The Cheater (9 page)

“I had a terrible time at my meeting today,” Mrs. Phillips said. “Rita Weston may have a degree in design, but she has the
worst
taste when it comes to floral arrangements….”

Carter tuned out. She hated to hear her mother drone on about her committee meetings.

She was lost in her own thoughts when she glanced up to reach for the butter and found both of her parents staring at her.

“Carter, didn't you hear your father?” said Mrs. Phillips. “He asked you a question.”

“Oh. Sorry, Daddy. What is it?”

She turned to her father, so he could see that he now had her full attention. His face was red.

“Your earrings, Carter,” he said. “Where are your earrings?”

C
arter set down her butter knife. What was she going to tell him? Not the truth, that was sure. She had to put him off somehow.

“Oh, Daddy,” she began, “I had such a scare today. I wore my earrings to school, like I always do. But after gym class, when I was changing in the locker room, I noticed that one of them was missing!”

Her father paled slightly and put down his fork. He lifted his napkin and wiped his lips. Mrs. Phillips didn't bat an eyelash.

“Did you find it?” asked the judge.

Carter could hardly bear the hurt on his face.

“Don't worry, Daddy,” she reassured him. “I did find it. I spent ages looking for it, but it turned out to be stuck in the sleeve of my sweatshirt. It must have come off while I was changing.”

Judge Phillips was obviously relieved and started eating again.

“But when I examined it, I saw that the back was loose. That's why it fell off so easily. So on my way home from school I took the earrings to a jeweler to get them fixed.”

“You should have told me first, Carter. I would have taken them back to the place where I bought them. Which jeweler did you go to?”

Which jeweler? Carter racked her brain for the name of a jewelry store. She remembered the shop in the mall, the one with the necklaces she and Dan had checked out.

“I took them to that place in the mall—what's it called?—Sparkles, that's it.”

Judge Phillips made a face. “I wish you hadn't done that, Carter. What kind of jeweler calls itself Sparkles? Will they do a good job there?”

“Oh, Daddy, I'm sure it will be fine. Stop worrying.” Carter wished she felt as carefree about the whole thing as she sounded.

“When will they be ready?” asked the judge. “I'll pick them up for you. I don't want you to have to pay for this. After all, those earrings were a gift.”

“No, you don't have to do that, Daddy. You and Mother are so busy these days. Besides, I'm at the mall all the time. I'll pick them up. I don't mind.”

Nervously she watched her father, silently begging him to accept her excuses and lies.

The more he asked her, the more she had to lie. And with each lie she dug herself a deeper hole. She wanted him to believe what she said, but every time he fell for another lie she felt more and more guilty.

She could tell by the way he was eating, concentrating more on his food and less on her, that he was tired of talking about the earrings.

“All right, Carter,” he said. He was focusing on his plate, picking out a fish bone. “I'll give you the money for the repair. Let me know what it comes to.”

“Thanks, Daddy. I will.”

She felt even more guilty now. He was going to give her more money. But she wouldn't turn it down. She knew she might need it—soon.

The next morning, on her way back from gym class, Carter passed a knot of kids in front of the cafeteria. Carter recognized most of them—they were in her grade—but she didn't know them well. They were the girls in secretarial programs, the guys in vocational, or kids who were just in the regular school track, not in honors classes like Carter.

All except for one. Adam was standing in the center of the group. He had his arm around a skinny, pale, freckled girl with light red hair. Sheila.

It was the first time Carter had seen them together since she'd gone out with Adam. The sight of them together was a bit of a shock. She wasn't sure why.

She'd always known that Sheila was Adam's girlfriend—Sheila wouldn't let her forget it. But somehow, she'd thought of the Adam she knew as a
different person from Sheila's boyfriend. The Adam she knew wasn't going out with Sheila—he was going out with Carter.

He was a brilliant boy from the wrong side of the tracks, who wanted more out of life than his friends did. A boy who lived on the edge, who had a fierce sort of charm. Someone who could teach Carter things she had never learned in her plush, protected world.

Suddenly Carter saw that the Adam she thought she knew existed only in her mind. She'd made him up. He wasn't real.

This
was the real Adam—the guy standing beside the cafeteria door with his shirt unbuttoned and his skinny girlfriend clinging to his chest. The guy surrounded by girls in tight jeans and purple nail polish and guys who cared more about what was under the hood of a car than what was in a girl's mind. The real Adam had tried to scare her with a bloody heart, to threaten her, and blackmail her, using her for everything he could get.

Now she hurried past this gang of kids, hoping Adam wouldn't notice her. She glanced back and saw him laughing and gazing in another direction, apparently unaware of her.

But then she noticed Sheila, standing cradled in the crook of his arm.

Sheila was staring at her with smug hatred, her small green cat's eyes gleaming.

“You lose, rich girl,” her glare seemed to say.

Carter hurried down the hall.

After school that day Carter tucked the envelope full of hundred-dollar bills into her backpack and walked to The Corner. She knew that Adam was working that afternoon.

Carter took a seat at the counter, and Adam immediately came over to her. “I hope you've got something for me,” he said.

She didn't answer him. She produced the envelope and slipped it over the counter to him.

He took it, but didn't open it.

“It's one thousand dollars, cash,” Carter said. “Exactly what you asked for.”

He put the envelope in his pocket. “I'll count it later,” he said. “But it had better all be there.”

“It is,” Carter said firmly. “Now, I expect you to get out of my life, leave me alone, never speak to me again.”

She stared at him, trying to intimidate him. He stared back, unwavering.

A man at the end of the counter shouted, “Hey! Can I get a menu, please?”

“Adam!” Carter said. “Did you hear what I said?”

“I've got a customer to take care of,” Adam said. He walked away.

Carter grabbed her backpack and hurried out.

I've just given him a thousand dollars, she
thought. He's got to be satisfied with that. He's just
got
to be!

Carter didn't see Adam after she gave him the money, except during math class. And then he ignored her, pretended he didn't know her, just as before—before the test, the dates, before the terrible last couple of weeks.

At the end of school on Friday Carter breathed a sigh of relief.

It worked, she thought. Adam hasn't bothered me for three whole days. At last, he's out of my life. It took a thousand dollars, but I'm rid of him.

“Gary asked me what we did last Saturday night,” Jill said. “I changed the subject, but what if he asks me again? Should I tell him the truth?”

Jill and Carter were standing outside the library, ready to go home for the weekend. Jill had a date with Gary that night.

“Don't tell him,” Carter advised. “You don't know him well enough yet. You don't know how he'd react if you told him you went out with a guy like Ray.”

“I hate to lie to him, though—” said Jill.

“You don't have to lie,” Carter said. “Just be vague. Just say you and I went to some club in the Old Village to hear a band. He doesn't have to know more than that.”

Dan came by. Carter flashed Jill a look that said,
“Shush—no more talk about this,” and smiled at him.

“Hi, girls,” Dan said.

Jill said, “I've got to go. I'll see you later, Carter.”

“'Bye, Jill.”

Carter and Dan started out of the school building toward the student parking lot.

“Doing anything tonight?” Dan asked her.

“Nothing,” Carter said happily. “I—'m free as a bird.”

“Why don't you come over to my house? We can rent a movie.”

“That sounds great.” What a relief, she thought. No more lies. No more excuses.

She had her boyfriend back; she had her life back. She was so happy, she could hardly believe it.

After dinner she dressed to go to Dan's house. Nothing special. Still, Carter loved to put on a neat, clean, knee-length skirt and a yellow sweater. She topped it off with a blue ribbon in her hair.

I can wear anything I want! she thought happily. I don't have to try to look tough. I can be myself again!

She drove across North Hills to Dan's house, about a mile away. He opened the door for her and she kissed him hello. He looked beautiful to her in his chinos and blue polo shirt. She felt safe with him, she thought.

She walked into the living room to say hello to
Dan's parents. Mr. and Mrs. Mason had always liked Carter. Then she and Dan went downstairs to watch TV.

“I rented
Batman Returns and Wayne's World,”
Dan told her. “Which one do you want to watch?”

“Batman,
definitely,” said Carter. She'd already seen it, but didn't care. “I'm not in a comedy mood.”

“Really?” said Dan. He had narrowed his eyes, studying her face. “Is there a reason?”

What was the matter with him? “What do you mean?” she asked. “A reason for what?”

“A reason you're not in a comedy mood.”

“No,” she said. “I just feel like watching
Batman.
Is there something weird about that?”

“No, no,” Dan said hurriedly. He stooped to put the tape into the machine. “Of course not.”

He sat beside her on the couch now, one arm around her, one hand holding the remote control. She snuggled against him and tried to relax.

What was
that
all about? flashed through her mind, but then the movie started and she forgot about it.

Still, every once in a while she thought she caught Dan glancing at her while they watched the movie, as if he were checking her reactions. The entire evening he seemed to be studying her closely.

Maybe he just feels insecure, she thought, when
the movie was over and they were sharing a dish of chocolate ice cream. After all, I turned him down for two dates in a row. He probably wants to be sure everything is okay between us.

She glanced up from the dish then, and smiled at him. As far as she was concerned, everything was great between them. After her experience with Adam, she never wanted to stray from Dan again.

To prove it to him, she put down the dish of ice cream and gave him a big, chocolatey kiss. Dan let his spoon fall to the floor.

They snuggled on the couch until midnight. Carter heard the Masons' grandfather clock strike the hour upstairs in the front hall.

“I'd better get going,” she said, pulling her face just far enough away from his to speak. “You know Daddy.”

Dan said, “I do.” He gave her one last kiss, then stood and helped her off the couch. A short while later he walked her out to her car.

“Be careful driving home,” he said.

They kissed once more. Then he closed the car door and stood in the driveway, watching her drive off.

Carter turned on the radio and hummed along to the soft music as she wound her way through the quiet streets of North Hills. She'd driven from her house to Dan's and back so many times she could practically do it in her sleep. Now, as she glided
down the dark, curvy streets, she felt as if she were on automatic pilot.

Suddenly a harsh light was blinding her. She glanced into the rearview mirror and saw there was a car close behind her, its headlights on high.

I hate that, she thought irritably. She slowed and waited for the car to pass.

It didn't.

She sped up a little. The other car went faster too. It was tailing her.

She rolled down her window and gestured to the other car to pass her. The driver ignored her. The car stayed right on her tail.

She went faster; the other car sped up even more.

What's he doing? she thought. He's going to hit me!

The faster she drove, the faster the other car went. Her heart raced.

Who was it? What did they want?

She crossed a bridge and climbed a steep section of road that overlooked the river. Her speedometer read eighty. The other car was right behind her, pushing.

She couldn't go any faster. She was beginning to lose control of her car!