She couldn't think of any way to get Enid on her feet that wasn't drastic. But Elizabeth was prepared to be drastic now. Her best friend's entire future was at stake, and Elizabeth wasn't about to let Enid just lie back and give up.

  Elizabeth was going to fight for Enid's recovery with all her might. And if it meant trying a desperate trick to save her, Elizabeth figured it was well worth the attempt.

  Thirteen

  "OK, Teddy," Elizabeth said, dangling her feet in the swimming pool. "Have you got the plan down?"

  Teddy nodded, his blue eyes twinkling. "Do you think it'll really work, Liz?"

  Elizabeth sighed. "I sure hope so," she told him. Just then there was the faint sound of the front doorbell. Elizabeth quickly got up. "That must be Enid. I'll be right back, Teddy,"

  Several minutes later Enid had wheeled out to the patio surrounding the Wakefields' swimming pool. Late afternoon sunlight danced on the water. Standing next to Enid, Elizabeth took a deep breath, crossing her fingers behind her back. Her plan had better work, she told herself. She didn't know what she'd do if it failed.

  "Now, Teddy, stay away from the edge of the pool," she warned, getting to her feet. "I'm going to go in and get us some root beer."

  "Sure, Liz," Teddy called merrily, running his toy truck along the cement lip at the deep end.

  "Keep an eye on him, will you, Enid?" Elizabeth said as she opened the sliding door to the house. "He can't swim," she added under her breath.

  Enid's eyebrows shot up. "But, Liz—"

  "I'll just be a second," Elizabeth promised.

  Teddy waited until Elizabeth was safely inside before he began to put the first part of Elizabeth's plan into effect.

  "Look, Enid!" he called. "I can make my truck go really fast!"

  Crawling around the edge of the deep end, Teddy pushed his truck before him, moving faster and faster on the slippery cement.

  "Be careful, Teddy," Enid said anxiously, leaning forward in her wheelchair. Liz didn't tell me she was going to be baby-sitting, she thought unhappily. I thought she wanted to talk to me alone.

  "It's OK," Teddy assured her, backing up and running the truck in the other direction.

  "I mean it, Teddy," Enid said warningly. "You're way too close to the water. Why don't you—"

  But her warning was too late. The truck shot out of Teddy's hand into the deep end of the pool, and an instant later he jumped in after it, spluttering as the water came up over his head.

  "Teddy!" Enid screamed. Gripping the wheelchair with both hands, she started to drive herself forward. "Liz!" she screamed at the top of her lungs. "Teddy's drowning!"

  But there was no answer from inside the Wakefield house. She can't hear me, Enid thought desperately. Teddy was fighting to stay above the water. She could see his little body flailing helplessly as he sank once, struggled, and sank again. The next minute Enid was on her feet. Her legs felt like rubber, and her whole body ached as she stumbled forward. But she didn't care. She didn't have time to think. She just had to make it to the other side of the pool.

  Within seconds she was at the opposite edge. "Hang on, Teddy. I'm coming!" she called, jumping into the water.

  "Enid!" the little boy gasped, fighting for breath. "Help me!"

  Enid swam to Teddy and fitted the crook of her elbow around his head, then pulled him back with her to the shallow end. Just then the sliding door opened, and Elizabeth ran out.

  "Teddy! Enid! What's going on?" she shrieked.

  "Enid saved my life," Teddy cried, wiping the water off his face.

  "Enid," Elizabeth said wonderingly, "how did you—?"

  Enid stood in the shallow end, her beautiful green eyes shining. "I don't know, Liz," she whispered. "When I saw Teddy drowning, I was out of the chair like a bolt of lightning. I didn't even stop to think, I just ran!"

  "Ran!" Elizabeth gasped, jumping into the water and throwing her arms around her friend. "Oh, Enid—"

  Then the three of them bounced up and down in the water, hugging one other—Enid still fully dressed, her clothes sticking to her, and Elizabeth and Teddy in their bathing suits.

  "I hate to ask stupid questions," a wry voice said, "but what is going on around here?"

  "Oh, Jess," Elizabeth cried, her face wet with water and tears, "Enid's cured! She saved Teddy's life. She jumped out of the wheelchair and walked!"

  "Enid!" Jessica exclaimed. "That's wonderful!"

  "Now, tell me what happened," Jessica asked after she'd brought Enid a towel.

  "Well, Liz asked me to watch Teddy while she went inside to get some sodas," Enid said, wiping her streaming face. "And the next thing I knew he was in the water. Liz had just finished telling me Teddy couldn't swim, and there he was—five feet over his head! And that was the last thing I remember. I guess I just headed for the pool. And even though my legs felt wobbly, I made it!"

  "Wait a minute." Jessica said. "Liz told you Teddy doesn't know how to swim?"

  "Well, yes," Enid said, confused. "And he obviously couldn't. He—"

  "What's going on here?" Jessica demanded. "Teddy swims like a fish! For a six-year-old, he's amazing. And anyway—"

  Enid's mouth dropped open. She looked first at Elizabeth and than at Teddy. "Do you mean—"

  "I'm sorry, Enid," Elizabeth said gently. "I didn't mean to trick you. But I couldn't think of any other way!"

  "Wait a minute," Enid said slowly. "I think I'd better sit down."

  "You've been sitting far too long," Elizabeth told her. "That's the whole point, Enid. We had to do something!"

  Enid shook her head in disbelief. "Then Dr. MacGregor was right," she said painfully. "I could walk all the time, and I just wouldn't let myself!"

  "Enid, are you mad?" Teddy asked seriously. "I didn't mean to fake drowning. But I wanted to help Liz!"

  "Of course I'm not mad!" Enid cried. "This is the happiest day of my life!"

  "Oh, Enid." Elizabeth sighed and hugged the girl again. "Thank goodness you're OK again. I've been so worried about you—"

  Enid looked down at her legs in disbelief. "It's hard to believe," she said wonderingly. "The mind is such a strange thing. I really thought I couldn't move, and there was nothing the matter with my legs at all."

  "You've been through a lot, Enid," Elizabeth said sympathetically. "But somehow it looks like the worst of it is over now."

  "I think it is," Enid said slowly. "Liz, Teddy, I don't know how to thank you guys enough. And you know what I think I'm going to do now?"

  "What?" Teddy asked.

  "If one of you will give me a ride home," Enid announced, "I'm going to walk up to my front door. I can just imagine the look on my mother's face!"

  "I think we'd better get you some dry clothes first." Jessica giggled. "No offense, Enid, but I think you'd scare your mother now!"

  "What do we do with this thing?" Elizabeth wondered aloud, looking at Enid's wheelchair.

  Enid shuddered. "Drown it!" she suggested. "I never want to see it again as long as I live!"

  "I'll take you home," Elizabeth said when she'd given Enid some dry clothes upstairs. "Jess and I have round-the-clock Fiat privileges these days. And I can stay with you if you don't want to be alone."

  Enid shook her head. "I need to be alone, Liz, I've got a lot to think about," she said soberly. "I think I've been denying more than just the fact that I was really all better."

  "What do you mean?" Elizabeth asked carefully.

  "Well, it has to do with George," Enid said slowly. "You see, Liz, I think George is really in love with Robin Wilson now. I've been trying to hang onto him, and that isn't fair. I'm going to miss him like crazy, but I really want what's best for him."

  "You mean you're going to tell him it's all over?" Elizabeth asked gently.

  Enid smiled painfully. "I think so," she said. "As soon as I get my courage up, that is. That's why I need some time to think."

  "Well, you think, then," Elizabeth told her. "But if you need me for anything, be sure to call me."

  "I'll call you no matter what," Enid promised. "And Liz—"

  "Yes, Enid?"

  "Thank you," Enid said, her eyes filling up with tears, "You're the best friend anyone could have."

  "Oh, Enid," Elizabeth cried, throwing her arms around the girl. She felt as if an enormous burden had been lifted from her shoulders. And from the look on Enid's face, she could tell her friend felt exactly the same way.

  "I don't know how word gets around so fast in Sweet Valley!" Elizabeth said, giggling. She was standing with Todd in the parking lot of the Dairi Burger, the popular humburger place downtown. "It only happened a few hours ago," she added, "and somehow everyone knows about it already!"

  She and Todd had dropped into the Dairi Burger for something to eat on their way back home from the movies. It was Friday evening, and the place was packed. Elizabeth couldn't get over the reaction when she and Todd had walked inside. The whole place had gone wild! Olivia Davidson had jumped to her feet, giving Elizabeth a standing ovation. And one by one everybody else had followed suit. Jessica had been the loudest of all. "I'm so proud of you, Liz," she had declared. And Elizabeth could tell that her twin meant it.

  "You're a hero, that's all," Todd said happily, giving her a warm kiss. "What you did this afternoon was nothing short of a stroke of genius!"

  "Enid is the one who really deserves the credit," Elizabeth insisted. "She was so brave, Todd. I wish you could have been there!"

  "I do, too," Todd told her. "But right now I think you and I need to get away from this crowd. What do you say we drive back to your house and have a midnight swim—just the two of us!"

  "As long as you promise not to drown." Elizabeth giggled. "I've had enough heroism for one day, thank you very much."

  As they drove back to the Wakefields' house, Elizabeth snuggled next to Todd and told him what Enid had said about George and Robin. "I really admire her," she said thoughtfully. "She's got a lot of guts, Todd. It's going to be pretty hard for her to let George go."

  "She might not," Todd warned her. "Don't expect too much from her, Liz."

  "No, I think she's through with pretending," Elizabeth insisted. "She called me when she got home and said she was going to see George tonight. And something tells me tonight is going to be their last date."

  "We'll see," Todd said, tightening his arm around Elizabeth. "Just don't you go getting dumb ideas like that in your head," he admonished. "If tonight were our last date, I don't know what I'd do!"

  "Don't worry," Elizabeth said softly, turning her head so she could kiss his cheek. "I think you're stuck with me for a long, long time."

  "Good," Todd murmured happily, turning his car into the Wakefields' driveway. "Let's keep it that way!"

  But if Todd had hoped for a quiet evening in the Wakefield house, he was disappointed. The split-level home was flooded with lights, and Mr. and Mrs. Wakefield came running outside to meet them as Todd turned off the engine.

  "Bayside was marvelous!" Mrs. Wakefield exclaimed, giving her daughter a hug. "We had the most wonderful time, Liz. And we ran into Roger Collins! He was with your French teacher. What's her name again?"

  "Ms. Dalton?" Elizabeth asked.

  "Right! And Mr. Collins told us all about what you and Teddy did this afternoon. Oh, honey, I'm so proud of you! What a wonderful idea!"

  "So much for a private swim." Elizabeth sighed and squeezed Todd's hand as they followed her parents inside.

  "A small price to pay for being in love with a heroine," Todd said cheerfully, sneaking in a quick kiss before they got inside.

  "I think this calls for some champagne!" Mr. Wakefield was exclaiming, hurrying to the kitchen. He had put a bottle in the refrigerator earlier for the anniversary celebration.

  "To your anniversary," Todd proposed, lifting his glass several minutes later.

  "And to a very special daughter," Mr. Wakefield added, taking a small sip of wine.

  Elizabeth's eyes filled with tears as she tasted the champagne. I'm so lucky, she told herself. I have the most wonderful parents in the world, and I have Todd.

  Elizabeth just hoped that Enid would soon be as happy as she was that night. However hard it might have been to say goodbye to George, she hoped her friend would see it as a beginning, not an end.

  Fourteen

  "OK," Elizabeth said, propping herself up on her elbows on the sand. "Now tell me the whole thing from the beginning."

  It was Saturday afternoon, and Elizabeth and Enid were at the beach, the sun warming the backs of their legs as they listened to the surf pounding the shore.

  "It wasn't so bad," Enid said thoughtfully. "We actually had a pretty good time together. We were going to go to a movie, but when George came to pick me up, I told him I wanted to talk. So we went up to Miller's Point."

  "Was he surprised to see you out of the wheelchair?"

  "You're not kidding!" Enid laughed. "And he was so happy for me, Liz. Anyway, we talked for hours. He told me all about Robin. He said he had tried not to fall in love with her, but he just couldn't help it. After the accident they didn't see each other at all—not until the dance. You know, I felt kind of sorry for him when he was telling me this. I was trying to imagine how I'd feel if I were in his place. And it seemed awful!"

  "So then what?" Elizabeth prompted.

  "Well, he told me that Robin had refused to see him until I was all better. He admitted that he wanted to go to her sooner, but she wouldn't let him. So I guess I can't even be mad at her!"

  "Do you feel angry?" Elizabeth asked gently.

  Enid shook her head. "That's the funny thing, Liz. I don't. I guess these things just sort of happen sometimes. And the truth of the matter is that I was trying to hang onto George because I was scared. I knew he wasn't happy with me any longer, but I couldn't bear to admit that I might be losing him. I made things really hard for him—and I told him last night how sorry I was."

  "You're so wonderful, Enid!" Elizabeth told her. "George is lucky to have you for a friend."

  "Well, we may not really be friends for a while," Enid admitted. "Whatever I say now, I know it's still going to hurt when I see him with Robin. But I know now that I'll get over it. It just isn't the end of the world!"

  "Whatever happened to the investigation the Federal Aviation Administration was doing?" Elizabeth asked. "Did they find what caused the crash?"

  "You mean I forgot to tell you? Liz, it turns out it wasn't George's fault at all. The rental plane had something faulty with the engine. It would have stalled out no matter what George did!"

  "George must be relieved," Elizabeth commented. "Do you think he'll fly again now?"

  "I don't know," Enid said thoughtfully. "He says he doesn't think so, but I hope he gets over it. Maybe it's a little like love." She giggled. "Just because you crash once doesn't mean you'll never soar again!"

  Elizabeth laughed. "Enid, there may be a future for you as a writer. Did you ever think about working for a Chinese fortune-cookie company?"

  "Oh!" Enid laughed and playfully showered Elizabeth with sand.

  "Here comes Todd, and it looks like he's got a cooler with him!" Elizabeth said, shading her eyes with her hand.

  "Thank goodness," Enid said. "I was ready to die of thirst out here."

  "Is it me you want, or my soda?" Todd demanded as Elizabeth and Enid jumped up and almost knocked him over.

  "Your soda!" the two girls yelled in unison, dissolving in laughter on the sand when they saw Todd's hurt expression.

  I have a feeling, Elizabeth thought happily, that everything is going to be just fine for Enid. And I haven't the tiniest doubt that it won't be long before she gets over George!

  "I don't suppose I could convince you to help me barbecue hamburgers tonight?" Mr. Wakefield asked Jessica, who was on a lounge chair filing her nails with an emery board. Elizabeth was sitting next to her, engrossed in a book.

  "No, thanks," Jessica said listlessly.

  "They're not still gauche, are they?" her father teased her.

  Jessica raised her eyebrows and didn't say a word. What a family, she thought. A person couldn't even mind her own business and try to give herself a manicure without being picked on.

  "How close are we to dinner?" Mrs. Wakefield asked, coming out onto the patio with trays.

  "Ages and ages away," Mr. Wakefield said cheerfully.

  "What's wrong, Jess? You look positively miserable," Mrs. Wakefield observed.

  "Why should I be miserable?" Jessica demanded. "Just because everything I do these days seems to end up a complete disaster? I can't do anything right."

  "Somebody around here," Mr. Wakefield observed, "is working herself into a real snit, it seems to me."

  "Ned," Mrs. Wakefield said warningly. "Liz, tell us what Enid decided to do about George."

  "They've broken up," Elizabeth announced. "But Enid managed to talk to George with no hard feelings."

  "I still say he's a selfish slob." Jessica sighed.

  "I don't think so, Jess," Elizabeth said mildly. "And it turns out that George and Robin really weren't seeing each other after the accident."

  "Oh, yeah? What was George's car doing in front of Robin's house, then? Lila saw it too," Jessica pointed out.

  "Well, George did go over to Robin's house just that once. But he never saw her. And he was only dropping by to tell her that he thought they shouldn't see each other any more—not until Enid was better."

  "Oh," Jessica said, her cheeks reddening.

  "You see, Jess, " Mr. Wakefield said mildly, "how dangerous it can be to make judgments based on circumstantial evidence. Now had this been a real slander case—"

  Jessica leaped to her feet, her eyes blazing. She couldn't believe her father was lecturing her again! And what did she care about court cases and circumstantial evidence?

  "All you guys do lately is pick on me," she said angrily. "If Liz had said that George was seeing Robin, you'd think she was being sensible and fair! But just because it's me, you think I'm being a flake! Well, I'm sick of always being wrong. I'm—"