Read Online Sammy Keyes and the Kiss Goodbye by Wendelin Van Draanen - Free Book Online Page B
Authors: Wendelin Van Draanen
Ads: Link
said at Rita, they started talking to each other as if Rita and Hudson weren’t even there.
“Who was that girl, anyway?”
“They didn’t say.”
“But her father’s someone famous.”
“He is? Who?”
“They didn’t come out and say, but that Zelda Quinn’s hyperventilating about it. And apparently the mother was on a soap.”
“Do you think it might have been
Lords
?”
“Could be.”
“Why in the world did they end that show, anyway?”
“Who knows? You see what’s on TV now. Ridiculous smut.”
“But … who was she on the show?”
“I already told you. They didn’t say. It was a teaser. The full story comes on tonight.”
“On KSMY?”
“Yes.”
“I had no idea there were any celebrities in Santa Martina!”
“Not unless you count Mayor Hibbs.”
“Oh, he
thinks
he’s a celebrity.”
“He has such a paunch these days, have you noticed?”
“Our tax dollars, hard at work.”
“Forget about the mayor! If there are real celebrities in town, I have to tune in!”
“Me, too!”
“Say, I have some vin rosé left in my box—I could bring it over later.”
“I have a can of olives!”
“I can bring crackers!”
“Let’s do it! My place! Five o’clock!” Then this hostess with the mostest turned a harsh eye on Rita and said, “Residents only,” and closed her door.
Suddenly alone in a quiet hallway, Rita took a deep breath and said, “Why do I feel like I’m back in school?”
Hudson chuckled. “Clearly, they have yet to graduate.”
He kissed her temple, then said, “Shall we go?”
Rita nodded, but rather than go out the way they’d come in, she said, “Let’s take a shortcut.”
Hudson laughed again. “Sounds appropriate.”
So they went down the hallway to the elevator, and down the elevator to the basement, where Rita was planning to lead Hudson down a corridor to a side exit. If her former neighbors hadn’t conveyed that a policeman had already been there, she would have braved the booming voice and good-intentioned questioning of Mr. Garnucci, but she saw no reason to do so now.
And had Rita been alone, she would likely not have gone down to the basement exit. Once past the laundry facility, the corridor was dim, and the exit itself was in a somewhat remote location. Rita had only ventured out ofit once before, when she’d run out of fabric softener while doing her laundry.
But she had Hudson with her now, and the route made sense because the basement exit would let them out near the place Hudson had parked the car. And everything would have been fine and straightforward had Rita not peered through the laundry-room doorway and noticed the furtive movements of someone digging through an open dryer.
In the instant it takes to put two and two together, Rita grabbed Hudson’s arm and pulled him out of sight, then inched forward to peer around the doorway.
“What is it?” Hudson whispered.
“Shh,”
Rita replied, not quite believing what she was seeing. But after another few seconds of observation, she went from shock to certainty. “Quick,” she whispered to Hudson. “We need to call Sergeant Borsch!”
9—ODD DUCKS
While Rita and Hudson were sidetracked by their shocking discovery in the Highrise basement and the six-pack of teens were across town attempting to track down Sergeant Borsch, Lana’s stress level was being pushed to an all-time high.
“
Marko’s
here?” she asked Darren in a way that was both accusatory and derogatory.
To Darren’s surprise, the drummer for the Troublemakers had, indeed, just entered the cafeteria. With his shaved head and the piratey look of a rock star, there was no mistaking him, and with him came (for Darren) a sense of enormous relief.
Now, this was not the complete relief Darren would have felt had he just learned that Sammy was going to be okay. Rather, this was the shoulder-lifting, burden-sharing sort of relief that comes with friendship.
A friendship forged by childhood adventures
“Who was that girl, anyway?”
“They didn’t say.”
“But her father’s someone famous.”
“He is? Who?”
“They didn’t come out and say, but that Zelda Quinn’s hyperventilating about it. And apparently the mother was on a soap.”
“Do you think it might have been
Lords
?”
“Could be.”
“Why in the world did they end that show, anyway?”
“Who knows? You see what’s on TV now. Ridiculous smut.”
“But … who was she on the show?”
“I already told you. They didn’t say. It was a teaser. The full story comes on tonight.”
“On KSMY?”
“Yes.”
“I had no idea there were any celebrities in Santa Martina!”
“Not unless you count Mayor Hibbs.”
“Oh, he
thinks
he’s a celebrity.”
“He has such a paunch these days, have you noticed?”
“Our tax dollars, hard at work.”
“Forget about the mayor! If there are real celebrities in town, I have to tune in!”
“Me, too!”
“Say, I have some vin rosé left in my box—I could bring it over later.”
“I have a can of olives!”
“I can bring crackers!”
“Let’s do it! My place! Five o’clock!” Then this hostess with the mostest turned a harsh eye on Rita and said, “Residents only,” and closed her door.
Suddenly alone in a quiet hallway, Rita took a deep breath and said, “Why do I feel like I’m back in school?”
Hudson chuckled. “Clearly, they have yet to graduate.”
He kissed her temple, then said, “Shall we go?”
Rita nodded, but rather than go out the way they’d come in, she said, “Let’s take a shortcut.”
Hudson laughed again. “Sounds appropriate.”
So they went down the hallway to the elevator, and down the elevator to the basement, where Rita was planning to lead Hudson down a corridor to a side exit. If her former neighbors hadn’t conveyed that a policeman had already been there, she would have braved the booming voice and good-intentioned questioning of Mr. Garnucci, but she saw no reason to do so now.
And had Rita been alone, she would likely not have gone down to the basement exit. Once past the laundry facility, the corridor was dim, and the exit itself was in a somewhat remote location. Rita had only ventured out ofit once before, when she’d run out of fabric softener while doing her laundry.
But she had Hudson with her now, and the route made sense because the basement exit would let them out near the place Hudson had parked the car. And everything would have been fine and straightforward had Rita not peered through the laundry-room doorway and noticed the furtive movements of someone digging through an open dryer.
In the instant it takes to put two and two together, Rita grabbed Hudson’s arm and pulled him out of sight, then inched forward to peer around the doorway.
“What is it?” Hudson whispered.
“Shh,”
Rita replied, not quite believing what she was seeing. But after another few seconds of observation, she went from shock to certainty. “Quick,” she whispered to Hudson. “We need to call Sergeant Borsch!”
9—ODD DUCKS
While Rita and Hudson were sidetracked by their shocking discovery in the Highrise basement and the six-pack of teens were across town attempting to track down Sergeant Borsch, Lana’s stress level was being pushed to an all-time high.
“
Marko’s
here?” she asked Darren in a way that was both accusatory and derogatory.
To Darren’s surprise, the drummer for the Troublemakers had, indeed, just entered the cafeteria. With his shaved head and the piratey look of a rock star, there was no mistaking him, and with him came (for Darren) a sense of enormous relief.
Now, this was not the complete relief Darren would have felt had he just learned that Sammy was going to be okay. Rather, this was the shoulder-lifting, burden-sharing sort of relief that comes with friendship.
A friendship forged by childhood adventures
Similar Books
