42 - Egg Monsters from Mars Read Online Free PDF

scientific mission. I didn’t look back. I kept pedaling.
    As I turned the corner onto Denver, a city bus roared past. The whoosh of air
from the bus nearly knocked me over.
    As I steadied the bike, I saw the lid push up from the shoe box.
    The egg creature was trying to escape!
    I grabbed the box and tried to push down the lid. I pedaled faster. The lab
was only a block away.
    The creature pushed up against the lid.
    I pushed back.
    I didn’t want to crush it. But I didn’t want it to escape, either.
    I could feel it bouncing inside the box. Pushing up against the lid.
    I kept my hand on the lid, struggling to hold it down.
    A station wagon filled with kids rumbled past. One of the kids yelled
something to me. I didn’t really hear him. I was concentrating as hard as I
could on keeping the egg creature inside the box.
    I rolled through a stop sign. I didn’t even see it. Luckily no cars were
approaching.
    The lab came into view on the next corner. It was a white shingled building.
Very low. Only one story tall. But very long. With a row of small, square
windows along the front. It looked like a very long train car.
    I bumped up the curb and rode my bike onto the grass. Then I grabbed the shoe
box with both hands and hopped off. The bike fell to the ground, both wheels
spinning.
    Gripping the box tightly in both hands, I ran across the front lawn, up to
the white double doors in front.
    I found a doorbell on the wall to the right of the doors. I pushed it. Pushed
it again. Kept my finger on it.
    When no one came to the door, I tried the knob. Pushed. Then pulled.
    No. The door was locked.
    I tried knocking. I pounded as hard as I could with my fist.
    Then I rang the bell again.
    Where was everyone?
    I was about to start pounding again when I saw the sign over the door. A
small, hand-printed black-and-white sign that sent my heart sinking. It read:
    CLOSED SATURDAYS AND SUNDAYS.

 
 
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    I let out a long sigh and shoved the box under my arm. I was so disappointed.
What was I going to do with this weird egg creature now?
    Shaking my head unhappily, I turned and started back to my bike. I was
halfway across the grass when I heard the front door open.
    I turned to see an older man in a white lab coat. He had shiny white hair,
parted in the middle and slicked down on the sides. His moustache was
salt-and-pepper. He had pale blue eyes that peered out at me from his pale,
wrinkly face.
    His smile made his eyes crinkle up at the sides. “Can I help you?” he asked.
    “Uh… yeah,” I stammered. I raised the shoe box in front of me and
started back across the grass. I could feel the egg creature bouncing around in
there.
    “Is that a sick bird?” the man asked, squinting at the box. “I’m afraid I
can’t help you with that. This is a science lab. I’m not a vet.”
    “No. It’s not a bird,” I told him. I carried the box to the doorway. My heart
was pounding. For some reason, I felt really nervous.
    I guess I was excited about talking to a real scientist. I respect and admire
scientists so much.
    Also, I was excited about finally finding out what had hatched from that
weird egg. And finding out what I should do with it.
    The man smiled at me again. He had a warm, friendly smile that made me feel a
little calmer. “Well, if it isn’t a bird in there, what is it?” he asked softly.
    “I was hoping you could tell me!” I replied. I shoved the shoe box toward
him, but he didn’t take it.
    “It’s something I found,” I continued. “I mean, I found an egg. In my
backyard.”
    “An egg? What kind of egg, son?”
    “I don’t know,” I told him. “It was very big. And it had veins all over it.
And it kind of breathed.”
    He stared at me. “An egg that breathed.”
    I nodded. “I put it in my dresser drawer. And then it hatched this morning.
And—”
    “Come in, son,” the man said. “Come right in.” His expression changed. His
eyes flashed. He suddenly looked very