Claudia and the Bad Joke Read Online Free PDF

was, I didn’t feel any pain. My leg felt strange, but it didn’t hurt. Still, I knew what had happened.
          “Betsy,” I said weakly, trying to sit up. “I think my leg is broken.”
    My leg certainly was broken. It was a truly disgusting sight. There was no blood or anything, but it was twisted in a way that no leg should ever be twisted. I thought I’d seen all possible disgusting sights from eating school lunches with Kristy Thomas. But this was much, much worse. I had to look away from my leg.
          I turned toward Betsy. She was still swinging, but the expression on her face was one of horror. Then, in a panic, she began to slow herself down. The swing hadn’t even come to a stop when she jumped off it and ran to me.
          “Oh! Oh, Claudia!” she exclaimed. “I’m sorry I’m sorry I’m sorry! I knew the chain was broken. That’s why I wanted you to sit down on the swing. I thought when you did, you’d just go — boom — onto the grass. But it didn’t break right away and I forgot and you
    said let’s have a contest and I still forgot and I didn’t remember until —“
          “Betsy, Betsy,” I interrupted her. I had suddenly realized that my leg was numb. I could hardly feel it, which scared me more than anything. “I know you didn’t mean for this to happen. The thing is, I have to get to the hospital. And you’re going to have to help me. Can you follow directions?”
          “Yes. I’m very good at it,” Betsy said seriously. She was kneeling next to me and had taken one of my hands in both of hers. Suddenly she looked angelic.
          “All right,” I replied. “I need you to do two things. Listen to both of them now, and then go inside and do them.”
          “Okay.” Betsy’s voice was trembling and her eyes had filled with tears.
          “First, dial nine-one-one on the telephone. When someone answers, explain that I’m your baby-sitter and I broke my leg and we need an ambulance. Be sure to answer all their questions and to give them your address. Then I want you to make another call.”
          “To your parents?” Betsy asked.
          “No, to yours. Try your mom first. If you can’t reach her, try your dad. And if you can’t reach him, I want you to call the Rodowskys. Do you know Jackie Rodowsky?”
          Betsy nodded.
          “Okay, my friends Dawn and Mallory are sitting for a group of kids at his house this afternoon. If you have to call them, tell one of them to come over here and stay with you till your mom comes home. If you don’t know Jackie’s number, can you look it up in the phone book? Rodowsky is spelled, urn, R, let’s see. . . .“
          “Don’t worry,” said Betsy. “I’m a good speller. I’ll find it.” She ran inside.
          I lay on the driveway and began to shiver, even though it wasn’t very cold that day. I hoped I wasn’t going into shock or something. I tried to remember what us baby-sitters had learned in the first-aid course we’d taken, but it wasn’t easy to concentrate.
          It didn’t matter. Things began to happen quickly. First, Betsy dashed back out of her house. “I made the calls!” she announced breathlessly. “The ambulance is coming and so are Mallory and Dawn. I couldn’t reach my mom — no one answered — and Dad’s line was busy, busy, busy. Here’s a pillow and a blanket,” she added. “The nine-one-one person said to give them to you.” Betsy tried to make me comfortable, which wasn’t easy, considering I couldn’t move my leg.
          Soon after, Mallory and Dawn camezooming
    up the Sobaks’ driveway on their bicycles, followed by a bunch of kids, also on bicycles. Dawn threw down her bike and ran to me. “We couldn’t let you go through this alone,” she said breathlessly. Then she told Mallory and the kids to stand in the front yard and wait for the ambulance. When they were gone, she said, “Okay,