Shadow Girl (5 page)

Jada went to Stan’s house for dinner. Aunt Janet and Uncle Will took me out for Chicago-style pizza. We had a nice time.

I didn’t mention the mean trick Jada played on me in math class. And I didn’t tell them about Jada’s strange answer to my question, even though it stayed in my mind.

I really wanted to solve my problems with Jada without getting my aunt and uncle into it.

I was up in our bedroom, reading the
right
math pages, when Jada returned home. It was a little before ten.

I tried acting normal with her. I was tired, and I really didn’t feel like a fight.

“Hi. What’s up with Stan?” I asked.

Jada pulled a nightshirt from the dresser and started changing for bed. “Not much,” she said. “He got a new CD player.”

“Cool,” I replied.

“We hooked it up and tried it out,” Jada said. She tossed the clothes she had been wearing on the floor beside my bed.

“Where does Stan live?” I asked.

“By the railroad tracks,” Jada said. “In a tiny little house. Stan’s room is about as big as that closet.”

I shook my head. “That’s too bad.”

“His mother is the
worst
cook,” Jada groaned, climbing into bed. “I couldn’t believe what she gave us for dinner. I think she made it with dog-food helper.”

I laughed. “My mom is even worse,” I said. “She’s even cheaper. She uses helper helper!”

Jada frowned at me. “Is that supposed to be funny?”

She clicked off the light, even though I wasn’t ready for bed.

That’s the nicest talk I’ve had with Jada since I arrived.

My last thought before drifting off to sleep.

Later, I was awakened once again by a rustling sound. I blinked open my eyes and glimpsed Jada climbing out of her bed. She tiptoed across the room.

I glanced at the clock. Two thirty-five.

The tree branch tapped at our window. Pale light washed in from a big half-moon.

In the dim light, I could see my cousin quickly pulling a sweatshirt down over a pair of tights.

So it wasn’t a dream, I told myself.

Jada really does get out of bed in the middle of the night and silently gets dressed.

But—then what?

What does she do? Where does she go?

She turned suddenly toward my bed.

I shut my eyes. I didn’t want her to know I was watching her.

She stood perfectly still for a moment. Checking to make sure I hadn’t woken up. Then she bent down and silently began to pull on her boots.

I’m going to follow her, I decided.

I’m going to solve the mystery. I’m going to find out where she goes at night.

Jada crept out of the bedroom into the dark hall.

As soon as she was out of sight, I jumped out of bed.

I straightened my pajamas as I tiptoed across the room to the bedroom door. “Oh—” I tripped over the pile of clothes Jada had dropped on the floor.

I staggered forward a few steps. Caught my balance.

I froze, listening hard. Had she heard me?

No.

I crept into the hall. I blinked, waiting for my eyes to adjust to the dim light.

I could see Jada moving slowly, carefully, to the end of the hall.

She isn’t going to the stairs, I realized. Doesn’t
she plan to go downstairs to get outside?

My heart raced. My bare feet were suddenly cold. The cold ran up my body, making me shiver.

I took a few silent steps closer. The floorboard creaked under my feet. A loud
craaack
.

Did Jada hear it?

She stopped with her back to me. For a moment, she stood as still as a statue.

And then she whirled around quickly.

I was caught!

I let out a gasp. Tried to melt into the shadows. And fell back. Into a doorway.

I clapped my hand over my mouth to keep from making a sound. And waited, listening hard.

Did Jada see me?

Silence. Such a heavy silence, I could hear the thudding heartbeats in my chest.

And then I heard Jada’s soft footsteps moving away.

Safe. She didn’t see me.

Still trembling, I poked my head out from the safety of the doorway. Squinting into the grayness, I saw my cousin step up to the wall at the end of the hall.

What on earth is she doing? I asked myself. And why do I have such a bad feeling about this?

I saw Jada’s hand move. She reached up to the bookshelf against the wall. Did she pull out a book? It was too dark to see.

I heard a soft hum. And the bookshelf began to slide.

I blinked several times and tried to focus. I thought maybe the darkness was playing tricks on me.

But no.

The bookcase slid aside. I could see a doorway behind it. A hidden room!

Jada glanced back one more time. Then she vanished into the room.

I heard the soft hum again as the bookshelf slid back into place.

My mind spinning, I crept out into the hall. What was she doing in there? A shiver ran down my body. I hugged myself, staring at the bookshelf.

I had a sudden urge to run up to it. Find the switch. Slide open the shelf and follow Jada into the secret room.

No, I decided.

I don’t want another fight with my cousin. She is already so mean to me. She already
hates
me.

I’ll wait till she’s out of the house, I decided. And then I’ll do my exploring.

I’ll examine the secret room when Jada isn’t around. Maybe I can find out what she is up to without upsetting her. Without having to face her.

Shivering, I took one last glance at the bookshelf. Then I tiptoed back to my room and slid under the covers.

The next morning, Jada’s bed was still empty. I dressed quickly and hurried downstairs.

Jada sat at the breakfast table, running her hands through her unbrushed hair. “Morning,” she muttered.

“Morning,” I echoed. I slid across from Jada and studied her.

She had dark circles under her eyes. Her hair was a mass of tangles. She yawned loudly.

“What’s your problem?” she snapped.

I guess I was staring too hard. I lowered my eyes. “Nothing,” I muttered.

I wanted to say, “Where did you go last night? What do you do in the middle of the night?” The words were on the tip of my tongue.

But instead, I reached for the box of cornflakes and began to fill my bowl.

I heard a woman’s voice. And realized the kitchen radio was on.

“Another house robbery in Elmwood,” the woman was saying. “Witnesses told police they saw a masked figure in a blue cape running through the neighborhood. Police say they have no clues as to the identity of this daring burglar who enters houses in the middle of the night….”

I didn’t want to go into that secret room by myself. I had no idea what I would find in there. I wanted someone to come with me.

So after school the next day, I caught up to Stan. He was pulling books from his locker and shoving them into his backpack.

He slammed the locker shut when he saw me coming. “Selena—what’s up?”

I glanced around the crowded hall. Kids were laughing and talking, pulling on their coats, getting ready to leave. I glimpsed Jada at the end of the hall, talking to Cindy and a couple of other girls.

I leaned close to Stan and whispered, “Can you help me this afternoon? I’m a little worried about Jada. Can you help me do some spy work?”

He scratched his thick brown hair and narrowed his dark eyes at me. “Spy work? You mean spy on Jada?”

“Not exactly,” I replied. “There is something
strange going on at her house. Can you come over there with me?”

He pulled his wool ski cap over his hair. “Isn’t Jada going ice-skating with Cindy this afternoon?”

I nodded. “Are you going with them or anything?”

“No,” he replied. He waved to some guys across the hall. “I have to go home and walk the dog.”

“Think the dog could wait a little while?” I asked. “I know it sounds crazy. But there’s a room in the house I have to explore. And I’d really like someone to come help me.”

He snickered. “You’re scared?”

“No way,” I said. “It’s just…well…” I tugged his arm. “Come on. It won’t take long. I promise.”

We stepped into a cold, gray day. Low clouds floated over the houses and trees, threatening snow. The air felt damp and heavy.

As we walked to Jada’s house, I told Stan everything. I told him about Jada getting dressed in the middle of the night. And about the hidden room she disappeared into.

“It’s a total mystery,” I said.

“Did you ask her about it?” Stan asked.

“Yes, the first time,” I replied. “She said she didn’t get up. She said I was dreaming. And she was really angry that I asked.”

Stan scrunched up his face. I could see he was thinking hard. “Weird,” he muttered. “It’s too weird.”

We reached the house. I pulled out the door key Aunt Janet had given me. We stepped inside. The warm air felt good on my frozen face. “Anyone home?” I called.

I knew my aunt and uncle were at work.

I pulled Stan to the stairs. We didn’t stop to take off our coats or backpacks.

I led the way up the stairs, down the hall to the bookcase at the end.

“The room is hidden behind these shelves,” I said, whispering even though no one was home. I suddenly felt frightened. I couldn’t explain why.

Did I really want to know what was in the secret room?

Stan stared at the bookcase. “Wow! You mean the bookcase moves? How cool! Maybe it’s some kind of secret passage!”

I pulled a book from the bottom shelf. Nothing happened. I pulled another book out. “There must be a button to push or something,” I said. “It was too dark last night. I couldn’t really see what Jada did.”

Stan stepped up beside me. We both started lifting books out one at a time.

“Here. I think I found it,” I said. I pointed to a small black lever hidden behind a large atlas. I pushed the lever down.

And heard the hum. And watched the bookshelf start to slide to the left.

“Yessss!” I cried, pumping my fist in the air.

Stan’s eyes grew wide as a dark wooden door appeared behind the bookcase. “Whoa. This is like a movie or something!” He turned to me. “Are you sure you want to do this?”

“Not really,” I answered, my voice trembling. “But I have to. I have to know what Jada is doing at night.”

I grabbed the door handle. “Are you coming in with me?”

“Okay,” he whispered. “Let’s go.”

I pulled open the door. The room behind it was totally dark.

I took a step inside and swept my hand over the wall, searching for a light switch.

Stan stepped in behind me. He huddled so close, he bumped into me.

“Okay!” I found the switch and clicked it on. A bulb hanging from the ceiling flashed on.

Blinking against the bright yellow light, I glanced around.

The room was not much bigger than a closet. It was completely bare, no furniture at all. The ratty brown carpet had a long tear in it. The gray paint on the walls was peeling.

A window on the wall across from us was covered by a wide black shade. A single wooden shelf was built into the wall next to the window. It appeared to have something resting on it.

Stan pulled off his ski cap and shoved it into his
coat pocket. His brown hair was matted to his forehead.

“Why would Jada come in
here
?” he asked. “It’s just an empty closet.”

I shrugged. “Beats me. I’m totally confused. I thought we’d find something really interesting.”

I stepped past Stan and crossed to the shelf on the wall. I saw a dark pile of cloth folded neatly on the shelf.

No. Not cloth.

I pulled part of it down and unfolded it. A long blue-black cloak.

I held it out in front of me. “Check this out, Stan. It’s like a cape with a hood.”

“Weird,” he said, studying it. He pulled the rest of the stuff off the shelf. “Look.” He held up a pair of black tights. Long, silky black gloves. An oval-shaped blue pendant on a chain. And then a mask. A black mask with two cat-eye holes cut into the front.

“Must be some kind of Halloween costume,” he said.

I took the mask from him and rolled it around in my hands. “Why would anyone leave a Halloween costume back here in a hidden room?” I asked.

I slid the mask under the hood of the cloak. And then another idea struck me. “It looks like some kind of superhero costume,” I said. “
The Masked Cape Person!
”

Stan still had the black tights in his hand. “Yeah.
Well, I guess that’s what superheroes wear, right? Tights and a cape?”

I raised the cloak in front of me. “Do you think this is Jada’s? Think she wears this stuff?”

Stan shook his head. His face was knotted in confusion.

I laughed. “Maybe Jada has a secret life that no one knows about. Maybe she sneaks in here at night and puts on this costume, and
pretends
to be the Masked Cape Person!”

Stan shook his head. “This is just too weird,” he said again.

And then his expression changed. His eyes went wide. He suddenly turned pale. “Selena—” he whispered, staring at the mask in my hand.

“What? What’s wrong?” I asked.

“What if—what if that’s a
burglar
costume?”

I let out a gasp. “Excuse me?”

“It looks like something a burglar might wear,” Stan said. “And didn’t they say on the news—”

“That the person who has been robbing houses in Elmwood wore a mask and a cape?” I cut in.

Stan nodded excitedly.

“But that’s totally insane!” I cried. “Jada a burglar? That’s too stupid, Stan. She’s a twelve-year-old girl, like me. She doesn’t put on a costume and sneak out in the middle of the night to rob houses.”

I moved to the window and tugged on the shade until it slid up. Gray light washed into the room. The
window had been left open a crack.

I peered outside. A high tree branch rested right outside. It would be easy for someone to climb out this window onto the tree branch—and then climb down to the ground.

What was I thinking?

“You are so not right,” I told Stan. “No way my cousin is a burglar!”

Stan nodded. “Yeah. It’s a stupid idea. Don’t ever tell Jada I said it.”

He started to fold up the tights. “I don’t think we solved the mystery, Selena.”

“We made the mystery even more mysterious,” I said. I tugged down the shade. Then I started to fold the cloak.

“Hey—is anybody home?” a voice called.

Stan and I both gasped.

Jada’s voice. From downstairs.

We were caught!