by Sara Hantz
“Okay. Wait while I grab some paper.”
Tara frowns. “Why?”
“So we can write down names as we eliminate them from our enquiries.” I roll my eyes toward the ceiling.
“And if we find the thief, then what? Will you read her her rights, put the handcuffs on and march her down to the station?”
“Something like that.” I laugh.
“Seriously,” Tara says. “What will we do if we find her?”
“I don’t know. Maybe enlist the help of Alice to make the thieving bitch admit what she’s done, and to force her give back the money.”
“Good idea. I mean, you and Alice are nearly BFFs after what you’ve done for her, right?”
“Not so sure about that. She’s hasn’t spoken to me since her reading last week.”
“Details.” Tara gives a nonchalant wave of her hand before heading for the door.
“We’ll sit at the table in the far corner,” I whisper to Tara while we’re waiting in line for dinner. “You check out any girls who are sitting at the tables on the left and I’ll take the ones on the right.”
“You got it.”
Tara is already eating by the time I get to our table. “Well?” I ask quietly, when I sit down.
“No.” Tara shakes her head. “You?”
“No.”
“It’s hard to be totally sure,” Tara says.
“I know. On the way out, I’ll do your tables and you do mine and that will be a double check. Provided they haven’t all left,” I say.
“Good idea. And I’ve got an even better one,” Tara says.
“What?”
“Let’s ditch this.” Tara screws her face up and nods at her plate. “I’ll shout us a pizza.”
“Done. Meet me at the entrance.” I don’t need to be asked twice.
My journey back through the tables is much the same as before. I scan the hands, and they all look normal. In fact the nails all seem very short. Which is a good point, seeing as school rules don’t allow for tipped nails. I don’t know anyone who has them, apart from when it’s school prom time. Not that will stop some girls. If they can keep tattoos, tongue studs, and other piercings hidden, then keeping nails out of sight is a breeze.
“No,” I say when I get to the entrance.
“Neither,” Tara says.
We walk in silence toward the house. Just as we get beside the music block I notice Dan in front of us. As if sensing our presence, he turns and smiles. My knees go weak.
“Hey,” he says.
“Hey, Dan,” Tara and I both say together.
“You okay?” Tara asks. “Survived the date the other night?”
Dan rolls his eyes toward the sky. “Just about.” He grins. “You owe me big time, Megan.”
“It was only the movies,” I retort.
“That’s true. But now she’ll expect me to talk to her when I see her. She was in town earlier but I ducked into a shop entrance before she saw me.”
“Lucky she didn’t come into the shop you hid in,” Tara says.
“I guess. She went into some beauty place.”
“Hair Salon, you mean.” I say.
“I don’t think it was hair. What was the name? I was staring at it while hiding from her. Unique something.” He frowns. “Nails. That’s it. Unique Nails.”
Chapter Fourteen
MY JAW DROPS. “UNIQUE NAILS,” I REPEAT SLOWLY.
“Yeah,” Dan says.
“And you’re sure it was definitely Unique Nails?” Tara asks.
“Yeah,” Dan repeats.
“Like, really sure?” I ask.
“Yes.” Dan’s voice gets more deliberate and louder. “I’m sure. Alice definitely went into Unique Nails.”
“I don’t mean to go on,” I say. “But are you really, really sure.”
“Yes. I am really, really, really sure. Now quit with the questions and tell me what this is all about.” He folds his arms tightly across his broad chest and fixes me with a penetrating stare.
“Did she go to have her nail fixed?” I ask, after a few seconds silence.
I just need to make doubly sure before telling him. I know Dan’s a friend, but we can’t go around accusing someone like Alice of being a thief without being one hundred per cent certain.
“What else do you do in a nail shop?” He shrugs.
“You can have lots of things done. She could have gone there for a manicure or to have false nails put on,” I reply.
“I have no idea. But she was walking with her middle finger in her mouth.”
“That’s it then. It’s her. It’s definitely her,” Tara says.
This is madness. Since when has Alice gone around stealing money? I mean, we all know the girls you have to watch. Like, Dee. If you’re not careful she’ll steal your clothes and then claim them to be her own. Easy to do when you’re a day girl and living at home, because no one is going to nip in and search your room. But Alice. I just don’t get it.
“Are you going to tell me what’s going on, or what?” Dan demands.
“Sorry, Dan. My money. It’s been stolen.” Why am I sounding so calm?
“What money?”
“From doing all the readings.” Just let him dare say anything about it serving me right for the lies I told Alice.
“How much?”
“Three hundred and seventy-five dollars,” Tara says.
“And you think it’s Alice?” Dan asks, a disbelieving tone in his voice.
“We don’t think, we know it’s Alice,” Tara replies.
“Not for sure,” I add quickly. I trust Dan, really I do, but it still feels dodgy to be accusing Alice like this.
“It is her, Megan. Now we know Dan saw her going into the nail shop, it can’t be anyone else.”
“Wait,” Dan says. “Am I missing something? How can she be the one just because she’s having her nails done?”
“Because the thief broke her nail and we found it by Megan’s closet.”
“Crap.” He gives a low whistle.
“Quite,” Tara says.
“So, where was the money?” he asks.
“In the bottom of my closet.” I watch Dan’s face as he slowly frowns. “But really well hidden.” As the words come out my mouth, I realize how ridiculous they sound. “Not well hidden enough, huh?”
“Sorry, Megan. But that’s such a dumb thing to do. Why didn’t you put it in the bank?”
“Because I didn’t. I thought the money would be okay in my room. And it’s gone and I’m in deep trouble.” My voice breaks.
“Don’t worry. Now we know it’s Alice we’ll get the money back.” Tara puts her arm around my shoulders.
“Thanks,” I give a watery smile.
“Why?” Dan asks. Tara and I both look at him.
“Why what?” Tara replies.
“Why did she steal the money? It makes no sense. It’s not like she needs it.”
He’s right about that. Her family is so rich. And the allowance she gets each month is probably more than I get in a year.
“Maybe she did it for a dare,” Tara suggests.
“No. Definitely not,” I say.
“You don’t know that,” Tara retorts.
“I do.”
“Is this one of your feelings know?” Tara asks.
“Yes,” I nod. “The dark feelings I got when tuning into the nail weren’t those of someone just doing a dare. It was way deeper.”
Dan makes a hmmmph noise, and Tara and I both glare at him. “Sorry,” he says.
“So you should be,” Tara says. “We have enough on our plate without you questioning Megan’s abilities.”
“Sorry, Megan.” He grins, sheepishly.
How am I expected to remain cross with him when he looks like that? He’s way too cute.
“No worries. Just come up with an idea to get the money back and you’re forgiven.”
He looks thoughtful for a moment, then a smile slowly crosses his face. “I’ve
got it,” he says. “Steal it back.”
Chapter Fifteen
TARA AND I EXCHANGE GLANCES, AND THEN BOTH LOOK AT DAN. “STEAL it back.” I exclaim. “What an awesome idea.” I pause as the smile on my face freezes. “I think. Isn’t it?” I glance back at Tara.
“Yes,” Tara says. “Assuming she hasn’t spent it.”
“I doubt she has. She’s got enough of her own money.”
“True,” Tara says, nodding.
“Okay. What’s the plan?” I say to Dan, who’s leaning against the music block wall tapping his heel on the ground. He shrugs.
“Tara?” I ask, turning my attention to her.
“We need to search her room, and the sooner the better, before she disposes of the evidence,” Tara suggests.
“That’s a bit risky. What if someone sees?” It would be just our luck for someone to catch us.
“We’ll find a time when we know we won’t get caught,” Tara replies.
“Roll call,” I say, triumphantly.
“And then you both get a drill,” Dan says.
“Well, that’s where you’re wrong,” I say. “Because Tara and I are expert at getting out of roll call. Aren’t we Tara?”
“We’ve done it once before.” Tara says.
“Once?” Dan laughs. “That makes it okay, then.”
“Twice, if you count the time we were accidentally locked in the drama storeroom,” Tara adds.
“Whatever. We need to get out of it again. So no one’s allowed to speak until they’ve got an idea.” I cross my arms and lean against the wall.
“Sorry to spoil things,” Dan interrupts the silence. “But I’ve got to go back home for dinner.”
“Aren’t you staying to help?” Tara asks.
“I can hardly search Alice’s room can I?” Good point, boys aren’t allowed anywhere near the bedrooms. They can’t go further than the day room.
“You could stand guard outside the senior boarding house and let us know when roll call is over,” I suggest.
“I can’t go in the dayroom because that’s where roll call will be, so how will I know? And if I’m seen hanging around I’ll be expected to attend my own roll call.”
“So back to square one then,” I say, feeling deflated. “You better go then, Dan. See you tomorrow, if we decide to carry on with the readings.”
“Why wouldn’t we?” Tara sounds totally shocked. “You can’t stop because we’ve lost the money. You need to do even more now in case we can’t get it back.”
“No. It’s too much money to make up. I don’t have enough time. Or enough energy.”
I thought that once I had gotten used to doing readings that they wouldn’t wipe me out so much, but they do. Deep breathing helps revive me and clears my energy fields. Which I only found out after researching on the net.
“I disagree. We still have plenty of time, and you’re dealing with your energy issue.” Tara shakes her head.
“Let’s not worry about that now,” I say, excitement lifting me. “I’ve just had an idea. But it involves you, Dan, and...”
“You know I’ve got to go,” Dan interrupts. “It will only take five minutes,” I plead.
“Okay. What do you want me to do?”
“Go to Mrs. J. and say you saw us in the park across the street and that we witnessed a crime. Say we saw someone stealing a purse. No. I’ve got a better idea. Tell her you saw us waiting with someone who had collapsed on the sidewalk and we called the ambulance and were waiting for them and then we were going to the hospital.”
“And you expect her to fall for that?” Dan raises an eyebrow.
“Wouldn’t you?” I ask.
“I must be mad to get mixed up with you two. No wonder you’re always in trouble. Okay, I’ll tell her. But don’t blame me if she doesn’t believe it,” Dan says.
“Thanks so much, Dan.” I rest my arm on his. Warmth floods through me. I quickly remove it before he realizes the effect he’s having.
“Right,” Tara says, taking over like it’s somehow her idea. “We need to get our timing right. Dan, you can’t go and see Mrs. J. yet because there’s another hour before roll call. Go and see her in twenty minutes and say that we’ll try to get back but we’re not certain we’ll be able to.”
“Sure. Don’t worry about me being even later for my dinner.”
“Let’s just hope she didn’t spot us in the dining hall,” I say.
“She wasn’t there,” Tara says. “I didn’t see any teachers.”
“Good.” I breathe a sigh of relief. “Let’s go over to the park and wait. No one will see us there.”
“Ready?” I ask Tara.
“Yep.”
“Okay. Fingers crossed the back gate is open or we’ll have wasted all this planning.”
We walk stealthily along the hedge at the back of our house and after checking the way is clear make a dash for the side entrance. Normally being outside the house wouldn’t set off any warning bells, but since we’re ditching roll call, we need to be inconspicuous.
In the distance we hear the roll call bell being rung. I mouth to Tara “wait two minutes”, just in case there are any stragglers.
We then walk along the side of the house to where the gate is. I gingerly turn the handle.
Luckily for us, Alice is in Block C, which means we’re heading away from the day room.
We creep into her block, up the stairs and along to her room, which is the last one on the right.
“Shall I keep guard and you look?” Tara asks.
“No. We both need to look or we’ll run out of time. You take the closet and I’ll take the drawers.”
I open the closet and am overcome by feelings of guilt. I know it’s madness, seeing as she’s been through mine, but it doesn’t feel right.
“Nothing in here,” Tara says, as she closes the last drawer.
“Or here.” I sit on the edge of the bed.
“Come on Tara, think. Where else would she hide such a large amount of money?”
We sit in silence for a few moments, during which time my eyes scan her room for clues. Finally, they rest on the mirror. It’s different from mine. I just have a mirror tile that the school put up. Alice’s mirror is in a frame. But it’s not just the frame that’s drawing me.
“There’s no where to hide anything,” Tara says. “Apart from under her mattress. Jump up and we’ll look there.”
“Wait. It’s behind the mirror.” I leap up from the bed so fast I fall forward onto her desk. Steadying myself I step over to the mirror, lift up the bottom and slide my hand underneath.
“Is it there?”
“I can feel something. I’ll take the mirror down, from the wall.” With both hands I carefully lift the mirror from the hook and then turn it over. Taped to the back is my envelope.
“Gotya, Alice Grant. You thieving bitch,” Tara says.
“Just watch who you’re calling a thieving bitch,” Alice’s voice booms from behind us.
Chapter Sixteen
I TURN TO FACE ALICE, WHOSE FACE IS SO DISTORTED WITH ANGER THAT it’s barely recognizable. Well she can’t intimidate me this time.
“You stole my money.” I glare at her.
“I didn’t steal it.” She narrows her eyes and glares right back.
“So what did you do then?” Tara asks. “Because Megan’s money didn’t get here all by itself.” She points to the mirror I’m still holding, which has the envelope dangling off the back.
“I took what’s mine, and what belongs to all the others you’ve conned. Now, if you don’t mind.” She lunges toward me and grabs the mirror out of my hand. “Get out.”
I lean forward and try to take it back from but she holds on tight and manages to swing it to the side.
“Give me my money,” I growl, surprised by the way I’m standing up to Alice. Maybe desperation has made me bold. “Or I’ll...”
“What? Go and see Mrs. Johnson? And tell her how you pretended to be psychic and too
k all our money. Yes, let’s do that, shall we?” Her venomous tone sends shivers down my spine.
“She is psychic, Alice. Just ask any one who saw her, and they’ll tell you,” Tara says.
“Yeah, right. Well funny how she can be psychic for everyone but me. With me she had to make it all up. Do I look like a freakin’ idiot?” Daggers shoot from her eyes.
“Look, Alice,” I say, softening my tone, because shouting isn’t an option now she knows. “I understand how this might appear, but...”
“No you don’t,” Alice says. “If Gemma Ward hadn’t overheard the two of you talking about how you’d set me up you’d have gotten away with it.”
Gemma Ward, who left school last year, overheard us talking. I don’t get it. Where could she have heard us? I glance at Tara who shrugs. It’s crazy, we’ve been so careful when discussing everything.
Alice must be making it up. But how else could she know? Unless Dan told her. But why? He doesn’t like her. I can’t believe he would have told her. No. There’s got to be another explanation.
“That’s crap. We haven’t seen Gemma for ages. Not since the beginning of the trimester when we saw her in town. Have we Tara?”
“That’s right.” Tara nods. “Give us the money, Alice. We’ll give you a refund if you’re not satisfied with Megan’s reading.”
I’m not sure that’s the right thing to say. Alice practically has steam coming out of her ears now. And, let’s face it, she’s right. Whatever we say, we all know I lied to her and that makes me a big fake.
“So, you weren’t in Starbucks after the movies the other night, then?”
I feel the color draining from my cheeks. How does she know that? I certainly don’t remember seeing Gemma in there.
“Yes, we were,” I say, quietly.
“And the pair of you didn’t go to the bathroom together at all, then?” She’ll be offering psychic dating advice herself at this rate. How did she know that?
“Yes, we did,” I reply.
“And of course you didn’t check to see if anyone else was in there.”
“It was empty,” I exclaim. I’m totally sure of that. Tara and I were the only two in there.