Cora Flash and the Treasure of Beggar's Bluff by Tommy Davey Page B

shoebox.
    When he got to me, I made sure to shuffle the pieces around. I let my fingers roll over the pieces of paper, feeling them pass under and between my fingers. Finally, I stopped on a piece that somehow felt better than the rest. I grabbed it and opened it.
    "What did you get?" asked Shelby.
    "Pick yours before I say," I replied.
    She reached into the box and pulled out the first paper her fingers touched. She could not wait for me to open my paper, so she opened hers and read out the assignment: "Native edible plant species. What does that mean?"
    "You have to research plants that are found in this area that we can eat," I said.
    "Who eats plants?"
    "We all do, like fruit and vegetables. They're considered part of the plant family."
    "Vegetables?" she cried. "I have to do a project on vegetables? Oh brother."
    Clearly Shelby was not impressed with her assignment. "What did you get? Dirt?"
    I opened my piece of paper and read the contents. "The local shipping trade." I was not exactly sure what to make of it, but just as I was about to put my hand up to ask Mr. Levine, he appeared out of nowhere.
    "This area used to be a very active shipping port, the river was very busy up until the railroad was built. Many ships passed through this area, and it's your job to find out where they were going, or where they came from."
    "Oh," I said. That sounded more interesting than vegetables.
    "Wow," said Shelby, after Mr. Levine had moved on. "This guy sure knows how to bore a bunch of kids."
    Despite what Shelby thought, I couldn't wait to get started on my assignment.
     

CHAPTER THREE
    "Cora," said my Mom, "this new job I have means I am going to need you to help out at home a bit more."
    We were sitting at the dinner table talking about my mother's new job. She had just started working as an insurance claims inspector after working in insurance sales for many years. It was higher pay, but would mean more time away from me and my two-year-old brother Ethan.
    "I already help out," I said. "I do lots."
    "I know you do, sweetie," she said to me, "but there are going to be some evenings and weekends where I need you to watch over Ethan if I have to investigate an accident or claim scene. And until your father gets back from the road, you are my number two."
    My father traveled a lot, mostly to other states, selling broadband Internet service to businesses. He always said the life of the salesman was nothing but airport lounges and lousy hotels. My mother's new job, however, sounded terribly exciting, even a little bit dangerous. She was the person who would be responsible for looking into people's insurance claims to make sure they were telling the truth. If she determined the claims were valid, she would approve their request and pay the insurance amount. For some of the claims, there were hundreds of thousands of dollars at stake. She was almost like a detective, which thrilled me to bits.
    "I understand," I said. "I can take care of Ethan, don't worry."
    Almost as if he'd been waiting for the chance, Ethan took a handful of his dinner and threw it across the room. Mashed potatoes and green peas were suddenly all over the kitchen floor.
    "Ethan!" my mom yelled. "Stop that!"
    Ethan found humor in his actions and began to laugh hysterically.
    "I'll get it," I said, reaching for the paper towels to begin the cleanup operation.
    "Thank you, Cora," she said.
    I started to wipe up the mess, but it felt more like I was just pushing it around the floor into a big blobby pile. "Eww, gross," I said out loud.
    Calvin, my Norfolk Terrier, sprang into action at the opportunity for more food, gobbling up as many of the mashed potatoes and peas as he could manage.
    "Calvin, stop it," I said, trying to push him out of the way. He forcefully fought back, pushing his snout into the mashed potatoes, licking furiously the whole time.
    After I had the mess cleaned up, I sat back down and started to tell my mother about the assignment we'd received from