Free Sammy Keyes and the Dead Giveaway by Wendelin Van Draanen

you?”
    “Yes!” I took a sip. “Are you telling me there used to be houses where the
mall
is?”
    He nodded. “The mall, the parking lots, the lawyers' offices…that whole area used to be houses.”
    “And what? They kicked all those people out of their homes? For a
mall
?”
    “They were bought out, but yes, quite a few were forced out against their will.”
    “But … why didn't all those people get together and say forget it!”
    “They tried.”
    “So?”
    “So in the end it comes down to the law, and the law states that so long as the government pays just compensation, it can acquire properties for public use. There's usually not much you can do about it except sue for greater compensation.”
    “I can't
believe
that!”
    Hudson nodded. “Originally it was designed for use in national emergencies or for building railroads … that sort of thing. So instead of jogging a railroad track around privately owned parcels, they could run straight through them. Unfortunately, governments now exercise eminent domain for things like malls and parking lots.”
    “That absolutely stinks.”
    He nodded and took a sip of tea. “Goldie Danali would agree with you.”
    “Goldie Danali? Who's that?”
    “A woman who used to live on the corner of Cook and Miller. She had a cute little place, white picket fence, flowers … the kind of house you get a real warm feeling from just walking by.”
    “So she didn't want to move and they made her anyway?”
    “More than that. She had a job at the courthouse, which as you know is right across the street. And since she had problems with her legs, she went everywhere in a little motorized golf cart.”
    “Oh, you've got to be kidding.”
    “About the golf cart?”
    “No! About them making a lady who's basically in a wheelchair move! How could they do that?”
    Hudson gave me a wry smile. “They ‘relocated’ her in the name of the community. The community, they said, needed a mall. The irony is, they can't seem to rent the offices on the spot where Goldie Danali's house was.” He grinned. “Rumor is they're haunted.”
    “No! By Goldie?”
    “That's right. She died shortly after they forced her out.”
    “Aw, come on. You're making this up…”
    He put up a hand like he was taking an oath. “On my honor.”
    I thought about it a minute, then said, “Well, it would serve them right if it's haunted. But still. If they kicked a lady in a wheelchair out of her house, there's no way they're going to let Mrs. Willawago keep hers.”
    He nodded. “I figured this had to do with the proposed rec center.” He took the newspaper out from under his chair and flipped it open to the community section. Beneath the heading NEWRECCENTERGAINSSUPPORT was a picture of Coralee in her patriotic suit watching attentively as a man held a pointer to a drawing. There was also a picture of Leland Hawking giving a “spirited rebuttal,” and to the side of the article was a diagram of the “proposed improvements”: batting cages, café, and rec center.
    I studied it and couldn't help thinking, Wow…theseproposed improvements look great! And then there it was again, that voice in my ear.
Yeah
, it whispered.
You and Marissa would use this a lot. And what do you care if ol' Willy-whaddya-know has to move? You try to help her and she doesn't believe you! She practically called you a liar…
    From the base of my neck, halfway down my back, and then around my chest, I felt a core-chilling shiver. Like my brain had touched something very cold and was sending it down to cage my heart.
    It was a frightening feeling. My heart began beating faster—like it was banging against the cage, trying to break free. So I shook off the voice and tried to get my mind back on track. “So explain this,” I said to Hudson. “Why would Coralee Lyon hold a clandestine meeting in the kitchen of Leland Hawking, Esquire's office, telling him to speak out
against
the rec center at the city council