CHAPTER FOUR
It was only after dinner when I realized two other
things I had missed. One, was that at the time she was missing I had seen Cassie
head to the barn, then she wasn't there. Which reminded me of another point,
before I go on to point number two. Jake, had thought I was Cassie, and I was
near the barn at the time, was it that because Cassie spends a lot of her time
in the barn? What does she do there anyway?
Okay, my second point was that Cassie said she was at
the beach with Melissa and Rachel, but she was going to say 'Jake' I was
sure of that. She had changed the name to Melissa. Then I suppose Jake is
involved.
Who were the Sharing? And if Cassie's father thought
they were alright. Why did Cassie think them as morons?
"Jessie," Cassie's father came in, "Would you
mind helping Cassie out in the barn, we've got a load of work to do."
I actually did mind, "Sure." At least I'll get a
chance to ask Cassie a few thinks without making it sound suspicious.
Five minutes later I was at the barn wearing overalls,
a pair of dirty boots and heavy-duty black gloves. I was also shoveling horse
manure.
Gross. Urgh.
"Is this what you do in the barn?" I choked, making
a face, "Yuck."
Cassie laughed, "My friends think so too."
In a casual voice I said, "I never met them."
Cassie shrugged, "I guess you'll get to met them
later."
"Uhuh." I said carefully, "Look Cassie, I want to
ask you a question."
"What is it?"
"Chapman asked me to join to this group." I said as
if I were confused or troubled, "And I'm not so sure about it, I mean it
sounded so good and all, and your dad thinks they're alright-" I noticed
that Cassie had frozen, "But…"
"The Sharing?" She asked, she went back to work.
"Yeah." I said in a conversational tone, "Why do
you think they are 'morons'?"
Cassie bit her lip. "I don't know they're all
weird."
Suspicion entered my conciseness, weird? "How so?"
I asked carefully.
She looked troubled, "I don't know, just…just
don't join them."
I laughed, "Why?"
"They're not who they seem," She said, "They
promise you something and end up taking whatever it is that they promised."
This is interesting, "What do they give you
Cassie?"
She hesitated, "They offer you an identity, then they
take it and you away."
I tried to register surprised, "You sure?"
She was silent, she shook her head, like she said way
too much. "Didn't you join them?"
She shook her head, "They creep me out."
I nodded, "Instinct, huh?"
Cassie turned around to look at me. "What?" I said.
She looked at me strangely, "Nothing."
"So." I said, "What else do you do around
here?"
"The barn?"
"Yeah." I said, taking a rake and started to play
around with the hay, "Other than what were doing."
She shrugged, "That's about it, and I have to give
the animals there meds."
"Eh?"
"Medicine."
That's it? That's it? Why is she here all day then,
I'd rather hang around at the mall or something. "Don't you get bored all
day long here mucking around?"
She smiled, "I like it, besides, dad said if I
continue giving the animals there meds on weekends he'll let me use his cell
phone for an extra half hour."
"Which makes?" I inquired.
"A whole hour." She said, "It's not much but
it's worth it."
"I suppose." I said, "But my dad let me use his
cell phone whenever I wanted."
"Well that's your father."
"Yeah." I said staring off. "But now he's
gone."
Cassie looked up at me, "I'm sorry."
"I can't see why."
She shrugged again, "I guess I acted a little weird
that day, I wasn't listing to what my mom was saying, I should have remembered
about you. Sorry."
"You don't have to be." I said, "In fact, I'm
cool about it."
She didn't look like she believed me.
"Look Cassie." I said in a quite voice, putting
down the rake in my hand, "I'm going to be family to you guys, you'll be
all I have, aside from our grandparents. Your parents are great, I'll learn to
love them, but Cassie. You." I hesitated, "You're acting all weird and I,
well, your parents think you're acting weird too, like you have something on
your mind…" I trailed off helplessly.
Cassie looked away, "There's nothing to talk
about."
"Cassie…" I said, "I. I- I want this to work
out okay? I mean…you know what I mean."
She sighed, "I do."
Cassie got up and sat down beside me on a bale of hay,
she held out her hand, "Sisters?"
I smiled and took her hand, "I've never had a
sister before."
"Me neither."
"Ahem."
We both jumped up.
"Sorry," Jake said, "Cassie told me to come over,
I didn't realize that you two were busy."
"Jessie, this is Jake, Jake, Jessie. I believe you
too met before."
"We did." Jake smiled at me.
I flushed, looked at the ground, murmured a reply.
"Ah, Jake," Cassie's father came into the barn,
"Cassie called you over to help out?"
"Help out with what?" Jake asked.
Cassie rolled her eyes, "The barn, my dad can't
spare time for cleaning the place up, he's had another spell cast on him, you
know, he's back to making bird cages."
"Three will do." Uncle Will said cheerfully, "The
larger the number the quicker this will be."
And that's how I spent the rest of the day, it
wasn't bad, and you know, while I worked with Cassie, Jake and her father, I
kept on thinking that I could get used to this.
Life wasn't so bad after all.