Read Online The Night I Flunked My Field Trip #5 by Henry Winkler - Free Book Online

stay in the same teams all night. So he’s stuck with Luke Whitman.”
    â€œAnd that Luke is so gross,” Chelsea added.
    â€œWhile they were on watch, he kept picking his nose and trying to wipe it on the ropes. We have to touch those to lift and lower the sails.”
    â€œWell, McKelty stuck me with the worst job ever,” I whispered back.
    I thought I heard the captain moving around in his room. It sounded like he was coming out again. I had to act fast.
    â€œAsh, we need your help. Go find McKelty and tell him to come here right away.”
    â€œWhy?”
    â€œI’ll tell you later. Just tell him we have Twinkies. Hurry!”
    I gave Ashley a strong nudge, something close to a push. She and Chelsea disappeared just as the captain yanked open the door to his room.
    â€œDid I hear someone yammering out here?” he yelled.
    â€œNo, sir, Captain, sir,” Collin and I both said at once.
    â€œHand me my boots,” he said to Collin. “Bring me my dinner while I get ready for shift change.”
    He snatched his boots from Collin and disappeared into the bathroom, or head, as we sailors like to say. Two seconds later, McKelty’s big face appeared at the window, just like I knew it would.
    â€œI hear you got Twinkies,” he said. His beady eyes fell on the pack of Twinkies I had left near the windowsill. His huge hand reached out and swiped them. Oh, yeah. The stinking fish was taking the bait.
    He stuffed one whole Twinkie in his mouth.
    â€œHaphing a grood time bing za chapn’s assisfhunt?” he asked.
    â€œI’ve really got to thank you, Nick,” I said to him. “This is the best job ever.”
    That got his attention. Nicky Boy stopped chewing long enough to look. A squirt of the cream snuck out of the corner of his mouth.
    â€œYeah,” Collin chimed in, just like we had planned. “While all you guys are up top working in the cold, we’re down here hanging with the captain. Telling jokes. Hearing about his adventures at sea.”
    I could tell this was very confusing to McKelty.
    â€œReally?” he said, swallowing the Twinkie and smearing the cream all over his chin. “He’s not mean?”
    â€œMean?” I laughed. “He couldn’t be nicer.”
    â€œYeah, he offered to take us out in the rowboat after everyone goes to bed,” Collin said.
    â€œWe don’t want to be late for that, do we, Collin?”
    â€œYou’re kidding, right?” said McKelty. There was some Twinkie goop hanging on the tip of his nose now.
    â€œWe’re going to get him dinner now,” said Collin. “Captain asked if we’d eat with him. It’s roast chicken, right, Hank?”
    â€œNo, steak,” I said. “Thick ones. Oh, and fries.”
    â€œHey, Nick,” Collin said. “I hear you guys are going to have to eat gruel.”
    â€œThat’s tough,” I said, “because we get chocolate mousse for dessert.”
    â€œThat’s French,” Collin said.
    McKelty looked like he was going to cry. “But I thought that this job was supposed to—”
    He didn’t finish his sentence. The big lug was about to give himself away.
    â€œThe old captain used to treat his assistants very badly,” I said. “But this new captain, he’s changed all that. He thinks his assistants should be treated like princes. Isn’t that what he said, Collin?”
    â€œNo. I think he said kings.”
    McKelty’s little eyes were popping out of his big, thick head. I had him right where I wanted him. It was time to make my move.
    â€œA new assistant was supposed to start at shift change,” I said very quietly to Nick, like I was letting him in on the secret formula for Kryptonite. “But he said we could keep the job all night if we wanted to.”
    â€œThe whole time?”
    Collin and I nodded.
    â€œThat’s not fair,” said McKelty.