Fabulous Five 008 - The Runaway Crisis Read online

  "T.C. + K.S!" cried Mike Hershenfeld, gesturing toward Katie. "We all know who K.S. is!"

  Katie felt her face turning the same shade of red as her hair. This was not the way she had imagined her first date would begin. "Come on, Tony. Let's get in the ticket line," she urged, tugging at his arm. Maybe when they got into the dark theater where no one would be able to see his haircut the teasing would stop.

  "See you guys later," Tony called to his friends, and followed Katie to the end of the ticket line. Katie noticed that Jana and Beth and their dates had already bought tickets and disappeared into the lobby. We'll probably never be able to find them once we get inside, either, she thought.

  "Well, Your Honor, you haven't said how you like my haircut," said Tony, grinning impishly. "What's the verdict?"

  "To be perfectly honest, I haven't decided yet," admitted Katie. "I mean, it's better than writing it on the school walls with spray paint and having to appear before Teen Court the way you did the other time."

  They both laughed at that.

  "I did it so that everybody would know how much I like you," Tony said softly. "But mostly I wanted to make sure that you got the message."

  "Message received," answered Katie, feeling warm and tingly. She had to admit that Tony really did like her even though he didn't always show it in a way she would have preferred. She was trying to decide how to tell him that she liked him, too, when her attention was caught by a man and a woman walking through the crowd of teenagers and looking in all directions with anxious expressions on their faces. They were both tall and extremely well dressed. The woman had short ash-blond hair, and for an instant when she turned toward them, Katie thought she looked familiar.

  "Tony Calcaterra!" the woman called out.

  Looking surprised, Tony glanced toward her. "Oh, hi there, Mrs. Pendergast."

  Katie was stunned. In the excitement over Tony's haircut, she had completely forgotten about Shawnie hiding at home in her bedroom. That's why the woman had looked familiar. She was tall and blond and looked a lot like Shawnie.

  By this time both of Shawnie's parents had made their way through the crowd to where Tony and Katie stood.

  "What are you doing at the movie on kids' night?" joked Tony. "Don't you know that they won't let you in on Friday night unless you go to Wacko Junior High?"

  "We're looking for Shawnie," Mr. Pendergast said solemnly.

  "She didn't come home after school, and we're worried sick," added Mrs. Pendergast.

  Katie swallowed hard. They really did look worried as they scanned the crowd for sight of their daughter.

  "I haven't seen her," said Tony. "Have you, Katie?"

  "Katie?" asked Mrs. Pendergast. "Are you Katie Shannon?"

  "Yes, ma'am," Katie answered. The blood was pounding in her temples. She didn't want to answer Tony's question. It would be awful to lie and say she hadn't seen Shawnie, but she couldn't tell on Shawnie either.

  "It's nice to meet you, Katie," said Mrs. Pendergast. "Shawnie has said a lot of nice things about you."

  "We've just about run out of places to look for her," said Mr. Pendergast, frowning and shaking his head. "Will you give us a call if she shows up either here or at Bumpers?"

  "Tell her we're terribly worried, and we want her to come home," Mrs. Pendergast added.

  "Sure thing, Mrs. P," said Tony, and Katie nodded, grateful that they hadn't asked her again if she had seen Shawnie.

  As they moved on through the crowd, Katie let out a deep breath she hadn't known she was holding. She needed to talk to Shawnie and find out what was really going on. Things had happened too fast. She hadn't had time to think straight when Shawnie appeared on her doorstep because it was time for her date with Tony. Still, she should have realized how serious the situation was.

  Tony sighed. "See? I told you Shawnie was trouble. It's just like her to do something lunatic like running away."

  Katie didn't answer, and for the rest of the evening she had a hard time concentrating on the things going on around her. She barely saw the movie, and even though she had fun being with Tony and they sat at a big table with her friends and their dates at Bumpers afterward, her mind kept wandering to Shawnie hiding in the dark in her room.

  CHAPTER 11

  On the ride home from Bumpers, Tony brought up the subject that had been on Katie's mind all evening.

  "I wonder if Shawnie Pendergast has gone home yet."

  "Her parents certainly looked worried," said Katie, not wanting to deal with his question. Shawnie hadn't gone home yet unless she had climbed out of Katie's upstairs window and shinnied down the maple tree that grew beside the house, and Katie knew that wasn't very likely. What's more, she was beginning to have serious doubts about how smart it had been to let Shawnie hide there. Willie would be berserk by now if she were ever to run away like that. Didn't Shawnie care about how upset her parents were? "I hear that Mr. and Mrs. Pendergast are awfully strict," added Katie, "and they try to buy her affection instead of letting her do the things normal kids get to do."

  "They are pretty strict," Tony admitted. "And they used to come down on her pretty hard when we were in Copper Beach Elementary."

  Katie wanted to ask Tony more about Shawnie and her situation at home, but Mr. Calcaterra had reached her house and was pulling up to the curb. She said good-night to Tony's father and got out of the car.

  "I'll be back in a minute," Tony called to his dad as he followed Katie onto the porch.

  They stopped in front of the door, and Katie felt little tingles tiptoe up her spine as Tony took her hand. "Move over this way a little," he said, tugging at her hand.

  Katie chuckled. "What are you doing?" she asked as she allowed herself to be pulled along.

  "Okay. Stop right here," said Tony. "This is just perfect. There's an evergreen tree between us and my dad so now he can't see us."

  They were standing so close that Katie could have counted his eyelashes if the moon had been full. Suddenly Tony put his arms around her and kissed her. "I had a terrific time tonight," he said.

  "So did I," said Katie.

  "I'm really glad we're doing the march for hunger together, too." A grin spread over his face, and his eyes began to twinkle. "I never knew staying out of trouble could be so much fun, Your Honor."

  Katie smiled but she didn't answer for a moment. She wanted to say that she was glad that he was staying out of trouble, too. She also wanted to tell him that she wished she hadn't waited so long to go out with him, but standing on the dark porch with him so near suddenly made her feel shy.

  "I guess I'd better go in," she finally said.

  "I'll call you tomorrow about the march."

  "Okay. Good night." She smiled at him to let him know she really meant what she had said.

  Katie hurried into the house and then closed her eyes as she leaned against the door. "I do like Tony," she whispered to herself. "I really do."

  "How did it go, honey?" asked Willie, who was coming into the living room from the hallway. "Did you have fun?"

  Katie felt such a wide smile stretch across her face that she knew she must look like a happy-face sticker, but she couldn't help it. "We had a terrific time," she said. "I'll tell you all about it in the morning."

  Willie smiled knowingly at Katie, and it made her blush, but she didn't care. She felt as if she were the luckiest girl in the world. They said good-night, and Katie hurried up the stairs to her room. She would have to put off her daydreams of Tony at least until in the morning. Right now she had to talk to Shawnie.

  At first when she opened the door everything looked so normal and so still that it was hard to believe anyone could be hiding in her room. She tiptoed in and closed the door behind her. Light streaming in the window made her desk, her bed, even the floor look as if it were frosted with moon dust.

  "Shawnie? Are you here?" she whispered, half-hoping no one would answer.

  The dark smudge beside the window that was Katie's curtain grew thicker as Sha
wnie moved forward and then stepped into the moonlight. "Here I am," she whispered back. "I was afraid it might be your mother."

  "Are you okay?" asked Katie, flipping on the light.

  "Sure. But I'll have to admit I'm glad you're back. Hiding in a dark room is really spooky. I tried not to move around, but your mom came upstairs a couple of times. I thought she had heard me, and I almost died."

  Katie sat down on the end of her bed, crossing her legs Indian fashion, and Shawnie sprawled across the other end, lying on her stomach and propping her chin in her hand.

  "I met your mom tonight," said Katie. "And your dad, too. They were at the theater looking for you. They acted really worried."

  Shawnie made a face. "You said it right when you said they acted. They probably convinced you, too. Believe me, someday they're going to get an Academy Award for their acting. I ought to know. I see it all the time."

  "Shawnie, we have to talk," said Katie. "I didn't stop to think about how serious running away really is when I said you could hide here."

  "Oh," said Shawnie, pulling herself up to a sitting position. Her expression changed from the look of anger she had worn while she talked about her parents to a combination of hurt and disbelief. She lowered her eyes sadly, tracing the patterns in the bedspread with her finger, and went on, "If you don't want me to stay overnight, just say so. I don't have anywhere else to go, but that's okay. I can just walk around all night or go to the bus station or something."

  "Shawnie, you know that's not what I mean," Katie snapped. "Of course you can stay here. I just need to know why you ran away. What did your parents do to you? Did they beat you or something like that? Maybe we should call the police."

  "You can't call the police!" There was panic in her voice. "Promise me you won't. Okay?"

  "Will you tell me what happened at home?" Katie insisted.

  Shawnie took a deep breath and let it out slowly. Katie could see tears willing in her eyes as she continued to look down and trace the patterns on the bedspread. "I can't," she whispered. "Not yet. Especially not tonight. I know you can't understand. How could you?" She sighed again. "It's just too hard to talk about it right now, but maybe I'll be able to in the morning. That is . . . if I'm still here in the morning."

  Katie looked helplessly around the room as if searching for the solution to this predicament and hoping to find it magically written on the walls. What was she going to do? She couldn't hide Shawnie and not tell anyone, knowing that her parents were going out of their minds with worry. It wasn't fair to them. But it would be even less fair to Shawnie to turn her out onto the street when she needed help so badly.

  Shawnie got up and crossed the room to where her suitcase sat on the floor by the dresser. As she picked it up, she turned back toward Katie. There were tears streaming down her face.

  "Wait," cried Katie, rushing to her and taking the suitcase out of her hand. "I want you to stay. Honest. Everything's going to be okay. I promise."

  CHAPTER 12

  Katie was amazed at how complicated it was to hide Shawnie from her mother. She hated having to do it, and she also knew deep down that Willie would want to protect Shawnie and help her any way she could. It was just that Katie needed more answers from Shawnie before she brought her mother in on the situation. Otherwise, Willie might make Shawnie go home. But since Shawnie was still too upset to talk to Katie about what her parents had done, it was a cinch she wouldn't talk to Willie either. Katie had no choice but to keep Shawnie's presence a secret for now.

  One of the toughest problems was going down the hall to the bathroom. Katie had never realized just how far the bathroom was from her bedroom until Shawnie needed to use it. It was also right by the top of the stairs, and Willie might come up to bed any minute and catch Shawnie sneaking through the halls.

  "I'll stand guard outside the door," Katie finally said, "but you'll have to let me in if I hear her coming."

  Shawnie nodded and the two girls crept down the hall. Katie was in the lead, watching the stairway and listening for sounds of her mother.

  "So far, so good," she whispered as Shawnie disappeared into the bathroom, fumbled for the light switch, and closed the door.

  Katie crouched at the top of the stairs and waited. Suddenly the light in the stairwell dimmed. One of the living room lamps had gone off. That meant that her mother was coming to bed. Getting down on her hands and knees, Katie peered under the banister. Willie was making her bedtime rounds, closing the living room drapes, checking the lock on the front door—all in preparation for coming upstairs.

  Leaping to the bathroom door, Katie rapped softly and called as loudly as she dared, "Shawnie. Let me in."

  Silence. And then the toilet flushed. Katie bit her lower lip and looked toward the stairs. Willie wasn't there yet, but she would be any second.

  If I knock softly again, Shawnie won't hear over the sound of the commode, she thought. And if I yell or knock loudly, Mom will hear.

  There was only one thing to do. Opening the door, Katie barged on in. Shawnie was standing by the sink. She looked at Katie in surprise, but Katie held up her hand for silence. Then she reached behind the shower curtain and turned the water on full blast.

  "What are you doing?" whispered Shawnie.

  "Mom's on her way up. If she thinks I'll be in here for a while, she'll probably go on to bed instead of waiting around to tell me good-night," Katie whispered back.

  Shawnie nodded hopefully, and they stared silently at the bathroom door.

  "Katie," Willie called from the other side. "Can I bother you to come in while your water warms up? I'll just be a minute."

  The two girls exchanged wide-eyed looks of panic. Oh, no! thought Katie. Why do we have to live in a house with only one bathroom?

  Thinking quickly, she shoved Shawnie toward the bathtub. "Get in," she whispered. "Hide behind the shower curtain."

  "But I'll get soaked!" protested Shawnie.

  "It's better than getting caught!" argued Katie. She was praying that Willie couldn't hear their voices over the sound of the shower.

  "Katie? Did you hear me?"

  "Yeah, Mom. Just a minute."

  Katie gave Shawnie one last warning look and nudged her toward the tub again. Shawnie puckered up her face as if she were going to cry before hoisting a foot over the side of the tub and disappearing behind the curtain.

  "Okay, Mom," Katie called. "You can come in now."

  "At least you got a shower," said Katie when they were back in her room again and sharing the hair dryer.

  "But my clothes are soaked," Shawnie said in a pouty voice. "And my boots. Just look at my boots."

  Katie had to admit that Shawnie's gorgeous leather lace-up boots were a mess. "They'll probably look okay when they dry," she said hopefully.

  Shawnie was not to be consoled. "Are you kidding? They'll be covered with water spots. And besides, you hid them in the back of your closet where air can't possibly get to them. It will take them days to dry completely. They'll probably mildew."

  Katie shrugged, thinking that Shawnie's boots were the least of both of their worries right now. The next thing to be considered was the sleeping arrangements. Katie hated to put Shawnie on the floor, but she had to. It wasn't that there wasn't plenty of room in her big, double bed. It was just that tomorrow was Saturday, and sometimes Willie popped into her room on Saturday morning to tell Katie that she was going jogging or that she was heading to the grocery store to beat the weekend crowd. Actually, now that Katie thought about it, Willie was pretty unpredictable when it came to popping into her room. Sometimes she popped in to say good-night, as well. There was no doubt about it, Shawnie would have to sleep on the floor on the opposite side of the bed from the door.

  Katie took half of her own covers and one of her pillows and spread them on the floor while Shawnie watched in silence. Katie wasn't sure if Shawnie was still upset over going into the shower with all her clothes on or if she didn't like the idea of sleeping on the floor. Do
n't be silly, Katie scolded herself. She's just run away from home. She's upset over that.

  To Katie's amazement, Shawnie went to sleep as soon as her head hit the pillow. She must be exhausted, Katie decided. Determined to put Shawnie's problems out of her mind until morning, Katie turned over on her side and thought about Tony. Their date seemed as if it had happened a million years ago, and yet he had kissed her good-night a mere hour before.

  She smiled to herself as she remembered the initials shaved into his hair: T.C. + K.S. Leave it to Tony, she thought tenderly. When she had first gotten to know him, it had seemed as if he were nothing more than a show-off, but now she knew that wasn't true at all. He was simply willing to take chances for things he cared about. Just the way she was taking chances for Shawnie Pendergast right now. But would he understand that if she confided in him? What would he think if he knew she was hiding Shawnie in her room?

  CHAPTER 13

  A banging sound at her bedroom door brought Katie out of a deep sleep. "Katie! Come downstairs quickly. There's something about Shawnie Pendergast on television."

  Katie opened one eye to see Willie's head poking through the half-open door. The next instant she was wide-awake and bolting out of bed.

  "Come on," Willie urged. "Shawnie's run away, and her parents will be on the morning news right after the commercial making an appeal for her to come home."

  Passing her mother in the hall, Katie streaked down the stairs and skidded to a halt in front of the small television set on the kitchen counter. On the screen, a cowboy was strumming a guitar and singing a ballad about a gentle laxative. The Pendergasts would probably be on next, she thought.

  Climbing onto a stool at the end of the counter, Katie caught her breath and shooed the cobwebs of sleep out of her brain. The whole business about hiding Shawnie was coming back to her now, pressing down on her like a lead weight.

  "Glass of milk?" offered Willie as the commercial ended and the camera shot went to the news desk and the reporter who was giving the news.