Case File 13 #2 by J. Scott Savage Page B

wearing a pair of tortoiseshell glasses with tinted lenses. Apparently his mother had purchased them for him a few months earlier, but he had refused to even try them on. Now they were his only choice until she could order him another pair. “If he is missing, it might look suspicious, you showing up at his house the very next day.”
    â€œSo you want to do nothing? Pretend like last night never happened?” Nick slammed his fist on his lunch, mashing his cupcake into a smear of orange frosting and crumbs inside the plastic wrapper.
    â€œOh-h-h,” Carter groaned. He picked up the flattened cupcake, turned it over in his hands, and said, “I think it’s still edible.”
    â€œWhat choice do we have?” Angie asked. “If we tell anyone we broke into the school, we’ll get in trouble. And without Tiffany’s pictures, we have no proof anything happened at all.”
    Tiffany, who looked completely lost without her phone, fiddled with her necklace. “The good news is the police haven’t shown up asking any questions. And the school would be buzzing if anyone had contacted Kimber.”
    â€œAll that means is the police didn’t take our call seriously,” Nick said. He watched Carter trying to suck cupcake crumbs out of the package and balled his fists. “Fine, I’ll wait until tomorrow. If Cody isn’t back by then, I’m going to his house. And if he’s not there . . .” He wasn’t sure what he’d do if Cody hadn’t come home from Sumina Prep. But one thing he was sure of was that he couldn’t just sit around and wait for word that something terrible had happened.
    That night, all he could think about was Cody and what might be happening to him. As far as he had seen, they only experimented on dead bodies at Sumina. But what if that wasn’t the case? What if right now, Frankenstein was strapped to a table while the Pale One shocked and probed him?
    â€œUp for an episode of Supernatural ?” his dad asked, turning on the TV. “I recorded it while you were at the game.”
    â€œI don’t think so,” Nick said. “Maybe I’ll just go lie down.”
    Dad came over and put a hand on his head. “Give it to me straight. Are you dying of some rare tropical disease?”
    â€œHuh?” Nick asked.
    Dad plopped onto the couch beside him. “I’ve never seen you turn down the chance to watch a scary show. I taped it especially because I know how much you like it. So either you’re dying, or there’s something on your mind. Which is it?”
    Nick wished he could tell his dad the truth. It would be so nice to confess to a grown-up and let them figure it out. But that would mean ratting on his friends. And even if his dad believed him, which wasn’t likely, what could he do about it?
    â€œIt’s the disease,” Nick said, trying to give a convincing smile. “I’ve got two weeks to live. But don’t worry. I left you my Tales from the Crypt comic-book collection.”
    He went up to his room before his dad could ask him any more questions. But he didn’t sleep well that night. And when Cody wasn’t in class the next morning, he made his decision.
    â€œI’m going,” he told the other kids at the first recess.
    Carter gulped, his Adam’s apple bobbing up and down. “I’ll go too.”
    Angelo pushed his glasses up on his nose. “I’ll go.”
    Angie looked at Dana and Tiffany, who nodded. “Okay. We’re in.”

Nick walked along the sidewalk with his head down. Frankenstein’s house had always been a place kids avoided at all costs and here he was walking straight to it. He wasn’t sure what he’d say when he reached it. What if the police were there? After two days of Cody being missing, someone must have called them.
    â€œYour mom still hasn’t got you the new glasses, huh?” Carter asked