Shocking Pink

The other two girls murmured their agreement and fell into step behind Raven. Darting glances in every direction, they crept around to the back of the house. Julie poked Andie in the back, making her jump. “Boo,” she whispered, giggling.

Andie brought a hand to her heart and scowled at her friend. “Stop that. You about gave me a—”

“Shh.” Raven held up a hand. “Listen.”

Andie did, heart thundering. A moment later she leaned toward Raven. “I don’t hear anything.”

Julie put her head close to theirs. “Me neither.”

Raven grinned. “Gotcha.”

“Very funny.”

“Thanks a lot.”

Raven laughed softly. “Come on.”

They crept to the first window and peered in. The room beyond—it looked as if it was supposed to be a bedroom—was empty. They made their way to the next window, then the next, finding the same thing. An empty laundry room, breakfast room, kitchen.

Then they hit pay dirt. A chair. A single, high-backed, wooden chair, the kind you’d find at a desk or dining table. Only there was no table or desk, no television, lamps or anything else in the room.

It looked strange, parked there, a sort of centerpiece. Andie tipped her head. No, not a centerpiece. A kind of audience to an empty stage.

Andie shivered. “This is the one. I’ll just bet.”

“Me, too.” Raven turned to Julie. “Are you sure no one bought this house?”

“Positive.” She rubbed her arms. “My mom was talking about it with Mrs. Green just a couple weeks ago. All four of these houses are still available. Mrs. Green was really weirded-out about it, ’cause there’s a chance Mr. Green’s going to be transferred and she’s afraid they won’t be able to sell.” Julie sucked in a deep breath. “Besides, the For Sale sign is still in front.”

“What now?” Andie whispered. “A few pieces of furniture doesn’t mean some ax murderer has taken up residence in an empty house.”

“Let’s try the door.”

Andie held her breath as Raven did, letting it out when she saw that it was locked. Next, her friend tried the windows. They, too, were locked.

“Come on, Raven.” Andie glanced around nervously. “I don’t think this is such a good idea.”

“Just a sec.” Raven stood on tiptoe and ran her hand along the top of the door frame. “Bingo,” she said, holding up a key.

“Where did you learn to do that?” Andie shook her head. “And isn’t this against the law?”

“Is it?” Raven arched her eyebrows. “We have a key. That’s not like breaking and entering or anything.”

“People go through model homes all the time,” Julie piped in. “That’s all we’re doing.”

Raven inserted the key into the lock. Andie took a step back. “You guys, what if somebody really lives here? What if they’re home?”

Raven made a face at her. “Wiener. Chicken out if you want, Julie and I are going in.” She looked at Julie. “You’re with me, right?” The girl nodded, and Raven eased open the door.

Andie watched her two friends slip through the door, then disappear inside the house. She waited, heart pounding. The moments ticked past with agonizing slowness. What were they doing? What did they see?

“Guys,” she whispered, “what’s going on?”

They didn’t answer. Andie inched closer to the door, straining to hear her friends inside. When she couldn’t, she peeked around the doorway. Still nothing. Feeling like the wiener Raven had called her, she followed them inside.

The door opened onto the kitchen. Adjacent to it was the family room with its one chair, and beyond it, the entrance foyer and dining room. A hallway led to what Andie supposed were the bedrooms.

Creepy, she thought, hugging herself, chilled. Obviously empty, yet something about it felt occupied. She turned slowly, taking in the fast-food bag on the counter, the cups in the sink; hearing the hum of the air conditioner.

“Rave?” she called softly. “Julie?”

“Here,” Raven answered. “Come see what we found.”

Andie went down the hallway and found her friends in the master bedroom. It was a large room with a vaulted ceiling and exposed wooden beams. There wasn’t a bed, just a couple of big floor pillows and a stool, the kind her mom had at the breakfast bar in their kitchen.

And a tape deck. A nice one. Andie crossed to it, squatted and popped open the cassette holder. Nothing.

“The boom box proves it.” Julie looked from one of her friends to the other. “This is where the music was coming from. Somebody’s using this house.”

“But for what?” Andie shook her head. “There’s something really weird about this. I don’t like it.”

“No joke. Let’s get out of here.”

They started back toward the kitchen. Andie peeked in the bathroom as they passed it. It, too, showed signs of limited occupation. A shower curtain, a cup by the sink. But no towels or toiletries.

Back in the kitchen, Julie shivered. “It’s like someone’s living here, but not. Like a ghost, or something.”

“A ghost?” Raven repeated, pointing to the McDonald’s bag on the counter. “Get real, girl. Whoever’s using this house is a flesh-and-blood human being.”

Which made it all the more scary, as far as Andie was concerned. She crossed to the gently humming refrigerator, opened it and peered inside, squinting at the sudden light. A bottle of wine and a six-pack of beer, some cheese and a bunch of grapes.

Raven peered over her shoulder and grinned. “Beer?”

“Oh no you don’t. If you take one, they’ll know we were in here.”

“So what?” Raven reached around her. “It’s not like they’ll know it was us who—” She stopped, frowning. “What’s that rumbling sound? It’s kind of like—”

They all froze, as if realizing simultaneously what it was. The automatic garage door. Opening.

“Oh shit.” Andie looked at her friends. A door opened then slammed. A car door. “What do we do?”

“Hide,” Raven managed to say, her voice a frightened croak. “Now!”

Andie looked wildly around, her heart in her throat. She grabbed Julie’s hand and darted for the walk-in pantry door. She pushed Julie inside, then ducked in behind her, not having time to get the door completely shut before a man entered the kitchen.

Andie held the knob to keep the door steady, her heart hammering nearly out of control. Cracked open about an inch, she was able to watch the man’s progress.

He didn’t turn on a light, so she couldn’t make out his face or features, only that he was tall, dark-haired and dressed casually. He went to the refrigerator and opened it. Light flooded the dark kitchen, though his back was to her. A moment later she heard the pop and hiss of a can being opened. He was drinking beer. Thank God they hadn’t taken one. He would have known they were here.

He shut the fridge and turned, staring straight at the pantry. He stood unmoving a moment, his eyes seeming to meet hers. Her heart stopped; he started toward her.

Fear exploded inside her. Andie held her breath, dizzy with emotion, certain that her next moment was going to be her last. She squeezed her eyes shut, a bead of sweat rolling down her spine, slipping under the elastic band of her panties.

Behind her on the floor, Julie stirred. Don’t move, Julie. Don’t breathe.

The man stopped in front of the pantry door. He reached out. And pushed the door the rest of the way shut. The latch clicked into place.

He hadn’t discovered them.

Now they were truly trapped.

Andie brought a hand to her mouth to hold back her cry of relief and panic. What did they do now? she wondered, shifting slightly so she could see Julie’s face now that her eyes had adjusted to the darkness. And where was Raven?

Julie’s eyes were wide and terrified. Andie felt her friend’s rising hysteria; it mirrored her own. She fought the urge to scream. To just open her mouth and let out a wail of terror, and then run for it. Past the man. The man who had no business being in this house, in this neighborhood. The man who could be anyone. Or anything. A rapist or murderer.

Instead, Andie held tightly to her control and brought a finger to her lips to signal Julie to be quiet. Her friend nodded and pressed her face to her drawn-up knees.

The minutes seemed like hours. An eternity. As they ticked past, the pantry became hotter, closer. It was like a tomb, an airless box. Andie began to sweat; the urge to scream, to run, grew. She didn’t know how much longer she would be able to last.

She counted to ten, then twenty, forcing herself to breathe evenly. She told herself everything would be all right. The pantry was empty. If he didn’t hear them, there should be no reason for him to open the door. As long as they were quiet, they would be okay. So would Raven.

She closed her eyes, imagining him there in the dark, drinking his beer. Imagined him turning suddenly toward the pantry door, sensing their presence, their panic. The way a predator in the wild does.

The metallic taste of fear nearly gagged her. She strained to hear him. Every so often she thought she heard him stir, his footfall, his rhythmic breathing. She couldn’t be sure.

She held her breath and prayed. Please, God. Please make him go away.

The prayer played in her head, over and over again until she suddenly realized she was digging her nails into her palms, that she was light-headed from holding her breath.

At the same moment she realized it had been quiet for some time.

The pantry door flew open.

Her cry shattered the quiet.

It was Raven. With a sob of relief, Andie tumbled out, Julie behind her. They fell into each other’s arms, clinging to one another.

“Where were you?” Andie cried. “I was so worried he’d see you!”

“In the dining room. Are you guys okay?”

“Fine. Fi—”

“I want to go home,” Julie said, her teeth beginning to chatter. “I want to go home.”

Raven caught Julie’s hands and rubbed them. “What do you think he was up to?”

“I don’t know. It was so weird. He—” Andie bit the words back, new fear taking her breath. “Are you sure he’s gone? Are you sure—”

“He’s gone.” Raven indicated the family room. “He went the way he came in.”

Andie looked in the direction Raven pointed. “What if he comes back? He could be hiding, waiting for us.”

“Why would he do that?” Raven shook her head. “No, I heard the garage door. He’s gone.”

“I want to go,” Julie said again, starting to cry. “I don’t like it here. He could have hurt us.”

Andie hugged her. “It’s okay, sweetie. He didn’t touch us. He’s gone. You’re fine.”

“But he could have! If he’d found us, he could have done … anything. No one knew we were here!”

“Who was he?” Raven asked softly, as if speaking to no one but herself.

Andie turned to Raven. “I didn’t get a look at him. Did you?”

The other girl gazed at her for a moment, then shook her head. “You didn’t see his face? I thought for sure you had. He was right there.”

“It was dark, and when he came close I drew back from the door.” Andie pressed a hand to her fluttering stomach. “I think I closed my eyes, too. I was so scared he was going to find us.”

“Me, too.” Raven let out a long breath. “I was too afraid to peek around the doorway.” She laughed, the sound high and excited. “What a rush.” She laughed again and crossed to the breakfast counter. “Come see. He left these.”

Andie followed her friend. She stared down at what looked like two folded pieces of black fabric.

“What are they?” Andie asked.

“Scarves.”

Raven moved to pick one up; Andie caught her hand. “Don’t touch it.”

“Why not? I’ll put them back the way I found them.” She shook off Andie’s hand and picked one up. It was long and narrow and semisheer. “It’s so soft. Feel it.”

After a moment’s hesitation, Andie did. The fabric slithered through her fingers, as soft as butterfly wings. “My mom has a scarf that feels like this. It’s silk.”

“Silk,” Raven repeated. “Why did he bring these here? What are they for?” She met Andie’s eyes. “Who is he, Andie? What’s he doing here?”

Andie searched her friend’s gaze. “I don’t know. But I don’t think we need to find out.”

Julie came up behind them, white as a sheet. “I don’t feel so good. I want to go.”

Andie nodded, then nudged Raven who had turned her attention back to the scarf. She seemed almost mesmerized by it and her own questions. “Come on, let’s get out of here.”

“They’re for a woman, that’s for sure. But who? Why did he bring them here? And why two of them?”

Julie moaned and bent slightly at the waist. Andie put an arm around her. “Come on, Raven,” she said again. “Julie’s sick.”

As if only just realizing Andie had spoken, Raven looked blankly at her. “What?”

“Julie’s sick. We’ve got to get out of here.”

Raven nodded, refolded the scarf, then the three of them left the way they had come in. As they did, Andie glanced back at the dark house. She was never coming back here, she promised herself. Never.

6

For the next few days, all Andie and her friends could talk about was the mystery man and their brush with danger. They were certain Mr. X, as they had begun to call him, was up to no good, but they could only speculate as to what kind. Which, for Andie and Julie, was enough. Neither girl had any desire to get that close to Mr. X or that house again.

Raven, on the other hand, wanted to find out exactly what Mr. X was doing. “Aren’t you guys even curious?” she asked her two friends. They sat in Andie’s front yard, drinking Cokes. Even in the shade, the midday air was stifling.

“Nope. Not that curious, anyway.” Andie brought her cold, damp can to her forehead. “I just want to forget it.”

“Me, too,” Julie added. “I’ve never been so scared in my whole life.”

“Listen to yourselves, guys. You say you want to forget it, but it’s all you can talk about. Besides,” Raven persisted, “how can we forget it? We were in that house. We know something’s wrong with that guy.”

“I don’t know that.” Andie flopped back onto the grass, cursing the heat. “Neither do you. We were the ones who were wrong. We didn’t belong in there.”

“He didn’t either.” Raven leaned toward Andie. “That house is supposed to be empty.” She turned to Julie. “Be honest, you thought something about him was wrong. Didn’t you?”

“Well … he was pretty creepy.” Julie rubbed her arms.

“And Rave’s right, Andie. He wasn’t supposed to be in there.”

“You guys are nuts.” Andie sat back up, looking at the two in disbelief. “We weren’t supposed to be in there. We broke in, for Pete’s sake. Get real.”

“You get real.” Raven drew her knees to her chest. “This is our neighborhood. It’s Julie’s street. What if he’s some sort of freak? A murderer or a … a child molester?”

“A murderer? A child molester?” Andie rolled her eyes. “The guy drank a beer in a house we think is supposed to be empty. Come on, Rave, you’re taking this too far.”

“I don’t think so. Read the newspaper any day of the week. Those freaks are everywhere.” Raven lowered her voice. “You don’t want that kind of person in our neighborhood, do you? Around Julie’s little brothers? Around yours?”

“No, but—”

“Geez, Andie—” Raven made a sound of disgust “—you used to be the one who looked out for everybody. Remember? You used to care about right and wrong. You used to do something about it.”

“I still care. But I’m not sure this guy’s doing anything wrong. I mean, of course we were scared. We should have been, look what we were doing. Maybe he’s perfectly innocent. He probably has every right to be in that house.”

“Be honest, Andie. You don’t believe that.” Raven faced her. “Look me in the eyes and tell me you didn’t think the way he came in and sat in the dark drinking a beer was weird? Tell me you don’t think there’s something strange about a partially filled house that’s supposed to be empty?”

“And don’t forget those icky black scarves,” Julie piped in, making a face. “That was so creepy.”

Andie closed her eyes and recalled the quiet way the man had moved around the kitchen, the measured sound of his breathing, how he had made her feel, and she shuddered, gooseflesh racing up her arms. She rubbed them, feeling chilled despite the heat of the day. “Okay, okay. He was creepy. The whole thing was weird. So what?”

Raven turned to Julie. “Tell her what you found out.”

Julie leaned conspiratorially toward them, lowering her voice to a dramatic whisper. “I asked my mom about the house again, you know, just to be sure. I asked if it had been sold or rented or anything, and she said she didn’t think so. She said she had even mentioned that house to Mrs. Butcher, the real estate agent.” Julie dragged in a deep breath. “Mrs. Butcher told her all four houses were still owned by the builder.”

Andie shuddered again, her chill going clear to her bones. “So, what do we do?” she asked, looking from one friend to the other. “Go to our folks?”

Raven pursed her lips. “And what do we tell them? That when we broke into the house we discovered someone living there?”

“My dad would kick my butt for even looking in a window.” Julie shook her head. “If he ever found out what I did …”

She let the thought trail off, but all three knew that the Good Reverend Cooper was capable of any number of horrible punishments, including splitting the three of them up. For good.

“We could say we heard music,” Andie offered, rolling her Coke can between her palms, staring at the grass. “We could say we thought we saw someone go into the—”

“Andie!” Julie grabbed her arm. “Look, it’s your dad.”

He was turning into the driveway. The way he had countless times before. He was coming home. “I knew it,” she whispered, turning to her friends. “I knew he couldn’t do it. He’s coming back, you guys.”

Raven and Julie exchanged glances. Raven cleared her throat. “Andie, don’t get your hopes up.”

“Why else would he be here? In the middle of the day?”

He opened the car door, and she jumped to her feet and ran toward him. “Hey, Dad!”

He turned and looked at her, his face white with rage. Andie stopped in her tracks, her pleasure evaporating. “Dad? What’s wrong?”

“Where’s your mother?” He slammed the car door. “Is she inside?”

“I think so. I—”

“You stay here, Andie. This is between me and your mother.”

Andie watched him head for the house, then scurried after him, despite his order that she not. He reached the front door and opened it without knocking. “Marge,” he called, stepping inside. Then louder, “Marge!”

She appeared at the kitchen doorway, her expression lifting at the sight of him. “Dan? What a surpri—”

“Save it,” he snapped. “What the hell are you trying to pull?”

Her face fell. “Pull? I don’t know what you—”

“Don’t hand me that bullshit. You know exactly what I’m talking about.”

Andie made a small sound of surprise, stopping only steps behind him. She could count on one hand the times she had heard her father swear. She looked at her mother, confused. If he had come to ask their forgiveness, why was he swearing? If he wanted to come home, why was he so mad?

He fisted his fingers and took a step toward his wife. “Leeza could have been killed, Marge. Killed. Doesn’t that mean anything to you? What kind of person are you?”

This was about Leeza, Andie realized, crushed. He had come here about her. Not because he loved and missed his family. Not because he wanted to come home. She inched backward, wishing she had done as her father had asked and stayed outside.

“A snake in her car?” he continued. “Couldn’t you have come up with something a little less obvious? Something that didn’t point directly at you?”

“A snake?” Her mother brought a hand to her throat. Andie saw that it trembled. “You’re not suggesting that I … that I had anything to do with that?”

“Are you saying you didn’t?” His voice dripped sarcasm. “Are you saying you didn’t slip a garter snake into her car, knowing what might happen while she was in traffic? Hoping the worst might happen?”

“Dad!” Andie burst out, shocked. “Mom wouldn’t do that! How could you even say that?”

He swung toward her, paling slightly. “I thought I told you to wait outside.”

Andie tipped up her chin, furious at him, a smart reply springing to her lips. Before she could utter it, her mother jumped in. “This is Andie’s home. Unlike you, she has a right to be here.”

He looked from one to the other, as if just realizing how his accusation made him look to his daughter. “She could have been killed,” he said again, voice shaking. “She’s in the hospital, for God’s sake. She’s—”

“Seems to me,” Raven said from behind them, “those are the chances you take when you decide to screw somebody else’s husband.”

Andie gasped and swung around. Raven stood in the doorway, eyes narrowed, mouth set. Julie stood a few paces behind her, her face bright with embarrassed color.

Dan Bennett turned, too, trembling with rage. “How dare you, young lady. You have no business here. You are not a member of this family.”

“Family?” Marge repeated, stepping forward. “You’re the one who’s no longer a member of this family. I’d like you to leave.” She crossed to the door and swung it open. “And don’t you ever enter this house without an invitation again.”

He opened his mouth as if to say something further, then closed it, turned on his heel and stalked past Raven and Julie. Moments later, he backed out of the driveway, tires squealing as he did.

For a full minute no one said anything, then, as if realizing everything that had occurred, Marge cleared her throat. “I’m sorry you girls had to see that.” She shifted her gaze to Raven, then hesitated, as if unsure what to say to her.

Raven beat her to it. “I’m sorry I said that, Mrs. B. It just makes me so mad, what he did to you.”

The woman’s expression softened. “Thank you for caring, Raven. But I can … and should, fight my own battles. All right?”

Raven nodded, and Julie reached out and touched Marge’s hand. “We think you’re the greatest, Mrs. B.”

“That’s right,” Raven added. “He’s the one who should be apologizing. We love you.”

Her friends’ words seemed to calm her mother. Once again Julie and Raven had come through for her and her family. And once again she wondered what she would do if she ever lost them.

“Thank you, girls,” Marge murmured, smiling, though not, Andie saw, without effort. “You’re all very sweet. And I … I—” She turned to Andie. “Go on now. I know there are things you girls are wanting to do, and hanging out with an old lady isn’t one of them.”

Andie’s chest tightened. “You’re not old, Mom.”

“Older than you three,” she said firmly. “You go. I have work to do around here, and you’re keeping me from it.” She gave Andie’s shoulders a quick squeeze. “I’m fine,” she whispered. “Really. Go on now. We’ll talk later.”

Andie nodded, turned and led her friends outside. They took their places under the maple tree, not speaking for long moments.

After a time, Julie leaned over and caught Andie’s hand. “I’m sorry, Andie.”

“Yeah,” Raven murmured. “Me, too.”

“Thanks.” She blinked against tears. “You guys are the best.”

Raven leaned back against the grass and smiled up at the blue sky. “At least the little slut learned a lesson.”

Andie turned and looked at Raven. “What?”

“The little slut. Leeza. She had it coming.”

She had it coming. Andie caught her breath, remembering. The three of them sitting on her bed and talking about ways they could get even with Leeza. Discussing the things they could do to her to make her pay. Discussing the kind of car Leeza drove and where she parked it.