The Nine Lives of Felicia Miller (23 page)

Wally laughed defiantly as he saw her reaction.

But Sparrow was chilled to the bone. There was something in her cold staring eyes that looked familiar.

Hauntingly familiar.

217

“Aw, c’mon. Do a little bump. Just one tiny line. I guarantee you’ll like it.”

“I’m sure I would,” Felicia said, “I’m sure I’d like it too much. That’s why I won’t even try it. So stop pushing me.”

She rolled across the bed and pulled the luxurious quilt over her naked body. It wasn’t because she was chilly. Nelson’s bedroom was quite cozy, clean and homey with its Ikea decor. Snowflakes tapped the windowpanes like fairy fingers. The snow piling up on the sills outside helped to insulate and quiet the room.  She was covering her nakedness because she suddenly felt dirty.

Nelson pinched the tiny baggy closed and put the remaining meth back in his stash box.
Damn.
Knowing she’d never go for meth, he had lied and told her it was cocaine.

He’d never had a chick say ‘no’ to coke before. But his ruse had failed with Felicia.
Now she’s got her fucking guard up. I should have just slipped her some of the Bath Salts I scored last night at Gas-Up. She wouldn’t know what the fuck hit her.

He turned and smiled at her, feeling the ineffable rush of the meth and the horny aggression it provoked. But as he stepped toward her Felicia sat up and started searching for her underpants in the tangled sheets.

“Hey,” Nelson leaned in to kiss her, guessing correctly that she was looking to bail. And the night was still young. They could easily squeeze another fuck in, maybe two, before her curfew.

“I have to go,” she said curtly, shrugging off his affection.

“What? Just because I offered you a little nose candy you’re going to bail? That’s fucked up.”

Felicia didn’t answer. She was furious at herself for having given herself completely to Nelson before she really got to know him. Had she known he was a heavy drug user she wouldn’t have wasted her time. Not that she was close-minded. A little pot smoking she could tolerate. But she’d learned enough at her tender age to believe that all white powder drugs like coke and speed were devil drugs, just like oxycodone and the other addictive meds prescribed by scumbag doctors.

“Come on,” Nelson pleaded. “If it bothers you that much, I won’t do it around you anymore.” He punctuated his promise with a nasal slurp that told Felicia he must put stuff up his nose fairly often. It dawned on her that she’d heard him sniffling before, but had assumed it was winter related.

“Where are my underpants?” she murmured impatiently, digging into the jumble of bedclothes.

“Fuck.” Nelson was obviously angry, but he could go to hell as far as Felicia was concerned. She knew now that he was bad news waiting to happen. She just wanted to get home and sort out the mishmash of emotions she was feeling.

But Nelson wouldn’t give up without a fight. Her rejection challenged him. Made him that much more determined to sleep with her again. Then he could dump her on his own terms.

“Come on, baby. I need you. Don’t go.”

“You don’t need a girlfriend, Nelson. You need rehab.”

“Oh Jesus. You’re making a freakin’ mountain out of a teeny bit of coke.”

His cell phone rang, triggering his ringtone. A rap song called “Put it in Your Mouth.” Nelson snatched it from his dresser and hurriedly answered it before the sexist lyrics sounded. “Hey yo, waddup dog?”

He stole a glance at Felicia who had finally found her panties and was slipping into them, an annoyed look on her face. His wannabe hiphop slang made her question her judgment even more.
God, he’s just a white trash poser. He just looks like something better.

“Yeah, hang on homez.” Covering the phone he said to Felicia. “Yo I’m gonna go down and grab a beer. You’re not really leaving already, are you?”

“Go get your beer,” she said noncommittally. Despite her resolve to leave, something deep inside of her was already wondering if she could reform him. Or if he was worth reforming.

With a frustrated sigh Nelson left the room. Felicia could hear him resume his phone conversation in the hall, but could only tell by his tone that he was lamenting her lack of compliance and even laughing about it.

She pulled her sweater on and zipped her pants and leaned down to find her shoes. One was under Nelson’s jeans on the floor. She had to hunt around for the other, and finally spotted it under the bed. But as she reached for it her hand brushed something cold and rubbery and horribly familiar.

She pulled the Halloween mask out from under the bed and stared at it in disbelief. Her stomach knotted tightly and her head felt dizzy. She wasn’t sure if she’d throw up or pass out first.

The mask stared back at her, an evil taunting grin on its bizarrely lifelike face. An evil grin she recognized from her night at Devils Point.

Bolting to her feet she dropped the mask and kicked it swiftly under the bed. She closed her eyes, but the image of the mask stayed fresh in her mind, moving towards her through a haze of thick white fog.

Nelson returned as she was working her feet into her boots, anxious to flee the love nest turned nightmare. He took a sip of his beer and offered her a second can he’d already opened for her. “Come on, Felicia. Give me another chance. You know you want to stay. We have plenty of time before you have to be home. Just have one beer with me so I know you’re not still pissed.”
Drink up, bitch. Let’s see how fast you can leave when the roofie kicks in. My boys are waiting with the videocamera to come over here and party. We’ll make you an internet star.

But Felicia didn’t even look at him. She couldn’t, for fear she’d explode in anger and tip her hand that she knew. Knew that despite his pretty face and carefully groomed persona and classy German car, he was a two-faced piece of trash.

A liar and a rapist.

One of Wally’s boys.

But now that she knew, she had to be careful not to tip her hand. If she did he might panic and leave town. Or warn Wally and Sparrow that she was onto them. Then they too might disappear. Before she could get her revenge.

It’s on now, motherfucker.

She grabbed her coat and left without saying a word.

“Hey, wait!” Nelson ran after her as she ran down the stairs. “Felicia, wait! Give me a minute to get dressed. I’ll drive you home.”

The front door slammed and he knew it was over.

Fuck. Stupid goddamn bitch. Blowing her effin cork over a line of fucking blow.

He took a long sip of his beer, angry that he’d wasted a perfectly good roofie.

Good riddance.

I don’t need that fucking noise.

Bitch
.

241

Even with her thick wool gloves on, the cold air nipped at Felicia’s fingertips. She pulled her scarf over her head and stuffed her hands into her pockets as she started the long walk home.

The snow was lovely, a clean dry snow swirling slowly down in the golden light of the streetlamps. A two inch deep carpet already covered the ground, cushioning her steps, crunching softly under her feet. But she wasn’t enjoying the magical spectacle. She was too busy reliving the torment of that miserable night at the Point. Trying to match the indignities she’d suffered that night with the mask found under the bed.

Her blood raced hot through her veins. She raked over every moment she’d shared with Nelson since that night. Her anger a boiling kettle. She thought of how he had delayed her trip to Villani’s, which led to Granny’s sudden disappearance.

How he lied. How he used her.

Like a rag. A dirty rag.

Her eyes clouded with tears of humiliation that turned icy on her cheeks. Her mind was dizzy with grief. She could barely walk straight. The sidewalk felt much too slippery.

She heard the motor of a car drawing close but ignored it. The brief toot of a horn followed. She didn’t recognize it but knew it wasn’t Nelson’s Audi, or her parents’ car.

“You alright?” a male voice asked.

Felicia finally stopped and turned, but not before wiping the tears from her face with her mittens. Sheriff Sutter was there in his big SUV, creeping along beside her. “You alright, Felicia?” he asked again, with genuine concern in his voice.

“I’m fine,” she answered. But Owen recognized the hollow eyes of someone who’d just had a good long cry. His wife had passed away years before, but he still remembered the dark nights when she’d had that same look on her face. A look that still pained him when he remembered it.

“Get in. I’ll drive you home.”

“No. Thank you, Sheriff. I like the snow. Really. I want to walk. It’s not that far.”

“Not that far? It’s clear across town. This ain’t no weather for a stroll.”

“I’m good. Really. I need to clear my head. Thanks for the offer. You’re sweet.” She flashed a tentative smile.

Owen wasn’t convinced, but finally relented and rolled up his window
. I guess sometimes they just need to be alone. But what did she mean by clear her head? Clear it of what? And why has she been so concerned about old lady Dola? What has that old witch got to do with that little girl?

241

Felicia found her parents waiting in the living room. She smiled and pretended that everything was normal. It was clear they were waiting for her, obviously suspicious about her activities. They had a TV in their bedroom, and normally by this time they were snuggled in bed, watching some salacious cable show until they either dozed off or got worked up enough to jump each other’s bones.

“Hey,” Felicia greeted them cheerfully, pausing to steal a handful of popcorn from the bowl on the coffee table.

“Well, she’s alive,” her father quipped sarcastically.

What?
Felicia said with a look.

“You never returned my call,” her mother said coolly. “Crystal said you were in the bathroom when I called. But you never called back.”

Felicia thought quickly. “Sorry. She told me you called but your line was busy when I tried to call you back. Then we started playing Legend of Zelda and I just spaced and forgot to call again. So go ahead and crucify me. Mea culpa.”

“Nobody’s out to crucify you, Miss Martyr. We just wish you were more considerate of our feelings.” Laurie spoke without looking at her daughter. A telltale sign she was pissed. “For all we know you might have gone out to the woods looking for your friend Mrs. Dola and been eaten by a grizzly bear.”

“It’s funny,” her father chimed in, “That we have.call waiting but you said the line was busy.”

“What? Are you saying you don’t believe me?”

“We want to believe you, Felicia,” he responded. “I just can’t figure out how it could have happened.”

“In case you haven’t noticed there’s a storm outside,” Felicia said hotly. “It wouldn’t be the first time the phones in this hick town got bent out of whack by a snowstorm, would it? Or maybe you were on the phone and your stupid TV show was blasting in the background and you didn’t hear the call-waiting click when I called. But it’s nice to know what you really think about me. I’m sorry I’m such a burden.”

Her parents didn’t answer. Felicia’s reaction had aroused enough plausible doubt to make them worry that maybe she was indeed telling the truth and they’d wrongly accused her. Her disparaging pronouncement “this hick town” especially gave them pause. Their greatest fear was that she was outgrowing their pleasant little homestead, and would run off as soon as she was of age.

Felicia sensed that she’d gained the upper hand and decided to twist the knife. “I did try to call and the line was busy. I’m not a technician so I can’t explain why call waiting didn’t work, and if you choose not to believe me that’s on you. You never promised me life would be fair, did you?”

“Okay, Felicia, enough,” her father crumbled first. “If you say you called, you called. I apologize for doubting you.”

“No one is trying to oppress you, Felicia,” her mother added. “We love you. If we didn’t, we wouldn’t give a hoot what you did, would we?”

“Okay,” Felicia said in a conciliatory tone. “I’m sorry. Maybe I overreacted. But it’s hard not to when your parents don’t trust you.”

“We do trust you.”

“Crystal says hi, by the way.”

“How is Crystal doing these days?” asked her mother lightly, eager to let the argument die.

Felicia smiled inside.
Cat girl one, parents zero.
“You know how Crystal is,” she answered. “Crystal is Crystal. I tried to get her to play one of the exercise games on the Wii but she’s more interested in scarfing down Pepperidge Farms and playing Legend of Zelda. ”

Felicia’s mother smiled. Her father was already tuned back into the show on TV. Satisfied that she dodged their ambush, Felicia gave them a peck on the cheek and headed up to her room.