The Bell Bandit by Jacqueline Davies

Author:Jacqueline Davies
Language: eng
Format: mobi, epub
Publisher: Houghton Mifflin Harcourt
Published: 0101-01-01T00:00:00+00:00

Now that Pete had gone to the hardware store to buy a new box of galvanized screws, Evan was wandering around the house with the plumb bob to see if he could find even one thing that was the way it was supposed to be. It was surprising. Evan would look at a door and think it was straight, but then when he held up the string, he could see that it was crooked. The front door was out of whack. The railings on the stairs were out of whack. All the windows in the living room were out of whack.

"This house is crazy!" he announced loudly, even though there was no one there to hear him. His mother had gone into town to talk with the insurance agent handling the fire claim, Jessie was off with Maxwell, and Grandma was taking a nap.

"You can say that again!" A voice came from the kitchen. Evan walked in to find his grandmother wrapping her new scarf around her neck. Her injured arm was still in its sling, but she managed to get the scarf on with just one good hand.

"Grandma, you're supposed to be napping." He put the plumb bob on the kitchen counter next to the toaster and noticed that his mom's cell phone was plugged into the outlet, charging. His mother's phone was old, and the battery ran out just about every day. She kept saying she was going to replace it, but she never did.

"Says who?" said Grandma.

"Mom said."

"I'm not four, Evan. I know when I'm tired, and I know when I'm not."

Evan was so relieved to hear that she knew who he was, he smiled. But then he saw that she was putting on her snow boots, and the smile disappeared from his face. "Where are you going?"

"For a walk," said Grandma. "It makes me crazy being all cooped up."

"No," said Evan firmly. "Mom doesn't want you going out—" He was about to say alone, but he stopped himself.

"Since when does your mother tell me what to do?" Grandma had gotten both boots on her feet and was now reaching for her dark green barn jacket. She slipped her good arm through one sleeve and buttoned the loose coat over her injured arm. Evan was surprised to see how quickly and easily she managed the buttons. His grandmother really was amazing.

"Please don't go, Grandma," said Evan. "It's getting late. It'll be dark soon."

"I'll be quick. I just need to stretch my legs and see the sky. The trees are calling to me. Can't stand being in the house all day."

She was going. Evan could see that there was nothing he could do to stop her. That panicked feeling came back. Something bad was going to happen. How could he stop it? What was he supposed to do?

"I'll come with you," he said.

"Fine, but be quick. There's not much daylight left. I'll wait for you out front." Grandma pulled her hat on her head, looped Jessie's scarf once more around her neck, and walked out the back door.

Download

Copyright Disclaimer:
This site does not store any files on its server. We only index and link to content provided by other sites. Please contact the content providers to delete copyright contents if any and email us, we'll remove relevant links or contents immediately.