Bike Thief by Rita Feutl

Author:Rita Feutl
Language: eng
Format: epub
Publisher: Orca Book Publishers
Published: 2014-02-03T05:00:00+00:00

Chapter Twelve

I skip classes and spend the day hunting bikes on the other side of town. Cruising from school to school. Checking out bike racks at grocery stores. Noticing bikes locked to lampposts, bus stops, fence rails. If I see a likely prospect, I lock up my own bike a block away, then walk back to the new set of wheels like I own it. Like it’s mine. I only use my bolt cutters once. The other two are unlocked, just begging to be taken. I ride off on them, pick up my own bike and head back to the Den. Then it’s time to pick up Katie.

Alex is waiting at the curb with my sister. No Stevie. I haven’t thought about Stevie since this morning.

“Guess what?” Katie jumps up as I skid to a stop. “Stevie got caught stealing a car!”

“It wasn’t a car,” says Alex.

Katie looks at him. “How do you know? Were you there?” Alex says nothing. Katie turns back to me. “And he had a gun. That’s what Laura said. Stevie’s mother came to the school this morning. Laura was in the office getting a late slip and she heard everything. He made the people get out of the car and then he jacked it.” I can tell she’s proud of being able to use the word jacked.

Alex rolls his eyes.

“Where’s Stevie now?” I ask.

“They’re sending him to a new school. Laura said his mother was crying.”

“Get on your bike,” I tell her. “Mrs. Lamont’s waiting.”

Alex looks at me. “Meet you at the Den?”

I nod and ride off. Katie chatters on beside me. My mind is a million miles away, wondering about what I’m doing. Funny how one little action seems to cause a whole bunch of other actions. One stupid broken TV leads to stolen bikes and a crying mother and—

“Nick? Nick! Who’s this guy?”

I snap out of my thoughts. We always ride along the side streets, where the traffic is lighter. Cars usually skirt around us, leaving us some room. But a black Grand Cherokee is keeping pace, right beside us. I look over. Trevor’s pal Shades stares back. He’s alone. He looks from me to my sister and then does the oddest thing. He salutes me, steps on the gas and drives off.

“Nick! Who. Is. He.” She says each word carefully, as if I have trouble understanding.

“Just some guy, okay? Can you hurry up? I’ve got places to go.”

Katie is quiet for a moment. Then she says, “I know you’re meeting Alex. Where do you guys go, anyway? Where is this Den? Maybe I should come too.”

“No!” I shout. It’s bad enough that Shades has seen Katie with me here in the street. The last thing I want is for her to get her mixed up with Dwayne and Trevor. I remember Danny’s face this morning.

“I don’t want you anywhere near there,” I say. I have trouble getting my voice down to a normal level.

“Okay, okay. Calm down. Mrs. Lamont’s gonna think we’re fighting.

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