When Sparks Fly by Annie McDonald

Author:Annie McDonald [McDonald, Annie]
Language: eng
Format: epub
ISBN: 9781635557831
Publisher: Bold Strokes Books
Published: 2020-09-25T22:00:00+00:00

Chapter Eighteen

Four days later seemed like an eternity to Dani. But Saturday finally arrived, and she sat patiently on one of the two worn wooden benches that adorned the thickly painted cinderblock walls in the arena’s dressing room. She was accustomed to the smell. It was a difficult ability to master. After all, who got used to the odiferous combination of sweat, beer, shampoo, hockey tape, and body spray? The latter might not have been so bad, but in this venue, it was of the sort mass-marketed to teen boys who—believing that more was better—dowsed themselves in quantities sufficient to bring tears to one’s eyes. The effect reminded Dani of smelling salts.

Rubber mats the color of asphalt ran wall to wall, cushioning her stocking feet. She had set her boots aside. They were dotted with small clumps of the snow expected to fall through the weekend, making the trip from the parking lot an exercise in fortitude and balance. Perhaps it was a suitable warm-up for the lesson Luca had promised.

Dani’s stomach flipped. She couldn’t decide if it was a consequence of her beginner-skater nerves or because she would soon see Luca again.

Flip.

Yes. It was Luca.

* * *

Luca was running late, very unlike her. The past few days had been exceptionally busy. Good busy.

As promised, on Monday, she and Ziigy had driven to the cell phone store in the city only to find that their phone of preference was on backorder until the following week. Ziigy had agreed to wait, the incentive of more memory and a free Winnipeg Jets phone grip too much to resist.

Luca had run a practice at the college, taxied Ziigy to two home games, and in between, had managed to wedge a visit with her dad to watch a game on TV. She’d fallen asleep during the second period and had awakened by the ending buzzer before making her way home. On Thursday, she’d connected with Prudence about the proposed concept and had joyfully started drawing more detailed plans for the sculpture.

Ziigy wasn’t quite herself, but she didn’t want to talk about it. Luca knew her sadness had everything to do with Nodin. News of the missing teen had spread throughout the northern communities, and a handful of sightings had been reported. Still, neither his family, the band, nor Ziigy had been in direct contact with him.

When Saturday dawned, the Thomases had picked Ziigy up to take her to breakfast as both a favor to Luca—who had been woefully remiss in serving up square meals during the week—and as a distraction from the fear eating away at her. They’d agreed to drop her off in time for her morning practice, which filled the ice-time slot after Luca’s Beginner Skate class.

The rink’s parking lot lights came into sight through the snow, and Luca could feel her pulse race, taking the engine along with it. She hated being late. As she turned into the parking lot, the rear tires spun and slid across a patch of ice

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