Charmed Forces #19

by Melissa J Morgan

  Jordan tapped his feet on the bottom step. He was breaking down, she could feel it. If there was one thing Brynn knew, it was her Jordan.

  “Tell you what,” Brynn said. She remembered a scene from an old movie she once saw, All the President’s Men. It was about two reporters who did whatever they had to, including risking their lives, to bring down the President of the United States over some scandal. Maybe the amethyst situation wasn’t as big, but someone had taken it, and as a result, Gaby had been falsely accused. Brynn was determined to find the stone and restore Gaby’s honor. Besides, she’d been counting on Amy’s good luck to help her get a starring role in the camp musical.

  “I’ll tell you who I think your secret source is,” she said to Jordan. “And if I’m right, you tap your right foot. If I’m wrong, tap your left foot. Okay?”

  “My source would kill me if she—or he—knew I revealed his or her identity,” Jordan said carefully.

  “You’re not revealing anyone’s identity,” Brynn said. “All you’re doing is tapping your foot. Perfectly innocent. I know you want to do the right thing, Jordan. And this is the right thing for everyone. Did you ever see All the President’s Men?”

  Jordan nodded. “Those reporters are my heroes.”

  “Me too,” Brynn said. It was a lie, though. Her real heroes were Amanda Bynes and Keira Knightly. But she did admire the All the President’s Men guys as well. “They were willing to make any sacrifice for the greater good.”

  “I should be more like them, shouldn’t I?” Jordan asked.

  “Yes,” Brynn said. “You definitely should.”

  He didn’t say anything, just tapped his feet again, which she took as his signal that he was ready for questioning.

  “Okay,” Brynn said. “Who told you about the strange goings-on in our bunk? Was it . . . Logan?” She knew it couldn’t be Logan. She just threw that in there to make it look like she didn’t already have a very strong suspicion of who the culprit was. To throw Jordan off guard.

  Jordan tapped his left foot.

  “Was it Chelsea?” She didn’t believe it was Chelsea, either. But Jordan might believe she believed it. Chelsea was a plausible suspect, since she was anti-Amy.

  Jordan tapped his left foot.

  Now for the moment of truth. “Was it Winnie?”

  Jordan’s right toes lifted. He hesitated. Then he tapped his right foot, once.

  Aha! So it was Winnie. Brynn had had a bad feeling about that girl from the beginning.

  “I knew it,” Brynn said. “But no one in 6B is friends with Winnie. What does she know? And how did she find out?”

  “She overheard some girls from your bunk talking,” Jordan said. His reluctance to give away his secrets seemed to have disappeared. He looked almost relieved to talk. “At the cookout that first day. All she heard was something about an amazing magic phenomenon, something having to do with Alyssa. But that’s all Winnie picked up. She told me about it and convinced me we should investigate.”

  “What else did you find out in your investigation?” Brynn asked.

  “Not much,” Jordan said. “You sixth-division girls sure stick together. Nobody would talk. Not even Gaby. And she’s got a pretty big mouth.”

  Brynn felt proud of her bunkmates. They’d all stuck to their supersworn vows of silence—in spite of their differences.

  “What about the pranking?” she said. “Was that you? Were you looking for clues or something?”

  Jordan shook his head. “I’d never do that. I don’t know who pranked your bunk.”

  “Could Winnie have done it on her own?” Brynn asked. “Maybe she ransacked the cabin while looking for clues, and then made it look like a prank?”

  “I don’t know,” Jordan said. “I wouldn’t put it past her. She’d do anything for a story. She got pretty fed up with me because I didn’t want to spy on Alyssa.”

  Spy on Alyssa! That Winnie was even worse than Brynn had thought. But what about the amethyst? Did Jordan know about it?

  “If Winnie found a clue, or something like that, in our bunk, do you think she would take it?”

  Jordan shrugged. “Maybe. She hasn’t mentioned finding anything or taking anything.”

  “So that’s all you know?” Brynn said.

  “That’s all I know. I still have no idea what you girls are up to. If Winnie knows more, she hasn’t told me. I’m not sure she trusts me anymore. Or maybe she wants to grab all the glory for herself when she finally breaks the story.”

  “You mean, if she breaks the story,” Brynn said.

  “I mean when,” Jordan said. “That girl’s like a bulldog—she goes after what she wants.”

  “I’ll remember that,” Brynn said. So Jordan didn’t know about Amy. That meant he didn’t know what had happened to her, either. But Brynn had a feeling maybe Winnie did.

  “Good work, Brynn,” Gaby said. Brynn had come to her with an update on the missing amethyst mystery. They met for a secret rendezvous in the arts and crafts room just before dinner. If anyone caught them, they could just say they had a sudden, irresistible urge to make boxes out of Popsicle sticks.

  “I don’t have proof of anything,” Brynn said. “Just a few suspicions. And I’m pretty sure Jordan had nothing to do with it.”

  “But Winnie did,” Gaby said. “I’m sure of it.”

  “She might have,” Brynn said. “But she’ll never admit it. How will we prove it?”

  “Easy,” Gaby said. “We just break into Winnie’s bunk and look around.” Why didn’t other people see the obvious solutions that were so clear to her? Was it because they had scruples?

  “Break into 5C?” Brynn said. “We can’t do that. It’s against the rules.”

  “So?” Gaby said. “Breaking into our bunk was against the rules, too, but somebody did that.”

  “I can’t,” Brynn said. “My journalistic principles don’t allow for breaking and entering.”

  “Ugh,” Gaby said. “Journalistic principles? Where did you get that? What is journalism about? Finding out stuff. What’s the best way to find out stuff? Snoop through people’s things. Basic logic.”

  “Well, there’s also asking people questions,” Brynn said.

  “But you already admitted that won’t work in this case. Look, you don’t want to do it, fine. I don’t have any journalistic principles, so I will.”

  “When?”

  “Tonight. The fourth division is putting on some kind of skit in the theater. The whole camp will be there. It’s the perfect time for crime.”

  “Okay,” Brynn said. “I don’t like this. But I’m secretly glad you’re doing it. Taking one for the team.”

  “You got it.”

  “Be careful.”

  “I so totally will.”

  The fourth division’s skit about oral hygiene, starring Declan the Decayer, was a total snoozefest, so Gaby didn’t mind at all sneaking out of the theater in the middle of it. “Bathroom break,” she whispered to Mandy, who looked up when she started for the door. And that was it. Easy as pie. She was out of there.

  The camp was quiet, the cabins dark. Gaby found her way to 5C and pushed open the door. Creak. She hadn’t expected snooping to be so spooky.

  She clicked on her flashlight and got to work. Right away she homed in on a cubby marked WINNIE and rifled through it. Nothing interesting there, beyond a suspicious amount of chocolate. Did Winnie have a little chocoholic problem? That was good information in case Gaby ever needed blackmail material later.

  Gaby shined the flashlight around the room. If Winnie didn’t keep important secret amethysts in her cubby—which made sense, it was too obvious and the first place someone would look (Gaby kicked herself for falling into the trap)—where would she hide them? Under her mattress, perhaps? But which bed was Winnie’s?

  Gaby patted beds and felt under pillows until she found something lumpy. She reached under a mattress, but it was only someone’s photo album. Gaby flipped through it. It showed another 5C
girl, Gwenda, with her family and friends from home. Not what Gaby was looking for. She put the album back where she found it and kept searching.

  At last she caught sight of something odd, high up on the wall near a top bunk. She climbed up to investigate. A piece of paper stuck out from behind a loose board. Gaby pulled the board back. Aha! A hiding place! With two books stuffed inside.

  Gaby took out the books. She felt around the space to make sure there was no amethyst there, but came up empty.

  She opened the first book. It was a reporter’s notebook, with PROPERTY OF WINNIE JACKSON written on the front. Jackpot!

  Gaby opened it and flipped through a few boring pages of notes about reporting techniques before she got to the good stuff.

  bunk 6B—Alyssa. Psychic? How?

  6B girls keep to themselves a lot. Always whispering, having secrets. What are they up to?

  Bunk 6B crossed names off sign-up sheet for Phillies game. Why? Up to something? Do they know something we don’t? Will we come back from game to face some kind of evil superprank?

  Brynn—went out with Jordan last year? Yes. Interesting. She seems drippy. What did he see in her? Does he still like her? Can’t tell. She obviously likes him, tho.

  Heard 6B girls talking about Alyssa again, and someone named Amy. Who is Amy???? Must find out.

  Amy Goldberg—little girl in second div.—the Amy 6B girls obsessed with? Seems unlikely. Could Amy Goldberg be psychic?

  Gaby laughed as she read. Winnie was obsessed with bunk 6B. And totally on the wrong track. Amy Goldberg—psychic? That little girl with the lisp? What are the odds?!

  Next she looked at the second book. The Smart Girl’s Guide to Astrology. Hmm. Gaby opened it up. On the first page, Alyssa had written her name. The book belonged to Alyssa!

  Where would Winnie have gotten Alyssa’s astrology book? Gaby was sure Alyssa wouldn’t have given it to Winnie. Alyssa didn’t even know her.

  Winnie must have taken it from our bunk, Gaby thought. This was proof that Winnie was up to something. But what about the amethyst? Did Winnie have that, too? Gaby looked around some more. She checked the cubbies again. She did find a few rocks, which was strange. They were in a box in the cubby marked GWENDA. Gaby looked them over carefully. None of them were Amy. She knew for sure because each rock was marked with its type: mica, smoky quartz, jade, marcasite, malachite, agate . . . The spot marked AMETHYST was empty.

  So Gaby didn’t find Amy. That didn’t mean Winnie hadn’t hidden the amethyst somewhere. It didn’t matter. Gaby had enough evidence to bust Winnie now—and to prove her own innocence. All those girls who didn’t believe her would feel awfully sorry.

  chapter TWELVE

  “Alyssa . . . Alyssa . . .”

  Alyssa sat up. Was someone calling her name?

  “Alyssa . . . Alyssa . . .”

  The bunk was dark. Everyone else was sleeping soundly. So who was calling to her?

  “Alyssa . . . Alyssa...It’s me, Amy! Your long lost Amy!”

  Amy! At last. Alyssa had missed the amethyst so much. And her psychic powers even more. “Amy, where are you?”

  “Here I am. Can’t you see me?”

  Alyssa looked around. There was a big bushy wig on the floor. What was that doing there? Who wore a wig at camp?

  “Alyssa, under here!”

  The wig shook slightly. Alyssa thought she glimpsed Amy underneath it. But Alyssa was way up high on her top bunk. She tried to climb down, but her legs were frozen. She reached toward the floor with her arms, but it was too far. She could hear Amy calling, but she couldn’t reach her . . .

  “Amy! Amy! I’ll find you!”

  Alyssa woke up with a start. The morning sun made a square pattern through the window on the floor. Amy! Where was she?

  Alyssa looked around for a shaggy wig, but there wasn’t one anywhere. The only thing she saw on the floor was a pair of sneakers.

  Amy had called to her. But it was only a dream.

  Still, Alyssa couldn’t shake the feeling that Amy really was calling to her. That her dream meant something. Her unconscious mind, or Amy’s psychic vibes, were trying to send her a clue.

  Alyssa climbed out of bed. The others were just waking up. Alyssa slipped on her flip-flops and started for the door.

  “Where are you going?” Mandy asked.

  “I’m not sure,” Alyssa said. “But don’t worry, I won’t go far.”

  She didn’t know where she was going or what exactly she was looking for, but something told her to go outside.

  “Stay within sight of the cabin,” Mandy called.

  “I will,” Alyssa said.

  She walked around the cabin to the wall where Amy’s hiding place had been. Just for kicks, she checked the nook again. Empty.

  She stepped back and looked at the bunk, the window, the shutters slightly ajar, the bushes around the cabin . . .

  The bushes! A round, shaggy boxwood sat right under Alyssa’s window. And it was exactly the same shape as the wig in her dream! A breeze shook the bush. Alyssa could practically hear it calling to her—Here I am! Here I am!

  She crawled under the bush and pawed through the loose dirt . . . and there was Amy! Right under the hiding nook, safe and sound.

  Alyssa snatched up the amethyst and held it tight. “I found her!” she cried, and ran inside the bunk. “Everybody—look! I found Amy!”

  “That’s great!” Natalie cried, her mouth full of toothpaste. The other girls gathered around to look. Amy was slightly dirty, but otherwise no worse for wear. Alyssa polished Amy with her T-shirt.

  “Where did you find it?” Mandy asked.

  “Under a bush outside,” Alyssa said. “I had a dream this morning that she was calling to me, and when I woke up, somehow I knew exactly where to find her.” She rubbed the stone until the purple parts shone. “She really does have some kind of magic.”

  “But how did she get outside?” Valerie asked.

  “I hid her in a nook behind the shutter.” Alyssa showed them the hiding place. She wouldn’t be using it anymore, anyway. It was too shallow, clearly not safe. “When we had that storm last week, the wind must have knocked her out of her nook. It just happened to be the same night our cabin got pranked.”

  “How do you know the wind did it?” Chelsea said. “Gaby could have taken Amy and hidden her under the bush.”

  “I didn’t, though,” Gaby said. She and Brynn exchanged a look.

  “I believe her,” Alyssa said. “First of all, why would Gaby hide Amy under a bush? It’s a stupid hiding place.”

  “That’s right,” Gaby began. “I—”

  “Maybe Gaby knew you’d think that,” Chelsea said. “She must have known that if you found Amy under the bush, you’d think the wind knocked her down—and you wouldn’t blame Gaby.”

  Alyssa shook her head. Chelsea was being extra annoying this morning. “I just know she didn’t.” She squeezed Amy tight. “Amy is telling me.”

  Gaby said, “If I could just—”

  Chelsea rolled her eyes. “Puh-lease.”

  “What about the pranking, though?” Valerie said. “The rainstorm didn’t do that—and we still don’t know who’s responsible.”

  “Would you guys please let me talk?” Gaby said. “I have some very interesting information about the prank.”

  “What?” Alex said.

  “Maybe we do know who did it,” Gaby said. She reached under her bunk and pulled out Alyssa’s astrology book.

  “Hey—that’s mine!” Alyssa said. “Where did you get it?”

  “I found it in bunk 5C,” Gaby said.

  “What were you doing in bunk 5C?” Mandy asked.

  “Nothing worse than what they did to us,” Gaby said. “One of them, anyway. Specifically, Miss Winnie Jackson.”

  Everyone gasped. “How do you know for sure?” Brynn said.

  “I found this book hidden near her bed,” Gaby said. “She also has a notebook full of notes about our bunk. She overhear
d some of us talking about the amethyst and was trying to figure out what was going on—so she could write about it in the newspaper!”

  “Gaby,” Mandy said. “Did you sneak into bunk 5C without permission?”

  “All I did was look around a little bit,” Gaby said. “I did what I had to do. Look, Winnie messed up our cabin. She stole Alyssa’s book. That’s why she pranked us—she was looking for the amethyst and made it look like a prank to cover her tracks.”

  “Nice work, Gaby,” Brynn said.

  “I don’t know,” Chelsea said. “How do we know Gaby’s telling the truth? Maybe she took Alyssa’s book. Maybe she messed up the cabin looking for the amethyst. And now she’s trying to blame it all on some innocent 5C girl.”

  “Innocent?” Alyssa said. “The same girls who threatened to kick our butts after we beat them on the obstacle course? Who are gloating over their swim relay victory? Gaby’s story makes perfect sense to me.”

  “I believe her, too,” Brynn said. “Winnie’s been acting strange ever since we got to camp this summer. Even Jordan said she’d do anything for a story. And you know what? I think I’ll go confront her right now.” She grabbed the astrology book. “Can I borrow this?”

  “Go ahead,” Alyssa said. “Go, Brynn!” It felt so good to have the amethyst back and all her friends behind her.

  “Don’t do anything foolish!” Mandy called after her as Brynn marched out the door.

  Chelsea laughed. “You might as well say ‘Don’t breathe.’ This whole bunk has lost their minds.”

  “Chelsea, when are you going to admit there’s something special about this amethyst?” Alyssa said.

  “When I see real proof,” Chelsea said.

  “What kind of proof?” Alyssa asked.

  “The impossible kind,” Chelsea said. She snatched up the amethyst and tossed it in the air like a coin. But Alyssa snatched it back right before Chelsea caught it.

  Brynn knocked on the sky blue door of bunk 5C. Their counselor answered. “Is Winnie here?” Brynn asked.