Chase Tinker & The House of Magic Read Online Free PDF Page B

It
scared me to death! He had to beg me to start seeing him again."
She twisted her fingers together and stared at the table. Then, she
smiled. "Pretty soon, it became kind of fun. I remember he used to
turn into this sexy actor I liked."
    "Gross, Mom," said Chase, scrunching his face
in disgust. "Too much information." Then his eyes widened. "I can't
believe you knew and didn't say anything to us!"
    "After you boys came along," she said, "he
stopped using it, so it completely slipped my mind. Until now."
    "At least you weren't kept in the dark, like
Andy and me," said Chase, with a scowl.
    Grandfather cleared his throat. "Anne, it's
important the boys come learn about the Tinker house and how to
properly use their abilities."
    "What do we have to learn about a house ?" asked Andy in-between huge yawns. "Houses are
just…houses, right?"
    Grandfather shook his head and raised his
eyebrows. "Not this house. It's another important family secret
your father should've shared with you."
    Even more family
secrets ? Chase thought, frowning.
    Anne looked from Chase to Andy. "I wish Ben
was here to talk with. I wondered why he had his special ability,
except there are a lot of unusual, unexplained things in the
world. So I never questioned him the way I should have. It never
occurred to me he would pass on anything like that to our
children!" She put a hand to her forehead. "This is such a
shock!"
    "Dad hated the magic," said Chase. "That's
why he left and moved way over here."
    Grandfather nodded. "I'm hoping the boys will
feel differently. Especially after they get used to the idea of
being magical themselves."
    " I still have to get used to it,"
muttered Anne.
    "Please, Mom," begged Chase. "Say you'll let
us go."
    "I don't know." Anne sighed and looked at
Chase's hopeful face. "And the whole summer. That's a long
time."
    "You are welcome to join us, of course," said
Grandfather. "Or maybe you can find time to visit later."
    " Please , Mom?" repeated Chase.
Crossing his fingers behind his back, he waited for his mom's
reply.
    "All right," Anne said at last, shoulders
slumping. "Maybe it'll help them get through these bad times. And
keep a certain person from getting into more trouble." She glared
at Chase, who hung his head. "Thank you for inviting them, and me,
but I need to work and keep up with things here."
    Chase jumped to his feet. "Thanks, Mom!" He
rubbed his palms together briskly and turned to Grandfather. "Can
we go right away?"
    "I'd say, three days from today will do
nicely," he said.
    "But—"
    "I'll need some time to discuss details with
your mother a bit more," continued Grandfather. "Let her get used
to the idea. I'm also looking forward to a trip to the top of the
Empire State Building. Such a lovely piece of architecture."
    Chase plopped back
onto his chair. "Sightseeing. Yippee," he grumbled.
    A fter three long
days of visiting and touring the city, they were finally ready to
go. It was a good thing too because Chase didn't want to wait one
second longer to be off. His mom spent so much time fussing over
them he was ready to run down the street screaming at the top of
his lungs.
    "Make sure you brush your teeth. And wash
behind your ears. And help around the house."
    "Yes, Mom," said Chase.
    "Don't stay up too late."
    "Yes, Mom."
    "And clean up after yourselves."
    "Mom!"
    "Okay!" Tears trickling down her cheeks, she
hugged Andy, then Chase. "Be good and don't cause your grandfather
any trouble. Understand?" She narrowed her eyes at her oldest
son.
    "We'll be on our best behavior. I
promise."
    Andy just nodded, still looking totally
unsure about the whole thing.
    Chase turned to Grandfather eagerly. "Should
I call a taxi?"
    "No need," he said. He tipped his hat to his
daughter-in-law. "Take care of yourself, Anne. Say good-bye,
boys."
    "Bye, Mom. See you later," they said together
as Grandfather grasped each boy by the arm.
    "You did make the plane reservations, didn't
you?" asked Chase, suddenly looking