Who Owns Kelly Paddik Read Online Free PDF

staff, and said, “Walk down to Bingo with us tonight.” There was a look in her eyes that made it an order. I waited before I answered, just so she would know that I wasn’t one of her slaves.
    â€œOkay,” I said slowly.
    Pit Bull smiled and said, “Good girl.” Then she and the other girl got up and left the table.
    She made her point
, I thought.
Kelly New Girl does what she’s told, just like everyone else
.
    Still, when Pit Bull started joking around with me after supper chores, I had to smile. She could be funny, though most of her jokes put the other girls down. I walked with her through the long hall to the schoolroom where the weekly Bingo game was held. I could feel the other girls’ eyes on me, wondering if I’d made it into Pit Bull’s special circle. When we got to the Bingo room, Pit Bull kicked some girls away from the table she wanted. She always got her own private table.
    â€œC’mon, Kelly,” she said. Feeling like her pet poodle, I sat down beside her. To my relief, Fran pulled up a chair and sat with us for part of the evening. When she left, Pit Bull leaned forward.
    â€œThursday night after gym, I’m going to run for it,” she said. “You’re going to be my decoy.”
    I knew better than to show surprise. Keeping my face blank, I stared at my Bingo card.So this was what I was supposed to do for her.
Which door?
I thought.
How can I get her to tell me which door?
    â€œSure,” I said, trying to keep cool. “What d’you want me to do?”
    â€œJust keep talking to Fran on the way back from gym,” said Pit Bull. “I checked the staff schedule and she’s working. That should give me all the time I need.”
    I took a deep breath and asked, “So, how are you going to get out?”
    A slow grin crawled across Pit Bull’s face. “Someday, maybe I’ll send you a postcard and tell you. I’ll owe you one, Kelly.”
    Yeah, sure
, I thought.
You’ll be gone and I’ll be stuck here forever
. My thoughts raced around the inside of my head. Maybe she already had a key. If she did, I could steal it from her, and then I’d be the one skipping free.
    â€œIf you tell,” Pit Bull said, ditching her smile, “I’ll make you pay for it.”
    I almost laughed. Who would I tell? “What are you going to do out there?” I asked.
    â€œI’ve got friends,” she said.
    I had to try again. Keeping the hope off my face, I repeated, “How are you getting out?”
    She laughed. “You’ll find out after I’m gone. I’m out of this place, man.”
    All I could do was stare at her face and wish I was her.

Chapter Six
    Over the next few days, Pit Bull and I didn’t talk to each other so that no one would suspect. I stayed in my room and started writing a story about Chris as a little kid. It made me think about my sister Jolyn, and I wanted to talk to her more than ever. Maybe if I got out of here, I could visit her in secret, without my mom knowing. As I wrote, the story-girl Chris turned into Jolyn. It was almost like talking to her, and the words poured out of me. That evening and the next Iwrote every chance I got. Thursday evening I took the story with me when I went to skating.
    In the long hall, Pit Bull looked at me as she walked by. I nodded. I skated by myself and thought about my decoy plan. I wondered how Pit Bull planned to get out, but I knew better than to ask again. If I tried to follow her, we might both get caught. Then she would make me pay for every breath I took in this place. And even if I escaped with her, she would probably set her friends on me for disobeying her. The best thing to hope for was that she would actually manage to escape. Then she would be gone and I could concentrate on getting out my own way.
    When skating finished, I stopped Fran in the equipment room and handed her my story. She smiled and said