Those Kids From Fawn Creek by Erin Entrada Kelly

Author:Erin Entrada Kelly
Language: eng
Format: epub
Publisher: HarperCollins
Published: 2021-12-25T00:00:00+00:00

28

A few hours later, there they were—Janie, Abby, and Orchid—turning off a worn footpath not far from the school and walking toward the creek from which the town got its name. Janie and Abby headed for a cluster of trees dripping with moss. Orchid followed.

Instead of sitting right away, Abby opened her arms ceremoniously and said, “This is Fawn Creek.”

Orchid squinted out at the water and smiled. A light hum of noise filled the air. Buzzing mosquitoes. The plinks and splashes of unseen creatures. A faint trickle.

“It’s nice,” Orchid said. “Peaceful.”

Janie was going to make a wisecrack, then realized she didn’t have one. It was nice and peaceful. This was where her dad had taught her how to fish. This was where she’d played hide-and-seek as a little girl, usually with Abby, Barn, and Slowly. Barn was good at finding people, but terrible at hiding. Slowly always picked the same spots to hide. He got caught every time.

Orchid seemed strangely out of place here. Maybe because she was new, and Fawn Creek wasn’t accustomed to anything unfamiliar. Maybe because her two sidekicks weren’t with her. Janie wondered vaguely where Greyson and Dorothy were, but she didn’t want to ask, because then it might look like she cared.

“What are we doing here, anyway?” Janie asked. There was a bite in her voice, though she wasn’t sure why. Sometimes she was spiteful for no reason whatsoever.

“Janie’s at that age,” her mother said to Aunt Kiki often. What did that mean exactly? Janie never had the guts to ask.

Abby shrugged and sat down. “Just something to do. Orchid’s never been here.”

Orchid sat, too. She tucked her dress under her legs.

Janie looked at the sky full of clouds. Okay sure, I’ll sit, too, she thought, but just as she was about to lower herself to the ground, she heard a series of high-pitched voices and giggles, which she recognized right away. “The God Squad’s here,” she said.

And sure enough, there they were.

“Where did they get the name ‘God Squad’?” Orchid whispered.

She’d directed the question to Abby, but Janie answered—and not in a whisper—as Baylee, Hallie, and Daelyn joined them in the clearing.

“That’s what they call themselves. The God Squad. Right, girls?”

Janie turned toward Orchid and said, “It’s because they pray for our sins. We commit so many of them, we need three girls to pray for us.”

Daelyn picked up a pebble and tossed it in their direction. “For your information, we’re proud to call ourselves the God Squad.”

Hallie shoved a piece of Big Red gum in her mouth. She didn’t offer any to the rest of them. Not very Christian-like, Janie thought. If Jesus had gum, no doubt he’d offer every person a piece, even if it was Big Red, which was Janie’s least favorite flavor, but whatever.

“You should come to church with us, Orchid,” Hallie said. “Unless you go to the Catholic church in town like everyone else?”

“But even if you do, you can still visit ours,” Baylee added. “We accept all faiths.”

Come

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.