"Shelter" by Harlan Coben, Chapters 14–19

When his friend Ashley vanishes, Mickey Bolitar is determined to investigate—but as he delves into her disappearance, he uncovers more questions than answers.

Here are links to our lists for the novel: Chapters 1–6, Chapters 7–13, Chapters 14–19, Chapters 20–27
35 words 28 learners

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Full list of words from this list:

words only definitions & notes
  1. gorgeous
    dazzlingly beautiful
    There was a path right down the middle, gorgeous flowers blossoming on either side.
  2. baffled
    perplexed by many conflicting situations or statements
    I stood there baffled while Ema moved around the tombstone, using the light from her cell phone to see.
  3. cryptic
    having a puzzling terseness
    I wasn’t going to wait for Bat Lady to fly down and leave me another cryptic clue.
  4. urgent
    compelling immediate action
    Bat Lady’s mouthing got more urgent now, as if she was trying to reach me before I vanished from sight.
  5. trespass
    enter unlawfully on someone's property
    “I said attempted break-in. He was also trespassing.”
  6. paramedic
    a person trained to give emergency medical treatment
    Behind him, I see that paramedic with the sandy hair and the green eyes.
  7. depiction
    a graphic or vivid verbal description
    “It’s a quote from Richard Jefferies, a nineteenth-century English nature writer noted for his depiction of English rural life in essays, books of natural history, and novels.”
  8. silhouette
    a filled-in drawing of the outline of an object
    On the awning was a silhouette of a voluptuous woman.
  9. yearn
    desire strongly or persistently
    Every cell in my body yearned for oxygen.
  10. maniacal
    wildly disordered
    Then, with the maniacal grin at its widest, Buddy Ray began to cock back his fist.
  11. inebriated
    stupefied or excited by a chemical substance
    You have a room filled with inebriated, frustrated men who were spending too much money on what really, in the end, was a pretty pathetic Plan B.
  12. alienate
    arouse hostility or indifference in
    Rather than alienate his base, he simply added to it.
  13. ghetto
    a poor densely populated city district
    They fought the Nazis in secret. Kids. They would also smuggle goods into the Lodz ghetto, for example.
  14. notorious
    known widely and usually unfavorably
    Sometimes, when they could, they even rescued kids heading toward Auschwitz, the Nazis’ biggest and most notorious concentration camp.
  15. somber
    serious and gloomy in character
    Two, the Anne Frank quote you see as you leave this somber memorial: “Despite everything, I believe that people are really good at heart.”
  16. stifle
    smother or suppress
    “Sure I do,” she said as though stifling a yawn.
  17. prospect
    the possibility of future success
    She has no prospects. She is scared and lonely and depressed.
  18. condescension
    showing arrogance by patronizing those considered inferior
    Two local politicians tried to “relate” to us, which made for serious condescension and boredom.
  19. pantomime
    act out without words but with gestures and bodily movements
    I responded by pantomiming a yawn.
  20. hooligan
    a rowdy, violent, and typically youthful troublemaker
    I started with that hooligan breaking into the locker, and then I traveled back from there until I found the last time that Ashley’s locker was open.
  21. deceive
    cause someone to believe an untruth
    We get mad at those who hurt or deceive us—we get even madder when they make us feel like fools.
  22. respective
    considered individually
    We broke up, Spoon and I going to our respective classes, Ema going . . . wherever it was she was going.
  23. scenario
    a postulated sequence of possible events
    I trotted out about a million different scenarios, but none of them made any sense.
  24. throng
    a large gathering of people
    I rushed after her, swimming through the throngs of fellow students.
  25. speculate
    believe, especially on uncertain or tentative grounds
    Then I reminded myself that it was pointless to speculate, that in just a few more hours I would know.
  26. pedigree
    line of descent of a purebred animal
    Yes, I had worked hard to keep my game under wraps, but what with my height, my pedigree as Myron’s nephew, and the way the guys down at the pickup games in Newark gossiped, it would be surprising if Mr. Grady hadn’t at least heard about me.
  27. tourniquet
    a bandage that stops the flow of blood by applying pressure
    He wore a short-sleeve dress shirt that probably fit a few years ago, but now it worked like a tourniquet around his neck and torso.
  28. altercation
    a noisy, angry argument or fight between people
    “I received a report that you got into a physical altercation with another student.”
  29. expulsion
    the act of forcing out someone or something
    If you lay a hand on another student, it’s automatic suspension with a possibility for expulsion.
  30. dejected
    affected or marked by low spirits
    Feeling dejected, I headed out the front door of the school—and there she was.
  31. sprawling
    spreading out in different directions
    Rachel’s sprawling estate— it wasn’t a house, it was an estate—sat atop a hill.
  32. pretense
    the act of giving a false appearance
    There was a pretense here. It’s like she went to a thrift shop and searched for Eighties Prep.
  33. sarcastic
    expressing or expressive of ridicule that wounds
    “Nice,” I said, trying to sound sarcastic without crossing into bitter.
  34. relentless
    never-ceasing
    “Yes. Ashley worried that the guys who tried to grab her would keep searching. She said they’d be relentless—that they might go after her only friend here.”
  35. obligated
    caused by law or conscience to follow a certain course
    It just felt like the right thing to do. I don’t want to make it sound like more than it is, but I get that way. I felt somehow obligated.
Created on Mon Nov 24 20:27:30 EST 2014 (updated Tue Sep 04 16:44:55 EDT 2018)

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