The Adeventures of Silli Page: The Case of Benjamin Laire by Dew Platt. Copyright 2009 by Dew Platt. All Rights Reserved.
[Silli Page is no ordinary teenager with her sleepwalking and lucid daydreams. But when fifteen year old Benjamin Laire drops dead after a lab accident, she begins a new adventure in reality. Molly, her best friend, believes his death wasn’t an accident. To find the truth she’ll need the help of three unlikely people: the Englishman who, due to her foolish actions wants nothing to do with her and the two thirteen year old geek boys she and Molly often bully. Can they all stand together to ask—did someone plan Benjamin’s death to look like an accident?]
The Adventures of Silli Page: the Case of Benjamin Laire
Dew Platt
CHAPTER ONE
Early morning, close to dawn, Silli Page got off the bed and made her way towards the kitchen without a twitch or yawn. And as she made a turn into the kitchen to get to the refrigerator she stopped, turned around to come face to face with a big brown rat on top of the kitchen counter. She squinted, and when she was sure it was a rat, with a wave of her hand, “Shoo,” she said.
The rat was indifferent, staring at her boldly, defying the usual petrified race rats were known for when they encounter humans. She took two steps forward, leaned towards the counter and stared at it. “Don’t even freaking try freezing still. I can hear you breathe. I know you’re there.” She straightened her back. “Now shoo away!”
The rat wiggled its tail and when it spoke, its voice was deep. “Okay, so I’m here. But you can’t tell me to shoo away. I live here! I’ve lived here a lot longer than you. I was here when the Clarks were here.”
Silli frowned, shook her head. “What Clarks?”
The rat raised its head, and got on its two hind legs. “They were here before you and your mother moved in.”
Silli shrugged. “What do the Clarks have to do with anything? You may have lived with them but you don’t live here. You don’t pay any rent and you just run around eating all the food.”
The rat wiggled its whiskers. “You don’t pay any rent either. You run around all the time, even at night. And you eat a lot more food than I do! That proves we both live here. And this time I’m standing for the right to live free in a place I’ve lived in longer than you.”
Silli laughed, leaning towards the kitchen counter once more to make eye contact with the rat. “You must be joking if you think you have any right. And you may be able to stand on your two…wait…four tiny feet now but not for long. Now shoo before my boyfriend comes to beat the living rats out of you!”
“Ah!” the rat chuckled.
Silli raised her eyebrows. “Say what?”
The rat shrugged, smiling. “Oh, we both know you don’t have a boyfriend.”
Silli sneered as she stared down at it. “Do too!”
“Do not!” the rat replied.
“Do too!”
“Do not!”
She shook her head as she straightened her back. “I think you have a death wish little rat ’cos here he comes.”
“Here who comes?” the rat chuckled.
“My boyfriend,” Silli said of the echoing steps she heard. But she heard the splash louder and it took a few seconds for her to feel it. She was wet.
“Silli,” she heard someone call, “Are you in or out?”
“What?” she asked, coming out of one lucid environment into another harsher.
“Are you in or out of your sleepwalking daydreaming thing?”
She was out fully as the features on the face before hers came to be recognizable. Fifteen year old Molly Rines, five feet ten inches tall athletically built brown eyed brunette, her best friend stood in front of her. “I’m out,” she replied. “Why use so much water to wake me?”
“Your mother said not to touch you. I didn’t want to have to beat you up in your sleep,” Molly replied before waving her hands in front of Silli’s face.
“I see it, I see it,” Silli echoed. “I’m out.”
Molly shook her head. “I can’t believe you decided to go into one of those things when you know you should be there for me when I’m mourning the death of my first love. You’re supposed to be there. It’s the reason I’m sleeping over.”
Silli frowned, wanting to correct her statement, tell her again that her sleepwalking or lucid daydreams couldn’t be helped but decided against it. “You mean the death of your first crush?” she asked instead.
“My first love Silli,” Molly answered in an emotional tone before she began to whimper. “It’s true what they say. First love is the deepest. He’s been the only one for five years.”
Silli frowned. While alive, Benjamin Laire barely looked her way. In fact, it was possible he didn’t know her name. Molly’s crush on him was serious as she had had the crush on him for five years. She had had no other crush. Whatever Molly liked in a boy, as far as Silli knew, only Benjamin Laire possessed it. But she didn’t know the crush was as serious as Molly was now showing it to be. She couldn’t understand why she was still mourning the boy and the mourning process was now getting on her nerves.
“He is the only boy I ever loved,” Molly continued as she started to cry.
Silli watched her cry for a little while feeling burdened by her mood. “You should try to stop the crying. You don’t want to ruin our rep. They think we’re bullies.”
Molly restrained from sobbing, using the back of her hand to dry her tears. “You’re right. They think we’re tough and stuff.”
They were indeed thought to be bullies, but being the highly respected and feared captain of the women’s soccer team, Molly was the one with the physical advantage over most in the school. With her on her side, Silli was always able to maintain the status of a student not to be troubled, one not to be crossed.
But her whimpering soon started again, picking up pace. “How can my sweetheart be dead? First loves are supposed to live forever.”
Silli frowned, wondering then if she would stop unless she’s stopped. “All right that’s it! I have had it with your sobbing! The boy was no sweetheart of yours. He was just your crush. He’s tall, attractive and has the innocent look most girls fall for. He’s the crush of half the girls in school for Christ’s sake. So, pack your crying up and let’s get on with our lives!”
Molly sprang forward in an instant and Silli sprang backward instinctively. Silli moved towards the doorway. Molly allowed her. Molly could beat her senseless and they both knew it. But such assault advances had always been in a playful state which she didn’t seem to be in at the moment.
She ran and Molly chased her around the living room furniture for a while before stopping. Across chairs and tables, Molly stared at Silli in indignation. “You want to lecture me about crushes and sweethearts? Are you kidding?”
Silli watched her cautiously. “I’m just saying…” she replied in a low defensive tone.
Molly shook her head. “Saying what? That you have two unhealthy crushes of your own? Tell me. How does one person love two people? How is that love?”
“My crushes are not unhealthy!”
Molly laughed out loudly. “Really? A twenty eight year old Johnny Depp lookalike who just happens to own a bookstore. Now ain’t that healthy?”
“He doesn’t look like Johnny Depp!”
Molly threw her hands in the hair, eyes wide. “Oops I’m sorry. He’s just Johnny Depp in one of your lucid dream thingys.”
Silli shrugged. “There’s nothing wrong with our relationship.”
Molly raised her eyebrows high, mouth wide open. “Really? Society says not! If you have sex with him, he’s going to jail.”
Silly hesitated. “I won’t have sex with him.”
When Molly spoke again, it was in a low but tormenting tone. “I could say you did.”
Silli’s voice caught in her throat as she considered the full implication of Molly’s statement. She exhaled. “You wouldn’t.”
“Why should your crush mean anything to me when mine means nothing to you? Oh yes I would! And before you know it, they’ll kick his…” waving both hands in the air, “…Huh! ‘Look at me I am so English’ speaking butt back to England before the doctors can find out you’re a virgin.”
Silli remained poised, unwilling to convey the real effects of Molly’s threats, holding her breath.
Molly squinted, desiring some visible effect of her words. “I bet they’ll have to arrest him no doubt for assault on a minor.”
Silly held her breath before exhaling. “Assault uhn…”
Molly nodded. “That’s what I’ll say you said before you decided to protect him.”
Silli’s breathing became rapid at the thought of Molly carrying out her threats. “You’ll have no friends without me.”
Molly held on to her uncaring stance, her voice unbroken when she spoke. “Yes that’s true. But can you live without him?”
Silli raised her head, nose and eyes up, inhaling, exhaling.
“But look on the bright side,” Molly continued. “Your situation will still be better than mine. Once word gets out that you did the deed with a man, you can finally go with your six feet three basketball star crush. He only goes with loose girls!”
Silli lowered her head to meet Molly’s eyes and when she spoke it was in an emotional tone. “Is this your way of mourning your sweetheart? Is this your mourning process?”
Molly was silent for a few seconds as she held on to Silli’s eyes. She then began to cry.
Silli shook her head, suspicious yet of Molly’s intent. “Oh you’ve got to be kidding me! After all that display of hardness you do this?” She allowed her to cry for a few moments. “Ok Molly I’m still confused. If you’re trying to blackmail me with false accusations about Alex, what do you want in return?”
Molly restrained from crying and whimpered for a few seconds more before she slowly raised her head.
Silli’s eyes were fixed on Molly’s. “What do you want Molly?”
This Excerpt is copyrighted by Dew Platt 2009.
All Rights Reserved.
COMING TO KINDLE
For character profiles and everything else about the book visit ADVENTURES OF SILLI PAGE WEBPAGE
Darkness Abiding Available on Your PC!
Darkness Abiding Excerpt.
Darkness Abiding ON KINDLE
Dew has removed the free fiction section on her site (She really meant no more free!). She removed the poetry section on her site (No more that either!) And romance readers don’t say I didn’t tell you—Dew will soon remove The Polar Pact from circulation. Illicit Escapes will follow. The only way you will eventually be able to get those books will be on kindle and other ebook-like-reader kindle things. And eventually Dew will take those out as well. If you ask me, at some point no one will remember she ever wrote romance!
All the romantic fun has gone out of the room as Dew hits the Hard Cores. She has so much amazing energy that when her thing for romance writing kind of went out, I lost interest too. Now, if she can just tell me how and where she’s been getting some intellectual orgasm. Yes I still want to know! She says the dandiest things—only no longer for romance readers. 
![dap-ad2[1]](http://dewplatt.files.wordpress.com/2009/10/dap-ad21.jpg?w=450&h=203&h=203 "dap-ad2[1]")
Silli Page is no ordinary teenager with her sleepwalking and lucid daydreams. But when fifteen year old Benjamin Laire drops dead after a lab accident, she begins a new adventure in reality. Molly, her best friend, believes his death wasn’t an accident. To find the truth she’ll need the help of three unlikely people; the Englishman who, due to her foolish actions wants nothing to do with her and the two thirteen year old geek boys she and Molly often bully. Can they all stand together to ask—did someone plan Benjamin’s death to look like an accident?
Depending on the person you ask, the advantages of having or not having a boyfriend is something or the other. But I truly believe that the number one advantage of not having a boyfriend must be this—(1)Not worrying about getting pregnant or anything that may come after getting pregnant. Dew reminds me that some people do not have boyfriends and do get pregnant. But I am not talking about those people. Because in their case, not having a boyfriend becomes a disadvantage when they get pregnant. They do not know who the father of the baby is and that can’t be good. Dew agrees.
![tasp-ad1[1]](http://dewplatt.files.wordpress.com/2009/11/tasp-ad11.jpg?w=450&h=251 "tasp-ad1[1]")
Silli Page is no ordinary teenager with her sleepwalking and lucid daydreams. But when fifteen year old Benjamin Laire drops dead after a lab accident, she begins a new adventure in reality. Molly, her best friend, believes his death wasn’t an accident. To find the truth she’ll need the help of three unlikely people; the Englishman who, due to her foolish actions wants nothing to do with her and the two thirteen year old geek boys she and Molly often bully. Can they all stand together to ask—did someone plan Benjamin’s death to look like an accident?
DARKNESS ABIDING, THE NEW ACTION THRILLER SCI-FI FICTION FROM DEW PLATT IS NOW AVAILABLE ON 
