Fabulous Five 011 - Hit and Run (5 page)

Jana was released from the hospital the next morning. But as
much as she longed to be at home, away from the noisy halls and awful food and
back where she could have some privacy and sleep in her own bed, when she
walked out through the lobby, there was a lump in her throat. Randy was still
there in a deep sleep and barely clinging to life. She had brushed tears from
her eyes when her mother told her that the morning report on Randy's condition
was just the same as it had been the day before. No change.

Also left behind was Gorgeous. Jana had tried to think of
another way to ask Lisa to give him back, but the sight of the sad little girl
clutching the bear and staring at her with anxious eyes had made it impossible
to do. Instead she had taken Mrs. Foss aside and explained the situation. The
nurse had promised to get Gorgeous back for Jana before Lisa left the hospital.
Then she put her arms around Jana and hugged her, saying, "It's wonderful
of you to let her keep him so long. She really needs him, you know." Jana
had nodded silently and turned away before Mrs. Foss could see the tears in her
eyes.

When she got home, she found a long list of messages beside
the telephone. In addition to The Fabulous Five, tons of her friends had
called. Alexis Duvall, Kim Baxter, Sara Sawyer, and Lisa Snow, all old friends
from Mark Twain Elementary, had sent get-well wishes. Even Taffy Sinclair had
called. So had Whitney Larkin and Shawnie Pendergast. Some boys had called,
too. Curtis Trowbridge had called twice. Joel Murphy, Keith Masterson, Scott
Daly, and Shane Arrington had left messages, and Shane had told her mother that
Igor, his pet iguana, sent a special get-well wish. Jana couldn't help
chuckling about that.

Near the bottom of the list of names was Funny Hawthorne's.
Jana drummed her fingers on the telephone and wondered if she should call Funny
back right away. Funny was the only one who might be able to clear up the
mystery about Laura McCall. What was the secret she was keeping about Randy
Kirwan? And why had she sent the card to Randy saying she was sorry if she wasn't
feeling guilty about the accident? But Funny was also one of Laura's best
friends. She might feel as if she were betraying that friendship if she
answered Jana's questions. But Funny's my friend, too, Jana thought stubbornly.
There was no use putting it off, she decided. She had to know about Laura.

Funny was her usual bright and cheerful self when she
answered the phone. "Hello," she sang. "Hawthorne residence."

"Hi, Funny. This is Jana."

"Wow! Jana! I've been so worried about you. How are you
feeling? Are you still in the hospital?"

"Whoa," said Jana with a chuckle. "Slow down.
I'm feeling a lot better, and no, I'm not still in the hospital. The doctor let
me come home a little while ago."

"Terrific. Can you have company? I'd love to come over
and see you if it's okay."

Jana sighed. "Mom says I have to wait until tomorrow to
have company, but there is something I wanted to talk to you about."

"Sure. Fire away," said Funny.

Jana bit her lower lip, trying to choose her words
carefully. "It's about Laura," she said finally, "and Randy
Kirwan." For the next couple of minutes she explained to Funny about what
she had overheard Laura saying to Tammy and about seeing Laura and Randy
sitting together in Bumpers just before the accident. She wanted to shout that
it had all been Laura's fault, but she didn't. Instead she said, "If you
know what's going on between them, please tell me. I
have
to know."

"I wish I did know, but I don't," said Funny. "Honest.
Laura talks to Tammy and Melissa a lot more than to me lately. I guess it's
because you and I are friends. I have seen her talking to Randy several times
lately, though, and I heard what your friends said to her before school
yesterday morning. But still, I can't imagine that anything is going on between
them. As far as I know, she still has a crush on Shane Arrington. She's been
after him since sixth grade."

"There's something else," said Jana. "Somebody
sent Randy a get-well card and didn't sign it. Instead, they wrote 'I'm sorry.
Please forgive me' on it. I think the person who sent it feels responsible for
the accident. I also think it was Laura McCall."

Funny didn't say anything for a moment. When she did, the
sparkle was gone from her voice. "Gosh. I'll see what I can find out. I'm
not sure she'll tell me anything, but I promise to try. I'll call you back as
soon as I can."

"Thanks, Funny," said Jana. "I know it's not
going to be easy. You're a real friend."

Jana waited for the rest of the day for Funny to call back,
but she didn't. Several of her other friends did, though, including all of The
Fabulous Five, and they promised to visit her on Sunday afternoon.

"How about if I order out some pizza for supper?"
offered Pink later in the afternoon. "We need to celebrate your
homecoming."

"Pizza?" said Jana, feeling pleasantly surprised.
Pink always got her a deep-dish, pepperoni, green pepper, and mushroom pizza on
Saturday night before he and her mom went bowling. It was her absolute favorite
food in the world. "Great. Are you guys going bowling?"

"No way," Pink assured her. "We plan to spend
the evening with you. The pizza's just a little something extra."

But when the pizza was delivered and the three of them sat
down to eat it, Jana couldn't take a bite. The instant she saw it sitting there
on the kitchen table in the box from Mama Mia's Pizzeria she remembered that it
was Randy's favorite, too.

Her mom and Pink were looking at her with quizzical
expressions. She knew she should at least take one bite to show them she
appreciated their thoughtfulness, but she was sure she would never be able to
swallow it around the lump in her throat.

Jana slowly pushed her chair away from the table and stood
up. "I guess I'm just not very hungry right now," she said. "I'm
sorry. Save a couple of slices for me, and I'll warm them in the microwave
later. Okay?"

Pink and her mother exchanged worried glances, and then Mrs.
Pinkerton said, "Of course, honey. I'm sure you aren't feeling like your
old self yet. Why don't you watch some television for a little while and try to
rest?"

Pink nodded sympathetically, and Jana told them thank you
with her eyes as she went into the living room and sank onto the sofa. Picking
up the remote control, she aimed it at the set and punched the on button, not
caring what she watched. Her heart was too heavy with worry over Randy.

The news was on, and Marge Whitworth, the local anchorwoman,
was talking about a senator in Washington, D.C., who had suffered a heart
attack at his desk.

"And now for local news," said Ms. Whitworth. "Police
are continuing to investigate the hit-and-run accident Thursday, which slightly
injured one teenager and left a second in critical condition."

Jana's heart almost stopped, and she leapt off the sofa and
landed on her knees just inches from the set, remembering too late how stiff
and sore she was from the accident.

"Authorities say that they have pieced together enough
information from witnesses to get a partial description of the car. It was a
black or dark blue, late-model, two-door sedan. The license plate number began
with three seven and ended with nine. Anyone with additional information is
asked to contact the police department as soon as possible."

"Oh, my gosh!" Jana shouted.

"What was that about the accident?" asked Pink,
who was coming into the room carrying a slice of pizza. Her mother was right
behind him. "Your mom and I thought we heard something about it on the
television."

"Witnesses saw the car and got part of the license
number! Now maybe they can find the driver and put him in jail!" The words
gushed out of Jana almost faster than she could move her lips. Her eyes
narrowed. "I just hope he hasn't skipped town," she grumbled. "He
deserves to be punished for what he did."

"I'm sure they'll find him, sweetheart," her
mother said. "They can run the partial license plate number through the
computer at the department of motor vehicles and check out every car in the
state that matches. It may take a while, but they'll find him. Now why don't
you try to eat something? This pizza is delicious. It won't taste nearly as
good warmed over."

Jana followed her mother and Pink back into the kitchen like
a robot and ate three slices of pizza without tasting any of it. All she could
think about was the hit-and-run driver and how the police were closing in on
him at that very moment. She smiled to herself. Someone was finally doing
something, and for the first time since the accident, there was something to
get her hopes up for.

A little later Funny called. "You're not going to
believe this," she said in an excited voice.

"What? Tell me," Jana insisted. She feared the
worst, but she had to know.

"Okay. I'll start at the beginning. I called Laura and
said that I really didn't understand what The Fabulous Five were talking about
yesterday when they asked her what was going on between her and Randy Kirwan.
At first, she insisted that it was nothing. She said it was all a big mistake,
but I kept pushing, and finally she told me the whole story."

"So, what did she say?" Jana urged.

"Are you sitting down?"

"Yes. Shoot," said Jana.

"Okay. Laura's still crazy about Shane Arrington."

"What!" cried Jana.

"Sure," said Funny. "You remember, don't you?
I told you she had a crush on him in sixth grade. Anyway, Laura's desperate to
get him to ask her out, but she's heard some rumors that he doesn't like her
anymore. It's her attitude. He thinks she's a snob. Actually, he likes Melanie
a lot better because she's sweet and friendly to everybody."

"So, what does that have to do with Randy? That's who I
heard her talking about. Not Shane."

"This is where it starts getting unbelievable,"
said Funny with a laugh. "Laura asked Randy to bring her name up when he's
around Shane and then talk her up. You know, improve her image. She thought if
Randy could impress Shane with how great she was, Shane would ask her out."

"Do you mean she actually asked Randy to do a thing
like that?" Jana shouted into the phone. It was too incredible to be true.

"She was a little more subtle than that," Funny
said. "She just asked him to do her a favor and say nice things about her
to Shane once in a while."

"No wonder Randy was laughing when I saw them together,"
Jana muttered.

"What did you say?"

"Nothing," said Jana. "But I'm still not
convinced. If everything was so innocent, then why did she send the get-well
card to Randy, and why did she tell Tammy that she wanted Randy to confess to
me about the two of them? Explain that, if you can."

"She said that she definitely did not send the card.
She also said that she was trying to prevent the exact thing that happened—your
getting mad. She was afraid that if you saw her talking to Randy a lot, you'd
start saying bad things about her that would get back to Shane. She thought
that if Randy told you he was doing her some kind of favor and that's why he
was talking to her so much, then you'd keep quiet about her."

"And Shane would listen to Randy, fall madly in love
with her, and then everybody would live happily ever after. Is that the idea?"
asked Jana.

"You've got it," said Funny. "Although what
she wanted Randy to tell you was that they were doing a school project
together—not that he was helping her with her love life."

"Oh, Funny. That's hilarious. What some people won't do
for romance," chuckled Jana. "Actually, she and Melanie ought to get
together and compare notes on how to attract boys."

"You're right. It is pretty crazy," conceded
Funny. "But I do believe her. You'll have to admit that you were wrong
about her this one time."

Jana sighed, feeling as deflated as a balloon with a hole in
it. She had been so sure that Laura was a villain, had even
wanted
to
believe it. But now she was forced to face the truth.

"Oh, all right. I was wrong. I can't really blame her
for the accident when I misinterpreted what was going on, I guess. I owe Randy
an apology, too. I should have known that I could trust him. Oh, Funny. If I'd
only remembered that and trusted him on Thursday, the accident would never have
happened! How could I have been so stupid?"

"You weren't stupid. You were just human," Funny
said gently. "Randy's pretty special. Nobody can blame you for wanting to
hang on to him. Besides, accidents are accidents. Nobody means for them to happen."

"Thanks, Funny, but I still feel pretty horrible. I
just hope they get the hit-and-run driver." She told Funny what she had
heard on television earlier about the partial description of the car and some
of the numbers on the license plate. "That guy belongs behind bars. It may
have been an accident, but you can't say
he
wasn't to blame."

"Yeah," said Funny. "I guess you're right
about him. If he wasn't guilty, he would have stayed at the scene and tried to
help you and Randy."

Before they hung up, Funny said, "So promise me that
you won't do anything to let Laura know what I've just told you. She'd kill me
if she knew I told you all that. Now that you and I are friends, she doesn't
trust me very much anyway."

"O
-kay,
" Jana said grudgingly.

"Thanks," said Funny.

"There's just one thing," added Jana. "Can I
tell The Fabulous Five if I swear them to secrecy? I've just
got
to tell
someone."

"Oh, all right," said Funny. "But make
sure
they keep it a secret."

Jana called each of her four friends the instant Funny and
she hung up, saving Melanie for last.

"What!" shrieked Melanie when she had heard the
whole story. "How can you call Laura innocent when she's scheming to get
Shane away from me?"

"Okay, so she's not exactly innocent," Jana
conceded. "At least she's your problem now, instead of mine."

"Well, maybe she's not so much of a problem if Shane is
saying that he likes me better than her," Melanie said gleefully.

"That reminds me. How's your checklist for boyfriends
coming along?" asked Jana.

"Who needs it? I'm going to throw it away and just
concentrate on Shane," said Melanie in a breathless voice. "I can't
let Laura McCall take him away from me."

Later, when she was getting ready for bed, Jana heard the
phone ring again. A few minutes later her mother knocked on her door.

"Come in," called Jana.

"It was the police. They've found the hit-and-run
driver," Mrs. Pinkerton said. "They were able to identify the car
through the description and the partial license plate number just the way we
thought."

"Terrific!" shouted Jana, thrusting a fist into
the air. "Did they get the driver? Is he in jail?"

"It isn't a he," her mother said quietly. "It's
a she. Her name is Erica Fleming, and she's sixteen. She said she had only had
her driver's license for three days when the accident happened, and she left
the scene because she panicked, thinking no one would believe her side of the
story."

Jana wrinkled her nose. "Her side of the story? What's
to believe? She ran down Randy, didn't she?"

Mrs. Pinkerton looked away for a moment. "She says that
she was driving along staying well below the speed limit when you raced into
the street no more than six feet in front of her car. There was no way for her
to stop in time. She's also the one who sent the get-well card to Randy. She's
really upset about the accident."

Jana closed her eyes and let her breath out slowly. She was
too stunned to speak. She had been so sure. So positive that the hit-and-run
driver was the real person who was responsible for Randy's condition. Somehow
she had even believed that once the driver was found and put in jail,
everything would get better. Randy would wake up, and things would be the way
they had been before.

But now she knew better. The driver had been a scared
teenager who couldn't stop. It was an accident. Nobody's fault, and at the same
time, everybody's fault. Laura's fault for causing Jana to lose her temper, and
yet it wasn't Laura's fault. The driver's fault for not stopping, and yet it
wasn't the driver's fault. And her own fault for running into the street
without looking, and yet not totally her fault, either.

"What's going to happen to Erica Fleming?" asked
Jana.

"I imagine her driver's license will be suspended right
away," said her mother. "After that, what happens will be up to a
judge."

Jana cringed. "Even though the accident wasn't her
fault?"

Mrs. Pinkerton nodded. "Being a licensed driver carries
a lot of responsibility. It's still against the law to leave the scene of an
accident even if the accident wasn't your fault."

Jana thought about that for a moment. Poor Erica Fleming,
she thought. I've been hating her and wanting her in jail ever since the
accident, but now I know it wasn't really her fault. Because I ran out in front
of her car, she's in trouble. It isn't fair.

"I know you're feeling awfully confused right now,"
her mother said gently. "You want someone to blame, and you want some way
to make things the way they were before the accident happened."

Jana blinked at her mother, amazed that she had read her
mind.

"But no one can ever change the past," said her
mother. "And many times there's no one to blame. All you can do in a
situation like this is go forward and try your best to make things better."

"But
how?
" Jana begged. "What can I
do?"

Mrs. Pinkerton shook her head and smiled gently. "I don't
know, Jana. You'll have to find out for yourself, but if you look hard enough,
I'm sure you'll find a way."