Free Afraid by Jo Gibson Page B

Craig’s voice, Alice glanced at the clock. She’d slept all morning, and it was already one o’clock in the afternoon!
    â€œSure. I’ll be there.” Alice hung up and jumped out of bed. She had to hurry. She’d promised to help Craig clean up after the party, and he wanted her to meet him at the cabin in an hour!
    Alice was singing as she turned on the water and stepped into the shower. She’d had a fantastic time last night, thanks to Rondelle. Alice really couldn’t understand why Rondelle had left town without a word. Maybe her parents had forced her to go, but why hadn’t she called Craig to cancel their date?
    As she washed her hair, Alice sang at the top of her lungs. She knew she didn’t get the melody right, but that didn’t bother her at all. And even though the Jefferson High chorus director had asked her not to sing so loudly at their concert next week, Alice intended to ignore his advice. She liked to sing and enthusiasm should count for something. After all, chorus was supposed to be for everyone.
    Alice frowned slightly as she began to get dressed. Rondelle would be furious when she got back to town and found out that she’d gone to the party with Craig. But Alice wasn’t about to let a little thing like friendship stop her from enjoying her date this afternoon. It was all Rondelle’s fault, and Alice didn’t feel one bit guilty.
    Â 
    Rondelle was smiling as she put the red shoes in a shoe box, but it wasn’t a nice smile. It was more of a grimace with her lips drawn back from her teeth, and her eyes glittering dangerously.
    When Rondelle’s father had heard her pounding on the attic door, they’d all rushed up the stairs. Her mother had stood by, wringing her hands, while her father had taken the door off its hinges. Even Janie had been very subdued, and the first thing she’d asked her older sister was whether the attic monsters had hurt her.
    Rondelle had concentrated on one thing and one thing only. She had to convince everyone that she was fine so they’d leave her alone. She’d told her parents that they didn’t have to worry about her. Of course she’d been bored, all alone in the attic, and her back hurt from sleeping on the floor. What she really wanted to do was take a nice, hot shower and stretch out on her bed for a long nap.
    Perhaps she really was a good actress. Rondelle gave a small, bitter laugh. She’d been so convincing, she’d persuaded her parents to go right on with their plans to take Janie to a friend’s birthday party. Janie hadn’t wanted to go. Questioning her big sister about the terrors of the attic was much more interesting than watching someone else open birthday presents. But Rondelle had promised to tell Janie all about it when she got home, and Janie and her parents had left.
    It didn’t take long to wrap Alice’s package. Rondelle used silver paper and tied a beautiful red bow on the top. It looked very professional, as if it had been wrapped by a shop in the mall. Then she printed Alice’s name on a card and taped it to the box.
    The moment she was through, Rondelle raced for the door. Alice lived over two miles away, but she ran almost all the way there. Rondelle placed the package in front of Alice’s door, and then sprinted down the sidewalk, as if the rats in the attic were chasing her.
    By the time Rondelle got home, she was exhausted. She flopped down on the couch, curled up into a ball, and began to rock slowly back and forth. The red shoes would work. They would punish Alice, and she wouldn’t have to do a thing.

Eight
    â€œY ou look great, Donna!” Steve turned to smile at her as he started his car.
    â€œThanks, Steve.” Donna’s eyes sparkled. She was wearing another of her instant creations, a tan jumpsuit her father had brought back with him when he’d inspected a pipeline the government had built in Alaska. The