Charles Benoit - Epic Reads Book Club Sampler

Epic Reads Book Club Sampler

Charles Benoit, Kevin Emerson, Susan Dennard, Megan McCafferty, Jodi Lynn Anderson, and Suzanne Young

Contents

FALL
FROM
GRACE

CHARLES BENOIT

Fall from Grace

Copyright 2012 by Charles Benoit

All rights reserved under International and Pan-American Copyright Conventions. By payment of the required fees, you have been granted the nonexclusive, nontransferable right to access and read the text of this e-book on screen. No part of this text may be reproduced, transmitted, downloaded, decompiled, reverse-engineered, or stored in or introduced into any information storage and retrieval system, in any form or by any means, whether electronic or mechanical, now known or hereinafter invented, without the express written permission of HarperCollins e-books.

Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data

Benoit, Charles.

Fall from Grace / Charles Benoit. 1st ed.

p. cm.

Summary: Inspired by an intriguing girl who is nothing like his shallow girlfriend, a high school senior whose life has been mapped out by his parents makes some surprising decisions that lead him to take dangerousbut exhilaratingrisks.

ISBN 978-0-06-194707-0

[1. Conduct of lifeFiction. 2. ChoiceFiction. 3. Interpersonal relationsFiction. 4. StealingFiction. 5. High schoolsFiction. 6. SchoolsFiction.] I. Title.

PZ7.B447114Fal 2012

[Fic]dc23

2011026148
CIP
AC

12 13 14 15 16 CG/RRDH 10 9 8 7 6 5 4 3 2 1

FIRST EDITION

I NEED YOU to steal something for me.

She was small, with dark hair and blue eyes that looked lit from behind, and the kind of face, the kind of tight body that kept him listening.

Get me a copy of the treaty youre working on. The one with Iran.

He shrugged. I dont know what youre talking about.

Dont play dumb. I saw you sitting with the delegation at the opening ceremony. North Korea, right?

Yeah. A pause, another shrug. I think so.

You think so? You dont know what country youre with?

I just joined Thursday.

Is that your schools team? She pointed across the gym to the folding table where a kid in a suit and two girls in dresses huddled around one of the laptops. The table was centered under a model united nations banner taped to the backboard above the basketball hoop.

Its the team Im with, yeah.

Then youre North Korea. So you can get it for me.

He smiled. He had to. There was something about her that made him do it. Who are you?

Grace. She pulled on the name tag clipped to an empty belt loop of her red jeans.

I meant the country youre with.

Belgium. She tapped the black, yellow, and red flag printed on the school team ID as if the answer was obvious. West High School. A Westie. The other side of the proverbial tracks. The wrong side. Wheres your ID, comrade?

He patted his chest, then checked his pockets. I must have lost it.

Tsk-tsk. Now you wont get to enjoy a delicious cafeteria-style box lunch. She looked at him, her head tilted to the side a bit, her hair bouncing short of her shoulder. So maybe youre smarter than you look.

Its the tie. I had to wear one.

She reached up and gave it a tug. At least its not a clip-on. It wasnt, but it might as well have been. His father had tied it for him months ago and each time he wore it, he slipped it off over his head, hanging it on the hook on the back of his bedroom door, the misshapen knot pulled too tight to untangle. So, you gonna get me that treaty?

What do you need it for?

Do you really care?

I might.

You dont. Its a make-believe treaty written by a bunch of high school students pretending to be the ambassadors of real countries they couldnt find on a map. Picking a theme for the senior prom has more global impact.

That wasnt the way Mr. Jansen had explained Model United Nations, but so far it was the most accurate descrip-tion hed heard. He had joined late in the quarter, too late to know what he was supposed to be doing, but, as his mother had pointed out, not too late to add it to his college application. She said he needed an extracurricular activity, something academic, that he could list along with all the volunteer work his parents had arranged for him to do. His father would have preferred that he join Public Speaking, but that would have meant speaking in public, and as determined as they were on getting him into a good school, even his parents couldnt get around that. Thats why they settled on MUN. He was just glad they didnt know there was a chess club.

Ive been to this school before, Grace said, looking past the open gym doors and down the long corridor. Theres a photocopier in the teachers lounge. Ill have it back in five minutes, tops.

If you think this whole thing is stupid

And I do, but go on.

why do you want the treaty?

I dont want it, the US team wants it. Im cutting a little deal on the side. I get them the details of the treaty, they give me North Dakota.

Why would you want North Dakota?

It would complete the set. Look, you going to get it for me or not?

If I dont, what happens then?

Then we both have to think of something to do to fill up the four hours before this ridiculous event is over.

He could think of plenty of things they could do for four hours, and if he were that kind of guy, the put-it-out-there kind who was smooth with the words and fast with the ladies, theyd be off in some empty classroom, getting busy. He wasnt, not even close, but that didnt stop him from thinking about it. Besides, Zo would find out for sure and shed be pissed and shed tell his mother because they were tight like that and then hed hear about it from his parents, plus hed have to see Zoand all of Zos friendsevery day in school, and he could guess what that would be like. Nope, even if he was that kind of guy it wasnt worth it. Still, for an uncontrolled, hormone-driven second, he thought about it.

Four hours at a MUN event is a long, long time, she said. If you dont help get the treaty Ill be so bored Ill probably declare war on Luxembourg and then youll have that on your conscience.

He weighed the pretend global consequences before nodding. Anything for world peace. Wait here, Ill go get it.

Hold it. She grabbed his wrist and pulled him back, stronger than she looked. Her hand was cool and dry against his skin. You just cant walk up and take it.

Yes I can. Therere copies on the table, Ill get one and

We have to have a plan first. And signals and code words and a Plan B and an escape route....

How about this for a plan? I go get it and give it to you.

Oh, come on. Youre taking all the fun out of it.

You are bored. Okay, whats the plan?

The metal bleachers were pushed closed against the wall, but someone had pulled out a couple rows at the bottom where delegates from around the make-believe world had tossed their book bags and winter coats. She led him to an open section and took a seat, flipping to a blank page in a notebook that wasnt hers.

Well call it Operation Trick-or-Treat.

Because you like Halloween?

No, because I like taking candy from babies. She wrote the words at the top of the paper in blocky capital letters. She drew a quick map of the gym and the hallway. Next, we need code names. Ill be Alea and you can be Bix.

Bix? What kind of name is Bix?

She looked at him, stunned by his ignorance. Alea and Bix? From Reality Frat House ?

Blank stare.

Youre kidding, right? Theyre famous .

Famous for what?

For being famous, geez, what do you think? Theyre on TV, thats all they have to do. She shook her head and mumbled as she continued to map out the room. I cant believe you dont know who Bix is.