Trail of Secrets Read Online Free Page B

store. I’m glad it’s working out for you, Roxie.”
    â€œWell, we’ll see.” She stood and smoothed down her jeans. “I was hoping to see Leslie at school. It would’ve been nice to know someone first day, even though she’s a few years behind me.”
    â€œSo you’re starting Grade Eight?”
    â€œYup. They’ve let me in on condition.”
    â€œOn condition of what?”
    â€œOn condition that I show up. I missed most of Grade Seven, but they don’t want me kept behind, influencing minds younger and more innocent than my own.” She grinned at me.
    â€œWhat did you do when you skipped class?”
    â€œExplored Toronto on the subway. I found lots of interesting places to hang out.”
    â€œNobody missed you?”
    â€œOh, Miss Cooke—or Cookie—tried to get me to shape up, but I wasn’t all that interested in school then.”
    â€œAnd now?”
    â€œIt’s a condition for me staying with Marcia and Bert. I have to behave, or Cookie’s going to make me move back to Toronto. Actually, she thinks being in a smaller community might help me
find my way
, as she put it.”
    â€œDon’t sell yourself short, Roxie,” I said. “If you put your mind to doing well in school, it’ll be a breeze for you. Unlike me, who has to struggle for every mark I get.”
    Roxie looked at me and cocked her head to one side. “I never would have thought you’d be having trouble in school. Doesn’t add up.”
    I shrugged. My slipping grades were the direct result of an inability to concentrate. Not all that strange, considering. “Want to stay for supper? Dad could barbeque some ribs. I made a sauce last week that’s lip-smacking good.”
    Roxie stood up and stretched. “Sure, but I have to call . . . home.” She wrapped her mouth around the word “home” like she was trying it out. Even her eyes looked a little puzzled, as if she was stepping into unknown territory. The fact she’d even thought to call somebody about her whereabouts looked like progress to me.
    â€œLife is looking up, kid,” I said. “Smooth sailing from here on in.”
    My words were hopeful, but even as they slipped out of my mouth, I realized that they probably weren’t too grounded in reality. Still, sometimes it’s best not to know what’s just around the corner.

CHAPTER FIVE
    Tuesday morning came way too soon. I woke late to the drum of raindrops on the roof and water splashing down the inside wall where I’d left the window open overnight. Jumping up to slam it shut, I craned my neck to look up at the dark clouds hanging in the sky like tufts of black cotton batting, heavy with enough rain to turn my hair into a frizzy, finger-in-the-light-socket mess.
    I threw on some jeans and a not too wrinkled blue T-shirt before making my way to the kitchen for a glass of juice. Dad was sitting at the kitchen table reading the paper when I entered. He looked up at me over the sports page and gave me the thumbs up.
    â€œNice hair.”
    I ran my hand through one side and tried to shake it out. “I was planning on a shower and a leisurely breakfast, but my alarm didn’t go off,” I groaned.
    â€œHelps if you set it,” he said, ducking back behind the paper.
    â€œVery funny,” I said half-heartedly. It was too early in the morning to even think about pretending I had a sense of humour.
    Luckily, Dad took pity and dropped me off in front of the school at ten to nine. Ambie had given up waiting forme in our usual spot, and I didn’t feel too good about that. I’d promised her I’d be there on time, for sure for sure. Maybe I shouldn’t have been quite so definite.
    I snuck into the opening assembly, where Principal Kirkpatrick talked about how wonderful it was to have us all back. She almost looked like she meant it. The effect was ruined by a