Read Online If She Should Die by Carlene Thompson - Free Book Online Page B
Authors: Carlene Thompson
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left him alone.
That had been a long time ago, but he’d never lost his new love of solitude. Now he was close only to his family and to Ames, along with some contact with Jeremy and Christine. Streak spent his days at home designing brilliant computer programs, providing himself with a very healthy income, and a good part of his nights he filled with jogging to keep at bay nightmares of his horrifying injury and the hell of his recovery.
Christine and Streak started down the slope to the bridge. They’d only gone a few feet when Jeremy ran toward Christine with an odd lumbering gait she’d only seen him use a few times when he was distraught. “Christy!” he cried, enfolding her in his strong arms. “Dara is dead.”
“I know, honey.” She patted his back. “But Dara has been gone a long time. We knew it was possible she was dead.”
“But Ames got those letters, so I thought
maybe
she didn’t die. If she didn’t send those letters, who did?”
“I’m sure everyone would like to know that,” Christine answered.
“She used to be real nice to me sometimes. She’d tell me about magic. And she sang with me on my machine.”
“Your karaoke machine?” Christine asked. He nodded. “I didn’t know that.”
“She sang really pretty. But she’d get the giggles.”
His eyes filled with tears again and Christine took his hand. “Jeremy, why did you bring Rhiannon and come here in the middle of the night?”
Jeremy drew back and gave her a long intense look, his eyes troubled. “Because this is the last place where Dara was. She brought her boom box. Then she was gone.”
2
Christine’s heart gave an uncomfortable thud. Streak’s brown gaze met hers over Jeremy’s shoulder. “Jeremy, you don’t know that Dara disappeared from this spot. No one knows where Dara was before she . . . disappeared.”
“
I
know.”
“
How
do you know?”
Jeremy frowned. “ ’Cause Dara was upset. She’d been upset a couple of days. And the evening she went away, she was
real
upset.”
Christine searched his face. “Jeremy, I don’t remember Dara being upset.”
“You prob’ly didn’t even see her. But I saw her leaving the house with Rhiannon and her boom box. She always took her boom box to the creek.”
Christine’s anxiety grew. “You told everyone you didn’t see her that night.”
“I said I didn’t
talk
to her, and I didn’t. But I knew where she was going because of the boom box and it being Black Moon night and everything.” Jeremy hung his head. “I did say Dara
might
be at the creek. Remember? We went and looked and she wasn’t there.” His expression grew even more troubled. “Later, when she didn’t show up at all, I knew I should’ve told about her being upset, but it seemed too late then. People would have thought I was making it up. But I came back here and looked a hundred times.”
“Jeremy, just because Dara came to the creek that evening doesn’t mean she disappeared from here,” Christine said, trying to sound calm.
“But it
is
the place where she left.”
“What makes you so sure?”
Jeremy looked miserable. “I don’t know, Christy. It’s a feeling, that’s all. At least, I think that’s all. I can’t really explain what it is.”
Oh, dear God, Christine thought in despair as her hands grew cold. Was Jeremy merely experiencing a vague feeling of guilt because he hadn’t been completely honest at the time of Dara’s disappearance? Or was he dredging up a dark memory of what had happened to her the last night she’d been seen alive?
3
“Jeremy, you don’t
know
that Dara
disappeared
from this spot,” Christine repeated slowly and emphatically, emphasizing the word
disappeared
so as not to upset him even more with the word
murdered
. “I don’t want you to tell
anyone
that you know she definitely was here.”
“Why not?”
“Because it could be misleading,” she said quickly, feeling Streak’s gaze on her.
Jeremy’s forehead wrinkled. “I
That had been a long time ago, but he’d never lost his new love of solitude. Now he was close only to his family and to Ames, along with some contact with Jeremy and Christine. Streak spent his days at home designing brilliant computer programs, providing himself with a very healthy income, and a good part of his nights he filled with jogging to keep at bay nightmares of his horrifying injury and the hell of his recovery.
Christine and Streak started down the slope to the bridge. They’d only gone a few feet when Jeremy ran toward Christine with an odd lumbering gait she’d only seen him use a few times when he was distraught. “Christy!” he cried, enfolding her in his strong arms. “Dara is dead.”
“I know, honey.” She patted his back. “But Dara has been gone a long time. We knew it was possible she was dead.”
“But Ames got those letters, so I thought
maybe
she didn’t die. If she didn’t send those letters, who did?”
“I’m sure everyone would like to know that,” Christine answered.
“She used to be real nice to me sometimes. She’d tell me about magic. And she sang with me on my machine.”
“Your karaoke machine?” Christine asked. He nodded. “I didn’t know that.”
“She sang really pretty. But she’d get the giggles.”
His eyes filled with tears again and Christine took his hand. “Jeremy, why did you bring Rhiannon and come here in the middle of the night?”
Jeremy drew back and gave her a long intense look, his eyes troubled. “Because this is the last place where Dara was. She brought her boom box. Then she was gone.”
2
Christine’s heart gave an uncomfortable thud. Streak’s brown gaze met hers over Jeremy’s shoulder. “Jeremy, you don’t know that Dara disappeared from this spot. No one knows where Dara was before she . . . disappeared.”
“
I
know.”
“
How
do you know?”
Jeremy frowned. “ ’Cause Dara was upset. She’d been upset a couple of days. And the evening she went away, she was
real
upset.”
Christine searched his face. “Jeremy, I don’t remember Dara being upset.”
“You prob’ly didn’t even see her. But I saw her leaving the house with Rhiannon and her boom box. She always took her boom box to the creek.”
Christine’s anxiety grew. “You told everyone you didn’t see her that night.”
“I said I didn’t
talk
to her, and I didn’t. But I knew where she was going because of the boom box and it being Black Moon night and everything.” Jeremy hung his head. “I did say Dara
might
be at the creek. Remember? We went and looked and she wasn’t there.” His expression grew even more troubled. “Later, when she didn’t show up at all, I knew I should’ve told about her being upset, but it seemed too late then. People would have thought I was making it up. But I came back here and looked a hundred times.”
“Jeremy, just because Dara came to the creek that evening doesn’t mean she disappeared from here,” Christine said, trying to sound calm.
“But it
is
the place where she left.”
“What makes you so sure?”
Jeremy looked miserable. “I don’t know, Christy. It’s a feeling, that’s all. At least, I think that’s all. I can’t really explain what it is.”
Oh, dear God, Christine thought in despair as her hands grew cold. Was Jeremy merely experiencing a vague feeling of guilt because he hadn’t been completely honest at the time of Dara’s disappearance? Or was he dredging up a dark memory of what had happened to her the last night she’d been seen alive?
3
“Jeremy, you don’t
know
that Dara
disappeared
from this spot,” Christine repeated slowly and emphatically, emphasizing the word
disappeared
so as not to upset him even more with the word
murdered
. “I don’t want you to tell
anyone
that you know she definitely was here.”
“Why not?”
“Because it could be misleading,” she said quickly, feeling Streak’s gaze on her.
Jeremy’s forehead wrinkled. “I
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