Speak No Evil

‘Good news, class! I’ve just had a conversation with Doctor Paley. Carter has had a breakthrough. He’s talking!’

‘What’s he saying?’ Tracey asked.

‘He’s just beginning to remember who he is, where he came from. Doctor Paley couldn’t talk long, so I don’t have any details yet.’

‘Is he talking about us?’ Jenna wanted to know.

‘Doctor Paley didn’t say.’ Madame’s eyes swept the room. ‘Class, I know you’re all concerned, not only for Carter but for your own safety as well. And I can understand that. But Doctor Paley is a medical person, a specialist. He accepts the possibilities of abilities that cannot be explained by science. He is a man of integrity. I trust him, and I believe he can help us.’

Jenna wasn’t satisfied with that. ‘But what if Carter starts talking to other people at Harmony House? Some of the kids who stay there are bad news.’

The bell rang. ‘I’ll bring this concern up with Doctor Paley,’ Madame promised as she dismissed them.

As she rose from her desk, Amanda was hoping that Jenna might have forgotten about their after-school plans. No such luck. Jenna made it to the doorway first, and practically blocked Amanda from leaving.

‘Let’s go.’

‘I need to stop by my locker,’ Amanda protested. She didn’t really, but she’d do anything to postpone this adventure. She had a sudden inspiration. ‘I’ll meet you by the back entrance.’

Jenna looked at her sceptically, but she nodded and took off. Ken joined Amanda, and they walked together to her locker.

‘That’s really cool, what you’re doing,’ Ken said. ‘Are you scared?’

‘A little nervous,’ Amanda admitted. ‘I don’t know if it’ll work. And even if I can take someone over, I always worry about being able to get back into myself.’

‘Want me to come along with you guys?’

Of course, she would love to have him come along, but she knew it wasn’t a good idea. Jenna would only entertain him with tales of Amanda’s selfishness.

She smiled sweetly. ‘It’s so nice of you to offer, Ken. But if you’re there, it might make it harder for me to take over someone.’

‘Why?’

This was risky, but she had to take a chance. She lowered her eyes demurely. ‘Because I have to concentrate really hard to do it. And if you’re there. . well, it might be hard to concentrate on anyone else.’

Was she coming on too strong? She cast a sidelong glance at him. It was hard to say, but she could swear she saw a little blush creep up his face. Then he smiled. Unfortunately, he wasn’t looking at her any more.

‘Hi, Nina.’

And there she was, the frenemy, waiting by Amanda’s locker. Like a cat, waiting for a mouse and ready to pounce.

Nina acted like she was happy to see both of them, but Amanda knew a performance when she saw one.

‘Hi, guys!’ Nina chirped. ‘Have you seen how nice it is outside? It’s like summer! I am so totally up for an ice cream. Who wants to come with me?’

Amanda rolled her eyes. Nina never ate ice cream. She was one of those idiots who never consumed anything nice, for fear it might add an ounce to her scrawny frame.

And to make matters worse, Jenna chose that precise moment to appear. ‘Are you ready to go?’ she asked Amanda.

Amanda should have known Jenna wouldn’t wait long by the back door. She was probably worried Amanda would sneak out of the front entrance. Which was exactly what she had been considering.

Nina, of course, was staring at Jenna with her mouth open. Amanda didn’t have to be a mind-reader to know what was going on in her so-called friend’s head. The notorious goth girl had plans with Queen Beeson?

‘Class project,’ Amanda offered by way of explanation. She raised her hand in a casual salute to the others. But inside she was tormented as she left Ken alone with Nina to get ice cream.

Was Nina really a threat? OK, she was cute, but Amanda knew she herself was cuter. Looks weren’t everything, though. And Nina did have something Amanda didn’t have. Nina was normal. She didn’t have any weird gift to deal with. Ken wanted to be normal. Would he be intrigued with the notion of hanging out with a normal girl?

Of course, she said nothing about this to Jenna. Not that Jenna would care. As soon as they were out of the building, she started to give instructions.

‘We’ll take the bus to City Hall and walk from there. There are usually three or four new admissions to Harmony House every day, and we can check them out in the reception area.’

‘Whatever,’ Amanda mumbled. They crossed the street and went to the bus stop.

Jenna continued. ‘It’s important that you’re very careful about whose body you take over. Boys and girls live in separate sections, so it’s best to pick a boy. You’ll be able to hang around Carter more. If you’re a girl, you’ll only be able to see him in the dining hall, the TV room and the game room. You won’t be able to get into Carter’s room.’

Amanda tried to tune her out. Blah, blah, blah. . She didn’t want to listen to Jenna’s instructions. All she could do was concentrate on blocking Jenna from hearing her own thoughts, mainly the thought that she did not want to be doing this at all.

CHAPTER SEVEN

THE BOY FORMERLY KNOWN as Carter Street had been in Dr Paley’s office for hours now. This was the third time he’d watched the video and listened to himself tell his story under hypnosis, but it wasn’t getting any easier for him. He still couldn’t get used to the sound of his voice. He sounded so normal — even if the story he told wasn’t ordinary at all.

‘I didn’t know where to go. I stayed at home.’

From off screen, the voice of Dr Paley could be heard. ‘Why did you choose to be a gerbil?’

‘It was the first thing that came to my mind, because I’d just asked my mother about getting a gerbil.’

‘Where you shocked to realize you could do this?’

‘No. It felt natural. I had to be something very small to hide.’

‘How did you survive?’ Dr Paley asked. ‘Were you able to eat anything?’

‘I found some crumbs behind the stove. That was a surprise. My mother was always sweeping the floor.’

‘Where did you sleep, Paul?’

That name. . He’d completely forgotten it. It still wasn’t familiar, but strangely enough, it sounded right.

‘The bottom drawer of my chest of drawers was open. I was able to jump in and sleep on a sweater.’

‘How long did you stay in the house?’

‘I don’t know. I couldn’t see a clock. I couldn’t even tell if it was day or night.’

‘Why did you leave?’

So many questions. . Paul watched his own face on the screen. He looked tired, but he kept on talking.

‘Some people must have come. I heard them close the drawer of the chest of drawers. I could feel it moving. I couldn’t get out. I was in a dark place with no food. I was hungry.’ He stopped talking, and Paul could see that his body had begun to tremble.

‘Keep talking, Paul. What happened next?’

‘The chest of drawers stopped moving. It was in another place — a cold place. I got hungrier and colder. Then the drawer was opened. I was weak, but I got out of the drawer. People must have seen me — someone yelled, someone threw something at me. I was surprised. I thought people liked gerbils. They keep them as