Dead, Actually Part 7

Thats how bad it was.

A commentary started and the guy could have been speaking a foreign language. All I was aware of was the gentle pressure on my thigh.

Seths head tilted my way; his eyes remained forward. 'Im sorry about yesterday. I was out of line. Sigh. 'You were right to call me on it. I just got wound up over . . .

The words were only a whisper, but I heard them. In fact they were all I could hear. The images on the screen were changing, moving, and a life story was being played out up there. I should have been concentrating.

Should have been . . .

'Its okay. Over. Done. I whispered back.

His head tilted again and stayed close this time. It didnt retreat. 'Sorry about before, too.

JoJo Grayson had just entered primary school.

'Thats okay. Somehow the words came without cracking. JoJo and her friends were dancing to the Spice Girls.

'I was a jerk.

JoJo went to high school.

'Yep.

'Wills? Are we still okay? Friends? Me and you?

Except that your thigh is burning a hole through my flesh? Sure.

I nodded, not able to say anything else.

His answer was simple. 'Good.

JoJo just won an award. I had no idea what for.

And then his hand crept across in the dark and found mine.

We were holding hands. His was big and warm against the bare top of my leg. Holding hands like friends.

'Your hand is chilly. Are you cold? he whispered. His fingers entwined in mine and his thumb gently stroked my wrist. Was I cold? Who knew? Maybe I nodded or maybe I just looked frozen but suddenly he was moving again. When his fingers pulled from mine I wanted to whimper in protest. But then he leaned over, and the leather jacket, warm from his body, settled over my shoulders. And his hand returned to mine. And resumed stroking.

JoJo Grayson just went to her first high school dance, and my heart was shattering.

I had no idea what happened to JoJo after that moment at least until her death. Because my brain was totally unable to focus on anything but the person beside me and the rhythmic movement of his flesh against mine.

Seth Pentecost and I were holding hands.

For the absolute wrong reason.

And then Demi Leverle threw her daiquiri at the screen.

Strawberry daiquiri.

A full gla.s.s that ran down the screen like rivulets of blood . . .

Somehow it seemed to fit the mood.

Chapter Seven.

'Theres always a critic, Seth whispered with a chuckle, but even in my current state Id have had to have been totally without senses not to notice the edge to his voice.

I was seriously still trying to come back to the present, but it was clear everyone was way ahead of me. Some people screamed, others clapped and the music came to an eardrum-breaking screech. The film stopped and there was JoJo caught mid-speech, her mouth twisted and distorted into something between a sneer and a bared-teeth growl.

It was an unfortunate spot to hit pause.

But possibly very appropriate.

Still so aware of that hand folded around mine, I reluctantly forced my brain to forge a path through the mush and try to wrap itself around the other issue here. Because there was another issue.

People were definitely not happy. 'I dont get it. Everyone is here to mourn their friend . . . Whats going on?

Seth turned as the lights came up and I stared into eyes that were so soft and deep I nearly lost the plot again. I mean, where were we? And why?

Oh yeah. Slowly it all started coming back.

Dead person.

Aggravating dead person who is driving me crazy.

Mad party to celebrate.

Even madder party guests who throw perfectly good drinks at walls.

If Seth was going to say anything, it got lost, because suddenly a catfight blew out on my right. 'You b.i.t.c.h! How dare you post that stuff on Facebook about my family! My mother is not a-a- Jade stammered.

Chloe answered with a very feline smile and I blinked in disbelief at her tone. 'Is wh.o.r.e the word youre looking for?

What? I shot to my feet just as Jades arm pulled back. Oh my G.o.d she was going to deck Chloe! Seth was faster and launched himself between them, catching Jades fist mid-swing. Im-press-ive. 'Ladies! he said firmly as he pushed each one back with an opposite arm.

Mascara streaked down Jades face as she wrangled to get closer to Chloe again. Hadnt these girls heard of waterproof mascara? 'Its you, isnt it? Jade screeched. 'Youve got her freaking phone!

A chill ran through me as the words filled the suddenly silent room. The Phone. But judging from the reactions around me, I wasnt the only one whod been spooked by those two words. Chloes face blanched and her gasp was echoed by several others as people crowded closer. But it was Seths face my eyes had settled upon. His expression had gone all tight, and the look he pinned on Chloe was something of a mixture of desperation and hate, causing another uncomfortable ripple to s.h.i.+ver through my body. Whatever was going down, Seth could not be a part of. He couldnt . . .

Could he?

A really unpleasant choking sound dragged my attention back to Chloe. The look she briefly returned was one of pure fear. 'I h-havent got the d.a.m.ned thing! I havent! Her eyes were swivelling around the room, trying to catch everyone, searching, desperate for support.

A waft of Juicy Couture closed around me and I didnt have to turn to know Macey had graced us with her presence. 'You know, she said after a minute, 'I was so wrong. This is a great party. Fabulous entertainment. Do you think they take bookings?

I would have laughed but the look on Seths face was still haunting me. That, and the smell of fear that even overpowered the litres of exotic French perfumes, aftershave, candle wax and natural blossoms that hung in the air. 'Theres evil here, Mace.

'JoJos here? she asked with feigned innocence.

'No, but I think her legacy is, I whispered back.

Chloes voice reached wailing level, rising over the crowd noise. 'Im telling the truth!

Jades face contorted into an ugly sneer. 'Liar!

'Back off, Chloe! OMG now Kristie was adding her weight to the fight.

'Shut up, Kristie! Run back to your mummy, y . . . f . . . ker! Chloes voice was partially drowned out by another rumble of voices to my right. I heard the words but my focus was distracted.

As people surged forwards I strained to hear and see clearly, but the ma.s.s of moving bodies made that almost impossible. Everyone seemed to be pus.h.i.+ng, and as hard as I fought, I couldnt resist the swell of body-power that dragged me along with them. Chloe backed away, holding up her phone, and the crowd noise lowered, seemingly in antic.i.p.ation of her words. 'The stuff about Jades mum is on JoJos Facebook page! But I swear, I got a message to go and look, and its there!

'Who was the message from? I called.

Everyone turned to look at me, and that was my clue it had probably been the wrong time to ask such a public question, especially when everyone was already on my case. But, hey it was out there, right? And I couldnt take it back.

I watched Chloes eyes skitter around the room, her mouth opening and closing a few times, like she was trying to make sounds come out. Beside her, Seths arms dropped and his chin rose slightly. Like he was bracing himself; like he knew what was coming . . .

'JoJo, Chloe finally whispered. 'The message was from JoJo.

And then all h.e.l.l broke loose.

Beside me Macey almost peed herself with excitement. 'Oh. My. Freaking. G.o.d. What I wouldnt give for a bowl of popcorn, she drawled as she pushed on my shoulder to heave herself up onto a velvet-covered chair for a better view.

As far as I was concerned the view was all hers. My attention was only on one person: Seth. The minute Chloes mouth had spewed those words hed stormed out and I was going to find out, once and for all, why.

I fought my way through the crowd, but I was too late; hed already made it out of the house which was my cue to exit the party as well. Backtracking, I grabbed a reluctant Macey and hurried her along to the car. 'I have to find Seth.

Pus.h.i.+ng my arms into the leather jacket I was secretly reluctant to part with, I snagged the keys from Macey and dived behind the wheel.

'Youre a crazy woman, you know that? Macey huffed as she climbed into the pa.s.senger seat.

'And thats supposed to be a newsflash? I muttered as I checked the side mirror before pulling out.

'Seriously, she said. 'Those losers were spilling their guts in there. And thats what you wanted, right? Information? Remember?

'It was a ma.s.sacre they were hurling accusations like weapons! Most of them werent even making sense. Besides, I figure Ive got more of a chance with Seth. If I can get him talking, I think h.e.l.l be straight with me.

Macey sat up a bit straighter, her eyes watching me carefully. 'You think Seth is involved?

Before tonight, I hadnt even thought for one second that Seth might have anything to do with this mess. It was obvious his sister hadnt either, and now that Id voiced that possibility, she wasnt happy.

The silence in the car was deafening, and I was relieved when the Pentecost house came into sight. Once wed pulled up, though, I had to battle my way through yet another pile of emotions. There was relief because Seths Jeep was in the driveway. That was expected. But then there was Macey, brooding beside me.

'Mace? I didnt say he was involved, I began slowly. 'Just that he might know something. And if he does, then h.e.l.l be straight with us.

She sighed. 'Im sorry, Wills. I know hes not a saint, but I hadnt even considered that hed know anything about this. But youre right. And at least h.e.l.l tell us the truth.

Grateful that she wasnt deserting me, I linked my arm through hers as she entered the code to let us into the house. Inside, she slipped off to her bedroom and part of me was reluctant to let her go because I could still see hurt in her eyes. But of course I released her arm and went searching for Seth. I was used to the house and padded along the dimly lit, gla.s.s-sided hall. I wasnt concerned about Maceys mum, she really only made an appearance when there was a male to impress. Seths friends were always welcome and by now it was pretty much a school joke that theyd probably 'accidentally catch her skinny-dipping in the pool if shed had warning they were on their way. It was pretty much a toss-up as to who had the most dysfunctional family between the Pentecosts and me.

It only took a few minutes to discover that Seth wasnt in his room, and less than one more to track him down. Out on the variegated-slate pool deck everything had the usual night-time blue-toned tinge of the reflected pool lights. Tonight the mist from the heated water rose to mix with the mist rolling in from the Pacific Ocean, sharpening the smell of trapped chlorine.

In the muted light, Seth sat on the end of an orange-striped poolside lounge, his head in his hands, watching the pool lap against the tiled sides and seemingly unaware of the puddle he was creating from the drips that fell off his hair and body. Oh great. He was half naked. That should make it easy to stay focussed. Not.

I snagged two huge fluffy white towels off a stack near the French doors and tossed one to him as I got closer to him. 'Youll catch a cold.

He took the towel but he just sat and held it. Finally he sighed and started to rub it over his hair.

'Talk to me, I said as I slipped onto the adjoining sun-lounge and wrapped the other towel around my legs.

I waited for ages, losing patience by the second. Less than an hour ago hed sat with his thigh pressed against mine, his fingers stroking mine now we were like separate countries that didnt even share a border. But after long silent minutes, even those thoughts couldnt distract me from the fact that this was totally useless; he was using the towel like some sort of cone of silence. But just as Id had enough, he looked up. And all p.i.s.sed-off thoughts blew away on the breeze. He shook his head. 'Nothing. Everything. A low whistle escaped. 'So much head-c.r.a.p. Its just a mess.

That was all it took and I was mush again.

I leaned in closer, laying my hand on his thigh, trying to ignore the sweet torture of being so close to him again. 'Whats going on Seth? What mess? I paused and stared, willing him to look at me. 'Whats it got to do with JoJo? I dont get it . . . Why did you let yourself get caught up with her? Is that what the head-c.r.a.p is?

'That and other stuff. Initially he looked at me like I knew what he was talking about. I didnt, and it must have shown because he shook his head. 'You dont know. He shook his head again and little beads of water showered up my arm. 'Of course you dont, he muttered. His eyes flicked back to mine, harder now. 'Sure you want to?

I nodded.

Until that moment I hadnt realised a sigh could be so eloquent. His told a story of its own: sadness, weariness . . . regret. Leaning back, he stared up at the stars, seeming to examine each in turn before speaking. 'Who knows? Maybe itd be good to get it off my chest. His voice was harder, edgier, but I figured the anger I could hear was directed more at himself than JoJo. 'She ran me. JoJo ran me. I cant tell you everything but she ran me. I had to jump when she said . . . He blew out another slow breath, then inhaled deeply. 'I thought once she was dead that maybe itd be over. But its not. Then there was Pete and you- He stopped, his head jerking up fast.

I raised my eyebrows. 'When did we start talking about me?

He sat up straighter, shaking his head in disgust. 'Wills the guys an idiot. Tell me you didnt . . . He cracked his knuckles; his mouth pulled into a hard, thin line. 'Hes a user! Hes- 'One of your best mates? I offered with just a hint of sarcasm. Hint? Okay, a truckload.

'Low blow, Wills, he answered with a rueful smirk. 'What do you want me to say? Yeah, the guys a jerk and yeah, were mates. Believe it or not, he does have some good points. Or at least he used to. His voice dropped, low and cajoling. Husky; soft . . . working its magic. 'But you and Pete? That was totally different. Come on, Wills. Youre a princess. You stand out from all those other girls. Youve got cla.s.s. Youre like this untouchable being. Pete is so wrong for you.

Untouchable? I pulled the towel tighter. Okay, enough was enough. Compliments are supposed to make you feel better, not depress you. 'For G.o.ds sake, if you know me so well, then you know Id never fall for someone like Pete Hamill! Did you really think I would? Especially when all I want is you to see me as something more than a sister! But like the coward that I am, those last words stayed in my head. Probably safer that way.

His shrug wasnt convincing.

What?

My turn to sigh. 'And okay, so yes, I appreciate the concern, but Im a big girl, Seth. I have to make my own decisions.

'I know. He frowned, staring at me. As I stared back, his eyes seemed to glaze over, pinning me. His voice dropped to a whisper that blended with the breeze. 'Wills . . .

He moved closer . . .