Lila sat, quite pleased with herself later that afternoon on the back porch, reading one of her chapter books. Ceaser was nearby, trimming the lawn, then glanced around to be sure no one was around to see.
"You've done it! I know it too!" Ceaser started. Lila didn't so much as look up from her book. "You drowned that poor sweet little Hyerdahl girl because she went and done won that award that you've been wantin' for yourself. You hit her then left her body in the water to drown! Then you plucked the award away from her too!" Ceaser accused. Lila looked up and placed a peice of paper inside her book.
"You're a silly man. Lies. That's what you're telling. All Lies. People that tell lies don't go to heaven; did you know?" Lila said casually, her eyes full of accusation.
"And people that drown innocent little girls aren't going to get a one-way ticket to Heaven either!" Ceaser snapped right back.
"What do you know?" Lila glared at him. Ceaser laughed.
"It's called a blood-stick-hound. They sprinkle some blue powder on a stick and the blood turns a neon color! You can scrub and scrub and scrub that blood all night if you wanted too! But there will always be just a little bit of blood left over...just for the policemen to find!" Ceaser smirked.
"You're a fool. There's no such thing as a stick blood hound. I know someone who isn't going to go to Heaven. And besides. Even if I did do it, which I certainatly did not, I'm a minor. They can't do anything to me. So there," Lila said with a smug look on her face. Ceaser grinned.
"They'll put you in a chair. It'll go ZZZZZZAP! There's a pink chair for little girls, and a blue chair for little boys." Ceaser explained with a pleased look on his face. Lila rolled her eyes, not one bit intimidated.
"There's not any color chair anymore then there is a bloodstickhound," Lila finished. Ceaser glared at her.
"Fine. Believe what you want and do what you think is right. But you ain't got me fooled. I'm ain't no dope like all them other folks who think you're some rosy little cherub," Ceaser scowled as Lila gave another one of her smug looks.
Lila gave him a "That's-Better" smirk and continued with her book. They both glared at each other and thought something along the lines of "Annoying little Prick."
Paul was stressed, being both concerned and worried for his only daughter and quite suspicious over something he couldn't point out, and was too scared too wrongly accuse her of anything, for that matter too. Miss Vitello seemed to notice the fatigue and stress on Paul. She offered him some sleeping pills she had and he accepted.
In the middle of their conversation, Lila entered the house and quickly walked upstairs. Seconds later, she was walking quickly down the stairs carrying a brown lunch sack with a nervous look on her face, then left quickly into the kitchen and closed the door behind her. Paul raised his eyebrows. He said goodbye to Miss Vitello.
"Thank you alot Clara. Let me put these in the kitchen," Paul said as he walked through the living room and into the kitchen. He heard the crinkling of a paper bag through the door and hesitated. Wanting to catch her in the act of doing whatever she was doing, he was silent for a moment, then burst opened the door.
Lila froze and she was holding a crinkled paper lunch sack in her hand. She was standing in front of the incinerater. She wore a look of defeat and panic as she froze before her father. Paul widened his eyes and raised his eyebrows in shock.
"Lila, what's in the bag," Paul forced himself to say after a few seconds, remaining calm. Lila started towards toward the back door.
"Nothing, father, me and Rhonda were going to eat a snack down the street at the park," Lila said, obviously looking for words.
"What's in the bag?" Paul repeated. Lila didn't say anything, nor did Paul. Suddenly, Paul grabbed for the bag and Lila held on tightly, refusing to let go. She screamed in anger and struggle a couple of times. Paul gave a hard yank and the bag went flying across the kitchen. It wasn't a bag. It was a pair of her shoes with the metal lining on them that fell out of the rolled paper.
"You were going to burn these in the insinerator, weren't you?" Paul asked nervously, slowly picking up one of the shoes. Lila backed up against a wall.
"But Daddy!" Lila started. Paul shook his head in disbelief. He knew everything, as if he were putting together a puzzle that a child could do.
"You did it, didn't you? My daughters a kil-...you beat her on the head with your shoes? Didn't you?" Paul continued in a shaky voice, not wanting to believe a word of it. Lila opened her mouth to protest. "That's why she had the moon-shaped bruises on her forehead! Didn't you?? Answer me Lila!" Paul pratically screamed. Lila burst into tears and ran to embrace her father.
"Oh daddy!! Nobody helps me!!" Lila cried. Furiously, Paul pushed his daughter away, disgusted by her act she was pulling at the moment. He pulled her by the arm into the living room. Lila sat on one of the sofas.
"Now Lila, tell me everything from the start! And I don't want any crying, because I'm the one that should be doing all the crying!! There's no sense in lying, since I know that child is dead because of you" Paul fumed. Lila held her head down, her shoulder slumped and her hands on her lap.
"It was all her fault!" Lila cried in rage. "I wanted that award!! But Little Miss Perfect had to get it!! She had all those trophies and awards at home so why couldn't she let me have it just this once?!" She demanded, yelling more to herself and staring straight ahead. "I wanted the award and the award was mine!! So I hit her! She kept yelling and crying, telling me to stop, but I hit her anway! I would have let her go...but she told me she was going to tell the teacher! So I hit her!! I was scared daddy, and it was a bad thing, but she made me do it, she did!!" Lila screamed. "I kept hitting her, then she fell into the water!! I was going to save her, but she wouldn't stop screaming and somone might have heard her and come looking!!!! So I took off my shoes and began hitting her on the head!!" Lila finished, screaming at the top of her lungs.
Lila started crying, but this time they were tears of fear, as she remembered what Ceaser had said. She spun towards her father.
"They won't put me in that chair, would they?!?!" Lila came closer to her father and started trembling. "It was all her fault too!"
Paul paced the room in panic, then suddenly turned to his daughter.
"No, Lila, I promise, nothing bad is going to happen to you. Now go to your room and read. I have to think," Paul started. Lila sighed with relief and began to walk out of the room as if a murder hadn't just taken place. The father thought quickly to himself.
"Wait, Lila..." he said, turning to her. "I want you to throw those shoes in the insinerator and never speak of this again. And Lila, I want you to never ever breath a word of what you have done," Paul warned. Lila simply nodded. She picked up the shoes and through them into the firey pit of the insinerator so casually, it frightened Paul.
Lila smiled smugly to herself as she skipped out of the kitchen to her bedroom to retrieve her rollar blades, humming the tune of Moonlight Bay, leaving her father standing in the same position, with an awkward look on his face.
A/n: I hope you all liked this chapter!! Only a few more left!! Please review peeps!! Let me know what you think!! And again, thanks to all those that have reviewed!
p.s some of you might know my site, another hey arnold site is on haitus. I don't know what to do, since I can't get my password, and I've tried anything. Argh! I hate to do this, but I am looking for a new host to start my Hey Arnold! site over, once again. If you know of any really good hosts, please e-mail me. thanks.