight.”

  I hesitated. “No, Eddie, I—”

  I couldn’t think of an excuse. I had a sudden impulse to say, “Look, Eddie, I’m never leaving the house again. I can’t explain. But I’m never going out again.”

  That’s how insane my mind was. That’s how frightened I felt.

  But I saw the intense expression on his face. He needed me. He needed my help. “Okay. Let’s go,” I blurted out.

  “We’ll be quick,” Eddie said. “I promise. I know you’re not feeling well. I’ll go into Mac’s office and shut off the security camera. Then we’ll bury the briefcase, and we’ll be out of there. It won’t even take half an hour, Emmy. I promise.”

  “Okay,” I said. “I’ll make an excuse to my parents, and I’ll go with you.”

  I told them Eddie and I were going to Callie’s house. We stepped out into a warm, damp night. It had rained at dinnertime, and the air was still steamy, the lawns glistening under a low half-moon.

  We drove to the pet cemetery in near silence. Eddie started to tell me about Lou and how angry he was that his hearing to get back on the police force had been postponed. “It’s glum at my house,” he said. “I mean, Mom and I tiptoe around the poor guy.”

  “Too bad,” I muttered, only half-listening. I pictured Aunt Marta sitting by my bedside, whispering, “You are wolfen.”

  “And Lou is berserk. Seriously,” Eddie continued. “He threatened to ground me because I left the house with my sneaker shoelaces untied. Believe that?”

  I forced a laugh. “Whoa. That’s crazy enough.”

  “He’s a lunatic,” Eddie said. “He’s not acting like himself at all. Mom and I can’t wait for him to go back to work and get out of the house.”

  We had to slow down as we passed the middle school. Cars were streaming out of the parking lot. Some kind of school carnival had just ended. I saw kids walking with their parents, carrying helium balloons and big stuffed animals.

  I sighed. I had this strong desire to go back … back to being a kid where everything in my life was normal, and my biggest problem was whether or not to get my ears pierced.

  I snuggled against Eddie, wrapping a hand tightly around his arm, pressing my cheek against his shoulder. I stared at the passing streetlights until they became a yellow blur. I tried not to think about the briefcase filled with money in the trunk. Would we ever get to share it? Would we ever enjoy it?

  Headlights filled the rear window. The car filled with light.

  I let go of Eddie and spun around. I couldn’t see the car behind us. I could only see the bright white glare of its headlights. The car was right on our tail.

  I gasped. The frightening car chase … the man who chased after me before … coming after me again. In the glare of the headlights through the back window, it all flashed back into my mind.

  “Eddie—he’s here.” I squeezed Eddie’s arm. “Behind us. He’s the one who followed me—I just know he’s the guy who robbed the armored truck. He wants the money!”

  Eddie squinted into the rearview mirror. “You sure he’s the guy you saw?”

  No.

  The car swept past us. I saw two women in the front seats. “Oh, wow.” I let out a relieved sigh as the car made a sharp left and rolled away.

  Eddie turned to me. “Are you okay?”

  “I’m not being paranoid,” I said. “That man will be coming back for his money.”

  “He’s had plenty of time to find us,” Eddie said. “If he’s so eager to get his money, where is he?”

  I saw the way Eddie was looking at me, studying me. “You think I made up the car chase?” I said, my voice shrill. “You think I made up the man in black? How he came after me through the park?”

  Eddie was silent for a long moment. “What if he was just some guy messing with you, Emmy? Or what if you only imagined he was following you?”

  “You really think I’m crazy?” I cried.

  “You lost him so easily,” Eddie said, stopping for a light. “If he was a holdup guy desperate for his money, do you really think he’d let you get away? Don’t you think he would drive you off the road or do anything to stop you and force you to talk?”

  “I—I—I—” I was too upset to answer. I knew what had happened that afternoon. I knew that
guy was coming after me. What was Eddie trying to prove?

  “You’re just being stupid,” I said.

  He pulled into the cemetery parking lot. “Sorry,” he murmured. “I’m just tense, I guess. I mean, we’re both stressed.”

  “So you believe me about the guy in black?”

  He opened the door and climbed out. I didn’t hear his answer.

  A half-moon hovered over the pet cemetery as I followed him out of the car. Eddie opened the truck and handed the briefcase to me. It felt heavier than I remembered.

  “Follow me,” Eddie said, glancing up and down the empty parking lot. “You can wait near the grave. Don’t get too close till I disable the security camera.”

  “But won’t Mac hear you?” I asked, my voice hollow in the still night air. “You said he lives above the office.”

  Eddie shook his head. “Mac has a new girlfriend. He’s been staying at her place.”

  I held the briefcase in front of me, both hands on the handle, and followed Eddie to the small rectangular grave. The ground was soft and muddy from the afternoon rain.

  “Stay in the darkness here. This will only take a second,” Eddie said.

  I watched him trot toward the office. I realized I had drops of cold sweat on my forehead. I didn’t wipe them away. I gripped the briefcase in both hands.

  There was no breeze. Everything was still … still as death. The stench in the air was overwhelming. I tried to hold my breath. I stared toward the office, but Eddie had disappeared inside.

  The soft thud of footsteps behind me made me spin around.

  I gasped as the animal came into focus. Moving along the row of graves, it had its head lowered. Its angry eyes glowed like burning coals. The creature was panting loudly, and even in the darkness, I could see the fur raised on its back.

  The wolf.

  The black wolf from my dreams.

  It arched its body, coiled back on its hind legs—and with a ferocious snarl, leaped at me.

  A shrill scream tore from deep in my chest. My cries rang off the trees, echoing my horror again and again.

  31.

  “Emmy? Emmy? What is it? What’s wrong?”

  Eddie was shaking me by the shoulders.

  His gray eyes locked on mine. “Why did you scream? What did you see?”

  My body shuddered. My mouth hung open. I forced myself to breathe. I spun out of his grip and gazed all around, the sound of my scream lingering in my ears.

  “I saw … I saw it.…” I struggled to form words.

  “What did you see?” Eddie gently took my face in his hands. “Did that dog scare you?”

  I squinted into the wash of moonlight and saw the tall dog across from us at a row of low graves. A black Lab. It sat on its haunches, ears down, eyes trained on us.

  “It … startled me,” I said.

  No way I would tell him that I’d mistaken it for a wolf. That I imagined that the black wolf from my dreams attacked me. No way I wanted Eddie to know how crazy I was becoming.

  I took a deep breath and held it. I forced myself to stop trembling.

  “Guess I’m a little shaky these days,” I murmured. “Ever since Riley…”

  “We’re all shaky,” Eddie said. He tugged the sides of my hair. “But we’ll be okay.”

  No, we won’t, I thought.

  The black Lab climbed to its feet and loped away. Eddie laughed. “Did you think you were seeing a dog ghost?”

  “Not exactly,” I replied.

  “Let’s get the money buried and get out of here,” he said. “I think we’ll both feel better when the money is safe in the ground.” He picked up a shovel and started to dig.

  * * *

  I watched as Eddie buried the briefcase. He smoothed the dirt over it carefully so the grave wouldn’t look fresh. We drove back in silence.

  Sophie was asleep by the time I got home. I was glad. I couldn’t handle any more discussions.

  The night air remained hot and still. I changed into my lightest nightshirt. I buried my face in the pillow and tried to sleep. But I knew it was hopeless.

  I felt wide awake. Totally wired. And my brain was spinning with all kinds of frightening thoughts.

  If I fall asleep, maybe I’ll dream. Maybe I’ll dream about the wolf again. And if I do, maybe I’ll transform again.

  The hours dragged by. I stayed up all night, watching the moonlight out the open window.

  When the alarm buzzed in the morning, I felt as if a truck had run over me. Every part of me ached. My head felt heavy as a bowling ball. It took all my strength to sit up and climb out of bed.

  Sophie was already dressed for school. She narrowed her eyes at me. “What’s wrong, Emmy? Are you still feeling sick?”

  “Just tired,” I said. “I couldn’t get to sleep.”

  “Are you going to school today?” she asked.

  I hesitated. Then I decided. “Yes. Yes, I am.” I couldn’t bear another day in my room alone with my thoughts.

  I offered to drive Sophie to school, but she said she was meeting a friend from the track team and they would walk to school. I drove slowly, carefully, unable to stop yawning. A whole night without sleep can make you feel seriously weird.

  Danny and Callie were the first people I saw when I stepped into the school building. I had a suspicion they’d been waiting for me. It was early, and only a few kids were at their lockers, emptying their backpacks before homeroom.

  “How are you?” Callie asked. “You missed the Trig quiz yesterday.”

  “I’m okay,” I lied. “My stomach … it just felt weird, but I’m okay today.”

  Danny glanced around, making sure no one was nearby. “Are we ever going to split up the money?” he asked in a harsh whisper.

  I shrugged. “I don’t know. Eddie says—”

  “I know what Eddie says,” Danny said. “But some of us don’t agree with Eddie. Some of us think—”

  Callie hushed him as two teachers walked by.

  “It isn’t safe to take it now,” I whispered. “The guy who stole it—he came after me. He chased me. He must know that Eddie and I took it.”

  “That’s more reason to take the money now,” Danny said. “We can’t just hand it back to him.”

  Callie hung back. She looked pale and scared.

  “What do you think?” I asked her.

  She shook her head. Her eyes went wide. “I … I don’t know. I could really use the money. But … if you and Eddie are in danger…” Her voice trailed off.

  I saw Roxie step into the front entrance. She glimpsed us for a second, then walked right past us, eyes straight ahead.

  “Hey, Roxie—” Danny called to her. But she kept walking and didn’t turn around.

  “She doesn’t want to know us anymore,” he said, watching her till she turned the corner. “I wonder if she still wants her share.”

  “Danny, what’s wrong with you?” Callie slapped his arm. “Is that all you can think about? Just money?”

  “Yes,” he said. “Just money.”

  Callie made a disgusted face.

  He grabbed her shoulder. “Look, I miss Riley, too. I miss him a lot. I think about him all the time. I’m just saying…”

  “We know what you’re saying,” Callie said sharply. She turned to me. “Maybe the four of us should get together?”

  I nodded. “Yes. Definitely.”

  How could I tell them the money wasn’t the most important thing on my mind? How could I tell them I really didn’t care what happened to the money now?

  I am a lycanthrope. I killed Riley. I became an animal and killed Riley.

  Why should a lycanthrope care about money?

  I realized Callie was staring at me. I wondered if she could see me trembling. For a moment, I thought maybe she could read my terrifying thoughts. But of course that was crazy.

  Crazy.

  I saw Eddie at fourth-period lunch. We shared a ham-and-cheese sandwich and a bag of tortilla chips his mom had packe
d for him. I told him about my talk with Danny and Callie.

  Eddie shook his head. He crinkled up the brown paper lunch bag. “I had the same conversation with Danny,” he said. “I don’t know what to tell him. I really think we should wait till … till we know we’re okay.”

  I told him I’d drive him to his job at the pet cemetery after school. I tried to change the subject. You know. Think of something cheerful to say. But my head still felt like a rock, and I couldn’t think of anything cheerful.

  After school, I made a plan with Mrs. Quinn to make up the Trig quiz. Then I loaded my backpack and made my way out the back door to the student parking lot.

  I waved to Sophie in the stadium behind the parking lot. She was warming up, doing stretch exercises with her track team friends. “See you at dinner!” I shouted. I’m not sure she heard me.

  I looked for Eddie, but he hadn’t come out yet. I turned and strode down the row of cars. I spotted my car at the end near the lot exit. The bright sunlight filled the windshield. I walked around to the driver’s side.

  I was only a few feet away when I realized someone was sitting behind the wheel. Someone in my car.

  “Eddie?” I called to him. But I realized immediately that it wasn’t Eddie.

  He was too big to be Eddie.

  Too big and dressed in black.

  In the white sunlight, it took a few seconds to recognize him. I uttered a frightened gasp as he finally came into focus. And I saw the big sunglasses covering the top part of his face.

  His straight black hair fell over his forehead. He turned when he saw me approach and pushed open the driver’s door.

  Too late. Too late to run. I started to spin away. But I was too close, only a few feet from the car.

  “Emmy?” His voice was a deep growl. “We have to talk.”

  32.

  My heart racing, I staggered back. He moved quickly. He shoved the car door open—and dove out of the seat, moving so fast … so fast for such a big man.

  He hurtled over to me and grabbed my arm in his big hands. He was wide and broad-shouldered. He wore a loose-fitting black suit. His shades caught the sunlight. I couldn’t see his eyes at all.