Twisted

by Jo Gibson

  “No.” Jennifer was glad she had the chance to show that they’d done some research. “Spiritualism is a form of religion. It was very popular at the turn of the twentieth century. Disciples of spiritualism believed that it could prove there was life after death.”

  “You’re sure it’s not disrespectful to Kelly?” Tommy still looked concerned.

  “Not at all. It’s a way of showing how much we miss her, and how we all wish she could be here with us.” Jennifer squeezed Tim’s hand as she deviated from their plan. “I think we should all take a moment to say something to Kelly. Just imagine that she’s sitting right next to you, and tell her what’s in your heart. We’ll go around the table so everyone can say something. Dale? Will you start us out?”

  “I’d be glad to.” Dale smiled at Jennifer. He was always ready to give a speech. “Kelly . . . I really admired you. You always had a kind word for everyone and it doesn’t seem right to go through our senior year without you. I just want you to know that you’ll live on in our hearts. You’ve had a real impact on our lives, and we’re all better people for having known you.”

  Melanie nodded. “That’s true. You were my friend, Kelly, and I just wish I’d had a chance to tell you how much I liked you. I’ll never forget how you came to rehearsal early almost every night to help me learn my lines for the spring play.”

  “You helped me, too.” Brian was next. “And I miss you every day, Kelly. You’re the only one who ever laughed at my jokes.”

  Susie giggled. “And all of us know how awful Brian’s jokes are. That was one of the great things about you, Kelly. You were always so careful that you didn’t hurt anyone’s feelings. You were a truly nice person. Ronnie? It’s your turn.”

  “Hey, Kelly.” Ronnie looked very serious. “I miss your smile. And I miss having you sit next to me in homeroom. I used to forget my notebook and you always picked it up for me. I probably would have flunked my junior year without you.”

  Cheryl was next and she shrugged. “What can I say? When I moved to Foothill, Kelly was already dead. I didn’t even know her!”

  “But you’ve heard me talk about her.” Tommy gave her a nudge. “Come on, Cheryl. Everybody has to say something or the séance won’t work.”

  “Okay, I’ll try. But I’m really not sure what to say.”

  “Tell Kelly hello,” Tommy urged her. “Say whatever’s on your mind.”

  Cheryl took a deep breath. “Hi, Kelly. Everybody says you were very nice. Tommy really missed you a lot, at first. All he could think about was you. I hope you won’t be jealous when Tommy starts dating again. I mean . . . he’s all alone and it’s not healthy for him to stay in love with a dead girl forever.”

  Just then a bolt of lightning crackled through the sky. It was accompanied almost immediately by a deafening roar of thunder so loud, everyone jumped.

  “Maybe Kelly doesn’t agree with you.” Dale laughed, but he sobered quickly when Melanie poked him. “Sorry about that.”

  “It’s your turn.” Jennifer turned to Tommy, who took a deep breath.

  “Kelly, honey . . . I know you’re out there somewhere, and I want you to know that I still love you. I think about you every day, and I remember how sweet and warm and loving you were. Sometimes I can hardly stand it because I want to see you again, so much. Just yesterday, I picked up the phone and I started to dial your number. And then I remembered, and I felt so damn helpless. I just want you to know that I’ll never stop loving you, Kelly . . . never.”

  There was a silence so deep that Jennifer could hear herself breathing. Tommy’s little speech had affected her deeply and there were tears in her eyes. She knew she should say something. She was leading the séance. But then Lexie spoke.

  “It’s me, Kelly. Lexie Sussman. You always called me the voice of reason because I was so practical. I don’t feel very practical tonight. I just feel sad that you’re not here. And I’m hoping that somehow you can join us. I know that doesn’t make sense, but I’m still hoping. If you’re out there and you’re listening to all this, please stick around. We need to talk to you again. All of us. Especially Tommy.”

  “Lexie’s right,” Tim said. “Please, Kelly. You’ve just got to contact us. Tommy misses you so much. I really think that if he could talk to you again, it would make him feel better.”

  Jennifer swallowed hard. It was her turn and she wasn’t quite sure what to say. “Hi, Kelly. I’ve never led a séance before, but I’m going to do my best. We’re your friends, Kelly. And we need to talk to you. I’ll light the gold candle now and start the ritual.”

  Tim handed her the gold candle and Jennifer used the master candle to light it. Her hands shook slightly, but no one laughed or made any comment. Everyone seemed very absorbed in the ritual—even Pete, who was only here to critique it.

  “The gold candle burns brightly. It is your guide and your beacon. Oh, spirit friends of our dear departed . . . slip through the curtain between life and death, and favor us with your presence.”

  There was another flash of lightning and Jennifer felt the tension rise. Everyone was watching her as she started to light the tall white tapers at the center of the table.

  “Oh, spirits of darkness and spirits of light. Come to be with us on this night. We interrupt your rest to learn of life. We disturb your peace to help in our plight.”

  Tim squeezed Jennifer’s hand as she finished lighting the tapers, and Jennifer squeezed back. “We will now invoke the spirit we wish to contact. Please try to visualize Kelly’s face as we call her to us by name.”

  Zada had brought three lilac candles. Jennifer spoke the incantation as she lit the first one. “Kelly Anne Bridges, we summon you. From the realm of the living, your friends seek your help.”

  The first lilac candle sputtered, shooting out sparks. Someone gasped and Jennifer almost dropped the master candle. Zada must have brought special candles that sparked when they were ignited.

  As the first candle began to burn and the scent of lilacs filled the air, Jennifer moved on to the second candle. “Kelly Anne Bridges, hear us tonight. Let your spirit soar into our midst.”

  The second lilac candle sparked brightly, but this time Jennifer knew what to expect. When it was burning steadily, she moved on to the third candle.

  “We beckon to you, Kelly Anne Bridges. Come be with us now and fill our hearts with gladness.”

  The third candle sputtered once and burst into flame. All three candles were now burning brightly, and Jennifer went on with the ritual.

  “Kelly Anne Bridges, favor us with a sign. Let us know that you hear us.”

  There was a long, tense moment. Jennifer held her breath and so did everyone else at the table. And then it happened. There was another flash of lightning and the table began to shake.

  Jennifer almost jumped up in fear, but then she realized what must have happened. Even though they hadn’t asked Brian for any special effects, he must have rigged the table. It jiggled wildly for a moment and then it moved, rotating slowly until the lilac candles were positioned right in front of Tommy.

  “Kelly’s spirit is here among us.” Jennifer turned toward Tommy. “She has chosen you, Tommy. Kelly wants you to ask the first question.”

  Tommy’s face looked very pale in the flickering candlelight. “Kelly? Are you . . . all right?”

  The table leg rapped sharply against the floor. Just once. And then it was silent again. Tommy was frowning as he asked another question. “Once for yes, and twice for no? Is that right, Kelly?”

  The table leg rapped once again. And then the table began to rotate until the lilac candles stopped in front of Tim.

  “Me?” Tim looked startled. Brian was following his own script for the séance, and it was really putting them on the spot.

  “Kelly . . .” Tim cleared his throat. “I hope this isn’t too painful for you, but we need to know what happened on the night you died. Can you tell us, please?”

  The table rapped sharply, just once. And th
en an eerie voice floated out of the darkness, coming from somewhere above their heads. “I will tell one of you, but not now. They are calling me and I must go.”

  There was another tremendous clap of thunder and then the table began to rise very slowly, giving them a chance to pull back their clasped hands. It rose almost a foot and then it stopped, hovering there in space.

  “What shall we do?” Susie sounded frightened.

  “Uh . . . nothing.” Jennifer hoped her voice wasn’t shaking. She certainly hadn’t expected this! “Just wait and watch. And keep holding hands.”

  The table hovered in the air and then it began to spin. It spun faster and faster until the candle flames looked like a solid ring of light.

  “Wow!” Tommy gasped as the table stopped spinning and began to lower again. It settled gently against the floor and then the flames began to go out, one by one, as if an unseen hand had pinched them from their wicks.

  They sat in the darkness for a moment, stunned by what they had seen. And then Pete flicked on the lights and began to applaud. “That was fantastic, guys! I hope the kids can get up here tomorrow. This séance skit is nothing short of incredible!”

  “Uh . . . thank you.” Jennifer drew a deep, shaky breath. “I just think I should tell you that this didn’t happen the way we expected. The séance . . . I think it was real!”

  “Sure it was, and you’re still in character.” Pete grinned as he patted her on the back. “Come on, guys. Put away your props and clean up. We’ll have a short critique session by the fireplace.”

  Jennifer waited until everyone was busy, and then she motioned to Tim. “Let’s go find Brian. I want to compliment him on those special effects!”

  Brian was in the kitchen and Jennifer hurried over to pat him on the back. “That was wonderful, Brian. The way the table moved was fantastic!”

  “I still can’t figure out how you did those candles.” Tim reached out to shake Brian’s hand. “Snuffing them out like that was really great!”

  “And the voice from the loudspeakers. It really sounded like Kelly. But . . . I really wish you’d told us exactly what you were going to do. I almost jumped out of my skin when things started to happen.”

  “Yeah. Me, too.” Brian looked completely freaked.

  “You?” Jennifer started to frown. “But . . . why?”

  “Because I didn’t rig any of those things!”

  Tim looked shocked for a moment, but then he started to laugh. “Come on, Brian. We’re the only ones here. You can admit you’re a special effects genius.”

  “That’s true,” Brian admitted. “But somebody else is even better. I’m telling you the truth, guys. I didn’t do it.”

  “You didn’t do anything?” Tim was skeptical.

  “Not me. I thought you guys hired a pro to rig those things. And I was really mad that you didn’t let me in on it.”

  “Wait a minute.” Tim began to frown. “If you didn’t do it, and we didn’t hire anyone else, then who was in charge of the special effects?”

  The question hung in midair, unanswered. They stared at each other for a long moment, and then Jennifer shivered. She wasn’t about to say it, but she was beginning to wonder if it was Kelly.

  Nine

  He sipped his hot chocolate and stared into the flames of the massive, river rock fireplace. They’d critiqued everyone’s performance and now they were all sitting around, just talking. Even though it was past eleven, no one seemed eager to leave the group to go upstairs. Perhaps they were all too rattled by the things that had happened at the séance.

  Someone had just asked Jennifer how they’d managed to snuff out the candles, and she had shrugged. “I don’t know. All I can tell you is, we didn’t do it. And I don’t know who did.”

  “Do you think it was Kelly?” He asked the question that was on everyone’s mind.

  Jennifer looked perplexed as she answered. “Maybe it was. I’m just not sure.”

  He managed to hide his grin, but he was impressed. Jennifer was still in character and she deserved an Academy Award for her performance tonight. She’d seemed genuinely shocked when the table had moved, and she’d actually jumped when Kelly had spoken. He’d seen her face when the candles had begun to extinguish themselves, and she’d looked every bit as spooked as the rest of them. She was acting as if she’d actually contacted Kelly’s spirit.

  Of course, that was impossible. He was sure of that. Some of the best minds of the century had tried to contact the spirits of the dead, and all of them had failed. Arthur Conan Doyle had spent years trying to prove that the spirit world existed, and he had failed. And if the great Harry Houdini had been unable to send a simple code to his wife from the other side, it was ridiculous to think that an amateur like Jennifer could actually talk to Kelly’s spirit.

  The séance was definitely a fake, but he knew he still had to be very careful. There was always the possibility that Kelly had talked to someone before she’d died. The séance could provide a way for that person to reveal Kelly’s secret without exposing his or her identity. And he couldn’t let that happen.

  The grandfather clock began to chime midnight, and Melanie stood up. “I don’t know about the rest of you, but I have to go to bed.”

  “Alone?” Immediately after Susie had asked the question, everyone burst into laughter. She blushed as she tried to explain. “I didn’t mean it that way. I just meant . . . after everything that’s happened tonight, I wouldn’t go upstairs by myself!”

  Melanie grinned good-naturedly. “It doesn’t bother me. Kelly was a friend of mine. If she wants to haunt me, that’s fine.”

  Jennifer watched as Melanie gave a jaunty little wave and headed for the stairs. Perhaps Melanie had the right attitude. Kelly had been their friend in life. There was no reason to think that would change, now that she was dead.

  “She’s right, you know.” Jennifer turned to Tim. “If Kelly’s spirit is here, she’d have no reason to hurt us.”

  Lexie nodded. “That’s true. But I don’t want to be alone and I’m willing to bet that no one else does, either.”

  “How about a little music?” Ronnie reached for his guitar. “I’m working on some old Beatles songs for my aunt and uncle’s twenty-fifth wedding anniversary. You guys can sing along.”

  They were just starting the second chorus of “Here Comes The Sun” when Melanie burst through the doorway. She was wrapped in a robe and her hair was wet and dripping. Her face was the color of chalk, her eyes were wide and unfocused, and she was shaking so hard she could barely stand up.

  Melanie leaned against the doorjamb, gasping. “I didn’t believe it, but now I’ve got proof! Kelly is definitely here!”

  The girls wrapped Melanie in a blanket and gave her a seat directly in front of the fire. They all took turns reassuring her, but it was still almost ten minutes before Melanie was calm enough to tell them what had happened.

  “I went up to my room and I took a shower. I was just toweling off my hair when I noticed that there was something on my pillow. It was this pin.” Melanie held it up so they could see the beautiful gold butterfly pin. “It was fastened to a note.”

  “Let me see.” Tommy took the pin from Melanie’s hand and his face turned pale. “This was Kelly’s pin! How did you get it?”

  “. . . I don’t know. I told you. It was just there, on my pillow. . . . I thought it was a present from one of you until I read the note.”

  “Let’s see the note.” Tim took it and unfolded the piece of paper. “It’s written on Saddlepeak Lodge stationery. And it looks like Kelly’s handwriting to me. It says, My death wasn’t an accident. It was murder. You were my friend. I’ll tell you about it very soon.”

  “No way!” Cheryl was laughing as she turned to Jennifer. “You guys put that stuff on Melanie’s pillow. It’s part of your skit, isn’t it, Jen?”

  “No, it’s not. And I haven’t been upstairs at all tonight. I couldn’t have put it there.”

  “Then Tim did.
” Cheryl turned to him.

  Tim looked very serious as he shook his head. “Honestly, Cheryl . . . it wasn’t me.”

  “Let me see that note.” Lexie took the paper and examined it. “It really does look like Kelly’s writing. But who put it in Melanie’s room?”

  Tommy looked very freaked as he answered the question. “Uh . . . I really hate to say this, but I think Kelly did.”

  “You’re kidding, right?” Cheryl looked astonished. “I mean . . . think about it, Tommy. Do you really believe that Kelly came back from the dead to put a note on Melanie’s pillow?”

  “Yes, I do. I know it sounds crazy, but the pin convinced me. I gave it to Kelly for Christmas last year. And her mother—uh . . .”

  “What?” Tim looked worried as his brother’s voice trailed off. It was clear that Tommy was totally freaked. “What is it, Tommy?”

  “Kelly’s mother knew how much she loved that pin, so she decided to bury it with Kelly.”

  There was a stunned silence that seemed to go on and on, but finally Jennifer broke it. “Maybe Kelly’s mother changed her mind. She might have decided to keep the pin, or give it to someone else.”

  “No way.” Tommy looked grim as he shook his head. “I was right there when Kelly’s mother placed that pin in her casket.”

  They stayed up until almost one in the morning, but finally everyone decided to get some sleep. When the group was breaking up, Pete called Jennifer and Tim over to the side. “Good work, guys. The extra bit you did with the note and the pin was great! When did you plant it?”

  “We didn’t.” Jennifer shook her head. “I know everyone thinks it was part of the séance, but we didn’t have anything to do with it.”

  Pete was still grinning as he turned to Tim. “Is that right, Tim?”

  “Jennifer’s telling the truth. We really don’t know how that pin and note got on Melanie’s pillow.”

  “Excellent!” Pete was so pleased, he laughed out loud. “You guys just never break character, do you? I can hardly wait to see what else you’ve got dreamed up for tomorrow.”