In Cassie's Corner

by Mayer, Dale

  With a quick grin, Cassie turned to Dory. "What’s up?"

  "We didn’t have anything to do with Todd’s death. We wouldn’t have." Dory’s faced twisted. "He was our friend, too."

  "So why the threats? Why act as if you have something to hide?" Cassie asked reasonably.

  "We don’t want the cops asking questions. That’s all. It’s got nothing to do with Todd or his death." She searched the surrounding area, as if afraid of being seen. She turned back to Cassie, "Why are you asking all these questions, anyway?"

  "Because I know Todd didn’t drink and drive. You may have been his friend, however, you obviously didn’t know him well enough if you believe that garbage. How many times did he come and give rides to you and the others because you’d been drinking?"

  At Dory’s dawning understanding, Cassie pursed her lips, giving a decisive nod. "That’s right. He wasn’t alone when he died. Someone was there and someone knows something. Until they speak, I’ll keep pushing."

  "That’s a good way to get yourself in trouble," Dory warned. "If someone was with him, they aren’t going to appreciate you meddling. Depending on their role in this, they might be facing major jail time."

  "As long as it wasn’t you or your friends." She leveled a serious glance at Dory, "But if it was you, then trouble is coming your way."

  Dory glanced around nervously. "We saw Todd that night."

  "What?" Cassie asked. She leaned closer, hissing, "When?"

  "After he dropped Ivan off at home. He was just pulling away from the curb when we crossed the road to talk to him. We talked for a few minutes. That’s all. We talked."

  "Did he give you a ride somewhere?"

  "No, not at all. Aric talked with him for a bit, then he drove off."

  "Did you happen to see if he had his cell phone?" Cassie waited anxiously for the answer.

  "A call came in as we spoke. He looked at the caller ID, frowned, said he had to go and took off talking on the phone."

  "Any idea who called him? Did you hear any of the conversation?" Excitement twisted her whisper into a small shriek. She looked around to see if they attracted any attention.

  "No, I didn’t. All I can say is he looked pissed off." Dory took several steps back. "I’ve got to go to class. Leave us alone. I’ve told you everything I know."

  "Make you sure you tell your buddies to leave me alone, too. I’m not trying to bring any trouble to your door, but if it takes me there, I won’t hold back. Todd was too important to me."

  "Yeah, I get it." Dory loped ahead to race past Penny and through the front doors of the school.

  Cassie followed at a more sedate pace. They’d been right. Todd’s night had been more exciting than it had first seemed.

  She joined Penny and together they entered the school.

  She needed to contact Jessie. First she would check with Todd’s other friends.

  Someone knew something.

  ***

  Todd watched Cassie rush through her school day, so distracted she almost goofed on a Chemistry test she hadn’t even known was scheduled for today. At the last minute of the test, when she realized she’d made a mistake, her eyes widened in horror. She erased in a panic, before scribbling the correct equations down.

  He hoped she’d gotten it right that time. Cassie was a great student. Not a geeky one, a realistic one. She made low nineties, with the occasional wild perfect score thrown in. Rarely did she find herself at the very top of the class. Always in the top three or four though. She had a future lined up for herself. A vet. She’d be so good at that. Although, he worried about the high suicide rate amongst veterinarians.

  Why would anyone willingly quit such a great experience? Now that he sat on the other side, the side of no return, Todd wished there was a way to show all these people how mistaken they were in their thinking to consider taking their own lives. Life was worth so much. They couldn’t comprehend the loss until it had happened.

  Like he hadn’t.

  If he could do it all over again, he’d find time to enjoy more. Not just friends like Cassie, but the most simple things; like the morning after a fresh rain, puttering around on his car, honoring those dreams he never put time into. He’d always wanted a dog, had hoped to try parachuting; he’d planned on taking a coast to coast trip – all things he’d never have a chance to experience now.

  His world had a muted effect, like cotton stuffed in his ears. That made it difficult to hear conversations even when he was standing right beside the people.

  Like with Cassie and Dory this morning. He’d heard that conversation, barely. Then there was all the stuff everyone wasn’t saying. He didn’t have the same intuitive senses anymore or the same ability to catch subtle body language and innuendos, as if he were less than he was.

  He tried to concentrate. Dory had said they’d spoken to him. A flash of laughter and joking while he was sitting in the car slipped into his thoughts. She was right. He’d spoken to them on the streets a few houses away from Ivan’s place.

  He dragged through his memories, searching for the topic of conversation. He pulled up fragments of a conversation about a party they invited him to. He’d refused but they’d asked him to reconsider.

  Todd paused. Had he changed his mind? That might explain the drinking but not the driving. Nor, as he gave it more thought, did it explain the time frame. According to what the reports said, he’d crashed around 11:15 or 11:30 pm. He’d dropped Ivan off about a half hour earlier. Not enough time to go to the party and leave and still reach that dangerous corner of the road at the right time.

  Dory and friends might have eaten up five minutes. He had no idea about the rest. Wait. Dory had mentioned a phone call? Who’d have called him at that hour?

  He struggled to remember. In his mind, he could hear his phone and see himself pulling it out of his pocket and talking, only he couldn’t see the number in his mind. Or remember any feelings attached to the event. A girl, maybe? That wasn’t unheard of when one of his ‘friends’ wanted to play on a Friday night. Todd couldn’t remember a time he’d said ‘no.’ But Dory said he’d been pissed, so it wouldn’t likely have been a female as he was always very amiable anticipating those sessions, knowing he’d get lucky if he played his cards right.

  Who could have pissed him off? Or rather who had? Todd hopped up onto the window ledge in the Chemistry lab as the as the kids streamed out of class around and through him. He stuck his legs straight out. Two guys walked through his knees and never noticed. Todd checked the various looks on the kids’ faces. He saw everything from relief that the test was over to anger that the test had happened in the first place.

  Kids at his age notoriously felt injured in one way or another. It didn’t take much to set them off. Learning that adults controlled almost everything made them irritable, frustrated and most of all – pissed.

  Who’d have pissed him off?

  Like the rest of these kids, the answer was anyone and anything, on any given day.

  ***

  Cassie searched the common areas for Ivan, Bryce and Rob. She finally ran them down at the far back corner. Of course.

  "Hey? How are you guys doing?"

  Bryce shrugged. "It’s a little easier. Still reach for the phone to text him sometimes before I remember."

  "Yeah, me, too. And sometimes I think he’s sitting there watching us. It’s kinda cool, yet at the same time it’s really freaky." Rob gave a mock shudder.

  Cassie stared at Rob, amazement on her face.

  "What?" he said, defensively. "I’m not losing it. He was my friend and sometimes I feel like he’s still there for me."

  She smiled, a huge sense of relief in her heart. Todd was missed; he’d had good friends. He’d be delighted to know that. In fact, he obviously did know if Ivan was sensing his presence. That meant Todd had been visiting them, too. Why couldn’t they see him? Or did they see him, then toss him off as a figment of their imagination?

  Or perhaps Todd did not appear to
them at all.

  Sighing, Cassie plunked down heavily beside the guys on the foamy couch. "It’s hard. I find myself talking to him when he’s not there."

  "Yeah."

  "What did you guys do that last night? Just hang out and play games, eat pizza and hassle each other?" She tried to make it sound like casual interest. People strode past, some moved between the group, all walked toward their own friends.

  "Yeah. We’d been gaming for hours. We were just talking about ordering in pizza when my dad said to pack it in." Rob spoke up, slouching to the point he was almost falling off the chair. The other two who nodded their heads, slumped just as ridiculously.

  "Yeah, Todd had even offered to pay for it. He always pitched in. This time he said it was his treat." Ivan reached over and kicked Rob lightly.

  He grinned. "I enjoyed that. We’d been hassling each other since forever about making Todd pay because he had more money than any of us."

  Cassie straightened up. "Did he pay that night? I thought he had to go to the bank."

  "Yeah, we walked there after school. He had a paycheck to put in." Ivan looked over at Bryce. "Did your boss ever hire anyone to replace Todd?"

  "Not yet. Get your application in and I’ll give you a good reference with him."

  "Kinda feels weird, dude. Like I don’t want to take his job." Ivan slumped lower, flicking his cell phone around in his hand.

  "Todd hated that job. He’d laugh his head off and say go for it, if he knew." Cassie laughed.

  "Yeah, do it." Bryce urged. "She’s right. Todd would think it was great."

  "Maybe. I’ll think about it."

  Cassie sat and visited a little longer.

  At least she knew Todd had money when he’d left their place. So, where was it now?

  ***

  Jessie found himself unable to keep his attention on classes or friends today. Damn Cassie, anyway. That smile of hers pulled at him; her personality intrigued him; her loyalty to his brother had brought her very close to his heart.

  That was a dangerous place. He didn’t want to have his brother’s leftovers, as his friends would say. On the other hand, he highly suspected he’d take Cassie any way he could have her.

  His mom had mentioned Cassie a time or two. Saying what a nice girl she appeared to be and, Jessie had loved this part…she wondered how had Todd hooked up with such a nice girl? It had given him pause when he saw the evidence to support her view of Todd.

  Sad.

  His cell phone rang. Cassie? He dug out his phone and groaned. Greeaat; it was his boss. They needed him to come into the store a half hour early to relieve Joe, who needed to go home early. Agreeing, he closed his phone as a text came in. Cassie.

  Jessie grinned and went to read it when his phone was snatched out of his hand.

  "Dude, who the hell is putting that look on your face?" Stephen looked at the text, puzzled, before comprehension hit. "Jessie, are you nuts? This is…was your brother’s girl."

  "I know that. We’re just friends." Pissed, Jessie snatched it back and read the message. Something about having talked with Dory and friends already and that she was having no luck in finding the others yet. She was on the hunt now.

  "So what’s going on here?"

  Jessie frowned. "What? We’re just friends?"

  Stephen shook his head, making his long hair fly around. "Ah, no."

  Jessie gave him a disgusted look. "It’s not like that. She wants to talk about Todd. That’s all."

  "You said your brother was just a loser asshole."

  Faced with his own prejudices, Jessie swallowed hard. "I know what I said – now that he’s gone, well, I’m forced to re-evaluate."

  Stephen punched him lightly on his shoulder. "That sounds deep. I can see you might have a few regrets."

  "Yeah. There are a few of those. Cassie’s okay."

  "Long as you remember she’s been his."

  "Not the way you mean it."

  "Dude, they were friends for years. Todd had ’em all."

  "Not Cassie." Jessie didn’t know how or why, but he knew they hadn’t been lovers. Todd had cared about Cassie. Too much to make her one of his short-term playthings. He had other girls for that. No, Cassie had been special to him.

  And she was becoming special for Jessie, too.

  CHAPTER TWELVE

  "Cassie?"

  Cassie turned around to see Todd slightly behind her. "Hey." Searching the area, she checked to make sure no one was in hearing distance. For the same reason, she turned down the alleyway that led to their special park. Surely she’d be able to talk to him there without being seen.

  "How are you doing? And did you try to talk to the other people on your side?" Although how there could be sides when he stood right in front of her, she didn’t know.

  "I tried to, only I can’t seem to communicate. They can see me, they react with a smile or frown, but they don’t open their mouths and talk. It’s like they already know their limitations. When I asked several questions they never answered. So I gave up."

  Turning her head, Cassie winced at his oozing frustration. "Keep trying. Maybe they’re communicating in another way, telepathically? Maybe they’re waiting for you to learn how?"

  He slid her a sideways look. "So, it’s all about me now?" His grin flashed. "Just kidding. You could be right." He tilted his head. "Although, it’s been just over a week, I’m not seeing the same people anymore. Maybe we only get a certain amount of time here. To work through our transition, say our good-byes. That sort of thing."

  Cassie’s heart lurched. This was going to end sometime, she knew that. But she didn’t want it to. How selfish.

  "Speaking of which, I stayed to listen to the conversation between your parents and Dr. Sanchez on Saturday."

  "Oh great. Just what I wanted to know," she muttered under her breath.

  "I heard that. How come I can hear you so much better than everyone else? Besides, you should want to hear about this." He related the conversation he’d heard, finishing with, "So I think you should go and see her. At least talk to her once or twice and see how you feel. If she can make this easier on you, why not, right?"

  She slowed her steps. He’d given her something to ponder. That didn’t mean she was ready to jump in and see this woman. Although, it made her feel better to hear her parents were given such good advice. Since the doctor was an adult, it made sense that she could speak ‘adult’ better than ‘teenager.’

  "I’m not saying you have to continue seeing her. Maybe just give her a chance. I’m not sure how much longer I’m going to be able to hang around, and I’d feel better to know you have someone to help you get over this."

  "I don’t want to talk about you not being here," she snapped, shoving her fists deep into the pockets of her hoodie.

  "Of course you don’t." His voice managed to come across both dry and humorous.

  "Sorry." She held herself tight for a long moment and took a deep breath before releasing it slowly. "It’s just hard to contemplate."

  "Which is why I think you should go and just see her. Sit there in silence, if you want, and see how you feel being in her space. If she says anything to you the wrong way, get up and walk out. No one’s forcing you. I’d just feel better if you considered it."

  She studied his serious expression. The old Todd would never have suggested something like this. This new Todd seemed older and maybe, if she admitted it to herself, wiser. Would it hurt her to go and talk with this woman?

  She had to be in control of this. She didn’t want to say anything about seeing Todd in his ghostly form. This woman might be a shrink and had probably heard it all by now, only this was private. Personal. And maybe she was losing it and Todd wasn’t really walking beside her with that concerned I-want-only-what’s-best-for-you look on his face.

  "Okay, I’ll consider it."

  "Good. That’s all I ask. I think it would be best for you to actually talk to this woman, but…" he stepped back a step at her glare, "I�
��m not pushing it."

  "Right." Cassie sped up as she saw the old swing set come into view. She couldn’t resist racing toward it. "Last one’s a rotten egg." She arrived at the swings breathless and laughing to find Todd already sitting and waiting, a big grin on his face.

  Her heart warmed. She said, "You cheated?"

  "Did not."

  "Did too."

  "How could I? I don’t even exist in your world anymore. Is it my fault I don’t have slow heavy legs to lug my oversized body around? No. I can move faster than you because I’m not restricted like you are. That doesn’t mean I cheated," he said loftily.