Young Ladies of Mystery Boxed Set

by Stacy Juba

  Serina laughed without humor. "Surely you don't think your juvenile tricks will work on me. I taught you everything you know. But I didn't teach you everything that I know."

  "I was talented before I met you. Elaine."

  Serina's pale eyebrows drew together. "What did you call me?"

  "I know who you really are," Dawn said. "I’m curious though, Elaine, why did you kill Lindsay instead of her daughter?"

  "I was vacationing in New Hampshire last year and recognized Lindsay on the street. All the old memories resurfaced and I worked up a plan to kill her. Unfortunately, her death didn’t bring me the satisfaction I expected. I attended the funeral and saw her daughter bawling hysterically. I realized that for the other sinners, I should kill a loved one instead to draw out the pain and suffering." Serina gazed at her with burning green eyes. "Do you think Jeff will mourn you, Dawn? It will be interesting to find out."

  Dawn strained to look away, but her head wouldn't move. In her mind, she shouted at Serina to stop, to leave her alone.

  IT’S TIME TO GO FOR A SWIM, DAWN.

  She covered her ears even though the shrill voice screamed from within, each syllable exploding like gunshots. Dawn felt herself walking forward, closer to the edge of the cliff and the convulsing waves. Stop, you’ve got to stop, she told herself.

  KEEP GOING. JUST A LITTLE FURTHER.

  Dawn shut her eyes. Please, just let me go home.

  YOU DON’T HAVE A HOME. THEY DON’T LOVE YOU.

  She wanted to use her mental abilities, but couldn't. She was frozen from inside. Dawn dug deep for the strength she knew she had, the tenacity that had pulled her through her father’s death, years of living with a gift she didn’t understand and the fight with Candace on the roof. She called upon the inner voice she trusted, even though she didn’t always heed its advice.

  What should I do? she silently asked.

  Shield yourself, was the reply. Remember your reading material and you will know.

  The message rang in her head three times before fading away. It wasn't Serina’s voice, nor was it her own thoughts. This was someone familiar. Someone soothing. Dawn’s spirit guide, if Serina was right. Daddy?

  Pressing a hand to her throbbing temple, Dawn touched her Lapis Lazuli earrings and necklace. The crystals were hers now, cleansed of evil. Dawn emptied her lungs, imagined a whirling sparkling ball of white light descending into the ground at her feet, protecting her from Serina’s negative energy. Dawn envisioned a giant glass screen dropping between them. Nothing could get past that screen.

  She was ready.

  You shouldn’t have shared your secrets, Serina. You’re dealing with someone with more talent than you could ever dream of.

  Stroking her necklace, Dawn focused on its coolness against her palm. She pushed everything from her mind except an image of a remorseful Serina turning herself in to the police. She concentrated harder, pictured seventeen-year-old Elaine Corbett on the beach, wearing a salmon dress and pearls, needing the acceptance of the popular kids to quash her insecurities.

  When they had ridiculed her, she had drawn on her psychic talent, the only attribute that made her proud.

  But it failed, Elaine. You must be afraid it will fail again if you’re recruiting teenagers to do your dirty work.

  Serina's face whitened. ELAINE ISN’T HERE. STOP WITH YOUR SILLY CHATTER AND GO INTO THE OCEAN. IT’S TIME FOR YOU TO DIE.

  Her voice sounded like a distant whisper; her mental grip on Dawn vanished. You can call yourself Serina all you want, but you’re still Elaine Corbett, the girl with table legs.

  Serina let out a ragged breath.

  How do you think the real Serina would feel if she knew that you used her abilities to kill people? She’d be ashamed to have trusted you. She’d hate you using her name.

  Her face a hard mask, Serina stumbled toward Dawn. "Foolish girl. You think you can control me." But it came from her mouth, not her mind.

  You loved her. You would have renounced your gift if you could have had your aunt back, the aunt who loved you. Go to the police, Elaine.

  Serina lunged, arms extended, reaching for Dawn. Heart clobbering in her chest, Dawn jumped out of the way. Serina's sandal struck a stone and she teetered on the edge of the cliff. Her arms flailed as she fought to regain her balance. Screaming, she pitched forward, toppling to the rocks.

  Her shriek echoed long after Dawn heard the thud.

  Dawn forced herself to look down at Serina's broken body sprawled across the rocks. Waves covered her white hair, sweeping her to a watery grave.

  It was over. Dawn stared at the foamy water, tears burning her eyes. She'd never meant for it to end this way, but Serina had made her decisions. There was nothing else she could have done. Goodbye Elaine.

  A sob breaking in her throat, Dawn turned and ran, wanting nothing more than to go home.

  Chapter Twenty-One

  PSYCHIC DIDN'T PREDICT

  HER OWN TRAGIC DEATH

  By Jeff Magnuson

  Gazette Editor

  COVINGTON - A local psychic was found dead Thursday by a father and son fishing on Covington Cove. Police have identified the victim as Serina E. Corbett, 43, an area fortuneteller. Roland Moore, 63, of Covington, and his son, Christopher, 30, visiting from Florida, discovered the body around 11 a.m. while loading equipment into their motorboat. Roland Moore saw the body face-down, floating in the water. With his son's help, he waded in and pulled Corbett to shore.

  Officials haven't yet determined how long Corbett has been dead. Known to her customers only as Serina, Corbett had rented a cottage on 13 Iris Road since spring. She made her living by reading tarot cards and conducting "past life regressions." Police said they found packed bags in her entryway, as if she had been planning to leave town.

  Clients say her predictions were eerily on target. "She told me that she saw flames and to take precautions," said Lenora Hutchins of River Road, who had gone for a reading every month. "I tested my fire alarm, and the batteries were dead. A few weeks later, my daughter forgot to turn off her electric heater before she went to bed and it started a fire. If the alarm hadn't gone off, we wouldn't have woken up in time."

  Hutchins' neighbor, Sandra Bower, only visited Corbett once. "There was something about her that was spooky," Bower said. "She seemed to see right through you. There were all kinds of rumors about her."

  Police are still trying to track down next of kin. Authorities have no leads on whether foul play was involved in Corbett's death, the third violent death in Covington this month.

  "We're investigating," said Lt. James Gedrick. "It's a tragedy, that's all I can say. No one deserves to die like that."

  ***

  Dawn set down the newspaper on the coffee table. "It’s hard to believe she’s dead," she murmured.

  "I don’t get what she was doing here, manipulating you girls." Jeff shook his head as he handed the newspaper to Dawn’s mother. "I feel like there’s a lot more to her story than we’ll ever know."

  That was for sure. Dawn had changed mind control to "brainwashing" and hadn’t informed her family that the deaths of Scott and Tim were murders. They couldn’t possibly comprehend the truth, and even if they did grasp some of it, the idea of Dawn performing mind control would be far too disturbing for her family.

  Nor had Dawn admitted her role in Serina’s fall last week. For the hundredth time, she replayed the incident in her mind. Mentally, Dawn thanked her spirit guide for helping her to think clearly. She didn’t know who her guide was, but sometime when she felt brave, she would go into a deep meditation and ask questions.

  According to the books Dawn had read lately, people could have whole conversations with their guides. She liked to believe her father was the spirit watching out for her, that her body had given her those painful warning signs because of his efforts to make her sit up and listen. In any case, she didn’t plan on doing mind control again anytime soon. If ever.

  Funny, she hadn’t needed S
erina’s training after all. A helping hand had been readily available, if only she had trusted her instincts.

  "I’m sorry she’s dead, but I’m glad that you’ll be starting over," Dawn’s mother said, creasing the newspaper. "I’m feeling better about you meeting your grandparents this winter. Hopefully they can help you unlearn whatever she taught you."

  "Don’t forget too much," Ken said as he ambled into the room. "It’s handy having a psychic in the house."

  Grinning, he flashed a fifty dollar bill and a Patriots schedule behind his father and stepmother’s backs. Dawn’s mouth twitched at the corners. At least one positive thing had come out of this mess. She no longer had to live a lie.

  But, she’d better blow her next gambling prediction so Ken didn’t get addicted.

  "We’ll see," she said.

  ***

  Dawn called Renee and asked her to meet in Covington Center the following morning. On Saturday, Renee was waiting on the circular stone bench that rimmed the courtyard fountain, shoulders slumped under her form-fitting suede jacket.

  Renee sat up erect as Dawn approached. "Did you give any thought to what we talked about? Will you help me find out about my mother?"

  Dawn joined her on the cold slab of bench. She didn’t quite know where to begin. Renee deserved the truth – but how much of it?

  They faced a sandy stretch of beach, deserted except for a child building a sand fortress, his parents watching from afar. Early morning sun burned off the cloud cover fogging the horizon.

  All the fast food stands and gift shops surrounding the courtyard were either boarded-up for the season, or wouldn’t open until noon. A chilly sea breeze swept overhead and Dawn inched up her zipper.

  She pushed the newspaper clipping about Serina’s "accident" into Renee’s lap and turned her body sideways so she could scrutinize the other girl’s reaction. "Have you heard about this?"

  Renee peered at it and her eyebrows rose. "Sure, I’ve heard people talking about it. Why should I care about some dead psychic chick?"

  Because she killed your mother, Dawn wanted to scream.

  But she couldn’t just blurt it out like that, without any build-up to the bizarre explanation.

  "She knew your mother in high school," Dawn said. "I guess you could call the two of them enemies. Your mom used to tease Serina – or Elaine, as she was known back then."

  Renee’s face went steely and her mouth opened as if to object, then she shut it and shoved her hands into her coat pockets.

  Dawn used her silence to press ahead. "I’m sure the teasing was dumb high school stuff, but Serina was a vengeful person. I know this because Candace, Jamie and I were studying with her and she tried to turn us against our families."

  Dawn swallowed a jolt of apprehension before continuing, "We were gullible, taken in by her charm. We didn’t know she had this powerful way of brainwashing people."

  "I don’t get it. What does your being gullible have to do with me?" Renee swished her crinkly blonde hair into a ponytail at the nape of her neck and released it.

  "You can’t repeat what I’m about to say. It’s not something you can confirm with the police, or even prove, because there are no witnesses. I only know this because ... well, because I’m intuitive and put two and two together. Do you promise?"

  Renee hesitated, then gave a rigid nod. "All right, fine. I promise."

  "Serina brainwashed your mother into drinking the poison."

  "What?" Renee let go of the hair clumped around her fingers and snapped up her head. "My mother wouldn’t let some loser with a chip on her shoulder come into her house and brainwash her into committing suicide. How do you force someone to do something so stupid against their will?"

  "I don’t know, but Serina was powerful. She found ways to get what she wanted."

  "You don’t just walk into a house and brainwash someone. It’s not like my mother was in some crazy cult, doped up and living on a compound. She never even mentioned this Serina or Elaine, or whatever her name was."

  Dawn crossed her arms against her chest. Convincing Renee was even harder than she’d anticipated. She saw only one option, entrusting Renee with more information.

  "You’re talking about a different kind of brainwashing," Dawn said in resignation. "When I told you that Serina was powerful, I wasn’t exaggerating. She could read people’s minds and she knew how to get inside them to dig around and plant dangerous thoughts."

  "That’s impossible. That kind of thing happens in movies, not in real life."

  "Look, Renee, you don’t have to believe me. If you really feel your mom committed suicide, then fine. I just wanted to tell you what I think." Dawn broke off as Renee sharply drew in her breath, an amazed expression settling over her features.

  "The marker on my face. I was brainwashed, wasn’t I?"

  Shoot. Dawn had hoped Renee wasn’t smart enough to make that leap in logic.

  "Except, Serina wasn’t even there," Renee went on, before Dawn could rationalize a response. "It happened in the middle of the school hallway. That means, it must have been you or Jamie!"

  Renee sprang off the bench and edged back a few steps, straight into a trash barrel. "How? How did you do it?"

  "We didn’t." Dawn hated lying, but if she confided in anyone about her mind control experimentation, it would be her grandparents, not the meanest gossip in school. "Serina never taught us any of that. We were victims, too. I think you had a breakdown from stress, which is understandable after losing Scott."

  "I cry when I have breakdowns. I don’t draw all over my face. Admit it. You and Jamie had something to do with it." Renee’s eyes flashed with glints of fear and anger.

  Dawn tamped down her mounting frustration. "None of us had Serina’s power. We followed her around like puppies."

  She decided to concede one point. "I suppose it is possible that Serina was involved in that incident and didn’t tell us. We did complain about the way you treated us. You hurt Jamie’s feelings several times, and mine, too."

  "If you’re telling the truth and Serina was as evil as you say, then I’ll bet she killed Scott and Tim." Renee’s voice spiked with uneasiness. "Scott’s mom and Tim’s dad went to high school with my mother, so they must have known Serina back then, too. If my mother was brainwashed into drinking cyanide, then Scott and Tim could have been forced into doing what they did."

  "We could never prove it. Serina’s dead, so we’ll never know how much damage she inflicted."

  "You really weren’t involved with the horrible things she did?" Renee shielded herself behind the barrel, as if using it as a barrier.

  Dawn leaned back against the bench and shivered in a burst of wind. "Of course not. If I was, do you think I would have told you all this?"

  Renee pondered that for a moment, then moved closer to the bench. "I guess not. You know, it’s pretty convenient that Serina’s dead. She didn’t, by any chance, get a little help with her fall, did she?" She tilted her head, her expression thoughtful.

  Dawn moistened her lips. Renee would probably congratulate Dawn for her involvement, but still ... this was Renee. There was a limit to how far she could be trusted.

  "Not from me. All I can tell you for sure is that it’s over now – and that your mother didn’t kill herself."

  At those words, Renee started to tremble and tears gathered in her eyes. She dropped back onto the bench and hung her elbows on her knees. "My mom used to tell me that I was just like her and that she made all kinds of mistakes with me. She was in therapy because she didn’t like herself very much."

  Tears coursed down Renee’s cheeks as she whispered, "After my mom died, I thought I’d disappointed her so much that she didn’t want to be with me anymore. I thought if she’d rather be dead, than be with me, I must be a terrible person."

  "Now you know the truth. It sounds as if she was trying to get her life together and be the person she wanted to be." Impulsively, Dawn laid a hand on Renee’s arm.

  "I was mad
at her for leaving me and making me feel so awful about myself. Once this sinks in, I’ll be furious with Serina, but right now it’s a relief to know my mom didn’t hate me after all." Renee rubbed the sleeve of her jacket across her damp eyes. "Thanks for telling me the truth. Especially after the way I treated you and your friends. I’m sorry."

  "I’m sorry, too."

  Sniffing, Renee sat back down beside Dawn. There, they watched the ocean in silence, not friends, but not quite enemies, either.

  ***

  The next afternoon, Dawn found herself with a waterfront view again, this time in her own backyard. She and Jamie reclined on the patio in twin Adirondack chairs, waves restlessly licking the shore, mirroring Dawn’s own anxiety.

  Something about Jamie made her uneasy. Underneath her coat, her friend wore a short red sweater and miniskirt, but it wasn't her clothes that struck Dawn today. She'd seen the fashion change develop gradually. No, it wasn’t her outfit. There was something else unusual that Dawn couldn’t pinpoint.

  "How’s Candace?" Jamie asked.

  "Vicky says she's hardly talking," Dawn said. "She’s being treated for depression. I don’t know whether she’s upset about the murders, or losing Serina, or both, but I doubt we’ll see her for awhile. "

  "Dawn, I’ve got to tell you something," Jamie said, rubbing her hands together. "I think all that hard work I did with Serina is finally paying off. I’m noticing things I’ve never noticed before and I had a premonition last night."

  Dawn's mouth went dry. "What?"

  "I got a picture of my mother spraining her ankle when she was going down some steps. I was right, yesterday she really tripped. It worked, Dawn. It’s just like you told me. You said if I worked hard, I could do it."

  "That’s great. Being intuitive can be a gift. It’s Serina who turned it into something immoral."

  "We should pick up where we left off. I really want to develop my skills. You’ll help me, won’t you? We don’t need Serina and Candace."