Funhouse Read Free Page A

least you weren’t on that thing when it went,” Guy Joe said to Tess, patting her shoulder awkwardly as he slid to a sitting position beside her. “When I saw the bulletin on television, I thought of you. I know this place is your favorite hangout.”
    “Guy Joe,” Tess said stiffly, still uncomfortable around the brother who had “deserted” her by staying with their father after the separation, “you know I never go near the roller coaster. Haven’t since the first time I ever rode it.”
    “According to the bulletin,” her brother argued, running his fingers through his unruly hair, “you didn’t have to be on the thing to get clobbered. For all I knew, you could have been creamed by one of the falling cars.”
    Tess knew he was right. One elderly woman had been tossed into a food booth. Two little boys had been slashed by flying metal chunks, and at least half a dozen other people walking along The Boardwalk at the time of the accident had been sent to the Santa Luisa Medical Center.
    “Thanks for worrying about me,” she said politely, “but I’m fine.”
    A tall, big-boned, very pretty girl with thick, blonde shoulder-length hair ran up to them. Dressed in beige silk slacks over a red leotard, she carried her large frame gracefully, moving with quick, light steps across The Boardwalk. When she reached the group, she sank into a crouch beside Gina. Tess noticed that she was careful not to let her silk pants touch the wood, gently bunching them slightly at the knees.
    “Isn’t this just awful?” the girl breathed, her blue eyes wide. “I can’t believe it! My daddy’s going to have a stroke! Something like this happening on his beloved boardwalk, it’s just terrible! Has anybody seen my little brother?”
    The girl was Trudy Slaughter, a classmate of Tess and Gina’s, and the “daddy” she spoke of was chairman of the board of directors that ran The Boardwalk. Trudy was a popular, powerful force at Santa Luisa High, having held at least once, every available office. Tess hadn’t voted for her since the day she saw Trudy lose her temper in the school parking lot over an English grade lower than the one she’d been expecting. Seeing Trudy violently ripping at sheets of paper and slamming her books against the windshield of a car had not been a pretty sight. It had given Tess chills, and she knew she’d seen a side of Trudy that not many other people had witnessed.
    “I saw Tommy,” Gina said, referring to the brother Trudy had asked about. “He’s fine. He’s with one of Beak’s kid sisters. They weren’t hurt, either.”
    “I was at ballet class,” Trudy breathed, “when we all heard this horrible sound. Debbie Wooster thought it was an earthquake and ran screaming into the bathroom. But Madame Souska said it wasn’t, because the chandelier wasn’t shaking. She let us turn on the radio and that’s how we heard. We were excused from practice, can you believe that? She never excuses us for anything!” Trudy’s chest heaved in a heavy sigh. “I suppose that means we’ll have to make it up another time.”
    “Poor thing,” Tess said sarcastically, too tired to ignore Trudy’s callousness. “And yes, we’re all fine, thanks for asking.”
    Trudy blushed. “Well, I can see that! I heard about Dade, though. I can’t believe it. How did it happen, anyway?”
    “No one knows,” Guy Joe said wearily. “Maybe a loose rail.”
    “I saw someone,” Tess said quietly.
    Everyone’s eyes focused on her. But she could tell that her words hadn’t registered. “Under The Devil’s Elbow,” she added, flushing because she hated being the center of attention, and already wishing she hadn’t said anything. “Right after the accident. Running away.”
    “Well, don’t keep us in suspense,” Trudy said anxiously. “Who was it?”
    “You saw someone?” Sam asked quietly, leaning forward to peer into Tess’s face. “Running away?”
    Tess nodded. “I think so. It was awfully