eyes . She was completely solid , not at all transparent or translucent . A living girl .
I swore — something I never do in front of kids — but under the circumstances , I didn ’ t think anyone would mind . One doesn ’ t normally run into kids on an investigation , unless they ’ re invited to the location to take part , and never in abandoned bathrooms . What ’ s this kid doing here .
I switched off my camera and pulled the flashlight from my backpack . Everyone squinted as light filled the bathroom . As my eyes adjusted , I took another look at the little girl . She looked about ten years old , with pale skin , shoulder-length black hair , and big blue eyes . She wore a red dress so faded it was pale pink , white socks striped with green , and sneakers with holes in the toes . Her face was streaked with tears .
“ Hey kid ,” I said , directing the light away from her face . “ What are you doing here ?”
The little girl sniffed . “ They said we could be friends if I stayed here all night long .” “ Who said that ?” “ The other girls . They said if I stayed all night in here , I could be their friend when they come to get me in the morning . They even said they ’ d let me into their Girl Scout troop .” “ Oh hell ,” Diesel said behind me . I barely heard him , though . I ’ d just noticed that someone had snaked a jump rope cord around the toilet tank and tied the ends around the girl ’ s wrists with complicated knots . I already knew the answer before I asked the question .
16 HANNAH AND OTHER STORIES
eyes . She was completely solid , not at all transparent or translucent . A living girl .
I swore — something I never do in front of kids — but under the circumstances , I didn ’ t think anyone would mind . One doesn ’ t normally run into kids on an investigation , unless they ’ re invited to the location to take part , and never in abandoned bathrooms . What ’ s this kid doing here .
I switched off my camera and pulled the flashlight from my backpack . Everyone squinted as light filled the bathroom . As my eyes adjusted , I took another look at the little girl . She looked about ten years old , with pale skin , shoulder-length black hair , and big blue eyes . She wore a red dress so faded it was pale pink , white socks striped with green , and sneakers with holes in the toes . Her face was streaked with tears .
“ Hey kid ,” I said , directing the light away from her face . “ What are you doing here ?”
The little girl sniffed . “ They said we could be friends if I stayed here all night long .” “ Who said that ?” “ The other girls . They said if I stayed all night in here , I could be their friend when they come to get me in the morning . They even said they ’ d let me into their Girl Scout troop .” “ Oh hell ,” Diesel said behind me . I barely heard him , though . I ’ d just noticed that someone had snaked a jump rope cord around the toilet tank and tied the ends around the girl ’ s wrists with complicated knots . I already knew the answer before I asked the question .