Page 36 of Paper Ghosts

“I know why I’m here, but I’m finally beginning to understand why you are.” Her hair still twirled around his finger, he moved his mouth until it was inches from hers. She could smell the sharp, sweet scent of alcohol on his breath. Her heart started beating faster. “I’m happy to oblige, Bailey girl.” Then he kissed her, hard. He was angling for control, and she let him have it for a moment, then pulled away.

She put her hand to her mouth and checked her fingers to see if she’d cut her lip against her teeth. “Does that work with the other girls you’ve been with?”

“I don’t work for anything.” He grinned. “All this comes naturally.”

“You’re treating this as a sure thing.” Now she felt irritated. She didn’t want to admit it, but she liked him better when she didn’t know him, when he was a creation. An Andy Smooth. A hero in a book she’d read. She wanted that moment in the cafeteria back, the electric moment that illuminated hidden depths for a fraction of a second, like a light in a cave.

“Bailey girl, it was a sure thing the moment I finally got you alone,” he said, amused. He put both his hands on her shoulders and shoved her with such force that she hit the ground and lost her breath. She stared up at him, not fully understanding what happening. Then he was on her, his hand thrusting up her skirt to pull at her underwear. It hurt, the fabric digging into her until it finally ripped, burning her skin.

“What are you doing? Get off of me!” He was ruining everything. She pushed at him, feeling twigs twist in her hair. It was going to take forever to get them out before she could reappear at the bonfire.

It didn’t cross her mind that he wouldn’t do as she said. But instead of stopping, and without saying a word, Clutch hit her hard across her cheekbone. She was so surprised by it that she froze. No one had ever hit her before. He then put his forearm against her neck and shifted his weight to lean on her heavily as he unbuttoned his jeans with his other hand.

She began to choke and her eyes filled with tears. Above her in the night sky, ash-bats hovered. Her vision was going dark. Was she going to die here? She was. She was going to die from trying to be in love.

She turned her face away. She didn’t want him to be the last thing she saw.

And there, standing by the creek, was a man.

He was wearing a work shirt and waders. And he was carrying a hoe, like he was out here cleaning drains. He looked so sad to see what was happening. Why wasn’t he doing anything? She gasped and reached out her hand to him.

Clutch stopped at her movement and jerked his head around to see who was there. It relieved some of the pressure on her neck and she was able to suck in a whisper of air. She immediately took advantage of his distraction and sat up, her forehead hitting his head with a painful clap. Clutch cursed and sat back, holding his head. She immediately pushed him away, grabbed her purse and phone, and ran faster than she’d ever run in her life while Andy Smooth was still singing.

When she burst out of the woods, she careened into Tasha Keller, who fell backward. But Bailey didn’t stop. She skirted around the crowd, trying not be seen. She reached the makeshift parking lot and wrenched her car door open and got in.

To her surprise, Tasha slid into the passenger seat beside her.

CHAPTER SIXTEEN

Tasha had no idea why Bailey wanted to come to her party. She wondered if making it the biggest of the graduation season was some sort of low-stakes apology.

If that was the case, she wasn’t doing Tasha any favors.

As it was, Tasha had her hands full playing interference with her mother, keeping her from approaching Bailey and gushing about the Westers and how Tasha and Bailey were such good friends. Now that school was over, the Feathers couldn’t make Tasha’s life miserable anymore, so Tasha wouldn’t have cared if they’d snickered and thought Tasha had made up a story about their friendship. It would be her mother who got hurt. And she was so happy that night, with so many people here enjoying her property. Even the parents of many of the seniors had decided to come to give Pam a hand, after finding out how big the party was going to be. Time may move slower in Hen Town, but word traveled fast. Tasha was grateful they were there. Her mother had no idea how to make or contain a bonfire, but fortunately a couple of parents were volunteer firemen, and they took charge. They erected a tall, perfect teepee shape, and the blaze lit up the entire field like daylight.

Tasha was so attuned to Bailey’s movements that she was aware the moment Bailey stood and said something to the Feathers. Most of the seniors, including Bailey and the Feathers, were gathered in the first orbit around the fire, closest to the flames. The adults were keeping an eye on things in the second orbit, at the refreshment table. And in the last orbit, right at the tree line where the fire was throwing long, eerie shadows over the hemlocks, lurked the people who had come but who didn’t want to be there, forced by peer pressure, parental nudging, or boredom. She watched Bailey walk alone toward the woods, ostensibly to use the bathroom. Tasha immediately looked for her mother, to make sure she wasn’t following.

When she turned back, Bailey had disappeared.

She waited, focused on the woods. She grew more and more suspicious the longer Bailey took. What was she doing in there? A half an hour later, she finally walked to where she’d seen Bailey.

That’s precisely when she came running out of the woods, her chin over her shoulder as she looked behind her. She collided with Tasha, knocking her to the ground, then kept running.

Tasha looked down at her dress, which was now covered in mud. It hadn’t rained for days, which meant she was sitting in someone’s spilled drink, or worse. Not everyone wanted to go into the dark woods to use the bathroom. That was the moment she finally had enough.

She got up and ran after Bailey, reaching her in the dirt parking lot and getting into her car with her.

“Get out,” Bailey said from behind the wheel. She wouldn’t even look at her.

“You just ran into me and didn’t even say you were sorry. Look at my dress!”

Bailey stared straight ahead, her hands clutching the wheel.

“Why did you start ignoring me? Why are you friends with those girls instead? Why do you let them treat me the way they do? I’ve done nothing to you. To any of you.” She was horrified when her voice cracked.

Bailey still didn’t say a word.

“You know what? It doesn’t matter anymore. You’re all vile human beings. And someday someone is going to do to you what you’ve done to me, and I’m going to laugh in your faces.”