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“I work for Lizzy Gardner Investigations. We’re looking for Miriam.”
“Is she missing?” another girl asked, this one wearing a purple leather miniskirt and boots.
The other cashier, a ski
“Hey, don’t be rude. Is Miriam the short geeky girl with—”
“That’s Monica. She quit. This lady is talking about Miriam, a tall gorgeous girl who sold tons of clothes just by wearing something in the store.”
“Oh.”
“Miriam and I were close,” the black-haired girl said. “What do you need to know?”
Kitally joined them, and Hayley introduced her before continuing. “We need to know if Miriam ever talked about going away for a while.”
“You think she might be hiding out somewhere?” the ski
Hayley shrugged. “Anything’s possible.”
“She liked her life here,” the black-haired girl said. “She was a hard worker, and she was excited when she got into that program for brainy teenagers, whatever it’s called.”
“Opportunity Knocks,” Kitally said.
The boy nodded. “Yeah, that’s true. After she was accepted into the program, that’s pretty much all she talked about. I don’t remember hearing one word from her about leaving the area.” He saw a group of girls enter the store. “Excuse me while I help these people.”
The other employee, the one in the miniskirt, pulled her cell out of her pocket and wandered into the back room, texting as she went.
The black-haired girl leaned forward and said in a low voice, “There is no way Miriam left town without kicking and screaming.”
“Why do you say that?”
“Because Miriam was pregnant and in love with some ultrahot guy she’d just met.”
“Pregnant?” Kitally asked. “Are you sure?”
“I don’t have any proof. I just know what she told me.”
“So, you never saw an older man named Wayne Be
“Oh, sure,” she said. “You already know about him? He came around for Miriam before the hot young guy. The old guy would pretend to be shopping around for his wife. We all knew it was a lie. I never understood what Miriam saw in him. I don’t care how much money he had—the man was way too old for her, and there was something skanky about him, too.”
“So when did the other man—the hot guy—come into the picture?”
She tilted her head as she thought about it for a second. “I would say she met the hot guy about six weeks before she disappeared. They were perfect for each other. They were both good-looking and smart—a perfect match.”
“So you think Miriam was pregnant with the hot guy’s baby?”
She nodded. “Miriam told me it was definitely hot guy’s baby.”
“How could she be so sure?”
“With the old guy, she used protection with a capital P.”
“So you don’t know the hot guy’s name?”
“Sorry. No idea. I don’t even know if she ever told me his name.”
“Did the police ever question you about Miriam?”
She shook her head. “I heard they came in to the store, but I only work here three days a week, and I certainly wasn’t going to go out of my way to call them.”
“Could I get your name and number in case we have more questions later?”
The girl found a business card, scribbled down the information, and handed the card to Hayley. “There you go.”
“Thanks a lot.”
As they exited the store, Kitally said, “I wonder if Be
“Who knows?”
As they walked, every store window with a set of four-inch heels or a gaudy jewelry display sidetracked Kitally. It was like a disease. Hayley was dying for a smoke, but she really did want to quit, so she tried to think about something else. And that’s when she saw a girl with white spiky hair walk into the shoe store across the way.
It was the Ghost. It had to be.
“Kitally, come on.”
“Just a minute, I want to—”
“We’ve got to go right now. I just saw the Ghost walk into that shoe store over there.”
Kitally turned and looked to see where she pointed. “Are you sure?”
“Yep.”
“What should we do?”
“Let’s make sure it’s her first, then we’ll call the cops. After that, I’m not letting her out of my sight until they get here. I’ll make a citizen’s arrest if I have to.”
They walked over to the store, Hayley leading the way. “Pretend you’re looking for a pair of ru
“I would never buy a pair of ru
“This is pretend, Kitally. Pretend you love ru
“OK, OK. Chill.”
They headed inside. The store wasn’t very wide, but it was deep. For a second or two, Hayley worried that the girl had already escaped u
Kitally picked up a shoe on the display rack and pretended to admire it. “This is the ugliest sneaker I’ve ever seen.”
Hayley looked around. A mother and her son were rummaging through shoes nearby, left to their own devices by the gaggle of teenage clerks gathered at the back of the store.
The tall spiky-haired girl they were looking for was hard to miss. She wasn’t anywhere in sight.
“I like that shoe over there,” Kitally said as she headed to another display and then picked up one of the shoes. “Genuine leather, and look at the cool zipper on the side.”
“Those are men’s shoes,” Hayley pointed out.
“Cool.” Kitally’s smile disappeared. “I see the Ghost,” she told Hayley. “It’s definitely her, straight across from us, right along the far wall. Don’t turn around.”
“Can I help you?”
Perfect, Hayley thought. Now you take an interest in us.
“No, thanks,” Hayley said, using the clerk’s appearance as an excuse to turn toward the Ghost. There she was, just as Kitally had said. “We’re just looking around.”
The Ghost looked up just then. There was a flash of recognition in her eyes, and then she was tearing for the front of the store.
“Shit!”
Hayley took off after her. No way would she let her get away. She’d tackle the ski
“Hey, you!” Hayley shouted as she ran out of the store and down the middle of the mall. “Stop right there!”
The Ghost could fly; Hayley had to give her that. She took an escalator up, two stairs at a time. Hayley did the same.
The Ghost disappeared inside a dimly lit shop, the kind that sells lava lamps and posters.
Kitally caught up to Hayley before she stepped inside and muttered something about needing a pair of those ru
Hayley stepped inside. The shop was dark and had long strings of neon-colored beads hanging at the start of each aisle. It was a
“She shoved this lady right into me,” Kitally said. Then she pointed to her left. “She went that way!”
Hayley took off again, ru
She almost knocked a kid over. Someone shouted at her to slow down. Up ahead, she caught a glimpse of white hair right before the girl cut to the right.
The moment she made the same right, she spotted the Ghost standing at the railing, looking down to the bottom floor of the mall.
Finally. Hayley had her right where she wanted her.
The Ghost turned toward her.
“It’s over,” Hayley said.
The Ghost smiled, gave her the finger, then swiveled around and leaped over the barrier. She flew out of sight with her arms extended outward as if she had wings.