Here Comes the Shaggedy by R.L. Stine

Author:R.L. Stine
Language: eng
Format: epub
Publisher: Scholastic Inc.
Published: 2016-09-25T04:00:00+00:00

* * *

The next morning was Thursday. Kelli woke up feeling really hungry. She stepped into the kitchen to make pancakes. Her dad sat at the small kitchen table, reading the news on his iPad. Coffee was bubbling in the coffeemaker. Shawn wandered in, still in his pajamas, yawning and stretching.

“You look like something the cat dragged in,” his dad told him. “What’s your problem, Shawn?”

“We don’t have a cat,” Shawn said.

Their dad frowned at him. “It’s an expression. What do cats usually drag in? Dead mice, maybe. Dead birds …”

“It’s a dumb expression,” Shawn said.

“I can see you’re in a great mood,” his dad said.

“I couldn’t get back to sleep,” Shawn told Kelli. “I was too scared. I was up all night.”

Dad set his iPad down on the table. “What happened? Why were you scared?”

“Shawn heard voices outside his window,” Kelli answered. “Someone calling his name. I didn’t want to wake you. You’re such a sound sleeper, it’s impossible to wake you anyway. So I went outside and looked around.”

“And?” her dad asked.

“And … it was that creepy guy. Saul, the guy who said he was a park ranger.”

Her dad squinted at her. “Really? He was outside our house?”

Kelli nodded. “Prowling around in the trees, looking for snakes, I think. He said he didn’t whisper Shawn’s name or anything.”

“Do you think you had one of your nightmares, Shawn?” his Dad asked.

Shawn shrugged. “It didn’t seem like a nightmare.” He turned to Kelli. “I don’t want pancakes. I just want cereal.”

“Are you going to be difficult all day?” Kelli asked him.

He nodded. “Definitely.” He pulled open the fridge door. “Hey, there’s no milk.”

“Would you two run and get some?” their dad asked. “Walk to that little general store on the path behind our house. It’ll only take five minutes. You’ll still have plenty of time to get to school.”

“No problem,” Kelli said. She lowered a stack of pancakes onto her dad’s plate. He handed her a five-dollar bill. “Hurry back.”

Kelli motioned to Shawn. “Quick. Get out of your pajamas and get dressed.”

He groaned. “Why can’t you go? Why do I have to go, too?”

“Because I’d miss you,” Kelli teased.

A few minutes later, they stepped out the front door. The morning sun was still a red ball just above the trees. The swamp grass shimmered, still wet from the early dew.

The path to the little store was not far behind their yard. Kelli turned and led the way along the side of the house.

“Oh, wow.” Shawn stopped and grabbed her arm. “Oh, wow.”

They both froze and stared in shock at the ground in front of Shawn’s bedroom window … stared at the two huge footprints sunk deep in the grass.

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