The scientist frowned. “Not until you tell me what you did with the other device.”
“I don’t have it.”
“You keep saying that.” Dr. Gray shifted. “But we both know that’s not true.”
“You’ve searched me. It’s obvious I don’t have it.”
“Not on you.” Dr. Gray clucked his tongue. “You always were so literal.” He crossed his legs in front of him and then leaned forward and looked Jack in the eye. “Where is it?”
Jack’s head fell back and he let out a deep, ragged sigh. “Victor.”
Dr. Gray slammed his hand down on the desk. “Answer the question!”
“Isn’t it clear by now that I’m not going to tell you or any of your . . . your new . . . soldiers? Or whatever they are.” Jack pretended to shift indignantly in his seat, tugging at the ropes at the same time. With searing pain, he managed to pull out one hand. A wave of hope coursed through him, but he knew he couldn’t let on. Now he just had to find a way to distract Dr. Gray. He kept his voice steady. “Why do you want it so badly anyway? It doesn’t work.”
Dr. Gray scowled.
“No, really. I mean it. Why? Are you on the verge of something? A breakthrough? Is that why you added the extra security?” Slowly, carefully, he slipped his other hand out of the rope and grabbed on to it so it wouldn’t fall to the floor and give him away.
Dr. Gray stood up and shoved his hands in his pockets. “Look, Jack, I know what you’re doing.”
Dr. Goldstein’s hands froze. “What am I doing?”
“You’re changing the subject. And I need an answer from you. So I’ll ask you one last time. Where. Is. My—”
Jack jumped to his feet and threw the rope at Victor’s face. With his ankles still tied, he lunged at his former friend, knocking him down, and then struggled to yank his feet free, trying to hop over to the door at the same time.
“Soldiers!” cried Dr. Gray. “Quickly!”
Jack kicked his shoes off and forced his feet out of the ropes, then ran for the nearest door, stumbling and catching himself as he went. When the soldiers rushed in, Jack barreled into them, knocking them off balance. He dived to the floor between them and scrambled on all fours to get through the door. If only he could make it outside the building, he might have a chance!
Another soldier came running at Jack as he got back to his feet. Jack dodged her and twisted away, just barely out of reach. “Help!” he shouted, running for the stairwell. But the woman was quick and shot after him. At the top of the steps, she tackled him around the legs. Arms flailing and body teetering, he crashed to the stairs. He made a desperate grab at the soldier’s bodysuit as he fell, dragging her with him. They thudded all the way down the stairwell, while a pack of soldiers who appeared at the top of the stairs raced after them. Jack and the woman hit the landing, both of them dazed by the fall. After a second to regain his bearings, Jack rolled out of her reach and got to his feet, limping and trying to run as fast as he could. The woman groaned and didn’t move.
But the pack of soldiers was in hot pursuit. Jack turned down a long hallway, gunning toward the double-door exit. The clatter behind him grew louder. He pushed harder. Almost there!
When he reached the first door he slammed into the handle at full speed. His face and body smacked the glass. He gasped in pain and crumpled to the floor, stunned. The door was locked.
The soldier from the stairwell reappeared, zigzagging past the others and taking the lead. They all closed in on Jack. Quickly he got to his feet and tried the other door. It opened! He burst through it to the snowy sidewalk as the woman dived after him. She grabbed him around the waist and knocked him flat on the ground, landing on top of him. Within seconds, they were surrounded.
Defeated, Jack let his body go limp. Dr. Gray’s soldiers grabbed him by the arms and hauled him back into the building. They dragged him down the hallway and up the steps as if he were as light as a feather, and brought him back into the office.
There, as Dr. Gray silently watched, the soldiers tied up Jack again, much more securely this time. The doctor stared down at Jack for a long moment, fists clenching and unclenching, lips pressed hard into a white line. Then he turned away. With a heavy sigh, he walked to the door. When he reached the soldiers, he looked back. “Ramp up your interrogation efforts. I don’t care what you do. Don’t stop until you have the information I want.”
CHAPTER 9
Doubt Creeps In
Charlie bumped into Maria the next morning on the way to first period and walked with her. Mac trailed behind them with another boy, examining his cell phone.
“He’s kind of a tech genius,” Maria said, tossing her head in Mac’s direction. Seeing the phone, she pulled hers out of her pocket. “I meant to get your number yesterday,” she said as they entered the classroom. “Quick, before the bell rings.”
Charlie gave it to her.
“Texting you now so you’ll have mine,” said Maria.
“Cool,” said Charlie. She squelched a smile, trying to be cool, but she was thrilled that Maria had asked for it.
Kelly came in and joined Maria and Charlie at the front of the room. “Hello,” she said, sounding a bit aloof.
“Hey, Kel,” said Maria.
“Hi, Kelly,” Charlie said. “How was your soccer practice yesterday?” She tilted her head slightly, then looked at Maria too.
“Good,” said Kelly, twirling her necklace. “Sorry I forgot to invite you. It just slipped my mind, I guess. The other girls and I were saying how surprised we were that you play. Are you ready for this afternoon?”
Charlie didn’t know what Kelly meant by being surprised, but she didn’t ask. She lifted her chin and clasped her hand over the bracelet under her sleeve, drawing confidence from it. “I’m ready,” she said. She tried to take comfort in the fact that this was a smaller school, so she probably wouldn’t be up against eighty-five other girls vying for twenty spots.
“What position do you play?” asked Kelly. “I hope we don’t have to compete for a spot on the team.” She was wearing the fake smile that Charlie had seen plenty of. It made her uneasy.
“Halfback or forward,” Charlie said. “How about you?”
“Defense,” said Kelly. She brightened.
So did Charlie. “Good, then there’s nothing to worry about.”
Kelly laughed. “Oh, I’m not. I was just concerned for you.”
Charlie grew flustered. “Oh.”
Maria balanced on the corner of her desk as other students came pouring into the room. “The truth is, everybody’s excited to see how you play. We can use another big scorer.”
“I suppose every team can use that,” Charlie said, trying to laugh, but it came out hollow. What if she wasn’t as good as Maria was expecting? What if Kelly was right to be worried for her? “I wish I’d had more time to practice, but there’s been a lot of snow back home,” said Charlie. “And . . . we’re still unpacking, so I’ve been pretty busy,” she added miserably. She remembered what a disadvantage she had. Here in the Southwest there was no snow. Kids could play year round. And maybe they had been. Charlie’s one attempt at brushing up her skills last night suddenly seemed extremely weak.
The late bell rang, and everybody rushed to their seats as the teacher strode into the room. Charlie, whose seat was at the back of the room next to Mac’s, darted to it and sat down fast. Her desk skidded. “Whoa,” she muttered.
“Dang,” said Mac.
“Yeah,” said Charlie. “That was . . . really weird.” She scooted her desk back in line, her cheeks burning.
Soon her mind wandered to soccer tryouts again. What if she wasn’t good enough to make the team? But she knew she had to keep her attitude in the right place. Think positive. Be strong. Focus on the ball. And run like she was being chased by a pack of wild animals. Or like the late bell just rang. You know what to do.
Charlie stared down at her bracelet. She undid the clasp and held it in her hand, wishing it actually worked. Maybe th
is weekend she could look for a battery for it. Then she slipped the bracelet back on. Top athletes used these, and now so did Charlie. She was going to be like Alex from the US women’s team and show everyone she had the right to wear it. This bracelet would help her keep her mind focused on being the best player she could be.
But Kelly’s words still bothered her, and she had to work hard to push the doubts aside. If only she could stop feeling so jittery.
CHAPTER 10
Tryouts
After school Charlie sped to the locker room to change. She wanted to arrive at the field as soon as possible so she could get in a few kicks and dribbles and maybe calm her nerves a little. She waved to Maria as she left the locker room and made her way past the athletic storage building, which several guys in hard hats were working on, and across the track to the grass, where some orange cones and a mesh bag full of balls sat. Charlie grabbed a ball, did a few stretches, and began a slow dribble up the field before coming back and stretching some more. This would be a bad time to pull a muscle. As she held her stretches and listened to the steady pounding of hammers nearby, she pulled up her sleeve and used her bracelet to keep her focus strong.
When Kelly, Maria, and a bunch of other girls reached the field, Charlie was all business. She nodded politely but didn’t join in the joking and laughter. Instead she went over her best moves in her mind and began to jump in place, warming up and trying to get her new shoes to bend and give a little more. The bracelet slid around on her wrist, and Charlie shoved it up her arm to secure it.
Soon the coach joined them. “Gather around!” she shouted, and clapped her hands a few times. The girls moved to surround her.
Coach was young and tall and muscular, with blazing black eyes and hair, and dark-brown skin. “It’s great to have you all back again,” she said. “And nice to see some unfamiliar faces, too—I look forward to getting to know you. For those of you who are new, I’m Coach Candy.”
Charlie felt a wave of relief—apparently she wasn’t the only new face. And then she spied an athletic bracelet on Coach’s arm. Cool!
Coach explained how the tryout would go. She laid out her high expectations, making individual eye contact with the girls as she spoke so she could be sure they understood. “Everybody starts at the same level today, whether you’ve played on the team before or not. This is not a time to be shy with your abilities. I want to see how you move the ball, how you share it, and how you attack the goal or defend it,” she said. “Is everybody clear?”
“Yes, Coach!” shouted the girls who’d been on the team before. Charlie missed the cue, but she vowed to get it next time. She felt intimidation creep in again. Despite what Coach had said, Charlie worried that the other girls knew her so well that they’d have an advantage.
When Coach Candy caught Charlie’s eye to make sure she understood, she nodded emphatically.
Coach Candy split the girls into two teams and handed out red scrimmage vests to one team and blue to the other, then sent them to opposite ends of the field for some warm-up exercises. Charlie was on the blue team, and she noted ruefully that Kelly and Maria were together on the red team.
As she ran suicides and dribbled through the cones, Charlie fought her nerves and tried to let her instinct take over, but she couldn’t stop thinking about what Coach said about not being shy to show her abilities. This was Charlie’s chance, and she didn’t want to blow it.
When Coach came to observe the blue team, she called out encouragement and suggestions to the girls to improve. “Stay tight around that end cone, Bree,” she called to a tall girl dribbling through the cones in front of Charlie. “Don’t let that ball get away from you.”
Charlie pushed hard, her lungs and thighs burning. Her legs were shaky, a sure sign that she wasn’t in top shape, but she kept the ball in control as she rounded the end cones.
“Way to dig in, Charlie!” Coach called out.
Charlie didn’t let on the pride she felt, but it gave her a boost of confidence, temporarily at least.
Soon Coach whistled to announce a scrimmage between the two groups. She assigned positions, putting Charlie in the left forward spot. Still breathing heavily from the workout, Charlie took her place, and her nerves kicked in again. Compulsories were one thing—Charlie didn’t have to count on anybody else to prove she was good at that. But an actual scrimmage was different. She jumped up and down a few times to keep her muscles warm, but she felt jittery. “Calm down,” she muttered. She was doing fine so far. Plus, Coach already knew her name—that was a good sign, wasn’t it?
When Coach put the ball in play, Charlie kept her eye on it and advanced with it, staying in her invisible lane. She stumbled once over her new shoes but thankfully didn’t fall. The play went along for several minutes with no action for Charlie, but her team was dominating. When Bree, who was playing center forward on Charlie’s team, popped the ball up in the air for a goal shot, Kelly, as a fullback for the red team, headed it. It hit off somebody’s knee and flew sideways toward Charlie.
Charlie dug in, but after pushing so hard earlier, her muscles were still weak. She felt slow getting to the ball, like her alertness was lagging a second behind where it should be. And her nerves kicked in, making every movement seem slightly out of control. She dribbled awkwardly, almost losing the ball—it wasn’t going where she wanted it to go. Try as she might, Charlie couldn’t get in the groove. Soon the red team swarmed in and stole the ball out from under her, racing in the other direction and leaving her breathless and empty-handed. She stared and shook her head, angry at herself, then started back toward the centerline, hoping she didn’t just give the other team a chance to score.
Coach soon subbed out half of each team, including Charlie, to let other girls play. Disappointed, Charlie headed for the bleachers, knowing she hadn’t had an opportunity to show Coach what she could really do. She wiped the sweat from her forehead and took a drink of water, then sat down to try to get her head in the right place. She couldn’t fail tryouts! How awful and embarrassing would that be? Not only would she have to face Kelly, but she’d have to tell Amari that she didn’t make it. No matter how hard Charlie tried to push the thoughts aside, they began to consume her.
After a while Coach called Charlie back in. She jumped up and raced to her position, knowing this might be her last chance to make the team. She had to hustle.
The whistle blew, and the girls exploded. Charlie had to make her own magic happen if she was going to leave a good impression. When at last the ball soared toward her, Charlie didn’t waste a moment. She sprinted for it, trapped it, and started for the goal, trying to turn her anxiety into action. Immediately a girl from the red team was on her tail, and then another. Charlie felt her heart racing—she couldn’t lose the ball now. This was her chance! But the other team was closing in.
Charlie lunged forward with a burst of adrenaline and pulled away from her competitors faster than she’d ever done before. A thrill rushed through her. She dodged around another girl who was coming toward her, chipped the ball over her outstretched leg, and sped after it. She blew past a halfback and looked around wildly for a teammate, but everyone was too far behind her—she was going to have to take it to the goal alone.
She ran over the field, keeping the opposing team’s fullbacks and goalie in sight as their halfbacks and sweeper reversed directions and started charging after her. Seconds later, she closed in on the goal box. The fullbacks thundered toward her, and before Charlie realized what was happening, Kelly’s blond braid was swinging in her face.
Charlie ducked and slid around the astonished girl. She tipped the ball out of Kelly’s reach, then recovered and sprinted with all her remaining power toward it. A circle of red jerseys closed in around her. With a giant leap, Charlie reached the ball and slammed her foot into it. It soared over Kelly’s head at bullet speed. The goalie dived. Her fingers nicked the ball and it flew up, skimmed the bottom side of the goalpost, and bounced into the net.
 
; The blue team cheered. The flabbergasted red team stared. Charlie stared too, breathing hard, almost unable to believe she’d scored a goal. Then she caught Kelly staring intensely at her, and she wasn’t smiling. Charlie stopped short, a little shocked by the glare, then decided to ignore it. She turned around, pumped her fist in the air, and started jogging back to her position.
“Nice one, Chuck,” Maria said as she passed her. “Girl friend can run like the wind! How’d you do that?”
Charlie grinned. She wasn’t sure how she’d done it, and she also wasn’t sure she could do it again. “Beginner’s luck,” she said. But for the moment she felt invincible. The sluggishness was gone, and her confidence was back. Things were looking up.
The game continued, with Charlie feeling stronger than she’d ever felt. After a few more plays Charlie’s teammates began passing the ball to her, and it wasn’t long before Charlie was being pursued down the field once more, leaving everybody in her dust except a few teammates who began to anticipate her moves. She passed the ball to Bree as she came sprinting up toward the goal, and the blue team scored again, Charlie taking the assist.
When opposing team members chased after her, Charlie felt a spike of adrenaline—she could play forever! Maybe it was the crisp air, or the different climate, or the fact that Charlie wanted it so badly, she wasn’t sure which, but she hoped the feeling would stay.
But the third time Charlie broke away with the ball and raced for the goal, Kelly was ready and waiting, wearing a look that said she was going to get possession no matter what it took.
Charlie didn’t see the look. She barely saw Kelly, who came charging toward her. Instead Charlie dodged and wove through the layers of defense. As she maneuvered, Kelly drew near, pulled her leg back, and let it fly. Charlie quickly nudged the ball to a teammate, but with sickening speed, Kelly’s foot smashed into Charlie’s leg, just above her shin guard. Their bodies collided. The impact rattled Charlie’s teeth, and searing pain shot through her. With a horrible scream, Charlie collapsed onto the field.