I realized why. Smythe had been busy trying to wrestle the tube back into the elevator. He hadn’t thought to belt himself in. Now it was too late.
“Yowzers,” I said under my breath. The image of Smythe being tossed around like a vegetable inside a blender wasn’t pretty.
Soon, from a distance, we heard a different type of screaming. Police sirens, summoned by the 9-1-1 call Coach had made.
From the tube, Coach pulled out the canvas Dante Rossetti had painted almost a century and a half ago. He unrolled it.
For once the Deet didn’t say a word. The three of us gazed at the sad-faced woman, whose only mistake had been eating a few pomegranate seeds.
Persephone’s blue eyes shone out at me. And reminded me of a girl with green eyes.
A girl with a notepad. Except it hadn’t been a notepad. I wasn’t taking notes, pitcher boy.
I started back down the passage.
Coach called, “I bet you get a medal for finding this portrait. And Zeke?” He gave me a thumbs-up. “Stellar shot, buddy.”
“See you at practice,” I called back.
My gaze went to Dieter. I thought of how fast he’d run. Coach wasn’t a coach for nothing. He’d have noticed it too.
I grinned. “See you both at practice.”
She was sitting in a canvas chair on the sidewalk. A man was buying a seagull sketch from her.
I waited till the man left. Then I approached.
“Hey.”
She brightened. Her eyes were just as green as I remembered. “Hey, pitcher boy.”
“Sell many Death Drop posters today?” I asked.
Her smile faded. “A few. But now it seems I’m out of business. Smythe just hobbled by. One foot seemed to be sprained, and he was cradling his left shoulder. Between moans of pain he told me that Death Drop was closing. That I’m out of a job.”
I knelt beside her. “You’ll get to draw more. That’s a good thing. And maybe you’ll have time to come to a baseball game.”
That got her smiling again, kind of shyly. “Could be, pitcher boy. Anyhow, I won’t mind being free of Sherry. She was a miserable boss. And Smythe! Whine, whine, whine.”
I glanced around. “Where’d Smythe go?”
“He waved for a cab and limped into it. He kept glancing back like somebody was after him.”
The sirens wailed closer. I said, “I think a whole bunch of somebodies will be after him, very soon.”
I picked up another sketch. I studied the airplane signature. “I’m Zeke. And let me guess. Your name is 747.”
She laughed. “It’s Jett. And I’m betting you’re the one who bought my sketch of the little girl reaming you out.”
I nodded. “You nailed us. Gracie, stubborn and scared. Me, not wanting to be bothered with her.”
“You did bother with her though,” said Jett. “I could see that. I could see you were going to take care of her. That’s why I had to draw you two.”
I remembered something. “In the gift shop, you started to tell me something. My buddy Dieter interrupted.”
Jett nodded. “You asked me if I’d seen a lost blond kid. I said no. Then I wondered if you meant the little girl who’d been yelling at you. Did everything turn out okay? That’s what I wanted to ask.”
A police car screamed to the curb, lights blazing. Two officers barged out. They hurried to the Death Drop. Jumping over the turnstile, they ran inside.
“The kid’s safe,” I assured Jett. “On her way to London. To her parents.”
Jett looked wistful. “I’d love to go to London. All those art galleries.”
I thought of Sherry and Gracie arriving in London. Of Sherry greedily seizing the kid’s mailing tube.
I pictured Sherry opening the tube. Dollar signs would be dancing in her eyes.
She’d slide out the artwork, only to see—
“Imagine showing your work in London,” Jett was saying.
I grinned. “That may happen a lot sooner than you think.”
Acknowledgments
I would like to express my gratitude to editor Melanie Jeffs for all her guidance over the years. Hugs and best wishes for your new adventures to come!
Death Drop is Melanie Jackson’s fifth mystery in the Orca Currents. Her other titles, The Big Dip, Fast Slide, High Wire and Eye Sore, all feature thrilling forms of amusement. Melanie lives in Vancouver, British Columbia. Visit www.melaniejacksonblog.wordpress.com.
Titles in the Series
orca currents
121 Express
Monique Polak
Ace’s Basement
Ted Staunton
Agent Angus
K.L. Denman
Alibi
Kristin Butcher
Bad Business
Diane Dakers
Bear Market
Michele Martin Bossley
Benched
Cristy Watson
Beyond Repair
Lois Peterson
The Big Apple Effect
Christy Goerzen
The Big Dip
Melanie Jackson
Bio-pirate
Michele Martin Bossley
Blob
Frieda Wishinsky
Bones
John Wilson
Branded
Eric Walters
Bungee Jump
Pam Withers
Cabin Girl
Kristin Butcher
Caching In
Kristin Butcher
Camp Disaster
Frieda Wishinsky
Camp Wild
Pam Withers
Caught in the Act
Deb Loughead
Chat Room
Kristin Butcher
Cheat
Kristin Butcher
Chick: Lister
Alex Van Tol
Cracked
Michele Martin Bossley
Crossbow
Dayle Campbell Gaetz
Daredevil Club
Pam Withers
Death Drop
Melanie Jackson
Destination Human
K.L. Denman
Disconnect
Lois Peterson
Dog Walker
Karen Spafford-Fitz
Explore
Christy Goerzen
Eyesore
Melanie Jackson
FaceSpace
Adrian Chamberlain
Farmed Out
Christy Goerzen
Fast Slide
Melanie Jackson
Finding Elmo
Monique Polak
Flower Power
Fraud Squad
Michele Martin Bossley
Hate Mail
Monique Polak
High Wire
Melanie Jackson
Hold the Pickles
Vicki Grant
Horse Power
Ann Walsh
Hypnotized
Don Trembath
In a Flash
Eric Walters
Junkyard Dog
Monique Polak
Laggan Lard Butts
Eric Walters
Leggings Revolt
Monique Polak
Living Rough
Cristy Watson
Lost
John Wilson
Manga Touch
Jacqueline Pearce
Marked
Norah McClintock
Maxed Out
Daphne Greer
Mirror Image
K.L. Denman
Nine Doors
Vicki Grant
On Cue
Cristy Watson
Oracle
Alex Van Tol
Out of Season
Kari Jones
Perfect Revenge
K.L. Denman
Pigboy
Vicki Grant
Power Chord
Ted Staunton
Pyro
Monique Polak
Que
en of the Toilet Bowl
Frieda Wishinsky
Rebel’s Tag
K.L. Denman
Reckless
Lesley Choyce
Rise of the Zombie
Scarecrows
See No Evil
Diane Young
Sewer Rats
Sigmund Brouwer
The Shade
K.L. Denman
Shatterproof
Jocelyn Shipley
Siege
Jacqueline Pearce
Skate Freak
Lesley Choyce
Slick
Sara Cassidy
The Snowball Effect
Deb Loughead
Special Edward
Eric Walters
Splat!
Eric Walters
Spoiled Rotten
Dayle Campbell Gaetz
Stolen
John Wilson
Storm Tide
Kari Jones
Struck
Deb Loughead
Stuff We All Get
K.L. Denman
Sudden Impact
Lesley Choyce
Swiped
Michele Martin Bossley
Tampered
Michele Martin Bossley
Taz’s Recipe
Diane Tullson
Three Good Things
Lois Peterson
Vanish
Karen Spafford-Fitz
Watch Me
Norah McClintock
Windfall
Sara Cassidy
Wired
Sigmund Brouwer
orca currents
For more information on all the books in the Orca Currents series, please visit
www.orcabook.com.