Regina's Legacy (Sweet Valley High Book 73)

by Francine Pascal

"I know what you mean. The picture you took of Ron Hunter and the two other men helped solve a major crime! It really makes you think."

  "I guess there's something behind that expression, a picture is worth a thousand words. Although as a writer," Elizabeth added, "I don't know if I can completely endorse that!"

  She stepped back to get a perspective on the photographs she had arranged so far. "The mural's been fun, but I suppose you'll be glad when it's finished. It's taken up a lot of your time, hasn't it?"

  "You're not kidding," Jim grunted. The next thing he knew, he had blurted out the whole story of how the secret photography club project had gotten him in trouble with Shelley. "Now she's shutting me out. I can't get through to her."

  Elizabeth was sympathetic. "I thought maybe something like that had happened. I had to fend off Todd, too. And my sister!"

  "I'm hoping she'll understand when she sees the photo essay," Jim said, aiming the glue gun, "that I had a reason for excluding her from part of my life for a while. I don't want to lose her." His voice was quiet but intense.

  "Well, why don't you make sure she understands?" suggested Elizabeth. "A picture's worth a thousand words, remember? Shelley will be looking at the mural along with everybody else. Put up a picture that will get a special message across to her."

  "Liz, you're a genius," Jim declared, giving her a spontaneous hug. "And I think I know exactly which picture to use!"

  Thirteen

  Something was going on at Sweet Valley High. Shelley could see that as soon as she entered the main lobby with Greg and Cathy on Monday morning. A crowd of students was gathered at the north wall, buzzing and laughing.

  "What is that?" Shelley asked, staring ahead at the wall that was papered with photographs, large and small, color and black-and-white.

  "It looks like some kind of mural," Cathy observed.

  "Let's check it out!" said Greg.

  They joined the rest of the students who were examining the mural. In the center was a sign. "The Many Faces of Sweet Valley High: A Photo Essay," Shelley read out loud. So this was the photography club's project!

  I should boycott it on principle, Shelley thought, remembering how annoyed and hurt she had been by Jim's secretiveness. But she couldn't make herself turn away. The mural had already captured her attention.

  Everyone was laughing and pointing, locating pictures of themselves and their friends. Greg grabbed Shelley's arm. "Now there's a handsome guy, huh?"

  Shelley doubled over with laughter at the picture of Greg in the lunch line with his tongue out and eyes crossed. "I wondered why Neil was asking us what we thought of the cafeteria food," said Greg. "I thought maybe he was compiling evidence to petition for better chow!"

  "Here's one of me!" Cathy cried, delighted. "In chemistry lab."

  "I can hardly recognize you with those goggles on." Shelley laughed. "You look like a mad scientist!"

  "Did you notice how this was put together?" Cathy asked Shelley as they wandered along the wall. "It looks as if each person in the photography club constructed one section: See?" They stopped, and Cathy pointed to DeeDee Gordon's name. "And everybody has a theme. All of DeeDee's pictures are kind of artsy."

  "So everyone who worked on the mural contributed something personal to it," Shelley remarked.

  "And I bet everyone who looks at it gets something personal out of it, too," Cathy mused. "It tells a different story, depending on who's reading it."

  Cathy was already a little ahead of Shelley. "Oh, Shell, you've got to see these." Cathy hauled her over to Claire Middleton's photos. "The football team looks even better in their towels than in their uniforms, don't you think?"

  Shelley smiled thoughtfully. All of a sudden, Jim's behavior made sense. The photo essay wouldn't have been nearly as effective if people had known about it beforehand. Now everyone was completely open to the mural. It surprised them into looking at Sweet Valley High in new ways.

  But that realization didn't automatically repair the rift between Shelley and Jim. We haven't really talked in days, she thought. The photography club had taken over Jim's life. He had a lot of new friends, and for all Shelley knew, he was just as happy without her. She knew she had contributed to the tense situation, too, by overreacting at the Dairi Burger the other day and by avoiding him. It's because I'm afraid of what he might say, she realized. I don't know what he thinks. I don't know what he wants.

  Suddenly Shelley found herself staring at Jim's name. These were the pictures he'd taken! Of the kids in the photography club—of course, she thought bitterly. Then she realized that one of the pictures, the one right in the middle of Jim's section, was different.

  It was the picture he had entered in the Sweet Valley News photography contest, the first-prize picture of Shelley playing basketball, the photograph that had played a pivotal role in their falling in love.

  For a long moment, Shelley just stood gazing at it. The photo essay tells a different story, depending on who's reading it. . . .

  Shelley knew what that photograph meant, to her and Jim both. It told her that Jim loved her as much as ever, that she still held first place in his heart.

  She turned on her heel and bumped right into Jim. "So, what do you think?" he asked, shuffling his feet as if he were nervous about her verdict.

  For an answer, Shelley put her arms around Jim's neck and lifted her mouth to his for a kiss.

  "Now do you forgive me for keeping secrets from you?" Elizabeth asked Jessica as they stood side by side in front of the photography club's mural.

  "Well, I forgive Allen Walters for spying on the cheerleaders." Jessica paused to admire how well Allen's photo of the squad had come out, particularly, how attractive she herself looked. "But not you," she teased her sister. "Your picture-taking almost got me killed!"

  "You put yourself in danger," Elizabeth countered. "If you'd only told me you were considering dating one of the three men from the beach, I would have warned you!"

  They were joking about it now, but Elizabeth knew that if Jessica had suffered any harm at Chad's hands, she would never have forgiven herself.

  "It wouldn't have worked anyway," Jessica said and shrugged. "If you'd warned me about Chad, I would have been even more determined to go out with him!"

  Elizabeth laughed. Suddenly Todd came up behind her and wrapped his strong arms around her. "It's beautiful," Todd breathed into Elizabeth's hair. "I'm incredibly impressed."

  "Really?" Elizabeth twisted around to see Todd's expression.

  His dark brown eyes were glowing with love and pride. "Really. Your pictures are practically the best up there."

  "What do you mean practically the best?" Elizabeth demanded.

  "Tina Ayala took the prize-winning photo in my opinion, that's all," Todd replied, pulling Elizabeth toward Tina's section.

  Elizabeth smiled. Tina had focused on Sweet Valley High sweethearts, and Elizabeth thought she knew which picture Todd was referring to.

  Tina had taken the picture at a soccer game. Todd and Elizabeth were watching from the sidelines, and Todd had lifted Elizabeth onto his broad shoulders so she would have a better view. It had been a hilarious moment, and the photograph had captured their happiness.

  "A pretty happy couple, wouldn't you say?" Todd whispered into Elizabeth's ear.

  She nodded. "A very happy couple."

  Holding hands, they wandered to the other end of the mural. At that moment, Elizabeth's attention was caught by two people just entering the school building. "Todd, look!" she exclaimed. "It's Mr. and Mrs. Morrow! What do you think they're doing here? Come on, let's go say hello."

  Todd and Elizabeth made their way across the crowded lobby. "Mr. and Mrs. Morrow, hi," Elizabeth called.

  Mrs. Morrow greeted Elizabeth with a warm smile. "Hello, Liz. I see you've been putting Regina's camera to good use!"

  "I'll say!" Elizabeth confirmed. "I can't thank you enough. It was a wonderful gift."

  "Congratulations," Mr. Morrow said to Elizabeth
and Todd. "The whole town is talking about your detective work, and your bravery."

  "It was all Liz."

  "I stumbled into it," Elizabeth said modestly. "I'm just glad it ended well. But what brings you to Sweet Valley High? Did Andrea tell you about the mural?"

  "Actually she did, and we'd like to see her photos," Mrs. Morrow replied. "But we're also here to talk with Mr. Cooper about making a gift to the school."

  "We heard about the destruction that was done to the darkroom," Mr. Morrow explained. "We'd like to donate funds to re-equip the facility."

  "That's so generous!" Elizabeth exclaimed.

  "It would make us happy to do something for the photography club," Mrs. Morrow continued. "If Regina were alive, she would have been an enthusiastic member."

  Elizabeth was moved. "What a beautiful gesture."

  Talking about her daughter had brought an expression of sadness to Mrs. Morrow's face but now she brightened. "Show us your pictures, Liz!"

  Elizabeth led them to her section of the mural. One picture caused Mrs. Morrow to wipe a tear from her eye. It was the photograph of Elizabeth and Regina that Mrs. Morrow had given to Elizabeth along with the camera.

  Mrs. Morrow gently tapped the photograph. "Why did you include this one?"

  "Because as I've used her camera, I've felt as if Regina were at my side," Elizabeth said. "We did this together. Regina contributed to this photo essay as much as any of us."

  Mrs. Morrow gave Elizabeth a quick hug. "That makes me feel good. Come on, Kurt. Let's go see"—Mrs. Morrow smiled through her tears—"what did Nicholas and Regina always call him? Chrome Dome Cooper!"

  After Elizabeth said goodbye to the Morrows, she couldn't get the conversation that had just taken place out of her mind. Suddenly she had a rush of insight. "Todd, do you think it might have been partly due to my memory of Regina, and the fact that I was using her camera, that I felt so driven to discover the connection between the photo of the three men on the beach and the news story about the drug ring?"

  "You mean because drugs caused Regina's death?"

  Elizabeth nodded. "It's almost as if, in a weird sort of way, some justice has been done. With the help of Regina's camera, a major drug ring was exposed! Who knows how many lives have been saved?"

  She and Todd gazed thoughtfully at the picture for a moment longer. Before they turned away, Elizabeth whispered softly, "Thanks, Regina."

  "Donut, anybody?" Amy Sutton offered the box to her friends.

  Jessica had stopped to gab with some of the other cheerleaders in front of Allen Walters's section of the photo essay.

  "I don't know how it happens," Amy said, shaking her head. "There I am, innocently driving to school, and the next thing I know, my car has parked itself in front of Caster's Bakery."

  "I know that syndrome," Cara said, giggling. "You don't even remember going in and buying anything, but there's the evidence: a dozen donuts riding in your passenger seat."

  "Let's eat them, not talk about them!" Jessica declared, helping herself to a chocolate donut.

  Maria and Cara dug in as well. Robin Wilson put out her hand and then pulled it back. Then with a sigh, she grabbed a jelly donut.

  "One donut's not going to hurt you," Jessica told her. Not that I'd risk it if I were Robin, she thought. If she had been fat once the way Robin had, Jessica was sure she would limit herself to carrot sticks for the rest of her life.

  Not that anyone would know from looking at Robin now, what she used to look like. Now Robin was one of the most beautiful girls at Sweet Valley High and co-captain of the cheerleaders.

  Robin bit into her donut, one eye on the picture Allen had taken of the cheerleading squad performing their pyramid. "Maybe I shouldn't eat this," she joked. "Or I'll have to move to the bottom row of the pyramid."

  "Hey, I'm in the bottom row!" Amy said, pretending to be insulted.

  Jessica guessed this might be one of those times when Robin wanted somebody to reassure her that she didn't have to worry about her weight anymore. Well, I'm not going to bother. Jessica selected another donut. Robin didn't really have anything to worry about. She was a knockout, a Sweet Valley High cheerleader and champion diver. Plus, Robin had a gorgeous boyfriend, college freshman George Warren, who was absolutely devoted to her. As far as Jessica could see, Robin's life was picture perfect. Maybe I'm the one who shouldn't be gobbling these donuts! Jessica thought.

  "Come on. It's time for homeroom," Amy announced, strolling away with the bakery box. The other girls followed, Robin casting one last glance over her shoulder at the photograph on the wall.

  Will Robin's past come back to haunt her? Find out in Sweet Valley High #74, THE PERFECT GIRL.