November 21
Chelsea calls before school to report that there is still no news on Alice. She is hoping, as I am, that Alice has taken off with Hawk; otherwise the situation looks very bleak.
Hawk is missing too.
On Wednesday, Alice went to Hawk's house in Cremona, which is about ten miles to the west of Haddonfield. They were planning on going to the movies. A few people at the movie theater had seen them. Hawk's car is missing from the garage, so he never arrived home. He and Alice had simply vanished.
The police think they might have been at Creek Bend, the popular makeout place in Cremona. The ground bore tire tracks that matched the description of those on Hawk's car. And they found a mound of leaves that appear to have a reddish stain, which they have taken for testing.
Chelsea doesn't mention it, but she must be wondering if it was Michael Myers.
I'm not going to school today, so after the phone call, I settle on the couch, tucked under my spare blanket. I watch the news. The news channels don't know any more than what Chelsea has told me.
Sheriff Brackett comes by in the afternoon.
"I need to ask Stella a few questions about Alice MacCready," he murmurs to my mom when she greets him at the door.
"Can't it wait a couple of days?" Mom objects, but I interrupt.
"It's okay, Mom," I tell her.
Sheriff swivels the recliner so it faces me and sits. Like in the hospital, he clutches at a notepad.
"How are you feeling, Stella?"
"Okay." My wounds are not bothering me at all. I'm just exhausted and worried about Alice.
"Alice came to see you at the hospital?"
"Yeah," I echo. "On Tuesday." Last night, I counted back the entries in my diary.
"How did she seem?"
"Ecstatic. She was completely smitten with Hawk. It was nearly all she talked about on her visit."
"Did that bother you?"
"No," I say honestly. "It was a nice distraction."
"Did you know Hawk?"
"No. I figured Hawk was from out of town."
"Did she mention anything about Creek Bend?"
"No." I'm pretty sure she didn't. "She mentioned the movie, and going to his house, but nothing about Creek Bend."
"Strange," Sheriff Brackett stares at his blank notepad. "None of your friends recall Alice relating plans to go to Creek Bend. Could it have been a spur of the moment decision?"
"I think she'd go if Hawk really wanted her to," I say somberly. After all, in Alice's family, the men make the decisions.
Sheriff Brackett nods. The others must have told him the same thing.
"Has Alice mentioned she noticed anything unusual recently? If she has seen strange faces in windows or if she feels like she's being watched?"
In other words, was Michael Myers stalking her?
"Not to me," I admit. "Alice doesn't like to talk about . . . unpleasant things. Besides she was far too occupied with her thing with Hawk to concentrate on anything else."
"So if she was being followed, she might not notice?"
"It's possible," I say.
"Thank you." Brackett hauls himself to a stand. "Has anything happened lately that I should know?"
I shake my head. I am still deciding if I should show him that evaluation of my dreams, but strictly speaking, they aren't evidence of anything except the inner workings of my mind. Besides, I feel the same revulsion at sharing Judith's memories with the Sheriff as I do sharing them with Dr. Egan. They were too private to be subject to anyone else.
Mom appears in the living room, eager to escort Sheriff Brackett out. Before he follows her, he pauses.
"You were right about the mask," he reveals. "I talked with Joe Martinson. He was in Steve's class. He recalled that he and a bunch of kids bought masks at the costume store on Spruce Street. Steve was with them."
II
He doesn't ask how I knew about the mask.
At around four o' clock, I try to call Joanne. Her mom answers. "Joanne's not home yet," Mrs. Berg says . "I tell her you called."
I hang up, dejected. It has not escaped my notice that Joanne hasn't visited me once at the hospital, or called or sent a card. I know she disapproves of my interest in the Myers case. She must have heard that I'm claiming to be the reborn Judith Myers, and she must be really pissed about that.
There isn't much I can do about it this moment.
