Above All Else (4 page)

chapter seven

Elsa was waiting outside the coffee shop where we had agreed to meet. She had one foot against the wall and was reading a book. I was mildly freaked out again by her height. She was taller than any girl my age I'd ever met.

“Hey,” I said.

“Oh, hey,” she replied, dropping the book to her side.

“What are you reading?” She held the cover toward me. It read
That Summer
. “Is it good?”

“I don't know yet. I just started it. My sister gave it to me because I'm tall.” I must have looked at her strangely. “It's about a tall girl.”

“Oh, okay,” I said. Then, again because I am super suave, “You are tall.”

“Yeah, tell me about it.”

“Does it bother you?” She raised an eyebrow at me. “I mean, not that it should or anything, but…”

“No, because I'm supermodel-tall, right?”

“Really?”

“Really what?”

“What is supermodel-tall?”

“It was a joke. Because supermodels are usually tall,” she said.

Man, am I smooth, I thought. “Oh, yeah. For sure,” I said. “You want to go inside?”

She looked through the window of the coffee shop. “Not really.”

“Oh, okay. What do you want to do?” I said, already feeling off balance. I'd had a whole plan for how to sit, what to order, how to go about paying for Elsa without it seeming weird.

“You want to go for a drive in the hills?”

“You have a car?”

“I have something to drive. Just my mother's crappy minivan though.”

“Hey, wheels are wheels, right?”

“Maybe,” she said.

“The hills” were the ski hills that sat to the west of Resurrection Falls. They weren't huge or anything. In fact, you could drive to the top of all of them. And, I imagine, you could drive a Jeep down any number of them as well. But they were good enough for some snowboarding or, from what I'd heard, skateboarding down the steep main road.

“I never do this,” I said as we turned onto Beacon Hill Road.

“Drive around?”

“Well, I guess sometimes. But never up here.”

“I do,” Elsa said.

“Why?”

“You'll see,” she said.

We talked about soccer and school and what had happened to Romano the night before, and how strange it had all been.

“How is he doing?” she asked.

“I guess all right. He was going for another X-ray today.”

“Do they have any idea who did it to him?”

“Not really. Riley said he saw this car that he thought belonged to this guy from—”

“Wait. Okay, here it is.” Elsa turned down a lane that I hadn't even seen.

“Where are we going?” I said.

She reached over and patted my knee. “You'll see.”

We drove along the rutted path, tree branches slapping at the windshield, until we came to a parking lot of sorts.

“What's this for?” I said.

“Cross-country skiing. The road is actually way better maintained in the winter.” We got out, and I followed Elsa to a path through the trees.

“Now where are we going?”

“You'll see,” she said again. “Patience, patience.”

“This is starting to feel like a bad horror movie. Only reversed,” I said as I dodged a swinging branch.

“What do you mean by reversed?”

“Well, normally it's some creepy guy luring a beautiful girl into the woods.”

“You're not creepy,” she said. Then she turned and punched me on the arm. “Though you got the rest right.” She grabbed my hand and dragged me through an opening in the trees. We were just above the top of a ski lift. The chairs were all rocking slightly in the breeze.

“Don't they take these down in the summer?” I said.

“This lift hasn't run in years. So I guess they just leave the chairs where they are.” She jammed her foot against the side of the lift cabin and jumped up into the chair.

“There we go,” she said. “Come on up.” She shifted on the chair so that I could hop up beside her.

“And this is why I brought you all the way up here.”

The view was amazing. Resurrection Falls lay beneath us. The sky was a pure blue, dotted by a few lazy clouds.

“Wow,” I said.

“Yeah, that's called perspective,” Elsa said. “It's why I come up here.”

“What do you mean?”

“I mean, I get pretty caught up in things. Like school and soccer and everything. And it's hard to just breathe and let it go down there. So I end up feeling as if I'm getting angry all the time for no reason. That's when I come up here and look at this.”

“You get angry?”

“Yeah, Del, everyone gets angry. But think about it.” She reached up and brought the safety bar down, then leaned on it. “This is one little town in a country of little towns and giant cities. And our country is just one country out of a whole bunch of other countries.”

“Yeah,” I said. “It's a big world.” Which sounded totally lame.

She fell silent for a moment. “What I'm saying is that when I'm up here, all the things that piss me off down there seem pretty small.”

“Do you come up here a lot?”

“No, I'm only a little dysfunctional.” I stared at her and she laughed. “Everyone is though, right?”

“Absolutely,” I said. I could see Angelo's restaurant and the soccer field beside it. “You know, maybe whoever took Romano out should come up here sometime.”

“Right, we were talking about that before. Do the police have any idea who did it?”

“Maybe. Riley saw a car tear off, and he thinks it belongs to this guy Doug Richards.”

“Doug Richards who goes to Roland Hills?”

“Yeah. Do you know him?”

Elsa looked dead at me. “Yeah, I know him. He's my brother's best friend.”

chapter eight

When we got back to the van, Elsa grabbed her phone and started dialing her brother's number.

“Doug had nothing to do with it.” She set the phone on the dash and put it on speaker.

“El, where are you? I've been trying to get a hold of you,” her brother said.

“I'm out. What's going on with Doug?”

“The police were just here. Something happened last night to that kid who took Tim Irvine out, and they think Doug had something to do with it.”

“I know, I was there,” Elsa said. “But it wasn't Doug, right?” There was a long silence. “Evan, right?”

“I don't—I mean, no. He couldn't have. Wait, what were you doing there?”

She looked at me. “Where was Doug last night?”

“El, I don't know. I mean, you can't tell anyone this, but I told the police he was with me.”

“But he wasn't?”

“No, not when the thing happened he wasn't. He was earlier, but we'd split up by then.”

“So you lied to the police?” Elsa said.

“Not really. I mean, we had been together. And anyway, Doug couldn't have done it. It's just not possible.”

Elsa looked at me again. I didn't know what to say. Actually, I didn't want to say anything, because then her brother would know I was there.

“Listen, El, come home. We need to talk about this. What were you even doing there last night?”

“I was out with Kira,” she said. I was getting the sense that this family didn't have issues with telling half-truths. “I'll be home in half an hour.”

“I'll be here.”

Elsa ended the call and dropped her phone into a drink holder.

“So…”

“He didn't do it, Del. There's no way. You don't know Doug. He just wouldn't—he couldn't. He's the nicest guy.”

“Okay,” I said, remembering how he had let his anger get the better of him when he attacked Romano.

“You can't tell anyone what you just heard. Promise.” I didn't know what to say. This was exactly the kind of information the police needed. “At least, not until this is all figured out. You have to promise.” She put a hand on my arm, and I looked into her big green eyes.

“Sure, I mean, yeah. I won't say anything.”

Elsa started the van and drove back out to Beacon Hill Road. “He's the nicest guy,” she said again. Even then, it seemed as if she was trying to convince herself of the fact.

I texted Riley on our way back into town. The team was gathering at Angelo's. This whole situation was seriously confusing. First off, I had had no idea that Elsa went to Roland Hills. Add this to the fact that the guy we suspected of taking out one of our teammates was a good friend of hers, and honestly, I didn't have a clue where I stood.

The restaurant was packed with people. It was as if the entire community had come together to support Romano's family after the attack. There were get-well cards everywhere, and the tip jar was stuffed to overflowing. Rom was propped up in a booth, his cast-enclosed leg on full display.

Jared, Oz and Riley were on the other side of the booth. There were greasy paper plates and half-finished glasses of soft drinks on the table.

“Hey, guys,” I said, standing beside the table.

“I suppose you want me to move my leg, right?” Rom said.

“No, that's cool.” I grabbed a chair and sat down at the end of the table. “What's going on?”

“We've been talking about the situation,” Jared said.

“What situation?” I said.

“The situation that has me bench surfing for the entire playoffs,” Rom said.

“Of course,” I said. “Yeah.”

“We're trying to figure out how to strike back,” Oz said.

“What do you mean?” Jared sat up straight at the end of the booth.

“We don't think it was that Doug Richards prick anymore.”

“Yeah, he talked to the police and he has an alibi,” Oz said.

“How do you know?” I asked.

“My friend Devon's dad is a cop. He was
the one who questioned Doug and then confirmed the alibi.”

“So it wasn't him,” Jared said. “Which means it had to be one of the other pricks on the team.”

“Unless he was lying,” I said without thinking.

“Who?” Oz said. “You mean Doug?”

“Yeah,” I said. “People lie to the police all the time.”

Jared leaned forward on the table. “Did you hear something?”

I didn't want to give Elsa up. I noticed that Riley was looking away from me. I guessed that he, too, had discovered which school the girls went to. Or maybe he'd known all along.

“Yeah, kind of,” I said.

“From who?” Oz said.

“I don't really want to say, you know?”

“Doesn't matter,” Jared said. “Was the information good? Do you trust this person?”

“Yeah,” I said. “I do.” And I did. But even as I was saying it, I realized that within ten minutes of promising I wouldn't say a word to anyone, I had broken Elsa's trust.

“What did you hear?”

“I don't know,” I said. But I was already in too deep. “Just that Doug Richards might not have been where he said he was. That's all. And that his alibi might not be one hundred percent solid.”

“The prick,” Oz said. “This means he did it. Why else would he lie?”

I said, “I'm not defending the guy or anything, but it just means that he wasn't where he said he was.”

“That was his car,” Riley muttered.

“What?” Jared said. He was getting red in the face.

“That was his car,” Riley said. “I know it.”

“The prick,” Jared said again.

“We don't know,” I said.

“Well,” Riley said, “I know how we can find out.”

“How?”

“I know where Doug Richards will be tonight. We can go ask him.”

Oz and Jared laughed. “Just walk up and ask?” Oz said. “Sounds perfect.”

“No,” Jared said, giving Riley a slap on the back. “There's asking, and then there's
asking
. Where will he be tonight?”

“The abandoned mall out on Route Four.”

“Why would anyone go there?” Oz said.

“Apparently, his friends hang out there. They like to explore, I guess.”

“Okay, then,” Jared said, nodding. “We'll go exploring tonight too.”

chapter nine

The Westmount Mall closed its doors back in 2010. For a while there was talk of rejuvenating the place and making it into an outlet mall. But the talk never turned into action, and now it's just a place for kids to run around inside and trash things.

Most of the doors are boarded up, but plywood is defenseless against curious teenagers. We were at one of the side entrances. There were footprints in the dust, and one of the pieces of plywood covering the door looked warped and weak.

“What about security?” I said as Jared pulled the board to one side.

“What security?”

“There has to be security here, right?” I said.

“Not anymore,” Oz said, laughing. “The only thing we have to worry about is some gang hanging out in here.”

“What gang?” Riley said, laughing.

“I just heard that there's a gang that decided to make this their headquarters or something.” Oz ducked in after Jared, leaving Riley and me standing outside.

“You first,” Riley said.

“No, you. I insist.”

“Fine.” Riley ducked in and disappeared.

I followed. Inside, it was dark and smelled of urine and smoke.

“Where will they be?” Jared whispered.

“I don't know. I just heard they come here,” Riley said.

“Who'd you hear that from?” Jared said. “It could be a setup.”

Riley flicked on his flashlight. When he didn't answer, I knew exactly who had told him Doug would be in this place—Kira.

“This is creepy,” Oz said. “How many of them do you think there'll be?”

“Doesn't matter,” Riley said. “We're just here to talk, right?” We all turned our flashlights on. The beams tracked along closed stores. Some of them had security gates or sliding doors. Most were just giant holes. My mother used to bring me here for shoes and school clothes. I would try to convince her to buy me a pair of skater shoes, but I always ended up with some run-of-the-mill white or red trainers.

“How are we supposed to find anyone in here?” Oz said.

“Let's just look around,” Jared replied. “If we don't find them, it's still pretty cool in here.”

“Not really,” I said.

“Grow a pair, Del,” Jared said. He kicked at some broken glass. The noise rang through the empty corridors.

Everything went completely silent after the echoing stopped
. Then we heard something like footsteps coming from the corridor to our right. Jared held a finger to his lips. He pointed at Oz, then at a closed-down magazine shop on the left. He shut his flashlight off, and the corridor went dark again. He leaned in close to me and said, “You and Riley move up to the corner, then run as fast as you can up this hallway. If anyone follows you, I'll take them down.”

“Okay,” I said. Three flashlight beams cut through the darkness ahead of us. “But I thought we were just here to talk.”

“Sure, sure,” Jared said. “But we still want the upper hand in the conversation, right?” He patted me on the back. I whispered the plan to Riley. Then we moved to the corner.

There was just enough moonlight coming in through the skylights to make out the corridor. I put a hand on Riley's back, then let go as I took off running. Riley was right behind me. There was motion to our right. I didn't turn to see who or what had emerged from the other corridor. We jumped over a bench and slid to a stop. There was a crash, and then someone yelled.

“What the hell!” Riley grabbed my arm and pulled me to one side. I turned around to find Jared sitting on top of Doug Richards. Oz was beside him. Two other guys I recognized from the Rebels team were closing in. Everyone had their flashlights pointed at one another as if they were guns and this was the end of some badass Tarantino movie.

“We have them outnumbered,” Riley said. “Anything happens and it's you and me, all right?” I really, really didn't want anything to happen. I wasn't much for violence. I'd never even punched anyone before, and I wasn't looking to start just then.

“Doug Richards,” Jared said.

“Get off me,” Doug replied.

“I just have a couple of questions,” Jared said. One of Doug's friends came over and shoved Jared. He flew forward, and Doug scrambled back to his feet.

“What the hell are you doing?” Doug said. He had a cut on his cheek. He wiped at it, then stared at his hand.

“What happened, Richards?” Jared said. “Tell us where you were when Romano was taken out.”

“Nowhere near him, you asshat.”

“Then why was your car seen tearing away from the scene?”

Doug was regaining some of his composure.
Up to that point, it had seemed as if he could cry at any moment. “I was nowhere near that idiot's restaurant.”

“Oh, so you know where it happened, then?” Jared said.

“Yeah, I know. The police have already been to visit me because of something someone told them. Something that was utter bullshit.”

“Where were you, Richards?” Jared said. “That's all we're asking.”

“Not there.” Doug pulled the tail of his shirt up to his forehead and dabbed at the cut.

“Prove it,” Jared said.

“I was with Evan,” Doug said. Evan, Elsa's brother, took a little step forward. I could see the resemblance. Though Evan was shorter than Elsa, he was way more thick and muscular. He was wearing a hoodie and, for some reason, a pair of winter gloves.

“That's bullshit,” Jared said. “We already know it. Where were you really?”

“What do you know?” Evan said.

To Jared's credit, he did not give me up. “We know. And the police will know soon too.” Jared took a step toward Doug. Jared was a lot bigger than Doug, and he looked really pumped up by the situation.

“You don't have any proof,” Evan said.

“How do you know we don't have any proof?” Jared said.

“Because we have—” Evan began.

“Shut up,” Doug interrupted.

“What do you have?” Jared asked.

I felt Riley tense up beside me. “Del,” he said.

“What?” Then I saw it too. Three large, bright beams of light were tracking the wall behind Doug and his crew.

Someone yelled, “Hey, what's going on down here?”

Jared shone his light down the corridor. I didn't know who the guys were because their flashlights were so bright. But there were at least three of them. Whether they had any reason to be in the mall or not, we definitely didn't.

One of them yelled something, but I had no idea what. Before he'd even finished the sentence, we were all running as fast as humanly possible.