The Super-Secret Science Club by S.C. Davis

Author:S.C. Davis
Language: eng
Format: epub
Tags: juvenile adventure fiction, middle grade science fiction, middle grade series, kid detective, juvenile detective, juvenile 9 to 12 years, children spies book, middle grade mystery books, middle school mysteries, spy kids books
Publisher: S.C. Davis

Chapter 14

Chains, Cables, and Classical Piano

WHEN THE GUEST TRAIN finally came to a stop in front of the Rosalind building, Chase pushed open the door on the side of the fourth car, facing the invisible solar field. He checked that the coast was clear, then helped Alexandra, Britta, and Ethan climb down before following them.

The sky was covered with clouds, providing an extra-thick cloak of darkness for the activities ahead. From the shadow of the train, they dashed into the line of pine trees that separated the train tracks from the solar field on the hill behind.

“It's only eight-thirty,” Alexandra whispered. “That's great, it means we have some time to help you, Ethan. Okay, everyone knows what to do.”

The others nodded, and the foursome slipped out to the other side of the pines and headed silently up the hill. Alexandra sprinted to the far end of the solar field, Chase stayed at the bottom, and Ethan and Britta ran up to the halfway point.

They each located a solar panel along the edge of the field, then reached down to unearth one of the large tow chains they had buried a few nights before. After dismissing Jenna, they had vowed not to let it slow them down, and they had continued with the work they had planned for that night. They spent hours collecting the chains and cables Ethan had spotted on the first night at the rail yard, and dragged them all the way down the track to the Rosalind building on wheelbarrows and wagons they had “borrowed” from the organic farm where Britta volunteered.

They had stretched out lengths of chain next to each row of panels and twisted them together into a thick master chain, which ran down the hill and stopped next to the train tracks. Not knowing whether or not the solar field would be inspected before the gala, they had decided not to connect the chains to the solar panels that night. Instead, they had concealed them the best they could under grass and dirt.

Now, the task was to connect each length of chain to the panels at the end of each row. The kids worked thoroughly, with Ethan and Britta starting from the middle and working toward Chase and Alexandra at the ends, who were working inward. Britta and Ethan, the smallest and weakest of the bunch, huffed and sweated under the weight of the chains, while Chase handled them like they were string. Alexandra struggled a bit, but moved quickly. They looped the ends of the chains around the invisible glass base of the solar panels and linked them back to the master chain.

“Some of these chains will snap,” Ethan had said, while explaining the plan to them earlier. “But all we need is just a few of them to hold. It’s the chain reaction that’s going to make the magic happen. The lucky thing is that the train is a push-pull. That means it can run backwards or forwards, with the locomotive pushing or pulling the rest of the train depending on the direction.

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