THE CHASE
I stood, one arm wrapped around my waist to try and fight the chill of the evening breeze, the other delicately holding a cigarette between my lips. I was leaning back against a tree watching cars and fellow students pass me by and sucking frantically on the filter as I waited for my friends to arrive. With my free hand I buttoned up the bottom two buttons on the denim jacket I'd thankfully found in my locker this morning. It was stupid, and I knew I was being paranoid, but I hoped that the sudden chill wasn't an omen of things to come. Things were bad, I mean really bad and it was all my fault. Well, Jon's and mine, I corrected. A day ago that distinction might have mattered more to me, but after the dream I'd come to realize that everything that had happened was my fault as much as it was his.
Expelling the smoke from my lungs rather quickly, I started to wonder just where the hell Rachel and Sarah were. I was well aware of the fact that Rachel was probably right. Giving Sarah a crack at the stone was probably an incredibly stupid thing to do, but I just couldn't see a way around it. Of course I'd thought of wishing away her knowledge of the rock. It had been one of the first things to cross my mind, but after all the trouble that small little stone had gotten me, my family, and my friends into, I knew I had to try and find another way. Wishing Sarah's memories away would start me right back down that road I was trying to avoid. Still, there was one wish that had to be made before I'd trust my cheerleading friend with it. Reaching into the purse I'd slung rather carelessly over my shoulder, I pulled the rock out.
For a moment, I simply looked at it. It was so hard to believe that something so small could be responsible for so much. You know the rocks not responsible, my conscience told me. It's just as responsible for the wishes you make as the gun that kills somebody is for the murder. It's the wielder that holds the responsibility. I shook my head nervously and absentmindedly crushed the cigarette out beneath my shoe. Before I made the wish, my eyes glanced toward the sky one more time. We'll make this right Jonny. The thought was broken when I watched a crow leap from a branch above me and streak across the sky. I knew it was just my imagination but it had almost seemed to be watching me, scrutinizing me. It was crazy, and I was certain it couldn't be the same bird I'd noticed as Rachel, Sarah, and I had made our way back into the school after lunch.
It was just a coincidence.
Holding the rock so tightly it almost hurt my hand, I made my wish. "I wish that any wish Sarah makes would not affect anybody but her, and that once she makes the wish, she'll be compelled to hand the rock back to me immediately." I paused. It sounded good anyway. It would let Sarah have a little bit of fun with a relatively small amount of risk, and more importantly it would make sure that this curse found its way back into my hands.
That was the moment that Rachel chose to scare the living shit out of me by placing her hand on my shoulder from behind. I won't lie, I probably jumped a good fifteen feet okay, maybe that's a bit of an exaggeration, but when I turned to look at her, she obviously knew she'd caught me off guard. There was an apologetic look in her eye, and I found it difficult to stay angry. Besides, Rachel wasn't the one I was angry at. I stepped back and took a deep breath and did my best to offer up a smile.
"I was starting to worry," I told her. I watched as Sarah McMillan approached as well. "What the hell took so long?" I didn't mean to sound so agitated, but it was hard to keep the edge out of my voice. Rachel was a good friend though and she knew me well enough not to take it personally.
"Sorry about that Nat," she said, gesturing toward Sarah, who offered up a smile even as her eyes traveled up and down my form, fixating on my hands. I knew what she was looking for and so for the moment I let it pass. "Sarah and Steve were in the middle of the world's grossest make out session when I found them.
"You didn't tell him, did you?" I snapped, my eyes locked on Sarah's. Again, I hadn't meant to sound so sharp, but I couldn't help it. As much as I wanted to believe that things were getting better, I couldn't shake the feeling that there was a storm building. Malcolm and Grandpa had both warned me that something was coming.
Sarah looked a little taken aback, her cobalt eyes betraying her surprise. She shook her head and took a step back. "Of course not. I promised I wouldn't and I kept my word."
I sighed softly. Of course she didn't. Still possessing, at least to some degree, some of Jon's memories, I knew how he perceived Sarah, and I hoped I wasn't letting it color my view of the fellow cheerleader. He'd thought of her as evil and well, evil pretty well summed it up. Well, that and hot as hell. Still, I knew from personal experience that she wasn't the embodiment of evil. Sure, she could be a little narcissistic and self-centered, but underneath that she was a descent enough person. We'd been friends for a long time, and part of me was more than a little surprised that I felt so conflicted now when it came to her.
"I'm sorry," I said, shaking my head. "It's been a long week. Of course you didn't tell anybody." I reached back into my purse and pulled out the stone. "I promised you a wish," I told her, reaching out, "So go ahead and make it." Sarah's face lit in a smile that almost outshone her long, bleach blond hair. As I passed it over, I glanced at Rachel and caught the question in her eye.
Did you take the precautions? her gaze seemed to ask.
I nodded almost imperceptibly.
She nodded back and watched as Sarah now held the stone in her hand. I smiled.
Sarah looked at the rock cupped in her hands now, and back at me. She glanced back toward the rock one more time before she bolted.
For a moment I just stood there. I couldn't believe what I'd just seen. "Well fuck me," I whispered as my mind slowly started to catch up. Sarah had taken the rock and she'd bolted. "There is no fucking way I could have seen that coming," I said, looking at the stunned expression that Rachel wore on her face.
"We should go after her," Rachel said softly, apparently as surprised as I'd been. I nodded. And we took off at a run. "What exactly did you do to protect it?" Rachel shouted as we ran, chasing after the blond that had run off with potentially the most powerful object in the world.
"I wished that the wish she made would only affect her, and that she'd give it right back!"
Rachel nodded briefly, and then added, "She didn't make a wish Nat." She said it so nonchalantly that I almost burst out laughing out of sheer frustration.
"No shit Sherlock!" I screamed. It had been such a simple plan. We'd let Sarah indulge in her wish, and then we'd set to work trying to figure out how to find Grandpa's diary. I still wanted to try and improve Karyn's situation, but at least for the moment she was alive and she didn't seem to be hurting anybody.
As we ran on I started to really regret my smoking habit. I was getting a little winded as we watched Sarah run around the corner at the end of the block. I am such a moron! that little voice inside shouted. I rolled my eyes and made one last ditch effort to pick up some speed. We rounded the corner just in time to watch her turn into a yard. It was a yard I recognized.
I stopped and doubled over a little as I caught my breath on the sidewalk just outside the front yard of my parents' house. What the hell is she doing here? We'd arrived just in time to watch the front door slam shut behind her. It took a moment before I could stand upright again. "I really need to quit smoking," I whispered as I looked up at the house. True I'd been here last only a few days ago, but that seemed like an eternity ago. The more I thought about it, the more I came to realize that this was where everything had begun.
Glancing at my friend told me that Rachel was just as spooked as I was. Still, this was no time to lose our nerve. We had to get that rock back. Slowly, I approached the front door. For a fraction of a second I thought about knocking, that is before I realized what a dumbass move that would be. Instead, casting one last look at Rachel for support, I turned the knob and slid the door open.
What I saw inside was enough to convince me that the real shit was only just starting to hit the fan
