“Do you know that girl?” Martha asked.
“No. I’ve seen her before, but I don’t know her name. Do you suppose that’s Doug’s girlfriend?” Emma asked, afraid of the answer.
“How can he have a girlfriend? He’s always with us,” Martha was quick to point out.
Emma had to admit that what Martha said was true. If that girl was Doug’s girlfriend, he sure never spent any time with her. She was probably just a friend he was dancing with. Feeling better, Emma sat back and scanned the rest of the dancers. Bobby Wilcox was dancing with Barb, not far from where she and Martha were sitting, but he didn’t pay them any attention. Emma hoped he’d leave Doug alone now that the competitions were over. Turning her head in the direction of the entrance, she spotted Clarice and Susie coming through the door. Clarice looked nothing short of fabulous. She was wearing gray flared-legged slacks with a silver chain belt and a peach-colored, short-sleeved sweater that came just to the top of the waist of her hip-hugging slacks. Clarice was wearing black shoes with an inch-and-a-half heel, giving the overall illusion of height. Clarice was a short girl, barely five feet tall, but the way her slacks and heels flowed together made her look a good six inches taller. She had fixed her hair in a softly curling style that showed off her diamond earrings and a light dusting of makeup emphasized her flawless complexion. Emma felt another stirring of jealousy and was just glad that Doug had never seemed interested in Clarice.
Just then the song ended, and Emma’s heart began to pound fiercely in nervous anticipation. Doug would surely have seen her and would be making his way over to ask her to dance. Emma didn’t want to appear too eager, so she kept her head down and waited, but in just a moment, the music began again. Confused, Emma looked up. Doug was still in the center of the dance floor, but now he was dancing with another girl Emma didn’t know. Martha was just as perplexed as Emma. She had been certain that Doug would dance with Emma most of the night, but he had yet to even seek her out.
The second song ended, and Phil came over to ask Martha to dance. With an apologetic look at Emma, Martha stood up and followed Phil onto the dance floor. Doug was dancing with Clarice this time, and Clarice was giggling in a flirtatious manner as she danced with Doug. Emma began to fume inside. She wouldn’t put anything past Clarice, but how could Doug treat her like this? Despite what she had told Martha after he’d given her the tiger, she had believed that he liked her. She had to admit to herself that he may have just been being kind; he was, after all, a nice guy. As the dance went on, Emma’s spirits sank lower and lower. By nine o’clock, Emma had had enough. She had not been asked to dance a single time by anyone. Martha had been asked several times; she had danced with Phil and Tom, and she was currently dancing with Sebastian. Each time Martha had been asked, she had looked at Emma before accepting. Emma had told her to go ahead and dance and have fun. One of them, at least, ought to have a good time at what was turning into a nightmare for Emma. For two hours Emma had been sitting in the same spot, afraid to move in case Doug came over. She was done waiting; he obviously couldn’t care less about her. On the verge of tears, Emma got up, and skirting around the fringe of dancers, she went through a pair of open French doors and out onto the terrace. The night air was cool, but Emma didn’t care. She was doing her best not to cry. Several other students were also out on the terrace, but they were in groups of two or three. Emma walked over to the stone railing and rested her elbows on it.
Now that she was essentially alone, Emma gave free reign to her thoughts. She had been crazy to think she would ever fit in with a bunch of rich kids. Maybe that was why no one would dance with her. Her family was poor compared to them. Then Emma had another more horrible thought; maybe it was because she was ugly. After all, no one had told her she was pretty since she was a little girl, and everybody thought little ones were cute. Emma had a vague memory of her mother calling her a beautiful little princess. At the thought of her mother, tears filled her eyes, and before she could stop them, they began to spill out onto her cheeks. Emma angrily brushed the tears away. She would not give these snobs the satisfaction of having made her cry. Trying to get a hold of herself, she looked up at the clear night sky. Once again, the stars looked bright and near. The moon was nowhere to be seen, and looking out toward the fountain, Emma couldn’t see beyond the circle of light cast by the ballroom chandeliers behind her. Emma remained out on the terrace for quite a while, so lost in thought that she was unaware that the others had gone back inside. Gradually, she became aware of her surroundings and was startled to see that she was alone. A sudden inexplicable fear snaked its way down her spine. She was turning to go back inside when she heard it. It sounded like someone was calling her name, but it had been very faint, and she couldn’t be certain of what she’d heard. She stopped and strained to hear if the cry would come again, unaware of the danger that awaited her in the darkness.
WHEN EMMA HAD appeared on the terrace, he’d been observing the dance from the shrubs along the driveway. Quickly ducking behind the bushes on the slim chance he could be seen, he watched Emma as she leaned on the railing and marveled at his good fortune. He didn’t have to wait very long before the Higsby girl was out on the terrace all alone. If he could just lure her away from the terrace and into the darkness beyond, he could drag her away to his secret place and make her tell him what she and her friends knew about the treasure. Those kids should have stayed out of it, he thought angrily. But since they’d stuck their noses where they didn’t belong, he figured they might be of some use. He knew they’d been in the secret passage. He’d been through that passage himself many times but had been unable to find the treasure. He was getting desperate, and the Higsby girl might be able to tell him something that would help. He could interrogate her and then make her quietly disappear. She didn’t have a rich family, so her family wouldn’t be able to afford to hire investigators. After the initial search, things would quiet down and get back to normal. He hadn’t expected this opportunity to arise, so he had to come up with a plan quickly. When it looked like she was leaving to go back inside, he did the first thing that came to mind. From his position behind the shrubs, he began to call her name. He was careful to keep his voice low enough so that only Emma could hear him. He saw her stop as if unsure of what she’d heard, so he called her name again a little more loudly.
THERE WAS NO mistaking it now; someone was calling for her, and it sounded like they were hurt. Emma was fairly certain that the cry had come from the bushes on the west side of the school. Emma hesitated only a second more and then headed for the stairs leading down to the fountain. At the bottom of the stairs, she paused again and listened. The cry came again, more plaintive this time. Someone was hurt and needed help. Emma took another step and then another, each step bringing her closer and closer to the edge of the light. Slowly, Emma continued to move forward until she stood at the boundary between the light and the total darkness beyond. Once again, she hesitated, straining to see into the blackness. Another tingle of fear made her shiver, and she couldn’t bring herself to leave the security of the light. It would be better if she went back inside and got help; she began to reason. She was blissfully unaware that while she had been debating what to do, he’d been coming toward her. He had realized that she was too afraid to come any further, but she was now far enough from the school that he could grab her without anyone noticing. The closer he got, the more confident he became that she couldn’t see him. He would grab her before she knew what was happening. He was less than a dozen steps away from her. Soon he would be past the point of no return. When she did see him, he would have to act quickly before she could scream. Closer and closer he came, moving with the stealth of a bobcat on the hunt. One more step and she would be able to see him. He was just preparing to take that step when a loud voice halted him.
“Miss Higsby, where do you think you’re going? Students are not to be anywhere but in the ballroom or on the terrace. Come back in immediately.”
Emma turned
and saw the figure of Miss Grimstock standing on the steps behind her. Emma couldn’t see Grim’s expression because her face was in shadow, the light at her back. Even in the darkness, however, Emma was certain that Grim was frowning.
“I know,” Emma said quickly, “but I heard someone calling for help. It’s coming from over there,” Emma added indicating the direction with her arm.
Miss Grimstock inclined her head and listened, but the call did not come again. “Well, whatever it was, it’s gone now. You must come back inside immediately.”
Emma still wasn’t convinced, but not knowing what else to do, she turned and climbed the steps leading up to the terrace and Miss Grimstock. Puzzled that the call for help had stopped so abruptly, she followed Grim into the ballroom. She had to admit she was relieved that the decision about what to do had been taken out of her hands. Fortunately, she would never know how close she had come to disappearing forever.
He stood as if frozen until Emma and Grimstock had gone. He’d been so focused on Emma that he hadn’t noticed Grimstock’s approach. That old biddy Grimstock had almost caught him. He let out his breath in a hiss; he had been so close. Well, he’d get even with Grimstock later. As for the Higsby girl, there would be another day and another time. He’d just have to be ready if another opportunity presented itself. Angry and frustrated, he turned away and headed into the darkness.
Doug had been trying to break free all night, but girls kept coming up and asking him to dance. Not wanting to seem impolite, he had agreed to dance with them. He would get a chance to dance with Emma later. That’s what he told himself in the beginning, but after a while, he’d begun to enjoy all the attention. He was flattered that so many girls wanted to dance with him. Finally, a little after nine o’clock, the disc jockey had taken a break, and Doug had gone in search of Emma, but she was nowhere to be found. He happened across Martha, but she informed him in clipped tones that she didn’t know where Emma was either. As he walked away, he wondered briefly what he’d done to make Martha mad and then resumed his search. After several minutes it became clear that she was not in the ballroom, and Doug began to get worried.
Martha was beginning to get worried as well. She had been dancing with Sebastian and hadn’t seen where Emma had gone. Martha was feeling guilty. She’d been having a grand old time dancing, and she’d left Emma all by herself. Some great friend she was. Poor Emma hadn’t been asked to dance a single time, and Martha was at a loss to understand why. Emma was a pretty girl, and she was smart and nice too. Guys are so stupid, she thought, as she began to look for Emma herself.
Doug was just heading for the doors leading out onto the terrace when Emma came walking through them, followed closely by a stern-looking Miss Grimstock.
“Emma I was just looking for you,” he began. Emma ignored him and brushed past him as if he wasn’t there. There was no doubt about it; Emma was furious with him. He would have to be pretty stupid not to know why. But how was he going to explain if she wouldn’t even look at him? Maybe he’d get a chance to talk to her tomorrow. As he watched her retreating back, he wondered what Miss Grimstock was doing with Emma. Was Emma in trouble for something? Knowing Emma, that was hard to imagine, but Grim had sure looked, well, for lack of a better word, grim. Shaking his head, he went back into the ballroom to find Sebastian. He’d had enough dancing for one night and was ready to go back to the dorm.
Emma didn’t stop walking until she was back in her dorm room. She hadn’t even stopped to tell Martha where she was going. Tonight had been one of the worst in her life, and all she wanted was to be alone. As soon as she entered her room, the tears she’d been holding back began to stream down her cheeks. Emma prepared quickly for bed and turned out the light. She didn’t want the other girls to see her like this. She wanted to choke Clarice, and Susie too, for that matter, because she idolized Clarice. Doug had danced with Clarice, of all people; to Emma that had been the ultimate betrayal. He didn’t even like Clarice, or so he’d said on previous occasions. The more she thought about it, the more upset she became, and soon her pillow was soaking wet. She couldn’t seem to stop crying. Finally, when no more tears would come, Emma sat up and blew her nose with the tissues on the nightstand by her bed. Wiping her face, she turned her pillow over and laid down again. Her last thought before she drifted off to sleep was that her eyes were going to be red and puffy in the morning.
The next morning, Emma was awakened by a gentle shake from Martha. “Hey, we’d better get ready if we’re going to eat breakfast and be on time for chapel.”
Without turning over, Emma mumbled that she wasn’t feeling well and that she was just going to stay in bed. Martha offered to stay with her, but Emma assured her that she just needed to sleep and would be all right by herself. Martha knew what was really bothering Emma, but she decided now was not the time for a deep discussion. Emma was still too upset, and Clarice and Susie were still in the room, although they were already dressed for chapel.
“What’s wrong with Emma?” Susie asked in a whisper.
“She’s not feeling well,” Martha said in a tone that did not encourage any further questions. Susie took the hint and said no more, but Clarice suggested they get the school nurse. Martha quickly nixed that idea, and in a few moments, Clarice and Susie left to get some breakfast. With a sympathetic look at Emma’s back, Martha went into the bathroom to brush her teeth. When she came out of the bathroom, Emma appeared to be asleep. Dressing quickly, Martha left the room, closing the door quietly behind her. Her heart ached for Emma, and if she could have gotten a hold of Doug at that moment, she would have taken great satisfaction in strangling him. When Martha entered the dining room, she saw Doug and Sebastian were already seated and had saved a couple of spots for her and Emma. Ignoring the gestures of Sebastian, she made her way to the other end of the table and sat next to Reggie, who hadn’t been at the dance the previous evening.
“Why weren’t you at the dance last night, Reggie?” she asked with genuine concern in her voice.
“I guess I ate too many s’mores at supper,” Reggie replied, patting his stomach. “I got sick and had to spend the night in the infirmary.”
Martha nodded in sympathy and said, “That’s too bad, Reggie. I hope you’re feeling better now. Trust me, you didn’t miss anything. If I never go to another dance, it will be too soon.” And then a thought came to Martha. “Reggie, what do you think of Emma?”
“What do you mean?” Reggie asked, turning in his seat to look at her.
“Well, do you think she’s pretty?”
“Yeah, I guess so,” Reggie replied hesitantly, and then with more conviction he added, “She sure is smart!”
That wasn’t really the sort of information that Martha had been looking for, so she tried another tack. “Does it bother you that her family isn’t rich?”
“No, of course not,” Reggie answered emphatically. “You’d have to be a snob to care about something like that. Why do you ask?”
“I just wondered,” Martha answered, satisfied with Reggie’s response.
The conversation then turned to more general things. Reggie must have been feeling a great deal better judging from the amount of food he consumed at breakfast. In between bites, he explained why he wasn’t sitting with Clarice. Apparently, Clarice had no tolerance for sickness, and afraid that she might get what Reggie had, she was keeping her distance. That sounds like Clarice, Martha thought to herself. She doesn’t care a bit how Reggie is feeling; she’s just worried about herself. It was clear that Clarice’s selfishness knew no bounds. Martha was already mad at her for dancing with Doug. Not only had she danced with him, but she’d flirted with him too. Maybe Martha should remind Clarice that Doug was not up to her financial standards. She would do just that if she hadn’t already made up her mind that she wasn’t talking to her.
Doug looked down the table to where Martha was sitting and wondered where Emma was. In all the time he’d known her, she’d never missed breakfast. He would have
asked Martha, but it was obvious that Martha was mad at him too. Boy, he’d really screwed up this time. He just hoped he could fix it. Emma couldn’t stay in her room all day, and when she appeared, he’d explain things, whether she wanted to listen or not. With that firmly decided, he and Sebastian finished breakfast and headed outside to go to chapel.
As the day wore on, Doug had to admit that he’d been wrong; Emma could stay in her room all day. She had not appeared at lunch or supper. He began to get worried that she was really sick and decided that he would ask Martha, even if she was mad at him. But when he looked around the dining room, Martha was nowhere to be found either. He commented on it to Sebastian.
“I think Martha was taking a plate to Emma in her room,” Sebastian said helpfully.
“Is Emma sick?” Doug asked.
“Dunno,” Sebastian answered, shrugging his shoulders.
Deciding he’d get no more information from Sebastian, Doug ran his hand through his hair in frustration. Girls! They’re nothing but trouble, he thought to himself. “I’m going outside for some air,” he grumbled, standing up. Before Sebastian could reply, Doug was gone. Sebastian watched his retreating back, and then shaking his head, he picked up his fork and returned to his meal.
After Martha had left for chapel, Emma had gotten up to examine her face in the mirror. Just as she had predicted, her eyes were red and swollen, and they would probably remain that way for the rest of the day. That decided it; she wasn’t leaving this room until breakfast tomorrow. No one, absolutely no one, must see her like this. She splashed cold water over her eyes for several minutes, but to no avail. It was still obvious that she had been crying. Emma looked at the clock; it would be at least a couple of hours before the others got back from chapel, and then they would probably only come in long enough to change their clothes. She would stay in the room, but what was she going to do all day? It was just her luck that this happened to be the one weekend they didn’t have any homework. Well, she’d just have to read a book. Fortunately, she had a new one that she’d borrowed from the school library, but she hadn’t had a chance to start it. Well, today was the day. Emma got the book out of her drawer and sat down on her bed to read, glancing at the clock every now and then. She wanted to be sure to be back in bed when the others got back from chapel. Once again, she would pretend to be asleep. She knew Clarice and Susie wouldn’t bother to find out whether she was sick or not, but Martha was a different matter. Martha would not be so easily fooled. Oh well, she’d cross that bridge when she came to it. Shortly before nine o’clock, Emma got back under the covers and pretended to be asleep. In just a few minutes, she heard the others coming in. Seeing that she was still asleep, they tried to be quiet. In another few minutes, they had changed clothes and gone again. Relieved, Emma got out her book and tried to read, but it was hard to concentrate.
The Secret of Dinswood Page 13