Beautiful Demons Read online

Guys Like Drake Only Date Cheerleaders “Come on,” Agnes said, taking my hand. “Let’s go down to Lori’s and look around. I’ll help you pick out stuff for school. ” Downtown Peachville was so not what I was expecting. I thought it would be full of rundown brick buildings, empty storefronts, maybe an occasional pickup truck. Instead, the town was immaculate with red brick sidewalks, lush green trees planted along the road, fresh paint in pretty pastels, and thriving businesses. Ella Mae drove the four of us girls into town in a big white cargo van that said “Shadowford Home for Girls” on the side. I was glad to get away from the huge advertisement that basically told any of my future classmates that I was a troubled orphan. Courtney disappeared into a consignment shop called “Second Beauty” and Mary Anne followed Ella Mae to the grocery store, sticking close by her side the whole time. Agnes dragged me past a drug store, a photography studio, and a clothing shop until we got to Lori’s, a bigger store full of pretty things like candles, cards, and nick-knacks. “This is my favorite store in town. ” She pulled open the front door and a little bell jingled. A cute woman up front with pigtails and blue ribbons in her hair waved and said hello. “Hi Lori,” Agnes called. “Lori used to be one of the head cheerleaders for the Peachville Demons. She’s so pretty isn’t she? This is always the first store I come to when we get some time in town. ” It was going to take some time to get used to having someone like Agnes to talk to all the time. It had been a long time since I’d lived with anyone I cared to talk to for more than a few minutes. “I like it,” I said, running my hand across a row of beaded purses on the table. “But what can I get here for school? It’s not like a need a purse or anything. ” Agnes led me over to the backpacks and school supplies. “Here, pick out anything you need. I’m gonna go over to the candles and look around for a few. You okay over here by yourself?” I smiled. “Yeah, I think I’ve got it under control. ” She practically bounced over to the other side of the store leaving me in the back section alone. I picked through the backpacks. The foster home I’d been in last had insisted I leave all of my school stuff with them since they paid for it. A lot of times, at a new place, I’d end up with someone’s hand-me-downs or whatever, so getting to pick out brand new stuff for myself was a real luxury. “I personally like the Hello Kitty one with the pink flowers. ” I looked up to see a tall blond guy leaning against the wall, watching me. He had a smirk on his face, and I wondered if he was making fun of me. He was definitely cute, but in a different way from the boy I'd seen earlier at Shadowford. That other guy, Jackson, was very rebel-without-a-cause while this guy was all-American-pretty-boy. I picked up the pink bag and held it out toward him, then closed one eye as if picturing him wearing it. “Yeah, I can see that. It brings out the natural rosiness of your cheeks. ” He laughed and grabbed the bag from my hand, then placed it back on the rack. “Here,” he said. “Most of the girls around here wear our school colors. Blue, like this one. ” “What if I'm not like most other girls?” “Ooh, a rebel. Nice,” he said. A stray piece of hair fell across his forehead as he leaned down to get a different bag. His eyes were as blue as the summer sky. “What about black with blue stripes?” “You’re all about getting me to wear the school colors. What are you, some kind of backpack ambassador for the local team?” His eyes sparkled when he laughed, sending a little jolt of energy through my body. What were the odds of me meeting two crush-worthy guys my age on my first day here? This town was looking better by the minute. “Sort of,” he said. “I’m the quarterback of the Demons football team. ” Well, that certainly explained his muscular body and tall frame. I’d never dated a jock before, but suddenly, I wasn’t so opposed to school pride. “Well, in that case, I’d better take your advice. ” I chose a black bag with blue flowers embroidered on the outside and he placed his index finger on his lips and pretended to study it. “It’s a little girly, but I suppose it’ll do. ” He smiled again, then held his hand out to me. “I’m Drake, by the way. Lori’s my sister. Sometimes I come by and help her unload boxes on the weekends after church. ” The touch of his hand on mine made me feel warm from head to toe. “Harper. ” “You just moved here?” he asked. “Yeah,” I said. My face felt hot. Would he care that I lived at Shadowford? I was sure everyone in town knew what kind of place it was, and I wasn't expecting it to earn me any popularity points. It was only a matter of time before he found out, but I certainly didn't want to offer up bonus information. “From Atlanta. ” “Cool,” he said. “We don't get a lot of knew people here. It'll be nice to get some new blood. ” I was about to ask him more about the Demons football team when Agnes bumped into me, sending candles flying. “Crap. Sorry Harper, I wasn’t watching where-” Her voice cut out as she noticed Drake standing there. I bent down to help her pick up the candles she’d dropped. “Do you two know each other?” “Oh hey Drake,” Agnes said, standing. Her pale skin was flushed pink and her breathing was uneven. “You did an awesome job at the game Friday night. I was there right up front cheering you on. ” Drake’s eyebrows came together slightly and he looked from me to Agnes, then back again. I knew that look. My heart fell. “So you live at Shadowford?” he asked. I tried to act like it was no big deal. I pulled my shoulders back. “Yeah. Just moved in today. ” He looked around as if he were trying to find a way out of this situation. “I gotta run,” he said, backing away. “Nice to meet you. Oh, and Agnes, make sure you pay for that stuff, especially if you broke any of those candles. ” As Drake rushed off toward the back room, I stood there, feeling like the victim of a drive-by. What had just happened? Was he really that stuck-up? I’d experienced the cold-shoulder treatment in the past when people found out I was an orphan or a foster kid, but never anything quite as blatant as Drake’s flirt-and-bolt. “What was Drake talking to you about?” Agnes said. I sighed and helped Agnes collect the rest of her candles and put them into my bag. “I don’t know, backpacks, I guess. ” “Isn’t he gorgeous? He’s the most popular senior boy in school. Good looking. Crazy rich. And even more important, completely single. ” “He’s also an asshole,” I mumbled. Agnes looked around. “Be quiet,” she whispered. “You shouldn’t say things like that in his sister’s store. Besides, he’s not like that at all. ” “Were you paying attention at all just now? He was over here basically flirting with me, then when you walked over here and he realized I was from Shadowford, he turned into a grade-A jerk and got the hell away from us. In my book, that makes him a stuck-up asshole. ” “I doubt he was flirting with you anyway,” she said. “Guys like that only date cheerleaders. ” “In movies, maybe. ” Agnes looked at me curiously, as if I had no idea how the world really worked. Page 5

  Voices at My Window After dinner, I said goodnight and made my way up to my room. Agnes, for once, gave me a little bit of privacy. I shut the heavy wooden door to my room, but when I went to lock it, I noticed something strange. There were no locks on the inside of the door. The switch to lock the door was on the outside where you would expect to find a keyhole. I thought maybe mine had just been put on backwards, but when I looked over at the rooms of the other girls, I noticed theirs was exactly the same way. Locks on the outside. I shut my door tight and wedged one of my flipflops underneath. Maybe that was part of the Shadowford rule book. No privacy. I checked the bathroom and found no locks at all on that door. How could they expect me to take a shower or a bath in here without being able to lock my door? For now, the flipflop method would probably keep the door closed to intruders, but it wouldn’t be enough to stop someone who was intent on getting in. I considered making a “Do Not Enter” sign to let Agnes and the others know I wanted privacy, but I knew that if Ella Mae or Mrs. Shadowford wanted to come in, they could. Then again, I thought, Mrs. Shadowford was in a wheelchair. I hadn’t noticed any kind of elevator or special contraption to move her upstairs, so maybe it was only Ella Mae and the other girls I had to worry about when it came to privacy. After I shoved another flipflop under the
bathroom door, I drew a warm bath and lowered myself into the refreshing bubbles. I guess I must have been pretty tired, because I fell asleep nearly the instant my body was immersed in the water. I couldn't be sure how much time passed, but at some point, I started to dream. A woman in white floated down the hallway, her feet inches from the ground. She called out to me and I followed her. In my dream, we were here in Shadowford Manor. Somehow, I knew she was taking me to the third floor. As I walked down the dark corridor, I looked for the stairs, but there were none. How do we get there? I asked her. There's no staircase. She smiled and floated to the end of the hallway, beckoning me with a ghostly fingertip. The woman in white stopped in front of a section of the wall covered from floor to ceiling in wood paneling. She passed through it, and I tried to follow her, but couldn't. I could hear her calling to me from the other side of the wall. I placed my hands on the wooden panel, but when it wouldn’t budge, I felt strangely powerless. I pounded against the wall, pushed with all my might, but the woman in white was gone. I put my back to the wall and leaned against it. On the opposite wall was a large mirror. In it, I saw a bright red flash. Flames! Then, suddenly, a rush of heat came to me, as real as anything I’d ever felt. When I turned around to find the source of the fire, I was no longer at Shadowford. I had been transported back to my past, to a small two bedroom house I remembered all too well. I sat in the middle of my room, the remains of my angry tears still making a path down my cheeks as flames broke out around me. In the next room, I could hear a man screaming. Jill, with her porcelain doll skin and kind brown eyes, looked over at me. “What have you done?” she asked. “You witch! Why did you do it?” I tried to explain that I hadn’t meant to start the fire. It was an accident. I reached out to her, but suddenly, the door burst open and water flooded in, filling the room in an instant. I floated up on the wave, then slowly sank to the bottom, unable to breathe. I gasped and sat up in the bathtub in my room at Shadowford, splashing water and bubbles all over the tile floor. Leaning over the edge of the tub, I struggled for air. The dream had been so vivid. The call of the woman’s voice. The heat of the fire. I shivered, realizing the bathwater had long gone cold. I must have been asleep for a while. Carefully, I climbed out of the tub and wrapped myself in a towel. In my room, it had grown dark since the sun went down. I switched on the bedside lamp and changed into my pajamas. Sleep threatened my eyes again, and I was asleep within minutes of sinking into my large canopied bed. A scream woke me from my sleep. I bolted upright, my heart pounding. The scream came again, blood-curdling this time. I heard real fear in the sound. I rushed to the door and yanked, but nothing happened. Then, remembering the flip-flop wedged in the bottom, I bent over and pulled it from the door. I tried to turn the knob, but it wouldn’t move. Someone had locked me inside. Panic seized my body. What if there was a fire? And I was locked inside? Had someone locked me in? I banged against the door. “Help! Is anyone out there?” I pressed my ear against the wood, expecting to hear more screams and chaos, but there was nothing. It was quiet. “Hello?” I spoke through the door, but heard no answer. Surely someone was out there. Someone had locked me in. Someone had screamed bloody murder. Now, it seemed, the house was quiet. I began to doubt my own ears. Maybe it had all been just another dream. Then, voices at my window. The sound of breaking glass floated up to me and someone made a hushing sound. I tiptoed across the room and looked down. Even outside at midnight, the air was thick with heat. The motion sensor by the cottage out back had been triggered and the backyard was bathed in an eerie orange glow. Down in the garden, movement caught my eye. I squinted to see who it was, but all I saw were shadows. Had someone outside been screaming? I didn't think so. I was certain the sound had come from inside the house, but whoever these people were outside, they didn't seem to have heard it. “Be quiet. ” A guy’s voice. He was somewhere in the darkness near the back of the garden, but I could almost make out his figure. “Oh come on, Jackson. ” A giggle. A girl I didn’t recognize. “Don’t be such a stick in the mud. ” “I’m serious, you can’t be here,” he said. “It’s late. You should go home. ” “Not until you give me what I want,” the girl said. In the shadows, I saw her grab him and pull him close. His girlfriend? But Jackson pushed the girl away. “Stop. You know that crap doesn’t work on me. ” “I don’t understand you,” she said. “What is it about you that’s so different?” Jackson emerged from the darkness and a blonde girl stumbled after him. “Wait! Aww, Jackson, come on. ” She grabbed his arm and he turned sharply toward her. In the glow of the light from the barn, I could see the anger and frustration on his face. Inside, my heart pounded watching them. For a moment, I thought he might hit her, but instead, he yanked his arm away from her. “Just go. ” The girl had her back to me. She put her hands on her hips and backed away from him. “Fine. I didn't want anything from you anyway. ” Jackson kicked at the grass as the girl walked around the side of the house. As if sensing me watching him, he looked up toward my room, just as he had done earlier that day. Quickly, I backed away from the window and closed the curtains. In the distance, I heard a car start up and drive away. Page 6

  The Big Stone Demon Statue “Nervous?” Agnes poked her head into my room Monday morning. I stifled a yawn and waved her in. “More tired than anything,” I said. “What was all that screaming about the past couple nights?” Agnes cocked her head and made a face at me. “Screaming? What screaming?” “You didn't hear it? I swear to God, it was like someone was getting slaughtered out there. ” I checked my outfit in the mirror. I was afraid I looked like I was trying too hard with my black lace skirt and black v-neck t-shirt. Maybe I looked too morbid. As an afterthought, I grabbed a plain pink ribbon and wrapped it around my wrist. “Tie this, would you?” “Sure,” Agnes said. “I slept like a baby last night. Sometimes Mary Anne has nightmares, but I've never heard her scream or anything. Maybe you dreamed it or something. ” I thought about the locked door. “What freaked me out even more was the fact that I couldn't get out of my room to go see what was going on. ” “What do you mean?” “I mean, why are there locks on the outside of our doors. Why do they lock us in our rooms?” Agnes shook her head, as if she didn't believe me. “I don't think they ever really lock them,” she said. But she was wrong. I knew! “Stop worrying,” Agnes said. “Besides, you look hot. That skirt is so cute. It's very punk. ” I laughed. “Thanks. ” “Grab your bag. You don't want to be late for your first day. ” Together, we made our way down to the Shadowford van. I had half hoped we'd be taking the bus to school, but no such luck. They might as well have mounted a megaphone on top and shouted to everyone that we were freaks. I sighed. After the way Drake had treated me, I fully expected everyone at school to label me an outcast right away. In the van, Mary Anne and Courtney barely said a word. I wondered what things must have been like before I came along. Did Agnes talk their ears off nonstop? Or was she only this talkative because she hadn't had anyone else to talk to in so long? “I'll show you where to go to get your class schedule,” Agnes said as we pulled up to the high school ten minutes later. “We're both sophomores, so hopefully we'll have a few classes together. ” I stepped out onto the concrete sidewalk and stared at the school. My stomach lurched. God, I hated starting new schools. With this latest string of foster homes, I'd started four different schools in the past two years. Peachville High School made five. The school itself was even smaller than I expected. A single brick building held most of the classes with only the gymnasium and one other small building off near the football field. Most of the schools I'd been to in Atlanta had more students in the tenth grade than this school probably had all combined. I tried to tell myself it would be an adventure. A kind of social experiment. Inside, though, I just felt nervous. In big schools, you could always find your own crowd. There were always enough people around that you were bound to run into a few people who thought like you, looked like you, or at least were interes
ted in getting to know you. Here, though, I had a feeling the variety was limited. Looking around at the students as they made their way to the front entrance, I noticed that almost everyone dressed the same. Jeans. T-shirts. Blue and black backpacks. Very apple-pie American teenager. Suddenly I felt silly with my black skirt and boots. I gripped my new bag tighter and silently thanked Drake Ashworth for giving me at least one solid tip on how to fit in. If I was going to make it work here in Peachville, I was going to have to find a way to blend. “If you stand there long enough, you're going to turn into a statue like this guy. ” Agnes smacked the leg of the big stone demon statue that towered over the school's entrance. I stared up at the demon, and for a moment, I felt all the breath leave my chest. I could swear I had seen that statue somewhere before. In a dream maybe? The ground seemed to jerk underneath my feet and I stumbled, reaching out to the cold stone to steady myself. My vision blurred, then the world around me turned black. Page 7