How to Live and Die in Crescent Rock (Crescent Rock Series) Read online

  Batting her eyelashes, Quinn gave him one of her most dizzying smiles. Their impact had been tested repeatedly since entering high school and she found them quite effective in a variety of situations. And so it was no surprise to see Andrew stare at her for a moment, seemingly indecisive, before he rose from his chair.

  “He’s coming over,” Caroline whispered, her voice so weak Quinn thought she might be about to faint.

  “Oh my god, oh my god,” Amanda repeated, sounding out of breath.

  An awful glower on her face, Quinn hissed, “If you can’t act like reasonable adults, then leave. If you embarrass me, I will have your heads for this.”

  Caroline’s face immediately took on a serious expression, whereas Amanda quickly rose from her seat. She almost knocked over her chair before leaving hastily. Quinn shook her head in disbelief before turning her attention back to Andrew.

  “Hi there.” He glanced at the empty seat next to her. “May I?”

  “Sure.” Quinn’s voice was completely nonchalant.

  For a second, Andrew just looked at her and so she smiled encouragingly, which seemed to help him gather his courage. “Listen, I was wondering if you’d like to go out Friday night. Say, around seven? We could grab a bite, and maybe catch a movie.”

  Quinn nodded, though not too eagerly. “That sounds nice. I’d like that.”

  An easy smile spread over Andrew’s face. “I’m glad.”

  “Just one request.”

  “What?”

  “Could we go someplace else than Rosy’s Diner?”

  A slightly nervous but relieved laugh escaped him. “Sure. No problem.” As though suddenly uncomfortable, he got up and turned to leave. “See you on Saturday.”

  When Andrew was out of earshot, Caroline asked, “Why don’t you want to go to the diner?”

  Quinn frowned at her. “Really?”

  Rosy’s Diner was a cute little place with delicious food and reasonable prices. It was located in the center of town, just around the corner from the two-screen movie theater, the bowling alley and the only place there was in Crescent Rock offering dancing and music bearable for young ears. It had become one of the few hotspots in town. The only downside was that it was owned by Quinn’s parents. And who in their right mind would go on a date with her parents watching over her shoulder?

  Apparently, the penny dropped for Caroline as well and she clapped a hand over her mouth. “Oops. Sorry,” she stammered.

  ***

  Backing out of the parking lot after her last class, Quinn saw Amanda and Caroline waving their goodbyes. But instead of waving back, Quinn once more shook her head at them. It was almost as though her presence washed away any sense they might otherwise have.

  “Oh mirror, mirror on the wall,” came Jo’s voice from the backseat, “who is the rudest one of all?”

  Cora giggled.

  Quinn cast a look in her rearview mirror. “Oh, there is no doubt. The evil queen, of course.”

  Jo shrugged. “As long as you know it.”

  “As long as you know that the operative word in this sentence is queen,” she replied, turning left onto De La Roche Avenue.

  Jo shook her head. “Unbelievable.”

  “Thank you.” Quinn grinned.

  “That wasn’t a compliment!”

  Tapping her fingers on the steering wheel, Quinn glanced over her shoulder. “Oh little girl, you’ve got so much to learn.”

  “Really?”

  “Just leave her alone,” Cora warned. “She won’t ever change. She’s a bitch. Guess she was born that way.”

  “Lucky for you, it doesn’t seem to be genetic,” Quinn retorted, perfectly polite. “We all know you wouldn’t be able to take it.”

  Cora slouched back in her seat. “I bet you’re happy you don’t have a sister like that.”

  “I sure am,” Jo agreed, but there was a cheerless smile on her face.

  Arriving home, Cora and her BFF headed straight upstairs without a look back while Quinn took a moment, enjoying the balmy touch of the eastern breeze gathering up her hair. She stood on the front lawn between her father’s carefully planted marigolds and pansies, gazing up at the two-story house with the dark green shingles that had been her home since the day she had been born. Even with a negative energy as her sister’s somewhere in it, it seemed peaceful.

  After grabbing an apple from the kitchen, getting her homework done and out of the way as soon as possible was Quinn’s first priority. It took her two hours to complete everything, including Ms. Grainer’s extra assignment, but then she was free until the end of the week and could focus all of her energy on cheerleading practice.

  The sound of an approaching car drew her to the window and she saw her parents pull into the driveway. The brown paper bags in their arms promised food from the diner. A glance at her desk reminded Quinn that she had forgotten to eat the apple and so she headed downstairs in search of food more satisfying to her taste buds.

  “We’re home! We’re home,” her father sang, pushing open the door one-handed on his way into the kitchen. “Marco!” he added a bit louder when no reply came.

  “Polo,” Quinn said, already half-way down the stairs.

  Her mother handed her a bag smelling suspiciously of hash browns and fried chicken. “Hi honey, where’s your sister? How was school? Can you believe how warm it still is? And the weather report says it’s supposed to stay this way. Not that I don’t like a warm summer but this year was brutal. How do you girls train in this? And the football team with all their gear. They have to be dead by the end of practice.”

  Quinn just smiled and nodded, following her mother into the kitchen. Rosemary McPherson could do exactly two things better than anyone else on the planet: cook like hell and talk your ear off. Luckily, those two things were not mutually exclusive, which mostly made it a give-and-take situation. Get awesome food and lose a bit of your sanity with all that babbling.

  Setting the table, Quinn actually got a word in and told her mother of her date with Andrew Blake Friday night.

  Her mother frowned. “Do you really think that’s a good idea?”

  Quinn frowned back. “Would I ask if I thought it wasn’t?”

  Taking the food out of the bags and setting it on the dinner table, her mother balled up the bags and tossed them in the trash. “I’m just concerned.” There was an apologetic smile on her face.

  “Why?” Quinn asked.

  Her mother shrugged, but then focused her eyes on her daughter. “Because I’m your mother. It’s my job.”

  “Okay, then could you maybe focus your motherly duty on your other daughter who, as far as opinions go, is really in need of help? Believe me.”

  “Shut up, Quinn!” Cora’s face took on a glare as she came into the kitchen, closely followed by Jo whose eyes had narrowed into slits.

  “Oh hi honey,” their mother chirped, hugging her youngest. “Are you staying for dinner, Jo?”

  “If you don’t mind, Mrs. M.”

  With a wave of her hand, their mother dismissed that thought. “Don’t be ridiculous! Here, you girls start. I’ll fetch your father.”

  Quinn frowned. “Where did he disappear to?”

  Her mother exhaled slowly, looking a bit annoyed. “To see to his flowers.” She shook her head in disbelief. “He was nagging me all day about how they were too delicate to withstand such heat. It was awfully annoying.”

  “Really?” Quinn asked. “He was nagging?” There was a hint of sarcasm in her voice that her mother didn’t pick up on. Only Cora’s face showed the suggestion of a smile.

  Her mother sighed exasperatedly. “You have no idea how stressful it is to have someone around who just won’t shut up!”

  “You’re right,” Quinn agreed, grinning. “I couldn’t possibly imagine.”

  Chapter 3 – A Changing Tide

  Once again the next morning came too soon. After hitting the snooze button three times, Quinn finally dragged herself out of bed and into the s
hower. But even the cold water couldn’t wake her up. The heat was getting unbearable.

  “You don’t look so good,” her mother commented when Quinn appeared at the breakfast table. “Are you sick? Are you not feeling well? Maybe you should stay home. I could call Dr. Francis. He’s a nice man. Where did I put his number?” she frowned, rummaging through the kitchen drawers.

  “Mom, I’m fine,” Quinn assured her yawning. “I’m just a little tired. That’s all.”

  Bounding down the stairs, Cora flew into the kitchen, a smile on her face. “Any pancakes left?”

  Quinn stifled another yawn. “What are you smiling about?”

  Cora shrugged. “The sun is up.”

  Quinn snorted. “And that’s a good thing?”

  “Well, humans tend to thrive in the sun,” Jo said, taking the seat she had already occupied at dinner the night before. “But maybe you’re not familiar with that concept, with you being the devil and all.”

  More frown lines appeared on Quinn’s face. “What are you still doing here? Don’t you have a home? A family of your own to torture?”

  Jo shot her another angry glance, and there was a faint, hardly detectable tremble in her hands, as she took the plate Quinn’s mother was handing her. It was stacked with more pancakes than a single person could possibly eat.

  “Would you all just behave?” her mother complained, shooting a warning look at her eldest daughter. “This is not the kind of talk I want at my breakfast table.”

  A year ago Jo had come into town – alone, moving in with an elderly aunt who lived on Willow Road about ten minutes from the McPherson house. No one knew much about her family. Neither Jo nor her aunt ever mentioned them. Most people gathered that there were some painful memories in the girl’s past and didn’t press the matter. Quinn wondered if Cora knew.

  “Robert, will you finally come inside?” her mother yelled out the kitchen window. “And stop drowning the flowers! I swear you’re doing them more harm than good.” She turned to look at the three girls munching their pancakes. “Why are some people so insistent when it comes to doing something they’re no good at?”

  “Don’t know, mom.” Quinn shook her head, a grin showing. “Cora?”

  “What?” She looked puzzled.

  Just then, Jo knocked over the syrup bottle, spilling the sticky liquid all over Quinn’s new skirt. “Oh my god,” she said, an expression of perfect innocence on her face. “I have no idea how that happened.”

  “Don’t worry,” Mrs. McPherson said as Quinn jumped up, her eyes narrowing. “Happens to me all the time. Quinn, honey, why don’t you go change so you won’t be late for school.”

  “Sure, mom,” Quinn said, forcing her voice to remain calm. When she turned her eyes to Jo though, they burned with the promise of retribution.

  Jo just sat there, an easy smile on her face, not looking worried in the least. Quinn knew she would have to do something about her sister’s BFF. That girl was starting to be a nuisance. However, since she seemed especially pissed off whenever Quinn tormented Cora, the perfect way to get back at Jo would be to hurt her sister.

  Changing into another outfit, Quinn took her time, knowing that with each passing minute Cora would get more and more agitated, afraid of being late for school. She hated confrontations, especially with adults. And teachers were a whole ‘nother level. For some reason they scared her.

  Strolling down the stairs, she was met by a furious and yet terrified expression on her sister’s face.

  “What took you so long?” Cora hissed. “You’re doing this on purpose!”

  Quinn just grinned. “If you know, then why do you ask?”

  “I hate you!” Cora stormed out to the car.

  Walking by Jo, whose eyes had narrowed during the sisters’ heated exchange, Quinn smiled at her sweetly. “Checkmate,” she said in passing.

  ***

  Classes passed quickly that morning, so quickly that Quinn barely noticed. She was in and out of classrooms, now and again opening and closing her locker before heading to the cafeteria for lunch. “I thought you said Julia would be here today,” Quinn barked at Amanda, who looked at Caroline, seemingly pleading for help. But Caroline just shrugged.

  “Go find out where she is!” Quinn ordered and Amanda left, fishing her cell phone out of her book bag as she went.

  Fuming, Quinn could barely keep her anger from boiling over. That morning the girl had walked into their first class, dressed in the exact same clothes Quinn had worn the day before. Amanda was taking her admiration for her too far. To top it off, in-between classes she had disappeared to the restroom and reappeared minutes later, with her hair clipped up here and tucked away there, exactly the way Quinn was wearing hers that day. No matter what she said, Amanda didn’t seem to understand why she was giving offense. It was pathetic.

  At least the day didn’t end in a total disaster. Walking onto the field next to the gym, where the cheerleading squad practiced, Quinn saw Julia stretching. “Thought you’d dropped off the face of the earth,” she greeted her smiling.

  “Felt like it too,” Julia said. “That was the remotest place I’ve ever been to.” She shook her head, making her ponytail swing from side to side. “I have no idea how my grandparents deal with …all that emptiness. There’s just nothing. Nowhere to go. No one to see. I’m so glad to be back.” A relieved smile spread over her face.

  “As am I,” Quinn admitted, glancing at Amanda.

  “That bad?” Julia asked, her quick eyes assessing the situation. “We should talk to her.”

  “Believe me, I’ve tried.” Quinn shook her head and lowered her voice. “It’s like there’s no one in there.”

  “That bad?” Julia repeated as more frown lines appeared on her face.

  “Worse.” Quinn took a deep breath. “Let’s deal with that after the big game, alright? There is too much else to worry about. If we mess with her head now, who knows what else she might screw up. With Amanda, you just never know.”

  “Maybe we should ask Coach Grainer to talk to her,” Julia suggested.

  Quinn laughed. “Are you crazy? That would send her off the deep end for sure. You know how scared she is of her. I don’t think any kind of talk they could possibly have would have any beneficial consequences whatsoever.”

  Julia nodded. “You’re probably right but—”

  “Okay, cut out the chitchat,” Coach Grainer commanded, walking into their midst. “Everybody warm up and let’s get going. Miss Lazy-Bones,” she looked at Caroline, who lay stretched out in the grass, working on her tan, “that goes for you too. Get your butt moving.”

  With the sun disappearing behind the woods shielding the school from the west, they started to feel more at ease with every passing minute. The burning heat melted down to a stuffy humidity and their bodies felt as though a huge weight had been lifted off them. But even then their faces became flushed and rivers of sweat ran down their backs and arms.

  After the two-hour training session, they lay on the grass, gazing up at the lavender sky and catching their breath. “Not bad,” Coach Grainer praised them. “And Miss Busy-Bee?” She looked at Julia. “Welcome back. You’re almost up to speed.”

  “Thank you.” Julia nodded to her.

  Gathering their stuff, they started back to the parking lot. “Shall I give you a ride?” Quinn asked.

  “That’d be nice. Thanks,” Julia said. “My dad said to call when we’re done but since my mom is still with my grandparents, I’d hate for him to wake up Luke to come get me.”

  “No problem,” Quinn said.

  Luke was Julia’s son. He was about nine months old and the sweetest baby their town had ever seen. Everybody loved him. He was a very delightful child and his mother’s pride and joy. When Julia had gotten pregnant at sixteen, most people had turned up their noses at it. She had been a bit wild in her early teens and somehow people figured that getting pregnant she’d finally gotten her pay for the road she’d chosen.

  Ho
wever, things had not been as they’d seemed, but most people had been too busy pointing their fingers at Julia that no one had seen her pain. Not even Quinn. It still bothered her that she had doubted her friend. The only one who had cared to look had been Coach Grainer. She had been persistent and eventually Julia had told her about the night she’d gotten pregnant. She had been on her way home from a party when someone had grabbed her from behind and pulled her into the bushes. She had struggled but she hadn’t been able to fight him off. Too ashamed at what had happened and blaming herself like she knew everybody else would, Julia had kept quiet. But Coach Grainer wouldn’t hear of it. Those that remained silent were victims and always would be. She had given Julia the strength to speak up and tell the truth, accompanying her to the police station to file a report. Although the assailant had never been caught, Julia had found her way back into life. She had learned to smile again, and laugh, and when Luke was born, she had been able to love him.

  Now nine months after his birth, Luke and Julia were welcomed everywhere and people, at first ashamed at their own behavior toward her, treated her with the same respect they showed everybody else.

  After dropping off Julia, Quinn headed home, wishing for nothing more than a cold shower and a good night’s sleep. Closing the front door behind her, she found Cora and Jo in the living room, chatting about who-knew-what. For some reason, they always hushed up when she came near. It didn’t matter. Quinn couldn’t have cared less.

  “Hi honey, you want some dinner?” her father asked, pulling her into a hug. “Gosh, you look exhausted.”

  Quinn grinned, putting on a brave face. “I sure am.” She yawned. “I just want to go to bed.”

  Her dad frowned at her. “You might want to take a shower first.”

  “Are you implying that I smell?” she challenged, raising her eyebrows at him.

  Her father shook his head, grinning. “I wouldn’t dream of it.”