Sammy Keyes and the Showdown in Sin City by Wendelin Van Draanen

Author:Wendelin Van Draanen [Draanen, Wendelin Van]
Language: eng
Format: epub
ISBN: 978-0-307-97408-2
Publisher: Random House Children's Books
Published: 2013-01-08T05:00:00+00:00

FIFTEEN

At first I couldn’t believe it. And then I still couldn’t believe it.

And then I got mad.

At Heather.

At her mother.

But mostly at me.

How could I have let Heather ditch me?

I guess I underestimated her. Or overestimated Candi. Of all things.

But there I was.

In Las Vegas.

Ditched.

I tried to keep the panic out of my brain, but that was kinda hard, seeing how I was all by myself in a huge city full of gamblers and drunks and strippers.

Think, I told myself. Think. Where could they be?

We’d talked about seeing if my mom and Warren had checked into the resort’s hotel, so I ran, following signs through the casino and into the lobby.

The Ditchy Duo was nowhere.

So there I am, looking around, wondering why in the world they ditched their only connection to new information, when all of a sudden it hits me.

Pete must’ve called while they were in the bathroom.

He must’ve called and they must’ve made a lucky guess and gotten a tip.

Just like that, I go from panicked to ticked off. And even though Heather and her mother could have been anywhere inside the Planet Hollywood complex or back inside the Miracle Mile Shops, what comes screeching into my brain is Get to the car. And yeah, maybe I should have found a pay phone and called Pete instead, but I’d already wasted a bunch of time and I didn’t want Heather and Candi to get away. I mean, it was one thing to get ditched because they hated me. It was another to get ditched because they’d stolen my tip!

And the way I saw it, even if the tip was for somewhere inside the Miracle Mile or Planet Hollywood, eventually they’d go back to the car. And if they were leaving now, I’d never catch them once they drove away.

I had to get to the car!

Besides, it was something I could do. Something better than panicking about being all alone in a huge city with gamblers and drunks and strippers.

So I charge back through the casino and out to the Miracle Mile Shops, and even though I know Candi’s feet are hurting her, those Acosta females are determined. I could just picture Candi hobbling along at lightning speed with popping blisters and oozing shoes while Heather’s barking at her to hurry up.

And the more I play it through in my head, the more I realize that even if I run, I’ll never catch them. They might have blistered feet and smokers’ lungs, but they also have a huge head start.

But then I realize—I don’t have to run.

I can ride!

I hop on my skateboard, knowing that mall security will kick me out … but I’m going out anyway, so who cares?

Besides, they’ll have to catch me first!

There are shoppers everywhere, but I push along going, “Excuse me! Emergency! Coming through! Emergency!” and just like that, people are scampering out of my way. Pretty soon I’m picking up speed, weaving around planters and baby strollers, calling, “Sorry, emergency!” to people I startle and just flying down the shiny esplanade.

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