Page 18

"Tomorrow," I said and gazed from Butterfly to Raven and then to Crystal. "Tomorrow we get together and put the finishing touches on it."

I was so angry about what Gordon had done to Crystal and anxious about leaving at the same time that I couldn't get my mind to stop racing. I had to get some rest for my exams, but it was as if my mind had turned into a pinball machine with the idea of our escape bouncing from one exciting possibility to another, lighting up the darkness, ringing bells and rattling chimes.

Finally, I got up and went to the bathroom. When I returned, I paused because I saw a light sweep across the front of the Lakewood House. Raven was fast asleep and hadn't noticed anything. Curious, I went to the window and gazed down at two silhouetted figures walking toward the driveway. One was definitely Gordon. I couldn't mistake that hulking figure no matter how dark it was outside. The other man was considerably shorter. For a moment I thought they were arguing. Gordon raised his arms and then lowered them quickly to put one around the other man's shoulders. They disappeared around the corner and then reappeared near Gordon's station wagon. I knew a door was opened because it lit up inside the car, but no one got in. Then the shorter man departed and Gordon closed the door, watched the other man as he walked away, got into his car and drove off.

Gordon stood there a moment longer and then turned and looked up as if he sensed me in the window. My heart fell into my stomach. I backed away and waited. When I looked out again, he was gone and the darkness seemed thicker than before.

3 Like Thieves in the Night

I wanted to get started on plans for our trip as soon as we were finished with school the next day. It was difficult to concentrate on anything else. There were things I wanted us to have on the journey and I thought we could stop by the department store on the way home from school. But I had forgotten that Raven, Crystal and I had dining room duty at the house. Crystal reminded me when we met at the lockers and I told her what I wanted to do.

"We can't. We've got to get right back and help Grandma Kelly get things ready for supper. If we're late, Gordon will come after us," she said. After what he had done to her in the bathroom the night before, she was absolutely terrified of the thought.

"Stop worrying. We won't be late," I assured her. "It only takes us twenty minutes to walk home."

"We'll get whatever we need tomorrow. We have all afternoon, don't we?" she said, her face twisted with fear.

Crystal didn't look like she believed we were going to run away. It was as if she were still humoring me. Raven gave me a look of warning and I nodded my understanding.

"All right. Let's go," I said reluctantly.

So we took the bus back instead of preparing for our trip. We didn't even talk about it on the bus. Instead, along with the other students, we babbled about the exams we had just completed. I began to feel like maybe Crystal was right, maybe it was just a pipe dream, a fantasy.

Remarkably, I hadn't found my final exams as difficult as I had anticipated. Most of what I had been studying stuck or could be easily retrieved from the shelves and boxes in my memory. It was as if my brain had been electrified by the excitement and every thought had a neon sign announcing where it was stored.

Crystal remained pensive. She simply said she had done well, but uncharacteristically, refused to elaborate. Usually, she gave us a critique of her tests, whether we wanted it or not, rating the teacher on how well he or she covered the important things. I knew what Gordon had done to her the night before lay like a lump of lead on her mind. She was terrified of setting eyes on him or him setting eyes on her, but she was just as nervous and afraid of what I had proposed we do.

When we arrived at the Lakewood House, she rushed into the building and up to her room to change, hoping to avoid seeing him.

"She's a mess," I told Raven. "Getting her out of here is the best thing we could do for her?'

"Best thing we can do for all of us," Raven responded. "I hope you really do have a good plan, Brooke."

"I do," I promised.

Butterfly, who trailed along like an anxious puppy, listened and widened her eyes with worry. She wasn't o

n the roster with us, but she came along to work in the kitchen anyway. With the knowledge of just what kind of evil Gordon was capable of, she was too nervous to stay anywhere by herself.

I wanted to go over our plans in detail as soon as possible, but with Grandma Kelly hovering over us, it was difficult to talk in the kitchen. I was so frustrated, I thought I would burst like an overly filled balloon. Raven and I looked at each other expectantly, but worked efficiently and quietly beside Crystal and Butterfly, stacking dishes, organizing silverware and preparing the serving trays.

"We'll meet in your room right after we clean up," I whispered to Crystal soon after we had gotten started in the kitchen, "and explain everything."

She nodded, her eyes darting from the doorway to our work periodically. It wasn't difficult to see that she was terrified.

Gordon did appear at one point and stood in the doorway of the kitchen gaping at the four of us. Raven, the most defiant, flashed her black eyes at him and then turned her back on him I saw his lip twitch in the right upper corner. Crystal, practically shaking in her shoes, kept her eyes down, her fingers fumbling around the hot plates carelessly until she burned the tip of her thumb. Gordon's smile widened and then he left us.

Raven muttered a curse under her breath.

"What's that, dear?" Grandma Kelly asked.

"Nothing," I said quickly. "We're just hungry and wish it was time to serve and eat," I added.

That started her on a story about the Lakewood House in its prime, describing how the guests appreciated the food and gorged themselves to the point of bursting.

"They usually had to take long walks after each meal. I would drive home and see the line of them along the road. Afterward, many of the guests would fall asleep in the big wooden chairs or hammocks in the shade. Everyone wanted to be sure he got his money's worth," she added with a laugh. Then she sighed deeply and shook her head as she gazed around the kitchen. "It was so different when Louise's mother and father ran things I wish you girls were here then."

She looked down at Butterfly, who listened to her stories as if they were fairy tales.