The Paranormal 13 by Christine Pope, K.A. Poe, Lola St. Vil, Cate Dean, - HTML preview

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3

On Monday at lunch, I sat next to Amanda at our regular table with Emma, her boyfriend, and some of his friends. Amanda looked lost in her thoughts, and everyone else was talking with each other.

"Is everything okay?" I asked Amanda.

She looked up. "I'm just going over my history facts for my test next period."

"Want some help?" I offered.

"Nah," she said. "I'd rather hear what you've been up to. I didn't hear from you all weekend. Some best friend. Last I saw you, everyone was running from those freakish lights."

"Don't remind me," I mumbled. I changed the subject. "On Saturday, I ran into Brooke and spent the night at her house."

"I forgot about her," Amanda said. "They up and moved pretty suddenly, didn't they?"

"I guess it was sudden," I said, shrugging my shoulders.

"They did move unexpectedly, I remember. I've never seen anyone move so fast. It was weird."

"They're fine now. She's taking classes on fashion design and she wants to create a homecoming dress for me."

"What? Does this mean that you're going to a formal?" Amanda smiled and adjusted her glasses.

"Yeah. She talked me into it. I'm probably going to make a complete fool of myself."

"This is going to be so much fun. Do you have any ideas on who to go with?"

"I'm going with her cousin. He's going to be in town then. No one else would be interested in me anyway."

"Oh…is he cute?" Amanda smiled wide.

"She says he is. It doesn't matter, because he won't want to see me again. Guys never give me a second glance."

"Oh, this is so exciting. You're finally going to a formal." Amanda danced in her seat.

"Who are you going with?" I asked, trying to get into the excitement. I couldn't understand spending hours in the bathroom just to get attention from boys. I was much more interested in preparing myself for a solid career. I wanted to have a job in a field that would allow me to take part in putting the bad guys away. It would be fun to use my science knowledge to uncover evidence at crime scenes. Or even to be a lawyer or judge would be exciting.

The entire process of fighting for justice was alluring. I was even a member of the CSI Club after school, which met once a week. Much to the disappointment of my hormone-driven friends, I wasn't even interested in any of the smart, geeky guys in the club. Amanda and Emma seemed to think that I was missing out on something special.

No thank you. I would much rather have spent my time pushing through classes so I could get those A's and eventually get into a prestigious school that could earn me the career of my dreams.

Everyone saw me as boring—myself included if I was honest.

I realized that Amanda was still talking about the dance while I was daydreaming about my future career. I tried to focus on what she was saying, because it was obviously important to her.

"We're going to talk our dates into renting a limo and going to dinner before the school. Want to go with us?" She nodded her head, clearly trying to get me to agree.

"That could be fun," I said. "I need to talk with Brooke first and see what's going on with her cousin. I don't want to set any plans just yet."

"Okay, just make sure that you talk to her soon."

The bell rang, and we all went our separate ways.

The afternoon breezed by as I went through my classes and to CSI club. Once the meeting was over, the halls were nearly empty since everyone else had already gone home or was practicing their sports.

As I walked to my car in the parking lot, I heard the familiar whirring noise overhead and my heart sank.

I looked up. Sure enough, there was a flock (I didn't even want to think of the other name for a group of crows—a murder!) flying in the air. This time there were even more than before.

They were between my car and me. I would have to risk running directly underneath them to get to my car.

I had to decide what to do–-and fast. I ran toward the school, and away from my car as quickly as I could. I had a bad feeling about going back into the school, so at the last second, I darted away from the doors and ran around the school to the back side where the sports fields were.

Once I got near the football field, I dared to look behind me to see if the crows were still chasing me. I couldn't see any. They must not have wanted the attention from all the people around.

I leaned against a pole to catch my breath and calm my nerves.

"Where's the fire?" came a voice.

I looked up and saw a senior named Tanner Monroe standing near me. He was popular, and I braced myself for what he might say next. I was sure that he was going to make fun of me because he was known for being a jerk.

"There's no fire." I didn't owe him an explanation.

"I can't believe how fast you were running," he said, actually sounding impressed.

"Yeah, that's why they call it running, because it's fast."

"No, seriously," he said. "Our girls' track team could use you this year. All of our fastest runners graduated last year. You're faster than the ones left. By a long shot."

"I don't have much of an interest in sports," I told him.

"You're Natalie's sister, aren't you?" he asked.

"I have a name. It's Alexis."

"You should think about the track team, Alexis. You might even be the fastest in the school."

"I'm more of a brain than a jock," I said. "I wouldn't want my grades to suffer."

"If you're so smart, you should know that exercise is good for the mind." He grinned.

"Of course I know that. I also know that being involved in a sport takes a lot of time. I see how much time Natalie spends with volleyball."

"She does a lot more than just practice volleyball."

I raised an eyebrow. "What are you saying?"

"Obviously you and your sister aren't that close."

"You must be a brain surgeon to figure out that one."

He gave me a funny look. "I have to get back to football. Let me know if you want to try out for the track team. I'm one of the team managers."

"I'll keep that in mind," I said.

He turned around and jogged to the football field. I walked past the building and peeked around the corner to see if the nasty crows were waiting for me.

They were.

I walked the whole way around to the other side of the school, and saw the crows were still waiting for me on the other side of the building. I got my car key ready and ran as fast as I could to my car. By the time they saw me and had made their way to me, I was already locked inside my car. I peeled out of the parking lot.

I had time before my shift at the deli, so I decided to go to the library. When I had settled into a chair, someone sat down in the chair next to me. "Hi Lexi."

It was Stephen, Brooke's brother. "Stephen, what are you doing here? All the way across town, I mean. I wasn't trying to imply that you shouldn't be at the library."

He laughed. "It's great to see you too." He fake-punched my arm. "I was at the sports store down the road and decided to get some homework done and wait out the traffic."

"Makes sense."

"What are you studying?" He peeked over my shoulder at the book.

"Honors Lit. We have to read a book a week. It can be a bit much, but it's good prep for college," I said.

"What are you going to major in? I bet you already have it figured out."

I smiled. "I want to do something to do with justice."

"The justice field, huh?" he asked. "That's amazing."

"Why?" I asked.

"Oh. I…uh, it just seems…uh… Hey, your school has that CSI Club, right? Are you part of that?"

"Yeah. It's my favorite part of school. The science behind solving the crimes is phenomenal. I think I'd really love being a part of that. Last year we got to go on a walk through with some real CSI's and it was even better than I'd thought," I said, practically gushing.

"Is it like the TV show?" Stephen asked.

"That's what everyone asks. It's not full of such melodrama, but it's exciting because of how they are able to take seemingly insignificant clues to prove someone's innocence or guilt."

"That's interesting. Not that I could do it, but I'm glad that there are people like you who want to."

"So you said you need to study?" I asked. "I really need to read this book."

"Right. Sorry." He pulled a book out of his backpack. "Don't let me disturb you."

We read in silence for a while and then he said, "Brooke told me about the crows the other day. Are they really following you around?"

I sighed. "I don't want to talk about the crows, Stephen."

"You can call me Steve."

"Okay, Steve, I really don't want to talk about the crows."

"I'm sure you don't, but I want to hear about them. It's not every day someone is being chased by ugly birds, you know."

"You're definitely Brooke's brother," I said.

"Yes, we are. So tell me about the crows."

I sighed so that he would know what a pain he was being, and then I told him every detail about the crows, from their first visit at the lake to their show at the school earlier.

Just like Brooke, he didn't seem weirded out by the whole thing. They both just seemed strangely concerned.

"You must've been running pretty fast for the track manager to take notice," he said.

I shrugged. "I was running for my life. I doubt that I could run like that for a competition."

"You never know," he said.

It was my turn to change the subject. "So what's your cousin like? Brooke has set us up for my homecoming formal, but I know nothing about him."

"My cousin?" he asked, looking confused. "Oh. You mean Clifford. Right. Yeah. I almost forgot he was coming to visit."

"His name is Clifford? I didn't even know that much."

"He usually goes by Cliff. What do you want to know about him?" Steve asked.

"I'd like to know anything at all. It'd be nice to know at least something about the guy, since I'm going to be spending an entire evening with him."

"I wouldn't worry about it. You two will get along great."

"How do you know?" I asked.

"I, uh…I just know. Well, I better get going."

"Okay," I said. "I need to get some more homework done before work anyway."

The rest of the week was blissfully boring, and on Friday evening I was back in Brooke's bedroom. She was fitting the dress but had me blindfolded, because she didn't want me to see it until the day of the dance.

"This is going to be perfect," she squeaked. "It already looks stunning, but when I add the finishing touches, no one will even compare."

"Now I have to see it."

"Don't even try. You get to see it next Saturday as a complete picture, after I've done your hair and makeup."

"Didn't your parents give you dolls when you were little?" I asked.

"That was the beginning of my love for dressing people up," she said. "Now that I'm designing clothes, I get to dress up real people and that's so much more fun."

"At least I can provide you with entertainment," I said. "Can you get this dress off me? I want to take off the blindfold."

"Sure, I have all that I need. Give me a minute."

I gladly threw the blindfold on the floor when she finally gave me permission. "When does your cousin come into town? Do I have to wait for the dance to see him too?"

Her eyes twinkled. "Yes. This is going to be truly magical."

My heart jumped when she said that and I started to get excited. "Will you tell me something about him?"

"He looks like a movie star," she said. "He's smart like you, and you two will steal the show. Everyone will forget about the homecoming royalty."

"Sounds like my mom will be proud to call me her daughter for once," I said. "She thinks my brains are wasted on a girl."

"Don't worry about her," Brooke said.

"Even if I were the top judge or attorney in the nation, she wouldn't care unless I was well dressed and in the spotlight," I said, getting upset. "She doesn't care about anything I do now. Even self-obsessed Natalie is impressed with my accomplishments. She told me as much the other day. My mom will never see it. I'm such a disappointment to her."

"Hey, calm down, chica," she said. "I don't want any more broken light bulbs."

I stopped myself. "You're probably right."

"Probably? I've seen it myself," she said. "If you keep going, I'm going to have another mess to clean."

"How can someone treat their own child like that?" I asked, unable to think about anything else. "If I took care of someone as a baby, I would never be able to treat them like this. Something is seriously wrong with her."

"Not really. She didn't have that time to bond with you."

"What's that supposed to mean?" I asked, confused.

"What does what mean?" she asked, looking equally confused.

"Oh crap," I said. Brooke's mouth hadn't moved when she 'said' that. I'd heard her voice clearly, but her lips hadn't budged.

"What does what mean?" she insisted.

"Nothing," I said, too quickly.

"It's definitely something."

"Obviously it's nothing, because you didn't say anything," I said. "I thought that you said something, but I'm just hearing things."

"What did you hear exactly?" Brooke asked. I thought I saw her eyes flicker to a different color.

I shook my head to clear it. "I thought you said something about my mom, but it doesn't matter because you obviously didn't."

She jumped up. "I'll be right back." She ran out of the bedroom.

I sighed. I had finally scared her off with my weirdness. Crows and exploding light bulbs were one thing, but hearing voices was too much.

"Steve, it's happening faster than I thought," Brooke said.

"What's going on now?" Steve asked.

"She heard my thoughts. It's progressing even faster than we thought."

"Will we be able to wait until the formal?"

"I hope so. Though, Cliff will be here in a couple of days. We'll ask him what he thinks. He'll know what to do," Brooke said.

"It wouldn't be the end of the world if we have to tell her before the dance, Brooke."

I put my hands over my ears—as if that would silence voices coming from my head—and tried not to listen to the craziness. Either something strange was going on or I was losing my mind.

I didn't like either option.

At home the next morning, I was searching for answers. I started with old family albums. I couldn't recall having seen any photos of myself before I was around three years old. I spent a couple of hours going through every photo in the albums, and didn't find a single one of me as a baby.

There were plenty of Natalie as a baby, but none of me with her during that time. Natalie was born when I was about 11 months old so it didn't make sense that there would be no pictures of me until I was three years old.

I found my mom on her laptop. "Why are there no photos of me as a baby?"

"What? Not this again. Alexis, we've been over this. There was a flood in the house that we were living in before we moved here. We lost a lot of things, including your baby album."

"That still doesn't explain why I'm not in any of Natalie's baby pictures. When people have two kids, they usually take photos of the kids together."

She sighed. "We've gone over this too. You were scared to death of the camera flash, and any time that we brought out it out you burst into tears. I didn't want a bunch of memories of you crying."

"I don't buy it anymore," I retorted. "Just tell me the truth: was I adopted? Or am I your stepchild?"

She laughed. "Where do you get this stuff? Of course, you're not adopted or a stepchild."

"Could've fooled me." I walked out, determined to find out what was really going on.

I sat at the table in the back yard to do some homework, but I had a difficult time concentrating. When I had finally settled in and started to focus on my book, I heard footsteps behind me.

"Do you think that you were really adopted?" Natalie sat across from me.

"I don't know," I said. "Nothing adds up."

"Why wouldn't they tell you?"

"Who knows? Maybe they're afraid I'll want to find my real parents, or it could've been an illegal adoption."

"Or maybe your real parents are secret agents so our parents can't tell you." Her eyes were wide.

"Maybe they just found me on the side of the road and didn't want to turn me in," I said. I tried to hide a smile.

"You could be an alien in disguise."

"You'd like that, wouldn't you?"

"It would explain a lot," she said. Like how you read my mind last weekend.

I tried to hide my surprise and disappointment. I couldn't ask her if she had just thought that, because either way she answered, I would look like a freak.