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Ten minutes after our arrival, Matt skateboards over to my house. After listening to Lauren Hutchins talk about losing her best friend, I’m happier than usual to see Matt walk in the door.

We skateboard down to the boardwalk, and I tell Matt all about Lauren, Mrs. James, and South Beach. When I tell him Bodi saved my life and not Susan, he suggests we contact the mayor and try to get an official Bodi Holiday so we can take a day off from school. He also tells me Jamie had to pay a professional service a week’s salary to clean up the monumental mess he made in the house before their parents came home. We order strawberry slushies and watch the high school kids surf around the rocks. It’s amazing how different two oceans can be.

As we ride home, I tell Matt we have to make a stop. When he asks where we’re going, I say we have to play superhero and lend assistance to someone in need. He seems okay with that until he sees the name RODRIQUEZ on the door.

“Is this Carly’s house? Dude, what are we doing here?” he whispers.

“We’re helping Carly plant some flowers for Ginger.”

“Miss Goody Two-shoes killed the class hedgehog?” A demented grin appears on Matt’s face until he sees my expression.

“She’s not that bad,” I say.

When Carly answers the door, she seems surprised but happy to see us.

“I like your necklace,” Carly says.

“I like your armband.” I point to the black felt band on her arm.

“Nice job killing Ginger,” Matt tells her.

I elbow him in the ribs and he shuts up.

Carly gets three of her mother’s shovels and we dig holes on the side of the house near where she buried Ginger. We plant big clumps of daisies, then water them. It seems Carly’s learned a lot about plants from her mom.

After we finish, we say a few words for Ginger.

“Ginger was a good hedgehog,” Carly begins. “She gave everyone at our school so much pleasure. The Science Center won’t be the same without her.”

Matt seems to have gotten over the fact that we’re at Carly’s house and adds some thoughts of his own. “Ginger stuck me with one of her quills last year, but I didn’t mind. I hope they don’t replace her with some lame animal like that gerbil we had in kindergarten who wouldn’t even run on his stupid wheel.”

“I hope that Ginger ends up in a prickle of great hedgehogs with lots of grapes and crickets,” I say. Silently, I hope wherever Ginger ends up, she runs into Susan James and they can hang out for a while.

Mrs. Rodriquez brings us apple juice and chocolate chip cookies and tells us we did a great job with the plants.

“Hey, Matt,” Carly says, “you want to steal a diamond?”

Matt seems confused, but for the first time today, Carly appears almost happy. We stay until dinnertime, dodging the motion detectors in Carly’s basement, then designing a new system we’ll set up next week—during our last few days of freedom.