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"We couldn’t risk taking a peek tonight anyway," she said "With what’s going on with Liz, they’ll be on high alert I don’t want to get kicked out for corrupting the new kid"
"Maybe I’d get tossed out for corrupting you"
She caught irl I can tell"
She scooted me from the room and shut the door behind us
Nine
I’M NOT KEEN ON ROMANTIC co he doesn’t like car chases, but Rae nodded off a few tiuessed this wouldn’t have been her choice either
I stayed awake by deconstructing the screenplay, which was so predictable I’d bet uru Robert McKee
But as I watched the sillyto Rae had helped She’d didn’t think I was crazy She didn’t even think I was schizophrenic
For the first tis didn’t look so bad Maybe life as I knew it hadn’t really ended in that classroo all drama queen
Did the kids at school knohat had happened to me? A fe me run down a hall More sawdeal I could return in a feeeks and one
Tomorrow, I’d e-mail Kari, tell her I was sick, and see what she said That’s probably exactly what she heard, that I had soh this Whatever I thought of their diagnosis, noasn’t the tiet released froet on with h the deep caves of dreamland, and it took me a few minutes to find the way out When I openedeven after she stopped shaking ?"
"I’ve been lying here for hours, trying to think of some way to ask you, some way that won’t sound weird But I can’t I just can’t"
She backed away, her pale face glowing in the darkness, hands tugging at her nightshirt neckline, like it was choking her
I scra to send me away Everyone knows they are, and that’s why they’re being so nice to o, Chloe They’ll lock me up and--" She hiccupped deep breaths, hands cupped over her mouth When she looked at me, her eyes were so wide the whites showed around her dark irises "I know you haven’t been here long, but I really need your help"
"Okay"
"Really?"
I stifled a yawn as I sat up "If there’s anything I can do--"
"There is Thank you Thank you" She dropped to her knees and pulled a bag from under her bed "I don’t knohat all you need, but I did one at a sleepover last year, so I gathered up everything we used There’s a glass, some spices, a candle--" Her hand flew to her mouth "Matches! Oh, no We don’t have any matches They keep the the candle?"
"Do what?" I rubbedpill but still felt that weird fogginess, like I ih a sea of cotton balls "What exactly are we doing, Liz?"
"A séance, of course"
The sleep fog evaporated, and I wondered if this was a prank But I could tell by her expression that it wasn’t I reeist?" I said carefully
Liz flew atup toward her off But she only pounced down beside eist It’s so obvious, but they won’t see it They keep saying it’sall this stuff But hoould I throw a pencil that hard? Did anyone seeand the pencil flies and hits her and everyone says ’Oh, Liz threw it,’ but I didn’t I never do"
"It’s the… poltergeist"
"Right! I think it’s trying to protectI’ve tried to talk to it, to make it stop But it can’t hear hosts That’s why I need you"
I struggled to keep eist activity once It usually did happen around girls like Liz--troubled teens desperate for attention So pranks Others believed the energy the girls gave off--hors move
"You don’t believe me," she said
"No, I didn’t say--"
"You don’t believe"Nobody believes el bottles rocked Eers into the mattress
"O-o-okay, Liz I s-s-see--"
"No, you don’t!"
She sla against the ceiling with such force the plastic exploded Hair gel rained down
"Do you see?"
"Y-y-yes"
Her hands flew up again, like a conductor hitting the crescendo A picture leaped fro Another fell Then a third A sliver of glass shot into
Out of the corner offros
"No!" Liz cried
I dove Liz hitme out of the picture’s path It struck her shoulder She twisted We both rolled fro the floor hard
I lay on asped "I didn’t et eist"
She nodded, her lip quivering
I had no idea as going on Not a poltergeist though--that was nuts--but if she thought it was, then ht I’d told it to stop, it really would stop
"Okay," I said "Get the candle and we’ll--"
The door shot open Mrs Talbot’s bathrobed forht I drew back, blinking
"Oh my God," she breathed, barely above a whisper "Elizabeth What have you done?"
I jumped to my feet "It wasn’t her I--I--I--"