Dance Team Read Online Free Page B

defaced the gym with some pretty nasty graffiti about the dance team.”
    â€œI know rumors have been flying,” Ms. Geiger added. “The general understanding seems to be that Northside is responsible, and specifically their dance team captain, Leah Velasco. It’s true that Leah’s student ID was found near the gym. It’s also true that a can of paint and some receipts were found in her locker.”
    â€œWhat isn’t true is that Leah had anything to do with the graffiti,” Mrs. Nuñez said. “She was in Austin with her family for the entire weekend. We’ve confirmed this. There’s no way she could have been involved.”
    Ms. Geiger looked even grimmer than before. “Which means the ID card and paint were planted to make Leah look guilty. That sounds like someone at Southside is responsible.”
    A moment of uncomfortable silence followed her words. Camilla didn’t look at anyone.
    â€œI would hate to think that any of our students could sink this low,” Mrs. Nuñez said sternly. “This is an ugly, ugly act, and we’re going to do our best to get to the bottom of it. To this end, I would like anyone who knows anything—
anything
—about this to come to me or Ms. Geiger. Whatever you say will be kept confidential.”
    There was another uncomfortable pause.
    â€œAll right,” Ms. Geiger said with a sigh. “You know where to find us. Now get on with your practice. We all want to win regionals—but we’ll win cleanly or not at all!”

F
    or the rest of the week, things were tense at school. Nobody had been able to prove anything about the graffiti incident. I couldn’t help suspecting Camilla, Jaci, and Amelia, but I didn’t say anything. How could I? I didn’t have any proof, just the memory of a conversation in a booth at Pancake Corral. A conversation that didn’t include anything about graffiti.
    Leah was furious. She called me practically the minute school was out on Monday. “What the hell is going on at that school of yours?” she asked.
    â€œI don’t know!” I said. “It’s awful!”
    We talked for a while, but I don’t know what I could have said to fix things. Somebody at my school had done a horrible thing to Leah. She was mad. She had a right to be.
    On Saturday night we had another basketball halftime performance. I don’t know if it was the graffiti, but we weren’t at the top of our game. Cate—who never messes up—fell during her jazz layout, and that tripped up Jaci and Amelia. The two of them were so mad at Cate that they came in late with their wing approaches, and all three girls missed their double syncopated pull-back. By then we were all out of sync with the music, and we never really got our timing back. As for my triple pirouettes—well, the less said, the better.
    After halftime show ended, I could see Camilla was furious.
    â€œThis better
never
happen again,” she spat as she shoved that night’s outfit into her sports bag. “I’ll see you all at Monday practice. 6:45 A.M. sharp, and
no
tardies or absences!” She stormed out of the gym, not waiting around to watch the basketball team play, which she always insists that we do.
    The game was a heart-stopper. Olivia and I sat near the band. For most of the last quarter, we were on our feet. The lead went back and forth between Southside and Eastlake. Southside’s cheerleaders did their best, and Olivia and I cheered our hardest. With seconds remaining on the clock, Southside was ahead two points.
    â€œWe’ve got it!” Olivia screamed as she clutched me. We watched our center take control of the ball, sprint down the court—and trip.
    Nobody pushed him. It wasn’t a foul. It was just awful, terrible luck. He caught himself and lurched upright, but by then he’d lost control of the ball. An Eastlake point guard was there to grab it,