Feathermore (7 page)

One day, a change of events led to an opening, a chance for me to act. The girl was given a conveyance to use, and left for school on her own for the very first time. The greatest chance to succeed in confronting her was for her to return alone later. The decision was made. The only people around were her mother and father: the perfect bait.

During midday of the girl’s birthday, with an unrestrained power and an intent that I alone could have given it, the panther broke through the unlocked French doors into the living room, where it scattered Halloween decorations about. I remained hidden in the trees while the animal did as it was commanded to.

I entered and walked across the room, neither giving a second glance to the carnage below nor caring. I knelt and stroked the sleeping cat. And there I stayed until she came home.

7 SHATTERED

My dad’s deep voice reached into my dreams. “Good morning, princess!” he said, stroking the hair out of my face and kissing my forehead.

“
Thanks, Dad.” My morning voice sounded thin and a little gravelly, but remembering it was my birthday made me jump up in bed. As I staggered onto my feet I gave him a tight hug, letting myself get lost in his scent of Axe deodorant and aftershave. I looked up at him. “How come you’re not at work?”

“
It’s my little girl’s birthday—how could I miss that? Come on, kiddo, get dressed and come downstairs—breakfast is ready,” he said as he walked out of my room.

“
I love you, Dad!” I called after him.

Mom had bought me some new outfits a couple of days ago, but I couldn’t touch anything until today. I slipped into the new Ramones white shirt with the black long sleeves, the new jeans, and black boots. Then I gave the front of my hair some loose curls, adding some volume so it wouldn’t just hang lank, and went downstairs.

Mom was at the stove, flipping pancakes. The smell of bacon made my stomach growl like a hungry house cat. For as long as I could remember, this had been my “birthday breakfast of champions.” I wrapped my arm around Mom’s shoulders and gave her a kiss, then headed for my stool at the island, next to Dad.

“
Happy birthday, honey,” she said, greeting me out of the corner of her eye. “I see you couldn’t keep your hands off your new clothes.”

“
Hah!” I said. “It was torture not getting to wear them before now!”

Minutes after she brought us our breakfast, I had inhaled mine. Taking the plate to the sink, I looked over at the clock that hung above the refrigerator. “Claire was supposed to pick me up . . .”

“
Oh, she called earlier,” Mom said. “Something came up and she can’t make it. But anyway, your dad and I’ve been talking, and . . .” She had that crooked grin that made her look like a kid herself. “You can have Dad’s pickup truck.”

I gaped at them both in disbelief. “You’re really giving me the truck?” I squealed. “It’s
mine
?”

Dad held up his hands and said, “It’s old, and we figured, how much damage could you do?” He paused, grinning. “Maybe I’d better reword that—forgot who I was talking to.” He was attached to that old beater. He had taken Mom on their first date in it, way back when you could tell what color it was. But he needn’t worry—I would treat it like a family heirloom.

I rushed outside and rolled down the windows. I shouldn’t be this excited about a three-block drive, but it
was
pretty cool. With the windows down, I let the rock-and-roll station blast, driving slowly because I didn’t want to get there too quickly.
Hallelujah
—I wasn’t Miss Daisy anymore!

Avan was waiting next to his car, motioning for me to take the empty space he seemed to have been saving for me. Once I shut off the engine, he walked around and waited for me to get out. His smoldering blue eyes were making me weak as his fingertips on the small of my back pulled me closer to him. The moment our bodies touched, I felt that inexplicable current of energy. He moved his free hand onto my cheek and kissed me. It was the subtlest kiss I ever experienced, but with a triple charge of passion. “Happy birthday, babe,” he said, low enough that only I could hear him.

“
Thanks,” I said, a little out of breath. Avan put his arm around my shoulders as we walked toward the school doors. This was already a promising day!

* * *

As I approached my locker I heard Claire and Nate shout in unison, “Happy birthday!” Scattered students turned toward the commotion, and I hurried forward. They had really gone all out. Balloons in all sizes and colors floated in front of my battered locker door, making it nearly impossible to get my combination right.

“
Thanks, you guys,” I said. I pulled them in for a tight hug. I loved my best friends. “You didn’t need to make such a big fuss about it, though.” I indicated all the eyes still looking at us. I tried opening the locker again, and this time the steel door creaked open.

“
Oh, yeah, I forgot—Jade doesn’t want anyone noticing she exists!” Claire joked, leaning against her locker. “Watch out—someone may want to talk to you.” She opened her book bag and pulled out a black bag and handed it to me. “Happy birthday, dork.”

“
You really didn’t need—Oh, my God, MAC makeup?” I shrieked as I looked inside. “You are awesome. I cannot believe it!”

And I really couldn’t. The bag was seriously packed with eye shadows and eyeliners in every color—powders and mascara enough for the whole cheerleading squad, and brushes for every technique available.

“
This is too much, Claire.” I lowered my voice.

“
It’s nothing,” she said, waving me off. “This way you can do your whole corpse bride makeup for tonight.”

Tonight. My birthday party. My birthday had been declared October 31, the day Mom found me wandering in the woods behind the house. I must have been about five years old and had no recollection why I was there or where I had come from. It was as if all memories had been wiped from my head. The only thing certain was my name: Jade.

After I had spent most of the night at the Hollow Falls Police Department, they had at last endured enough of Mom’s pleading and let her take me home so I could rest. Days passed, then weeks, but nobody ever came to claim me. No local, county, or statewide search turned up any clue to where I may have come from. Eventually, months went by, with dozens of visits from the Children and Family Services Department, and still no one claimed me. I say it as if I were some kind of lost package, and in a way, I was.

So in commemoration, every year I got to throw a birthday Halloween bash, which meant loads of makeup, crazy costumes, and even crazier decorations. If there was one thing Mom could do, it was to throw a wicked party.

I had spent the past few days looking for the needed decorations. Each new item gave Mom a new idea of what we would do in the house. There were a few tombstones for the front lawn, and some creepy-looking low picket fences to be set up as if marking a cemetery. We got orange pumpkin lights and a fog machine to make the house look eerie. A few fake body parts would be spread throughout the house, mainly around the table and next to the food. A big Grim Reaper, complete with threadbare robe and rusted scythe, would be set up in a corner of the living room. I couldn’t wait to see it all decked out.

“
Did you get your costumes already?” I asked Nate and Claire as I shoved my amazing present into the narrow locker.

“
Yeah, we got them last night. I had to make a few arrangements, but they’re ready for tonight. Ah!” she squealed. “I’m so excited!”

Avan and I had decided to be the characters of one of our favorite movies,
The Nightmare before Christmas
. He was Jack; I was Sally.

The rest of the day went by without mishaps. In fact, a lot more people I had anticipated approached me to tell me how excited they were about the party. Everyone knew my Mom’s amazing party skills.

I didn’t want to go home right away after school, and so I drove around for a while. The windows down and the cool air making my hair flutter all over my head. It was when I came to the corner of Mills Boulevard and Richmond Road that I saw him, the boy from my dreams. He entered a dark alley behind the McDonald’s. It couldn’t be, he wasn’t real just a figment of my imagination.

I drove by slowly, looking deep into the alley, but he wasn’t there. Only the large garbage bins against the buildings. Why did this keep happening? I sighed and decided to forget all about it. I would go home and start getting ready for tonight. My nerves lessened only a little bit as excitement overcame me.

* * *

I grabbed the makeup bag from the front seat and fumbled in my purse for my keys. With them in hand, I walked up the four steps to the wraparound porch and unlocked the door. Mom must be running behind, because there were no decorations outside. Still looking down at my purse, I closed the door behind me. Then I looked up and gasped.

Mom had really done a fantastic job decorating inside. All the pumpkin lights were strung up around the threshold, and the Grim Reaper’s robe was billowing in the breeze from a small fan underneath. That must have been Dad’s idea—he was always clever that way. The snack table was set up with all the fake body parts and food made to look like guts and slimy things. I was a bit surprised that it was so quiet, though—they were probably waiting somewhere to jump out and scare me. They always got into a festive mood for my Halloween birthday party.

Then, amid the orange crepe paper decorations in the far corners of the living room, I noticed something strange. By the fireplace, standing stock-still, was a red-haired woman with a black panther beside her. My stomach made a back flip at the sight of the animal. It did look
just
like the one I had seen below my window.

I shook off the feeling that took over me.
Mom must have hired entertainment,
I thought. A smile started to form on my lips. How cool! I took a few steps forward, my eyes on the panther. It wasn’t on a leash, which I thought strange—even maybe a little dangerous.

The woman looked at me without saying a word, as if studying my every move. I looked around to see horrible red stains all over the walls and furniture. Just as quickly as I had noticed the stains, my heart sank to the bottom of the deepest sea.

I finally realized why it was so quiet.

Dad was lying on the couch, his clothes soaked in blood. His neck was torn apart. Was this a costume? It looked too real. My breathing started to fail me, and my head started to spin. Then I noticed Mom, crumpled face down on the floor, also bloodied. She was not in a natural position.

I couldn’t speak. My knees went numb, and the tears blinded me.

It couldn’t be . . . My parents were dead.

How?
Why?

I felt my heart and mind shatter. I looked through my tears at the woman and let out a little moan. She looked at me with the most unnatural I smile I had ever seen. I took a step forward, ready to rip her to shreds.

Her finger tapped the panther, and in response it bared its teeth and moved toward me. It had been crouched about twenty feet away, but it was across the room in an instant, close enough for me to reach out and touch, its long, yellowed canine teeth bared.

Was I going to die, too?

The question came to me clear as day. All my numbness and horror vanished, replaced in that instant by a desire to escape, to survive. I bolted toward the kitchen and slammed through the back screen door. I heard it break off its hinges. I could hear the panther’s claws scrape wood as it followed me across the back deck. I jumped clear of the steps and fell on my landing. Frantic, I rolled up to my feet and sprinted to the edge of the woods.

And there I stopped. Everything I had just witnessed filled my mind to the brim. There was no way to withstand it, and I began screaming. The scream turned into a wail like the siren on a fire engine. The panther came to an abrupt halt in front of me, and just as suddenly, I saw the woman appear beside it. The wailing sound I was making grew louder and louder. I didn’t even draw in a breath—just somehow continued to bellow in unfettered rage and anguish. My ears were hurting, and I felt as if my whole body were on fire. But my back felt as if it was being pricked by thorns.

At that point, everything began to feel like a dream. Perhaps I imagined it, but from the forest, a flock of ravens appeared in a great cloud—thousands of birds. They swooped down around me and attacked the panther. Bird after bird hit with such force that each impact made a loud thud. A few birds fell dead, their necks broken from the force of their attack. The panther leaped and swatted a few times before fleeing, defeated by the birds’ vicious assault.

The woman looked at me. Her face was horrifying. There was something in her deep obsidian eyes that made me feel as if she was here for nothing else but to kill me.

“
Ki-sikil-lil-la-ke
,
”
came the voice in my head.

The woman was pale with rage.

“
Ki-sikil-lil-la-ke
,
” it called again with greater urgency.

Looking at the woman, I was frozen. Somehow, I
knew
that she wanted me dead, and I
knew
I needed to run. But I couldn’t.