The Secret (Seacliff High Mystery Book 1) (13 page)

They talked with Stella for another half hour or so, then decided they’d better head back to Cutter’s Cove. Stella had given them the signed copy of the birth certificate, and they’d promised to get it to Caleb as soon as possible.

“So when should we talk to Caleb?” Mac asked on the ride back.

Alyson glanced at her watch. “It’s getting late. We’ll probably miss the start of the game as it is.”

“He’s probably already there,” Mac added. “Everyone in Cutter’s Cove goes to the first home game of the season.”

“I guess we can try to talk to him tomorrow, after the breakfast and the parade.”

“I think that would be best,” Mac agreed.

The ride back to Cutter’s Cove was a silent one, each girl consumed with her own thoughts.

By the time Alyson and Mac got to the game the players were already being announced. They found seats near the middle of the bleachers, where they had a good view of the entire field. Alyson stood up to scan the bleachers around them. “My mom was going to meet us here. I’m never going to find her in this crowd.”

Mac turned in her seat to help her look. “I think that’s her, over by the fence behind the goalpost. It looks like she brought Tucker with her.”

Alyson looked where Mac was pointing and saw her mom sitting with Tucker on the grass at the far end of the field, talking to a man Alyson had never seen before.

“Who’s she talking to?” Alyson asked.

“I think that’s Mr. Sanders. He owns an art gallery on Main Street. His son Jeff plays defense for the team. Oh, they’re lining up for the kickoff. Go Pirates! Kick some Sunnyside ass!”

The crowd all around them began to roar as the ball was kicked high into the air. A tall blond boy in a Pirates uniform caught the ball and ran down the field.

“Show ’em what you’ve got, Joel.” Mac was on her feet now. “Come on; run, baby, run!”

Mac finally sat down once the runner was forced out of bounds. “Did you see that return? Had to be a fifty-yard play. We are
so
going to take state this year.”

Mac’s enthusiasm was infectious and Alyson soon found herself cheering as loudly as anyone. It might seem odd that Alyson had made it to the ripe old age of sixteen without ever having been to a football game. Her dad had never been interested in sports, and she didn’t have any brothers to educate her. Most of her male friends had been more interested in partying than joining athletic teams, and the few glimpses of sporting events she’d come across from time to time on television screens in homes other than her own had bored her. This, however, was fun.

“There’s Trevor.” Alyson pointed to the offensive team lining up on the field. “And Eli’s to his left. Number 32.”

“Go Pirates!” Mac was on her feet again.

By the end of the night the Pirates had won, 28–7, and Alyson was completely hoarse from yelling.

“Look at that ho, Madison Richards,” Mac complained as the players congratulated one another after the final buzzer. “She’s hanging all over Eli like she owns him.”

Alyson looked toward the field. A blonde cheerleader had her arms around Eli’s neck.

“Oh my God. Is she kissing him?” Mac shouted. “What a total skank.”

“Eli made three touchdowns tonight,” Alyson reminded her friend. “He’s on everyone’s radar now. Do I detect a little jealousy there?”

“No,” Mac denied. “No jealousy. I just don’t want to see Eli get hurt. He’s my friend, and Madison Richards is a user.”

“I’m going to go say hi to my mom before we head over to the bonfire.” Alyson changed the subject. “I’ll meet you outside the locker room. I’m sure it will be a while before Trevor and Eli make it out of there.”

Alyson wended her way through the crowd in search of her mother. Mac was correct; everyone in town had indeed shown up for the game. It was going to take a real effort to make it through the droves of fans still on the field.

“Hi, Mom,” Alyson said when she finally made her way to the goalpost. She knelt down to pet an ecstatic Tucker. “I saw you from the bleachers, but it looked like you had company so I didn’t come over.” Alyson took a peek at the good-looking man who was still standing beside her mother.

“This is Blake Sanders,” Alyson’s mom introduced them. “He owns an art gallery downtown.” She turned to Blake. “This is my daughter, Alyson.”

“It’s good to meet you.” Blake smiled. “Your mother has just been telling me about some of the paintings she’s working on. I’d love to see them sometime.”

“She’s great.” Alyson stood up from her position by the dog. “I think you’ll be impressed.”

“Blake has asked me to join him for coffee. Do you think you could take Tucker with you to the bonfire?”

“Sure, Mom.” Alyson shook off her melancholy and smiled. “I’ll walk over to the car with you and get his travel crate.”

Alyson took the leash from her mom and followed her out to the parking lot. After transferring the crate to the back of her Jeep, she kissed her mom on the cheek and went in search of her friends.

The bonfire was one of the most outrageous events Alyson had ever attended. Most of the participants were students of Seacliff High. Everyone was dancing around, singing and cheering. In the center of all the commotion was a huge bonfire that lit the entire area. At first Alyson was concerned that bringing Tucker to such a crowded place might not have been such a good idea, but he just sat at her feet and watched the festivities around him.

“Hey, guys.” Eli walked toward them with Madison clinging to his arm.

“Great game!” Mac hugged Eli awkwardly. “You totally rocked. That one reception in the third quarter . . . I mean, it was totally awesome.”

“So, Eli,” Trevor joined in, “are we on for that thing tomorrow?”

“Thing?”

Trevor looked pointedly at Eli.

“Oh, that thing. Yeah, sure. We’ll meet up at the breakfast.”

“What thing?” Madison asked.

“Oh, it’s just a guy thing,” Eli said evasively. “Listen, Madison, why don’t you go see if you can find us some drinks.”

“Sure. Okay,” Madison said doubtfully. “I’ll be right back.”

“What’s with the groupie?” Alyson asked as the cheerleader walked away.

“She just sort of attached herself to me after the game and I haven’t been able to shake her.”

“Want me to get rid of her?” Mac volunteered a little too cheerfully.

“That’s okay,” Eli said. “She’s not really my type, but being seen with her is probably good for my rep. I am the new guy, you know. I guess I shouldn’t look a gift horse in the mouth.”

“She does sort of look like a horse,” Mac muttered under her breath.

“I want to introduce you to my brother. Hey, Devon!” Eli called over a tall guy with blond hair who had been talking to one of the cheerleaders. “These are my friends, Alyson, Mac, and Trevor.”

“Glad to meet you all.”

Devon was tall, blond, and gorgeous. Not at all what Alyson had been expecting. She wasn’t sure why, but when Eli had described his brother’s advanced level of computer literacy she’d been expecting a nerd. Devon was anything but. Mac gently elbowed her, and Alyson realized her mouth was hanging wide open. She hoped she wasn’t drooling.

“Devon did a little snooping around, as I promised he would, and has some interesting news to share,” Eli informed the group.

“Whatcha got?” Alyson asked.

“I’ve had a part-time job at the police station since we moved to Cutter’s Cove at the beginning of the summer, entering old records into the new computer system. Eli told me about the project you are working on and asked me to see if I could get a look at Jonathan Wellington’s suicide report. I did as he asked and stumbled across something I found interesting. There were two sets of fingerprints on the suicide note. One belonged to Caleb’s mother, who was the one who found the note in the first place, and the other couldn’t be identified. The interesting thing is that Jonathan’s fingerprints weren’t found on the note at all.”

“So he couldn’t have written it,” Alyson realized.

“Probably not, unless he was wearing gloves when he wrote the note, but why would someone who was about to kill himself do that?”

“So why wasn’t the fingerprint angle looked into further at the time of his death?” Alyson wondered.

“I don’t know. There were conflicting reports, so it sort of depends on who you talk to.”

“So the answer to who killed Jonathan could lie in figuring out who the second set of fingerprints belongs to. Don’t the police have basically everyone’s fingerprints on file?”

“Unfortunately, no.”

“So now what?” Alyson asked.

“I have a few ideas, but maybe we should take this conversation somewhere else,” Devon suggested.

“We could go get something to eat,” Trevor suggested.

“Sounds good to me,” Eli answered. “How about Pirates Pizza?”

“I left my car in the parking lot near the gym,” Trevor informed them. “I rode over to the bonfire with a friend.”

“I’ll give you a ride to your car,” Alyson offered.

“We’ll meet you at the restaurant,” Alyson said to Devon and Eli.

Alyson, Mac, and Trevor headed to Alyson’s car. They piled in and pulled into the parking lot in front of the gym a few minutes later. Alyson noticed that the light was on inside. “Who do you think is in the gym?”

Mac frowned. “I’m not sure. I know there were people here decorating for the dance earlier, but I thought they’d left.”

“Let’s check it out,” Alyson suggested. “It’d be a shame if someone was vandalizing the place.”

Alyson clipped the leash on Tucker and let him out of the cargo area of the Jeep. The trio walked across the pavement toward the front door.

“That’s Caleb Wellington over there,” Trevor leaned close and whispered as they stood in the entry. “He’s the dark-haired boy with the Pirates sweatshirt working on the sound system. He always does the decorations for these things.”

“Should we tell him what we know?” Mac asked.

“I’d wait,” Alyson said.

“He has no idea his life’s about to change forever,” Trevor observed.

“That’s usually the way it happens.” Alyson reached down to scratch Tucker behind his right ear. “One moment you’re living a perfectly normal life and the next everything’s changed.” Alyson bit her lip. “I mean, this is definitely going to be one of those life-defining moments in Caleb’s life. The kind that slams into you and leaves you gasping for air. But it’s a good thing, right? He’ll be happy? Better off?” Alyson didn’t sound sure at all.

“Of course he will,” Mac assured her friend. “This is going to be great for him. He’ll have so many options open to him that he might not have otherwise had.” Mac wove her arm through Alyson’s in a show of camaraderie “I heard his mom has had to struggle since his dad died. She’s been working two jobs. Now she won’t have to work at all. It’ll be great.”

“I guess.” Alyson still sounded unsure.

“Who’s that guy over by the bandstand?” Alyson whispered. “Is he a teacher or something?”

“Never seen him before,” Mac answered. “It looks like he’s spying on Caleb.”

Alyson watched as Caleb continued to test the sound system. He appeared to be alone, his back toward the man watching him. Alyson couldn’t help but wonder if he even knew he was there. Tucker began to growl. Alyson looked from Tucker to Caleb and then back toward the man, who hadn’t as of yet noticed him.

“Oh my God!” Alyson handed Tucker’s leash to Mac and took off at a run.

“What’s going on?” Caleb asked as Alyson threw herself in front of him. “Who are you?”

“You’re ruining everything!” the man screamed as he ran across the room, waving a gun around. “I should have burned that pile of timber down when I had the chance.”

“Shooting us won’t do you any good,” Alyson insisted once she realized the man was Steven Laslow. During her research, she’d come across a recent photo of the man, although in it he’d been dressed in a three-piece suit. She hadn’t recognized him at first; he looked a lot different dressed down as he was tonight.

“Too many people know you’re embezzling from the trust,” Alyson added. “It’s over.”

“It’s not over until I say it is.” The hand holding the gun was shaking badly. “I deserve it. I spent my entire life building that fortune. He didn’t do anything.” He waved the gun toward Caleb.”

The man was still rambling, the gun pointed at Caleb, then abruptly pulled the trigger. At the same instant, Tucker, who had pulled free of Mac’s grasp, jumped on him, viciously biting his arm. The motion caused the bullet to fly harmlessly over Caleb’s head. Trevor, who had made his way across the room, attempted to pull the dog off, but he wasn’t letting go.

“Tucker, come,” Alyson screamed as soon as she could catch her breath.

The dog looked up and immediately came over to Alyson and sat obediently in front of her, though he continued to growl as he stared at the man on the ground. Trevor wrestled him into a standing position.

“Guess we’d better call the cops.”

“I feel like I’ve been run over by a truck.” Alyson groaned, rubbing the back of her neck with her fingertips.

“It’s no wonder. We had quite a night. Did you ever in your wildest dreams imagine it would end like this?” Mac took a huge bite of her pancake. “I pictured us meeting with Caleb and his mom this afternoon. Maybe having tea. Sharing with them the wonderful news that they were now the richest people in Cutter’s Cove. There would be tears of joy. Hugs and kisses. Maybe even an invite to some future celebratory event. But this.” Mac paused to swallow, “This I never, ever imagined.”

“The whole thing is pretty mind boggling,” Trevor agreed. “I hope Caleb’s okay. He looked pretty shaken up last night.”

“Well, sure,” Eli observed, “Someone tried to kill him.”

“No, it was more than that,” Trevor countered. “I was watching his face while we told him the story about Barkley and how his dad fit in. He looked kind of freaked.”

“Well, it’s some story,” Alyson said. “We were pretty freaked when we first heard it and we’re not even biologically connected. Besides, learning that your father was probably murdered has to have a profound effect on someone.”

“By the way,” Eli changed the subject, “I invited Devon to go to the dance with us. I hope that’s okay. Even though he hasn’t actually started classes yet, he’s a Seacliff student for the next few months.”

“Sure, that’d be great.” Alyson smiled. “Speaking of the dance—” She was interrupted by Madison’s arrival.

“It’s time to go over to the staging area,” she cooed to Eli, leaning up against him as she spoke.

Trevor looked at his watch. “We’ve got to go. The football team is riding on one of the floats. We’ll see you guys tonight.”

“Tonight?” Madison asked Eli as he stood to follow Trevor.

“We’re all going to the dance together.”

“I could use a ride.” Madison snuggled closer.

“Sorry, we’re all full up,” Eli answered.

“Oh.” Madison pouted. “I guess we can just meet up at the dance, then.”

“Maybe,” Eli said vaguely.

“I can’t believe the way Madison hangs all over Eli,” Mac complained as they walked away. “She’s just like Chelsea.”

“I know I’ve asked you this before,” Alyson said tentatively, “but I have to say I’m sensing something a little more than a friend looking out for a friend going on here. I’m sensing jealousy.”

“There might be a little jealousy,” Mac reluctantly acknowledged. “I don’t know. I’ve really only known Eli a little over a week.”

“Yeah, but it’s been some week,” Alyson reasoned.

Mac pushed her half-eaten plate of pancakes away. “I certainly don’t have any reason to feel Eli should have any type of commitment to me. It just bugs me that he lets Madison hang all over him.”

“If you like him you should tell him. Make the first move. Ask him out.”

“Oh, I couldn’t do that.” Mac blushed.

“Why not? Madison certainly isn’t being shy about her feelings for him. Why should you? If you want him, fight for him. If you don’t,” Alyson placed her hand over Mac’s on the table, “she may end up with him by default.”

“How am I supposed to compete with someone like Madison? She’s pretty and popular and a cheerleader to boot.” Mac looked down at herself. “I’m just a spaz. Look at me. I have a cow on my shirt. How dorky is that?”

Mac had a point, Alyson realized. A T-shirt with a got milk? ad and bright pink sweatpants certainly made a statement, though she wasn’t sure it was the one Mac was after. “I have an idea. Why don’t we skip the parade and have a total spa day? I have tons of nice things you could wear to the dance, including several options in the blue and gray category. We could do your hair, maybe add a little makeup.”

“I don’t know . . .” Mac hesitated.

“Come on, what do you have to lose? We’ll have Eli drooling over you.”

Mac thought about it for a minute. “I’m in. Let’s show Madison Fancy-pants she’s not the only fish in the sea.”

“That’s the spirit.”

The rest of the day was spent waxing, plucking, washing, and polishing every part of Mac’s body.

“I had no idea,” Mac commented as Alyson painted her toenails, “that so much work went into this. I have a new respect for Chelsea. But not for Madison. The slut,” she added under her breath.

“My mom said she’d do your hair. She’s the best. Why don’t you hop in the shower and wash it real good, then we’ll dry and style it.”

Alyson went through her closet and picked out a selection of dresses for Mac to choose from. She laid everything across her bed, then went to find her mother to tell her they were ready for her.

“You have really beautiful hair,” Alyson’s mom complimented as Mac sat on a stool in front of her. “I don’t think I’ve ever seen it down.”

“I mostly wear pigtails and braids.”

“It’s so thick. And it’s got a beautiful natural wave. I think we should just dry it and add a little gel to encourage the hair to curl. Then maybe we could just pull up the sides and let the back hang loose. I have a couple of mother-of-pearl combs that would be perfect to hold the hair back from your face,” Sarah Prescott added.

“Whatever you think.” Mac fidgeted on the stool.

Alyson’s mom added some curling gel to Mac’s thick hair, then dried it with a diffuser. She used the curling iron to smooth and define the curls, then pulled her hair up on the sides. Her long red hair cascaded down her back in perfect ringlets.

“Now for a little makeup,” Alyson declared when her mom was finished.

“Are you sure?” Mac asked. “I don’t usually wear makeup. I still want to look like me. A vastly improved me, but still me.”

Alyson opened her makeup case and started to sort through its contents. “I’ll keep it light. You’ll hardly even know it’s there. It will just make you look more . . .” she searched for the right word, “finished.”

Alyson applied just the right makeup in just the right shades to bring out Mac’s natural features without making her look overdone.

“You’re really good at this,” Mac commented as she watched her face transform layer by layer. “Where’d you ever learn to apply makeup like this?”

“I was a model for a while,” Alyson responded without thinking.

“In Minnesota?”

“Yeah, Minnesota.” Alyson crossed her fingers on her left hand as she lightly brushed blusher across Mac’s cheekbone with her right. “Just for a local catalogue, but the makeup artist who worked the shoot taught me how to do this.”

“Wow, a model.” Mac was impressed “Was it fun? Do you still have the pictures?”

“Yeah, it was fun, and no, I don’t have the pictures.” The shoot had taken place in New York, and the background scenes were sure to give that away. The lies seemed to be getting harder, not easier. Alyson was letting her guard down. She’d have to do a better job of keeping her past firmly behind her.

“All done,” she said several minutes later. “Take a look.”

“Wow.” Mac sounded awed when she turned to look in the mirror. “Is that me?”

“One hundred percent Makenzie Reynolds. Well, almost.”

“I look so different. Do you think Eli will like it?”

“He’ll love it. All the guys will. You’ll have to fight them off. Now for the clothes. I’ve laid some stuff out on the bed. Wear whatever you want.”

The girls migrated from the bathroom into the bedroom. Mac walked over to the bed and picked up a cashmere sweater. “Where did you get all this stuff?”

“They let me keep the clothes I modeled,” Alyson lied.

“But these are big-time designer brands. I thought you said you modeled for a local catalogue?”

“I did, but it was an outlet store. Designer brands at bargain prices.”
I’m going to hell for sure with all these lies.

Alyson held up a short pleated skirt. “This is cute. It’s not too long, not too short, not too fancy, yet not too casual. You could wear it with that dark blue silk tank and that light blue cardigan. I think I have the perfect gray suede boots to go with it.”

“Do you think it will fit?” Mac held the skirt up to herself in the full-length mirror.

“Try it on and see. I’ll look for the boots.”

Mac tried on the outfit while Alyson rummaged through her closet for the boots, trying not to attract Mac’s attention. The last thing she wanted her to see was an entire closet full of designer clothes.

“You look great,” Alyson said, joining her in front of the mirror with the boots in her hand.

“Think so?” Mac turned from side to side “I don’t want to look slutty, and this skirt is a little short.”

“Trust me, you look beautiful. Eli’s going to lose his cookies. Well, not literally.”

“What are you going to wear?” Mac asked.

Alyson walked over to the bed to survey her options. “How about the blue denim skirt with the gray silk tank? I have a long navy sweater around here somewhere, and a pair of denim platform heels.”

The pair finished dressing just as Devon pulled up out front. Mac grabbed Alyson’s arm as she headed toward the stairs. “I don’t know if I can do this. I feel like a fake.”

“The secret to pulling off a new image is to
be
the image. You look great, really great. Hold your head high and act like you dress like this every day. Confidence is the key. One of the reasons I chose you to sit with that first day was because you looked like someone with a lot of self-confidence; someone who wasn’t concerned about what other people thought.”

“Really?”

“Really. Now let’s go. We don’t want to keep everyone waiting.”

Devon had obviously chosen to pick them up last. He was the one driving because he had an Expedition that sat eight. Trevor was already seated in the third row, with Chelsea glued to his side, and Eli sat in front, next to Devon.

“Wow,” Alyson heard Trevor exclaim from the backseat. “You guys look great.” Looking directly at Mac, he added, “Who knew you’d clean up so well?”

“Shut up, Trevor,” Mac barked as she tried to climb into the tall vehicle without exposing anything that ought not be exposed.

“Trade with me, Eli,” Alyson said, crossing her fingers as she opened the front door. “I still feel a little dizzy from last night and I think I’ll do better in the front.”

“Are you okay?” Eli asked, concerned, as he vacated the front seat, helped Alyson in, and then climbed into the back.”

“I’m fine. Just a little off.”

Alyson pulled down her visor, even though the sun was already down, so she could watch the passengers in the backseat through the vanity mirror. Eli was staring at Mac, although he tried to appear as if he wasn’t. He started to look away, but his gaze kept finding its way back.

“That whole thing last night was just the worst,” Chelsea piped up from the third-row seat. “Once the cops showed up at the school it totally ruined the bonfire, and it’s all anyone could talk about all day today at the parade. I for one hope it’s not the topic of conversation at the dance. The kickoff to football dance is supposed to be all about the team and the cheerleaders. We don’t need some lunatic with a gun clouding our focus.”

Alyson looked in the mirror at Chelsea. A hooker would be embarrassed in the dress she had on. Besides, it was red, not blue or gray. “Don’t worry; I’m sure your dress is the only thing anyone will be talking about at the dance.”

Alyson heard Devon snicker beside her.

“You think so?” Chelsea’s breasts threatened to spill out of her low-cut bodice as she spoke. “It’s so sweet of you to say so. I had to try on like fifty dresses before I found one that fit this well.”

The gym had been transformed into a pirate ship, minus the water, of course. Someone had gone to a lot of work to design props that made it appear that there were masts and rigging supporting giant sails that sported large crossbones. Oak barrels, joined together by heavy sailor’s rope, had been set around the room. There were several students dressed as pirates to add to the setting.

“This is great,” Alyson said as she walked in the door. “Someone did a lot of work.”

“Personally, I think it’s rather crass and predictable,” Chelsea said from behind her. “I voted for the moonlight-in-paradise theme, but, once again, the pirate theme got picked.”

“What does moonlight in paradise have to do with either football or our mascot?” Mac asked sharply.

“Nothing, I guess. It’s just so much more romantic.”

The group had barely filed into the gym when Madison was at Eli’s side. “Do you want to dance? I’ve been waiting for you.”

He took Mac by the arm. “I’ve already promised this dance to Mac. Maybe later,” he said vaguely.

“Come on.” Chelsea pulled Trevor toward the dance floor. “I need to get out there and be seen. The cheerleaders should make a point to be seen in order to show our support,” she clarified, as if even she realized how lame she sounded.

Devon and Alyson wandered over to find a table. “It looks like Eli and Mac are having fun,” Alyson commented.

“I think Eli kind of likes her. He’s just too shy to ask her out.”