Kristy and the Kidnapper Read online

  “We really do make a good team,” I said to them. “Somehow we complement one another.”

  “Sure. You have the big mouth, Kai has all the brains, and I supply the charm and charisma. How can we miss?” David joked.

  Kai and I cracked up. The three of us were getting to know one another pretty well. And the experience David and I had gone through had brought us closer. Only people I know and trust can call me a bigmouth and get away with it.

  We had one more debate that afternoon, and if we won we’d head to the finals. It was hard to believe. After all, I hadn’t been debating for very long. But I guess with my big mouth, I’m a natural.

  “I think your buddies enjoyed the show too,” Kai said, with a nod to Agents Sanford and Melendez, who were standing about ten feet away in a doorway.

  David rolled his eyes. “They’re starting to bug me,” he said.

  I really couldn’t complain. They made me feel safe. And boy, was I going to have a good story to tell when our trip was over. Having a Secret Service agent of your own did take some getting used to, though. Agent Melendez had been waiting in the hall when I stumbled out of my room first thing that morning on my way to breakfast. Had he been there all night, watching my door? Or had another agent covered the night shift? Melendez and Sanford had stood by while David and I chowed down on pancakes and eggs. After breakfast, Melendez had followed me back upstairs, while Sanford shadowed David. I took a quick shower, dressed in my “good” clothes for the debate, and stepped into the hall to find faithful old Melendez still waiting. He didn’t even have a newspaper with him or anything. I couldn’t help wondering if he was bored. I certainly wasn’t providing him with any entertainment.

  He may have enjoyed the debate, though. I know I did. In fact, I was so involved in it that I forgot he and Sanford were there. The team we had faced was good, and their arguments for dog superiority had been inventive and funny. Still, we managed to shift our rebuttal to one that destroyed their whole strategy. And even though David might have been joking about his charm and charisma, he really did have a certain presence. He could run for office someday, he’s that good at public speaking. Throughout the debate, he seemed relaxed and confident. The shaky David I’d seen the night before had disappeared. If he thought about the kidnapper at all, you wouldn’t have known it. He acted like a person without a care in the world. And he still seemed relaxed now, even though he was frowning a little in Sanford’s direction.

  Abby and her team emerged from Debate Room Two. She was grinning, and she let out an exuberant “Yahoo!” when she saw me. Her teammates looked pretty happy too.

  She ran to me, waving to Melendez as she passed him. “Excellent debate,” she reported.

  “Ours was too,” I said.

  “I heard the team you were debating against wasn’t so great,” Abby replied. “I bet you beat them easily.”

  Well. Did she think we weren’t good enough to beat a strong team? “As a matter of fact, they were very good,” I told her. “But we were better.”

  She shook her head, smiling. “Beats me how you can come up with even one argument in favor of cats.”

  “Well, you’ll hear more than one if our team meets yours in the finals,” David put in.

  Thank you, David.

  Abby just smiled again. “So,” she said, turning to me, “want to go sightseeing?”

  I looked at David and Kai. “I don’t know. I think we might want to practice a little more, right, guys?”

  “For sure,” said Kai.

  “I’m there,” said David.

  “Guess I’ll see you later,” I told Abby. She looked bummed. “Want to go to Melissa’s event with me later this morning? I’m dying to see how she does.”

  “Sure.” Abby looked happier. “I’ll see you there.”

  David and Kai and I (and Agents Sanford and Melendez) headed for the coffee shop for a snack before we got down to work. Then the five of us went upstairs to David’s room. Sanford and Melendez settled themselves in the hall while we made ourselves comfortable on the couch and chairs inside.

  We discussed the debate we’d just won, breaking it down until we had covered every angle. Facing a good team is helpful. You hear new arguments, which gives you the chance to come up with counter-arguments. For our next debate, we would start out with those ideas.

  “And we’ll ditch the argument about cats shedding less, since apparently, it isn’t true,” Kai said as we finished up an hour or so later. He made a note on his pad. “Then we’ll add the one about lower overall costs.”

  “Sounds good,” I said.

  Just then, there was a knock at the door. David opened it.

  An annoyed-looking Mr. Hawthorne poked his head in. “Shouldn’t you check to see who it is?” he asked.

  “Why, when our buddies are out there?” David asked. He looked a little annoyed himself.

  “You have a point,” Mr. Hawthorne admitted. “But still, safety first.” He introduced himself to Kai, then asked if he and David and I could have a few minutes alone together. Kai said he had some stuff to do in his room anyway. He took off after we’d agreed on a time to meet before our afternoon debate.

  Mr. Hawthorne set his shiny black briefcase on the coffee table and opened it up. “I brought some pictures for you two to look at,” he said. “I’m hoping you can help identify our friend from yesterday.”

  He handed over a stack of photos. David started flipping through them. “Nope, nope, nope,” he muttered as we looked at each face quickly.

  “Wait a minute,” I said, stopping him. “What about that guy?”

  David studied the photo I was pointing at and shook his head. “No,” he said. “Our man had a bigger nose and darker hair.”

  He was right. I realized that, as the son of a Secret Service agent, David was probably a lot more observant than I was.

  He flipped through a few more photos. “I don’t think the guy’s in here,” he said as he reached the bottom of the stack. “Oh, wait a minute.” He slid out one photo and took a closer look. “What do you think?” he asked me.

  I examined the picture. The man had a beard and mustache, while our kidnapper had been clean shaven. But there was a familiar look to him. “Maybe,” I said.

  David showed the photo to his dad. “Do you have another shot of this guy?” he asked.

  Mr. Hawthorne rummaged in his briefcase. “What about this?” he asked, handing us a smaller picture. David and I leaned over it together. This time, the beard was gone.

  “That’s him!” David said. “Right?”

  I nodded. “I think so.” I looked again. “Yes, I’m almost positive. That’s the guy.”

  Mr. Hawthorne took the photo from David. Looking at it, he shook his head. “Dibdin,” he said.

  “Excuse me?” said David.

  “His name is Lance Dibdin,” Mr. Hawthorne explained. “He was part of a group of computer hackers we busted up a few years ago. We caught him in a sting operation. I think he did some time, but maybe he’s out now.” He thought for a second. “No, that’s not right,” he continued. “He never did go to prison. He was freed on a technicality.”

  “Is he dangerous?” I asked.

  Mr. Hawthorne looked at me. “He could be. He certainly has no fondness for me. But the police are already looking for him, and they should be able to track him down quickly.” He checked the picture again. Then he smiled at us. “Meanwhile, I think you’ll be safe. But quit opening your door without checking to see who’s there.” He tousled David’s hair. “I mean that.”

  “Okay,” said David. “Just let me know as soon as Dibdin is picked up. I don’t want those guys hanging around any longer than they have to.” He nodded toward the door. Sanford and Melendez were probably out there listening. Or maybe those ear wires they wore were connected to a bug in David’s room. I wouldn’t be surprised.

  After Mr. Hawthorne left, David and I headed down to Debate Room Three to catch Melissa in action. Abby was alread
y there, sitting in the front row with Lucas. Lucas was also doing extemporaneous speaking, but he had won his round earlier in the day. Abby waved to us. “I saved you some seats,” she called.

  The extemporaneous speaking contest was totally different from team debating. There were three judges sitting at a table in front of the stage. One by one, the contestants came out. The judges would throw a statement at them and tell them to defend it, and the contestants would have to speak about that topic for ten minutes — with no preparation! Loud mouth or not, I myself couldn’t do it.

  Some of the kids weren’t so hot. They stumbled around and said “um” a lot. One boy even looked as if he might start to cry at any minute. On the other hand, Rick Chow from SMS was pretty good. But guess who ended up winning the round?

  Melissa.

  She was awesome! When it was her turn, the judges told her to defend the proposition “The chicken came first.” (As in, “Which came first, the chicken or the egg?”)

  Melissa started talking and she didn’t stop until the timer went off. She was funny and persuasive and intelligent sounding. I hate to say it, but she was like a different person up there. Abby and I kept exchanging surprised looks as she spoke. I don’t think either of us believed our ears.

  Afterward, when the judges had awarded her first place, she joined us at our seats.

  “You were excellent,” said Lucas, giving her a kiss.

  Melissa giggled. “Really?” she asked, looking into his eyes. “Wow, thanks. Did you really think I was good?” She giggled some more, and — I swear — batted her eyelashes at him.

  Abby and I exchanged one more glance and a little smile. Melissa was still Melissa.

  Want some good news? Team DKK won its Saturday afternoon debate. That meant we were on our way to the finals!

  Want some bad news? Abby’s team won too. That meant they were on their way to the finals. We’d be up against each other. Which in itself wasn’t such a bad thing. Other than Melissa, we were the only SMS students still in the tournament — Trevor Sandbourne and his partner had lost in the two-on-two debate to Alexandra and Scott Toombs. So it was pretty cool. It was just that Abby and I could hardly talk to each other anymore as it was. Every conversation turned into a debate. Now the situation would be even more intense.

  Some more bad news? The police hadn’t been able to find Dibdin yet. David checked in with his dad after our debate, and all Mr. Hawthorne could say was that they were still looking. Bummer. That meant Agents Sanford and Melendez would be with us for a while longer.

  I could deal with that, but I could tell David was just about fed up. He couldn’t stand being followed around. I’d seen him shooting dark looks at Agent Sanford during our debate. But there was nothing we could do. David had made a deal with his dad, and if having a shadow was the only way he could stay at the convention, he was going to have to have a shadow.

  Speaking of shadows, I was beginning to get tired of the Melissa-and-Lucas show. Those two were practically joined at the hip. Everywhere he went, she went. Everywhere she went, he went. They finished each other’s sentences, gazed into each other’s eyes, and seemed clueless about how nauseating their behavior was.

  “Guess what!” Melissa shrieked when we ran into each other in the hall that afternoon. I was with David, Kai, and Abby. She was, of course, with Lucas. “I’m in the finals!” The standings for extemporaneous speaking had apparently just been posted in the main lobby.

  “Congratulations,” I said. “That’s excellent.”

  “I know. And guess who the other finalist is?” She was holding Lucas’s hand, and now she swung it back and forth, smiling coyly (oh, ew) at him. “My Lukie, that’s who!”

  Lucas blushed. (At least he had the sense to be embarrassed.)

  “Wow,” David said. “Dueling sweeties. That should be interesting.”

  My eyes met Abby’s. We may not have been able to agree on much lately, but we agreed on one thing: This was bad news. Melissa versus Lucas? She was sure to dissolve into giggles and baby talk in front of the judges.

  “Anyway, we’re going to celebrate by doing some sightseeing,” Melissa told us. “Want to come? We thought we’d check out the Smithsonian. They have an entire museum devoted to television and movies.”

  “Sounds cool,” Kai said. “I’ll go.”

  David shrugged. “I’ve been there a million times. I think I might just chill for a while.”

  Abby and I decided to go. “I want to change first, though,” I said. I was still in my debate clothes.

  “So do I,” Abby agreed. “How about if we all meet in the lobby in fifteen minutes?”

  She and I headed for our room. Melissa lingered for a moment, saying good-bye to Lucas before she followed us. (How could they stand to be parted for so long? Fifteen minutes! What a tragedy.)

  Abby and I were silent until we hit the elevator. Then, once we were alone (except for Agent Melendez, of course), she burst out with it. “What are we going to do about Melissa?” she cried.

  “We’re going to have to talk to her. If she blows the finals, she’ll regret it later.”

  “I wouldn’t know what to say,” Abby confessed.

  “I would. I’ll do it.” I had no problem telling Melissa exactly what I thought.

  Which is what I tried to do as soon as she walked into the room a few minutes after we’d arrived. She started sorting through the T-shirts she’d brought, looking for something to change into.

  “Melissa,” I began, “can I talk to you for a second?”

  “Sure,” she said, holding up a purple shirt and checking herself in the mirror. I had the feeling she was wondering if Lucas liked purple.

  I jumped right in. “I know Lucas is very important to you. And I know it’s going to be hard to go up against him in the finals.”

  “You’re right.”

  “I am?”

  “Yes. It will be hard. Lucas is really smart. You guys haven’t seen him in action, but he’s an excellent speaker.” Now she was holding up a pink shirt. “He liked this one when we were at camp,” she murmured to herself.

  “I’m sure he’s good,” I agreed. “Otherwise he wouldn’t have made the finals. But that’s not what I meant.”

  “So what did you mean?” she asked, throwing down the pink shirt and picking up a yellow top.

  “Well, just that I wouldn’t want to see you — ” I paused. “How can I say this? I just don’t want you to back off. You shouldn’t give up winning the finals just because you and Lucas are, you know — ” This wasn’t as easy as I’d thought it would be.

  “What Kristy’s trying to say is,” Abby jumped in, “you shouldn’t let Lucas win just because you like him.”

  “Well, duh!” said Melissa, staring at us. “Are you guys out of your minds? I would never do that. No matter what Lucas means to me, this is the finals! I plan to kick butt. I just hope Lucas doesn’t mind too much when I walk away with that trophy.” She turned to head for the bathroom, throwing the yellow shirt over her shoulder. “But thanks for the advice anyway!” she called.

  Abby and I looked at each other, stunned.

  And yet, when Melissa and Lucas reunited in the lobby, it was as if they hadn’t seen each other in six months.

  I almost lost my lunch.

  As soon as Kai arrived we set off for the Mall. The Smithsonian Institution is actually made up of a whole bunch of museums and libraries — and even a zoo! There was more to it than we could see in a day, or a week, for that matter. We decided to start at the museum with the TV and film stuff, just because it sounded like fun. I glanced back at Agent Melendez once in awhile as we walked, hoping he would find this outing a little more interesting than his duty had been so far. I couldn’t tell if he was enjoying himself. He wore the same straight-faced expression, no matter what. I was beginning to wonder if he ever smiled.

  I thought of David, back in his room. I was glad, personally, to know that Agent Sanford would be sitting outside that room,
guarding David. After all, whether David liked it or not, there was a good reason those agents were following us.

  As we walked along, Kai and I talked about that day’s debate. Abby tried to jump into the conversation once in awhile, but everything she said sounded as if it belonged in Debate Room One. She baited me with comments about the uselessness of cats, and I bit, coming back at her with my own observations about the relative brainpower of dogs. We argued back and forth until Kai jumped in, his hands in the time-out position. This happened three times. Finally, Abby gave up and left Kai and me on our own to talk and plan strategy for the next day’s debate.

  But I forgot about debating when we arrived at the museum. There was so much to see!

  “Check it out,” cried Kai as we rounded a corner. “A phaser from the original Star Trek series. I’d give anything to own that.”

  “I like this statute of Charlie Chaplin,” Abby said. “He’s one of my heroes.” She posed next to it and asked Melissa to take her picture (even though I was right there).

  Melissa and I agreed on our favorite item: the ruby slippers worn by Judy Garland in The Wizard of Oz. We stood in front of that display case for a long time, talking about our memories of watching that movie.

  “I wanted to be Glinda, the good witch, when I grew up,” she confessed. Lucas smiled at her. I think he was picturing her in a beautiful ball gown, carrying a wand.

  “Not me,” I said. “I wanted to be the Scarecrow. I wanted to be able to dance the way he could.”

  “What was the scariest part for you?” asked Melissa. “Mine was the flying monkeys.”

  I shuddered. “Oh, definitely. They were majorly scary. But what about those trees with faces? I had a bad dream about them when I was six. I never forgot it.”

  “Can I just point out one thing?” Abby asked. “Please note that one of the stars of this movie is Toto. A dog, not a cat.” She gave me a smug look.

  I rolled my eyes. “Oh, please,” I said. “What does that have to do with anything?”