Romiette and Julio Read online

  They walked slowly back to their car, knowing they wouldn’t be chased or stopped. They opened the four doors together, slid into the seats, and closed all four doors in unison. They drove off in a clutter of dust and road debris, tires screeching. Then all was silent.

  Romi was crying now.

  “You OK, Romi?” Julio asked gently.

  “Yeah, I’m fine, but I’m scared enough to pee, and mad enough to spit!”

  “I’d like to do more than spit. Why are they sweatin’ us?” Julio could still smell the steel of that gun in his face.

  “Let’s get out of here, Julio. Just take me home, please.”

  “Sure, Romi,” Julio replied. “You know, the only one who never noticed a problem was little Taco here. She slept through the whole thing.”

  She took the dog out of Julio’s pocket and stroked its soft, silky head. The softness and calm security of the puppy soothed Romi, and gradually her heart stopped racing.

  “Do you think we should we tell your parents, Romi?” Julio asked. He was still furious—partly at what the gang had done to their afternoon, and partly at his inability to fight back.

  “If we tell my dad, he’ll call the police and put it on the news. We do not want any public attention given to this. Their payback wouldn’t be done in the brightness of a TV studio,” Romi reasoned.

  “And if we tell my dad, that would just give him reason to make sure we don’t see each other. He thinks everybody is somehow involved in a gang. He read it in the paper somewhere.” Julio sighed.

  “There’s got to be a way for us to work this out ourselves, Julio,” Romi said without much conviction. “If we go to the police, it’s only a matter of time before they get one of us for it.”

  “You’re right. I’ve seen it happen in Texas. Kid goes to police one week. Next week same police find that kid dead,” Julio said soberly. “We have to figure out a way to stop them without involving the authorities.”

  “But how, Julio?” Romi moaned.

  “I don’t know, Romi. Not yet.” Julio frowned. The wind had turned cold, and the sun had disappeared behind the clouds.

  “They all had guns, Julio!” Romi whispered.

  Both were silent as they walked back to Romi’s house. The puppy, unconcerned, slept soundly in Romi’s arms.

  36.

  The Six O’clock Evening News—Sunday

  —Good evening. It’s six o’clock on Channel Six, and this is the news. I am Cornell Cappelle, and with me is Nannette Norris. Good evening, Nannette.

  —Hello, Cornell. I like your tie. In the news tonight, your taxes are going up, the temperature is going down, and we’ll have a report on the new ride coming to King’s Island, which goes both up and down.

  —Thank you, Nannette. Also tonight we will begin our special report on teenage gangs in our cities. Who joins these gangs? What danger do gangs pose? And what is the potential for gang violence here in Cincinnati?

  —Surely we don’t have to worry about gangs here in Cincinnati, do we, Cornell? We’ve taught our kids to “Just Say No!” We’ve got great kids here. But other cities—they don’t seem to be quite as lucky.

  —That’s part of what we’re trying to find out, Nannette. Our city is certainly not immune. In other news, we’ll look at the problem of the buildup of nuclear weapons in Third World countries, and the problems caused by this recent move to increase nuclear proliferation.

  —And I’ll have my report on the problems of too much peanut butter in our diet, as well as an interview with a farmer who found a frog with two heads.

  —Let’s pause here for a station break. I’m Cornell Cappelle, and we’ll be right back.

  37.

  Monday at Lunch

  The bell rang for lunch, and Romi, for once, was hungry. She hurried up the steps to the cafeteria so she could beat the long lines. She grabbed a salad, a bag of cashews, and an apple juice, and paid for it just as some ninth-grade boys stormed into the lunch line. They had just left gym, and it was noticeable. Romi thought she had never smelled anything so disgusting—dozens of sweaty boys crowded into a hot cafeteria. She hurried to a table in the back. Ben was already sitting there, legs propped up on the table, his blue hair in braids this time, wearing a T-shirt that read, SAVE THE WHALES. He was sipping a soda and, from the wrappings on the table, had already eaten several snack cakes and bags of peanuts.

  “Hey, Ben,” Romi called. “Your usual healthy lunch, I see.”

  “Carbohydrates are my life,” Ben declared as he reached into his book bag and grabbed a bag of potato chips.

  “Your blood vessels are simply going to explode one day, Ben,” Romi joked. “And how do you manage to skip study hall so successfully and eat lunch with us every day?”

  “It’s easy.” Ben grinned. “I simply ask to go to the bathroom, and I don’t come back!”

  “Don’t they look for you, or wonder why you haven’t returned?”

  “It must be because I blend into a crowd so well—they just never notice!” Ben chuckled as he dug into the bag of chips.

  Romi sprinkled the cashews over the salad, added a dab of dressing, and on the first stab into the food, broke the little plastic fork that came with it. “I hate when that happens!” she complained. She went to the line and got a replacement, but not without an argument from the lunch lady, who was sure that only one plastic fork per student was allowed. Romi took two and walked away.

  Destiny ran breathlessly to the table and tossed her book bag under it. She always brought her lunch because she didn’t eat meat and the cafeteria didn’t always serve food she thought was palatable. She unloaded three plastic food containers, a thermos of soup, a thermos of juice, an apple, and a plastic bag with silverware and a napkin. “What’s up?” she said finally. Ben watched her with awe.

  “Do you do this every day?” Ben asked in amazement.

  “Do what?” Destiny replied as she poured her soup into the thermos cup.

  “Bring your kitchen in your book bag.”

  “I believe in taking care of this temple, my body, because I am the goddess who lives in it.”

  “I like your attitude, Destiny.” Ben grinned with admiration. “Do you ever eat junk food?”

  “Only on weekends,” admitted Destiny with a laugh. “Hey, Romi, where’s Julio?”

  “Here he comes,” Romi answered as Julio smiled at her across the cafeteria. His long legs carried him across the large, noisy room quickly, and he plopped into the chair across from Romi.

  “Hola, amigos,” he greeted everyone, but his eyes were on Romi.

  “Hi, Julio.” Romi smiled. “How’s the puppy?”

  “When I called you last night after I finally got home from our ‘adventure,’ she was scared and whimpering, but she’s fine now. When I left for school, she was asleep on my bed. My mother’s gonna have a fit when she finds her there.”

  “Moms love puppies,” Ben said. “Don’t worry.”

  “Yeah, we’ve got enough to worry about.” Destiny sighed.

  “So what are we gonna do about the Devildogs?” Julio said finally.

  “Maybe we should tell a teacher or something,” Destiny suggested.

  “Right, Destiny,” Julio snorted. “Like they’re going to call a parent conference and tell the bad kids to be good kids, kiss them on the forehead, and send them out to sin no more. No way.”

  “Julio is right.” Ben nodded. “Nobody is going to listen to us or be able to do anything. We’ve got to solve this ourselves.”

  Romi tossed her trash into the wastebasket. She sipped her juice and thought for a moment. “Sure, Ben,” she said finally,“I can just see you walking up to the Devildogs and saying, ‘Hi! I’m Ben! I’ve got purple hair and a kind heart. Can I talk to you guys about some problems we’ve been having with your gang?’”

  Ben pretended to fall out of his chair. “They’ll take my kind heart out and wrap it up in my purple hair. Purple is their color though, right? That’s why I haven’t d
yed my hair any of those truly beautiful violet shades since they came around.”

  “Somehow,” laughed Destiny, “I think purple hair is not the purple the Devildogs are looking for, Ben. We need you alive.”

  Julio sighed. “I’ve had experience with gangs. I know the only way we can stop them from sweatin’ us is to make it so it’s not fun or safe for them to do it.”

  Romi nodded. “We’ve got to be smarter than they are. The four of us have got to be smarter than a bunch of thugs.”

  Destiny cleared away her lunch containers and tossed them back into her book bag. She fixed her lipstick, checked her hair, and chewed a piece of gum to sweeten her breath. Destiny always wanted to be prepared, just in case her soul mate should walk around the corner. “I’ve got an idea!” she said finally.

  “Does this have anything to do with the stars, Destiny?” Ben wondered.

  “Well, sort of. According to my charts, the next three days are destined to be full of danger and excitement.”

  “Danger for who? For you?” asked Ben.

  “Well, actually,” Destiny admitted, “it’s predicted for Julio and Romi. My chart says I should start a new diet!”

  “Thanks a lot,” Julio chuckled. “You risk our lives with your chart.”

  “It’s all perfectly safe, I think,” continued Destiny. “There was one part I couldn’t figure out. I have to get the advanced book for that.”

  “You think?” Ben asked.

  Romi wanted to trust Destiny’s books, charts, and hunches. “Let her finish. What’s your idea, Destiny?”

  “Romi, your dad’s station is doing a series of reports on gangs in the U.S., and the possibility of gangs here, right?” Destiny started.

  “Yeah, they are. TV stations are always the last to know,” Romi answered.

  “I can’t believe they’ve just figured out that gangs might be here. We know that they are!” added Ben.

  “Anyway, what does Romi’s dad have to do with this?” Julio wanted to know.

  “Ben calls your dad, Romi, and tells him of his suspicions about kids being in gangs at our school, and gets him on the case.”

  “I’m with you so far. Dad would love to do that,” Romi said. “Go on, Destiny.”

  “Then Romi’s dad and his Secret Six investigative news team follow the Devildogs with a hidden camera, catch them threatening Romi and Julio, then expose it on TV. When your dad finds out it’s you, the cameras will already be rolling, and he can’t blow his cover or you might get hurt.”

  Romi shook her head. “My dad would never agree to use me to catch them. It’s too dangerous.”

  “You’re right,” admitted Destiny. “But it sounded good for a moment.”

  “Maybe your idea can still work, Destiny,” Julio said thoughtfully. “We know that gang kids like that work best in secret, right?”

  “Right,” agreed Ben. “They don’t want their mamas to know what they do. Exposure might destroy them.”

  “It might destroy us too,” Romi added gloomily.

  “What if we did the filming instead of your dad?” suggested Julio.

  “I’m not sure, Julio. First, it’s dangerous; second, it’s stupid; and third, we don’t have a camera,” Destiny reasoned.

  “This is where Ben of the multicolor hair comes in. What about my new Minicam?” Ben was unbraiding his hair. It was now not only blue, but curly.

  “What Minicam, Ben?” Julio asked.

  “My dad got it for me for Christmas when he was in Japan. It’s small enough to fit in a pocket and tapes both video and audio. Picture’s not real clear, but it’s effective.”

  “Let me get this straight,” Romi said. “We tape them hasslin’ us, and use the tape against them? And they’re just going to stand there and let us do it?”

  “The camera will be hidden.” Ben was becoming doubtful of his own plan.

  “Where?” demanded Destiny.

  “In my pocket,” Julio declared with finality. “I will tape these suckers and get this over with.”

  Ben said,“You said you always wanted to be a TV man, Julio. Here’s your chance!”

  “This wasn’t exactly what I had in mind, though,” Julio said quietly. “This is dangerous. But the way I see it, we have no choice. This way, we have proof of their threats and we can take the tape to Romi’s dad and have the gang exposed. Romi, are you willing to do this?”

  “I trust you, Julio. And we won’t be alone. We’ve got Ben and Destiny for backup,” Romi added.

  Destiny looked at Ben; Ben looked at Destiny. Both burst out laughing at the same time. “We got your back, girlfriend!” Destiny declared.

  Ben tried to get serious. “Let’s get our plan straight now. Romi, you and Julio walk near London Woods again tonight—just like yesterday. Don’t go into the woods—we have to be able to see you. Me and Destiny will be right behind you at all times in my car.”

  “What about my car?” Destiny asked. “It’s cuter than yours.”

  “Be for real! Your car is bright red with flowers and butterflies all over it. We don’t want them to notice us, remember? Now my car is small and brown and ugly. I never get traffic tickets. I just blend in with the scenery.”

  “And I have to ride in that?” Destiny sighed, and rolled her eyes at Romi.

  “What if something goes wrong?” Romi asked seriously.

  “We’ve got the car phone and we’ll call for help at any time,” Destiny assured her.

  “I don’t know, Destiny. I have a bad feeling about this.” Despite her talk, Romi had never really done anything dangerous in her life. She was scared of what they were about to do, but she was more afraid to go to the authorities. She felt that Julio was probably right about gang retaliation. They had no choice. “I’m scared, Julio.” She looked directly into his eyes.

  “I won’t let anything happen to you, Romi. I swear.” Julio touched her hand gently. “But we’ve got to end this.”

  “You’re right, I know. Let’s do it.”

  Ben looked to the far end of the cafeteria. The Devildogs, seven of them, marched into the room. They worked the tables, quietly collecting chips, soda, and sandwiches from students who offered no resistance. The teachers who were cafeteria monitors noticed nothing. A young man in purple would stop at a table, smile, make pleasant conversation, and smoothly pocket a sandwich from each person at the table. Those students never smiled. They just paid their “lunch fee” to the gang and sighed with relief when they left.

  The seven boys headed to the back where Ben, Romi, Destiny, and Julio were sitting. It was almost time for the bell.

  “Here they come,” Ben warned. “Destiny, talk loud so they hear us!”

  Destiny gave it her all. She stood up next to Romi and said as loud as she could, “ROMI, GIRL, YOU AND JULIO ARE THE BOMB! HE’S COMING OVER AGAIN TONIGHT AT SIX? GO ON, GIRL. JULIO, IF YOU HAD A CAR, YOU WOULDN’T HAVE TO WALK BACK AND FORTH PAST LONDON WOODS WITH ROMI EVERY NIGHT, YOU KNOW. SEE Y’ALL. I GOTTA GET TO CLASS.” She gathered her book bag and headed for the cafeteria door. She didn’t look back. The Devildogs turned abruptly and left through a side door.

  “That was Destiny—loud and effective,” declared Romi.

  “Did they hear?” Julio asked.

  Ben laughed. “They had to hear. You could hear Destiny’s big mouth in Egypt. Yeah, I saw them look at each other and give a sign before they left.”

  “We’re on for tonight,” Julio said with a tightness in his voice.

  “And I haven’t got a thing to wear!” Ben cried, trying to lighten the mood. Nobody laughed.

  “Let’s meet at my house at five,” Romi said. “My mom should be gone to work by then.”

  “Don’t forget the camera, Ben,” Julio reminded him.

  “Gotcha!” Ben replied. “There’s the bell.” He gathered his gear and left.

  “I’m still scared, Julio,” Romi murmured.

  “I know. Me too. But after tonight it will all be over and we can think ab
out important stuff like pizza, or puppies, or prom.”

  “I hope you’re right. See you this afternoon.”

  “Adiós, Romi. Take care.” They left by separate doors.

  38.

  Monday—5 P.M.

  Mrs. Cappelle was running late. Every Monday she left for the shop at three-thirty when Romi got home from school. She liked to be there when the afternoon shipments arrived. But she had misplaced her keys, and lost half an hour until she checked outside by the dog pen. Max loved keys and had them safely by his side. Romi checked her watch, hoping her mother would hurry, then the phone rang. It was a friend of her mother’s who lived in Ghana, and they laughed and talked for twenty minutes as they planned for her visit to the States. Romi placed her mother’s briefcase near the door, and tried not to act as if she were rushing her. She checked the time again.

  Her mom hung up the phone, replaced her earring, and checked her hair in the hall mirror. “Romi, are you coming to work with me this evening at the store?” she asked as she picked up her briefcase and headed to the front door. Romi sometimes rode downtown with her dad before he headed to the studio. He’d drop her off at the boutique, and Romi would work a couple of hours, or do her homework in the back room.

  “No, Mom. Not tonight.” Romi tried to smile and look perfectly natural. “Dad’s already gone, and Julio is coming over to … to study.”

  “You were awfully quiet last evening. I thought we might have rented a movie, but it seemed like you just wanted to be alone. Is everything OK? There’s no problem with Julio, is there?”

  “No, of course not.” Romi checked her watch again. “We’ve just been talking, getting to know each other better. Julio’s dad is a little hard to get along with, he says,” Romi explained.

  “Trouble at home?” Mrs. Cappelle stood at the front door. Her hand was on the knob.

  “Not really. Just the usual stuff. It’s hard adjusting to a new city.”

  “I know that must be rough for him. I’m glad he’s found you as a friend.” Mrs. Cappelle opened the front door and jumped back with a start. Julio stood there, smiling with uncertainty.