Read Online The Ghost of Gruesome High by Larry Parr - Free Book Online Page B
Authors: Larry Parr
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suddenly frowned, another half-idea suddenly flooding my mind. “We may even have to dig up some bodies from the old graveyard,” I said suddenly. I didn’t really know what I was talking about, but something made me say it anyway.
Wesley thought about digging up bodies and suddenly smiled. “Gruesome!” he said enthusiastically.
Alan shook his head, looking slightly irritated. “Wait a minute. What do you mean we have to do all this research anyway?” Alan said, pushing his glasses up with the bayonet of the toy soldier he held in his hand. “Why would we do that?”
I was totally exasperated. Hadn’t these guys been paying attention to everything we’d been doing? Didn’t they have a clue what was going on? Didn’t they want to solve this mystery? “Because . . .” I began—and suddenly realized I didn’t have a simple answer to that question. “Because we need to do a lot of research—especially about the old graveyard—if we want to solve the mystery,” I answered rather lamely.
“What mystery?” Alan asked, setting his toy soldier down. “So there’s a ghost wandering around the school. Big deal. It’s not bothering me. What do I care?”
“I think you’re spending a whole lot more time with this ghost thing than you should,” Wesley echoed. “Give it a rest. The ghost has been around for years, ever since the school was built. What’s the big deal?”
I think I must have stood there with my mouth open, not believing my ears, for at least a full ten or fifteen seconds. I couldn’t believe these guys didn’t care. But then I realized they hadn’t seen and heard everything I had. All I had to do was tell them, and then they’d be just as anxious to solve this mystery as I was!
So I paced all around Wesley’s basement den and told them everything that had happened. I told them about sneaking up to the school last night and seeing Mr. Greenwald; I told them about being spied on at lunch by Ben Thompson; I told them about my meeting with Mr. Greenwald after school; and after a slight hesitation I even told them about my run-in with Ben Thompson—though I toned down certain parts of it because I was afraid Jason would feel obligated to prove how much of a “man” he was by fighting Ben or something equally boy-dumb, and I didn’t want him getting hurt.
What I wanted was for them to get as excited about all this as I was.
When I finished my story I sat down in the big chair, cross-legged, and waited expectantly for their thrilling response.
What I got instead was a lot of feet shuffling and quick glances back and forth between them. Finally Jason said: “Wow. I can’t believe you did all that. Why didn’t you ask me to help you?”
He said it with a hurt tone to his voice. This was definitely not starting out the way I hoped it would. Instead of concentrating on the mystery, Jason was concentrating on himself and the fact that I hadn’t gotten him to be my big protector —and the crazy thing was, I tried to get the guys to come to the school with me last night, I waited for them at lunch, and I tried to get them to come to Mr. Greenwald’s class with me after school.
What was wrong with these guys? Why weren’t they as fired up about this ghost thing as I was?
“I tried,” I finally said. “You were busy, remember? But now we can figure this whole thing out and Wesley’s history project is the perfect excuse we need.”
Wesley looked at me and shook his head quickly. “Excuse we need? Excuse for what?”
I sighed. Hadn’t these guys been listening to what I said? Were they really this dense? “The excuse we need to interview Mayor Thompson!” I said, exasperated.
Chapter 14
Hizonor, Mayor Thompson
“I can’t believe we’re really doing this?” Jason hissed at me between clenched teeth. “You’re a certifiable loon!”
We were seated in a large room at city hall. All of us were there, Jennifer, Alan, Wesley, Jason, and myself.
Wesley thought about digging up bodies and suddenly smiled. “Gruesome!” he said enthusiastically.
Alan shook his head, looking slightly irritated. “Wait a minute. What do you mean we have to do all this research anyway?” Alan said, pushing his glasses up with the bayonet of the toy soldier he held in his hand. “Why would we do that?”
I was totally exasperated. Hadn’t these guys been paying attention to everything we’d been doing? Didn’t they have a clue what was going on? Didn’t they want to solve this mystery? “Because . . .” I began—and suddenly realized I didn’t have a simple answer to that question. “Because we need to do a lot of research—especially about the old graveyard—if we want to solve the mystery,” I answered rather lamely.
“What mystery?” Alan asked, setting his toy soldier down. “So there’s a ghost wandering around the school. Big deal. It’s not bothering me. What do I care?”
“I think you’re spending a whole lot more time with this ghost thing than you should,” Wesley echoed. “Give it a rest. The ghost has been around for years, ever since the school was built. What’s the big deal?”
I think I must have stood there with my mouth open, not believing my ears, for at least a full ten or fifteen seconds. I couldn’t believe these guys didn’t care. But then I realized they hadn’t seen and heard everything I had. All I had to do was tell them, and then they’d be just as anxious to solve this mystery as I was!
So I paced all around Wesley’s basement den and told them everything that had happened. I told them about sneaking up to the school last night and seeing Mr. Greenwald; I told them about being spied on at lunch by Ben Thompson; I told them about my meeting with Mr. Greenwald after school; and after a slight hesitation I even told them about my run-in with Ben Thompson—though I toned down certain parts of it because I was afraid Jason would feel obligated to prove how much of a “man” he was by fighting Ben or something equally boy-dumb, and I didn’t want him getting hurt.
What I wanted was for them to get as excited about all this as I was.
When I finished my story I sat down in the big chair, cross-legged, and waited expectantly for their thrilling response.
What I got instead was a lot of feet shuffling and quick glances back and forth between them. Finally Jason said: “Wow. I can’t believe you did all that. Why didn’t you ask me to help you?”
He said it with a hurt tone to his voice. This was definitely not starting out the way I hoped it would. Instead of concentrating on the mystery, Jason was concentrating on himself and the fact that I hadn’t gotten him to be my big protector —and the crazy thing was, I tried to get the guys to come to the school with me last night, I waited for them at lunch, and I tried to get them to come to Mr. Greenwald’s class with me after school.
What was wrong with these guys? Why weren’t they as fired up about this ghost thing as I was?
“I tried,” I finally said. “You were busy, remember? But now we can figure this whole thing out and Wesley’s history project is the perfect excuse we need.”
Wesley looked at me and shook his head quickly. “Excuse we need? Excuse for what?”
I sighed. Hadn’t these guys been listening to what I said? Were they really this dense? “The excuse we need to interview Mayor Thompson!” I said, exasperated.
Chapter 14
Hizonor, Mayor Thompson
“I can’t believe we’re really doing this?” Jason hissed at me between clenched teeth. “You’re a certifiable loon!”
We were seated in a large room at city hall. All of us were there, Jennifer, Alan, Wesley, Jason, and myself.
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