Lullaby (The Fable Series, Book 2)

Chapter Twenty

"Lame. Lame lame lame lame."

Kitty leans against the hood of the black Jeep parked at the Forest Park entrance.

"I don't have the car keys," she says. "They're at the cabin."

No surprise there, after Kitty and I practically ran away from the cabin without warning, Kitty in nothing but a silk nightgown and her slippers.

I look back in the direction of the forest. It's at least a forty-minute walk back to the cabin, and after our grand exit in front of Felix and Alastaire, I'd feel really stupid going back.

"Let's go to my house," I say. "You can borrow some of my clothes. And we can probably take my mom's car or something."

"No," says Kitty firmly. "There's no time for dealing with the parentals. Let's just go straight into town. It's just a few minute's walk right?"

"But you're wearing a dressing gown," I say, noticing how the red silky fabric ends just inches below her crotch. "And slippers."

She looks like a porn star. A high-class porn star, but still.

"I'll buy something to wear from the first shop we pass, I promise," she says.

"Okay..." I say, as Kitty grabs my hand and we set off down the road.

A few cars drive by as we walk through the suburbs, and we get some funny looks in passing, but luckily no one hoots or makes a scene. That's Portland for you I guess – Kitty's fitting right in. Over here it's weird not to be weird.

The first shop that we pass is a Walmart, and Kitty breaks her promise, marching right past it and saying that it doesn't count.

Quite a few of the shops we pass on the way don't count – Target, Kmart, even Macy's apparently. Only upmarket designer boutiques count as clothing stores in Kitty's mind.

We finally reach the high street. It's busier than the rest of town – there are lots of pedestrians out enjoying the sunshine, milling around the cafés and quaint specialty stores.

Even here, Kitty's crazy attire doesn't get more than a few sideways glances. After all, this is the street where a guy dressed as Darth Vader is frequently seen riding a unicycle while playing the Star Wars theme on his flaming bagpipes. Literally, bagpipes shooting fire.

One hot girl walking around in her pajamas isn't going to cause much of a scene.

We're about to cross the road when I see three familiar faces.

Faces I'd hoped not to see at all this summer.

Beth, Bailey and Becca, the Three Bs.

Even from this distance, I can see the sun shimmering off their bleached platinum blonde hair, the small silver angel wing necklaces glinting at their collarbones.

They haven't spotted me yet, but it's only moments until they do. I don't expect them to act the way they would at school – surrounding me, calling me 'Ghost', taunting me until Jamie comes to my rescue with her epic bitchslap (she actually slapped Beth so hard one time that she got a bruise on her cheek than even foundation couldn't cover up – that was cool.)

But still, some impulse takes over, and I grab Kitty's hand, pulling her into the first store I see. I drag her several feet into the shop, then look out the window, watching the Three Bs pass by on the sidewalk.

"What on earth are you doing?" Kitty says.

"I just thought this shop looked cool," I say. "Let's look around."