One Tiny Secret Read online

  “Wow, she must really hate me,” I murmur.

  After driving a few blocks, I see Janice walking down the sidewalk toward the library. I honk my horn and she stops, turning around to face the car. She raises her hand and brushes the long, wind-blown strands of her light brown hair behind her ear. A huge smile shows on her face as she waves at me.

  “Hop in,” I call out of the open passenger window.

  “I can’t believe I’m doing this. This is so crazy. My mom will destroy me if she finds out,” Janice states while settling into the car.

  “It’s not too late to change your mind if you don’t feel up to it,” I comment, throwing the car into park in case she has a change of heart.

  “No, it’s cool. Just pre-party jitters, I guess. Did you bring the costume?”

  “Yep. It’s in the basket back there,” I reply, pointing to the back seat.

  Janice grabs the basket and opens it in her lap. Pulling the garment out, she says, “Wow. This is hardly what I’d consider clothing.”

  I laugh. “Yeah, it’s a little skimpy, but I figured you could make a statement with it. You know, show those jerks who gave you a hard time that you’re not messing around. And if you get cold, I’ve got a jacket in there you can borrow.”

  She sends me a look that I’m pretty sure is one of uncertainty. She starts to bite her lower lip like she’s mulling over the decision to wear the costume. “You sure this is a good idea?”

  “Of course it is. I don’t even think people will recognize you tonight,” I reply with a grin.

  “All right, you’ve convinced me. Let’s do this,” she says. “I only see one little issue though.”

  “What’s that?”

  “Where am I going to get changed? And isn’t there make-up involved in this getup?”

  “Leave that to me. Don’t worry your little head about it,” I answer, putting the car into drive and pulling back onto the road.

  Our next destination is the costume store. Rory’s working there until nine, and I’m sure he’ll let us use a dressing room to get Janice ready.

  When we enter the store, the shrill scream from the doormat makes me jump. I hear Janice’s stifled laugh behind me, and turn to see her trying to hide her grin with her hand.

  “A little jumpy, are we?” Rory asks, leaping over the front counter to greet us.

  “That stupid little mat scared the hell out of me,” I laugh.

  “I noticed,” he replies. “Uh, who’s the dame?”

  “Oh, this is Janice, my next-door neighbor. She’s joining us for the party tonight. That’s actually why we’re here. I need a quick favor.” I drag Janice to stand beside me instead of hiding shyly behind.

  “Oh, really? And what might that be?” he asks with an eyebrow raised.

  “Could we borrow one of the dressing rooms to get her in costume?”

  “I don’t know…what’s in it for me?” he asks with a grin.

  “Come on, Rory.”

  He laughs. “All right. I can’t bear to see you beg.”

  He grabs the key from behind the counter and leads us to the dressing room area. “Make it quick, okay? I don’t want the boss giving me a hard time about this.”

  “Got it,” I reply, guiding Janice into one of the stalls. “You’re so awesome, Rory, seriously.”

  “Yeah, yeah, yeah. You’re welcome. Now hurry up.”

  After closing Janice in the dressing room, I notice I still have the basket in my hand. “You’re probably going to need this,” I say handing the basket over the top of the door.

  “Thanks.”

  A few minutes go by. After I hear sounds of struggling coming from within the stall, Janice emerges in full costume. She looks fantastic. I position her in front of the full-length mirror so she can see herself.

  “You look awesome,” I squeal, smiling ear to ear. I notice that Janice also has a smile as she scans her reflection.

  “Wow,” is all she can get out.

  “I’ll say,” I laugh. “Now’s it’s time for the makeup.”

  Pulling her back into the stall, I remove the makeup kit from the basket and have her sit down on the long white bench running the length of the dressing room wall. As I begin the application process, I delve into a reflective mood. Janice and I haven’t talked for what seems like forever, but here we are, acting like we did all those years ago. Like nothing’s changed. I’ve missed this. I see by the look on her face that she’s caught me reminiscing.

  “This reminds me of when we used to have dress-up sleepovers,” she says.

  “Yeah, those were some great times, huh?” I grab the black lip gloss. “I know I said it earlier, but I’m really sorry for being such a bad friend. I should’ve stood up for you, but I didn’t. I’ve regretted it so much over the years. You have no idea.”

  “Don’t worry about it. That’s all in the past, right?” she responds.

  “I just feel that if I would’ve done something…anything, you wouldn’t be in the position you’re in now.”

  “Kids are cruel. You had no way of controlling them. Don’t beat yourself up over this. Besides, my mom’s the real issue here.” Janice places her hand on my shoulder and sends me a look of endearment. “I’m glad you asked me to hang out tonight. It’s been way overdue.”

  “I agree. We’re going to have so much fun tonight. I can feel it.”

  She laughs. “I hope so.”

  “Finished,” I say, putting the lip gloss back into my makeup kit.

  “Your time’s up, ladies,” Rory calls into the dressing room.

  Chapter Five

  The location of the Shriek and Howl Halloween Bash is deep within a wooded area on the edge of the Holden Ridge city limits. We have to park our cars in a cordoned-off lot, already a ways into the woods, and then walk the rest of the way. This is a precautionary measure so that if the deputies find our vehicles, they have to maneuver the twisting and winding labyrinth-like path to find the party. Gunnar goes to great lengths to keep these parties as hidden as possible.

  Reaching what I think is the entrance, Janice and I stop to admire the decorations. There’s a long passageway that seems like it was formed naturally by the surrounding foliage. Two scarecrows with gnarled branches for hands, arms, and legs stand guard on either side of the passage. The sinister smiles cut into their pumpkin heads are brought to life by the eerie flicker of the candles inside.

  Just above the archway is an old wooden sign, bearing the words “Drink Me” painted in white. An arrow points to a table littered with shot glasses. There are a ton of empty glasses flipped upside down already, which means the majority of the party guests have been through here.

  “Bottoms up,” I say, handing a drink to Janice. “Here’s to a rekindled friendship.”

  “To a rekindled friendship,” she repeats with a smile.

  We clink the shot glasses together in a toast and toss them back. An intense burn flows from my throat all the way up through my nose. I cough a little and so does she.

  “Holy shit, that stuff’s strong,” I blurt after catching my breath.

  “Yeah,” she manages between coughs.

  “What the hell was in that?”

  Janice giggles. “It kind of tasted like pumpkin pie.”

  “Yeah, if it was mixed with kerosene.”

  “So, now what?” she asks, placing her shot glass upside down on the table.

  “I guess we travel down the rabbit hole,” I answer while staring into the passageway before us.

  “Wait—we’re going through there?”

  I hear the hesitation in Janice’s voice. “I guess so. Do you need a little more liquid courage before we do?”

  “Definitely not.”

  “Okay then, in we go,” I say, leading the way into the vortex of foliage.

  A little ways down the passage, it opens up and we find ourselves surrounded by jack-o-lanterns with scary carved faces. All of them are littered throughout the area above and around us. The
scene is so beautifully haunting that it takes my breath away.

  “Gunnar really goes all out, doesn’t he?”

  I wait for Janice’s response, but she’s too distracted by all the dancing lights within the pumpkins.

  Continuing down the passageway, following the winding path, we eventually hear some noise in the distance. A bright, fiery light emanates from what looks like the end of the tunnel. The heavy thunderous rhythm of the music coming from up ahead reverberates through the cramped space of the passage.

  “That’s probably my friend, Alex’s, band playing right now,” I comment as we continue to move forward.

  “Cool. Can’t wait to meet her.”

  “I think you’ll like her. She’s a little wild, but you get used to her ways. Oh, and she’s the daughter of Pastor Bachman.”

  “I know him. He’s the pastor at the church my mom drags me to,” Janice replies.

  “Drags you to?”

  “Just because my mom became ‘enlightened’ doesn’t mean I believe like she does, Dani,” She says with agitation in her voice.

  “Sorry, I didn’t mean to offend.”

  “It’s no big deal. I just didn’t want you to think that I’m some religious freak like my mother. It’s funny, because she says she’s so religious and such a true Christian, yet she spews so much venom toward others.”

  A clearly drunk couple stumbles up the path toward us, catching my attention. They’re dressed as sexy Raggedy Ann and Andy dolls. I laugh under my breath when Andy tries to make a pass at Ann and she shuts him down, turning her lips away from his with a look of disgust. A palm to his face seals the rejection.

  “Sorry, Janice, that was just too funny not to watch,” I say, watching the couple continue to shamble toward the exit. “And I never thought you were like your mother. That’s her deal, not yours.”

  “Exactly,” she replies with a content smile. “Glad you understand.”

  I wrap my arm around her shoulder and pull her in for a side hug. “I’m so happy you’re here with me tonight. You were so right…this was way overdue.”

  “Promise me something, though?”

  “Sure, what’s up?”

  “Promise me we won’t be leaving the party like those two,” she jokes, gesturing to the drunkards with a slight nod of her head.

  I laugh. “I think I can manage that. Ready to party?”

  She smirks. “I think so.”

  I feel the heat from the bonfire before we emerge from the security of the thick foliage. The roaring fire is surrounded by hoards of people, casting their shadows up into the canopy above and making quite the sight to behold.

  Scanning the crowd, I see that everyone has a good old red Solo cup in hand. My eyes seek out the keg bar. Gunnar’s dad owns the local brewery, H.R. Brew, and he supplies the beer for all his son’s parties. I heard a rumor that the pumpkin ale is fantastic, and can’t wait to wrap my lips around one of those cups full of that exact beverage. I love anything pumpkin.

  I spot Alex making a beeline for us. The first thing I notice is that she wasn’t lying about the costume she had to wear. Tight black spandex with a skeleton pattern affixed to the front of it hugs every curve of her body. Her face is also painted like a skull, with her long, dark brown hair pulled back into a ponytail. She looks like she’s about to come in for a hug, but then stops short.

  “Not a single word,” she says, referring to her outfit. Then she finishes moving in for the hug. As she pulls away and looks behind me, she asks, “Who’s this?”

  “Oh, this is my friend, Janice. She lives next door,” I respond, pulling Janice to stand beside me.

  Alex sends a little wave to Janice. “Cool costume. Hey, wasn’t that the one you wore in the haunted house at school two years ago?” she asks me, and I nod. “Thought so.” She turns her focus back to Janice. “So, you’re Janice, huh? I’ve heard a lot about you.”

  “Alex!” I reprimand when I see Janice’s expression change to an inquisitive one.

  “All good things, of course,” she responds quickly in a playful manner.

  I look over to see a smile on Janice’s face again.

  “So, that was you guys playing earlier?” Janice asks Alex.

  “That depends…did you like it?” she queries.

  “Yeah, it sounded pretty awesome.”

  Alex laughs. “Then yes, that was us. Hey, have you seen Rory tonight? That assclown was supposed to bring me a change of costume.”

  I laugh at the “assclown” comment and reply, “We saw him earlier at the store, but not here, no.”

  “I hope he didn’t forget,” she mutters. “So, it was nice meeting you, Janice, but unfortunately I’ve got to get back on stage. I hear the band queuing up again,” she says, and turns to me. “If you see Rory, tell him I’m looking for him, ’kay?”

  “Got it. Have fun up there,” I tease, since it seems obvious she’s not having a good time in her spandex getup.

  “I’ll try,” she drawls unenthusiastically while walking away.

  “She was nice,” Janice comments off to the side.

  “See, you’re fitting in just fine.”

  “Uh, we’ve only met one person so far, and she’s your friend,” Janice quips.

  “The night’s still young. Lighten up. Hey, how about a drink? I think I see the beer trail over there,” I say, pointing to a couple of kegs sitting on the ground. They’re next to a pathway that looks like it leads farther into the forest.

  “Sure. I think it’d be good for me to loosen up a bit more anyway.”

  Navigating the crowd proves a little difficult around the start of the beer trail, which isn’t surprising. Finally, we get to the two kegs nestled up against a tree. I look around for the cups.

  “Those are tapped out,” I hear a female say. I turn to see Phoebe standing there dressed as the female version of Freddy Krueger, which really is just a shredded red-and-green striped sweater, black hot pants, fishnets, a nice brown fedora, and the legendary knifed glove on her right hand.

  “Slutty Freddy, huh?”

  “Yep,” she replies, putting one of the bladed fingers up to her mouth. She busts out laughing. “Like you can talk, Naughty Red.”

  “Fair enough,” I joke, looking down at my scant outfit.

  I notice Phoebe study Janice up and down. “Oh my God—Janice?” she asks.

  “Surprise,” Janice says timidly.

  “Wow. You dress up nice, girl. I’m surprised to see you here. Come to think of it, I don’t really see you around much…well, ever, actually,” Phoebe comments.

  “Yeah, I guess it has been a while, hasn’t it?” Janice replies.

  “Hey, how about you two catch up for a bit while I fetch us some drinks?” I ask Janice. “What can I get ya?”

  “Get me one of whatever you’re having.”

  “All right, two pumpkin ales coming right up.”

  “The kegs are down that path and to the left. I don’t know why Gunnar put them all the way back there, but it’s kind of dark. Did you get your complimentary raver accessories?” Phoebe asks showing off the neon glow stick bands around her wrists and neck.

  “I’ve got my phone’s light. I’ll manage,” I reply, making my way over to the opening of the trail.

  Chapter Six

  As I flip on the flashlight app on my phone, the path becomes illuminated. The rough terrain, full of leaves and branches, crackles underneath my feet as I make my way through, causing me to feel uneasy. The noise from the party fades as I venture deeper into the woods.

  The darkness is pitch black and the only lit area is wherever my phone’s flashlight hits. The path takes a sharp turn to the left and I keep following it. I find it ironic that I’m dressed as Little Red and wandering through the forest alone. I laugh to myself, and then hear a loud cracking noise off to my left. Quickly panning to the side, I hope my light will catch whatever just made that sound. There’s nothing there.

  I continue on until the trail ends
at two long, white tables with five large silver kegs perched on top of them. They’re each labeled with what’s inside and I immediately go for the pumpkin ale. I place my phone back in my pocket and set the picnic basket on the table before grabbing two red Solo cups. Ah, I love the sound of beer dispensing from a tapped keg.

  I take a sip of the one I fill for myself before filling the next one for Janice. The beer is so good that I keep it in my mouth and let it swirl around to savor the flavor.

  “Damn, I love pumpkin beer,” I say after swallowing it.

  I hear rustling behind me and spin around, dropping my beer in the process. “Shit. Way to go, spaz.”

  After my surprise subsides, I groan, looking down at the little river of deliciousness flowing out of the cup into the dirt. Taking another cup, I fill it and then attempt to grab the other one while picking up my basket at the same time. I reach for my phone to use its light again, but it’s difficult to balance everything.

  “Well, this wasn’t thought out very well, now was it, self?”

  There’s rustling behind me again, only this time it sounds louder, as if it’s right there, but I don’t see anything. Actually, I can’t see much at all in front of me at the moment because the little camping lantern, which provides the only source of light in the area, barely even shines on the beer kegs.

  I panic and place the cups and the basket back on the table so I can pull out my cell phone. I fumble with the phone and it falls to the ground.

  “Dammit,” I mutter when I hear the rustling start up again.

  While feeling around for the phone on the ground I hear footsteps in the distance. I feel the cold plastic of the phone under my hand and pull it to me. Unlocking the screen as quickly as my fingers will allow, I turn on the flashlight app and shine it up the path. I scream when I catch a glimpse of someone standing there.

  “Are you quite finished? Some of us would like to get drunk during this century,” Portia sneers, standing there with a couple of other girls.