“Thanks for still being my friend,” Amanda said out of the blue, catching me completely off guard.
“My dad did some terrible stuff, but that doesn’t mean I’m a bad person or a total screw up just because he is. We choose our own fate, and he chose his. I’m going to choose a different path for myself. I’m living with my grandma now and I’m a cheerleader…everything seems to be falling into place…despite Genevieve and some of the kids harassing me. I know I’m rambling, but all I really want to say is thanks for not judging me, Dakota. It really means a lot.”
I wasn’t sure what to say. “No problem,” I nearly whispered.
If she only knew the truth, that I was sitting up late last night reading all about her family on the Internet and judging the hell out of her. Well, I wasn’t going to do that anymore.
***
Amanda and I were on the lookout for Genevieve all day, but neither of us had seen her by the time our lunch hour rolled around. Not seeing her during the first part of the school day was not that strange though, because neither of us shared classes with her in the morning. We expected to see her in Phys Ed, but she wasn’t there, either.
At cheerleading practice, Coach Davis announced that Genevieve was sick with the flu, and her mother had called in to school this morning. “Poor baby.” Amanda rolled her eyes at me sarcastically. I mouthed the word ‘karma’ and she grinned.
Coach Davis and Coach Purnell must have reached some sort of agreement, because the boys’ basketball team was practicing in the gym again today. We ran through all of our chants and cheers again, but since Genevieve was missing from the formation, it threw everything off.
“Sydney, please come stand in for Genevieve.” Coach Davis motioned for her to come join us. She and Ashleigh had learned all of the chants, but they hadn’t been involved in learning the half time cheer or stunt.
I hadn’t spoken to Sydney since she’d basically admitted to participating in the egging at Amanda’s house. I gave her a small smile, despite my reservations. I felt bad that she didn’t make the team, and after last night with Amanda, I was starting to think I needed to be less critical of others.
At the end of our routine, we practiced the lift again. Once again, the boys were staring at us. They were mainly staring at me. This time I smiled back at Andy and gave him a little wave. “Dakota, don’t wave at boys when you’re on top of a stunt,” Coach Davis scolded me from below. I could feel my face heat up with embarrassment. I cleared my throat nervously.
One of the boys started whistling at me. When I looked back over at them, I realized it was Ronnie. Andy was giving him a funny look and Amanda looked like she was going to cry.
Chapter Fifty
Friday nights had always been, and always would be, game night in the Densford household. No matter how old I got, I planned on showing up for it. My dad tried to get off work by seven on Fridays just so he could participate. Unfortunately, the weather was too stormy this evening, which meant he was stuck at the station, making sure they didn’t go off-air due to wind or water damage on radio transmitters.
Since my brother was still too little to participate, tonight it was just me and Mom. Mom let me pick my favorite game first. I knew it was childish, but my favorite board game was Mouse Trap. The anticipation you felt while turning that crank and waiting to see if your trap worked never got old for me. As usual, I captured Mom’s mouse with ease. Even though I was fifteen, I could have sworn she still let me win sometimes.
My mom’s favorite game was Clue. While she set up the board, putting all of the little weapons in their respective rooms, I got up for a bathroom break. I also ran upstairs to check my iPhone. Two missed calls from an unknown number. But there were no voicemails or texts to go with the calls, which was unusual for any of my friends.
I went back downstairs and kicked Mom’s butt at Clue. “I think I’m going to turn in early, sweetheart. I have to work for a few hours this weekend to get caught up with some of my paperwork. I’m taking off for your games on Tuesday and Friday, so I need to get as much done as I can over the weekend.” She yawned.
“You’re the best, Mom.” I kissed her on the cheek before heading up to my own bed. It was after ten o’clock, but I didn’t feel tired. I tried playing a few apps on my phone, but nothing held my interest. I was all gamed out for the night.
I stuck my ear buds in, flipping through my phone, looking for a song that I wasn’t totally sick of. I picked a song by Miley Cyrus, one of those catchy beats that never gets old. If I hadn’t been looking at my phone at that exact moment, I would have missed the call coming in with the ear buds in. It was that number again.
I hit the ‘Accept’ button. “Hello?”
The voice on the other end was strange and robotic. It had to be some sort of recording or someone talking through an electronic voice recorder.
“If you go to the game, you will die,” the creepy voice warned.
“I know it’s you, Genevieve!” When I said her name, she hung up on the other end. Ten minutes later my phone rang again. But this time it was Amanda.
As soon as I answered, she asked, “Have you gotten any weird phone calls?”
“Yes. Don’t worry. It’s just Genevieve. We need to ignore her. If we get scared, she wins, because that’s exactly what she’s trying to do.”
“But why wouldn’t she want us to come to the game on Tuesday? We’re on the same squad!”
“Because she hates us,” I reminded her.
“Oh yeah.”
We hung up a few moments later. Even though I was a little scared, I was so tired that I fell asleep with my ear buds in. I slept like a baby.
Chapter
Fifty-One
On Saturday, I received another strange call. Only this one wasn’t from Genevieve. It was Ronnie. I hadn’t heard his voice in so long that I didn’t know who it was at first.
“I was wondering if you’d like to meet at that sushi place by your house. I know you love sushi,” he said, his voice shaky.
“I thought you had a girlfriend. Or girlfriends, I should say. One week you’re with Genevieve and then I saw you with Amanda.”
“It’s always been you, Dakota. I saw you standing on the top of that pyramid the other day, and I knew I had to have you back. Meet me for lunch. Please?”
How could I say no to that?
“Okay. You want to meet at our usual booth, the one in the back corner?”
“Sure. See you soon, babe,” he said, hanging up. The sushi restaurant was only a block away. Now I had to decide what to wear for this exciting occasion!
***
When I stepped out the front door, I was thrilled to see the sun was shining. I’d taken the time to curl my hair into little ringlets, and I didn’t want it ruined by rain. Even though I’d fixed my hair, I was dressed casually in jeans, flip-flops, and a mint green blouse. It took me less than five minutes to get to the restaurant where I was meeting Ronnie.
I could see his Trans Am parked in the front parking lot—parked in a handicapped slot, no less. As soon as I entered, I saw him in the back booth, just as we’d planned. He looked handsome in a dark green polo and jeans. I slipped in the booth across from him.
“I ordered for you,” he said, pleased with himself.
“Thanks,” I said quietly.
“I’m glad you decided to come. I knew you didn’t really like that guy, Andy. He’s such a freaking dork.” Ronnie chuckled, holding up his hand for the waitress.
“Yeah, he is,” I agreed. A pretty, petite Asian waitress brought a pitcher of water and club crackers to the table. For some reason, they always brought crackers and water to the table first. I was grateful for the water today.
“Hey, asshole!” Amanda suddenly shouted, stomping toward our table heatedly.
“How did she know I was here?” Ronnie looked at me, confused.
“Because I called her.” I smiled up at my best friend. Amanda smiled back.
Then she picked
up the pitcher of water and emptied its contents over his head.
We locked arms, walking out of there with our heads held high.
“That couldn’t have gone any better,” I said, rolling with laughter.
“What a douche.” Amanda shook her head back and forth.
“We got him good. He finally got put in his place. I’ve been waiting for a chance to do that for longer than you even know!” I told her, smiling as I imagined the water pouring over his head and the look on his face as he sat there, stunned.
“Thanks for calling to tell me. I’m so glad I did that! I feel so much better too! You want to come over?” Amanda asked.
“Maybe later. My mom’s taking me over to Andy’s to finish our history project. It’s due on Monday.”
“Do you like Andy a lot?” She raised her eyebrows at me.
“I’m crazy about him,” I realized.
Andy might be a dork, but he was my dork.
Chapter
Fifty-Two
Last Monday was exciting because of tryouts, but this Monday ran a close second because my uniform was coming in today! It was my second uniform of the season, but hopefully, my last. I knocked lightly on Coach Davis’s door. The bell for first period hadn’t rung yet, and Coach Davis was sitting at her desk with her head in her hands, deep in thought. Even though she was a tough coach, Coach Davis had grown on me. I couldn’t wait to have her as an English teacher next year.
“Come in, Dakota.” She waved me into the room.
“I’m sorry to bother you, Coach. I just wanted to check and see if my uniform had arrived yet,” I said, my voice pleading. I was dying to try it on for the first time!
“The uniforms will be here by ten o’clock. Amanda, Monika, and Genevieve’s altered uniforms will be here at ten, also. Because of what happened to your uniform before, I would prefer to keep all of the uniforms in my classroom until the end of the day. I will pass them out at practice.”
She made a good point. I didn’t want anything to happen to this uniform either. If keeping it safe meant waiting until the end of the day, so be it.
“Now that I have you here, Dakota, we need to discuss something important.” Her voice sounded serious all of a sudden. “Genevieve will be unable to attend tomorrow’s game. She’s been admitted to the hospital.”
“Oh, no!” I suddenly felt bad for all the terrible things I said about her. “What happened to her?” A nervous feeling was forming in my gut.
“Remember how she was displaying flu-like symptoms? Well, her symptoms got worse yesterday. Her mother called me last night and said that the doctors suspect she may have been poisoned.”
I gasped.
“Poisoned?” I shook my head in disbelief.
Amanda and I were wrong. The sociopath had victimized all six of us, including Genevieve. At least now I knew that Genevieve wasn’t our culprit.
Chapter
Fifty-Three
All I wanted to do right then was track down Amanda and tell her the awful news, but I had to go to my Biology class first. I took my seat, pulling out my heavy textbook. I could hear Miss Grimes explaining the difference between DNA and RNA, but I wasn’t listening to a word of the lesson.
How could we have been so wrong? And why would someone try to poison Genevieve? Were they trying to kill her when they did it? This was all getting way too serious and out of hand. A prank is one thing, but attempted murder?
I thought about the voice on the phone, warning me not to go to the game. If the caller wasn’t Genevieve, then who was it? A chill ran up my spine as I remembered the weirdo breathing heavily through my stall door.
As soon as the bell rang, I went in search of Amanda. I had to tell her what was going on. As I waded through the hallway full of people, I saw Amanda and Monika talking by Amanda’s locker. When she turned around to face me, I knew she’d already heard the news. Her face looked ashen.
“Dakota!” I hurried over to her side.
“Coach Davis pulled all of us out of class to tell us about Genevieve. She said that she told you first.” I nodded glumly. Tally came walking down the hall. She must have heard the news too, because she came over to join us.
“This is all so crazy and terrible,” Monika said, shaking her head in disbelief.
“I know! Now our cheers are going to be screwed up. Sydney had better be able to learn the cheers,” Tally said, flipping her light blonde hair over her shoulder snobbishly. We all looked at her, shocked.
“I meant it’s terrible what happened to Genevieve, not that our cheers will be altered,” Monika scolded Tally.
“She has a point though. This is Sydney’s lucky day. She might get a spot on the team after all,” Amanda muttered.
I looked at Amanda incredulously. Her remark was insensitive, but it rang with truth. Sydney did stand to gain the most from Genevieve’s illness. Could my former best friend be the one responsible for all of this? I wasn’t certain, but I had to find out for myself.
Chapter
Fifty-Four
“Did you do it?” I asked Sydney bluntly, stopping her crudely in the hallway. I’d known she had Geometry for third period, so I waited for her at the doorway to her class. She narrowed her eyes at me.
“Did I do what, Dakota?” She placed her hands on her hips defensively.
“Did you try to kill Genevieve?” I asked boldly. Sydney’s eyes grew round as quarters.
“Dakota, you are crazy! You have really lost your mind! All you’ve done since school started is blame me for one thing after another! I’m starting to think it’s you doing all of this crazy stuff!” She poked a finger at my chest angrily.
People were staring at us now, and they were looking at me like I was a lunatic. This was not going as planned. I turned around and walked away. What else could I do? It’s not like I had proof of anything.
Maybe I am acting like a lunatic, I considered, feeling slightly embarrassed.
My next class was American History and I was going to be late. I had to pick up the pace because mine and Andy’s Joan of Arc project was due today! I skidded through the doorway, plopping in my seat just as the final bell rang. I let out a sigh of relief. Andy looked at me and raised his eyebrows questioningly. “Tell you later,” I said, exasperated.
Our project was not the only one due today, and we had to sit and listen to three other groups go before us. I couldn’t even tell you who the historical figures were being presented—my brain was somewhere else. When I heard our names being called, I was completely spaced out. I jumped up in surprise.
I helped Andy carry our tri-fold board up to the front of the room. We were supposed to take turns presenting the material, and I’d written down my parts on note cards.
My note cards! I realized in horror that I’d been so distracted chasing Sydney down between periods, that I’d left the cards in my locker. Panic rose in my chest.
Andy immediately sensed something was wrong. “I forgot my note cards,” I confessed under my breath as we stood in front of the class setting up the board.
“Take mine. I’ll do your parts,” he said, shoving his cards in my hand before I had a chance to refuse.
Chapter
Fifty-Five
If kissing were allowed at school, I’d have grabbed Andy and given him a smooch right then and there. “You saved my butt in there,” I said gratefully, slamming my locker door closed.
“That’s what boyfriends are for.” He slipped his hand in mine, steering me toward the lunch room.
I was so happy walking with Andy that I’d nearly forgotten about Genevieve’s poisoning. I filled Andy in on what Coach Davis had told me this morning. “That’s terrifying,” he admitted, shaking his head in wonderment. “Was she poisoned while eating lunch at school?”
I stopped dead in my tracks. That was something I hadn’t thought of.
“I honestly have no idea. I don’t know if anyone knows when it happened, or why. But I think I know the ‘why’ part. Someon
e is jealous of the girls who made the squad. It’s one thing to play little pranks, but what they did to Genevieve is just downright crazy.”
I had to agree with him.
“Don’t worry. I brought my lunch from home, and it’s completely safe. It came from my own personal fridge, so nobody’s touched it,” he offered, pulling out bologna sandwiches and chips.
But I wasn’t listening. I was thinking about the phone calls Amanda and I received over the weekend.
I told Andy about the menacing voice on the phone, and how they said I would die if I went to the game on Tuesday. It was his turn to stop dead in his tracks.
“Have you told anyone about this?” His eyes grew wide with concern. I shook my head, suddenly feeling foolish.
“I probably should have told someone right away. I just didn’t realize at the time how serious things had gotten.”
“Come on. We need to talk to Principal Barlow.” He squeezed my hand, leading me to her office.
Chapter
Fifty-Six
The first thing Principal Barlow did was contact the Harrow Hill police department. A heavyset, white-haired detective spoke to me and Amanda in Principal Barlow’s office. His name was Detective Simms, and he was slightly intimidating with a gruff voice and stiff gait.
Detective Simms also called in the other girls from the squad, to see if any of them had received similar calls. No one else had, besides me and Amanda. “We’re investigating all of these crimes.”
Hearing him call the sociopath’s pranks ‘crimes’ really put everything in perspective. This was serious.
I showed Detective Simms my cell phone, as did Amanda. Whoever had made the threatening phone calls was smart enough to block their numbers. “If we cancel the ball game because of these threats, then we’re doing exactly what the perpetrator wants us to do,” Detective Simms said.
Cheerleading Can Be Murder (Horror High #1) Page 11