Todd Strasser - Kill You Last

“That would be Gabriel, Janet, and I forget the other one’s name?”

“Mercedes. Only I can’t imagine what she could have to do with it. All she cares about is her little boy.”

“So that leaves Gabriel or Janet.”

“Exactly.”

Roman gave me a sideways look as we started to walk. “What are you thinking?”

“Maybe I can get Gabriel to tell me a few things.”

Roman frowned, then her eyebrows shot skyward as she realized what I was implying. “Don’t tell me. Look out, Nancy Drew, here comes Shelby Sloan, girl detective?”

“I’m serious,” I said.

“Seriously whacked.” Her voice reeked of disapproval. “And just suppose that Gabriel really is behind those girls’ disappearing. Then what?”

“I tell the police.”

“Oh, sure.” She chuckled caustically. “He’s just going to stand by and let you do that.”

“I’m not going to be obvious about it.”

“I would so love to be a fly on the wall for that conversation,” Roman said. “Only seriously, sista? If he’s involved with those missing girls, you could find yourself in some very deep doo-doo.”

I was about to reply that I planned to be extra careful, when I noticed a pack of girls gathered around a perfume kiosk. They were all juniors from Soundview High, and it looked as if a moment ago they’d been trying the fragrances. But now they all stared at Roman and me. Well, at me mostly. And given the recent news, it wasn’t hard to figure out why.

Roman tugged at my sleeve and we turned away. “So much for going someplace where no one would know you,” she muttered.

“I can’t get used to people looking at me that way,” I said, feeling ire rise above the other emotions churning inside me. “I mean, not only is it incredibly rude, but it feels like they’re blaming me. Like it’s my fault.”

“It’s just the way people are,” Roman said. “If I were you, I’d give it right back to them.”

I stopped, surprised. “Why?”

“Because every time you slink away, it looks like you’re admitting guilt.”

She was right. I glanced in the direction of the perfume kiosk. “Should I go back?”

“No. The moment’s passed. But now that this has happened, you might as well go to the party tonight.”

I stared at her. “Now, that’s a logical segue…Not.”

“All I’m saying is, now that you’ve dealt with this, nothing worse is going to happen.”

I couldn’t help but smile. Sometimes Roman could be so crazy. “That has to be the most illogical thing you’ve ever said.”

“Maybe, but that doesn’t mean it isn’t also true.”

“You just don’t want to go alone,” I said.

Roman linked arms with me. “Actually, I will go alone. Because you’ll go with Gabriel.”

I asked Roman how-in less than two minutes-she’d gone from not wanting me to have anything to do with Gabriel to suggesting I invite him to the party that night.

“When I said I didn’t think you should go anywhere near him, did you listen?” she asked.

I admitted I hadn’t.

“Exactly,” she said. “So invite him to the party. At least there’ll be lots of people around, so you’ll be safe, and besides, now I’m curious. I mean, how many times in life do you get to meet someone who could really be a bad guy?”

“So now I’m an excuse for your vicarious thrills?” I groaned, only half seriously.

Roman laughed. “Come on, Shels. What else are you good for?”

Later, when I called Gabriel and invited him to Courtney’s party, he first sounded surprised, then mumbled something about having things to do but that he might be able to find time to drop by.

Despite Roman’s weird logic, I still wasn’t thrilled about going to the party, especially when the first person I saw was my old friend Ashley, who was part of Tara Kraus’s posse. Ashley was a tall, pretty girl, with a red streak in her dark brown hair. She was shy and quiet until she got to know you. We’d been best friends in middle school, but then her dad lost his job and they’d had to sell their house and move into a small apartment in town. After that, she and I had drifted apart. These days, Ashley left school early to work at a nearby amusement park called Playland. Knowing she was at the party wasn’t really a problem for me. The problem was that if Ashley was there, it was reasonable to expect that Tara would show up, too.

Since Tara wasn’t there yet and Ashley and I were both alone, I thought it might be nice to go over and say hello. I’d just started through the crowd toward her when Gabriel strolled out of the kitchen with a beer.

“Hey, there you are.” He grinned. “How come you look so surprised?”

“I… I just didn’t think you’d get here before me.”

“I got everything done faster than I thought I would,” he said. He was wearing a black blazer, with a black shirt and jeans. I couldn’t help noticing that, in comparison, the other guys at the party looked like schoolboys. Once again I felt people’s eyes on me, but this time the girls stared with expressions of envy and curiosity.

And I wasn’t the only one who was aware of the stares. So was Gabriel. He actually seemed to enjoy them. While we talked, his eyes darted about, as if keeping score of who was watching.

We’d hardly begun to speak when Roman arrived and instantly joined us.

“Looking good, Gabriel,” she said, purposefully trying to sound matter-of-fact about it. “I’m Roman. We met at the Sloans’ Christmas party.”

“Oh, right, sure,” Gabriel said, pretending he remembered her.

“So how’s the modeling business?” Roman asked. “Have I seen you in anything lately?”

Gabriel recited the answer: “The Soundview Ford ad, with the young couple looking for their first minivan. The Island Savings and Loan ad for free checking. And I’ve done some online catalog work. JCPenney and Hanes.”

“Underwear?” Roman asked eagerly while she rummaged through her bag and found her iPhone.

“Wait a minute,” I said. “We’re not going to search for pictures of him in his underwear, are we?”

Roman lowered the phone. “Oh, my bad, huh?”

“It’s no biggie,” Gabriel said. “They airbrush out all the, uh, revealing details.”

“Is it weird?” Roman asked. “I mean, standing around in your underwear with all these people looking and taking pictures.”

“You get used to it.” Gabriel tilted his head back and emptied the bottle.

“You don’t feel embarrassed?”

“No. As far as they’re concerned, the only difference between me and a mannequin is that I have a pulse.” He gestured at the empty bottle. “You girls thirsty?”

We went into the kitchen, where Gabriel took a second to check his reflection in the window, then pulled three Bud Lights out of the refrigerator and handed one each to Roman and me.

“I know it’s a little flaky,” he said, twisting the cap off, “but if you want to work, you have to keep the pounds off.”

“You must spend a lot of time in the gym,” Roman said.

“Yeah. Not my favorite place to be, but you do what you have to do.”

“So what is your favorite place to be?” I asked. “I mean, other than at a poker table.”

His grin turned sheepish. “Outside, in the woods. Hiking, mountain biking. That kind of thing.” He paused. “Not what you expected?”

I had to admit it wasn’t. Gabriel didn’t seem like the outdoorsy type at all. But he kept talking about the places where he’d hiked and mountain biked, and the places he still wanted to go.

I couldn’t help noticing that while Roman asked most of the questions, Gabriel directed most of his answers at me. Finally, it must have been obvious that he wanted to speak with me alone, and Roman wandered off. Gabriel and I stayed in the kitchen while others came and went, shooting glances at us while they raided the refrigerator for beers. I asked about his apartment, and he launched into a long story about playing poker online and in casinos, and how he’d learned to read his opponents’ “tells.” I kept waiting to see if he’d bring up the situation with Dad and the missing girls, but he seemed content to make small talk. I couldn’t tell if he was purposefully avoiding the subject or simply not thinking about it. Meanwhile, he’d polished off two more beers.