Dead Girl Dancing (16 page)

I called Alyce back, but she didn’t pick up. On purpose, I was sure, which hurt even more. How had this all happened? What sin had I committed to deserve so much anger? I thought back over the last week: that awful moment when I’d woken up in the first wrong body, terrified and unable to contact anyone. But I hadn’t been the only one who’d suffered. I’d been so wrapped up in my own misery that I hadn’t thought much about what my friends were going through. During that awful week, Alyce thought I was dying and visited my body in the hospital every day. She’d been a loyal friend, while what had I done for her? Let her think I was dead.

No wonder she was so angry.

I sucked at being a BFF.

And the only thing I could think of to make this up to her was to come home today.

I really, really hated quitting on Sharayah—but Alyce was my best friend ever and came first. She needed me.

Decision made.

Walking back into the bedroom, I plopped my suitcase on the bed. I found a tie-dyed T-shirt and slipped it over jeans. Then I packed yesterday’s dirty clothes in a side pouch and got ready to leave.

Mentally, I went through a checklist of my options.

There was no point in trying to contact Sadie and Mauve. I’d just leave them a note explaining I had to go home for a family emergency. I wouldn’t be lying. Alyce was closer than family to me.

I’d use Sharayah’s money and take a taxi to the airport, then catch the first plane home. If everything worked out, I’d be with Alyce by this afternoon. Then we’d talk and I’d find out what was really bothering her. While I knew she was upset about my being temporarily dead, I doubted that was the core problem. No, it was something deeper … and I’d help her get through whatever it was.

The cat mewed, jumping off the bed to rub against my legs.

“Bye, Kitty Calico,” I said softly.

Then I grabbed my suitcase and rolled it out of the room.

In the kitchen, I found a pen on a counter but no paper for a “good-bye” note, so I ripped off a square of paper towel. I wrote a short good-bye to Sadie and Mauve, apologizing for cutting my vacation short and promising to explain later. (Not the truth, of course, but something close enough to satisfy them.)

When I reached the living room, I sorted through a thick pile of phone books (a few so old they were dated back to the last millennium) and thumbed through the yellow pages for “taxi.” The dispatcher said a taxi would arrive in thirty minutes. I picked up my suitcase and, with a heavy sigh, reached for the door and opened it …

And was startled by someone walking up the porch steps.

Eli had arrived.

“You!” I shrieked, dropping my suitcase with a thud on the hardwood floor.

“Amber? Is it you?” He tilted his head uncertainly.

“Yes! It’s me … and it’s you … here! I can’t believe it! I’ve never been happier to see anyone!”

Rushing at him, I opened my arms, ready to show exactly how much I missed him—but instead of opening his arms for me, he folded them across his chest, his expression repulsed like I had lice or smelled bad.

“No,” he said firmly. “I can’t touch you.”

“Why not?” I demanded, stung.

“Because I can’t.” He frowned. “Amber, any touching would be wrong. You’re not you anymore.”

“Of course I am. So what if I look different?”

“You’re more than different. You look like my sister. You
are
my sister.”

“Damn. I forgot about that.” I glanced down at myself. “So I guess kissing is out.”

“So far out the idea just left the planet. Sorry, but that’s just how I feel. It’s not that I don’t want to … well, you know.”

“It’s okay. I understand.” I was smiling a little because he seemed so disappointed. It was cute how he was so serious, frowning as if all the problems of the world had been dropped on his shoulders. He really did care about me.

Picking up my suitcase, Eli walked me into the house and shut the door behind us. He stared at me, then slowly smiled. “I think it would be okay if we shook hands,” he said.

“Are you sure that’s allowed?”

He nodded. “Platonically.”

“Of course,” I agreed as I held out my hand.

The casual shake felt far from casual and rocked my emotions. Eli must have felt some of that rocking, too, because as if in silent agreement we immediately dropped hands and stepped back. I glanced everywhere except at him, noticing a loose spring on the couch, a broken TV that had been turned into a planter with green vines dangling among loose wires, and a light switch on the wall that had been transformed into modern art by an abstract painter.

When I found the courage to lift my eyes, Eli was staring at my suitcase with a puzzled expression. “Are you going somewhere?”

I nodded. “I was going to the airport to fly home.”

“Why? Aren’t you supposed to stay here for spring break?”

“Change of plans: my mission is over.”

“That’s great! My family will be so relieved when Sharayah returns and everything is back to normal.”

“I hope so,” I said, guiltily because nothing had been solved and I had no idea how Sharayah would act when she resumed her life. But Eli seemed so happy, I didn’t want to worry him.

“I’m glad this is ending for other reasons, too,” Eli added, biting his lower lip as he met my gaze. “I look at you and see my sister—which is really messed up. Once you’re not her anymore, we can do more than shake hands. Oh, I didn’t mean that the way it sounded. Geez, I’m not that kind of guy.”

“I know exactly what kind of guy you are—my kind.” I lightly touched his arm. “And when this is all over I’d love to go out with you.”

“It’s a date,” he said, nodding.

I nodded, too, feeling tingly all over. I really, really wanted to kiss him.

But I could wait.

“I don’t understand why you’re going to the airport.” Eli rubbed his chin, giving me a puzzled look.

“What do you mean?”

“Won’t the body change happen wherever you are? So why not leave Sharayah here to enjoy her vacation?”

“I have to get home ASAP so I can talk to Alyce. She needs me today. And since I don’t know exactly when the change will happen, I’m flying home immediately. A taxi will be here soon.”

“Cancel it,” Eli said firmly.

“I can’t.” My throat tightened as I remembered Alyce’s accusations. “I have to fix things with Alyce.”

“Still, you don’t need a taxi to get to the airport. I can drive you.”

“You’d do that for me?”

“I drove all the way here, didn’t I?”

“Yes.” I met his gaze. “You did.”

He met my gaze with such honesty that I trusted him completely.

After I cancelled the taxi, we cleared a space on the couch and sat down to talk. The house was quiet, without even the scamper of kitty feet.

“Interesting place you’re staying in.” Eli’s lips curled with amusement as he gestured at the mismatched furniture, boxes and other oddities scattered around the room. “Not exactly a five-star hotel.”

“More like a no-star hovel. But it came with a cat, so I can’t complain.”

“I didn’t know you liked cats.”

“We have one at home, part Siamese and all attitude. And I love dogs, too,” I said fondly, thinking of Cola.

“Cats, dogs … I’m a fan of almost all animals,” he said.

“Almost? What animals don’t you like?”

“Well … it’s kind of embarrassing to admit.”

I pantomimed zipping my lips. “I won’t tell. What?”

“Birds—they freak me out. My grandpa had this mean parrot once that bit my ear. I was only four, but that kind of pain you don’t forget. I still have a scar right here,” he added, pointing to his left ear.

I leaned closer to look at the tiny jagged white scar on his ear lobe, aware of the few inches between us and careful not to accidentally caress him with his sister’s hands. It was safe to talk about animals and not about what was really on our minds.

But it was time to get serious.

“Eli, did you bring it?” I asked quietly.

He knew exactly what I meant and reached into his coat pocket. “Here,” he said, handing me a small book.

I took my GEM, frowning a little because now that I finally had it there was no need to use it. My mission was over—whether I wanted it to be or not. Still, it felt good to hold my tiny link to the other side.

“Thanks for bringing it all this way,” I told Eli.

“I said I would—although getting here hasn’t been easy.”

“I wondered why you didn’t call me back.”

“Sorry,” he said sheepishly. “I wanted to but I couldn’t. Remember the girl from the dorm I told you about who was helping me?”

How could I forget? Gritting my teeth I said, “Yeah. Katelyn.”

“Well it turns out we have the same cell phone model—and she took mine by mistake. So I didn’t get your message with your address until she realized the mistake and called me. By then, I had other problems. Dad was mad that I hadn’t returned right home with the car he loaned me, and he ordered me to ‘haul my ass home or else.’”

“Did you go home?”

“You bet—no one defies Dad. I’d already disappointed him by refusing to work at the car lot and I didn’t want to make things worse. Besides, going home gave me a chance to talk to Mom. She’s been so worried about Sharayah.”

For good reason, I thought grimly.

“When I told her I was trying to help Sharayah, she was thrilled,” Eli continued. “I don’t know what she told Dad, but next thing I knew he was handing me the keys to a brand new car and slipping me a credit card for gas. I finally got a call from Katelyn, who explained the phone mix-up, and once I had the address I drove right here.”

“Thanks so much—especially for my GEM.” I rubbed my hand over the smooth cover. “Although it’s not much use to me now.”

“Are you sure?” he asked, frowning. “There could be information in it that would help Sharayah. What will happen to her when you switch back?”

“She’ll resume her own life.”

“But will she be okay?”

I wanted to answer “yes,” but the intuitive connection I shared with Sharayah told me otherwise. Her fragile soul, sleeping in my physical body, was getting a needed rest, but that was only a Band-Aid on a much deeper wound. She needed to get over Gabe’s cruelty and regain her self-confidence.

Unfortunately, I could no longer help her.

Still, Eli was right about there being no rush for me to get to the airport. In fact, why get on a plane at all? I could travel on more mysterious planes. All I had to do was wait for Grammy to return me to my own body. In a blink of a soul switch, I’d travel over 400 miles and I’d wake up in a hospital bed. Once I was myself again, I’d go right to Alyce and stay with her all night if that’s what it took to mend our friendship.

“Aren’t you going to open it up?” Eli asked, gesturing toward the book.

“No,” I said wryly. “My mission is over.”

“Not officially. You’re still my sister.”

“For a few hours, anyway—which isn’t long enough to finish my job. I totally messed up as a Temp Lifer.”

“You did your best in a crazy situation. And after the switch, I’ll stick around here to help my sister. Your insider information will make it easier to convince her to come back home with me.”

“But she can’t go home until after the
Voice Choice
audition tomorrow,” I insisted. “You have to get her there—and arrive early because there will probably be a long line.”

“I will,” Eli promised. “Even if it means kidnapping her.”

“Don’t cause her to scream—that’s terrible for her vocal chords.”

He stared at me uneasily. “You’re kidding … right?”

I fixed him with a dead-serious look, then relaxed into a grin. “Of course I’m kidding. Besides, you shouldn’t have any trouble convincing Sharayah. You’re her brother, she’ll listen to you.”

“Her
younger
brother. Usually she’s the one telling me what to do, not the other way around.”

“Oh. Then I better consult the GEM for advice.” I looked down at the small book. “I’ll find out what we should do about the audition and whether the DD Team caught the Dark Lifer.”

“What Dark Lifer?” Eli nearly jumped off the couch.

“Oh, didn’t I tell you about him?”

“No, you did not,” he said accusingly.

I wasn’t eager to talk about what had happened, but Eli had done so much for me, I owed him the truth. So I told him everything—except about my rescue by Dyce. Somehow that seemed like a bad idea.

“Anyway, it’s all over now,” I finished. “The DD Team will get rid of the dead guy hiding out in Warren.”

“What about the real Warren? What happens to him?”

“I don’t really know. I guess he’ll be okay. He’ll probably wake up with confused memories but blame it on partying too hard.”

“Poor guy,” Eli sympathized. “It reminds me of a corny movie about zombies and body snatching. Yet it’s really happening and Dark Lifers seem to be stalking you.”

“Maybe they still are,” I said with growing trepidation. Holding out the GEM, I flipped it open, not surprised this time to find only blank paper. But I knew what to do.

“GEM, could you tell me about the Dark Lifer in Warren?” I asked. “Has he been captured yet?”

As I stared at the paper, it changed, rippling with movement like stiff fingers stretching, then growing so bright it seemed to glow.

A single word curled across the page in perfect cursive penmanship.

No.

“He hasn’t?” My heart skipped. “Why not?”

Unable to locate the Dark Lifer.

“But I told Cola he was staying in Venice Beach. If Cola could smell his essence on me, why can’t the DDT find him?”