The 39 Clues: Book 8 by Gordan Korman Page A
Authors: Gordan Korman
Tags: Fiction, General, Historical, Historical - General, Children's Books, Action & Adventure, Family, Juvenile Fiction, Action & Adventure - General, YA), Children's Fiction, Ages 9-12 Fiction, Orphans, Brothers and sisters, Other, Children: Grades 4-6, Siblings, Adventure stories (Children's, Mysteries; Espionage; & Detective Stories, Family - Siblings, Ciphers, Historical - Other, Family & home stories (Children's, Juvenile Historical Fiction
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hungry."
Saladin added a plaintive "mrrp!" to the conversation.
"That cat eats too much already!" Amy erupted. "Fresh snapper, shrimp dumplings --what's next, beluga caviar? We don't have time for breaks! Who knows what Jonah could be doing to Dan right now? If he harms my brother in any way, I swear I'll put my hands around his throat and strangle him!"
Her breath caught in shock at the violence of her tone, and -- worse -- the realization that she meant
111
every word. Was the Madrigal in her coming to the surface? Ordinary people tossed words like strangle around casually, not meaning anything by them. It was different for Madrigals. Madrigals killed.
"So with all that we have to worry about," she mumbled in a quieter tone, "you'll have to forgive me for not dropping everything because Saladin's a little hungry. He could live for a month on his own blubber. The last thing he needs is another snack."
A few feet away, a tourist unwrapped a sardine sandwich. With a "mrrpl" that was practically the shriek of a hunting bobcat, the Egyptian Mau hurled himself out of Nellie's grasp. Unaccustomed to hunting for his food, Saladin overshot the sandwich, skimmed the parapet at the edge of the Wall, and disappeared over the side.
Twin screams escaped Amy and Nellie.
They raced to the edge and looked down, terrified of what they might see.
Thirty feet below, Grace Cahill's beloved pet stood on the spot where invading armies had been repelled and slaughtered. His tail was high in the air; his fur bristled in outrage. The "mrrp!" he emitted was the most thorough scolding either of them had ever received.
"You know," Amy said, her voice shaking, "maybe we should get something to eat and find a hotel for the night."
112
CHAPTER 16
The city of Xian was much smaller than Beijing, but Dan could hardly tell the difference out the window of the G5. There was no towering skyline like the one in China's capital, but the sprawl of buildings seemed infinite, the red of brake lights clogging every inch of the grid of roadways. Traffic.
Pollution, too, he thought as the plane descended through a thick layer of brownish haze.
"Oh, no --" They weren't even on the runway, and Jonah's father was already immersed in his BlackBerry. "Remember those 'Live Large with the Wiz Generation' posters? Well, guess how that translates into Chinese--'Jonah Wizard Makes Your Ancestors Fat.'"
Dan brayed a laugh in his face. "Can you save me one? It'll go great in my collection!"
Broderick was not amused. "In that case, why don't you take the conference call from the record company?"
"It's all good, Pops." Jonah yawned as the jet touched down. "You know the drill. I take some lucky fan out
113
to dinner; we post the whole thing on YouTube; everybody forgets about a few posters."
"They printed over six hundred thousand," his father reminded him, tight-lipped.
"Dinner and a movie," Jonah amended. "Better yet, clubbing in Xian. We'll give MTV Asia an exclusive. It'll be epic, yo! Just as soon as we're done with these terracotta homeys," he added with a wink at Dan.
Of all the managers, publicists, and bodyguards of the Wizard entourage, and even Jonah's own father, the star had chosen Dan to accompany him on this mission to learn the secret of the terracotta army.
Not that Dan cared about the Clue hunt anymore.
Another thing about Xian --they had real limos here. A silver stretch was waiting at the airport to take them to their hotel, the Bell Tower, where Jonah had reserved the entire top floor.
Jonah's father was on the phone with the hotel's nightclub to hire the headline act to perform for them in their suite --a little dinner entertainment.
Dan glanced at his watch. Seven-thirty. "How late does this terracotta place stay open?"
Jonah flashed his rock star grin. "It closed two hours ago. We can't go yet. It isn't dark enough."
Dan's voice dropped. "I get it. We have to check it out when there's no one around."
"That's how I know we're
Saladin added a plaintive "mrrp!" to the conversation.
"That cat eats too much already!" Amy erupted. "Fresh snapper, shrimp dumplings --what's next, beluga caviar? We don't have time for breaks! Who knows what Jonah could be doing to Dan right now? If he harms my brother in any way, I swear I'll put my hands around his throat and strangle him!"
Her breath caught in shock at the violence of her tone, and -- worse -- the realization that she meant
111
every word. Was the Madrigal in her coming to the surface? Ordinary people tossed words like strangle around casually, not meaning anything by them. It was different for Madrigals. Madrigals killed.
"So with all that we have to worry about," she mumbled in a quieter tone, "you'll have to forgive me for not dropping everything because Saladin's a little hungry. He could live for a month on his own blubber. The last thing he needs is another snack."
A few feet away, a tourist unwrapped a sardine sandwich. With a "mrrpl" that was practically the shriek of a hunting bobcat, the Egyptian Mau hurled himself out of Nellie's grasp. Unaccustomed to hunting for his food, Saladin overshot the sandwich, skimmed the parapet at the edge of the Wall, and disappeared over the side.
Twin screams escaped Amy and Nellie.
They raced to the edge and looked down, terrified of what they might see.
Thirty feet below, Grace Cahill's beloved pet stood on the spot where invading armies had been repelled and slaughtered. His tail was high in the air; his fur bristled in outrage. The "mrrp!" he emitted was the most thorough scolding either of them had ever received.
"You know," Amy said, her voice shaking, "maybe we should get something to eat and find a hotel for the night."
112
CHAPTER 16
The city of Xian was much smaller than Beijing, but Dan could hardly tell the difference out the window of the G5. There was no towering skyline like the one in China's capital, but the sprawl of buildings seemed infinite, the red of brake lights clogging every inch of the grid of roadways. Traffic.
Pollution, too, he thought as the plane descended through a thick layer of brownish haze.
"Oh, no --" They weren't even on the runway, and Jonah's father was already immersed in his BlackBerry. "Remember those 'Live Large with the Wiz Generation' posters? Well, guess how that translates into Chinese--'Jonah Wizard Makes Your Ancestors Fat.'"
Dan brayed a laugh in his face. "Can you save me one? It'll go great in my collection!"
Broderick was not amused. "In that case, why don't you take the conference call from the record company?"
"It's all good, Pops." Jonah yawned as the jet touched down. "You know the drill. I take some lucky fan out
113
to dinner; we post the whole thing on YouTube; everybody forgets about a few posters."
"They printed over six hundred thousand," his father reminded him, tight-lipped.
"Dinner and a movie," Jonah amended. "Better yet, clubbing in Xian. We'll give MTV Asia an exclusive. It'll be epic, yo! Just as soon as we're done with these terracotta homeys," he added with a wink at Dan.
Of all the managers, publicists, and bodyguards of the Wizard entourage, and even Jonah's own father, the star had chosen Dan to accompany him on this mission to learn the secret of the terracotta army.
Not that Dan cared about the Clue hunt anymore.
Another thing about Xian --they had real limos here. A silver stretch was waiting at the airport to take them to their hotel, the Bell Tower, where Jonah had reserved the entire top floor.
Jonah's father was on the phone with the hotel's nightclub to hire the headline act to perform for them in their suite --a little dinner entertainment.
Dan glanced at his watch. Seven-thirty. "How late does this terracotta place stay open?"
Jonah flashed his rock star grin. "It closed two hours ago. We can't go yet. It isn't dark enough."
Dan's voice dropped. "I get it. We have to check it out when there's no one around."
"That's how I know we're
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