Trouble is a Friend of Mine

‘Is this about what?’ Sloane said. No one said anything. ‘Fine. But I’m not going in. There aren’t enough vaccines in the world to protect me from what you can catch in there.’


The Tropical Hut was one of those theme motels. Neon palm trees and a cardboard grass hut by the front door, and a half-inflated hula girl drooping by the half-drained pool out front.

Some ground-floor doors were open and majorly wasted people randomly stumbled in and out of each other’s rooms. A woman’s scream sounded partway between crying and laughing.

‘Classy place,’ I said. ‘Hey, why aren’t you surprised she’s with Ezekiel? You already knew they were involved?’

‘It might’ve been a coincidence that Marina snorted the same blue generic Adderall Floyd sold Felix, but how many fifteen-year-old girls use the words “real man”? Ezekiel said the exact same words when we were fighting on your lawn,’ Digby said. ‘That, the motel, the CornNuts …’

‘Marina? Marina Miller?’ Sloane said.

‘Stay out of this, Sloane,’ Henry said.

‘She’s in there? But we’re not calling the police?’ Sloane said. ‘I knew it. She wasn’t kidnapped. She ran away and ended up here? What a loser. And speaking of losers, are those jazz shoes?’ She pointed at my feet.

‘They’re tap shoes,’ Digby said.

‘You sound like a horse,’ Sloane said. ‘A loud one.’

‘You’re making more noise complaining than my shoes are tapping,’ I said.

‘But it’s the combination of her shoes, your whining, and the two of you fighting about it that’s going to get us killed,’ Digby said.

‘Why did he say “killed”?’ Sloane said.

‘Just stay in the car,’ Henry said.

‘Listening to this one cry?’ Sloane pointed at Bill. ‘Pass.’

Ezekiel stepped out of a second-floor room and stood in the open-air hallway, smoking and watching two drunks fighting in the parking lot below. He was shirtless under his open coat and tattoos crisscrossed his torso.

‘There he is,’ Digby said. ‘We got to get him out of there and get Marina out of that room.’

‘Okay, great plan except for the fact that he knows all three of us,’ I said.

We all looked at Sloane. Unexpectedly, instead of giving us her usual snotty attitude, Sloane actually looked game.

‘Get him away from the room?’ Sloane said. ‘Fine. I’ll do it.’

‘Really? I thought you’d make me beg or something,’ I said.

‘Go ahead if you really want to,’ Sloane said.

‘We have no choice, so I’m going to pretend I’m not suspicious you’re up to something,’ Digby said. ‘But you are up to something, aren’t you?’

‘Do you want me to do this or not?’ Sloane said.

‘I should probably just take yes for an answer,’ Digby said.

Sloane got out and toddled to the stairs. Her ankle twisted halfway up her painfully slow climb and she barely caught herself on the banister.

‘Those stupid shoes,’ Henry said.

Whatever she said to Ezekiel when she got there worked, though. He retrieved a wire hanger from the room and was twisting it as he followed Sloane downstairs.

We ran out of the limo and climbed the stairs at the opposite end of the motel.

I had a flash of panic when we got to the room. ‘Wait, what if she isn’t alone in there? If someone else comes to the door?’ I said.

‘Then we pretend we need help buying beer. But relax. Guys don’t sit around together shirtless in November. He and Marina were alone.’ Digby knocked. There was shuffling inside. Digby knocked again. The lights in the room went off.

Digby said, ‘Someone called for smokes?’

‘Um … come back later. He’s not here right now.’ Marina’s voice sounded shaky.

‘Marina? It’s Henry. Open up.’

‘Henry? Petropoulos?’ The door opened and Marina stood in the dark doorway. She had on a bright blue wig and a skimpy bikini and she smoked her cigarette manically. ‘Why are you here?’

‘We’ll talk later. Right now, we got to go,’ Henry said.

We poured into the room.

‘I don’t want to leave. E-Z’s taking me to Cabo,’ Marina said. ‘He got us a room at the hotel Jennifer Aniston stayed at. He bought me this bikini.’

‘You can’t go to Cabo, Marina. Your parents are really worried,’ Henry said.

‘They don’t care. They have Ursula. She’s the one they want,’ Marina said.

I just didn’t want to hear it. ‘Oh, grow up, get your clothes on, and let’s get out of here before that psycho gets back.’

‘No. I’m going to Cabo,’ Marina said. ‘I never get to go anywhere.’

Digby pointed at Sloane and Ezekiel trying to jimmy open a minivan in the parking lot. ‘Guys, hurry. She picked a Dodge. I once broke into one of those with a spork.’

‘Marina, let’s go.’ Henry stepped toward her, hand outstretched.

Marina flicked her cigarette into my skirt’s feathers and ran to the other side of the bed.

‘Smells like burning hair,’ Digby said.