Two-Thousand-Pound Goldfish by Betsy Byars

Author:Betsy Byars [Byars, Betsy]
Language: eng
Format: epub
ISBN: 978-1-4532-9415-4
Publisher: Open Road
Published: 2013-01-02T19:05:00+00:00

“No, no, you’ve got to take me with you. You can’t leave me for the giant mongoose!”

“Farewell, my friend.”

WARREN WAS SITTING ON the sofa in the darkness. The door to the outside hall was open so that Warren would be able to see Mrs. Oglesby the moment she got back from the hospital. Even so, he got up every few minutes to peer over the banister at the empty stairs below.

Warren had wanted desperately to go with his grandmother in the ambulance to the hospital, but Mrs. Oglesby had been firm. “You wait here, and when your sister comes, the two of you can come over on the bus. You’ll just be in the doctor’s way.”

“I’ve got to come!” He felt the sort of desperation a victim in his movies might feel when he was left behind as monster food. “No, no, you’ve got to take me with you. You can’t leave me for the giant mongoose!”

“Farewell, my friend.”

“Warren.” She had put her hands on his shoulders, but he threw them off in one furious gesture.

“She’s my grandmother!”

“Warren,” she continued in her even, adult voice, “you can help your grandmother most by staying out of the way.”

That was a terrible way to help somebody, he thought as he drew back, stunned, fighting tears. By staying out of the way! He had continued to stand in the same spot, listening to the struggles of the ambulance attendants on the stairs, then to the slam of the door, the silence, the long wail of the siren outside. Warren had never felt so alone in his life.

He thought he heard the door open downstairs. He got up quickly, ran out into the hall, and stared over the banister. There was no one there. He leaned forward, resting on his elbows, his hands dangling over the railing. He sighed aloud.

If his grandmother died … He had to think about this possibility, he told himself, because of the terrible way his grandmother had looked when they were carrying her out on the stretcher. Pale, sort of grayish, her eyes open a little, half-moons of white showing, her jaw slack. He had never seen a dead person except on television or in the movies, but he was sure that was the way they looked. He felt goosebumps rise on his arm, remembering.

If his grandmother died … He straightened abruptly. His eyes snapped open. If his grandmother died, he went on in a rush, his mother would come home! She would have to! It was such an awesome truth it took his breath away.

He paused, holding tightly to the railing with both hands. In his mind he was already at the funeral. He could see the mourners, all in black. They would be standing together around the open grave, under black umbrellas—a light rain would be falling. And back in the mist, half hidden by the towering old tombstones, would be a lone figure, a black hat pulled low over her face, hiding her red hair.

“We are gathered here today,” the minister would be saying in a low, sad voice.

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.