Souls in Peril by Sherry Gammon Read Free Book Online

someone actually spit at him. Many of the kids shouted out crude names along with calling them The Ten . After Max and Izzy took a seat near the back, the tall kid who was seated in the front turned around and asked loudly, “ What do you call a baby born to The Ten ? ” He paused for a moment then said, “ An immaculate conception, because not even Icky is desperate enough to sleep with Lumpy. ” Several kids laughed, some ignored him, and a few told him to sit down, including the bus driver.
    “ He must be having a bad day. That was pretty mild for him, ” Izzy informed Max. He thought of the jokes, insults really, that he and Leo had thrown at The Ten . It made him sick. How could he be so heartless? If his parents knew, they ’ d be disappointed in him. He was disappointed in himself. He sat in silence the rest of the way.
    Once at school, Izzy left for her economics class. Max, however, had no idea where to go. He didn ’ t know JD ’ s schedule whatsoever. Looking through the backpack didn ’ t help. He made his way to the attendance office to get a copy of JD ’ s schedule.
    “ Hi, ” Max smiled at the receptionist. She returned the smile, approaching the chest-high, yellow counter separating the students from the office staff. “ My name is Jayden Miller. Can I get a copy of my schedule, please? ”
    The smile died on the woman ’ s face. She punched keys on her computer with determination. “ Social? ” she demanded.
    “ Excuse me? ”
    “ Social Security number, Mr. Miller. ” She spit out her reply, never looking at Max.
    He thought for a minute, not knowing what to do. He certainly didn ’ t know JD ’ s number. He sent a mental note to Gabe, hoping he ’ d relay it to his mind somehow. Nothing.
    “ Mr. Miller, I don ’ t have all day. ”
    Max couldn ’ t help noticing her curt tone. “ I ’ m sorry. I was recently in an accident, and I— ”
    “ Yes, Mr. Miller. The entire school is aware of your little accident involving the deaths of three wonderful people. ”
    Max got it now. She blamed JD for his family ’ s deaths. “ I suffered a head injury , and I can ’ t seem to remember my social security number. ”
    She rolled her eyes, punched a few more keys, and after the schedule printed , she slapped it down on the counter in front of Max. “ And might I suggest that the next time you ’ re out driving, you pay better attention to what is going on around you. ” She turned and stomped back to her desk.
    Max was stunned. How could she make an assumption like that with out knowing all the facts? He could understand it from one of his peers, but an adult?
    He took the schedule, looked it over and left, noting JD shared only one class with Emma—second period Journalism . He ’ d finally get to see her . He folded up the schedule and slipped it into the pocket of his jeans as he headed for his first class, P . E . The familiar twist in his stomach kicked up as he entered the locker room. Stay calm, JD. You ’ re in my house now. Sports are what I do . Max grinned as h e pulled open the door. The sweet smell of sweat wrapped around him like an old friend. Max welcomed it with open arms. Finally something familiar. Since yesterday, every space, every scent , was JD ’ s life. But this, the locker room, was Max ’ s domain. He strutted straight down the first row of lockers toward his old locker, stopping dead as he rounded the corner.
    His baseball jersey lay draped over the locker door, and a poster, signed by what appeared to be the entire Baseball team, hung from a string over the jersey. It simply stated: RIP Max. Gone, but never forgotten. Max forced the lump in his throat down.
    “ Yeah, you should feel bad, Lumpy. Why couldn ’ t you have died instead of him? Like anyone would have care d . ” Max turned as his teammate Jeff Morgan passed by, shoving his shoulder into Max ’ s chest . Max doubled over with an “ Oof. ” Two other guys from the team repeated Jeff