Sammy Keyes and the Wild Things Read Online Free PDF

bug out, because the jeep is now totally out of control, sliding and swerving and kicking up clouds of dust as the driver tries frantically to skid to a stop.
    But he’s
not
stopping, and there’s just no place for him to go.
    No place but off the cliff.
    Or right into us.

FOUR
    â€œHold on, girls!” Robin shouts as she throws the van into reverse and guns it. She’s craned around backward, we’re thrust forward, and the jeep is skidding toward us sideways. Then, like it’s hit a patch of ice, the jeep’s back end swings around and slams into the side of the mountain.
    â€œHe crashed!” Bella shouts.
    Robin puts on the brakes, then just sits there clutching the wheel, panting for air as she looks through the windshield.
    Outside, everything is still. Everything but dust, drifting up through the air.
    Finally Robin loosens her grip on the wheel and asks, “Is everyone all right?”
    As a yes, we all start talking at once. “Man, that was close!” “Good driving, Mom!” “What’s the
matter
with that guy?” “He could have killed us!” “Do you think he’s hurt?”
    Then the driver steps out of the jeep and Bella gasps. “That’s Vargus Mayfield!”
    Gabby gasps, too. “It
is
. . . !”
    I turn to Cricket. “Who’s Vargus Mayfield again?”
    â€œThat college student they were talking about earlier . . . ?”
    â€œYeah,” Bella says, scowling at Gabby. “The one with more attitude than aptitude.”
    Robin gets out of the van saying, “You girls should probably stay put.”
    We give it a second, look at each other, then all pile out.
    Vargus Mayfield’s mouth is busy four-wheeling through some rough verbal terrain as he looks over the damage to his jeep.
    â€œThe only person you should be mad at is yourself, Vargus,” Robin tells him. “There’s no
way
you should have been driving that fast on this road!”
    â€œHuh?” he says, blinking at her like he can’t quite place who she is. One by one he gives each of us a blank look, but when he gets to Bella, it clicks. “Oh, spare me!” he whines, his whole face contorting. “The goody-goody Girl Scouts?”
    Bella steps forward. “Don’t make fun of
us,
buddy! We’re not the ones with more attitude than aptitude! We’re not the ones trying to run innocent people off the road! We’re not the ones—”
    â€œHey, hey, hey!” Robin pulls her back and whispers, “Let me handle this.”
    But Vargus is already going off. “Like this is
my
fault? I wouldn’t be up here at all if it wasn’t for that pigheaded Professor Prag! I left messages on his machine, like, twenty times, I taped notes to his office door, but does he bother to call me back? No!”
    Robin squints at him. “So you came clear out here to, what,
find
him?”
    â€œI was desperate, man! One of the other teachers told me he was probably at the Lookout, so I got up real early to catch him, but he’s not there! Nobody’s there.”
    â€œWhat are you desperate about? What can possibly be so urgent?”
    â€œHe
flunked
me! He stopped me from graduating! I
so
did not deserve to flunk his stupid class and he knows it! I worked up at that miserable Lookout six weekends. Six weekends! I could have been home having a good time, partying with my friends, but instead I came up here. And for this I get a no credit? It’s just not fair! It’s not right! It’s—”
    Vargus had gotten all red in the face and looked like he was going to bust a gasket, so Robin grabbed his arm and said, “Hey, calm down.” But he kept right on ranting, so Robin grabbed him by
both
arms and shouted, “Vargus! Vargus, look at me. Look . . . at . . . me . . . !”
    Vargus looked at her.
    â€œTake a deep breath.”
    Vargus took a deep breath.
    â€œI know it seems