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in the new movie section when Bryce said, “Uh-oh, look who’s coming.”
    My heart dropped to my socks. Liz and Denise. It was too late to duck, and they walked right up to me.
    “Happy now?” Liz said. “Glad you got us in trouble?”
    Before I could say anything, Bryce stepped in front of me. “Y-you got yourselves in t-trouble. Then you l-lied to your parents about it.”
    “W-w-what’s the matter? C-c-can’t your sister talk for herself?” Denise said, smirking.
    I felt my face turning red. “You guys can’t stand it when anybody does better than you. You had to ruin it for me.”
    The man behind the counter raised his eyebrows.
    Denise said, “Ashley, you’re pathetic. And your brother couldn’t keep time if Scarberry gave him a watch.”
    Liz glanced out the window and elbowed Denise as her mom and dad arrived.
    Denise jabbed her finger in my chest. “Better be careful Friday. Awful things can happen at amusement parks.”
    After they left we went back to searching for a video. Bryce handed me an ancient one titled Two on a Guillotine and said we should give it to Denise and Liz.
    “No matter what,” I said, “I’m going Friday.”

Chapter 14

    Later that week Mrs. Watson became sick and stayed in bed. I figured she was mostly still upset about her stolen jewelry.
    By Friday, Ashley was so nervous she was imagining Liz and Denise in the barn and jumping when the phone rang.
    I saw Duncan at the buses, and he asked why I had chosen to sit with Toby. Before I could think of an answer, Toby came up to us.
    Duncan frowned and shook his head, walking away. “I thought we were best friends.”
    Toby and I sat in the very back row where we could see everything. I saw Denise and Liz get on, but they didn’t see me.
    It was cool and Mom wanted me to wear a jacket, but there was no way I was going to Happy Canyons with anything more than my swimsuit and a change of clothes. Jackets were for sissies.
    Toby had his jacket. We sat there awkwardly for a while.
    Finally I tried starting a conversation. “How do you like living—at your house?”
    “I’ve never lived anywhere else, so I guess I like it okay.”
    “How do you like the tuba?”
    “Fine. I like blowing those low notes that sound like gas and making the girls turn around. It’s about the only time they look at me.”
    “Yeah, those are pretty realistic,” I said.
    “How long have you been playing the drums?” Toby said.
    “I took lessons from a neighbor for a couple of years until I got pretty good. My drum set is in my room.”
    We were past Castle Rock before I worked in my first real question. “What’s your dad use his scanner for?”
    “He listens for bad road conditions—you know, snow and ice and stuff. Plus, he gets a kick out of hearing all the police calls.”
    “He buy it new?”
    “Nah. At the pawnshop. He traded some baseball cards for it.”
    Baseball cards? “He have a big collection?”
    “Huge,” Toby said. “He’s got copies of Sports Illustrated signed by a lot of the people on the covers. He uses the cards every few months to trade for something he really wants or needs. Last month he traded a baseball signed by Hank Aaron for a new set of tires.”
    What a waste! A valuable ball like that going for a set of Goodyears? If it was true, my case against Toby’s dad was unraveling faster than kite string.

Chapter 15

    I’ve read that friends are your most treasured possessions, but you never really possess them. True friends will walk through hot glue just to keep you company. That’s how I felt about Hayley. Even though she wasn’t a Christian, she was as true a friend as I could have wanted. We’ve had problems, of course, but I can trust her.
    Mr. Scarberry had worked it out that Liz and Denise were on the other bus, and I was glad.
    When the second bus passed us I looked for Bryce and saw Liz and Denise scowling out the window. They looked like those Olympic athletes who strain for one more inch on the