by Robin Caroll
That was her cue that the conversation was over, and it was time to go. “Oh.” Sam stood. “Not to be nosy, but does this mean your mom and dad aren’t getting a divorce?”
“I don’t really know. I mean, they were at each other’s throats and fighting all the time until Dad moved out. Even then, they would still yell at each other on the phone and would hardly speak when they saw each other.”
Sam wanted to cringe. Even with Mom’s offer and Mom and Dad not agreeing, they weren’t yelling at each other all the time. Sam didn’t know if she could take that.
Nikki paused at her bedroom door. “Then Jefferson got hurt, and they put aside everything to make sure he was okay. Then all this stuff with me started, so Dad’s been spending more time around here. He and Mom aren’t fighting anymore. I haven’t heard them talk about meeting with the lawyer in weeks, so, who knows?”
Sam gave Nikki’s arm a squeeze. “I’m praying it all works out.”
“Thanks.” Nikki smiled and opened her bedroom door. “Now I have to hurry to the shower so I can get in there before Jefferson. He uses all the hot water.” She led the way to the front of the house.
“That’s one of the great things about being an only child.” Sam fell into step alongside Nikki. “Where is Jefferson? I didn’t see him when I came in.”
“He’s at some friend’s pool party, again. Today’s the last day for the community pool to be open, so the Chalamont neighborhood had a cook-out and pool party to celebrate.” Nikki opened the front door. “Thanks again, Sam. You’ve really been a good friend and everything.”
Certainly better than Aubrey. Sam smiled. “Any time. If you need anything, just call.”
“I will.”
“Have fun tonight. Bye.” Sam turned and strode to the sidewalk, heading toward home.
Such an interesting turn of events with Nikki’s mom and dad. Like the verses today at church . . . there was a time for everything. Maybe a time for Nikki’s parents to separate, and a time for them to come back together.
Sam smiled as she thought about it. Funny how a hurt ankle could help heal a marriage.
CHAPTER EIGHTEEN
I found a letter in my locker.”
Sam turned away from the layout she’d been looking at with Lana to stare at Nikki. “What?”
Nikki motioned her to follow her.
“I’ll be back in a second,” Sam told Lana as she stood and followed Nikki to an empty table in the newspaper room.
Nikki pulled a folded piece of paper out of her pocket and handed it to Sam. “I found this in my locker just before I came here.”
Sam unfolded it and read:
YOU ARE FAT AND UGLY AND SHOULD BE HIDDEN FROM THE WORLD
This went beyond cruel. Sam’s hand shook as she held the horrid letter. “Nikki, whoever this is, they aren’t going to just stop. Your dad is wrong. You need to take this to the police, and tell them everything. If you want, you can just talk to my dad and his partner.”
Nikki shook her head, but she couldn’t shake the tears. “I don’t understand why someone hates me so much.”
“I told you, it’s about power, but I think you were picked specifically as the victim. We just need to figure out — ”
“What’s this?” Aubrey grabbed the letter from Sam’s hands. Her eyes widened as she read. “Samantha Sanderson, have you been sending these letters to poor Nikki?” Her voice carried across the newspaper’s classroom.
“Shh.” Nikki snatched the letter back. “Don’t be stupid, Aub. You know Sam wouldn’t do something like this.”
“Do I?” Aubrey didn’t lower her voice as she smirked at Sam.
Ms. Pape stood behind her desk. “Girls, is there a problem?”
“No, ma’am,” Nikki answered, glaring at Aubrey. “What’s your problem?” she asked in a whisper.
“I don’t know, Nikki. Think about it. Sam sure seems to be at the right place at the right time for you to share such information with her. And she was supposed to get suspended for not giving up her sources, but she was right back in class the very next day, right?” Aubrey shook her head and crossed her arms over her chest. “Seems kinda fishy to me. And wasn’t she out by your locker when you found the diet bars?”
Nikki stared at Sam.
“Aw, come on, Nikki. You know better. I’ve been the one trying to help you.” Sam turned to Aubrey. “What about you?”
“Me?” Aubrey’s voice went shrill.
“You’re so jealous and spiteful about Nikki being nominated to homecoming court instead of you that you can’t even be excited for her. She’s supposed to be your best friend.” Sam’s voice, like Aubrey’s, carried across the room.
Ms. Pape rushed over as everyone else fell silent. “Girls!” She moved them toward the corner. “What’s going on?”
Aubrey grabbed the letter back from Nikki and handed it to Ms. Pape. “Nikki’s been getting letters like this. Texts. And someone put diet bars in her locker.”
Ms. Pape put an arm around Nikki’s shoulders. “Nikki, why haven’t you said anything? This is bullying.” Her mouth formed a perfect “O” as she nodded at Sam. “That’s why you suggested a series on bullying.”
Sam nodded.
“And don’t you find that mighty convenient?” Aubrey nudged Nikki. “She was just coming off as a lead reporter on the movie theater story and was taking a backseat on assignments. She sure needed something to write about to put her back at the top of the newspaper’s blog.”
“That’s crazy. Bullying is a huge issue. I’ve been working to stop bullying, in case you haven’t noticed.” Sam’s hands really shook now. She balled them into tight fists.
“Maybe you just want people to think that. Acting all better than everyone else. Maybe it’s just an act so no one will suspect you.”
“Oh, puhleeze, Aubrey. You’re really crazier than I thought.” Sam shook her head. “You know Nikki’s locker combination. Only you and she know it, so it seems to point the suspicious finger to you about how those diet bars got in the locker.” Sam popped her fists on her hips. “Explain that.”
“I don’t have to explain anything to you, Samantha Sanderson.”
“No, but you’d better get your explanation lined up before the police question you.” Sam pressed her lips together so tight it hurt. Man, she really, really, really wanted to give Aubrey Damas a piece of her mind.
“Are you gonna call your daddy on me now?” Aubrey used her fake sing-song tone.
“We’ll take this to Mrs. Trees’ office,” Ms. Pape said.
“No!” Nikki’s face went pale. “I don’t want anyone to know about this.”
“It’s a little late for that,” Sam said, gesturing toward the class.
Big tears filled Nikki’s eyes.
The anger shot out of Sam. “I’m sorry, Nikki,” she whispered.
“You should be sorry,” Aubrey said.
Sam snapped. “Just shut up, Aubrey. No one wants to hear your ugliness.”
Aubrey’s eyes grew as large as half dollars, her jaw dropped, leaving her mouth hanging open, and her face turned pink. Then red.
No one made a sound.
Her face turned redder.
Ms. Pape even remained silent, just staring at Aubrey’s ever-reddening face.
Sam swallowed and kept staring at Aubrey. Backing down was so not an option.
Aubrey closed her mouth tight enough that a white ring formed around the edge of her lips. “I can’t believe you have the nerve to — ”
“Nerve? Are you serious? Aubrey, you want to be a queen so badly? No worries. You are crowned the biggest drama queen at Robinson Middle School.”
“That’s enough, girls. Let’s go.” Ms. Pape folded the letter. “Class, I’ll be back in a few minutes. I trust you’ll behave.”
“Please, Ms. Pape . . .” Nikki began.
“I’m sorry, Nikki. Teachers are required to report any form of bullying they have knowledge of. I can’t not report this.”
>
The tears slipped down Nikki’s cheeks as Ms. Pape, arm still around Nikki’s shoulders, led the way to the office.
“See what you’ve done,” Aubrey hissed at Sam as they followed.
Sam’s temper heated again. “Me? You’re the one who intruded on a private conversation. You’re the one who took the letter and read it, even though Nikki hadn’t given you permission. You’re the one who yelled out Nikki’s personal business so everyone in the room could hear.” Sam shook her head. “Yeah, Aubrey, as usual, blame everything on any and everybody but yourself. It must be so tiring to be such a major pain in the behind all the time.”
“You’re so crude, Samantha.”
“And you’re so jealous.”
“Of you? Not hardly,” Aubrey stuck her nose higher in the air.
“You’re jealous of anyone who gets any attention. What’s the matter, Aubrey? Mommy and Daddy don’t dote on you enough at home?”
“You shut up, Samantha Sanderson.”
“Girls!” Ms. Pape turned to glare at them before she opened the office door.
Felicia Adams sat on the bench outside Mrs. Trees’ office. Ms. Pape pointed to the bench. “You two sit here and wait until Mrs. Trees is ready to deal with you. Come along, Nikki.”
Aubrey sat on the far end of the bench, as far away as humanly possible from Felicia. No way was Sam going to sit between them. She’d had about all of Aubrey that she could stand. She chose to stand on the other side of Felicia.
“Hey, do-gooder, what’re you doing in here again?” Felicia smiled at Sam. “You trying to roughen up your reputation?”
“Nope, just having to deal with Ms. Drama down there.” Sam jerked her head in Aubrey’s direction.
“You wish,” Aubrey said.
Felicia twisted to face Aubrey. “What? Did you say something, princess?”
Aubrey turned her head to stare out the door opposite Felicia and Sam.
Felicia chuckled and looked back at Sam. “I don’t think the princess likes me very much.”
“She doesn’t like anybody very much, except herself.”
“Nicely done, do-gooder.” Felicia smiled, her eyebrows raised.
It was getting harder and harder to think of Felicia as a bad person when Sam was really beginning to like her. Now that she was getting to know more about Felicia, Sam couldn’t really see her taking the time to send letters or texts or break into the school to send emails to Nikki. She seemed so much more the in-your-face type.
If Felicia wasn’t a suspect, that only left Aubrey. Even though Sam detested her and thought she might be involved, she didn’t think Aubrey was the sole bully.
That meant there was someone else. Another guilty party, and Sam had no clue who it could be.
“I can’t believe Aubrey did that.” Makayla threw herself across Sam’s bed and reached over to rub Chewy’s belly. Her parents had a cooking class they attended once a month, so Makayla came home with Sam those afternoons. Both girls loved it.
“She totally humiliated Nikki in front of the whole newspaper staff.” Sam paced. “Nikki bawled when Mrs. Trees called her parents.”
“They already knew, right?”
Sam nodded. “But they’d been telling her to toughen up and ride it out until the bully moved on to someone else. Nikki didn’t want them to see this last letter. It went beyond brutally cruel.”
“Maybe now her parents will realize how serious this is and call the police.”
“Her parents don’t have a choice. Neither does Nikki.” Sam plopped down on the foot of the bed. “Once an incident of bullying is reported to the school and documented, law enforcement must be called in.”
“But you didn’t see any police this afternoon?”
Sam shook her head. “Mrs. Trees lectured me and Aubrey about fighting, but then had to let us go because it was close to dismissal time. Nikki had to stay in the office until her parents came to talk with Mrs. Trees.”
“I feel so sorry for Nikki,” Makayla said.
“Me, too.” Sam toed her backpack. “Do you have any homework you need to work on? I don’t want your mom to get all mad about you not doing it and not let you come over on a school night again.”
“Nope, did it all in study hall.”
Sam grinned and gave her a nudge. “Look at you, being all smart and stuff.”
“I’m a ninja like that, remember?” Makayla laughed. “Do you have any?”
“Nope. Finished mine in class.” Sam stretched and lay back on the bed. “What do you want to do? Mom’s got dinner all handled so she doesn’t need any help.”
“Why don’t you have a swimming pool?” Makayla moved to the window in Sam’s bedroom. “There’s a perfect spot for it right back there.” She tapped her finger against the window.
“I wish. It’s still so hot and sticky outside.”
“If you had a pool, we could swim even when every other pool had already closed for the winter.” Makayla pressed her forehead against the window. “It doesn’t feel like anything should be closing for winter.”
Sam smiled. “Yeah. I always hated that pools — ” She bolted upright. “Wait a minute.” Her mind whirred.
“What?” Makayla moved from the window and sat in Sam’s desk chair.
“Hang on.” Sam raised a finger. Something was there, just on the edge of her thoughts. Pool. Closing. Cookout. Party.
She snapped her fingers. “Jefferson.”
Makayla shrugged. “What about him?”
Sam’s chest tightened. This was it! She could feel it. “Jefferson was at a party yesterday to celebrate the last day before the neighborhood pool closed. Chalamont Park’s pool.” The thoughts were spinning around in her head so fast she could barely make out the blur.
“Oh-kay. What am I missing?”
“Chalamont Park’s pool is near the road behind the baseball diamond.”
Makayla shook her head. “Still not following you, Sam.”
“When we were at the baseball diamond, did you know what was behind it?”
“Uh, no. And I didn’t want to stick around to find out. It was a good thing Officer Bill is such a nice guy, or we could’ve gotten in big trouble.”
Sam crossed her legs and all but bounced on her bed. “Forget all that. We didn’t know what was back there because we’d never been on the other side, right?”
“I guess.” Makayla still wore the dazed and confused look.
“So whoever broke into the school, both times, needed to know what was behind the baseball diamond and where it went . . .”
Makayla smiled. “Which means it had to be somebody who’d been at the pool and knew about the path to the baseball diamond.”
“Right. Jefferson.”
“Wait. What? You lost me again.”
“Jefferson is familiar enough with the area. Nikki said he was there again, meaning he’d been there before. By the way she said it, kind of sounded like he’d been there quite a bit.”
“You think Jefferson might be the bully? Nikki’s his sister.”
Sam nodded. “He told me he didn’t know the letters and texts were illegal. That line of thinking would make sense if it was a brother sending them to his sister.”
“But why? He saw how upset it made her. Why would he keep on? I don’t know him well, but he doesn’t strike me as just being cruel and hateful. Sibling rivalry is one thing, but this is so much more than that.”
“I would think that, too, but then I realized I’d already given myself the answer.”
“Please,” Makayla said as she leaned back in the chair. “Enlighten me.”
“To get his parents back together. Nikki said that because of the letters and texts, her dad had been coming over more often and not fighting with her mom when he did. The first note might have been out of sibling rivalry or a fight between them, but if Jefferson noticed the change in his parents after that, which I’m pretty sure he did, then he would have to keep on hurting Nikki to keep his dad coming ove
r.”
Makayla tapped her finger against her chin. “Maybe. But you have no proof.”
“No, but when you think of Jefferson as the bully, everything makes sense.”
“I can see that, but, again, how do you prove it?”
Sam jumped up off the bed, scaring Chewy into Mac’s lap. “The bike. If he has one of those green Schwinn’s like the kid at the park described to Dad, then there’s the proof.”
“Not exactly enough to be 100% positive.”
“Enough to take to Dad.” She grabbed her cell and dialed Nikki’s phone. “Please pick up, please pick up, please pick up.”
“Hey, Sam. I’m a little busy right now. Can I call you back?” Nikki’s voice sounded hoarse like Sam’s did after cheering all night.
Sam put the call on speaker. “I just have a quick question: does Jefferson have a bike?”
“Yeah. He’s on it all the time. Why?”
“What kind and color? Do you know?”
“Uh, yeah. It’s a Schwinn, just like mine. We got them for Christmas a couple of years ago. His is green and mine is red.”
“Thanks. I know you’re busy, so I’ll let you go. Call me later.” She hung up the phone and danced around the room.
“That doesn’t necessarily mean Jefferson’s the one.” But Makayla set Chewy on the floor and danced along with Sam.
“Now it all makes sense. I can’t wait until Dad gets home.”
She had figured it all out!
CHAPTER NINETEEN
Headlight beams shot through the front window. Chewy ran to the garage door, barking like crazy.
“Finally!” Sam rushed to the door almost as excited to see Dad as Chewy. Mom followed at a much more sedate pace.
Dad had stayed late at work, working on the bullying case, Sam’s mom had told her. It was nearly nine now, and Makayla’s parents had picked her up over an hour ago, leaving Sam alone to wait. And wait. And wait.
Patience so wasn’t Sam’s strong point.
The door opened, and Dad stepped inside. “Well, hello. Isn’t this a sight, my girls here to greet me at the door?” He gave Mom a kiss, then, as usual, he went immediately to his and Mom’s room to lock up his gun and badge.