Dead Past

jerky, popcorn. In the glass reflection she saw them watching her. She lingered over the selections and fished her phone from her pocket, flipped it open, and set it to camera mode.

“I’m not getting a signal,” Diane said as she raised the phone and pointed it in different directions. Pausing toward them, she silently snapped their picture.

“You won’t in here. They blocked the signal when they built the place. Mean of them.”

“Well, damn, how inconvenient,” said Diane, and flipped her phone shut, putting it back in her pocket. She fished change from her pocket, selected a candy bar for herself and a bag a peanuts for Frank, and left the room, noting the name Jessica Davenport written on one of the girl’s notebook as she passed.

Maybe if they were exchanging drugs, particularly methamphetamine, the police could get a line from them on who was behind the meth lab. It was a long shot. They were probably just talking girl stuff. But if they were exchanging drugs, it would be a lead.

Garnett didn’t believe the meth cook, who was probably killed in the explosion, was the only one involved with the lab. Partly, she was sure, because Garnett didn’t want the guilty party to be dead and beyond his grasp. He had told her the firemen found evidence the basement was vented so as not to release the odor of the meth production into the rest of the house. And there were other signs it could have been a high-output operation with a distribution network.

Diane wanted them caught. She wanted them in prison for a long time.

By the third floor Diane was aching all over and feeling nauseated from the worry and an empty stomach. Images of searching the jungle for Ariel came unbidden to her mind-finding the murdered nuns in the mission, hearing Ariel’s music playing on the tape recorder Diane had given her and that had been left along with Ariel’s bloody little shoe for Diane to find.

Oh, God, don’t think about that.

Diane stopped, took a breath, and closed her eyes. No. Go away, she whispered to her brain, not those images now.

She leaned against the wall and unwrapped the candy bar she had bought from the vending machine. It was a Milky Way. It was soft from being in her warm jacket pocket. It tasted sweet and melted in her mouth. She needed the sugar jolt, but not the mess it made. She ate the whole large-sized bar, crumpled up the wrapper, and put it in her pocket. She fished out a Kleenex and wiped her hands and mouth.

Down the hall was a water fountain. Diane walked to it and bent over to take a drink. In the shiny surface of the fountain head, she thought she saw a distorted image of Star.

Chapter 10

Diane spun around and came face-to-face with Star-baggy blue jean overalls, dark eye makeup, spiky hair and all.

“Star!”

Star was obviously surprised at seeing her. “Diane, what are you doing here?”

“Star,” was all Diane could say. She grabbed her and hugged her tightly. She smelled like popcorn. “I can’t tell you how glad I am to see you.” She held her at arm’s length and looked at her.

“I see that,” Star said. “What’s up?”

“I’ve been looking all evening for you. Frank got in a few hours ago and we’ve both been looking for you everywhere.”

“I was here studying. I have a history test tomorrow.” She looked at her watch. “Today. And as you know, it’s real important that I get a good grade. The other kids are sweating their Hope scholarships; I’m sweating Paris.” She paused a beat. “I wasn’t expecting Uncle Frank until tomorrow. He knows I’d be somewhere studying.”

“I’m so glad to have found you.” Diane hugged her again.

“You know I love you to death,” said Star, “but you are acting really weird.”

It was only then that Diane took notice of a slight, brown-haired girl standing beside Star.

“Are you Jenny Baker?”

The girl nodded and looked as if she was a little afraid Diane might hug her, too.

“Your parents are looking for you. We saw them in the library.”

“The library? They’re looking for me? Why? I just saw them the day before yesterday.” Jenny and Star looked at each other and shrugged.

“What’s going on?” asked Star. “Why are you acting so funny?”

“There was a party on Rose Avenue last night,” Diane said cautiously.

“I know, I so wanted to go,” said Star. “It was supposed to be really cool. But you know, Paris comes first.”

“That’s really nice what you’re doing for Star,” said Jenny. “Shopping in Paris for clothes. Wow.”

“It will be my pleasure,” said Diane.

She smiled at the two of them-so overjoyed to find them healthy and whole-then quickly refocused her attention.

“We need to go find Frank. He’s searching the other side of the building.”

“What’s happened?” asked Star again. “Did the party get busted or something?”

Diane took Star’s hand. She reached over and took Jenny’s, too. Star and Jenny exchanged glances again, Jenny’s expression asking Star, “What’s up with her?”

“Diane, what is it?” asked Star.

“The house on Rose Avenue… there was a meth lab in the basement. It exploded while the party was going on and the house burned. Many of the kids didn’t make it out.”

Star sucked in her breath. The two looked at Diane, wide-eyed.

“You mean, they’re… dead?” said Jenny. She slipped her hand from Diane’s and put it over her mouth.

“Yes,” said Diane. “I’m very sorry to say that many are dead. When Frank couldn’t find you… well, you see why we panicked.” Diane looked at Jenny. “And why your parents panicked when they couldn’t get in touch with you. You need to call them.”

“I really was tempted to go to the party,” said Star. “If I wasn’t doing so bad in history…” She let her sentence trail off.

“I knew some of the people who were going,” said Jenny. “Bobby Coleman asked me to go with him,” she said to Star.

Bobby Coleman. Diane hoped her face was impassive. “We need to find Frank. If there’s a pay phone somewhere, Jenny, call your parents. If there’s not a phone you can go outside the building.” As Diane spoke, Star’s gaze never left her face.

“My parents don’t have a cell,” said Jenny.

“Then call home. Someone is probably there waiting in case you call,” said Diane. “Frank and I will be glad to take you home.”

Jenny nodded.

They both looked so young-and fragile.

Diane guessed that Frank was searching at about the same speed as she, so he could be on the same floor. They crossed over to the right side of the building. The problem was that the building had so many wings. Frank was likely to be as hard to find as Star. It was little more than chance that Diane had found her. They went down the hallways, looking into the rooms. Frank would be easy to spot. He looked nothing like the students.

They passed the two young women from the student lounge. Star spoke to them. Their gaze darted to Diane’s face for a fraction of a second as they walked by at a fast clip.

“Well, what’s wrong with those two?” said Star. “They are such snobs. Just wait till I get back from Paris with my new clothes.”

So they had known Star after all, thought Diane. They just didn’t want me to linger so they could get on with whatever they were getting on with. Damn little witches.

“What do you know about those two?” Diane asked Star as she peeked into a classroom.