The Summer of Our Discontent, Jacquel May [e book reading free .TXT] 📗

decided to make her disappear for exposing them. If that were true, someone would have said something about that by now.

 

Little did the people know that several of its young residents would be involved in a dangerous scavenger hunt...

 

* * * * *

 

While the people in Tanya's neighborhood discovered that she was missing, Mara Llewellyn, Stuart Greer, Irene Haughton, and Pearl Tanner were celebrating the end of their middle school years at Jan's Clubhouse.

 

Or as this story goes:

 

"I can't believe it! We’re finally finished with middle school!" Stuart said as the kids threw themselves onto the pile of bean bag chairs in a corner of the trailer. "If I don't see the inside of Harrison Creek Middle School again, it'll be too soon!“

 

"I hope not," said Irene. "I hate to go back to that dreadful awful school. Why can't we find a nice school to go to instead of these second-rate places they insist we must attend?"

 

"Why indeed," said Mara as she remembered the eighth grade promotion, which happened only yesterday…

 

Mara found herself glancing around the music room. 300 students were graduating from Harrison Creek Middle School. Many parents and grandparents came to the school auditorium. The incoming sixth, seventh, and eighth graders sat on the right while the spectators sat on the left.

 

Mara found Stuart standing in a corner of the room, fiddling with a miniature Tibetan flag hidden inside his sweater. “Can you believe it, Mara?" he said excitedly. "In a few minutes, we'll be freshmen!”

 

“We’re not in high school yet,” Mara said.

 

"Yeah, but we're still going to graduate, " said Stuart.

 

"Promotion, Stuart," Irene said while approaching Stuart and Mara. “We’re being promoted to the ninth grade. Graduation is when we're leaving high school.”

 

“Yeah yeah,” Stuart frowned as he stood up and faced Irene.

 

“Oh, don’t be such a party pooper,” said Irene. “You’re lucky you get to go through this once.”

 

"Yeah, I know," said Stuart.

 

Mara sighed, wondering what had gotten into Stuart. Did he have another fight with his foster parents? Did he stay up too late on that forum he frequented? No matter what the answers were, Mara knew that Stuart wasn't his usual self, not where it counted.

 

Just then, Mara heard Irene saying, "Mara, tell me you're not wearing THAT!!"

 

"What?" Mara snapped out of her reverie and stared at Irene. Irene frowned as she grabbed a part of Mara's dress and held it up. It was a sky-blue gown patterned with daisies with an attached apron. "PLEASE tell me you’re NOT wearing that hideous dress to the Promotion."

 

"It was the only dress my mom could afford to buy," said Mara. "You know my family can't afford nice clothes."

 

"I understand," Irene said as she led Mara away from the crowd and towards the girl's bathroom. There, Jackie was at the sink, putting on some makeup. "It shames me to think that you can be so smart, yet wear such hideous clothes," Jackie smirked as she stared at Mara. "No matter. We'll get rid of that dress and find something better for you to wear."

 

"Uh, what does Mara's dress have to do with anything?" said Pearl.

 

"Well, you know how Jackie's always helping me when I come to school wearing bad clothes," said Mara.

 

"Yeah," said Stuart. "But let's get to the part where our promotion actually began."

 

"Indeed," said Irene.

 

As the principal of Harrison Creek Middle School made his speech, Mara, Stuart, Irene, and Pearl sat towards the back of the crowd, looking for Tanya. Something wasn't right. It wasn't like her to miss her own promotion ceremony. Mara saw her mother, Angelisa, and twin sisters Jaden and Gwen standing in the back of the auditorium. Tanya’s family was in the middle fourth row. Stuart’s foster family was in a corner. Lil’Marie’s mother was in the front row. Jackie’s family sat towards the back. Tanya wasn't there.

 

"This isn't right," said Jackie when she stared at the kids. "Tanya can't miss this ceremony. How can she not be here?"

 

"Who knows?" said Stuart. "I bet she got lost on the way here."

 

Pearl was about to respond when the entire eighth grade class had to stand underneath the signs that read "St. Paul Academy", "Kladenmet High", "Asennica Preparatory School", and "Harrison Creek High School". As luck would have it, Mara, Stuart, Irene, and Pearl stood under the sign that read "Harrison Creek High School". They weren't alone, as 142 other students stood under the sign.

 

"Well, this is the worst day ever," said Mara.

 

"It’s not that bad," said Stuart. "In fact, it could get a whole lot worse. Believe me."

 

Unfortunately, he was right. Things did get worse.

 

Just then, Mara's Razor phone began ringing, which broke the reverie. Irene said, "Your phone is an embarrassment to humanity. Why can't you get a smartphone like everyone else?"

 

"Because I can always take an old phone apart and make it run faster than the latest Samsung models," said Mara. "Besides, what would I want a smartphone for?"

 

But she did pick it up and said, "What's going on, Jackie? What? You gotta be kidding! No? OK, I'll tell them. No problem."

 

"What's going on, Mara?" said Stuart as Mara hung up her phone.

 

"It's Jackie," said Mara. Irene and Pearl stared at her. "She says that Tanya's been reported missing."

 

At that, the entire clubhouse was filled with panic. "Missing?" Irene cried out in anger. "How can she go missing? And especially after Mara warned her not to disappear?"

 

"People don't like her," said Pearl. "They don't like her because she goes after bullies."

 

"And those who are bullies always get in trouble, no thanks to Tanya," said Mara. "I bet someone was looking for a chance to shut her down."

 

"They saw her hanging out with us and snatched her before she could yell for help," said Stuart. "And judging by how fast she went missing, I bet that we're next."

 

"And that's what worries me," said Mara. The others stared at her. "Why did it take 10 days for someone to report her missing?"

 

"Why indeed," said Pearl.

 

"I know, right?" Irene cut in. "Usually, it takes a few minutes to report a person missing, but this is ridiculous. You don't wait 10 days to report someone missing, not unless something sinister is going on here."

 

"And that's the big issue," said Mara. "Tanya is missing and we don't know why."

 

"I don't know how we're going to do it, but we're going to find out what's going on here," said Stuart angrily. "Nobody messes with our friend and lives! NOBODY!!!"

 

Mara and Pearl cheered in agreement, but Irene shook her head. Whoever kidnapped Tanya would go after the other kids because of their friendship with her. Irene knew that there were no shortage of people who didn't care for Tanya and wanted to get rid of her and anyone associated with her. Knowing that she, Mara, Stuart, and Pearl were friends with Tanya Shinnok, Irene knew they would be next.

 

Not on my watch they won't mess with us, she thought as she watched her friends plot to tear the city apart in their search for Tanya. Tanya is gone and someone knows why she disappeared. I will find out who did it and make them pay.

 

She slipped out of the clubhouse and ran down the street. She had an idea of who made Tanya disappear.

 

* * * * *

 

While the city of Harrison Creek was horrified over the disappearance of Tanya Shinnok, Trevor Shinnok, Jackie Gilmore, and Grace Gifford were at Grace's house, celebrating their rival's disappearance. They hated her because she exposed them as bullies in their seventh grade year; that incident cost them their reputations and friendships with other students.

 

Thanks to Tanya, they were known as the Bullying Trio, a trio of kids no one liked or wanted to be around.

 

"I don't care what everyone else thinks, Tanya is gone and good riddance!" said Trevor.

 

"Good riddance to her," said Grace. "I never liked her anyway."

 

"I don't know about you, but it's not as much fun with her gone," said Jackie. Trevor and Grace glared at her. "I mean it. It's not the same without her glaring at us."

 

"Jackie, are you all right?" said Grace.

 

"What are you talking about?" said Jackie as she glared at Grace.

 

"It's not like you to talk like that, like you actually care about Tanya," said Trevor. "You don't care about Tanya, or do you?"

 

"Why do you ask?" said Jackie.

 

"Because word on the street is that you do care about Tanya," said Grace. "Did you forget she called you a bully for pushing Carina Martin down the stairs while we were in the seventh grade?"

 

"Carina is a liar," said Trevor. "And from what I recall, Vicki Daniels pushed her down the stairs and blamed Jackie."

 

"Who cares about who pushed who down the stairs?" Jackie snarled. "I'm tired of being a bully! It's not fun anymore!"

 

"Well, there is that," said Grace.

 

"What are you talking about?" said Trevor.

 

"The fact that things went wrong for us since Tanya called us bullies," said Grace. "She literally destroyed us."

 

"Yeah, and your point is?" said Trevor.

 

"My point is that bullying hurts people, and the day Tanya called us bullies was the day she hurt us," said Jackie. "Sure it was fun to harass people and laugh at their misfortunes, but when Stuart Greer called me a dumbass and spread that awful rumor about me having three disabled little brothers, I found myself feeling hurt by his cruel words. Suddenly, I realized that being a bully was no longer fun."

 

"See? That's how Tanya gets to you," said Trevor. "She exposes you as a bully and has her helpers make you feel guilty about hurting people. Some people deserve to be oppressed; in all honesty, they're asking for it, if anyone cares to hear my opinion on the matter."

 

"Trevor, don't be stupid," said Grace. "Don't tell me that you don't feel guilty after making fun of that Oscar Alston for his disability because you did."

 

“Oscar is a stupid kid who should have stayed in the special ed classroom,” Trevor began, but he fell silent as Grace and Jackie saw Irene Haughton standing in the doorway of Grace’s bedroom with an angry look on her face.

 

* * * * *

 

At the same time, Mara, Stuart, and Pearl (who remained at the clubhouse) quickly cleaned up the place and left; they were too upset to continue the after-the-promotion party. Not when Tanya was missing.

 

"I don't think this is fair," said Stuart as they climbed into a golf cart Mara's uncle Jonas refurbished for her when she refused to ride a bike. "Tanya is missing and we ignored it until it was too late. What kind of friends are we?"

 

"Not unless Tanya was kidnapped by people who like bullies," said Pearl.

 

"Well, there is that," said Stuart.

 

"It doesn't matter," said Mara.

 

"What?" said Pearl.

 

"It doesn't matter how long she's been missing," said Mara. Stuart glared at her. "All it matters is that Tanya is missing and we have to find her."

 

"You're right, Mara," said Pearl. "Tanya is missing. People are setting aside their opinions about her and searching for her as we speak. The police have been notified and they're coming here to assist in the search. But what worries me is that Trevor Shinnok and Grace Gifford might have had a hand in Tanya's disappearance, if you know what I mean."

 

"Yeah, I hate those jerks," said Mara. "Why do we bother with them, anyway?"

 

"Why is Jackie friends with them?" said Stuart.

 

"Why indeed," said Mara.

 

"We are Jackie's friends as we are Tanya's friends," said Pearl. "Trevor and Grace are not nice to her because you expose her secret to the school..."

 

"OK, so I did something stupid to Jackie last year," said Stuart. "What's your excuse?"

 

"You have no excuses, not where it counts," said Mara. "Plus, you still haven't apologized to her for hurting her feelings."

 

"I'll get to it when I get to it," said Stuart as Mara pulled the golf cart to his house. "But she needs to get rid of those jerks first."

 

He stepped out of the cart and ran into his