Claws! Read Online Free PDF Page B

Caplans’,” Mom said at dinner. “How are you and Amanda getting along with that cat?”
    I nearly choked on my chicken leg. That was the
last
question I wanted to be asked tonight.
    “Fine,” I said. “Everything is perfect.”
    I had a strong urge to tell Mom and Dad the truth. To tell them everything that had happened today …
    We left the Caplans’ front door open. Bella ran out and got run over by a truck.
    Then we stole a black cat from a store and just barely escaped. The cat looks a lot like Bella, so we’re hoping to fool the Caplans.
    But after we fed the new cat tonight, she went berserk and attacked. She leaped on me like a wild creature and raked her claws down the front of my shirt.
    But I was afraid to tell them the truth. And I definitely didn’t want them to tell the Caplans what Amanda and I had done.
    “If you enjoy this so much,” Dad said, “maybe you’ll want your own cat.”
    “Uh … maybe,” I said.
    Later, up in my room, I fed Zorro. I gave him some bits of lettuce and a tiny piece of apple. After his dinner, I tickled his stomach for a little while. He likes that a lot.
    He’s a very cute mouse. I love the way he gets excited when I come into the room, and he starts to wiggle his nose like crazy till I pet him.
    I fed my three goldfish, too. I named them Nick, Joe, and Kevin. Good names for fish.
    I did some homework. I texted some of my friends. I tried to call Amanda, but I got hervoice mail. I didn’t leave a message. She never listens to her messages.
    Later in bed, I couldn’t get to sleep. I kept thinking about the old Bella and the new Bella. Could Amanda and I really get away with this trick we were pulling on the Caplans?
    Thinking about it made my throat tighten. I could feel my dinner churning around in my stomach.
    I shut my eyes and tried to concentrate on sleeping. But the harder you concentrate, the more awake you are.
    My bedroom window was open. The curtains made a rustling sound as they floated in a soft breeze. In the far distance, I heard a horn honk.
    Relax
…
just relax,
I told myself.
    But I gasped and jerked straight up in bed when I heard the sound.
    A shrill cat yowl.
    From under my bed?

15
    I grabbed the covers with both hands. Sat up straight and listened.
    Silence. Just the soft shifting of the window curtains.
    And then—another angry yowl. From beneath the bed.
    My heart pounding, I half fell, half leaped out of bed. Dropped to my knees. Pulled up the bedspread and peered under the bed.
    No. Too dark.
    I climbed to my feet. Fumbled for the lamp on my bed table and clicked it on. Blinking in the yellow light, I dropped back to the floor.
    No cat under there.
    I saw a lot of dust and a tennis ball and a sneaker I’d been searching for. But no cat.
    “I didn’t dream it.” I said the words out loud. “Where are you, cat?”
    Silence.
    I sat on the edge of my bed and waited for my heartbeat to slow to normal. My hands and feet were suddenly ice-cold.
    My pajama bottoms were twisted. I stood up to straighten them—and heard the cat’s shrill cry again.
    From across the room?
    I jumped up, gazing all around. No sign of a cat.
    Could the sound be coming from outside?
    I crossed to the window and peered out. Pale moonlight washed over the front yard. It made the bushes and lawn look silvery and unreal.
    I didn’t see a cat down there.
    I grabbed the bottom of the window and pulled it shut. The curtains fell back in place against the wall.
    I stood there for a while, frozen. Listening. Listening hard.
    Finally, I climbed back into bed. I didn’t turn out the light. I pulled the covers up to my chin.
    I shut my eyes—and heard the cat’s cry again.
    “No!” I shouted. “Where are you? Where?”
    Did Bella somehow escape the Caplans’ house? Did she follow me home?
    If she did
… why couldn’t I see her?
    I climbed out of bed again. I searched theentire room. Everywhere. Under my desk. Under the pile of dirty clothes on my closet floor. I