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Elena stu to visualize as around her Then the world suddenly flickered to brightness and she found herself surrounded by fareat that she allad just to see She stood for aout here?" It was Meredith and Bonnie, hurrying down the hall toward her
"Where have you been?" she said fiercely
Meredith grimaced "We couldn’t find Shelby And e finally did find him, he was asleep I’m serious," she added at Elena’s incredulous look "Asleep And then we couldn’t get hihts went back on that he opened his eyes Then we started back to you But what are you doinghere ?"
Elena hesitated "I got tired of waiting," she said as lightly as she could "I think we’ve done enough work for one day, anyway"
"Now you tell us," said Bonnie
Meredith said nothing, but she gave Elena a keen, searching look Elena had the unco that those dark eyes saw beneath the surface
All that weekend and throughout the folloeek, Elena worked on plans for the Haunted House There was never enough ti, but evenwas Stefan himself She could sense his passion for her, but she could also sense that he was fighting it, still refusing to be completely alone with her And in many ways he was just as much a mystery to her as he had been when she first saw hi to Fell’s Church, and if she asked any questions he turned them aside Once she had asked him if he missed Italy, if he was sorry he’d coreen sparkling like oak leaves reflected in a running stream "How could I be sorry, whenyou are here?" he said, and kissed her in a way that put all inquiries out of her mind In that moment, Elena had knohat it was like to be completely happy She’d felt his joy, too, and when he pulled back she had seen that his face was alight, as if the sun shone through it
"Oh, Elena," he’d whispered
The good times were like that But he had kissed her less and less frequently of late, and she felt the distance between the
That Friday, she and Bonnie and Meredith decided to sleep over at the McCulloughs’ The sky was gray and threatening to drizzle as she and Meredith walked to Bonnie’s house It was unusually chilly forthe quiet street had already felt the nip of cold winds The oes were radiant yellow
Bonnie greeted theone! We’ll have the whole house to ourselves until to" She beckoned the to get out "No, Yangtze, stay in Yangtze, no, don’t! No!"
But it was too late Yangtze had escaped and was dashing through the front yard up to the single birch tree, where he yapped shrilly up into the branches, rolls of fat on his back jiggling
"Oh, what’s he afternow ?" said Bonnie, putting her hands over her ears "It looks like a crow," said Meredith
Elena stiffened She took a few steps toward the tree, looking up into the golden leaves And there it was The same crow she had seen twice before Perhaps three ti up from the oak trees in the cemetery
As she looked at it she felt her sto at her again with its bright black eye, an almost human stare That eye where had she seen an eye like that before?
Suddenly all three girls jus, bursting out of the tree toward them At the last , which was now barking hysterically It caain, flying over the house to disappear into the black walnut trees beyond
The three girls stood frozen in astonishment Then Bonnie and Meredith looked at each other, and the tension shattered in nervous laughter
"For aover to the outraged Pekingese and dragging hi, back into the house
"So did I," said Elena quietly And as she followed her friends inside, she did not join in the laughter
Once she and Meredith had put their things away, however, the evening fell into a familiar pattern It was hard to keep hold of her uneasiness sitting in Bonnie’s cluttered living roo fire, with a cup of hot chocolate in her hand Soon the three of the the final plans for the Haunted House, and she relaxed
"We’re in pretty good shape," said Meredith at last "Of course, we’ve spent soout everyone else’s costuht about our own"
"Mine’s easy," said Bonnie "I’arland of oak leaves in ht"
"I think I’ll be a witch," said Meredith thoughtfully "All that takes is a long black dress What about you, Elena?"
Elena smiled "Well, it was supposed to be a secret, but Aunt Judith let own in one of the books I used forit copied It’s Venetian silk, ice blue, and it’s absolutely beautiful"
"It sounds beautiful," Bonnie said "And expensive"
"I’ my own money from my parents’ trust I just hope Stefan likes it It’s a surprise for him, and well, I just hope he likes it"
"What’s Stefan going to be? Is he helping with the Haunted House?" said Bonnie curiously
"I don’t know," Elena said after a moment "He doesn’t see"
"It’s hard to see him all wrapped up in torn sheets and covered with fake blood like the other guys," agreed Meredith "He seenified for that"
"I know!" said Bonnie "I know exactly what he can be, and he’ll hardly have to dress up at all Look, he’s foreign, he’s sort of pale, he has that wonderful brooding look Put hiot a perfect Count Dracula!"
Elena smiled in spite of herself "Well, I’ll ask hi of Stefan," said Meredith, her dark eyes on Elena’s, "how are things going?"
Elena sighed, looking away into the fire "I’m not sure," she said at last, slowly "There are ti is wonderful, and then there are other tilance, and then Meredith spoke gently "Other ti Then she caot up and hurried up the stairs She came back doith a small blue velvet book in her hands
"I wrote soht when I couldn’t sleep," she said "This says it better than I could now" She found the page, took a deep breath, and began:
"October 17
"Dear Diary,
"I feel awful tonight AndIhave to share it with so with Stefan and me There is this terrible sadness inside hi us apart I don’t knohat to do
"I can’t bear the thought of losing hi, and if he won’t tell me what it is, if he won’t trust me that much, I don’t see any hope for us
"Yesterday when he was holdings on a chain I asked hiift from Caroline And he just froze and wouldn’t talk anymore It was as if he were suddenly a thousand miles away, and his eyes there was so much pain in his eyes that I could hardly stand it"
Elena stopped reading and traced the last lines written in the journal silently with her eyes I feel as if soot over it But I also think there’s so he’s afraid of, some secret he’s afraid I’ll find out If I only knehat that was, I could prove to him that he can trust me That he can trust me no matter what happens, to the end
"If only I knew," she whispered
"If only you knehat?" said Meredith, and Elena looked up, startled "Oh-if only I kneas going to happen," she said quickly, closing the diary "Ito break up eventually, I suppose I’d just want to get it over with And if I kneas going to turn out all right in the end, I wouldn’tday after day without being sure is awful"
Bonnie bit her lip, then sat up, eyes sparkling "I can show you a way to find out, Elena," she said "My grand to uess, an old druid trick," said Meredith
"I don’t kno old it is," said Bonnie "My grandmother says there have always been dumb suppers Anyway, it works My e when she tried it, and a month later they were ot to lose?"
Elena looked from Bonnie to Meredith "I don’t know," she said "But, look, you don’t really believe"
Bonnie drew herself up with affronted dignity "Are you calling my mother a liar? Oh, co Why not?"
"What would I have to do?" said Elena doubtfully She felt strangely intrigued, but at the saet everything ready before the stroke of ht, Elena stood in the McCulloughs’ dining roo else Fro, but inside the house there was no sound except the unhurried tick of the grandfather clock Following Bonnie’s instructions, she had set the big black walnut table with one plate, one glass, and one set of silverware, all the tile candle in a candleholder in the center of the table, and positioned herself behind the chair with the place setting
According to Bonnie, on the stroke of ht she was supposed to pull the chair back and invite her future husband in At that point, the candle would blow out and she would see a ghostly figure in the chair
Earlier, she’d been a little uneasy about this, uncertain that she wanted to see any ghostly figures, even of her husband-to-be But just now the whole thing seean to chirip on the chair back Bonnie had told her not to let go until the ceremony was over