The Ghost of Tricia Martin Read online

  THE GHOST OF TRICIA MARTIN

  Written by

  Kate William

  Created by

  FRANCINE PASCAL

  Copyright © 2015, Francine Pascal

  Steven sank down on the edge of his bed and stared into space. He wasn't sure what time it was, and he didn't care. He just knew he was happier than he had been in a long, long time.

  With a sigh, he took his wallet out. Sliding his fingers into a hidden pocket behind his ID card and license, he pulled out a worn photograph. Tricia's face smiled back at him.

  "I can't believe I found you again," he whispered.

  Then his gaze fell on the wall over his desk. A photograph of Cara and him at the state fair drew his attention. Steven's stomach sank.

  He truly loved Cara. But seeing Andrea that night had stirred up feelings he hadn't realized he still had. And he knew that, as much as he loved Cara, he desperately wanted to see Andrea again.

  CONTENTS

  Chapter One

  Chapter Two

  Chapter Three

  Chapter Four

  Chapter Five

  Chapter Six

  Chapter Seven

  Chapter Eight

  Chapter Nine

  Chapter Ten

  Chapter Eleven

  Chapter Twelve

  One

  "Jessica," Elizabeth Wakefield muttered under her breath as she hunted through her makeup drawer in the bathroom for her new eyeliner. When she couldn't find it, she slammed the drawer closed and opened her twin sister's drawer on the other side of the sink. There, in plain view, was the eyeliner. Elizabeth shook her head as she uncapped it.

  "Oops, I forgot to tell you I borrowed that," Jessica apologized, strolling into the bathroom from her bedroom. She perched on the counter next to Elizabeth. "Going out with Todd tonight?"

  "How did you ever guess?" Elizabeth looked in the mirror and grinned.

  "I guess it's just my natural brilliance, Liz," Jessica said.

  The two sisters caught each other's eye in the mirror. Together, they made a perfect pair of California girls. Both had wavy, honey-blond hair and eyes the color of the Pacific Ocean. They had the same heart-shaped faces and size-six figures, the same musical voices and bubbly laughs. Right down to the dimples in their left cheeks, Elizabeth and Jessica Wakefield were identical.

  But that was only on the surface, as any one of their friends in Sweet Valley High's junior class would immediately point out. Elizabeth, who was older than Jessica by four minutes, was thoughtful and responsible. She could lose herself for hours in a book, and she gave her heart and soul to the three most important people in her life: her boyfriend, Todd Wilkins, her best friend, Enid Rollins, and her twin sister, Jessica. Whenever something was troubling her, she was likely to work it out for herself by writing about it in her journal. Elizabeth was not the sort of person to publicize her private thoughts.

  But there was never any doubt about how "Hurricane Jessica" felt. She went from one extreme to the other, from boyfriend to boyfriend, and from one fad to the next. She loved nothing more than being the center of attention and wasn't above cooking up a scheme to make sure she stayed there. "As subtle as a blow torch," Elizabeth lovingly described her, and Jessica never argued. So, as identical as the twins seemed at first glance, they were really quite different.

  "That's a good color," Jessica said as Elizabeth smudged the eyeliner carefully at the corners of her eyes. "It's very sophisticated."

  "Yeah, I noticed how much you like it," Elizabeth teased. She glanced at her twin and grinned. "So, where are you going tonight?"

  Jessica slid off the counter, her face instantly clouded by irritation. "That beach party, and I have to get a ride from Lila. It makes me soooo mad. Why does the Fiat have to break down now?"

  The twins shared a Fiat Spider convertible they had inherited from their mother. At least, they shared it when it worked. Two days before, when Jessica had been ready to leave cheerleading practice, it had simply refused to start. The mechanic still wasn't sure if the problem was as simple as a worn fan belt or as serious as a blown transmission. So for the past two days the twins had had to find rides from their friends.

  "What's wrong with getting a ride from Lila?" Elizabeth asked. She recapped the pencil and put it in her drawer. "She's your best friend."

  Jessica gave her an exaggerated look of disgust. "Oh, come on, Liz, that's not the point. I like to be able to leave when I want. I can't stand having to wait for someone to pick me up."

  Elizabeth shrugged. It didn't seem like such a big deal to her, but that was Jessica, blowing things out of proportion as usual.

  "Why don't you borrow Mom's car?" Elizabeth suggested.

  Jessica closed her eyes. "Go to the beach party in a station wagon? Forget it." She shuddered dramatically.

  "Well, all I can say is, you have my deepest sympathy."

  There was a knock on the door of Elizabeth's bedroom, which adjoined the bathroom. "Liz?" came a voice.

  "Just a minute, Steve," Elizabeth called. She crossed her room and opened the door for her brother. Jessica followed her.

  Steven was home from college for a few weeks, working on an independent study project. At the moment, however, he didn't look like he had his mind on his books. His dark hair was still wet from the shower, and he was wearing khaki pants with a knife-edge crease. In his hands were two brand-new shirts. As he walked into the room, he held up the shirts.

  "Which of these do you think I should wear tonight?" he asked the twins. "The blue one or the green one?"

  Jessica poked her brother in the ribs and headed for the door. "Lucky Cara," she teased. "I hope she's getting dressed up, too, if you're going to look so sharp." She waved and went into her bedroom, closing the door.

  Elizabeth had been watching Steven intently while Jessica spoke, and she had seen a blush color his cheeks.

  "You're not going out with Cara tonight, are you?" Elizabeth said in a low voice.

  Steven shook his head. Cara Walker, who was one of Jessica's close friends, was Steven's girlfriend. It was a warm, caring relationship, but Elizabeth knew something had happened recently to turn it upside down. Her brother had seen a ghost.

  Not in the real sense, of course. But the way it had shaken Steven, Elizabeth decided it could just as well have been a ghost. The day before, Steven had gone with Elizabeth to the Sweet Valley Mall, and they had stopped in a store called the Unique Boutique. Standing behind the counter had been a girl who looked, sounded, and dressed just like Tricia Martin, the girlfriend Steven had lost to leukemia months ago. Elizabeth knew she would never forget the look of astonishment and wonder that had crossed her brother's face when he saw her. He had been unable to resist asking the girl's name, and his eyes had devoured her. Elizabeth had been frightened by his intensity.

  "Are you going out with her?" Elizabeth asked Steven. "With Andrea?"

  "Well, actually . . ." Steven looked at her steadily. "Yes, I am seeing Andrea tonight." His gaze wavered, and he looked down.

  Elizabeth tried to make her voice sound light. "Do you really think that's a great idea?" she asked. "I mean, why bring back all those sad memories?"

  Steven shrugged in a feeble attempt at nonchalance. "I know it sounds crazy, but I just have to go out with her once. You know, to prove to myself she isn't really like Tricia at all."

  "Just because she looks a bit like Tricia doesn't mean she's anything like her," Elizabeth said.

  Nodding, Steven said, "I know! That's my whole point. So it's just this once—I probably won't even like her at all, once we start talking." He looked down at the shirts he was holding and laughed. "She probably likes everything I don't like and vice versa."

  Elizabeth had a feeling Steven was more interested in Andrea than he was letting on, and that worried her. Tricia was gone forever. If Steven thought he had found a way to bring her back, he might be letting himself in for heartache all over again—not to mention what it would do to Cara.

  "Just don't forget about Cara," Elizabeth warned gently. "You could end up hurting her a lot."

  "Hurting her?" Steven protested. "Come on, I would never hurt Cara. But I just have to get this out of my system, Liz. Then I can go on."

  Elizabeth didn't say anything; she just looked at her brother with concern.

  "Listen—promise you won't tell anyone, OK?" Steven asked in a tight voice. "It's not that there's anything to hide, but there's just no point in letting Cara find out. She wouldn't understand."

  "I think she would," Elizabeth said. "If you really mean it when you say you only want to see Andrea once, I think Cara would understand. She knows how much you loved Tricia."

  Steven shook his head and turned away. "Liz, just—I don't want—"

  There was a sudden blast of music as Jessica turned on the stereo in her room. Steven cast a look in that direction and then turned to Elizabeth again.

  "Especially Jess," he said in a low voice. "You know she can never keep a secret. If Cara hears about this, she might get the wrong idea."

  Elizabeth frowned. "If you're worried about Cara finding out, why don't you tell her yourself?"

  "Liz, just promise, please?" Steven asked.

  Reluctantly, Elizabeth nodded. "All right. I won't say anything about it."

  Steven stepped forward and gave her a quick, hard hug. "You're the best, Liz. Thanks." He turned and hurried down the hall to his own room. Elizabeth closed her bedroom door and walked over to her
bureau. She picked up a brush and absently began brushing her hair. I just hope he knows what he's doing, she thought.

  With one last critical look at herself, she went downstairs to wait for Todd. She was about to go into her father's study to say goodbye to her parents when angry voices stopped her. She stood still, her hand on the doorknob.

  "I'm sorry, Ned! But I don't know what you think I can do about it!" Alice Wakefield said.

  "Maybe if you had called the electrician last month instead of waiting until the problem got worse, it wouldn't have cost twice as much as it should have!" Mr. Wakefield returned. "Now they're charging us two hundred dollars for what should have been a simple job!"

  Elizabeth bit her lower lip. She hated to hear her parents argue. It always made her feel so helpless. She knew it was perfectly normal for people to have disagreements, but it used to be rare for her parents to argue. Lately, it had been happening a little more often.

  "You're the one who said it wasn't a serious problem, Ned, so don't blame me."

  Elizabeth could hear that her mother was walking toward the door, and she knew she had to do something quickly. She turned the handle and pushed open the door, nearly hitting her mother. Both parents stared at her, startled. There was a moment of embarrassed silence.

  "Todd's picking me up in a few minutes," Elizabeth said at last, glancing from her mother to her father. "I just wanted to say good night."

  Alice Wakefield brushed her blond hair back with one hand. Then she sent Elizabeth a warm smile. "OK, honey. Have a good time."

  "I will, Mom," Elizabeth said. She searched her mother's face anxiously, but the tension seemed to be gone. Elizabeth smiled at her father. "Good night, Dad."

  " 'Night, sweetie," Mr. Wakefield replied. He shuffled some papers together on his desk and winked at her. "Don't stay out too late, hold up a bank, or anything like that."

  Elizabeth had to laugh at his silliness. "I won't. I promise." She crossed the room and gave him a light kiss on his cheek. Then she hurried out of the den.

  Two

  Steven wiped his forehead with the back of his hand. His mind was racing with a million different things to say to Andrea.

  Out of habit, he clicked his high beams off as a car approached. He stared ahead at the road, remembering Tricia's last days. She had been so pale and distant, just like a dream that had faded before his eyes. Steven would never forget the terrible anguish of losing her, of loving her with all his heart and knowing that that wasn't enough to save her.

  He took a deep breath and tried to stay calm. Up ahead, waiting for him in an intimate Pacific Shores restaurant, was Andrea. It was more than he could have wished for, to have a second chance. Steven's heart raced with exhilaration and hope.

  When he reached the restaurant in Pacific Shores, he was so nervous that his hands were shaking. He parked his car, got out, and, after taking another deep breath, he headed toward the restaurant.

  He saw her the moment he walked in, and his heart leapt inside his chest. For the space of several heartbeats he stood still, just staring at her. Then he hurried over to the table.

  "Hi," Steven gasped, drinking in each detail of her face. "Sorry I'm late."

  "No, I was a little early," she said. She smiled back and swept a curl off her forehead.

  For a moment, Steven didn't know what to say. She was so much like Tricia in her voice and her gestures. Even the pretty green blouse with a lace collar she was wearing was similar to one Tricia had owned.

  Andrea arched her eyebrows. "Are you all right?"

  "Sure! I'm fine!" Steven said, sitting down. There was a moment of awkward silence, and then Steven mumbled, "You look nice."

  "Thanks." Andrea smiled warmly.

  They shared a long look, and Steven felt a wave of emotion that threatened to carry him off.

  "Listen," Steven said, leaning forward earnestly. "Do you like walking on the beach?"

  "Mmm!" Andrea was sipping her water, and she nodded. "Sure. Doesn't everyone?"

  "I knew you would," he said. "I feel like I already know you so well."

  "How could you?" Andrea asked, laughing and shaking her head. "We just met."

  Steven smiled. "It doesn't seem that way to me."

  A delicate blush tinged her cheeks. "That's so sweet," she murmured.

  All the warnings Steven had given himself disappeared. He could not stop marveling at how lucky he was to have found her! It was a dream come true.

  He wanted to touch her, but he didn't dare. "Tricia, I have a feeling we're going to have a great time tonight."

  Just then the waiter appeared, and the next few minutes were taken up by ordering dinner. "The chef's salad is really great," Steven suggested. It had been Tricia's favorite.

  "That sounds good," Andrea said without enthusiasm.

  After they ordered, the conversation turned to Steven's independent study project. Andrea listened intently, her expression thoughtful. She had the same reflective, quiet way of listening, Steven thought, that he had loved so much in Tricia.

  Steven hardly tasted his food when it came because he was so caught up in talking to Andrea. But she finally interrupted him.

  "Steve, no offense," she began quietly, "but you've called me Tricia three times."

  "Steven looked both startled and embarrassed. "I-I'm sorry," he stammered. "I didn't realize—it's just that—"

  "Just what?" she prompted in a gentle voice.

  "You remind me of her so—" Steven's throat closed up suddenly, and tears came to his eyes. He tried to cover up by coughing harshly, but he had to wipe his eyes.

  Andrea leaned toward him and put her hand on his. "Who was she?" she asked. Her voice was low and earnest, and her eyes were warmly sympathetic.

  Haltingly, Steven began to tell Andrea about Tricia. He described her last days and the love he had had for her. At first he had thought he wouldn't be able to speak about it, but Andrea's sincerity gave him the strength.

  "I don't understand how life can be so unfair," he concluded bitterly. He shook his head, his heart aching. "Someone as good and wonderful as she was. She never hurt anyone in her life."

  Andrea had tears in her eyes. "I'm so sorry," she whispered. "That's so sad. I felt the same way when my grandfather died in a car crash. I thought, why did it have to be him?"

  "I knew you'd understand," Steven said in a husky voice. He took a deep breath.

  "I guess you must miss her a lot," Andrea ventured.

  Steven frowned. "Well, that's the thing," he said. He looked at her wonderingly. "When I saw you—" He saw the puzzled look on her face and tried to explain. "You look just like her—and sound and act like her, too," he said in a rush.

  Andrea's puzzlement turned to surprise. "Oh. Is that why you asked me out?"

  "No! I mean—" Steven felt terrible. "I knew I would like you," he stammered. "And I do."

  She smiled. "I like you, too," she said in a quiet voice.

  Steven exhaled heavily. "That's great," he breathed, smiling at her. "That's great."

  There was a long silence. Steven wanted to jump out of his chair and start yelling with happiness, but he refrained.

  Finally, Andrea said, "Thanks for dinner."

  "Thanks for accepting," Steven answered. He smiled. "Can I call you again?"

  Andrea tipped her head to one side, a playful grin on her face. "I guess so."

  "Great." Steven laughed. "I think I'll call you when I get home tonight."

  Andrea let out a laugh, too. "Why don't you wait until tomorrow to call?" she suggested.

  "OK, if I have to." Steven couldn't stop smiling. He was on top of the world.

  Jessica hopped out of Lila's car at the beach parking lot and breathed in deeply. "Mmm . . . smell that?" she asked her friend.

  "What?" Lila replied. "The ocean?"

  Jessica grinned impishly. "No—available guys."

  "I know what you mean," Lila agreed with a giggle. "Let's go!"

  Together, they trudged through the deep sand toward a big group of kids. Music filled the air, and whoops of excitement drifted over from around the volleyball net. Jessica felt a familiar tingle of anticipation. Going to parties was high on her list of favorite things to do.

  "Do you see your friend from Palisades?" she asked Lila.

  Lila was scanning the crowd. There were a few Sweet Valley students, but mostly the people were from the Big Mesa and Palisades high schools. A friend of Lila's from Palisades had invited them.