Twisted

by Jo Gibson

  Amy gave a wry little grin. “Me, too. Multiple choice are much easier, and so are true and false. If you don’t know the answer, you can usually make an intelligent guess. But you can’t guess on an essay question. Either you know it cold, or you don’t.”

  “But you studied, didn’t you?” Kevin turned to Amy.

  “Of course. I’ve been studying all week. But there’s a lot of material to cover, and it’s hard to remember it all. How about you? Have you been hitting the books?”

  “Every night.” Kevin looked a little sad. “But it used to be a lot easier, when I had someone to study with.”

  Both Amy and Brett were silent for a moment. They knew who that someone was. Kevin had always studied with his twin sister, Karen. And ever since Karen had died in the auto accident last year, Kevin had been studying alone.

  “Why don’t you do the review with us?” Amy suggested. “We could really use the help.”

  Brett nodded. “Good idea. The more the merrier, and maybe your notes are better than ours.”

  Kevin began to smile. “Hey . . . thanks for inviting me. It never hurts to review everything one more time.”

  “When are they going to post the results of the test?” Brett turned to Amy. “You found out, didn’t you?”

  As Amy nodded, she felt her stomach churn. She’d studied last night, but she still felt unprepared, and this test was very important. It counted for fifty percent of their final grade. “They’re going to post them tomorrow night.”

  “Hold on a second.” Kevin looked confused. “Tomorrow’s Friday. If they’re posting the results tomorrow night, how are we going to see them before Monday morning?”

  Amy laughed. “That’s exactly what I asked Mr. Dorman. And I talked him into giving me a key, so I can come in and copy down the results. The scores will be posted by initials, right inside his office door.”

  “That’s great!” Kevin looked very relieved. “I don’t think I could have waited until Monday. The suspense would have killed me.”

  Brett nodded, and reached into the box to pull out a vote. He handed it to Kevin, and Kevin unfolded it.

  “It’s for you, Amy. And it looks like Cat’s printing. He’s still voting for you.”

  Amy sighed. “Lucky me. Next?”

  “This one’s for you, too.” Kevin unfolded another heart. “And it looks like the same printing.”

  Brett took the second vote and compared it to the first. “That’s right. It’s a second vote from Cat.”

  “That’s strange.” Amy began to frown. “Cat’s never voted for me twice in the same day. I wonder why he did that?”

  As Kevin continued to read the votes, and the marks by her name began to grow into double digits, Amy’s hands started to shake. It was almost like Cat was deliberately trying to put her into the lead!

  “Here’s the last one.” Kevin unfolded the vote, and read it. “It’s for you again, Amy.”

  “But . . . I don’t want to be queen!” Amy couldn’t keep her voice from trembling. “I never wanted to be queen!”

  Brett slipped his arm around Amy’s shoulders, and gave her a little hug. “Maybe you didn’t want to be queen, but it’s pretty obvious that you’re Cat’s choice. You’re in the lead, Amy.”

  “But, why does he want me to be queen? So he can send me threatening Valentines?” Amy shivered.

  “Maybe not.” Kevin looked thoughtful. “I think Cat likes you, and he thinks you’ll make a good queen. And I bet he won’t send you any threatening Valentines.”

  Amy turned to Kevin with fear in her eyes. “But, why did he choose me? I’m no better than any of the other girls. And look what happened to them! I’m going to tell Mr. Dorman to take my name off the list of candidates.”

  “Don’t do that, Amy.” Brett looked worried. “Kevin could be right. Cat must like you, or he wouldn’t have voted for you. Just try it for a couple of days, and see if you get any Valentines. We really need more science books.”

  Amy was shocked, and it showed on her face as she turned to stare at Brett. “Do you really think that science books are more important than my safety?”

  “Of course not! If I thought you were in any danger, I’d run right down to Mr. Dorman’s office and take your name off the list myself! But I really think that Cat is trying to tell us something by casting all these votes for you. And Kevin does, too. Right, Kevin?”

  Kevin nodded. “That’s what it looks like to me. You’re the only person that Cat has ever voted for.”

  Amy sighed. It was true that Cat had never voted for anyone else. But she didn’t like the idea that someone like Cat had hand-picked her for queen.

  “Will you stay in the contest, at least until tomorrow?”

  Brett looked anxious, and Amy shook her head. “I don’t know. I just don’t like it.”

  “Come on, Amy.” Kevin smiled at her. “We’ll all take turns guarding you, if it makes you feel better. And you won’t be sorry you stayed in the contest when you see all the new books the library fund can buy.”

  Amy thought about it for a moment, and then she nodded. “All right. I’ll stay in until tomorrow. But if I get just one threatening Valentine from Cat, I’m out of the running for good!”

  Cat smiled as he passed the bulletin board and saw Amy’s name at the top of the list. He’d spent a lot of money putting her there, and now he had to make sure she didn’t get so nervous, she’d withdraw from the contest.

  “What do you think, Karen? Would she make a good queen?” Cat whispered the words. He didn’t want to take even a remote chance that he’d be overheard.

  But Karen didn’t answer, and Cat began to get very nervous. Amy was his choice. Wasn’t she Karen’s choice, too?

  “I don’t have to test her, do I, Karen? I mean . . . she’s perfect! And I know she never gossiped about you.”

  And then he heard Karen’s sweet voice floating in the stillness, and he smiled as she reassured him that Amy would make a perfect queen. Karen agreed that Amy was kind, and sweet, and good, and she told him that Amy had never once gossiped about her.

  As Karen went on speaking, Cat began to frown. It seemed that Karen had plans for Amy . . . big plans. She was Karen’s choice for much more than queen.

  “Are you sure, Karen?” Cat shivered as a cold draft seeped around his ankles and snaked its way down the hall. “What if Amy doesn’t want to go?”

  Cat listened for a moment, and then he put his hands over his ears. What Karen had told him to do was so dreadful, he wanted to block out the sound of her voice. But blocking his ears did no good. Karen’s voice was still loud and clear. Her words resounded up and down the hall with so much force, that he could hear them right through the hands that were clamped tightly over his ears.

  “THEN TAKE HER AND BRING HER TO ME. IF YOU LOVE ME, YOU’LL DO IT. I WANT AMY HUNTER WITH ME, FOREVER!”

  Twenty-one

  Amy felt good about her History test. She’d managed to answer all ten of the essay questions, and when she’d read them over, the answers had sounded clear and concise . . . to her. Of course, her opinion wasn’t the one that counted. Essay tests were subjective, and it was all up to her teacher.

  When the bell rang for dismissal, Amy went to her locker. She spun the dial and opened the lock, but then she hesitated, her hand on the door. She almost hated to open her locker for fear there’d be a red envelope from Cat inside. But when she jerked open the door and there was no envelope, Amy breathed a big sigh of relief. Perhaps Brett and Kevin had been right. If she was Cat’s choice for Valentine’s Day Queen, he’d have no reason to send her any frightening Valentine messages.

  Amy slipped on her coat and boots, picked up her books, and headed for the stairway with a crowd of students. Brett and Kevin had reminded her that there was safety in numbers, and she wanted plenty of people around her. She went down the steps, carefully avoiding the side with the open rail, and hurried to the flagpole, where Danny had said he’d meet her.

  �
��Hi, Danny.” Amy smiled as she found him leaning against the flagpole. But Danny didn’t smile back. He just grabbed her arm and pulled her over to a secluded spot where they could talk.

  “You’re staying in the contest!?” Danny was clearly shocked. “You’ve got to be crazy, Amy! My sister was so freaked about being in the lead, she had to leave town!”

  “I know, Danny. But I’m taking it one day at a time. If I get a Valentine from Cat, I’m withdrawing my name right away.”

  “That might be too late.” Danny looked very worried. “Cat could kill you without sending a Valentine. That’s what he did with Michele.”

  “Maybe not. Michele could have gotten a Valentine that she didn’t tell us about. Don’t forget that she really wanted to be queen.”

  “And you don’t?”

  “No.” Amy shook her head. “I’ve never wanted it. You know that. Besides, Brett and Kevin are going to protect me. They promised me they’d have someone with me every minute.”

  Danny’s eyes narrowed. “Brett, huh? It seems to me that you used to want to date him.”

  “I did. But I don’t want to date him now.”

  “Oh, yeah?” Danny raised his eyebrows. “Why’s that?”

  “Because that was before I got to know you. And now that I know you, I don’t want to go out with anybody else.”

  Danny stared at her for a moment, and then he threw back his head and laughed. “Look, Amy. You’re not supposed to say things like that to a guy. Girls are supposed to keep guys guessing whether they like them or not.”

  “Oh.” Amy nodded sagely. “Do you like it when a girl keeps you guessing?”

  “No. I hate it. If a girl keeps me guessing, I never know where I stand.”

  “But you know where you stand with me, don’t you?”

  Danny nodded. “Sure. You just told me.”

  “Good.” Amy started to grin. “Then you don’t have to worry about it. And that means I did you a big favor by telling you.”

  Danny looked down at her for a second, and then he laughed again. “I can’t quite figure out whether you’re hopelessly dumb when it comes to guys, or incredibly smart.”

  “But you like me the way I am?”

  Danny slipped his arm around her shoulders and gave her a hug. “Let’s go find Brett and Kevin so they can work out their schedule with me. There’s no way I want them hanging around you every minute.”

  “Okay.” Amy moved closer, and matched her steps with his. “But you still didn’t tell me if you like me the way I am.”

  Danny hugged her a little tighter. And then he smiled. “Yes, Amy. You’re perfect, just the way you are.”

  It had been a very stressful day. Amy was stretched out on her bed, listening to music and trying to relax, when there was a knock on her door. A second later, she heard her mother’s voice.

  “Amy? Could I talk to you for a minute?”

  “Sure. Just a second.” Amy switched off her stereo, stashed the tape that Danny had given her under her pillow, and went to open the door. Her mother hated rock music, and Danny’s band had played punk rock. “Come in, Mom.”

  “You must be growing up. Your room’s not messy anymore.” Amy’s mother walked over to the bed, and sat down. “I just wanted to talk to you about the Valentine’s Day Dance.”

  Amy’s heart pounded hard in her chest. Her mother looked very worried. Had she heard that Danny was Amy’s date for the dance? She’d been meaning to tell her parents that she was going to the dance with Danny, but the time just hadn’t seemed right.

  “What is it, Mom?” Amy tried not to show how nervous she was.

  “I ran into Colleen’s mother today, and she mentioned that Colleen and Danny had chipped in to buy you an early birthday present . . . a dress for the Valentine’s Day dance?”

  Amy nodded. “That’s right, Mom. They did.”

  “She also said that Colleen was busy, so Danny picked it out at the mall.”

  Amy couldn’t help it. She started to laugh. No wonder why her mother was so worried! And then something wonderful happened. Her mother began to laugh, too.

  It felt so good to laugh with her mother, Amy sat down on the bed and hugged her. It was something they hadn’t done in a long time, and it felt wonderful.

  When her mother had recovered somewhat, she turned to Amy with tears of laughter in her eyes. “I just kept thinking . . . what could a boy with green hair possibly know about . . .”

  “Style, and taste, and refinement?” Amy finished the sentence for her mother, and they both cracked up again. “But Mom . . . Danny doesn’t have green hair in the back anymore. Now it’s . . . it’s . . .”

  “Red?”

  Amy’s mom giggled like a teenager as Amy shook her head. “No, Mom. It’s not red. It’s . . .”

  “Purple!” Amy’s mother cracked up again.

  “No, Mom.” Amy was laughing so hard, her sides hurt. “And it’s not yellow, or blue, or pink, either. Danny cut the green part all the way off with a razor. And now it’s so short he’s practically . . .”

  “Bald?!” Amy’s mother clutched at her sides. “Oh, Amy! He’s not bald, is he?”

  “No, not exactly. It’s just a really close buzz cut. When you look at him from the back, he looks like he’s in the Marines.”

  “Oh, dear!” Amy’s mother reached for a tissue and wiped her eyes. “I guess that’s better than green hair. And it’s bound to grow back. Now . . . how about the dress? How awful is it?”

  Amy giggled. “It’s not awful at all, Mom. If you can stay for a minute, I’ll try it on for you.”

  “I’ve got all the time in the world. My fudge is setting up, and all I have to do is cut it when it’s ready.” Amy’s mother leaned back against the pillows and laughed. “Take your time, honey. And while you’re changing, I’ll be thinking about shawls, and stoles, and ways we can cover it up.”

  Amy was grinning as she hurried to her large walk-in closet. Her dad had converted it to a dressing room with a mirror and vanity when she’d reached high school. She took the blue dress from the rack and put it on. And then she took a few moments to sweep her hair up into a passable French twist, secured with the gold barrette Colleen had given her.

  “Okay, Mom. Here I come.” Amy came out of the dressing room and struck a model’s pose. “What do you think?”

  Amy’s mother sat up and blinked. And then she started to smile. “Why, Amy! There’s no way Danny could have picked out this dress by himself. The saleslady must have helped him, because it’s just beautiful!”

  “I knew you’d like it.” Amy grinned a secret grin. Her mother had everything backward, and perhaps that was good. Danny had told her he’d picked out the blue dress by himself. The saleslady had helped him with the other dress, the sexy black dress that her mother would never see!

  School was over, and they were all sitting in the back booth at the Hungry Burger. There was much more room in the booth now, and Amy felt sad as she glanced around her. Colleen was missing, and so were Tanya, and Gail, and Jessica, and Michele. Now there were only Brett, Kevin, Danny, Neal, and Suzie Douglas, Neal’s new Chemistry partner.

  Suzie smiled at Amy. She was a shy girl who’d just transferred to Hamilton High from Bonnerville, and she seemed very nice. “Neal told me about all the awful things that’ve happened. Cat hasn’t sent you any Valentines, has he, Amy?”

  “No. Not yet.” Amy shook her head. Every time she’d opened her locker in school today, she’d expected to see a red envelope. But there had been no message from Cat. He’d voted for her again at lunchtime, but he hadn’t sent her any of his frightening poems.

  “It’s almost five-fifteen.” Brett glanced at the big clock on the wall behind the counter. “I wish they’d hurry with those test results. Waiting is making me nervous.”

  Danny nodded. “I know exactly what you mean. When I had the band, I used to get the jitters every time they played my intro. I’d stand there in the wings and shake until it was time t
o run out on the stage.”

  “I heard about your band.” Suzie smiled at him. “My best friend at Bonnerville went to one of your concerts, and she said one of your songs was really incredible.”

  Danny grinned. “That’s always good to hear. Which song was it?”

  “I can’t remember the name, but it was about a guy who thought he was up on a ledge, watching his life go by.”

  “Oh, that one! It was called—” Danny stopped and frowned. “Let’s just forget it, okay?”

  “But, why?” Amy was curious. “Is it really X-rated, or something like that?”

  “No. It’s just an ordinary title. But I’d rather not talk about it, considering what’s been happening around here.”

  Suzie started to laugh. “I remember it now! And I can understand why you don’t want to mention it. But you wrote that a long time ago, right?”

  “That’s right.” Danny nodded, and then he turned to Amy. “What time are those results supposed to go up, anyway?”

  “Between five and five-thirty. I told Mr. Dorman I’d be there at a quarter to six, so I’ll leave here in ten minutes.”

  “It doesn’t make sense to copy down the whole list.” Brett tore a page from his notebook. “Let’s just put down our initials and Amy can pick out our scores.”

  Amy nodded as Brett passed the list around the table. That made perfect sense. If some students didn’t care enough to come to the Hungry Burger to get their test results, they could wait until Monday morning to see them.

  “Do you want another Coke, Amy?” Danny slid out of the booth and stood up.

  “Sure. I’d love one.” Amy smiled at him. He still looked a little upset, and as he walked up to the counter to order, she tried to figure out why. He’d given her several tapes of his music, and she hadn’t thought there was anything unusual about the titles of his songs. She frowned slightly as she tried to remember every song on the tapes.

  “Nobody Home” was her favorite. And then there was “Do It Right,” and “Far Corner,” and “Lovin’ Around,” and “Space Inside.” If you flipped the tape over, it had “River Boy,” and “Just Leave,” and “Cat Walk,” and . . .