Tears filled her mom's eyes. "Oh, baby, I'm so sorry. The power went out. I fell asleep on the sofa waiting on you to get home. I woke up fifteen minutes ago and when I realized you weren't here, I called Sara's house.
Her mom said you'd left, but she didn't know when."
Luckily Sara's mom had already gone to bed when Kylie left so she couldn't have known what time Kylie really left. "Well, I'm fine."
"I didn't hear the car pull in," her mom said.
Think quick. "I parked it on the street." She hoped Burnett was right and the car would be returned by daybreak.
Kylie faked a yawn. "You know, Mom, sleep sounds really good right now," she said, wanting to get to her room and call Holiday. But she'd have to use the home phone because her cell was back in the car.
"Okay, but we'll talk about Sara tomorrow."
Yeah, Kylie thought. They also needed to talk about her going to Shadow Falls for the next school year. But she decided to worry about that later, too. She hurried to her room and dialed Holiday's number. "Have you heard from Lucas?" she asked when the camp leader answered the phone.
"Yes," Holiday said. "He's fine. But ... last I heard, the people responsible for taking you weren't captured. Burnett is watching you, though. Don't worry."
"I know," Kylie said.
"Are you okay? I wish I could I touch you and calm you down."
"I'm fine," she lied.
"If you close your eyes and imagine the falls, it will help push away the panic."
"I will," Kylie said, and this time she wasn't lying.
Sunday morning, the ringing telephone woke Kylie at almost ten. She sat up, reached for the phone, and actually looked around, hoping she'd see the ghost. Hey ... after over a month of seeing her first thing in the morning, she sort of missed her.
Pushing the talk button, she recalled her conversation with Holiday from last night. It had worked; imagining the falls had taken the edge off her panic.
"Hello," Kylie answered.
"Are you okay?" Della and Miranda's voices exploded at the same time over the line.
"I'm fine." Kylie leaned back on the pillow. "How did you find out?"
"When you didn't answer the damn phone all night, I called Holiday," Della said.
"Spill it," Miranda said.
Kylie gave them the short version and promised she'd tell them all the gory details later. Then she asked about their weekend. Miranda moaned and groaned about the event, but ended by telling them that she'd taken second in the competition.
"And the bitch Tabitha took fourth," Miranda said with pride.
"How are you, Della?" Kylie asked.
"What does this tell you?" The sound of a toilet flushing filled the line.
"Gross," Miranda said.
"I think my parents are shocked that I haven't shown positive yet." After a few more minutes of chatting, they said good-bye.
Remembering the car, Kylie scrambled out of bed and looked out the window. Burnett had been true to his word. The car sat on the street outside the house, looking as good as new.
If only everything else in her life could be fixed as easily.
"You're up," her mom said as Kylie walked out of her bedroom a few minutes later. Her mom had a towel wrapped around her head and wore her bathrobe as through she'd just gotten out of the shower. "Give me a minute and I'll fix us breakfast."
Thirty minutes later, Kylie was having pancakes and eggs with her mom. They talked about a lot of things but mostly about Sara. Kylie's mom told her that Sara's mom had called to make sure Kylie had gotten home okay.
Her mom picked up her plate and carried it to the sink. "Sara's mom said that Sara's was feeling good today, too. She's supposed to go to the
doctor tomorrow to talk about her options. I sure hope it works out." Kylie stood and helped clear the table.
"She doesn't need options," a voice whispered behind Kylie. "You did it." The temperature in the room dropped a good twenty degrees. "I swear that air-conditioner has been acting up for a month now."
Her mom shivered and went to check the thermostat. Kylie wondered if her mom's AC was really out, or if it had been Daniel causing the cold. Kylie turned and saw the ghost. She looked healthy and young.
Beautiful.
Kylie suspected that Sara would look just like her when she hit her thirties.
"Thank you. I knew you could do it."
"You don't have to thank me. She's my friend."
"Did you say something?" Her mom stood in the kitchen doorway. The ghost smiled and faded.
"Yeah," Kylie said. "I said we need to talk about school." Kylie went and gave her mom a big hug. Her shoulder hardly hurt now. When she pulled back she just spouted out the words before she lost her nerve. "I know it's hard for you. I know you love me. But I need this right now. I really need this."
He mom touched Kylie's face. Then tears filled her mom's eyes. She breathed in.
Then out.
"Baby, I'm sorry. But I just can't let you go."