glasssparkled as they fell through the spray of sprinkler water.
Most kids had made it safely out of the room. I could still hear their screams from out in the hall.
Mr. Kimpall had a pile of books under his arms. Ducking the falling glass, he slipped and slid to the door.
“Sam—hurry!” he called, waving frantically to me.
A hard burst of water splashed down on me. I felt a sharp stab of pain as a piece of an exploded lightbulb grazed the shoulder of my drenched T-shirt.
Lowering my head, I struggled toward the door.
I was nearly there, when I heard the buzzing crackle of electricity.
Looking up, I saw a bright yellow-white bolt shoot across the ceiling.
Red and yellow sparks flew everywhere.
ZZZZAAAAPPPPP .
A jagged bolt of electricity hit the wall in front of me. It bounced off, sending a shower of sparks over the wet floor.
Ducking my head, I heard another explosion of glass. And then another bolt of electricity flashed above me.
Gasping for breath, I stumbled to the classroom door.
I grabbed the metal doorknob.
And opened my mouth in a scream of agony as a powerful jolt of electricity burned through my hand … rattled my teeth … shot through my body.
My hand—I couldn’t remove it from the doorknob.
Shock after shock made my whole body jump and twist.
Dancing … dancing out of control in the white-hot jolts of electricity, I knew the imp had had his victory.
My battle had ended before it had even begun.
ZZZZZZZTTTT .
A body-shattering bolt of power shot me to the floor in a crumpled heap.
I tried to climb to my feet. But I couldn’t make my muscles work.
Gasping, throbbing in pain, I lay flopping on the wet floor like a dying fish.
20
“Unnnnh.” A sick groan escaped my open mouth. I saw bright flashes of red and yellow dancing around me.
Then I felt strong arms pulling me, sliding me over the wet floor.
I blinked several times. I let out a strong whoosh of air, forcing myself to start breathing again.
I looked up to see who had rescued me. “Teri?” She let go of my arms. And sank back into the crowd that had formed a circle around me.
I gazed up at Mr. Kimpall, Simpson, and Tim Poster.
“Sam? Can you hear me? Can you speak?” Mr. Kimpall asked, lowering his face to mine.
“Uh … ” I struggled to answer. My face wasn’t working right. I couldn’t get my lips to form words.
“You had a nasty shock,” Mr. Kimpall said. “Lie still. We called for a doctor to come check you out.”
Tim and Simpson stared down at me as if I were some sort of alien creature. Behind them I saw the other kids from my class, all soaked, shaking from the cold.
“I don’t know what set the sprinklers off,” Mr. Kimpall said, still leaning over me. “I’ve never seen anything like that.”
I know what set them off , I thought bitterly. His name is spelled i-m-p .
And all that destruction, all that horror had only one target—
Me.
The doctor arrived a few minutes later. She examined me carefully and said I was okay.
Ms. Simpkin offered to drive me home. On the way, she lectured me about the big mistake I’d made at the assembly.
“The whole school had to pay for your little outburst,” she said sternly. “But you were lucky this time, Sam. The imp let you survive.”
She turned to me as she parked in front of my house. “The next time … ” she said. “The next time … ” Her voice trailed off.
I felt a shiver of fear.
I had felt so brave before. So sure of myself.
But I had seen the power of the imp. Thinking about it sent chill after chill down my back.
“Don’t you want to get rid of the imp?” I asked Ms. Simpkin. “Don’t you want to chase it away so the school can be normal?”
She didn’t answer. Instead, she waved me out of the car. “See you tomorrow, Sam,” she said softly. “I hope.”
21
Friday afternoon, we had a long band practice after school. Our last chance to work on our songs before the concert that night.
I sat down next to Teri
Most kids had made it safely out of the room. I could still hear their screams from out in the hall.
Mr. Kimpall had a pile of books under his arms. Ducking the falling glass, he slipped and slid to the door.
“Sam—hurry!” he called, waving frantically to me.
A hard burst of water splashed down on me. I felt a sharp stab of pain as a piece of an exploded lightbulb grazed the shoulder of my drenched T-shirt.
Lowering my head, I struggled toward the door.
I was nearly there, when I heard the buzzing crackle of electricity.
Looking up, I saw a bright yellow-white bolt shoot across the ceiling.
Red and yellow sparks flew everywhere.
ZZZZAAAAPPPPP .
A jagged bolt of electricity hit the wall in front of me. It bounced off, sending a shower of sparks over the wet floor.
Ducking my head, I heard another explosion of glass. And then another bolt of electricity flashed above me.
Gasping for breath, I stumbled to the classroom door.
I grabbed the metal doorknob.
And opened my mouth in a scream of agony as a powerful jolt of electricity burned through my hand … rattled my teeth … shot through my body.
My hand—I couldn’t remove it from the doorknob.
Shock after shock made my whole body jump and twist.
Dancing … dancing out of control in the white-hot jolts of electricity, I knew the imp had had his victory.
My battle had ended before it had even begun.
ZZZZZZZTTTT .
A body-shattering bolt of power shot me to the floor in a crumpled heap.
I tried to climb to my feet. But I couldn’t make my muscles work.
Gasping, throbbing in pain, I lay flopping on the wet floor like a dying fish.
20
“Unnnnh.” A sick groan escaped my open mouth. I saw bright flashes of red and yellow dancing around me.
Then I felt strong arms pulling me, sliding me over the wet floor.
I blinked several times. I let out a strong whoosh of air, forcing myself to start breathing again.
I looked up to see who had rescued me. “Teri?” She let go of my arms. And sank back into the crowd that had formed a circle around me.
I gazed up at Mr. Kimpall, Simpson, and Tim Poster.
“Sam? Can you hear me? Can you speak?” Mr. Kimpall asked, lowering his face to mine.
“Uh … ” I struggled to answer. My face wasn’t working right. I couldn’t get my lips to form words.
“You had a nasty shock,” Mr. Kimpall said. “Lie still. We called for a doctor to come check you out.”
Tim and Simpson stared down at me as if I were some sort of alien creature. Behind them I saw the other kids from my class, all soaked, shaking from the cold.
“I don’t know what set the sprinklers off,” Mr. Kimpall said, still leaning over me. “I’ve never seen anything like that.”
I know what set them off , I thought bitterly. His name is spelled i-m-p .
And all that destruction, all that horror had only one target—
Me.
The doctor arrived a few minutes later. She examined me carefully and said I was okay.
Ms. Simpkin offered to drive me home. On the way, she lectured me about the big mistake I’d made at the assembly.
“The whole school had to pay for your little outburst,” she said sternly. “But you were lucky this time, Sam. The imp let you survive.”
She turned to me as she parked in front of my house. “The next time … ” she said. “The next time … ” Her voice trailed off.
I felt a shiver of fear.
I had felt so brave before. So sure of myself.
But I had seen the power of the imp. Thinking about it sent chill after chill down my back.
“Don’t you want to get rid of the imp?” I asked Ms. Simpkin. “Don’t you want to chase it away so the school can be normal?”
She didn’t answer. Instead, she waved me out of the car. “See you tomorrow, Sam,” she said softly. “I hope.”
21
Friday afternoon, we had a long band practice after school. Our last chance to work on our songs before the concert that night.
I sat down next to Teri
Similar Books
