Catch Us If You Can (9780545539487)

by Mclean, Hope

  “Well, cheer up, because we goth to cheer for Willow now,” Erin joked. “Go team!”

  The bleachers overlooked a soccer field. The Fighting Rubies were playing the Blue Knights, the Atkinson Prep girls’ soccer team. Willow, wearing the team’s ruby-red-and-white uniform, was easy to spot. She stood a few inches taller than most of her teammates.

  The Rubies controlled the ball, and the Knights chased after the Martha Washington midfielders as they quickly passed the ball along toward Atkinson territory. With a swift kick, Willow launched the ball right to the Rubies’ forward, who charged toward the goal.

  “Way to go, Willow!” Erin yelled, and Willow looked up into the stands and waved. As she did, an Atkinson player with short blond hair ran down the field and shoved right into her! Willow lost her balance and tumbled onto the green turf. With a mocking smile, the blonde looked up into the bleachers and waved to the Jewels before sauntering away.

  Erin’s face grew bright red. “Did you see that?” she asked Jasmine and Lili. “She did that on purpose! Willow didn’t even have the ball.”

  Jasmine frowned. “She made sure the ref’s back was turned. I know her. That’s Isabel Baudin. She’s one of the Atkinson Prep Rivals — the French girl.”

  “You’re right. I recognize her from yesterday’s meet,” Erin said. “She was waiting for Ryan Atkinson on the steps.”

  “I’ve heard she’s one of the main reasons why the other quiz bowl teams can’t stand the Rivals,” Jasmine said.

  “Why is that?” Lili asked.

  “The Rivals are really smart, obviously. But I’ve gotten the impression that they’re not very nice — especially Isabel,” Jasmine confided. “I was talking to Maddie, one of the Owls, at yesterday’s quiz bowl. After the Rivals beat them at a match a couple of weeks ago, and it was time to shake hands, Isabel made fun of Maddie for not knowing the answer to one of the questions. It was totally uncalled for. And Maddie said Isabel’s done it to other competitors, too.”

  “Mean people stink.” Lili sighed. “What’s the point of acting that way?”

  Jasmine shrugged. “It could be an intimidation thing. The next time the Owls face the Rivals, they’ll remember not only getting beat, but getting teased, too. For some reason, I think insults sound worse in a French accent.”

  Erin shook her head vigorously. “That wouldn’t work with me,” she said. “No way. It would make me want to beat them even more the next time we squared off.”

  “Everyone is different,” Jasmine replied. “And Lili is proof of that!” Jasmine pointed at her friend, who was wearing a “Fighting Rubies” T-shirt with black tights and a red, black, and white plaid tutu that she had created from strips of tulle.

  Lili laughed. “Come on. Wouldn’t this make an amazing uniform for quiz bowl?”

  “That reminds me, Mom is going to kill you when you get home,” a voice said. A high-school-age boy in the blue-and-black Atkinson soccer uniform had climbed up the bleachers. His jet-black hair was layered and styled in short spikes on top of his head.

  “Eli! What are you doing here?” Lili asked.

  “I must have told you twenty times that my freshman match was being held here this afternoon,” Eli explained. “Anyway, Mom was going to use that tulle for the floral arrangements at Aunt Kei’s party tonight. She had to go out and get some more.”

  “How did she know that I took it?” Lili said.

  “Oh, I don’t know. Maybe the trail of red, black, and white tulle that led from her workroom to your closet?” Eli suggested with a smile.

  Lili dramatically put her hand on her forehead. “When artistic inspiration strikes, I must create!”

  Eli rolled his eyes before grinning at Jasmine and Erin. “Hi, girls. So, I heard about that stolen ruby. That’s too bad.”

  Jasmine moaned, burying her head in her hands. Eli looked confused.

  “Jasmine had a psychic connection to the ruby or something,” Erin informed him. “Don’t ask.”

  Eli shrugged. “Okay. How’s the game going?”

  “They’re tied, but I’m not feeling too friendly toward anyone in an Atkinson uniform right now,” Erin admitted, nodding at his jersey. “It’s too bad you can’t be a Fighting Ruby!”

  “Since Martha Washington is an all-girls school, that would be kinda difficult,” Eli said. “But what’s with all the Atkinson anger, guys?”

  Jasmine told Eli how Isabel had shoved Willow on the field. Eli looked thoughtful. Just then, the crowd let out a groan. “Hey, ref, are you blind?” a man yelled out.

  “It was that Isabel again!” Erin was indignant. “She elbowed Willow. And she keeps making sure to do it only when the referee isn’t looking.”

  “My throat is dry from all that whistling. I need some water,” Lili said. “Eli, I don’t have any money with me. Can you lend me some?”

  Eli reached into the pocket of his shorts. “Luckily I’m always looking out for my little sister. I guess plaid tutus don’t have pockets, huh?”

  “Eli, you’re the best!” Lili beamed at her brother. “And don’t worry, I’ll patch things up with Mom when I get home. I promise.”

  “You better! Otherwise she’ll be in a bad mood all week,” Eli said.

  Lili turned to Erin and Jasmine. “Be right back,” she said.

  “Wait for me!” Erin called out, following Lili down the stairs. “I need a bag of Cheezy Bites to calm me down.”

  The two girls walked down the bleachers and along the field, toward the Snack Shack. The small building was a favorite hangout for students during games.

  “Do you think Willow’s mom is working at the Shack today?” Erin asked.

  With that, they heard Mrs. Albern’s loud, distinctive laugh. Willow’s mom was well known to everyone in the Hallytown area. She ran the local community center, and anyone who took a class there knew her.

  “Girls! Come on over, let me get you something to eat. I heard it’s been a pretty rough game today for Willow,” Mrs. Albern said.

  “It has been! That girl Isabel is deliberately going after her,” Erin complained.

  “I may be her mom, but I’m not biased when I say Willow’s one of the best players on the team. That makes her a target,” she sighed, brushing a stray braid out of her face. Her dark hair was braided like Willow’s, but she wore hers coiled into an elegant bun. “Willow was pretty upset about that stolen ruby, too. I’m sure all you girls are.”

  “Jasmine’s the most upset,” Erin told her. “I don’t know. I guess it feels weird that somebody actually broke into the school and stole something.”

  “Yeah,” Lili agreed. “It’s like the trust is gone. Who knows what someone will take next?” She gasped. “I can’t remember if I locked up my locker over the weekend. Oh no!”

  Mrs. Albern nodded sympathetically. “I’m sure your locker is fine, Lili, but I understand how you feel,” she said. “It can be very unnerving to be robbed. Anyway, can you please give these to Willow when you see her?” Mrs. Albern slipped a box of red licorice into Erin’s hand. “She likes to act tough, but she’s going to need these after the game to cheer her up.”

  “Sure thing, Mrs. Albern,” Erin replied.

  Lili looked puzzled. “Hey, I thought Willow was all healthy and stuff.”

  “She is, but this is the only candy she can’t resist,” Erin explained.

  “It’s like her kryptonite.” Mrs. Albern smiled.

  Lili got a bottle of water, and instead of the Cheezy Bites, Erin bought some nachos to share. As the girls headed back to the bleachers they passed by the Fighting Rubies, who were in a huddle on the sidelines.

  “Stay strong, Willow!” Erin called as she and Lili climbed back up the bleachers to sit with Jasmine and Eli. She waved the licorice in the air.

  Willow lifted her head and smiled at the sight of her friends. She was pretty frustrated; Isabel had been elbowing and pushing her every chance she got.

  “You’ve got to take that girl out,” a te
ammate said to Willow. “You’re the only one of us who can pull off a slide tackle.”

  “A slide tackle? That’s a little underhanded,” she replied, confused.

  “That girl has it coming. She’s been clocking you all game,” another teammate commented. “We’ll lose if she keeps cheating.”

  Willow thought carefully about it. To perform a slide tackle, she would have to slide into the ball, then into the person in possession of the ball. If Willow hit the ball first and Isabel second, it was a legal move. But if she slid into Isabel first, she could get called for a penalty. The score was still tied.

  “If I get a chance, I will,” she told her teammates. “Sometimes you have to fight fire with fire.”

  The Rubies ran onto the field. The Atkinson team quickly took possession of the ball. Someone passed it to Isabel. Willow stayed right with her until they were just outside the goal area. Willow went in for the slide tackle, aiming carefully for the ball. Isabel caught on to what she was doing and jumped over the ball, blocking it with her body. Already in motion, it was too late for Willow to stop. She crashed into Isabel. The referee blew his whistle and called a penalty on Willow.

  “Nice try,” Isabel said in her lilting French accent as she grabbed the ball. The penalty allowed her to place the ball anywhere she wanted before taking the shot.

  As Isabel set the ball down in front of the net, Willow could hear jeers streaming out over the field from the Martha Washington bleachers. Isabel lined up her shot, and a swift, determined kick sent the ball sailing toward the net.

  Goal! The game was over. Atkinson had beaten Martha Washington by one point.

  Willow lined up with her team to shake hands with the Atkinson players. “Good game, good game,” everyone repeated to one another. Willow had to take a deep breath when it was her turn to shake Isabel’s hand.

  Isabel smiled at Willow, her green eyes gleaming. “You almost had me,” she said. “But I am too quick for you!”

  “You’re too much of a cheater for me,” Willow said calmly, looking her square in the eyes.

  “But I’m the winner, no?” Isabel asked with a smile before letting go of Willow’s hand and moving down the line. Willow shook her head as she left the field.

  “That was so unfair!” Erin cried as the Jewels rushed up to Willow on the sidelines.

  “You played a great game,” Lili said. “I’m proud of you.”

  Erin handed her the box of red licorice, and Willow took out a strand. She munched on the candy as she thought things over.

  “It’s not losing that bothers me; it’s losing to her.” Willow looked over at Isabel, who was the center of a giant team hug on the Blue Knights’ sidelines. “How are we supposed to win anything when we’re up against cheaters?”

  Jasmine met her eyes. “I know I’ve been upset about the ruby — we all are — but we’ve got to keep it together,” she said, looking like her normal self for the first time in twenty-four hours. “It’s a long quiz bowl season, and we’re off to a good start. We’ve just got to keep winning, that’s all.” She gave Willow a friendly nudge. “And we’ve got to beat those Rivals!”

  The next morning, Lili’s mom dropped her off in front of the school, as always. Even though it had been two months since she’d started, Lili still couldn’t get over how pretty her new school was. Each of the three buildings was made of stone, and green ivy climbed up the walls. Bright orange and purple mums lined the walkways, and the maple trees on the lawn were just beginning to turn a warm shade of red.

  When she got out of the car she saw Willow, Jasmine, and Erin on the front steps. Willow was angrily shaking her phone.

  “Did you see Isabel’s Chatter post?” she asked her friends. “It says, ‘So happy! The Knights destroyed the Rubies on the field!’ Can you believe that?”

  “That stinks!” Erin agreed. “If I had a Chatter page, I’d post something about how she cheated.”

  “You should do it, Willow,” Jasmine urged. “You have a Chatter account, right?”

  Willow shook her head. “I do, but the refs didn’t see what she did. If I post that, it’ll sound like I’m a sore loser. The best thing is to ignore it.”

  “I don’t know how you do it, Willow,” Jasmine remarked. “I’d be so angry I couldn’t stop myself.”

  “Yoga,” Willow replied. She raised her arms over her head, pressed her palms together, and then brought her hands down in front of her chest. “It’s totally relaxing. You guys really need to come to class with me sometime.”

  Erin shook her head. “I don’t know. Is it really relaxing to be …”

  She was interrupted by two police cars pulling into the parking lot. Their sirens were off, but they still looked ominous.

  “Do you think they’re here about the ruby?” Lili asked.

  “They must be investigating the theft,” Willow said.

  “Great! I’m glad someone is looking for it. With the police involved, maybe they’ll find it.”

  “I hope so,” Jasmine said.

  * * *

  As much as she tried, Jasmine just couldn’t stop thinking about the ruby. When her last class ended that day she went to the library to do homework, but the police tape across the door to the reading room just made her sad all over again. She took out her math notebook, and instead of doing her work, she took some colored pencils out of her bag and began to sketch the necklace from memory.

  “Hey, that’s pretty good!” a voice said. Jasmine jumped. It was Willow, looking at the sketch over her shoulder.

  “You scared me!” Jasmine said. “But anyway, thanks. I don’t think I can get the color right, though. It’s hard to recreate that deep red.”

  “It was really beautiful,” Willow agreed.

  “Did you know that the red color in a ruby comes from chromium?” Jasmine asked. “That’s the same stuff they add to iron to make stainless steel.”

  “Wow,” Willow said. “That’s pretty cool.”

  “The deeper red the ruby is, the more valuable it is,” Jasmine added. “So I bet Martha’s was worth a fortune.”

  “That’s probably why it got stolen,” Willow reasoned. “Anyway, I came to talk to you about something. I had Ms. Keatley email me the video of our matches this weekend, and I kept track of the answers we got wrong and then charted them.”

  “For fun?” Jasmine asked. “Wow, you are, like, quiz bowl–crazy these days.”

  Willow shrugged. “I just want us to win, okay? Sports teams review their tapes, so I figured we should, too.” She hesitated, like she wasn’t sure if she should say what was coming next. “Anyway, I figured out that our weakest areas are technology and astronomy.”

  The words hit Jasmine like a bee sting. She was supposed to be the Jewels’ science expert.

  “So what are you saying? That I’m the weakest teammate?” she asked defensively.

  “No way!” Willow protested. “Science has so many branches, and you can’t expect to be an expert in all of them by yourself. You’re already amazing at chemistry, biology, and geology.”

  “Yes, I am,” Jasmine agreed. The girls had known each other since kindergarten, and Willow knew just what to say to make her friend feel better.

  “So I’m thinking that we all need to brush up on our technology as a team,” Willow continued. “We could take a field trip to the National Air and Space Museum.”

  “That could be fun,” Jasmine admitted.

  Erin and Lili came into the library and walked over.

  “Did you tell her?” Erin asked.

  Willow rolled her eyes. “Nice. Way to be subtle. But yes, I told her, and she’s cool.”

  “Of course I’m cool,” Jasmine insisted.

  Then Erin noticed the sketch in her notebook. “Nice work, Jasmine! You know, since the ruby got taken I’ve been trying to find out more about it. Mostly I’m just learning about Martha Washington. I’ve borrowed a ton of old books about her from the library. Did you know that she was the oldest of eigh
t brothers and sisters?”

  “No,” Jasmine said. “I don’t actually know much about her. Except that she had good taste in jewelry.”

  “I don’t think we’ll be getting a lot of Martha Washington questions at quiz bowl,” Willow pointed out.

  “Well, you never know,” Erin told her. “Besides, not everything we do has to be about quiz bowl, does it?”

  Willow didn’t answer. Ever since they had created the team, quiz bowl had been the only thing on her mind, but she didn’t want her friends to think she was weird or anything.

  “Hey, we should talk to Ms. Keatley and set up that trip,” she suggested.

  “And then can we ask her about that fashion makeover I want to do on her?” Lili asked.

  “We’ll hurt her feelings, Lili,” Willow protested.

  Lili sighed. “We’d be doing her a favor. She’s so pretty she could be on TV if she wanted to. But it’s like she puts on a blindfold in the morning and just randomly picks stuff out of her closet.”

  “She’s an intellectual,” Erin said, popping a loud bubble with her gum. “They’re too busy thinking to care about what they’re wearing.”

  “Fine,” Lili said. “I’ll just wait till the right moment, that’s all.”

  * * *

  The girls found Ms. Keatley grading papers in her history classroom. She looked up, startled, and brushed a strand of hair away from her face.

  “Is today a practice day?” she asked. “I thought it was Monday.”

  “It is Monday,” Willow assured her. “We just wanted to ask you if we could go on a field trip to the National Air and Space Museum this weekend. To brush up on our technology.”

  “That’s a great idea!” Ms. Keatley started sorting through the papers on her desk. “Yes, here are those statistics you worked up. Nicely done, Willow. You girls certainly have a lot of initiative.”

  “Can we go on Saturday?” Willow asked. “We don’t have a quiz bowl match this weekend.”

  “Well, I was planning to watch the all-day marathon of the John Adams miniseries, but I do have it on DVD ….” she said thoughtfully. “And it’s wonderful that you girls want to broaden your horizons. You know, if you make it to nationals, living in the DC area will be a terrific advantage. There are so many great museums and resources here.”