Double Down by Gwenda Bond

Author:Gwenda Bond
Language: eng
Format: mobi, epub
Tags: Lois Lane, Metropolis, 9781630790387, DC Comics, Superman
Publisher: Switch Press
Published: 2016-05-01T04:00:00+00:00

CHAPTER 17

Maddy finished stashing her books inside her locker, clicked the royal blue door shut, and spun the combination lock. She turned to find Devin and me standing behind her. Her T-shirt said Nervous Takedown.

We must have been wearing “serious business” expressions, because she held out her wrists like we were police who might cuff them.

“I should’ve known I’d get caught, officers,” she said. “Today’s the day you finally take me away.”

“Haha,” I said. “Ha.”

She lowered her wrists. “To what do I owe this dramatic interruption on the way to lunch?”

“Lois thought it was best not to give you too much warning,” Devin said, not that helpfully.

I gave him a dose of side-eye before answering Maddy. “It’s time to bring everyone up to speed.” Devin, of course, already knew I’d been to the locations and gotten the goods—but not yet what the goods were. “I know what’s going on with your sister and how it connects to James’s dad.”

She swallowed. “Shouldn’t we wait until after school? Melody would probably rather come by the office.”

I started walking in the direction of the cafeteria, joining the streaming traffic of students around us. Neither of them protested.

I waited until Maddy was on one side, and Devin was on my other. Maddy and Melody’s relationship was a delicate thing to balance against the larger story, but in this case I had come to the conclusion that caution would have to be tossed into the wind. I had the other relevant party—James’s dad—to brief later.

Not to mention, Perry still had no idea any of this was going on.

I told her, “Your sister’s worries about being seen with the likes of us will have to wayside. I have other plans for after school. And you have a date, remember?”

“What if she ignores us?” Maddy said, only flushing a little at the mention of her date.

Devin nodded. “It could happen, Lois.”

I heard what he didn’t say outright. He wanted to make sure I’d thought through how Maddy would feel if Melody snubbed us in front of everyone.

“Nope,” I said. She wouldn’t do that to her sister, would she? I didn’t think so. “I checked out her social accounts.” Melody’s fixation on popularity was so strange to me, I’d figured this was the equivalent of a background check. “It’s what you said the other day about popularity, Devin. Melody’s is the second kind. She carefully curates everything she does. Every outfit, every selfie she snaps, every status update. They’re all so… crafted. She’s not a mean girl, even if she can turn on the snob factor. She doesn’t joke around. She wants to be perfect, unattainable, untouchable.”

“Tell me about it,” Maddy muttered.

“But no one is all that, not really. So it’s an act,” I said. “She’s just afraid someone will notice if she’s hanging out with us. That they might discover something she doesn’t want them to see, something she didn’t choose to show. She won’t risk making a scene once it’s clear that’s going to happen no matter what.

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