Cassie's own body was reacting strangely. Her chest was heaving and her muscles were shaking. Her knees were trembling so hard she could scarcely remain standing. And her vision was sparkling at the edges as if she were going to faint.
Thank God, it's not a person-but oh, my God, is that a hand? Dummies don't have hands like that… not hands with little pink fingers… and dummies don't wear rings, turquoise rings…
Where had she seen a ring like that before?
Look at it closer; no, don't look, don't look-
But she had seen. The hand, stiff as a claw, was human. And the ring was Kori's.
Cassie didn't realize that she was screaming until she was halfway up the hill. Her legs, which had been trembling so badly, were taking her up in leaps and surges. And she was screaming over and over again: “Help, help, help.” Only they were such thin, pathetic little shrieks-it was no wonder no one heard her. It was like one of those nightmares where your vocal cords are paralyzed.
But someone had heard. As she reached the top of the hill Diana appeared, running. She caught Cassie by the shoulders.
“What is it?”
“Kori!” Cassie gasped in a strangled voice. She could hardly speak. “Diana-help Kori! She's hurt. Something's wrong-“ She knew it was more than something wrong, but she couldn't bring herself to say the words. “Help her, please-“
“Where?” Diana cut in sharply.
“The bottom. Bottom of the hill. But don't go down there,” Cassie gasped illogically. Oh, God, she was completely falling apart. She couldn't cope-but she couldn't let Diana go down there alone, either.
Diana was flying down the stairs. Stiff-legged, Cassie followed. She saw Diana reach the bottom and hesitate, then swiftly kneel and bend forward.
“Is she-?” Cassie's hands were clenched.
Diana straightened up. Cassie saw the answer in the set of her shoulders. “She's cold. She's dead.”
Then Diana turned around. Her face was white, her green eyes burning. Something in her expression gave Cassie strength, and she stumbled down the last two steps and flung her arms around her.
She could feel Diana shaking, clinging to her. Kori had been Diana's friend, not hers.
“It'll be okay. It'll be okay,” she gasped, illogical again. There was no way for this to be okay, ever. And over and over in Cassie's mind other words were echoing.
Someday they may find you at the bottom of those stairs with a broken neck. Someday they may find you…
Kori's neck was broken.
That was what the police doctor said. After Cassie and Diana went back up the stairs, everything that
day seemed like a dream. Adults came and took over. School officials, the police, the doctor. They asked questions. They made notes in their notebooks. Throughout it all the kids in the school stood aside and watched. They weren't part of the adults' process. They had questions of their own.
“What are we waiting for? Why don't we just get her?” Deborah was saying as Cassie came into the back room. It wasn't her lunch period, but all the rules seemed to have been suspended that day.
“We all heard her say it,” Deborah was continuing. “Suzan, Faye, and me-even she heard it.” She gestured at Cassie, who was numbly trying to get a can of juice out of the machine. “That bitch said she was going to do it, and she did it. So what are we waiting for?”
“For the truth,” Melanie said quietly and coldly.
“From them? Outsiders? You can't be serious. They'll never admit Sally did it. The police are saying it was an accident. An accident! No sign of a struggle, they're saying. She slipped on a wet step. And you know what the kids are saying? They're saying it was one of us!”
Laurel looked up from the hot water she was pouring over some dried leaves in a mug. The end of her nose was pink. “Maybe it was one of us,” she said.
“Like who?” Deborah blazed back.
“Like somebody who didn't want her in the Club. Somebody who was afraid she'd come in on the wrong side,” said Laurel.
“And we all know which side would be afraid,” said a new voice, and Cassie jerked around, nearly dropping her juice.
It was Faye. Cassie had never seen her in the back room before, but she was here now, her honey-colored eyes hooded and smoldering.
“Well, Diana's side certainly had nothing to be afraid of,” Laurel said. “Kori idolized Diana.”
“Did she? Then why did she spend the last week having lunch with me?” Faye said in her slow, husky voice.
Laurel stared, looking uncertain. Then her face cleared and she shook her head. “I don't care what you say; you're never going to make me believe Diana would hurt Kori.”
“She's right,” Suzan put in, to Cassie's surprise. “Diana wouldn't.”
“Besides, we already know who would,” Deborah said sharply. “It was Sally-or maybe that moron boyfriend of hers. I say we get them-now!”
“She's right,” said Sean.
Laurel looked at him, then at Deborah, then at Faye. “What do you think, Melanie?” she said finally.
Melanie's voice was still quiet, detached. “I think we need to have a meeting,” she said.
Sean bobbed his head. “She's right,” he said.
Just then Diana came in. The Henderson brothers were behind her. They both looked ravaged-and bewildered. As if they couldn't understand how this could happen to them. Chris's eyes were red-rimmed.
Everyone sobered at the sight of the brothers. There was silence as they sat down at the table.
Then Faye turned to Diana. Her golden eyes were like two golden flames. “Sit down,” she said flatly. “We need to talk.”