Free Best Kept Secret by Debra Moffitt

thought was kind of rude. Those threats scared me.
    â€œGirls, I’m your ‘Pink Friend,’ ” she said, making air quotes with her hands.
    â€œYou?” Piper said.
    Note to self: Be sure that all the threatening e-mails were signed “A Pink Friend.”
    â€œSome of us teachers—not all of us—knew what happened with the PLS Web site getting shut down,” Ms. Russo continued. “On a lark, I looked up the site and saw you guys were still operating it.”
    She went on to say that she initially thought we should shut down and stay out of trouble.
    â€œBut then I talked to this former Pinky and she told me to help you instead of discouraging you.”
    â€œSo who told you how to find us?” Kate asked.
    â€œMr. Ford,” she said, seemingly proud of him.
    â€œOh, jeez. Were we that obvious?” Piper asked.
    â€œI doubt it. He can be very observant, that man,” Ms. Russo said.
    She seemed to blush a little just mentioning him like that, then collected herself again.
    â€œMy Pinky friend told me something of the group’s history, and I thought, Of course! Girls have to fly under the radar sometimes to get things done.”
    â€œSo you’re going to help keep this a secret?” Kate asked.
    â€œYes, but you need more than that. My Pink Lady contact says there are always opponents when you do this kind of work. People—and I’m not just talking about Principal F.—might not like what you’re doing,” Ms. Russo said.
    â€œBut they can’t take us down that easily,” Piper said. “Hello, Internet.”
    â€œYou’re right that you have more power to communicate than the Pink Locker Ladies did,” Ms. Russo said. “But you’re not invincible. You will have to show the pluck and courage of your forebearers.”
    Note to self: Look up the word pluck.
    â€œWho wants us gone?” I asked.
    Ms. Russo shrugged her shoulders and shook her head.
    â€œ Viva la Pink Locker Society!” Piper said.
    We all smiled at that. I didn’t like thinking that some unnamed, unknown person (or group of people!) was out to get us. But I did like knowing that Ms. Russo was on our side.

Eighteen
    Shock of all shocks, it was me who convinced Piper and Kate that we should tell Bet. She already knew that the PLS was back in business, and I wanted to tell her about this latest twist that Ms. Russo was helping us. In part, I liked to be the one to tell her big news because I loved seeing her face and answering her excited questions. The girl has a “nose for news,” according to my mom. But also, I thought we could really use her help. She was smart and she knew how to do research. So here’s how that conversation went:
    ME ( whispering ): Okay, this is a secret, but Ms. Russo crashed our lastest PLS meeting and says she will help us. She also said she’s been talking to some older Pink Lady, who’s worried someone could try to shut us down. Just like they did in the 1970s.
    BET ( whispering ): Jemma, it’s as if you have read my mind. I just interviewed a former Pinky who told me some very deep secrets about the PLS. You. Will. Never. Believe. It.
    So much for surprising her. Bet’s nose for news had already led her to the big story.
    â€œI interviewed this woman—I wonder if it’s the same person Ms. Russo talked to—and she is just fascinating,” Bet said. “But she doesn’t want her face shown. I concealed her identity, like they do for secret witness testimony.”
    â€œWhat did she say?” I asked.
    â€œShe knows it all. Why the PLS got shut down in the 1970s is rather shocking, Jemma,” Bet said.
    â€œShoot,” I said.
    â€œIt’s just too much that I don’t know where to start. I shall show you,” Bet said.
    After school, in her video office, Bet popped in a video and showed me her latest report entitled “The Past Is