Pretty Dead Girls

by Monica Murphy

  My life is so surreal right now. I almost can’t take it.

  Mrs. Adney and Mr. Rose show up, hanging out by the stage. Mrs. Adney is going to give a speech tonight, and so is Gretchen’s father. He plans on pleading with the killer, asking him to turn himself in.

  That’s what Mr. Nelson kept telling us earlier, when he first arrived. He kept talking about him. How he should be stopped. How he is a monster.

  But what if the killer is a she? I still can’t shake my suspicion of Courtney. She didn’t come to school today. No surprise. Brogan did, but he moved through the halls like a zombie, looking lost and sad. Cass wasn’t in our physics class and I became worried. But I saw him at lunch in the caf, though he wouldn’t even look in my direction.

  “I found everyone!” Alyssa says cheerily, knocking me from my thoughts. I glance up to find her standing with Maggie, Kayla, Grace, and Jessica. My five junior Larks and me, all that’s left.

  “You girls look fabulous,” I say, and they do. They’re all dressed in somber yet fashionable black, and they worked so hard today to put this together. “It looks great out here. Thank you so much for all your help.”

  “We wanted to do it,” Maggie says, taking a step forward. “For Dani, and for Lex, and for Gretchen. For all of us, really.”

  I hug her, because I’m overcome with emotion. I’ve been holding it together pretty well since the weekend, and after everything that happened yesterday, I’m surprised I didn’t cry. But now the tears threaten, and I want to let go. Just let it all out.

  After, I tell myself. Once this is all done, then you can cry all you want.

  “Let’s take a photo,” I say, sniffing and wiping discreetly beneath my eyes. I whip out my phone and wave the girls over to gather around me. “One last selfie, for old time’s sake.”

  Holding the phone up, I correct the angle so I can get everyone in the frame. All of us are smiling widely while I snap a few photos. I see Alyssa shift as I’m still snapping away, her eyes widening and then she calls out, “Courtney! Hey! Come here!”

  I look over to see Courtney standing nearby, dressed in elegant black, her hair pulled back into a simple ponytail. She smiles when our eyes connect. “Hi Penelope.”

  Wariness fills me as I watch her approach. The last time we saw each other, she slapped me across the face. And that was only a little more than twenty-four hours ago. “Hi, Court. How are you?” I ask coolly.

  She reaches out, making me flinch, but she only takes my hand. “Don’t be mad,” she whispers. “I’m sorry for what happened yesterday.”

  I don’t know if I should accept her apology. I’m still worried she might hit me again. But it’s easier to play friendly with Courtney, so I do. “I’m glad you could make it.”

  “Do you guys need any help?” she asks brightly as she lets go of my hand.

  “I think we have everything under control, but thank you for offering.” I take a deep breath, telling myself to get over my anger. It’s been an emotionally fraught time. She’s suffering, just like I am. “Would you like to take a photo with us?”

  “I would love to.” She steps into place, right next to me, and we bend our heads together, our cheeks almost touching.

  “One more photo, ladies!” I tell them as I raise my phone up once more. I snap a few extra pictures and then we disband, though Courtney remains with me. “Are you really all right?”

  She takes a deep breath and lets it out slowly. “As all right as I can be considering what’s going on, I guess. I really do feel bad for what happened yesterday. I had way too many pills coursing through my system and I-I overreacted.”

  “I figured,” I murmured. “Are you better today?” She seems better. Isn’t acting so out of it, like she did yesterday.

  “I am. I feel much better.” Her smile blooms and she nods. “How about you? How are you holding up?”

  “I’m all right,” I say with a shrug. “It’s been good, having the candlelight vigil to focus on.”

  “I’m sure. Gives you something to do.” Her smile fades and she steps closer. “How’s Cass?”

  “He’s…good,” I tell her. “He should be here any minute, if you want to talk to him.”

  “Hmm.” The noncommittal sound she makes tells me she doesn’t really care about talking to Cass. And this makes me feel better, jealous shrew that I am. “Oh, look. There’s Brogan.”

  And she’s gone.

  More and more people are showing up, and I mingle through the crowds, greeting those I know and helping to hand out the cups and candles. The other Larks are doing the same, some of them at the quad entrance, handing out a short program Maggie made up today in her journalism class. Family members of the victims come in, and I guide them to the chairs.

  The turnout is huge, much bigger than we had for Gretchen’s candlelight vigil, but now we’re also attracting those who are simply curious. I can’t help but wonder if the killer is here with us tonight.

  And who it might be.

  I spot Cass among the growing crowd, and our gazes meet. Linger. He offers me a sad smile and I look away, my heart thumping hard. I want to go to him. I want to tell him I’m sorry.

  But I can’t.

  Turning, I find Courtney watching me watch Cass, her eyes dark, her smile long gone when our eyes lock.

  I look away.

  “The turnout is huge.” Courtney appears by my side, her bright smile back in place.

  “I know. It’s almost overwhelming. Mrs. Adney is going to speak first, then Gretchen’s father. I hear even the chief of police has something to say.”

  “Really? Wow.” Courtney slowly shakes her head as she surveys the crowd of people.

  “They’re anxious to catch the killer,” I tell her, thinking how just last night I thought she was the killer. I still sort of do, which means I’m crazy to talk to her like this. But she wouldn’t dare touch me. Not right now. “The residents of Cape Bonita are outraged. They want this all to stop.”

  “I’m sure,” Court murmurs.

  When Mrs. Adney starts to speak, I can’t help it—I zone out. I didn’t go to bed last night until late, and I’ve been helping the other Larks set up the vigil, so I’m exhausted. Plus, I can’t stop thinking about Cass. I hate that we’re not talking. But last night shook me so hard, I still don’t know what to think about him.

  Or how to act around him.

  I open up my phone and start to scroll through the photos I just took, smiling a little. We look pretty good, even in the photo when Alyssa yelled at Courtney and some of us aren’t looking straight at the camera.

  Frowning, I stare at Maggie. She looks…pissed. I zoom in on her face, see the scowl, her narrowed eyes as she looks right at Courtney, who’s off camera. I scroll through the remaining photos, the ones with Courtney in them. We’re smiling, all of us staring straight at the camera.

  Except for Maggie. She’s glaring at Court and me. Like she wishes she could rip our heads off.

  I glance up, searching for Maggie in the crowd. She’s standing on the opposite end of the quad with Alyssa, who is focused on Mrs. Adney’s speech. Maggie is searching the crowd, a sullen expression on her face. Her gaze snags with mine and we stare at each other for a moment. I smile at her.

  She looks away.

  Huh.

  I don’t even try to hide it—I keep a close watch on Maggie throughout Mrs. Adney’s speech, never taking my eyes off her. She looks around irritably, crossing her arms in front of her chest.

  My gaze snags on Courtney, who’s standing with Brogan. He’s behind her, his arms around her waist, his hands clasped in front of her stomach. They look awfully cozy. I guess grief and tragedy have allowed them to become closer?

  Ugh, whatever.

  Cass is nowhere to be found, which, of course, makes me suspicious. I lock gazes with Maggie again and she sends me a cold smile before leaning over to whisper something in Alyssa’s ear.

  After a few minutes, I see Courtney tear herself away from
Brogan and leave the quad, headed in the direction of the bathroom.

  Maggie soon leaves, too.

  I’m tempted to follow her. Follow them both.

  But that would be stupid. So incredibly stupid. Right? Not that anything could happen. There are people everywhere. I’ll be fine.

  Yeah.

  Just fine.

  Chapter

  Thirty-Eight

  I hang back on the dimly lit trail, not wanting Maggie to see me, since there’s no one else around. I don’t even see Courtney, and can only assume she’s in the bathroom already. Everyone else is in the quad, the crowd quiet as Mrs. Adney’s voice booms through the speakers set up around the perimeter. Hundreds of people have shown up tonight, yet I’ve never felt so alone as I do at this moment.

  Chills race over my skin when I realize it’s Maggie. Oh my God, it’s freaking Maggie who’s the killer. Sweet little gung-ho Maggie—but why?

  Why?

  Taking a deep breath, I tell myself to stay focused. Maggie is oblivious to my following her as she heads down the path, her steps determined. The bathrooms loom ahead and the women’s door swings open, a shard of golden light shining bright before the door slams shut again.

  It’s Courtney.

  “Oh,” she says when she spots Maggie. Her voice is flat, devoid of any emotion. “It’s you.”

  “It’s me.” Maggie’s voice rings clear. She almost sounds cheerful. “I was hoping we could talk.”

  “What about?”

  “I haven’t seen you in a while.”

  “That’s because I haven’t been at school.”

  I jump behind a tree so they don’t see me. I hope I’m close enough that I can listen to their conversation.

  “I know that,” Maggie says slowly, as if she’s talking to an imbecile. “I wanted to make sure you’re okay.”

  “Since when do you care?” Courtney asks snottily. Her tone shocks me, only because it’s the first time I’ve heard her sound like her old self in days.

  “I told you before, I wanted us to be friends,” Maggie says, almost pleadingly.

  “Well, like I told you before, I’m not interested.” Courtney starts to walk away, but Maggie grabs hold of her arm. “Hey! Let me go!”

  “Tell me something.” Maggie’s voice changes, goes deeper. “Are you with Brogan?”

  “What? Why do you care?” Courtney struggles. “I said let me go!”

  “Answer me. Are you and Brogan a thing?”

  “Not that it’s any of your business, but yeah. We’re together.” Courtney finally jerks out of her hold. “You satisfied?”

  “No. I’m not.” Maggie’s voice is eerily calm.

  Courtney turns to leave, but not before Maggie grabs hold of her arm once more, pulling so hard Courtney stumbles, trips, and falls to the ground, landing flat on her back. Maggie stands over her, reaching into the voluminous folds of her black dress and pulling something out of her pocket.

  It’s a knife.

  “What the hell are you doing?” Courtney yells just as I move away from the tree and run toward them.

  “Stop!” I scream at Maggie, causing her to whirl around. She clutches the knife in her hand, the long blade gleaming in the dim moonlight, and I stop only a few feet away from her, trying to catch my breath.

  Holy. Freaking. Crap. It’s not Courtney who’s the killer.

  It’s Maggie?

  Her shoulders sag and she rolls her eyes, laughing. “What are you doing here? Jesus. Why can’t everything go my way for once?”

  “Put the knife down.” My gaze drops to meet Courtney’s. She’s sprawled on the ground, her knees scraped from the fall, but otherwise, she looks okay.

  “Are you kidding me? No way. This actually works out better. I’ll take care of Courtney first, considering she stole my man.”

  She stole that line from Courtney, who said the same exact thing about Gretchen.

  “I never stole Brogan from you!” Courtney yells indignantly. “What the hell are you talking about?”

  Maggie sends her a withering glance before she looks back at me. “Then I’ll take care of you. And finally, it will be over.”

  “What will be over?” I need to keep her talking, and hopefully someone will find us. There are so many people here, surely someone will need to use the restroom.

  And if that’s all I’m banking on, we are so screwed.

  “My plan. Once you’re gone, I’ll reopen the Larks and I’ll become president, not Alyssa.” She smiles, her eyes sparkling. “Everyone will be so relieved I’m there to take care of them. It’ll be easy.”

  Don’t tell me she planned this only because she wants to be the president of the Larks? That’s crazy. The seniors choose who becomes the next president…

  Though it’s hard for us to make a choice when we’re all dead.

  “Why are you doing this? Why did you kill them?”

  Maggie shrugs and starts waving the knife around. “I tried my hardest to become everyone’s friend, and you all made fun of me. You would laugh and push me to the ground so my skirt got muddy and my shoes were ruined. All the boys would point and call me names, because you guys encouraged them. You don’t remember?” she asks when she catches my confused expression.

  I slowly shake my head. “What are you talking about?”

  “I couldn’t go back to school, couldn’t face all you stupid bitches again. I told my mom she couldn’t make me. I mean, I threw the biggest fit. I didn’t know I had it in me.” She shakes her head, a faint smile on her face, like she’s thinking of a fond memory. “I missed so much school they had to hold me back a year. My mom homeschooled me until I came back halfway through the tenth grade, though I should’ve been a junior, like you. Like all of you.”

  I rack my brain, trying to remember her. She’s talking about the past, when we were little kids. But I don’t remember anyone who looked like her, and I definitely don’t remember a girl named Maggie.

  “I was plain. And poor. A scholarship kid, and you all knew it. I wore glasses and had braces and was just so…awkward. None of you pretty, rich girls want to be seen with a girl carrying a few extra pounds. I ruined your image.” She kicks hard at Courtney’s leg, making her yell out in pain. “Come on, Penelope! Think. You have to remember me. I’ll be totally insulted if you don’t.”

  It comes to me slowly. There was a short, round-faced girl, back in sixth grade and the beginning of seventh. The middle school years were bad, and there was a miserable little thing who was an easy target for a bunch of mean girls like Gretchen. And Lex. And Courtney.

  Sometimes even Dani and me.

  Her name was Margaret.

  “Ah, you do remember me. I can see it on your face. Do you remember what you used to say? How you all used to taunt me and call me names? God, Gretchen was the worst. That’s why I killed her first. She was such a bitch.” Maggie shakes her head, her expression disgusted. “And Lex wasn’t much better. They finally recognized me when I came back, did you know that? That’s why they had to go first. I couldn’t risk them telling you about me.”

  “Maggie, come on,” I say, trying a different tactic. “We were just kids back then. We didn’t know any better.”

  “Bullshit! You knew better, but you didn’t care. So I worked my hardest to be the perfect little do-gooder like you wanted me to be. I was determined to become a Lark so damn bad, and now when I finally am, when I’m finally close to getting what I want, you take it away from me! You shut down the Larks! Who does that?” Maggie smiles and glances down at her knife, stroking it gently with her fingers. “A selfish bitch like you, that’s who.”

  A chill races down my spine at the sound of her flat voice, goose bumps rising on my skin. She’s mad at me. She’s just as mad at me as she is at Courtney, maybe even more.

  “It’ll give me great pleasure to end you both tonight, though it’s bound to get messy. Dani sure was messy, but her death wasn’t according to plan, so when you deviate from the plan,
shit goes bad, right?”

  She’s looking at me like she expects an answer, so I nod, feeling helpless. I look over at Courtney to see she’s now sitting up. She rests her finger over her lips and I look away, my gaze locking with Maggie’s once again. “Right.”

  “Be a good girl, then, and let me take care of Courtney first. Not like you two get along. And she’s the real man stealer of the group, not Gretchen. She hooks up with everyone.” Maggie still hasn’t noticed that Courtney is slowly rising to her feet. “Courtney doesn’t care if she hurts anyone’s feelings. The only person she cares about is herself.”

  Courtney chooses that exact moment to charge into Maggie from behind, knocking her to the ground. They claw and scratch at each other, the knife falling from Maggie’s hand, clattering onto the sidewalk. Courtney kicks it away, sending the knife skidding across the path.

  I run toward them, screaming at the top of my lungs for help as I head for the knife. I try to snatch it up, but Maggie beats me to it, grabbing the knife and thrusting it in my face. “Back off,” she fumes, her face red. There’s a scrape across her cheek and her mascara is running. “I will cut a bitch if you get too close. I swear to God.”

  “Maggie,” I start but Courtney grabs hold of her leg from behind, sending her toppling.

  Toppling into me.

  We fall onto each other, and I scream when Maggie lunges for me. I’m grabbing at her arms, her wrists, trying to keep that knife away from me. Courtney is screaming, and then I hear another voice.

  A male voice.

  Cass.

  “Pen!” He’s yelling my name, his voice drawing closer, and I thrust my leg up, trying to knee Maggie in the stomach. But then I feel a prick, a sharp pinch in my skin, and I cry out before I roll over and away from her.

  “Get away from me!” Maggie yells, and then Cass is there, struggling with her, trying to grab the knife. I stare up at the starry night sky, pressing my hand against my side.

  When I pull my hand away, I see it’s covered in blood.