The Secret of Zormna Clendar by Julie Steimle (best ereader for pdf TXT) 📕

color globes, which flashed and spun rainbows around the long tables. Drool-worthy snacks and drink covered those tables. Groups of students, some still gathered as homerooms, danced and gossiped together over the day’s events. Mrs. Ryant’s students craned their necks in search of their team captain in the crowd, though most of them jumped in to party. After all, the day of ‘humiliation’ had ended triumphantly for them.

Todd tried to get into the beat of the song booming over the speaker as he lingered with his friends near the refreshments table. His pals’ conversation could not have been more animated. Mark had been recounting a crazy thing that happened during the relay race as Alex and Jonathan cackled. Tears rolled from their eyes. Brian and Jeff were exchanging dares on which girls to ask to Prom, and how to make it the most dramatic invite yet. But Todd’s eyes lingered on the gym door, hoping to see Jennifer and Zormna walk in late, both in silky dresses. It had to be why they were late, because Zormna would kick a fit over needing to wear a dress at the dance. It had to be. He wanted it to be.

 “Man, where’s Zormna?” Brian at last asked Todd, bouncing to the song. He looked to the door also.

Jeff glanced that way as well, pretending not to care. But in his eyes, Todd could tell he was also anxious.

Todd shrugged his shoulders, trying not to look concerned. “I dunno. Hopefully she’ll be here.”

Mark sighed. “Yeah…. One sexy hot—”

Brian slapped the back of his head.

Jonathan cackled, backing away.

“What’s that for?” Mark protested, rubbing his scalp.

“Zormna wouldn’t like you talking like that,” Brian said.

“No, she wouldn’t,” Alex chimed in.

Todd chuckled painfully. No. She wouldn’t.

His eyes turned to the door again. This time Jennifer stood in it.

Todd’s heart thumped harder. But as he continued staring, he realized his sister was standing there alone, in regular clothes—and drenched. And it was obvious that she had been crying.

Her eyes were scanning the room.

That sick feeling returned to Todd’s stomach.

Then Darren Asher stepped through the door. Darren shook out an umbrella, saying something to Jennifer as if they were together. Jennifer shook her head, peering about the room more with searching eyes.

Todd’s heart thumped harder against his ribs, only this time in a march that urged him to cross the floor as fast as possible to his sister.

“What’s going on? Where’s Zormna?” Todd asked the second he reached her.

Heads turned. Already their classmates were staring at the two sopping figures. They hardly recognizing either one at first.

“She isn’t here?” Jennifer’s practically whimpered. She looked around even harder. Stamping her foot on the floor, a puddle had trickled off her legs.

Darren looked less upset. Disappointed mostly, like a kid on a treasure hunt who had found nothing but crusty rocks.

Todd shook his head, guessing right away what had happened. Angry with himself, he closed his eyes and moaned. “I shouldn’t have told them about the mark.”

“No. You shouldn’t have,” Jennifer hissed back, not quite angry but definitely stressed out. She was green in the face, her eyes ringed red. “Mom and Dad were furious. I mean crazy furious.”

Todd closed his eyes, cringing. “What happened? What did they do?”

Jennifer swiftly peeked at Darren then pulled Todd aside, “She ran off. I don’t know where she is.”

“Did you check her aunt’s place?” he asked.

“I went there first,” she said.

Feeling even more ill, Todd’s mind went directly to the next logical conclusion, “She’s got to be around here somewhere then. I’ll help you look.”

Jennifer nodded. Then she spotted Jeff. His sister marched right up to the guy, grabbing Jeff’s shirt-front. “Have you seen Zormna? Do you know where she is?”

“Whoa!” Jeff pulled back, pushing Jennifer off. “What gives? I thought she left with you.”

“You two didn’t have another falling out, did you?” Mark said, derisively rolling his eyes with a snort.

Jennifer clenched her fists.

Todd quickly ran up, taking hold of his sister’s wrist to stop her from anything drastic. Though he liked Jeff, he was never quite sure the guy would not go PTSD on them.

Jennifer looked back. Her despair replaced that small burst of fury as she gazed up at him. “I’m really worried. Zormna would come here next.”

“What?” Alex stepped up. “Zormna’s missing?”

Jennifer reluctantly nodded.

Jeff and Alex exchanged looks.

“Missing? You mean for real?” Brian went white.

Jeff snorted. “Are you sure? She’s the type that would just go off and do whatever she likes. I bet she’s just throwing a fit about having to wear a dress or—”

“No!” Jennifer shouted, her neck stiffening to the point that Todd could see the veins in it. “She had a fight with my parents, ok? She was going to come in pants—but that’s not the point! The point is she’s gone! Have any of you seen her? Did she come here at all?”

“Had a fight?” Brian repeated. “Not like—” He made a number of kung-fu type gesticulations.

Todd flushed, the crazy image of Zormna karate chopping his dad popping into his head.

“No. No. No.” Jennifer gave him a sullen look, clearly imagining likewise, though with less belief. “An argument. And I didn’t hear it all. It was some…” She growled under her breath, “…Irish thing.”

Irish thing. Todd frowned. His parents and their Irish things. That mark on her shoulder must have been linked to some Irish family they detested, or something. That was the only thing that made sense.

But then Jeff brushed it off, shrugging. “Ah, she probably then went back home. Good riddance.”

He turned to join the dance, though Alex jabbed him in the side hissing in his ear.

“Good riddance?” Jennifer shrieked.

The boys turned and stared at her.

“I bet you did something to her,” she said, advancing on Jeff again.

“What?” Jeff pulled back.

Alex stared.

“She said you were dangerous.” Jennifer pointed a finger at him, shaking. “She wouldn’t tell me why. But if you really knew her before all this—” Jennifer went a little green.

“I did nothing to her!” Jeff snapped back.

“Hey! Hey! Calm down!” Brian gently pushed Jennifer back, though at the same time nudged Jeff behind him. “There’s no way Jeff would hurt her.”

“But Zormna’s missing,” Jennifer countered, still glaring at Jeff.

“I’d say the FBI have her,” Darren interjected with a casual air.

They had forgotten him.

Every head in the circle turned to stare at Darren the Dork. Darren blinked with a matter-of-fact gaze, waiting for them all to accept it in the same way he expected people to believe in aliens from Mars.

Todd’s pals all groaned. Todd would have, but he knew the FBI was following Zormna for real. And even though he had told the others about it, they had never quite believed it.  

Looking to his sister, Todd saw Jennifer’s eyes widen, speechless.

Jeff glanced at the two and then at Darren, raising an eyebrow with a smothered smirk. “FBI?”

Alex stiffened.

Darren nodded briskly, jerking his chin up and down. “Sure. They took her great aunt.”

The rest of the group rolled their eyes and moaned—with the exception of Jeff, Jennifer, Alex, and Todd. Todd couldn’t groan over it. He had seen too much.

Jennifer pulled her arms closer to herself, peeking at Jeff—whose amusement had vanished. In fact, Jeff watched Jennifer carefully. Normally he ignored her—not in a mean way, but because he was entirely uninterested in her personally. But this time Jeff’s eyes raked over Jennifer’s posture, assessing her with calculation. Todd didn’t like that. He could see that Jeff felt threatened.

But then Jeff shook his head. “Her aunt was crazy. Zormna may be a violent chick, but she is no threat to the FBI. She’s only fourteen.”

“She’s only fourteen?” Mark echoed in disbelief.

Jeff nodded.

“I thought she was sixteen,” Mark murmured.

“So did I,” Jonathan said.

Brian raised his eyebrows. “She’d be at least fifteen as a sophomore, but she must have skipped a grade, right?”

He looked to Todd.

But a shiver had gone up Todd’s back. He stared at Jeff. Of course Jeff would know that Zormna’s age had been exaggerated, considering their past history, but it struck him as odd. After all, Todd hadn’t known Zormna was fourteen until after the FBI had come around.

Jeff shook his head again and walked back onto the dance floor. He asked a girl that was sitting on the bleachers to join him. She blushed, smiled, and happily went with him. A total stranger to their group. But Jeff was like that. Thoughtful in an unusual way. There was no way he would have hurt Zormna…even after that whole mud-wrestling bit.

The others in the group shared looks, casting Darren a derisive glower before going off to join their pal.

But Alex lingered. He inched near Todd, watching him worry. Finally he said, “Hey. What I know about Zormna is that she’s pretty resourceful. Maybe she just went somewhere to cool down.”

“She wasn’t the one who needed to cool down,” Jennifer snapped. She leaned away from Alex as if he had transformed into something detestable.

“Then maybe she went somewhere that would make her feel safe,” Alex amended.

Both Todd and Jennifer stared at him.

Sighing, Alex continued, “She’s not the kind of person who would let somebody get the drop on her. Nothing escapes her notice.”

“You did,” Jennifer retorted, going paler. “You and your brother avoided her notice for over a month.”

Alex pulled back, cringing.

And Todd frowned. It was such an odd thing for Jennifer to say.

“She could have been overpowered,” Darren added in an off-handed tone.

Jennifer went whiter.

“But Zormna is a super-ninja,” Todd said, hoping.

“Yeah,” Alex chimed in.

“Oh, come on!” Darren protested. “This is the FBI we are talking about. Don’t underestimate them.”

“And this is Zormna Clendar I’m talking about,” Alex bit back. “And you don’t really know her.”

“And you do?” Jennifer asked.

Alex sighed. “I know her reputation. And I know who her friends are.”

He walked off, joining the others on the dance floor.

“Egotistical Martian,” Darren muttered, glaring after Alex.

Todd closed his eyes and groaned. “Don’t you start with that stupid stuff!”

“It’s not stupid!” Darren snapped back. “If you knew the things I know about—”

“Please!” Jennifer almost screamed. “Enough!”

People stared.

Jennifer turned to Todd and said, “I saw one of those FBI cars when going to her house to find her. What do you think are her chances, if the FBI did try to pick her up?”

“Well, I think—” Darren started.

“I wasn’t asking you!” Jennifer snapped back.

Todd smirked firmly at Darren as he said to his sister, “They’ve been following her everywhere and watching her every day. And though I wish I had as much confidence as Alex does in Zormna’s capabilities, I think if the FBI wanted to pick someone off the street without being seen, they could. But why would they?”

“Because she’s a—” Darren interjected.

“I don’t know,” Jennifer cut Darren off, glaring at the alien-obsessed boy. Yet the way Jennifer said it, Todd could tell it wasn’t entirely true. She had her guesses. Todd could tell she was weighing her words. Her eyes scanned the gym, taking in all the laughing faces of their classmates. She frowned mournfully.

“Jen?” Todd peered closer at her face.

 “I don’t know,” Jennifer said again, shaking her head and turning back towards the door. “I’m going home.”

She leaned on the bar handle, pushing open the door with weight, and dragged her feet out into the rain.

Darren stood there gaping after her. Then he looked to Todd, ready to return to their argument.

Recoiling, Todd rushing back to the heart of the gym for protection.

At the doors, Darren stood alone in the puddles left by Jennifer and himself. Shifting his feet with another sigh and another defeated shrug, he looked out into the gym, watching all the partygoers have their fun—fun he was never a part of.

So he turned, pushed on the door bar, and let himself out into the rain.