Deuker, Carl. Runner.

Deuker, Carl. Runner. Grades 7-10.
"My dad never hit me; never yelled at me. He was just a drunk." High-school senior Chance is a "ghost-walker" at school--barely talking, just passing, finding escape only in long, solitary, after-school runs. His hard-drinking father can't keep a job, and Chance worries how they will pay the mooring fees for their dilapidated, 30-foot sailboat home in Pugent Sound. When a marina worker offers him a job picking up secret packages, Chance can't turn down the lucrative opportunity, even though he's sure it's illegal. But as a friendship with smart student Melissa grows, so does Chance's concern about his job and its possible links to local smuggling rings.