by Marty Chan
“Then why did you want to come to my house?”
“It was part of my investigation. I had no idea you had a crush on me.”
She glared at me from behind her glasses. “I do not have a crush on you. I think I will talk to Principal Henday.”
“If you tell The Rake, everyone’s going to know about how you felt.”
“How?” she asked.
“I have to tell people some reason why I was suspended from school.”
“You wouldn’t dare.”
I said nothing. It was always best to drop a suggestion and let the other person’s imagination turn it into something bigger than it really was. The way Mikayla chewed on her bottom lip, I was pretty sure she had turned my innocent comment into a terrible nightmare of people teasing her.
“But if you hold off, I’ll be able to find the real person who did this to you.”
She shook her head. “No way.”
“I’ll leave you out of it, Mikayla. You’re not the only victim here. This cyber bully has been pretty busy. What do you say?”
She eyed me up and down. “How can I be sure you’re not lying to me now?”
“If I was the one who set things up, why would I want to see the message I had sent? I mean that would make me the dumbest prankster in the world.”
This seemed to hit home. She scrunched her face as she tried to make sense of it all.
“Besides, why would I have signalled a partner to send an IM from me while I was still in your house?”
More silence.
“It doesn’t make sense, does it?”
She nodded as the truth dawned on her.
“Did the fake ‘me’ send any more messages after I left?” I asked.
Her eyes widened. “Yes. Last night.”
“What did he say?”
Mikayla looked down at the ground and mumbled, “He said if I liked him as much he liked me, I was supposed to wear a pink ribbon in my hair and sing to him at recess.”
The cyber bully was devious. Not only would this humiliate her, but it would also put me in the spotlight.
“Did you answer?” I asked.
Mikayla shook her head. “He logged off by the time I came back from chasing you.”
“Good. He’s expecting you to make a fool of yourself at recess.”
“I’m not doing it.”
“I have partners who can stake out the schoolyard. We’d know the only person who would be watching is the cyber bully.”
She narrowed her eyes. “You’re playing me.”
“This is the best way to lure out the cyber bully,” I argued.
She shook her head. “Lame-oh. I’m not singing in front of everyone.”
“You don’t have to,” I said. “The cyber bully is going to be watching you. All we have to do is spot the person looking at you. The only thing you have to do is walk up to me as slow as you can so my spotters can find the cyber bully.”
Mikayla nervously tugged at the bright red ribbon tied around the strap of her backpack. Then she said, “I didn’t bring a pink ribbon.”
“That red one is close enough.”
She let go of the ribbon. “I didn’t bring this ribbon because of the note, you know. It’s always been there. It’s my good luck charm.”
“It’s okay. You don’t have to explain. Now, do we have a deal?”
She nodded.
Later, I found Trina and explained everything. Once she heard the plan, she was up for it. So were Samantha and Ida. The girls would place themselves strategically around the schoolyard to spy on the kids. The person who paid closest attention to Mikayla had to be our cyber bully.
At recess, I rushed to the shed and sat down nearby. I untied my shoelaces and pretended to struggle with a knot. I glanced up to see Trina by the swings. Ida leaned against the wall between the entrances. I couldn’t see Samantha, but I was sure she was watching. The chaos of recess fell into its normal routine. Games that were started before school were continuing and kids who couldn’t stay awake in class were suddenly alive and running all over the place. Smack dab in the middle of the yard, Nathan was preaching to grade six boys about the power of karate. Among his disciples was Remi. He was helping the chubby Kennedy get to his feet, most likely after a failed karate demonstration. He looked in my direction. I looked away.
I scanned the schoolyard for any sign of gawkers. None so far, but that was because Mikayla hadn’t made her entrance yet. I had told her to give my team a few minutes to get into position, but enough time had passed that I worried she had got cold feet.
Finally, the school door opened and she appeared. Her red ribbon now sat atop her head like a lighthouse beacon shining for all the students to see, but no one looked her way. She made a roundabout circuit through the schoolyard, taking her time. I eyed the crowd. Not a single person noticed her. But when she spotted me and started to move closer, one person did straighten up and take notice — Nathan.
As she drew closer, he craned his neck to get a good look. Kennedy and Eric stood in his way as they demanded another karate demonstration. Remi turned and looked my way as well. I stood up to greet Mikayla. Her face was pale and it looked like she was trembling. Her bright red ribbon flopped around like it was electrified.
“Okay, that’s far enough,” I instructed. “Stay there and get ready like you’re going to sing.”
She took a deep breath. I glanced over her shoulder and saw Nathan still staring.
“Mikayla, chicken out and head back,” I whispered.
She turned on her heel and headed back into the crowd. Nathan grimaced with disappointment. No one else in the group was looking my way. I rushed to gather my team and break the news to them.
Trina shook her head, “Nathan only started looking in your direction after Remi pointed at you.”
Samantha glanced across the field at the creepy grade five boy we had all nicknamed Stalker Stan. “He was staring at Mikayla the moment she came out the door and his eyes never left her.”
Ida shook her head. “He’s in grade five. How would he know any of our account info?”
Trina guessed, “Maybe he’s got a brother or sister in our grade.”
I shook my head. “It’s not the Stalker Stan.”
Ida sneered. “Yeah, the guy who just happened to steal your friend is now your prime suspect. You know who I saw looking at Mikayla? Kennedy.”
“No way. Kennedy’s a wimp,” I said. “He’d never bully anyone.”
“That guy’s scared of his own shadow,” Samantha said.
“He tried to ask me to be his girlfriend, but he was so scared I think he wet himself,” Ida said. “Definitely not the bully type.”
“I’m telling you guys, the cyber bully has to be Nathan.”
Trina disagreed. “It’s a bit convenient, don’t you think? I mean how could Nathan send the IM and teach karate at the same time?”
“He was in the house when Remi and the other guys showed up. He could have sent the IM while they were calling him. I’m telling you, I saw the look on his face when Mikayla walked up to me.”
Samantha backed me up. “Well, I did tell the principal about Nathan’s nunchuks.”
Ida snorted. “No way it’s Nathan. The guy was my computer lab partner last week. He can’t even turn on the computer, let alone send emails.”
“Are you sure about that?” I asked.
“Trust me, that guy might be a schoolyard bully, but he doesn’t have the brains to do this,” Ida said.
Trina nodded. “Marty, you’re letting your feelings about Nathan cloud your judgment.”
“I’m sure it’s him. There’s no way Stalker Stan or Kennedy would have any reason to pick on any of you.”
The bell rang to signal the end of recess and our discussion. None of the girls seemed convinced. They turned and headed into the building. Someone crashed into my back, sending me lurching ahead. I barely kept my balance.
Behind me, Kennedy was dusting himself off. Natha
n and his cohorts glared at me.
“Watch where you’re going, Anderson,” Nathan said. “You almost stepped on the rat.”
Kennedy protested, “You pushed me.”
“Quiet,” barked Nathan.
I stood my ground. “I know you did it, Nathan.”
“Did what? Take away your only friend?”
“Why are you hanging out with him, Remi? You said he bugged you.”
Nathan answered. “Boudreau got tired of hanging out with rats.”
“I’m sorry about that, Remi,” I said. “I’ll make things right. You know I’m getting close to the . . . you know.”
“We should go,” Remi said to Nathan.
“Yeah, let’s go in, guys, and give Chan some alone time so he can cry.”
Kennedy and the other guys laughed. Remi gave me a look and shook his head. The boys moved around me. Nathan threw his arm around Remi and walked away.
“Did the plan work?” Mikayla said. She came up next to me.
“Yeah. It’s Nathan. I’m sure of it. I just need to get evidence to prove that he’s been sending nasty emails to people. Don’t worry, I’ll leave you out of it. I’m on his cyber bully list too. The emails in my inbox should be enough evidence for The Rake.”
“Do you still have the emails?” Mikayla asked.
“Yes, but they came from Ida’s email address. The trail would lead to her. We’ve got to get him to send an email from his own account, except he’s probably smart enough to use another fake account.”
Mikayla smiled. “I think I might be able to help with your problem.”
CHAPTER SIXTEEN
Trina and our clients were sceptical about Mikayla’s plan, but I told them that this was our only solid lead. Our case was like a buffet table and the only thing left was a dried cantaloupe slice. If we didn’t take it, the case would starve. The girls agreed to at least try.
“What we need is for the cyber bully to send me a message,” Mikayla said, “And I’ll be able to trace it to his computer.”
“I have plenty of messages from the jerk,” Samantha piped up.
“Me too,” Ida said.
Trina shook her head. “I don’t think those will work. They came from your email accounts. I’m guessing Mikayla needs one that comes straight from the cyber bully.”
“If we had that, we would have caught the cyber bully by now,” Ida said, sneering. “The guy is using fake accounts to cover his trail.”
“True, but if he sends an IM, there’s something you can’t fake,” Mikayla said. “Every computer has an IP address. It’s a postal code for computers, so you can track down their location if you have the right software — which I happen to have.”
I explained. “If Mikayla gets an IM from the guy, she can get his IP address and then we go to his house and prove it’s Nathan.”
“If it is Nathan,” Trina corrected. “It might be Stalker Stan or one of the grade six girls for all we know.”
“Trust me, it’s Nathan,” I said.
Samantha flipped her black hair out of her eyes. “What if he sends it from a public computer like the library?”
“What about the school computer?” Ida added.
“Or the internet café uptown,” Samantha said.
I waved for silence. “That’s why we waited until after school to talk to you. If we get him to send an IM now, we know it can’t be from school, which means we’ve eliminated one of the public places. All we need is someone to stake out the library and the internet café. Any volunteers?”
Ida shrugged. “I’ll take the internet café.”
Samantha raised her hand. “I’ll take the library.”
“Great! Trina and I will join Mikayla at her house to send the message. We’ll call you if anything comes up.”
With that, we split off to our assigned jobs. As we neared Mikayla’s house, I couldn’t help but glance down the block to see if Remi was at Nathan’s house.
“It doesn’t make sense,” Trina said. “How can a guy who doesn’t know anything about computers be so good at hiding his trail?”
“I’ll bet he’s playing dumb about computers to throw us off the scent,” I said.
Mikayla looked down the street. “One thing’s for sure, Nathan fits the profile of a bully.”
“You know, so does Eric,” Trina said.
“Why are you defending Nathan?” I asked.
“Because you only suspected him after Remi started hanging out with him. After what you did, I don’t think you have any right to be jealous.”
Her comment stung worse than a paper cut on my knuckle. I fell silent as we entered Mikayla’s house and took a seat on a black leather couch in the living room. The coffee table was littered with remote controls and old newspapers. She asked us to clear some room for her laptop and left. Trina scooped up the remote controls while I cleared the newspapers. She stacked the remotes on a side table, while I stuffed the papers under the coffee table. The room smelled faintly of disinfectant.
Trina and I plopped on the couch and sank deep into the well-worn butt grooves on the cushions.
“Have you talked to Remi?” I asked.
She nodded. “He asked how you were.”
“You told him I was fine, right?” The last thing I wanted Remi to think was that his defection hurt me.
She shrugged. “I didn’t get a chance. Kennedy came over and said that Nathan wanted to see him.
Remi took off.”
“It’s weird, isn’t it? It’s like when Nathan calls, Remi answers. He’s become Nathan’s lapdog.”
She cocked her head to the side, “Yeah, it’s weird. I don’t see what’s so great about Mr. Karate Master, but I’m sure Remi has a reason to hang out with him.”
“Maybe he’s sniffed out some evidence to prove Nathan’s a cyber bully and he’s working undercover,” I suggested.
“You’d better be careful about your accusations, Marty. If we have the wrong guy, you could get in trouble for spreading rumours.”
“I’m not wrong,” I said.
She didn’t argue with me, but I could tell from her furrowed eyebrows that she didn’t agree. I said nothing more, letting the issue rest until I found my proof. Hopefully, Mikayla would provide the evidence. She returned to the living room with her laptop and planted herself between us on the couch. As I watched her load up her Friendz profile, I felt her squeeze her leg against mine. Was she doing this on purpose? If this encouraged her to help us solve the case, I would let her leg stay where it was.
“First, we need Marty’s profile,” she said. “The fake Marty.”
Trina and I leaned forward and looked at the profile. Apparently, the fake ‘me’ had sent an unhappy face to Mikayla with a note that read: Why didn’t you sing?
“Well, we know the cyber bully was in the schoolyard,” I said.
Trina nodded. “When did he send this note?”
Mikayla pointed at the time stamp under the note. “About fifteen minutes ago.”
“Where’s your phone?” Trina asked.
“Kitchen.”
Trina got up. “I’ll call Ida and Samantha. Maybe they’ll be able to see the cyber bully at a computer or something.”
“Go for it,” I said.
Trina headed off, leaving Mikayla and me alone on the couch. There was an awkward silence.
“Just in case, send the fake ‘me’ an IM and see if he replies.”
“Sure, sure. Good idea.” Mikayla put her hands to the keyboard. “What should I write?”
I never thought I’d have to write a love note to myself. “Why don’t you tell me, him, you chickened out because I, he, me, whatever, gave you a strange look. Say that your heart is like baking bread. It only rises for him, but any sudden noises — like kids laughing — will make it fall.”
“That’s so romantic, Marty.”
“Uh . . . thanks. Why don’t you tell him that if he’s really serious about his love, then he should be the one who sings to yo
u?”
Her fingers flew across the keyboard. I’d never seen anyone type as fast as her. I guess it had to do with all the time she spent on the computer. Before I knew it, the message was on its way. All we had to do was sit back and wait. She pressed harder against my thigh. Suddenly, I was very aware of how close we were sitting. I tried to inch away, but I couldn’t get out of the butt groove; I just sank in deeper and shifted closer to Mikayla.
“Do you think it will take long for him to reply?” I asked.
“I don’t know. Depends if he’s on the computer right now.”
More awkward silence.
“You think I smell nice?” she asked.
“Um . . . it’s okay.” I could detect the faint scent of cherries.
She smiled. “It’s my mom’s perfume. It’s pretty fab.”
“Say, I wonder what’s taking Trina so long,” I said.
She shifted on the black leather couch which made a suspicious farting noise as she moved.
“It was the couch,” she said, blushing.
I held my breath. Trina rushed into the living room, rescuing me from this awkward situation.
“Ida and Samantha haven’t seen anyone from our class at the library or the café. The cyber bully has his own computer.”
“We should start making a list of who has computers in grade six,” I suggested.
“Hel-lo, it would be quicker to make a list of who doesn’t have one.”
Mikayla agreed with Trina. “Only really poor people don’t have computers today.”
I looked down at the coffee table. “I don’t have a computer.”
“Oh. Sorry. I didn’t mean anything by it.” Mikayla looked at me like I had just told her that I ate cat food for lunch.
Trina interjected. “Remi doesn’t have one either.”
“Do you think Nathan has one?” I asked.
“If he does, he probably uses it as a door stop,” Trina said.
A loud ping from the laptop got all our attention. The fake ‘me’ responded to our IM with a short note:
Mik, Too shy to sing. Kiss me in class 2morrow, I’ll be bacon to your eggs, a delicious breakfast combo. I maxi-mean it. Marty. <33333333.
Mikayla sprang into action, putting her hands on the keyboard and working with great speed and precision. I felt like I was watching a world-class pianist at work. Trina looked over Mikayla’s shoulder and nodded impressed.
