Here Today, Gone Tomorrow

Madame didn't say anything else to Charles. She didn't even threaten him with demerits, as she normally would have done. Jenna didn't try to read her mind-she knew from experience that it was impossible to know what Madame was thinking.

The bell rang, and Madame didn't even mention the assignment she'd given them. 'Have a nice day,' she said automatically as they all got up and headed for the door. But as Jenna passed Madame's desk, she thought she heard an additional remark from the teacher.

It sounded like, 'Be careful.'

Chapter Four

THE NEXT DAY AT school, Emily found it even harder than usual to concentrate in her classes. She was feeling just a little bit

ashamed of herself. Maybe more than a little. What she'd said to Amanda-telling her she would be the next one to vanish-wasn't very nice. She knew Jenna was proud of her for having the guts to talk to Amanda like that, but it wasn't really an Emily thing to do. She wasn't the type to fight mean with mean.

Amanda had been really scared, Emily knew. She'd probably worried about it all night long. She might not even be at school today, she was so nervous. But if she wasn't there, it wouldn't be because of Emily's prediction. Because it hadn't been Amanda who was missing in Emily's most recent vision of the gifted class.

She'd had the vision before Amanda even called her over in class the previous day. It came just after Madame left the classroom to make phone calls; it came without any effort on her part. She hadn't even forced her eyes to glaze over-it happened automatically.

The vision had been the clearest one yet. There was the gifted class, on the next day-today. She was positive about the date, because she could actually make out the calendar that hung by the door. That was peculiar-her visions didn't usually include details like that. She could easily see that Carter still wasn't there, and neither were Tracey and Martin. And there was another person missing.

Sarah.

She confessed this to Jenna at lunch. 'I don't know why I didn't warn Sarah. Maybe I just wasn't sure it was a real prediction. Or maybe I guess I just didn't want to scare her.'

Jenna grinned. 'Yeah, scaring Amanda is much more fun.' Jenna.

'Oh, c'mon, Em-lighten up. It was good for Amanda. She's got a little too much self-esteem. She needs to be taken down a notch.'

Emily looked over at another table in the cafeteria. 'She doesn't look upset today.'

Amanda was with her usual snotty friends at their usual table. Nina was crying, she noticed. She must have just found out she didn't make the cheerleading squad. The other girls looked like they were comforting her. Not Amanda though. She was busy filing her fingernails. She couldn't even show a little sympathy for her own friend! Maybe Jenna was right. Amanda deserved a scare, even if it didn't last very long.

Jenna was eating. 'You know, these school lunches aren't half bad. The way you and Tracey are always complaining, I thought they'd be a lot worse.'

'Speaking of Tracey,' Emily said, 'aren't you just a little worried about her?'

'Not really. Because I still think Tracey disappeared on purpose. You know how she's been trying for ages to stay invisible for longer periods.'

'What about Carter and Martin?'

'Well, Carter's a mystery, right? He appeared out of nowhere, and now he's disappeared. I just can't get too spooked by him. And Martin, he's always whining about his home and how his mother nags him. He probably ran away. Any day now, they'll find him sleeping in a bus station.'

'So you still don't believe in my predictions.'

Jenna just shrugged. 'You said it yourself--they're pretty screwed up.'

Emily didn't get it. 'But you supported me yesterday in front of Ken and Amanda.'

'I'm your friend,' Jenna said matter-of-factly. 'I'm always loyal to my friends.' She went back to her mashed potatoes. 'Could you pass the salt?'

Emily couldn't believe Jenna could be so blithe about everything. She wished she could read her friend's mind. She had a pretty good feeling this was all an act Jenna was putting on, to show how tough she was.

'What about Sarah?'

Jenna did her who-cares shrug. 'Let's wait and see if she shows up in class.'

She didn't. The second Emily entered room 209, her heart sank when she saw the empty seat. Sarah was always there early. Madame, at her desk, was staring at Sarah's seat, too.

Ken arrived, then Amanda, then Charles. Jenna sauntered in as the bell rang. When she saw Sarah's empty seat, she turned to Emily.

'Okay, I take it back. You've got a gift.'

Madame spoke sharply. 'What do you mean by that, Jenna?'

Madame was one of the only people who could intimidate Jenna, and Jenna practically stammered. 'Well, I, uh, meant that, you know, how Emily makes predictions of the future, and, you know. .'

Madame broke in. 'Emily! Did you know that Sarah would disappear?'

Emily shifted uneasily in her seat. 'I–I sort of had a vision. But I didn't know if it was real.'

Madame stared at her. 'And the others? Carter, Tracey, Martin-did you have visions about them?'

Suddenly Emily felt terrible. She nodded.

'Why didn't you say anything?'

'Because-because I didn't trust them. The visions, I mean. My predictions are always so mixed-up. They're like bits and pieces, like a puzzle, and I can't put them together to make a real picture! Like, I'll see an earthquake, but I don't know when or where it's going to happen. Or I'll see someone have an accident in gymnastics, but I don't know if it's going to be at the next competition or the one after that.'

It dawned on her that she'd probably never said so much at one time in class.

Madame looked sad. 'I know your premonitions are confusing, Emily. But you have a gift. You should have told me about these visions.'

Not for the first time, Emily wished she could give her gift back to whomever gave it to her. The disappointment in Madame's face. . Emily couldn't bear to look at her teacher. She felt like she'd let her down. Not to mention Carter and the other missing students.

Madame's voice became softer. 'There's always an element of truth in your visions, Emily. You might not understand them, but they have meaning. You have to learn how to interpret them, to look for clues that can help you put them in context. You have to figure out what's important and weed out what's irrelevant.'

Emily's head was hurting, and her eyes were stinging.

'Can you see them, Emily?' Madame asked. 'The missing students. . Can you see where they are? Is anything coming to you?'

Emily shook her head. 'I see the future, not the present,' she whispered.

'Concentrate on the future of one of them,' Madame urged. 'Carter. Do you see him in the future?'

She tried very, very hard, so hard her head wasn't just hurting, it was throbbing. Something started happening. A blurry image began to form. .

In pain, she managed to say, 'I see him, I see him.'

'Where is he?' Madame asked.

'Here. He's here, in class, in his seat.'

'And the others?' Madame persisted. 'Where are they?'

Her head was about to explode. Emily burst into tears. 'I don't know, I don't know.'

She was dimly aware of Jenna on one side of her, Madame on the other. As they led her out of the room, Madame spoke softly.

'I'm sorry, Emily, I shouldn't have pushed you like that. I'm going to send you to the infirmary and have your mother called. Jenna, could you go with her?'

A short time later, Emily was lying on the infirmary cot, and the school nurse was calling her mother. And it