Read Online The Candy Shop War, Vol. 2: Arcade Catastrophe by Brandon Mull - Free Book Online Page B

mischief. One major crisis is bad enough.”
    “We want to help,” Summer said.
    Victor sighed. “Bottom line? You’re kids. I don’t want to put on the heavy pressure. We could use your assistance, but we don’t require it. You now know the situation. Take some time to think it through. Talk things over with Sebastian Stott. We’ll back whatever choice you make.”
    “Mozag saved me from being trapped as an old man,” Nate said. “John saved me too. They both spend their lives protecting us all from maniacs with magical powers. I have to help them. I’ll win one of those stamps. I’ll find out what’s going on.”
    “Shouldn’t we talk to Mr. Stott first?” Pigeon asked.
    “We should,” Nate said. “We could use whatever support he can offer. But whatever we decide to do, it won’t hurt to start winning some tickets.”
    “You mean tonight?” Summer asked.
    “I mean right now.”
    *****
    Nate returned to Arcadeland with Trevor and Summer. Pigeon had left to go talk things over with Mr. Stott. It was later in the afternoon, and the arcade was more crowded. Ziggy and Victor waited outside in the van as backup.
    Scanning the room, Nate spotted Roman over at the shooting gallery, hunched over the counter with his cheek against a rifle. Nate crossed to him. Summer and Trevor followed but hung back.
    “Do you ever go home?” Nate asked.
    “You’re here too,” Roman replied, one eye shut as he prepared to shoot.
    “Sick of basketball?”
    “Some hotshot made the record unreachable today,” Roman replied. “And yes, I eventually get sick of it. Basketball is probably where I can average the most tickets per turn, but it gets old after I play it for too long.”
    “How are the tickets for this game?” Nate asked.
    Roman stopped aiming and looked up. “Not bad if you know the tricks.”
    “What tricks?”
    Roman hesitated for a moment. “Most people aim at the close stuff. They want to see the guy play the piano. They want to make the cow skull shake. They want the bottles behind the bar to spin. But the saloon has two windows.”
    “Right,” Nate said. Outside one window four buzzards were circling in and out of view, each with a tiny target attached. A small train went by the other window, as if in the distance, an engine pulling four cars. Each train car had a target. The train moved fairly quickly, coming into view every fifteen seconds.
    “The vultures don’t do much when you hit them. You just hear a faint squawk and the target lights up. The train does even less. The target lights up. That’s it. You get ten shots each turn. If you hit all four vultures on your turn, you get 25 tickets. If you hit all four train cars, you also earn 25. Those targets aren’t easy to hit, but if you get good, you can pick up 50 tickets per turn without much trouble. Using any other strategy, you’re lucky to get 10.”
    “Thanks for the tips.”
    Roman glanced back at Trevor and Summer. “I haven’t seen you guys around before today. You plan to hang out here much?”
    “I like it here,” Nate said. “It’s the best arcade I’ve seen. I want one of those stamps.”
    “Stamps?” Roman asked, trying much too hard to sound casual.
    “Aren’t you after a stamp?”
    “Why would I want a stamp?”
    Nate shrugged. “They’re the most expensive prizes, and you keep working hard to earn more tickets even though you have a ton.”
    Roman shook his head. “Chris and Risa are getting sloppy. They were so careful not to let anything slip before they had theirs.”
    “Which one are you after?” Nate asked. “Jet, tank, racecar, or sub?”
    “Which do you want?”
    “I’m not sure,” Nate replied honestly. “That’s why I’m bugging you.”
    Roman seemed like he wanted to end the conversation. “I want a jet. My friends have jets, so I want one.”
    “What’s the big deal?” Nate pursued. “Why work so hard for the stamps?”
    “I don’t know,” Roman replied, glancing around to make