Gifted: Finders Keepers by Marilyn Kaye Page A

weekend.
    From Margaret’s closet, she selected leggings, a tunic top and a pair of stilettos. It was the very first time she’d worn heels this high, and she felt positively glamorous. Once outside, she walked to the closest bus stop. She would have preferred to take a taxi, but she’d already made a dent in Margaret’s cash resources. There was a cash card in the wallet, but she didn’t know Margaret’s PIN code, so she would have to be careful with the money. It was a good thing she had the two credit cards.
    A very good thing. Because her first stop was the Mall.
    There were many shops she liked, but Unique Boutique was her favourite. It had the trendiest clothes in town, and a notice in the window assured her that Margaret’s credit cards would be accepted. She spent a few minutes just looking at the window displays, revelling in the knowledge she could have anything she wanted.
    Did Margaret ever go to this store? she wondered. She doubted it – she hadn’t seen anything in her closet with the labels carried here. Unique Boutique was probably too expensive for Margaret. But that was what credit cards were for – to buy things you couldn’t afford, right?
    It was funny – people thought Amanda’s family was rich and that she could have anything she wanted. This wasn’t exactly true. Maybe her parents were rich, but they didn’t spend all their money on her. And contrary to popular opinion, she wasn’t spoiled – at least, she didn’t consider herself spoiled. Her parents didn’t give her everything she wanted, like her own credit cards. She had to ask for stuff, and sometimes they said no. And she didn’t have many items from Unique Boutique.
    But there was no one to say no to her today. She didn’t have to get anyone’s permission to buy anything. She could have it all.
    Like that unbelievably cute slinky red party dress with the wide black belt … She could just hear her mother saying, ‘Amanda, you do not need another party dress.’ Amanda smiled happily and went into the store. She found the dress in her size, didn’t even look at the price tag, and headed to the dressing room.
    There, she encountered an unusual problem. The dress didn’t fit. She couldn’t even do the zip up. What was going on here? She didn’t think she’d gained any weight …
    Then it hit her and she groaned. Of course the dress wouldn’t fit her. She’d chosen the size that Amanda Beeson wore. Margaret was taller, wider in the hips and much bigger on top.
    Well, it wasn’t such a terrible problem.All she had to do was change back into her clothes, return to the rack and pick out some larger sizes to take back to the dressing room to try on. But then something else occurred to her. Amanda Beeson wouldn’t be emerging from this spending spree with a new wardrobe, Margaret Robinson would.
    It wasn’t like Amanda was going to be Margaret forever. She didn’t know how long she’d be in this body – she’d been in Tracey for two whole weeks, after all – but now, after three big bodysnatching experiences, she was pretty sure she’d be able to get back into herself when she wanted to get out of Margaret. All it seemed to take was a little physical shake-up. Just last month, a slip on a freshly waxed floor had got her out of Sarah. She planned to stay in Margaret until the other-Amanda got out of the hospital and recovered, and Margaret’s life stopped being interesting.
    But the realization that Margaret would be keeping the fabulous clothes she bought had taken much of the joy out of her plans for the day. Maybe she could buy the clothes in her own size and figure out a way to take them with her when she returned to her own body. But that would be sort of like stealing …
    In the end, she half-heartedly bought the slinky dress and a cashmere sweater. After another hour of wandering around the Mall, her feet hurt and she was forced to buy a pair of sneakers in Margaret’s size. Stilettos were not meant for