“Thirty years tonight,” the old man said darkly. Just then, a thunderclap burst outside the building and the lights flickered. Both men looked up. “Trust my words, son,” the old man said. “No good will come of this.”
Dorothy grabbed Sam’s hand and raced down the hallway. The conversation had spooked her, and the sooner she found her teammates the better. Was there really a chance that Eva would take her revenge tonight? Grandma hadn’t seemed worried about the bout. But then again, Grandma wasn’t here now, either. Why had Grandma had to go and get herself arrested?
Come on, Dorothy. It’s just a ghost story. Pull yourself together.
When they reached the rink, Dorothy did a double take. The dirty carpet walls were gone, replaced by tall metal bleachers. The wood floor was polished to a glossy sheen, and the track lines looked professionally painted. Uncle Enzo had really gone all out to get Galactic Skate ready for tonight’s bout. And it appeared to be paying off. The bleachers were packed with noisy spectators, most of whom were wearing Halloween costumes. There were superheroes and monsters, witches and pumpkins—even a six-foot banana. Dorothy recognized several faces in the crowd. Merdusa and Boom-Boom from the Flatiron Sirens, kids from school. She even spotted a couple of faculty members.
“Dorothy!” called a friendly voice. It was Mr. Macarini waving to her from halfway up the stands. He was dressed in a beige animal control officer uniform and had what appeared to be a snake wrapped around his neck.
Dorothy jumped involuntarily at the sight of the big snake.
“Gotcha!” Mr. Macarini said with a laugh. He peeled the snake off his neck and shook it. “Rubber!”
Dorothy breathed a sigh of relief and gave the teacher a thumbs-up.
“Can you believe someone left this awesome snake in my car?” he yelled.
Dorothy bit her bottom lip and shook her head. At least Grandma had had the sense to use a fake snake.
After sending Sam up the bleachers to sit with her art teacher, Dorothy raced to the girls’ bathroom to find her team.
She was almost to the restrooms when she spotted a group of Pompoms waving signs that said things like, DERBY GIVES YOU SCURVY, SLUGS ARE SLIMY BUGS, and NO KISSES FOR THE HISSES.
How dare they? Dorothy thought, her teeth clenched. What kind of jerks protest roller derby…at a roller derby bout?
Dorothy had done her best to ignore the daily taunts, but now the Pompoms were on her turf. They needed to be taught a lesson.
Dorothy felt her fingers clench around her skate laces. She felt her arm lift the skates above her head. She was about to throw the skates at the Pompoms when a strong hand grabbed her wrist.
“What do you think you’re doing?” Gigi said.
“Must…get…Pompoms…” Dorothy grunted, struggling against Gigi’s hold.
“Whoa! Calm down, Hulk,” Gigi said, confiscating the skates. “Save it for the Cheerbleeders.”
“Thank goodness you’re here!” It was Jade. Both she and Gigi were already decked out in uniform and pads. “Uh, where’s Grandma?”
Dorothy stared blankly at Jade.
“Earth to Dorothy,” Jade said, snapping her fingers in front of Dorothy’s eyes.
Dorothy blinked. It was as if her brain was moving in slow motion.
“Grandma?” Jade repeated.
“She…parking ticket…police…”
“Oh, great,” Gigi said. “Arrested?”
Dorothy nodded.
“Who’s going to coach, then?” Jade asked.
Dorothy shrugged.
Just then, the music out on the skate arena grew louder.
“Here,” Gigi said, returning Dorothy’s skates. “Go get ready. Now! We’re on.”
A few minutes later, the announcer was calling out names. Dorothy was barely scrambling onto the track as she heard her skate name being called.
She waved at the cheering crowd. Her head felt a lot clearer now that she was skating. Had she really just tried to launch her skates at the Pompoms? Thank goodness Gigi had stopped her. This new, feisty Dorothy was dangerous.
As Dorothy rounded the first corner, she heard a whistle and looked over to see Max waving to her from the middle of the track. He was wearing his black-and-white jersey. Dorothy smiled and waved back. Usually the sight of Max made Dorothy’s heart rate skyrocket. Now it was strangely calming. Max was a flirt, but he was also kind and protective. And with Grandma gone, it was nice to know there was someone else looking out for her.
On their last warm-up lap, several Pompoms approached the track and shook protest signs. Gigi turned sideways, flipped up her skirt and waggled her bottom at them. The crowd roared with laughter. Red faced with embarrassment, the Pompoms slunk back to their seats.
Next, the Cheerbleeders were announced. Dorothy shuddered as she watched the older girls race onto the track. The team was dressed in tattered cheerleader costumes. Their faces were painted to look like exposed muscle tissue and bone.
Dorothy’s vision blurred. For the first time that night she wondered if they really had a chance to beat the Cheerbleeders. Did the Slugs really belong in the championship? After everything she had done to get to the game tonight, was she just going to make a fool of herself in front of her teachers, classmates, Max, and the Pompoms?
Dorothy looked toward the entrance for the hundredth time in the last minute. Still no Grandma. And no Grandma meant no coach.
A whistle blew, and the first jam was under way.
“Next up! Mayhem! Slugs ’n’ Hisses are off to a sloppy start!”
Chapter 25
The Slugs ’n’ Hisses gathered in a circle at the edge of the track. Dorothy looked around at the weary, disheartened faces.
Juana fixed her intense, dark eyes on Dorothy. “We needs you,” she whispered.
“But I’m skating the best I can,” Dorothy said. She couldn’t help that the team was falling apart.
“Not for the skating,” Juana said. “For the coaching.”
“Me? Coach?” Dorothy said, stunned. But that was Grandma’s job. She scanned the entrance hall. Still no Grandma.
“You are the logical choice,” Geekzilla said. “Your observations have proven accurate.”
“They have?” Dorothy said.
Jade looked up from her sweat-drenched towel. “Now that I think of it, Geekzilla’s right. You’re the perfect coach, Undead.”
“Coach! Coach! Coach!” Dinah chanted, and the rest of the team joined in.
“All right, all right!” Dorothy said. “I’ll coach.” She took a deep breath. “But you all are going to have to listen to me. Okay?”
Everyone nodded. Everyone except Gigi, that is.
“Come on, Gigi. That means you, too,” Dorothy said, her voice growing more confident.
“Okay, fine. We’ll do it your way,” Gigi said. “But you better have a good plan. We’re getting eaten alive out there.”
“Don’t worry,” Dorothy said. “I have a plan.”
• • •
“Nice work, team!” Dorothy said. “We’re over halfway there!”
“I have to give it to you,” Gigi said. “You’re a great roller derby coach.”
Suddenly the lights flickered and went dark. There were gasps and hoots from the audience.
Dorothy held her breath. Was Eva Disaster going to take her revenge now?
Chapter 26
“I think it’s just the halftime show,” Jade whispered.
As if on cue, a spotlight appeared in the center of the polished rink floor and Alex skated into it. The room became quiet, except for a few catcalls and some rumbles of laughter.
This is her big surprise, Dorothy thought.
Alex’s pink ruffle and sequin costume shimmered like fish scales. Her silky blond ponytail was pulled up into an impossibly tight bun, and her ro
ller skates were brilliantly white. She positioned herself with her legs crossed at the ankle. Her hands rested below her chin, fluttering gently like butterfly wings.
Dorothy felt a sudden urge to giggle, but stopped herself. Alex did look ridiculous, like a sparkly fairy princess taking the stage at a heavy metal concert, but she had some guts, too. What would the Pompoms think?
A single sweet violin note pierced the silence and Alex stretched her arms like wings. Her feet moved like fluid water beneath her, creating circles and spirals that rhythmically expanded and contracted, spinning her body like a leaf on the flowing surface of a stream.
Dorothy held her breath. This was artistic roller-skating? All those times she had seen Alex practicing, she had thought those jumps and leaps were just showy tricks to throw off her team’s focus. Now she was seeing something extraordinary. Alex was a powerful skater. Someone who was just as passionate about her brand of roller-skating as Dorothy was about derby.
The single violin grew more spirited, exploring scales with increasing energy, and Alex mirrored the rhythm of the music perfectly. Her movements became sharper and her feet changed directions in quick, precise, sliding steps. As the music built to a crescendo, Alex turned so she was skating backward. She propelled herself with growing speed, seeming to sense the edge of the skate floor rather than see it with her eyes. The violin reached fever pitch and then froze time with a single, impossibly high note. Alex leapt into the air, spinning her body once, twice, and finally three times before landing smoothly on one skate and eloquently extending the other leg behind her.
The silence that had filled the arena just a moment before erupted into the roar of deafening applause. Dorothy was cheering, too, tears welling at the corners of her eyes. To her surprise, Jade and Gigi were smiling and clapping along with the rest of her team. Even the Pompoms were on their feet, chanting, “Alex! Alex! Alex!” and “Roller-skating rules!”
Alex’s face beamed with pride. She waved gracefully, took a bow, and skated off the floor.
Chapter 27
There wasn’t any time to find Alex and congratulate her. There wasn’t even time to give her team a final pep talk or consult the playbook. It was time to jam, and Slugs ’n’ Hisses were still trailing by twelve points. Time to pull ahead, Dorothy decided.
Time out.
Dorothy and Gigi kneeled next to Jade. She was curled up in a ball and holding her ankle.
“Make way!” a voice cried. Nurse Boils pushed through the ring of skaters who had gathered around Jade.
“Stay calm, deary,” the nurse said, opening her bag. Her green eyes looked worried, but she gave Jade a gap-toothed smile just the same. “We’ll have you all fixed up in a minute.”
Nurse Boils began untying the laces on the injured foot and Jade cried out in pain.
“Let me through,” said a firm female voice. The crowd parted, and a petite Asian woman in a blazer knelt down next to Jade. Her heart-shaped face was a mask of worry.
“Ms. Song?” Gigi yelped.
“Mom?” Jade gasped, trying to focus on the woman.
“It’s me, Blossom,” the woman said, pushing a strand of hair out of Jade’s eyes.
“But how did…” Jade cringed as Nurse Boils pulled her skate off.
“Hush,” Jade’s mom said. “I’ve known about this,” she gestured to the skate floor, “for a while now.”
“But how?” Gigi said.
The woman pointed to a purplish, greenish welt on Jade’s leg. “You don’t get bruises like this from Cupcake Scouts.”
“But…why didn’t you stop me?” Jade said through a grimace. Nurse Boils was turning the hurt foot one way, then the other, examining the ankle.
“Because you were happy,” she replied. “I haven’t seen you happy—really happy—for a long time. Not since before your dad died, anyway.”
“So you’re not mad at me?” Jade winced.
Ms. Song shook her head. “But I am disappointed that you lied to me.”
“I’m sorry, Mom,” Jade said. “Really sorry.”
“It’s my fault, too, Blossom. I realize now that I shouldn’t have held you back so much.”
“Really?” Jade said.
Her mom nodded. “And if you promise to be honest with me from now on, I promise to give you more freedom. Okay?”
Jade smiled. “Okay.”
Nurse Boils pulled a couple of ice packs and a bandage out of her bag and began wrapping Jade’s ankle. “Well, it’s not a break,” she said, “but the ankle is badly sprained. I’m afraid you won’t be skating for a few weeks, deary.”
“But the game,” Jade said. “Who’s going to be the jammer?”
Dorothy and Gigi looked at each other. This was a problem. No one else was trained to play that position.
Suddenly Dorothy had an idea. “Hey, can you guys trust me?”
Gigi shrugged. “We made you the coach, didn’t we?”
“Uh-huh,” Dorothy said. “But you may not like what I have planned.”
“Does this idea of yours give us a chance against the Cheerbleeders?” Gigi asked.
Dorothy nodded.
Jade unstrapped her helmet and handed it to Dorothy. “Just do it already!”
Chapter 28
Dorothy felt a tap on her shoulder. She turned to see Grandma smiling at her.
“You’re here!”
“Sorry it took me so long,” Grandma said. Her nun outfit was wrinkled and her eyes looked tired.
“So you’re not in trouble?” Dorothy asked, relieved.
Grandma sighed. “Oh, not anything a few hundred dollars and community service won’t take care of.”
Dorothy sighed sympathetically.
“You know, Dorothy,” Grandma said. “I had some time to think in the back of that police car. I’ve been a pretty bad role model.”
“No you haven’t,” Dorothy said. Sure, Grandma had almost killed them with her crazy driving several times, but she’d also taught them how to play roller derby. Dorothy had never felt this strong before.
Grandma shook her head. “I promised myself that I was never going to abandon you girls the way I did your mom. And here I go and get myself arrested right when you needed me most. Do you think you can forgive me, Dot?”
“Uh,” Dorothy said, suddenly remembering where she had left Dead Betty. “How about I forgive you if you forgive me?” Dorothy said.
Grandma looked confused. “For what?”
Dorothy bit her lip. “You’ll see.”
Just then Max rolled over to let them know the next jam was about to start.
“So, are you going to coach us now?” Dorothy asked.
“No, hon,” Grandma said. “I saw the end of that last jam, and you’re a much better coach than I ever was.” She pulled out her silver whistle and handed it to Dorothy. “Now go get those Cheerbleeders.”
Chapter 29
The crowd rushed onto the floor, and Dorothy found herself lifted up on her teammates’ shoulders. “Undead Redhead! Undead Redhead!” they shouted, bouncing Dorothy up and down.
Dorothy felt exhilarated. She had done it! Her team had played the Cheerbleeders and won, and it had been her coaching that had made their victory possible. What would Mom think now?
Like an apparition, Mom’s face appeared at the back of the crowd. At least she thought it was Mom’s face. Dorothy was bouncing and spinning too quickly to be sure. When she had circled around again, the face was gone.
It could have been anyone, she thought.
A wave of regret and sadness washed over her as she remembered the fight from earlier that night. Would she ever see Mom again? Or have a normal family again?
All of a sudden she wanted down. She wanted out of Galactic Skate. She wanted to be somewhere alone and quiet and away from the chaos of the cheering crowd.
/>
She tried to get someone’s attention, calling and waving her arms, but her team was too caught up in the celebration to notice that Dorothy wanted free. Her eyes darted from face to face. Dinah Mite, Geekzilla, Rolling Thunder, Juana SmackHer, and Dee Tension were all beaming—overjoyed with their win. Gigi was so happy, she had an arm wrapped around Alex’s shoulder. Jade was there, too, supported by Grandma and Sam.
Then it dawned on Dorothy. This was her family. Was it a normal family? No. Of course not. But was any family really normal? The important thing was that they loved each other, right?
Finally, Dorothy was lowered from her team’s shoulders.
Alex’s dads had joined the celebration, and Jerry was dabbing his eyes with a monogrammed handkerchief.
“Alexandra, honey,” he gushed, “I’m just as proud of you now as when you were crowned Miss Grand National Star Grand Supreme.”
Alex blushed as her dads took turns kissing her cheeks.
“And you were quite the coach!” David said, extending a hand to Dorothy.
Dorothy shook David’s hand. “Well, we never would have won without your daughter.”
Dorothy looked at Alex and bit her lip. “I’m sorry I misjudged you. You were really amazing tonight, Alex.”
Alex swept her silky ponytail over her shoulder. “Don’t call me Alex.”
“Uh, okay,” Dorothy said. “Why not?”
“Because I’m the Alexorcist! Every player needs a skate name, right?”
“Darn tootin’,” Grandma said, coming up next to Dorothy. “Seems like we got us a real winning team here. Just like the good ol’ days…” Grandma’s voice trailed off.
Dinah started a round of, “I’m a roller derby girl! Derby, derby, roller, yeah!” and the whole team joined in.
Dorothy felt a tap on her shoulder and turned around. She came face-to-face with Max.
Dorothy’s Derby Chronicles: Rise of the Undead Redhead Page 11
