“Honey, that’s not true—” Brenda protested, then stopped, hearing her own words ringing in her ears, words she’d never intended for Josh to hear — words that certainly hadn’t been meant in the way he’d interpreted them. But if all he’d heard were the last few words she’d said to Dr. Engersol …
“Oh, darling, I’m sorry,” she told him, kneeling down and hugging him close. “Of course I want to take you home. But this is where you belong. You didn’t flunk the test. You did better on it than anyone ever has before! All I was saying was that I’m sorry you can’t start right away!”
Josh was staring at her, his eyes widening as what she was saying sank in. “I passed?” he asked. “I got in?”
“Of course you did,” Brenda told him.
“B-But what if I don’t want to stay?” he asked, his voice quavering with uncertainty. “What if I don’t like it here? What if I want to go home?”
Before Brenda could answer, the little girl she’d seen outside George Engersol’s office a few moments ago tentatively approached the car.
“Josh?” Amy asked. “What’s wrong?”
“N-Nothing,” Josh stammered, unwilling to tell Amy how frightened he suddenly was. “Maybe I just don’t want to come here.”
Amy looked hurt, but then reached out and took Josh’s arm. “But you have to,” she argued. “You promised, remember? If you got in, I’d stay, and we’d be friends.”
“That was before,” Josh mumbled.
Amy’s eyes welled up, but she stood firm. “You mean you don’t want to be my friend?”
“N-No,” Josh said. “I mean, that’s not what I mean. It’s—”
“But you can’t be my friend if I never see you again,” Amy told him.
“So what?” Josh objected. “You don’t even know me.”
Amy hesitated, then made up her mind. “Yes, I do,” she said, her own face setting as stubbornly as Josh’s. “You’re just like me. You’re scared, that’s all. And you said you don’t have any friends back in the desert anyway. So you might as well stay. Okay?”
Josh blinked at the little girl. Was it possible she really meant it? That she really wanted him to be her friend? But he’d already made up his mind. How could he change it now?
And then his mother spoke. “Look,” she said. “I didn’t mean what you thought I meant, and I’m not going to make you do anything you don’t want to do. So why don’t we go to the picnic on the beach, like Mrs. Kramer asked us to, and you can make up your mind later on. Afterward, if you still don’t want to stay here, I promise I’ll take you home, and never even suggest a place like this again. Okay?”
Josh gazed suspiciously up at her. “Cross your heart?”
“Cross my heart,” Brenda replied, somberly making the required gesture.
Josh hesitated, then nodded. “All right,” he said. “But remember, you promised.”
Breathing a sigh of relief, Brenda followed the two children as they headed back toward the mansion so Amy could get a beach towel.
7
It was nearly six o’clock by the time Josh and Amy, accompanied by Brenda, reached the top of the cliff that overlooked Crescent Cove, a narrow strip of sand caught between two rugged points that jutted out into the sea. The points, rocky crags that bore the brunt of the winds off the Pacific, were studded with twisted Cyprus trees. Brenda paused for a moment to gaze at the panorama spread before her. “Isn’t it gorgeous?” she asked. “Maybe I ought to quit my job and move here.” But even as she spoke the words, she knew it was impossible. Every one of the restaurants they had passed as they walked through the town seemed to have an ample supply of college girls working as waitresses. Even if she could find a job, she’d never be able to afford to rent an apartment here. “Or maybe I ought to be thankful for what I’ve got, huh?” she added.
When Josh made no response, she tore her eyes away from the view and glanced down at him. But he wasn’t paying any attention to her, or to the view of the ocean. Instead, he was staring at Amy, who, in turn, had turned pale, her eyes wide as she stared down at the beach below.
“Amy?” Brenda asked. “Are you all right?”
The little girl shook her head. “I–I feel dizzy,” she said. She took a step backward and turned away from the precipice. “I felt like I was going to fall off,” she whispered.
“It’s called acrophobia,” Josh announced. “It’s when you’re afraid of heights.”
“I
“What about the picnic?” Josh protested.
“I–I don’t really like picnics,” Amy lied, her eyes still fastened on the stairs.
“You’re scared of the stairs, aren’t you?” Brenda asked, crouching down next to the little girl. Amy said nothing, but her head bobbed emphatically. “I’m sure they’re perfectly safe,” Brenda assured her. “Look at all the people down there. They all went down the stairs.” She took Amy’s left hand and tried to lead her closer to the edge so she could see the rest of the kids playing on the beach, but Amy hung back.
“Wh-What if I fall?” she asked, her voice quavering.
Josh moved over to her and took her other hand, so she was between him and his mother. “I won’t let you fall.”
Uncertainly, Amy let herself be drawn closer to the edge, but once more the dizziness seemed to overwhelm her, and she almost felt like she was being pulled over the cliff.
“It’s okay,” Josh told her, squeezing her hand. “You’re not gonna fall.”
A moment later they came to the landing at the top of the stairs. Amy froze, refusing to put even her toe on the weathered, splintery wood.
“You go first, Mom,” Josh said. “Then she’ll see that it’s not going to collapse.”
Brenda, feeling a touch of vertigo herself, hesitated a second, praying that her son was right, but then stepped onto the landing and started down, her hand grasping the rail with every step. “See?” she said with more brightness than she felt. “It’s perfectly safe.”
Amy watched her warily, then looked fearfully at Josh. “Promise you’ll hold my hand all the way down?” she asked.
“I promise,” Josh replied. “If you stay on the inside and don’t look down, you’ll be okay. Come on.”
He moved out onto the landing. Clutching his hand tightly, Amy took a deep breath and put her foot on the wooden planks.
Was it her imagination, or could she feel them shaking beneath her foot?
Holding on to Josh with one hand, her other steadying herself against the face of the cliff, she started down.
With each step, she imagined herself pitching forward, tumbling off the stairs, plummeting to the rocky beach below.
“It’s gonna be okay,” Josh assured her, sensing her fear. “You’ll see. Just keep going.”
A few minutes later they came to the last turn. Only fifteen more steps separated them from the beach. Amy, her panic finally releasing her from its grip, let go of Josh’s hand. “I did it,” she breathed. “I made it.” Breaking into laughter, she skipped down the last of the steps, picked her way over the rocks and ran down the beach to the water, kicking off the rubber sandals she was wearing as she went.
Brenda, already on the beach, watched Amy go, then shifted her attention back to George Engersol.
Halfway down the steps she’d noticed him, already on the beach, watching Amy’s progress as she crept down the stairs. Indeed, she’d paused for a moment, watching him as he observed the little girl. When he finally felt
