something.”
Terri wasn’t sure if she thought this was a
good idea. “Patricia,” she said, “the only way to prove it would be
to go back to the boathouse and try to catch one of the toads or
salamanders.”
“ Okay. Why don’t we do
that?”
“ Because it’s dangerous!”
Terri exclaimed. “And, anyway, I can’t go there anymore because…I
got caught.”
“ Ter- ri! Who caught you?”
“ My Uncle Chuck,” Terri
glumly reported. “When he got back from driving my mother to work,
he came down to the lake and caught me.”
“ Did you get grounded?”
Patricia asked.
“ I don’t know yet. I’ll
find out when my mother gets home from work, and I’m pretty sure
that’s what’s going to happen. But my Uncle Chuck made me stay in
my room all day.”
“ Bummer,” Patricia
said.
“ Yeah, I know.”
“ But what are we going to
do?” Patricia logically asked next. “There are a lot of weird
things going on, you have to admit. And—jeeze—you said you saw more
toads and salamanders with teeth in the backroom of the boathouse.
That can only mean one thing.”
“ What?” Terri
asked.
“ Your mother and your Uncle
Chuck—they’re the ones who are behind it.”
««—»»
Terri knew exactly what
Patricia meant; she’d already thought of that herself. All those
toads and salamanders in the glass tanks proved that her mother and
Uncle Chuck must know what was going on. And Terri had to admit
something else: whatever was going on, it was definitely weird…
Terri wanted to talk more, but just then
Uncle Chuck stepped into the kitchen and sternly said, “You’ve
talked long enough, young lady. It’s time for you to hang up and go
back to your room.”
Terri explained to Patricia that she had to
go, and then she hung up the phone. Her eyes averted to the floor,
she walked back to her bedroom.
“ And make sure you stay
there, young lady,” Uncle Chuck called behind her. “I’m going to
pick your mother up from work now, and you better not even think about coming out of
your room. Do you hear me?”
“ Yes,” Terri peeped. She
shuffled back to her bedroom, closed the door. A few minutes later,
she heard the car door thunk closed from outside, the engine
started, then the car pulled out of the driveway and drove off down
the road.
Instantly, Terri felt
frustrated and bored. At least Patricia’s
all right, she thought. But—
There was just too much to think about, and
worry about.
And be scared about…
She had to find the
answers, and she knew the answers had to be in the backroom of the
boathouse. I could go again now, she realized. Uncle Chuck was gone, picking her
mother up. But with her luck he’d come right back just to see if
she was still in her room. I can’t risk
it, Terri wisely decided. She could get
into too much trouble. The only other thing she could do, she knew,
was look up some of those complicated words she’d seen on the
computer screen, the tanks, and the bottle labels, but—as hard as
she tried—she still couldn’t remember any of them. So she was still
faced with the problem of getting to the backroom of the boathouse,
so she could look at the words again, write them down, and then
look them up in the dictionary. That was the only way.
Or…
Was it?
There was still one other thing she could
try, wasn’t there?
Something that hadn’t occurred to her.
Yes! she thought.
Maybe the boathouse wasn’t
the only place
where she could read those words again.
Uncle Chuck, she knew, had been working down
there all afternoon. And when he’d come back up to the house, what
had he been carrying with him?
The briefcase! Terri realized.
Maybe those words were in the briefcase
too.
And—
There’s only one way to
find out, she told herself.
Right now, Uncle Chuck wasn’t in the house;
he was picking Terri’s mother up at work.
She could sneak out of her room right now,
couldn’t she?
And look in the briefcase
Terri wasn’t sure if she thought this was a
good idea. “Patricia,” she said, “the only way to prove it would be
to go back to the boathouse and try to catch one of the toads or
salamanders.”
“ Okay. Why don’t we do
that?”
“ Because it’s dangerous!”
Terri exclaimed. “And, anyway, I can’t go there anymore because…I
got caught.”
“ Ter- ri! Who caught you?”
“ My Uncle Chuck,” Terri
glumly reported. “When he got back from driving my mother to work,
he came down to the lake and caught me.”
“ Did you get grounded?”
Patricia asked.
“ I don’t know yet. I’ll
find out when my mother gets home from work, and I’m pretty sure
that’s what’s going to happen. But my Uncle Chuck made me stay in
my room all day.”
“ Bummer,” Patricia
said.
“ Yeah, I know.”
“ But what are we going to
do?” Patricia logically asked next. “There are a lot of weird
things going on, you have to admit. And—jeeze—you said you saw more
toads and salamanders with teeth in the backroom of the boathouse.
That can only mean one thing.”
“ What?” Terri
asked.
“ Your mother and your Uncle
Chuck—they’re the ones who are behind it.”
««—»»
Terri knew exactly what
Patricia meant; she’d already thought of that herself. All those
toads and salamanders in the glass tanks proved that her mother and
Uncle Chuck must know what was going on. And Terri had to admit
something else: whatever was going on, it was definitely weird…
Terri wanted to talk more, but just then
Uncle Chuck stepped into the kitchen and sternly said, “You’ve
talked long enough, young lady. It’s time for you to hang up and go
back to your room.”
Terri explained to Patricia that she had to
go, and then she hung up the phone. Her eyes averted to the floor,
she walked back to her bedroom.
“ And make sure you stay
there, young lady,” Uncle Chuck called behind her. “I’m going to
pick your mother up from work now, and you better not even think about coming out of
your room. Do you hear me?”
“ Yes,” Terri peeped. She
shuffled back to her bedroom, closed the door. A few minutes later,
she heard the car door thunk closed from outside, the engine
started, then the car pulled out of the driveway and drove off down
the road.
Instantly, Terri felt
frustrated and bored. At least Patricia’s
all right, she thought. But—
There was just too much to think about, and
worry about.
And be scared about…
She had to find the
answers, and she knew the answers had to be in the backroom of the
boathouse. I could go again now, she realized. Uncle Chuck was gone, picking her
mother up. But with her luck he’d come right back just to see if
she was still in her room. I can’t risk
it, Terri wisely decided. She could get
into too much trouble. The only other thing she could do, she knew,
was look up some of those complicated words she’d seen on the
computer screen, the tanks, and the bottle labels, but—as hard as
she tried—she still couldn’t remember any of them. So she was still
faced with the problem of getting to the backroom of the boathouse,
so she could look at the words again, write them down, and then
look them up in the dictionary. That was the only way.
Or…
Was it?
There was still one other thing she could
try, wasn’t there?
Something that hadn’t occurred to her.
Yes! she thought.
Maybe the boathouse wasn’t
the only place
where she could read those words again.
Uncle Chuck, she knew, had been working down
there all afternoon. And when he’d come back up to the house, what
had he been carrying with him?
The briefcase! Terri realized.
Maybe those words were in the briefcase
too.
And—
There’s only one way to
find out, she told herself.
Right now, Uncle Chuck wasn’t in the house;
he was picking Terri’s mother up at work.
She could sneak out of her room right now,
couldn’t she?
And look in the briefcase
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