Читать книгу Casaday Girls, Book 2: The Creature Returns - Michael Markey - Страница 6

“I have no clue how you ever talked your Grandpa into taking you shopping this morning,” said Victoria Casaday, Alexa and Rachael’s mother. “I always thought my dad hated shopping.”

“All I did was tell him that if he took us today it would be a big help to you, Mom.”

“Why so early in the fall? I am still planning our way through Halloween.”

“Alexa and I decided that this year we are going to beat the rush and get the good stuff before it is gone. You always tell us: do not wait until the last minute to do things. Like homework.”

Their mother smiled. “Yes, but normally you never pay any attention to my advice.”

“Jeez, gives us a little credit, Mom.”

“Well, it does give me some time to run a few errands on my own, girls. You DO remember. The Halloween party is tonight at your school, Rachael.”

“Oh. That.” With everything going on with the Fromme case, she nearly forgot the holiday party. “Yeah...whatever.”

“After all the preparation by the parents I certainly hope you kids appreciate our hard work. So, have a good time with Grandpa but be on time later on.”

“Grandma is working more hours with the holidays coming soon. He never mentions it, but I think he gets lonely at home by himself. Alexa and I will fix that.”

“Very thoughtful of you.” Mom looked at the girls as Rachael peeked out, hoping to see their ride. “My. That is strange. You two never dress alike. What is this with all the black garb all of a sudden?”

“Uh, the Halloween look I guess,” replied Rachael, always quick with a story for all seasons.

“Just had to be a coincidence, Mom,” said Alexa. “I had no idea what Rache was wearing today.”

“Come on, Lex. Grandpa is in the driveway.” Rachael threw open the door for a quick getaway. “See you later, Mom. Probably late this afternoon.”

“Have a good time, you two. Be good for your grandfather, don’t fight with each other, and--”

Too late. Alexa and Rachael were already out the door and running toward Grandpa’s car.

“Not even a chance for a ‘hi’ to Dad,” their mother said to no one.

Both girls jumped into the back seat and Grandpa drove away. At the first stop sign he pulled over.

“Okay. Before I go any farther, we must take inventory.”

“We both have a crucifix, Grandpa. See?” Alexa exposed a bit of chain at her neck.

“Good start. I picked up an ample supply of garlic. It is in a foam cooler in the trunk, to keep that smell out of my car.”

“Did you bring the wooden stakes, just in case?” Alexa quietly asked.

He nodded. “A bag full. Mr. Fromme may have some undead friends hiding with him. The heavy mallet in the trunk should do the trick. Oh, and I brought a shovel, too. We need something to dig up that box with the key.”

“Yeah, right. Can you think of anything else?” Rachael asked.

“Not at the moment. Do you think your mother was suspicious?”

“Nope.”

“Well, she wondered why we were both wearing black, so I told her it was just a coincidence, Grandpa.”

“That is the exact reason I waited in the car. I know from experience that my daughter is a very smart girl. If I talk for a few minutes she will figure something is going on, and we do not want that.”

“Tell him, Lex. Tell him how I made it sound like we thought he was lonely with nobody around while Grandma is working, and we would be great company for him.”

“Please. You make me sound so pathetic. I do have a life besides assisting super kids, you know.”

“Well, it worked, Grandpa.”

They drove in silence for the first few minutes. Going through Berlin, the little town where Grandpa Maguire lived, a line of cars delayed them. Rachael fidgeted.

“Saturday morning, girls. Too much traffic, not enough roads.”

“Nothing you can do about it, Grandpa,” Rachael said.

“You girls had breakfast, right?”

“Yeah. More than we could handle.” An unusual answer for his older granddaughter, the one with the ravenous appetite.

Grandpa thought about what she said, figuring Alexa was fibbing. “I do not think I could eat a thing either just now. I am nervous, too.”

They finally made it to the other side of town and headed out across the countryside. At least this time Grandpa knew the way, so neither of the girls offered to direct. In ten minutes they arrived at the deserted building. Even in daylight the factory had a forbidding look to it. The warehouse end appeared to be something out of a war zone. Most of the destructions resulted from the showdown of their previous adventure. The ruthless boys tried desperately to end their lives with relentless power blasts that brought down the masonry walls. Using their abundance of superpowers the Casadays finally won that struggle of good versus evil.

Grandpa came to a stop very close to the same parking spot of their last visit to this desolate territory at the edge of The Pinelands. He looked ahead to that bleak structure before him. “You really want to go back into that building?”

“We must,” Alexa said, a bold statement for her. “It is what we do...sometimes.”

Their grandfather locked his Honda Accord the conventional way, unlike the last visit when he merely gestured toward his car and things magically happened. He opened the trunk to retrieve a shovel and his little bag of “tricks”: garlands of garlic, a hammer, and plenty of wooden stakes. Grandpa also wore a crucifix around his neck.

They ventured forward toward the office area of that building, a one-story appendage to the taller factory.

“You know the spot, Grandpa. Take us to where that box is buried,” said Rachael.

The girls followed him to the left and around the corner. Sure enough, there was a stone marker over a fresh patch of disturbed soil. It was also the burial plot where Dunbro Lasnikov and the boys left Mrs. Fromme, according to Lasnikov’s parting message. Alexa dropped to her hands and knees to roll back the stone. Grandpa dug into the loose sandy ground and, at about six inches he struck something hard. Hearing the metal-to-metal sound, all three looked to each other.

“Just as Mr. Lasnikov said. It must be down there,” said Alexa.

Grandpa worked the soil with the pointed tip of his spade until he pried the box loose. Rachael leaned into the hole and pulled out the jeweled container.

“Why bury such a beautiful thing, just to hide a key?”

“Our friend Lasnikov had a grand way about him when it came to such things, Alexa. He wanted to make an extravagant to-do over this,” Grandpa said.

“Knowing him, I bet that he even stole this box from the Fromme house,” said Rachael. She brushed the earthen residue off the top of it and discovered a latch.

“Well? Open it, Rache.”

She did what her sister ordered and pulled back the lid. There--in a sunken compartment of soft black silk--lay the key they sought. A rather ornate object to unlock a factory door.

Alexa could not wait. She reached in and snatched it.

“Hey! What is your hurry, Lex?”

“You were taking all day and we have got to move on. I thought YOU were the one with all the speedy moves in our family.”

“I was about to do it. Give me a chance.”

Both girls stood up, but then they paused.

Were they suddenly afraid to move on?

Grandpa finally said it. “Time, kids. We must see if we can find this guy.”

Cautiously they ventured into the reception area of the musty office. Alexa shivered as they entered the noiseless room. “Walking in here brings back the memories of just a few days ago...and not good ones.”

“Do not think about it, Lex. Keep moving,” Rachael said.

They faced the room of desks, probably where the company transacted day-to-day business: sales, accounting functions, buying, and much more. As before, they saw nothing on the surfaces except for undisturbed dust and grime. At least it appeared no one had touched the area since last time.

A larger cubicle beyond--a conference room--showed more of the same: the smelly filth of an unused work space. Even in daylight they found the eeriness unsettling.

“Oh Rache. Must we keep going?” Alexa paused, then touched the knob on the next door.

“Not to worry, Lex. Mr. Lasnikov is gone, and he will not be back.”

This was the manager’s office where the evil Dunbro Lasnikov’s presence shocked them days ago. Their nemesis sat there smugly behind the huge desk meant for the company leader. Lasnikov then proudly announced that he was the founder of a new movement, something he called The League of Young Superpowers. Instead of a rescue mission for Isaac Fromme, Lasnikov tricked them so they would serve in this alliance of certain evil.

“I know, Rache. Only a flashback I had.”

Grandpa understood their fears. In the last visit while the girls listened to Dunbro’s rants, he lay unconscious outside, powerless to rescue them from the clutches of Lasnikov. At first. “Why not move on and forget that room for the moment.”

“Good idea,” Rachael said quickly as they passed that unopened door.

Continuing on, they stopped at the end of the hall. To the right was the door to the factory itself. Straight ahead they remembered seeing a sliding panel cleverly disguised as--well--just another wall, to the unsuspecting visitor.

“Hmm. This is where we saw it,” Grandpa said.

“The blue door? The portal? Yeah, it had to be right here,” said Alexa.

“If someone did not want anyone to know it was there, they would find a way to conceal it. Like with a secret panel in those old spooky houses you see in the movies,” Rachael said.

“There is no fireplace or bookshelf to hide the opening device, Rache.”

“We see ornate oak paneling with seams. Look for joints where the sections butt together,” said Grandpa.

All three searched and they did indeed find the seams, but there was no way to move a portion of the wall. No switches or levers--nothing. Finally, Grandpa took the initiative.

“I hate to do this, but I think we have got to look in the manager’s office. On the other side of this hall, girls.”

“Must we?”

“Alexa, I think that is where we will find the answer. If it is a problem for you--well--let me go it alone.”

“Good idea, Grandpa. Alexa and I can wait for you here.” That room scares me, too.

Their grandfather ventured into the office which still remained the same as their last terrifying visit. He saw those distinctive marks in the dust on the desk where Lasnikov slammed his silver-tipped cane--for emphasis, to make a point--when he spoke. Grandpa Maguire immediately turned right and walked to the wall just on the other side of the hallway. He pressed on nooks and crannies that might release that segment hiding the concealed great blue door. He found nothing at first. Grandpa then looked along the wall parallel with the one in the hall. Nothing there but a single light switch. For his own amusement he flipped the switch. With no result, of course. Hmm. Why have a light switch way over here? There is one beside the entrance door.

Suddenly he figured it out. With the switch in the “on” position he noticed that the entire plate could now move. So he pulled on the plate itself. It was hinged at the bottom. With the plate at a ninety degree position he sensed a loosening of the entire wall, and beyond. A locking mechanism gave way with a dull thud.

“Grandpa? What did you do?” Alexa yelled from outside the room.

He rushed to the hall and discovered that the panel had begun to slide left. “I do believe we have revealed the mystery to the Great Blue Door, kids.”

With the catch released, a six-foot section of wall slid effortlessly. It revealed the door they sought. Alexa produced the key and slid it into the keyhole of the rusted lock.

“Just like Mr. Lasnikov said. Our next adventure awaits,” said Alexa quietly as she turned the key.