Who is Audrey Wickersham?

by Sara Shrieves

  I went into his room and started looking around at things, seeing if there was any indication that maybe he had gotten up earlier and stepped out to get donuts or something. It had happened before, but I was becoming more and more certain that he was just gone. At least I knew now that I hadn’t eaten him. His wallet was gone, but I hadn’t noticed if his keys were hanging from the peg near the garage door, where he usually left them. I went back out to the kitchen, and then looked over at the peg. His keys were hanging there. Okay, now I was getting freaked out. Suddenly I thought, Besnik, and ran over to the den, opening the door frantically. The room was empty. “Shit!”

  What was I supposed to do? Had something happened to him? What about Bruce and Agnes? I went to my room, grabbed my boots and threw them on quickly, then ran out over to Bruce’s house. I banged on the door, now entering full on panic mode. “Bruce?!” I didn’t wait too long and I went over and started trying to look through his living room window. “Hello?” I had my face smashed up against the glass when suddenly I heard his front door open. I ran back to it quickly, only to be disappointed at the sight of his housekeeper’s face peeking back out at me. She was a little Portuguese woman that came twice a week, named Aldonca.

  “Audrey!” She opened the door wider, beckoning me to come inside. I went in and started looking around, before even thinking to ask her if Bruce was there.

  “Aldonca, where is Bruce?” I came up to her and stared at her, hoping she would say that he was out getting coffee or something. She stared back at me, surprised at my panicked behavior.

  “Not here. He is…at work?” She looked completely lost, and I realized I was crowding her and also probably making her really nervous. She seemed scared now too, and I hadn’t even told her my dad was gone as well.

  “No, I don’t think he’s at work. Crap!” I turned away and ran down the hall to his bedroom, just to see if I could glean anything from his self-proclaimed sanctuary. His door was open, but the light wasn’t on. I looked into his fluorescent pink room, flicking on the light, and saw that his bed was made. I also noted the multiple Britney Spears posters and a few James Franco posters. He had a serious thing for that guy. “Interesting combo,” I muttered to myself as I walked back out to the living room.

  “Audrey,” she said, looking frightened. “No Bruce?”

  “No…no Bruce. Did you make his bed?”

  “No…already made.”

  “Where would they be?” My mind was now flinging random images at me, coming up with several different scenarios of both Bruce and my dad being gruesomely murdered and left rotting out in the desert or something. Or maybe Besnik overpowered, and killed them both? Either way, death was all I was capable of thinking about right now. What other good reason would there be for them to both just disappear?

  “If you hear anything from him Aldonca, let me know right away, okay? Can you call my cell phone?” Wait! Why hadn’t I even thought of that yet? I grabbed my phone from my pocket and called my dad’s number. I waited on edge through each ring until it went to voicemail, knowing the whole time that that’s what was going to happen to begin with. I tried Bruce’s phone as well, just in case, and heard the ringtone he had programmed for me, “Living Dead Girl”, begin to play from his bedroom. He always managed to surprise me.

  “Audrey?”

  I looked at Aldonca with worried eyes, and then remembered that I had been in the middle of giving her my cell number. “Right! I’m sorry Aldonca. I just thought…never mind. They’re not answering.”

  “Who?”

  “Bruce and my dad. I can’t find them.”

  “Oh no! What can I do?”

  “Just call me if you hear anything. Okay?” I handed her over a piece of Bruce’s mail with my number written on the back of it.

  “Yes, I will.” She clutched the paper to her chest and smiled at me, her eyes beginning to fill with tears. That was my cue to leave. I didn’t want to start crying with her, when I wasn’t even sure if they were actually missing.

  I hugged her briefly and then I ran out of the house, back over to my own place. Maybe my dad had come back from wherever he had gone and he was looking for me now. I ran through the front door, calling out, “Dad?” I looked around the whole house once more, finally winding up back where I had started when I woke up this morning, thinking everything was actually going to turn around for the better. How stupid could I have been? Nothing would ever be the same. Bruce and Dad, and possibly Agnes, were gone. Where could they be?

  I glanced up at my dad’s keys, and started thinking maybe I could go out and search for them. Most likely they had taken Bruce’s car, so they weren’t close by.

  Just in case I was wrong, and he really had just walked somewhere with Bruce or something (before six-thirty in the morning…right) I would leave a note.

  I stuck it on the fridge and grabbed the keys, heading out to the car. I made sure I had my cell phone and made sure that the ringer was on loud. You could hardly hear anything in the Nova. I got in and buckled up first thing. My dad had drilled that habit into me from the first day he ever took me out to drive. Now, I just needed to suck it up and actually drive this damn thing. Shouldn’t my adrenaline be kicking in, helping me to get over this ridiculous fear of a stupid car? I think my problem was that I had read and seen Christine one too many times. “Here we go,” I said to myself.

  The car started right up, and I opened the garage door with the remote. I wished that Kirk were here right now. I really just needed to see a friendly face at the moment.

  I backed out of the garage slowly, remembering to lower the door behind me. Now, I needed to decide where to go. I sat in the driveway for a minute, thinking of where I could possibly look for them. I decided to just drive up Ventura, hoping I would see something.

  I drove up and down slowly, not having any idea of what I was looking for, when I realized the car was almost out of gas. I pulled into a gas station and began the process of filling the beast. This was definitely not coming out of my money. I specifically walked everywhere so that I wouldn’t waste gas, since this car used so much of it. I would have to debate my dad about reimbursing me when he got home. If he got home. This was really depressing me now. I started spacing out as the tank filled, when I heard my name being called.

  “Audrey?”

  I turned towards the voice and recognized a classmate of mine. I had to think a minute before I could come up with her name. “Oh, hey Kiyanna.” I smiled lamely at her and then turned back towards the pump, hoping she would leave me alone. I realized now that when I had been up close to Aldonca I hadn’t smelled anything, but that could have just been because I was freaking out at the time. I really didn’t want to take a chance with my classmate, knowing I could easily make a fool out of myself in public, and of course I could also possibly eat her.

  “It’s Kat, remember?” She leaned against the hood of the Nova, trying to light up a cigarette dangling from the corner of her mouth.

  “What? Oh, right. Sorry…Kat.” I shook my head and looked back at the gas pump, trying to ignore her. For some strange reason she had decided to make everyone call her “Kat”, even though I didn’t see any possible way to get “Kat” from “Kiyanna”. This girl seemed to try and do everything to get noticed though.

  “Hey, I wanted to know if you like, had the geometry notes from Friday’s class? Mr. Swearingen always talks too fast for me.” She was still trying to light her cigarette.

  “Maybe that’s not such a good idea,” I said, pointing to her cigarette and then sweeping my arm towards the pumps. “It could possibly end badly for us.”

  “Whatever, man. Do you have the notes or what? I can’t get another F. My parents will gut me and hang me out to dry, you know?”

  “Not…really,” I said slowly. “Can you just give me a sec?” I had finished filling the tank and I was trying to hang the nozzle back up. I screwed the gas cap back in and then turned to address Kat, formerly known as Kiyanna. “I don’t have
them because we don’t have that class together. We have gym class.”

  “Wait…what? You sit right in front of me!”

  “Nope. Not me.” I shook my head no and started to turn towards the car again.

  “Oh. Well then, can you give me a ride? I don’t want to walk the rest of the way. I think I have like, shin splints, or something.”

  I rolled my eyes at this and turned around and watched her take a deep drag from her cigarette, and blow it out towards the pumps.

  “I’m not going to school today,” I said hesitantly. “I’ve been kind of sick recently.”

  “Really? Well, can you just drop me off then? I won’t tell anyone that I saw you. I would ditch too, but…you know…the parents.”

  “Yeah, totally. Parents.” I laughed derisively, as if I actually had any idea of what she was talking about. We definitely weren’t on the same wavelength. I thought about having her in my car with me, and figured I may as well do it. It would be a good test to see if the whole spell thing had really worked. And if it hadn’t, well…too bad for Kat, right? I told myself I was just kidding. “Well, I guess I can give you a ride. I’m just driving around right now anyway.”

  “Sweet! You totally saved my ass.”

  She came around to the passenger side and jumped in. I knew somehow I would end up regretting this.

  We pulled up at the school a few minutes later and she shot out a quick “Later,” to me, and then hopped out.

  “And not even a thank you,” I muttered to myself. Well, other than her being abrasive and incredibly rude, the ride had gone really well. I hadn’t wanted to eat her and I hadn’t smelled her at all. Besides her somewhat unpleasant body odor that is.

  I sat there for a moment, not knowing what I was going to do next, when I heard my name being called again. I looked to see who it was and saw my English teacher approaching me.

  “Damn it,” I mumbled. “Hey, Mrs. Tower.” I smiled at her and waved slightly, hoping this would be quick.

  She came up to my side of the car and leaned down to talk to me. “Amazing paper you turned in on Friday. I just wanted to tell you that.” She smiled at me, making her eyes crinkle at the sides. She was a really nice lady, and currently my favorite teacher.

  “Oh…thanks! I didn’t even put that much effort into it actually. I thought you would hate it.” I glanced down at the steering wheel and felt myself blush a little. Compliments always embarrassed me.

  “Well, it was great. I always appreciate a good paper on alternate versions of key parts in history. And the Salem witch trials are also one of my favorite subjects.”

  See? How could anyone not like this lady? “Well, I’ll try to keep it up. But I kind of have to go now.” I smiled apologetically and then put the car into gear.

  “Wait, where are you going? I’m laying a pop quiz on you guys, and it’s thirty percent of your final grade!” She frowned slightly and then said, “I guess now I ruined the whole ‘pop quiz’ aspect of it though, didn’t I?” She laughed at herself and then looked at me expectantly. “So can you just go park?” She gave me a halfhearted stern look and I shifted uncomfortably under her gaze.

  “I really am sick. I don’t think class would be the best thing for me right now.”

  “Has your dad called the school to excuse you today?”

  “Umm…not really.” Damn it, I thought to myself. “Okay well I will check in with the attendance office, and see what happens. If they say I can leave, can I possibly make up the test?” I looked up at her pleadingly.

  She leaned all the way up and sighed loudly. “I really want you to be there today, but if you are truly sick, then we can work something out in the way of a makeup exam. Sound okay?”

  I felt instantly relieved and said, “Yes, that’s awesome. I’ll head right to the office.” I started to slowly inch forward, scared I could possibly run over her feet, and then went a little faster as she backed away. She continued to hover nearby though, watching until I parked and then went into the attendance office. I knew in my gut that they weren’t going to excuse me. I quickly tried calling my dad again for the billionth time before I got up to the front desk. No answer, of course. I was so on edge at the moment, I had no idea what to think. And I couldn’t tell the people in the office what was happening. They would just keep me there until everything was resolved.

  I headed up to the main desk and spoke to the woman most students referred to as Hell Beast, but I greeted her with a polite, “Hello Ms. Trunkle.” I smiled at her, while still trying to make myself appear very ill, and as if I desperately needed to go home.

  She eyeballed me suspiciously. “What’s your name?”

  “Oh right! Duh…sorry about that. I’m Audrey Wickersham. I don’t feel so well, but I kind of ended up here by accident, instead of staying home in bed. Basically, I can’t get a hold of my dad to call in for me. I think he’s in like a big meeting at work or something-”

  “What are you trying to ask me, exactly? You want permission to leave without parental consent?”

  “Well see, I was already staying home.” I smiled nervously, and then quickly hurried on when she narrowed her eyes at me skeptically. “I sort of got roped into taking a fellow classmate to school, and then I was just going to head home. Which I would really like to do. Right now. Mrs. Tower saw me when I got here though…and now here I am.”

  “No parental consent, no leaving school early. Go to class, Miss Wickersham.”

  “No, wait. Please.” I knew I sounded pathetic, but I was desperate and I didn’t care.

  “Go to class,” she said again. She was getting angry now, I could tell. Her face was all red and her jowls were quivering.

  “Okay,” I said, submitting. What else could I do? Why did she have to be the one in the office today, of all people? This day was seriously not going the way I had planned.

  I stepped out of the office and began walking to my first period class, thinking about just booking it to my car for a split second, before I realized there were too many damn security guards to make that possible.

  My first period happened to be English. Now I was even more depressed. Stupid pop quiz. I entered the classroom with my head hanging down, and was greeted pleasantly by Mrs. Tower.

  “Hello,” I mumbled in her direction. I went and took a seat, hoping the quiz wouldn’t be too hard. After everyone seemed to settle down, Mrs. Tower began addressing the entire class. I sort of just tuned her out until some papers were plopped down in front of me.

  “Your quiz, Miss Wickersham.” She winked at me knowingly, and then moved on to the next student.

  “Great, thanks,” I muttered sarcastically.

  I waited for her to announce to everyone that we could begin. Once I got going I began feeling pretty cocky. I knew all of the answers so far and I was about to get to the next page when I was distracted by someone coming into the classroom. I looked up and saw that it was Ms. Trunkle. She was speaking in hushed tones to Mrs. Tower, facing away from all of us so that we couldn’t pick up on what they were saying to each other.

  After a minute or so she walked out, and Mrs. Tower called out my name. I was a little surprised, and also slightly relieved. Maybe my dad had shown up for me! I walked up and she gave me a concerned look, and then said, “Someone is here to pick you up. Would you like to try and finish the quiz first, and then leave?”

  “No, no, I should go. Can I make up the last part of it?”

  She hesitated for a moment, and then said, “Sure. But don’t let anyone else know I’m doing this for you!” She whispered this last part and then smiled warmly at me. She patted me on the shoulder and said, “Go now, before I change my mind!”

  “I’m out of here, don’t worry.” I smiled back and then walked out of the classroom, heading to the office.

  I had let myself relax, thinking that my dad was here to pick me up. He’d probably seen his car and knew I was here. I was going to lecture the crap out of him for scaring me so badly.


  I had formed in my mind what I wanted to say to him by the time I was walking into the office. When I approached Ms. Trunkle’s desk, I looked around curiously to see where my dad was. All I saw was an old man and a few other kids, probably waiting for their parents.

  “Hi, Ms. Trunkle, is my dad here?”

  She looked up at me and said, “Nope, it’s your grandfather.” She pointed her pen in the direction of the old man, and then looked back down at her paperwork.

  What the hell? My grandfather? I looked over at the old guy and didn’t recognize him at all. Besides, all of my grandparents were dead. “That guy is not my grandfather. Don’t you like, check people’s IDs or something?”

  She looked up at me with an angry scowl now and said, “Young lady, don’t question how I do my job. He showed me his ID. Your last names match. Is there some reason I shouldn’t believe him?”

  “Well yeah, because he’s not my grandfather. Both of my grandfathers are dead!” I was whispering loudly at her now, becoming increasingly pissed off. Why did she have to be so damn mean? Shouldn’t she be concerned that some guy was here to pick me up, and I had just told her he wasn’t my grandfather, and on top of that I didn’t even know him? Therefore making him a lying, disgusting kidnapper?

  “Miss Wickersham, I assure you I know how to do my job.”

  “Obviously you don’t. No wonder everyone here calls you Hell Beast. You’re so freaking mean, I don’t even feel sorry for you anymore!”

  She began shaking with rage, trying to sputter out some sort of response.

  At the voicing of my name, the old man had gotten up and began to make his way over to me. He approached the desk and saw Ms. Trunkle’s reddening face and clenched fists, and asked, “Is everything alright?” He looked at me and smiled. “Hello Audrey. Agnes has sent me to pick you up. She says she will explain everything to you-”