Demon Derby by Carrie Harris Page B

was a mystery. I wanted her to fall so bad, but it didn’t happen.
    “Wow,” Darcy said. “I mean, really, wow. What was that all about?”
    I shook my head, snagging a cheese-free chip and biting it ferociously.
    “You totally told her off! But of course they’re going to let you on the team anyway, what with those jumps and stuff, right? How did you do that? I mean, it was totally made of awesomeness, but I’m surprised you didn’t fall on your head.”
    “I’ve been practicing. No big deal.”
    “Well, next time, invite me along. You made me look bad.” She actually had the nerve to look sulky.
    “You could have practiced too,” I snapped. “That’s not my fault.”
    She winced and ducked her head. “Sorry,” she mumbled, and I immediately felt like I’d claimed the Complete Wench crown for myself.
    “No,
I’m
sorry. I’m pissed at Ruthanasia; I don’t mean to take it out on you.”
    “It’s okay, really. Especially after I shoved you into the wall.” She moaned. “I’m so sorry.”
    “It’s really no biggie.” I thumbed the end of my nose and tried not to wince. I’d probably have a pair of black eyes tomorrow. But on the bright side, maybe people would think I’d been in a fight. Maybe they’d stop treating me like I might shatter if they breathed on me too hard. “See? It’s not broken.”
    I sat down next to her and took another nacho. But only one, because I didn’t want to throw up. She started mowing through the plate as if it were her last meal on earth. I wouldhave worried, but after the Twinkie incident, I knew she had an iron stomach.
    We did booty blocking next, and I seethed the whole time. It wasn’t my strongest suit, since I didn’t have much to block with. But I kept imagining that Ruthanasia was trying to get around me, so when I did manage to get a hit in, it was a good one. Then we did some plow stops and single and double knee slides. I was usually pretty good at those, but by this time I was so tired that I couldn’t bounce back up to my toe stops like I wanted to. After this was over, I was going back to bed and wasn’t going to come out for a week. Fatigue didn’t stop me from wanting a place on the team, though. I kept reminding myself that it would get easier. It was just a matter of time.
    Once we were done, Ruthanasia climbed on top of a table, minus her skates, and shouted, “Okay, everybody. We’ve tallied all the scores, and we’d like to call back the top five to compete for our two open spots: Tanya Li, Shelby Shusterman, Monique Larribee, Sarah Smith, and Darcy Klinger.”
    Darcy let out a little squeal of excitement, but it faded when she saw how pissed I was. Ruthanasia very pointedly didn’t look at me, but the satisfied smirk on her face was enough.
    I hadn’t even made it to callbacks.
    I’d handled a lot. When Dr. Rutherford had told us that I had cancer, my parents had cried, and I’d stayed strong for them. I’d dealt with the bone-deep pain of biopsies without complaint. I’d lost all my hair. I’d puked until my mouth hadgrown sores. All of those things had been bearable, but this? It felt like I’d been kicked while I was still down.
    “Congratulations, Darcy,” I said, holding my head high with effort. “I’m really happy for you.”
    Ruthanasia interrupted before Darcy could answer. “Sorry, Kent. But you can’t say I didn’t tell you so.” I couldn’t decide what bothered me more—the fact that she referred to me by my last name like I was her servant or the fact that she was looking at me like I’d rolled in poop.
    “Actually …” Michael cleared his throat, walking up behind her. “I was just going to say that I’d like to call Casey back too.”
    She gaped at him. And honestly, so did I. He must have seen something he liked in my performance, because the alternative was completely unbearable. If he called me back just because he felt sorry for me, I’d die of embarrassment.
    “Um, yay?” Darcy said