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Back The Copycat Save as PDF
Chapters (68)
  1. Cover
  2. Dedication
  3. Epigraph
  4. One
  5. Two
  6. Chapter One
  7. Three
  8. Four
  9. Five
  10. Six
  11. Chapter Two
  12. Seven
  13. Eight
  14. Nine
  15. Chapter Three
  16. Ten
  17. Eleven
  18. Chapter Four
  19. Twelve
  20. Thirteen
  21. Fourteen
  22. Chapter Five
  23. Fifteen
  24. Sixteen
  25. Chapter Six
  26. Seventeen
  27. Eighteen
  28. Nineteen
  29. Chapter Seven
  30. Twenty
  31. Twenty-One
  32. Twenty-Two
  33. Chapter Eight
  34. Twenty-Three
  35. Twenty-Four
  36. Twenty-Five
  37. Chapter Nine
  38. Twenty-Six
  39. Twenty-Seven
  40. Chapter Ten
  41. Twenty-Eight
  42. Twenty-Nine
  43. Thirty
  44. Thirty-One
  45. Chapter Eleven
  46. Thirty-Two
  47. Thirty-Three
  48. Thirty-Four
  49. Thirty-Five
  50. Chapter Twelve
  51. Thirty-Six
  52. Thirty-Seven
  53. Thirty-Eight
  54. Chapter Thirteen
  55. Thirty-Nine
  56. Forty
  57. Forty-One
  58. Forty-Two
  59. Chapter Fourteen
  60. Forty-Three
  61. Forty-Four
  62. Forty-Five
  63. Forty-Six
  64. Forty-Seven
  65. Chapter Fifteen
  66. The Following Summer
  67. About the Author
  68. About the Publisher

After a torturous hour spent jumping at every footfall and voice out in the hallway, she came to the stunning conclusion that no one was coming. With a shaking hand, she unlatched the door and stepped into the empty bathroom. At first she was too timid to check herself in the mirror, but after ten minutes of dithering, she took a peek and burst into tears when her own face stared back at her. Emboldened, she wiped her tears with a handful of paper towels and poked her head out the door. The hallway was empty. She crept to the nearest exit, ignoring the fact that it was freezing outside and her jacket was still stuffed in her locker, and ran home. She needed Digger.

A half-frozen Ali found him in his basement workshop, whittling what would soon be a black-capped chickadee out of a pine log, one of the smaller pieces of art that he’d sometimes try to sell for some extra money. As soon as she saw him, she burst into tears.

Digger dropped his carving knife and the unfinished bird and rushed to her side. “What’s wrong, Ali-Cat?”

Ali threw herself at him, unable to speak. For several minutes, they didn’t move, as Ali’s heaving sobs shook her already-shivering body and soaked both of their sweaters with her tears. She pulled away and spat out, “I’m a Copycat.”

Digger flinched. “How do you know?”

“How do I know?” She didn’t try to hide her indignation. “I know because I turned into another girl at school!”

Digger grabbed hold of a nearby table to steady himself. “Did anyone see it happen?”

“The girl I changed into saw. We were debating when it started. My front teeth started to change to look like hers and she dragged me to the bathroom. I don’t know if anyone else saw it happen. She asked me—” Ali stopped. The memory of Cassie asking if she was a witch was still too raw to talk about. “How did this happen, Digger?”

ALI’S RULES FOR WHAT TO DO WHEN IT’S THE END OF THE WORLD

  1. There are no rules.

The last sentence came out as an accusation. Digger ran his hands through his hair and spun around, as if the answer to how Ali had come into her Copycat powers could be gleaned from his carving tools or from the outdoor Christmas lights that hung on the wall. He stared up at the ceiling and took a deep breath before he spoke.

“It doesn’t make sense. We were sure you weren’t a Copycat because they always start to change as babies. My mother said I turned into a baby skunk in my crib after seeing one in a picture book. The only thing I can think is that maybe it’s linked to Saint John. You’d never set foot in the city until a couple of weeks ago.”