The hallway looked especially frightening on that Thursday afternoon when Rey applied the bumper sticker to Huxley’s locker. Miss Calida was busy handing out report cards when Rey ran to the freshman hallway and dropped his backpack by his feet. Above him florescent lights flickered on and off. He could hear voices of students who had the same idea as he did – be late to pick up report cards – from down the bend of the hallway. At any moment, the front doors could open and a teacher could come walking in. But Rey decided to proceed with the plan anyway.
On Friday morning, when Huxley went to his locker, he felt his body constrict with fear and anger. There, right beneath the 79, was the bumper sticker. The words “Official Owner” and “American Bully” sent a chill down his spine. He thought about whether or not it could be Viola that had stuck the bumper sticker there and decided it was unlikely. Viola was too much of a passivist to do that. She might have told someone about it but that struck Huxley as unlikely also. And he considered for a brief moment that someone was in the turret while he was giving her the tattoo, maybe even Rey Naresh.
When Rey awoke Friday morning, he looked up at the avocado juice bottles on his bookshelf, and reminded himself not to drink any tap water. Isabel called from upstairs alerting him to a phone call. He couldn’t imagine who would be calling him, but wasn’t surprised when he found out it was Brianna Lane. It was seven-thirty and Rey had to catch a bus in ten minutes. He tried to make the phone call brief. Brianna said the game plan was that the two of them didn’t know one another – that they were like onions and chocolate. It was still four days until December 7th when they were supposed to meet Brianna in the woods. Brianna said to be respectful of her around Radelle if he wanted to keep his girlfriend.
“Then don’t embarrass Christy,” Rey said.
“Don’t worry,” Brianna said cheerfully, “Tricks are for kids.”
Isabel was dissatisfied with his report card. Rey had gotten mostly C’s. Except in physical education and spanish, of course, where he always did well. Rey was more worried about making a good impression on Radelle.
“You got almost all B’s last quarter,” Isabel said.
“I know.” They made their way towards Christy’s home. Rey had the address written down on a slip of paper in his pocket.
“You got straight C’s. Why?”
“I’ve just been busy.”
“Are you spending too much time with your girlfriend?”
“It doesn’t have anything to do with Christy,” Rey said. This wasn’t entirely true. He spent almost every Saturday and Sunday with Christy.
“Well, what’s it about?”
“There’s some things that I can’t really tell you about.” Rey wanted to tell Isabel the truth but he wasn’t ready yet.
“What things?”
“I don’t know. Can we talk about it another time?”
“I want to talk about it now.”
Rey turned to Isabel and realized she seemed inordinately troubled. He couldn’t possibly guess what the letter from Adele could say and he was more than a little daunted by it. “You’re keeping secrets from me, so why shouldn’t I keep secrets from you?”
“I’ll show you the letter in a few days. It’s not your teachers fault is it?”
“No.” Rey noted that Isabel was in a foul mood.
“I want you to get better grades next quarter. You’re smart. I know you can.”
“All right,” Rey said. “Take a left here.”
“What’s the address?”
Rey pulled the slip of paper out of his pocket. “582 Mary Anne Way. It’s up here on the left.”
They pulled into Christy’s driveway. “I should come to the door with you.”
“Do you have to?”
“Rey. If I don’t bring you to the door, it’s rude.”
Rey sighed, thankful that his mother wasn’t staying for dinner also. They knocked on the door, hearing Ruffenstein inside barking powerfully for such a small dog. Isabel looked the house up and down. It was a nice home. The door opened and a woman looking a bit like a wrinkled Raggedy Anne doll stood there.
She smiled. “Hey, Rey. I’m Radelle.”
Rey waved and stepped inside. “Hey, Radelle.”
“This is Ruffenstein,” Radelle said, pointing to the Yorkshire Terrier with a mustache.
“He looks like he needs a pipe,” Rey said.
Radelle laughed. “Yeah. I suppose he does. Christy’s in her room.”
Isabel stepped forward. “Hi, I’m Isabel. Great to meet you.” She extended her hand.
“I’m Radelle,” she said, shaking her hand. “I said it’s fine they hang out but there will be no spending of the night.”
“Not until they’re thirty-five anyway.”
“Or dead,” Radelle said. “You write for the Gazette. I read your articles. Quite good.”
“Thank you. I’ll be back to pick Rey up at nine.”
“Perfect.” Radelle smiled and closed the door.
Rey saw Christy coming down the steps to meet him. She was wearing khaki shorts and and white T-shirt, the same outfit she was wearing at the beginning of the school year at Overlook Park. “You brought your backpack?” she said.
“Yeah. I thought we could get spanish homework over with.”
“All right,” Christy said.
They made their way to the dinner table. “Well Rey, I’ve got Chinese stir fry and pasta,” Radelle said. “I hope that’s all right with you.”
“Sounds great,” Rey said.
Christy sat in her standard chair and Rey to her right. At that moment, Brianna emerged from the hallway. “This is Christy’s sister, Brianna,” Radelle said.
“We’ve met in a past life I’m sure,” Brianna said. She put her report card on the counter because she hadn’t had a chance yet to show it to Radelle.
“So tell us about yourself, Rey?” Radelle said, serving everyone a helping on four plates spread around the counter.
“What do you want to know?” Rey asked.
“How are you enjoying the school year so far?”
“It’s been really interesting.”
Christy picked up where he left off. “It’s been an adventure.”
“From what little I know it certainly sounds like it,” Radelle said. “What do you guys want to drink?”
“Water’s fine for me,” Christy said.
Rey thought about this. He remembered the conversation they’d had with Fynn – that Christy drank water from a well. “Water’s fine,” he said.
Brianna pulled three bottles of water out of the refrigerator.
“Since when do we have bottled water?” Christy said, as Brianna placed a bottle each by their plates.
“Our father is in Ontario for work,” Brianna said. “He’s designing a health club.”
“Cool,” Rey said. Rey looked at the bottle of water. It said Mountain Springs on it. If Looza Avocado was okay to drink, Rey thought, Mountain Springs wouldn’t be any different.
Radelle joined them at the table, and Brianna and Christy began eating, leaving Rey to realize no one was going to say Grace – not that he ever did either. “Christy and I haven’t had a chance to talk yet but apparently there was some kind of prank. And it involved you two,” Radelle said.
“Um, which one?” Christy said.
Rey felt like he was jumping rope on a mine field.
“I got a call from Principal Claudette Laurie today letting me know she was concerned,” Radelle said. “She suggested we meet with a guidance counselor. She said someone broke into the nurse’s office and broadcasted a message regarding some disturbing information.”
Rey wondered why Claudette Laurie hadn’t called Isabel. Or perhaps Isabel simply hadn’t told him about it.
“Oh no, it’s no big deal,” Christy said.
“I started to feel guilty about not picking you up a few months ago. Are these boys
causing you a lot of trouble?” Radelle asked.
“We’ve got it under control,” Rey said. He opened the bottle of Mountain Springs and drank.
“What is this Avocadonine business?” Radelle asked.
The table was silent. The seconds passed, Rey feeling like his main priority was to make it through the next minute alive. He had no idea what to say. He looked at Christy who seemed as at a loss for words as he was.
Then Brianna said, “I know all about it.” She took a sip of water. “There’s a member of the ninth grade that’s seeing things and spreading some crazy rumors. Right guys?”
Christy looked at Brianna like she’d just proved she was from Antarctica. “We think so,” Christy said, still staring.
Radelle stood up to get a second serving of pasta. “How is the meal, Rey?”
“Really good. Thanks, Ms. Lane.”
“Call me Radelle.”
Brianna was busily eating and didn’t seem to care that the two of them were beyond curious.
Radelle sat down again and said, “What are your guy’s plans for tonight?”
“I want to try the Ouija Board with Rey,” Christy said.
“That sounds like fun,” Radelle said.
“So she can find out if she’s adopted,” Brianna said bitterly.
“Well no one in this family even looks like each other,” Christy said.
“Told you,” Brianna said.
It was plain to see the tug of war had begun, and Radelle was thinking of how to nip it in the bud. “Christy, we don’t want to hear complaints about our family when we have a guest.”
“Cinderelly, Cinderelly,” Brianna sang, “Night and day it’s Cinderelly, do the sweeping, and the mopping, they always keep her hopping.”
Radelle noticed for the first time Brianna’s report card was on the counter. “Is that your report card?” Radelle asked.
“I got straight A’s this semester,” Brianna announced to the three of them, “and my Political Science professor, Mr. Dagan, wants me to go to Washington D.C. this summer and have an internship with his college sweetheart.”
“Are you missing all your classes on Friday?” Radelle asked. “You’re here quite a bit.”
“I skip my classes all the time,” Brianna said.
“How do you skip your classes and get straight A’s?” Christy said, as more of an accusation than anything.
“Don’t be such a sour puss, Christy,” Brianna said. “Just because you’re a loser doesn’t mean everyone else has to be.”
“Christy isn’t a loser,” Rey said.
“Fine,” Brianna said. “She’s not a loser. She’s just irritable because she wants some Judy Booty.”
“Do you guys know someone named Inez Castel?” Radelle asked to the change the subject.
Rey looked up. “I do.” Inez Castel was in fifth grade with Rey and Christy. He was Italian with mussed black hair and a sharp look in his eye. He was easily the smartest person in the grade, known by some as a prodigy. He had only spoken to Rey once. Inez came up to Rey and asked him if he wanted to play four square. Four square was a game that didn’t have a clear set of rules. When Rey told him it wasn’t fair, Inez laughed awkwardly.
“How do you know him?” Christy asked.
“He was in fifth grade with us. He had Mr. Wallis.”
“I had Mr. Wallis,” Brianna said. “He was the coolest.”
“Inez was a genius,” Rey said.
“How so?” Radelle asked.
“Well, like, at the end of the day we would always have a contest to see who could guess the word of the day’s definition. And Inez knew it every day. He did high school math in fifth grade. Also he was awesome at baseball.”
“Lilliette told me he’s back,” Radelle said.
“Lilliette is another Librarian,” Christy said to Rey.
“I haven’t seen him,” Rey said. “He’s not at school with us I don’t think.”
“I don’t think so either,” Christy said.
“He’s been spotted around town a lot. I only mention it because he owes 250 dollars in unpaid library fines.”
“He should just find another library,” Rey said.
“He’s still in the system,” Radelle grimaced – unpaid library fines were her major pet peeve. “Where did he move after he left here?”
“No one knows,” Rey said. “One day, before the school year was even over, he just disappeared.”
“I’ve got to go,” Brianna said. She pushed her chair out and brought her plate to the sink. “I have to meet Ron in a half-hour. Good to meet you, Rey. I’m sure we’ll be seeing more of each other.”
Radelle smiled, thinking Brianna the picture of perfection.
“All right,” Rey said to Brianna, thinking the mine field was looking safer. He’d survived the meal but he was beginning to think that he could never tell Christy about Brianna and Ms. Parker. The betrayal would be too strong for her to forgive him. Perhaps, the only option was for her to never know.
“Are you finished, Rey?” Christy said.
Rey nodded. “Thank you, Radelle. That was really good.”
“My pleasure,” Radelle said. “You’re mother says she’ll be here at nine.”
Christy pushed her chair out and beckoned Rey to follow her. They went up the stairs, Christy hoping on several feeling buoyant. Rey and Christy had spent many Friday nights at the reservoir kissing, but Annette had explained to Rey on the bus one Friday afternoon that Christy wasn’t ready to do anything sexual. Annette said that she might change her mind in awhile but in the meantime Rey knew not to try anything until Christy gave him the go ahead.
“I have the Ouija Board in my room,” Christy said. “I’ve tried it a couple times with Annette and we never got through to anyone. But Brianna says that she’s heard people can become possessed and channel dead relatives if they get lucky. Have you ever tried it?”
“No. Never,” Rey said.
Christy opened the door to her room and Rey took in the surroundings. Her desk and chair were painted purple, along with a purple cordless phone, and the rest of the room was blue. She had several posters that Rey recognized from a store called Success, which sold inspirational items. An 8-ball on the desk showed that Christy’s superstitious side was prominent and new to him.
“Okay,” Christy said. She pulled the Ouija Board out of her closet and placed it on the bed. “You sit here.”
“Do we both put our hands on the thing?”
“Mmm hmm.” Christy was thinking about how to set the mood. “What if we got some candles?” She left the room and went across the hallway to the linen closet. She emerged with two candles in holders and a small packet of matches. She turned off the lights. “We keep these for emergencies,” Christy said. She placed the candles on her night table and lit them. Rey placed his hands on his side of the indicator, then Christy on the opposite side. “We need to ask it a question and see if it moves,” Christy said.
“Okay. What do you want to ask it?” Rey said.
Christy closed her eyes. “Ouija Board, tell us how to find out the answers to the mystery at Pemota High.”
They both watched the indicator. Thirty seconds passed. Then a minute. Nothing. Then, slowly, the indicator began to move. Christy watched with delight as it headed towards the word ‘yes’. Then she realized it.
“That was you.” She hit Rey in the shoulder.
“It’s not going to work, Christy. You have to be psychic or something.”
“Let’s try it one more time,” Christy said.
They tried again. They both put their hands on the indicator and Christy asked another question, “Ouija Board, who built the house with the turret?” This time almost three minutes passed to no avail. Finally, Christy dropped her shoulders. But Rey still had hope.
“Do you have any pets other than Ruffenstein?”
“My sister has a gerbil na
med Casey.”
A mischievous smile played at the corners of his mouth. “I got an idea.”