Barefoot Pirate Read Online Free PDF

basketball one way or another.
It was fun to play when he was playing it, but he forgot about it as soon as he
was off the court. “If I’m around, I’ll come,” he said finally.
    “See ya tomorrow,” Terry said, grinning in triumph.
    o0o
    Nan raced through the afternoon chores, reveling in the
fierce joy she got when thinking, this is the last time I’ll ever have to do
THAT stupid job. She forced herself to sit still during dinner, then she raced
through the evening chores.
    Alone in her room at last, she packed an extra change of
clothes into her school bag. She didn’t want to take any of those ugly thrift
store clothes, picked to be sturdy through many washings and not for looks or
fashion, but she didn’t know if the magic would put them right with Blackeye,
or if they’d have to travel a ways first.
    Bed time was worse than the long dinner hour. Staring at the
clock moving slowly was horrible, so she read the little book all the way
through again. That used up time. Finally, finally, eleven o’clock came, and
the sound of the TV from the Evanses’ bedroom ended. The house was asleep.
    At eleven thirty she slid the little brown book into the
bag, along with her reading flashlight and the extra set of batteries she’d
bought just a week ago.
    She sat down to wait for the half-hour before midnight.
    o0o
    “What do you think you’re doing?” Mar Tee’s voice ripped
out at Joe, and he whirled around.
    His sister stood in the kitchen door, grinning at having
caught him.
    Joe swallowed a strong desire to punch her, and he shrugged.
“Sneaking some hot chocolate. So?”
    “What’re all those cans on the counter for?”
    “Because I was looking for another brand, big nose,” Joe
said impatiently. “Why don’t you go take a hike?”
    Mar Tee grinned nastily. “You make some for us both, with
LOTS of whipped cream, and maybe I won’t go tell Mom.”
    “Nice try, but I’ve been blackmailed by you before. Remember?”
    Her grin changed to her usual mean look. “You’re supposed to
be in bed—” Mar Tee started.
    “So are you,” Joe cut in swiftly.
    “I’ll say you woke me up with your noise. After all, my room is right overhead.”
    “So go get in it, Martha,” Joe shot back.
    Mar Tee opened her mouth, closed it, then whirled around and
disappeared. He heard her footsteps pounding in the direction of the stairs,
and knew she was going straight up to tell their parents. Not that Dad would
care. He worked all day, he came home, watched TV, then slept. Work, TV, sleep.
All he wanted was quiet.
    Joe swiftly shoved into his backpack all the food he’d
selected, leaving a nice clean counter. If their mother did come down, she
wouldn’t see any hot chocolate, or anything else. And that was all she cared
about.
    Grinning, Joe ran softly up the stairs two at a time,
pausing only to listen for voices in his parents’ room. Sure enough, Mar Tee
was in there, tattling away.
    He shoved his backpack under the bed, yanked off his
clothes, and got under the covers. Presently he heard the creak of the
floorboards outside his room, and the door opened. His father stuck his head
in, said nothing, then withdrew and shut the door. Low voices. Mar Tee’s whine,
“But he was .”
    Then Mar Tee’s door slamming, more creaks, then silence.
    As the silence lengthened, it filled with more subtle
sounds. The bump and rattle of the furnace in the basement—the muted murmur of
the TV in his parents’ room. Benny’s breathing.
    Joe slid out of bed and stood gazing at his little brother.
He looked so small there, sleeping with his fingers curled. Joe’s heart
squeezed. He bent and kissed Benny’s cheek.
    Remembering what some teacher had said once about people
hearing things unconsciously, he bent close again, and whispered in his
brother’s ear: “Hang tough. You can do it. Make Mom listen to you!”
    Benny shifted, murmuring something unintelligible, and
turned away.
    “I’ll try to come back. See if you want