Almost Heroes by Joyce Greenfield

Author:Joyce Greenfield [Greenfield, Joyce]
Language: eng
Format: epub
Tags: k'12
Publisher: Ebbing Neptune Publishing
Published: 2018-04-27T16:00:00+00:00

Chapter 16

When I got down to the lower level of the clothing store, I saw Damien pacing back and forth, like a dog who’d trapped a squirrel in a tree. In front of him a girl was standing in a corner, her eyes wide.

Damien’s head moved just enough that he could see who was coming toward him. “You got here just in time, Whisper. It’s Ribaldi’s minion.”

I looked at the girl again. “Oh! You’re the one from the jewelry store! My hand still has scabs from your fingernails!”

Her brow drew down. “I don’t know who Ribaldi is—or who you think I am—but I didn’t do anything wrong. I’ve never stolen a single thing in my life.”

“Who said anything about stealing?” Damien asked with a triumphant tone. “You’ve revealed yourself, criminal! Now you must tell us where Ribaldi is.”

“Like I said, I don’t know who Ribaldi is.” The raspiness in her voice seemed to be getting worse. I absently wondered whether she was a heavy smoker or something.

“Nonsense!” Damien said, his voice rising. “Feigning ignorance won’t help you now. Tell us where Ribaldi is or—“

“Or what? You’ll report me to the mall cops?”

“No, we’ll report you either way. But at least if you cooperate, we’ll tell them to go easy on you. Having a hero to vouch for you can go a long way in such matters. They might even let you off with a warning.”

The girl rolled her eyes. “Somehow, I don’t think that would do me any good.” She took a step along the wall, toward double doors leading back into the greater mall.

Damien side-stepped closer to the same wall, no doubt preparing to stop her if she made a run for it. “Then how about this? If you tell us where she is we’ll protect you from her wrath. We can teach you how to walk the path of good. We can make it so that you don’t have to steal just to eat.”

She snorted. “If you think I have to steal to eat, you don’t know anything about me. And if you think I’d be happy being someone’s minion—even someone made up—then you don’t know anything.”

“You leave me no choice.” Damien sighed, took a step forward. He reached for her elbow, but she moved it out of the way too quickly. She pushed off the wall and headed straight for me; it all happened too quickly for me to react, and the next thing I knew I was on the ground again.

The pounding of feet echoed through the store. I rolled over to spot the pair sprinting for the exit like both of their lives depended on it. Damien nearly caught her at the doors, but she spun on a heel so abruptly that he skidded past by a few feet.

My hand burned, as if to remind me that I had a score to settle in the chase too. I got to my feet and started running after them, sure that I wouldn’t be able to catch up in time.

Download

Copyright Disclaimer:
This site does not store any files on its server. We only index and link to content provided by other sites. Please contact the content providers to delete copyright contents if any and email us, we'll remove relevant links or contents immediately.