Read Online The Age Altertron by Mark Dunn - Free Book Online

crowed Jackie. “We just want
to use his house for a hiding place. We’re fugitives, you see. The law thinks
we did something that we didn’t do.”
Rodney stared hard at Jackie and his fellow fugitive. He felt like a judge glaring
down at a convicted criminal from his high bench. “What crime did you not commit that someone thinks you committed?” he asked in his official interviewer’s
voice.
“ Somebody —really two somebodies—just ran through the Pitcherville
City Park and overturned all the baby carriages. And there were about a dozen
of them. Maybe more.”
“Maybe two dozen,” said Lonnie.
“How do you know?” asked Becky with a skeptical look. “Were you there?”
“No,” snapped Jackie. “But that’s what we heard. Two wild boys—oh, maybe just
our size, went on a rampage through the park and knocked over about two dozen…”
“Maybe even three dozen,” interrupted Lonnie Rowe, smiling proudly.
“Three dozen—shut up, Lonnie—three dozen baby carriages, most of them with the
babies still inside.”
“Maybe four dozen,” said Lonnie.
“I told you to…” Jackie suddenly took something from one of his little-boy-dungaree
pockets that was floppy and black. He hit Lonnie over the head with it. “…to
shut up,” he concluded.
“Do they have a description of the rampagers besides the fact that they were
about your size?” queried Rodney.
“Yeah, they were wearing black bandit masks.”
“You mean like the black bandit mask you just hit Lonnie with?”
“Uh—uh—this isn’t a black bandit mask. It’s my black handkerchief. Isn’t that
right, Lonnie?”
Lonnie nodded. “Jackie likes black handkerchiefs because they hide all the dirty
crud that comes out of his nose.”
Jackie hit Lonnie on the head again.
“And for some strange reason,” guessed Rodney, “the police think it’s you two
who did all that rampaging.”
“That’s right, monkey. Because whenever anything bad happens in this town, it’s
always Lonnie and me they point the finger at. So why don’t the four of you
be good little monkeys and stop blocking the stairs so Lonnie and I can find
ourselves a good hiding place inside the Professor’s house?”
“I don’t think so,” said Wayne sternly. Then he put one arm around his brother
Rodney’s shoulder and one arm around his friend Becky’s shoulder, so that they
could together make a better barrier against the two bully-fugitives.
But Jackie would not be deterred. He tried a friendlier tack: “Come on, you
guys! I heard that the house had this great big basement, and there’s an even
bigger one beneath that one! Wouldn’t it be swell to explore them?”
Wayne softened a little. “Two basements? One on top of the other?”
“Uh huh.”
Wayne turned to his brother. “The Professor never told us he had a secret sub-basement!”
“ Waaayne !” Becky pursed her lips. She squinted her eyes and gave Wayne
a scolding look.
“I don’t care if the Professor has basements going all the way down to China,
Jackie, you can’t come into his house,” said Rodney sharply.
Jackie fixed his lips into the beginnings of a snarl. “I bet you’ll let us hide
out in this house after I get finished slugging you with this fist, monkey.”
The smarter and louder and more self-confident of the two bullies took a menacing
step toward Rodney, his fingers already curled into a fist. Just as suddenly,
though, his fingers relaxed.
“No, no. I’m not going to use my fist. I’m going to use my head. Just like my
old man does to get what he wants. I can’t wait until I’m as old as he
is and then I can be mayor myself and all you monkeys will have to do what I
say!”
Jackie had hardly finished speaking when the squeal of a whistle pierced the
air. “Uh oh,” said Lonnie, who wasted no time in running off.
“This isn’t over, monkey,” threatened Jackie from over his shoulder as he raced
off in the same