42 - Egg Monsters from Mars (6 page)

Did they feel anything at all?

These were questions I didn’t really want to know the answers to.

I just wanted to get out of there.

I decided to try the window again. But before I could move, my egg creature
stopped talking.

And the others started to move.

Silently, they huddled together. Pressed together into a wide yellow wedge.

And rolling faster than I could imagine, they attacked.

“Hey—!” I uttered a startled cry and backed up.

The wedge of egg creatures rolled forward. Their bodies slapped the floor
wetly as they bounced toward me.

I retreated until my back hit the window.

Nowhere to run.

“What do you want?” I screamed. My voice came out high and tight in panic.
“What are you going to do?”

I turned and banged on the window again, pounding with open hands. “Dr. Gray!
Dr. Gray! Help me!”

Did they plan to roll over me? To swallow me up?

To my surprise, the egg creatures stopped a few inches in front of me. They
twirled and bounced until they had formed a circle once again.

Then, moving quickly and silently, they shifted back into a big yellow
triangle.

I stared down at them, shivering, my teeth chattering.

They’re not attacking, I decided.

But what
are
they doing?

Why are they forming these shapes? Are they trying to
talk
to me?

I took a deep breath, trying to calm my panic.

You’re a scientist, Dana, I reminded myself. Act like a scientist. Not a
frightened kid. Try to talk back to them.

I thought hard for a few seconds. Then I raised my hands in front of me. And
I formed a circle with my pointer fingers and thumbs.

I held the circle up so the egg creatures could all see it. And waited to see
if they did anything.

The yellow blobs had formed a wide triangle that nearly filled the room. I
saw their round black eyes go up to the circle I had formed.

And then I watched them bounce and roll—into a circle!

Were they copying me?

I straightened my fingers and thumbs into a triangle.

And the egg creatures formed a triangle.

Yes!

We’re communicating! I realized. We’re talking to each other!

I suddenly felt really excited. I felt like some kind of pioneer.

I’m the first person on earth to communicate with Martians! I told myself.

These creatures are friendly, I decided. They’re not dangerous.

I didn’t really know that for sure. But I was so excited that I had
communicated with them, I didn’t want to think anything bad about them.

Dr. Gray has no right to keep them prisoner here, I thought.

And he has no right to lock me up with them.

I didn’t believe his excuse for keeping me here. Not for a minute.

Just because I touched one? Just because I handled one?

Did he really expect me to believe that touching an egg creature could harm
me?

Did he really think it would rot my skin off or something?

Did he really think that touching an egg creature would give me a weird
disease or change me in some way?

That was just stupid.

I carried that little yellow blob in my hands—and I felt perfectly fine.

These creatures are my friends, I told myself. Touching them isn’t going to
harm me in any way.

But I’m a scientist. At least, I want to be a scientist. So I have to be
scientific, I realized.

I decided to check myself out—just to make sure.

I raised my hands and inspected them carefully, first one, then the other.
They looked okay to me. No strange rashes. No skin peeling off. I still had four
fingers and a thumb on each hand.

I rubbed my arms. They were the same too. Perfectly okay.

Might as well check myself out all over, I told myself.

I reached down and grabbed my left leg.

Soft and mushy!

“Oh no!” I wailed.

I squeezed my leg again. Soft and lumpy.

I didn’t have to look. I knew what was happening.

I was slowly turning into one of them. I was turning into a lump of scrambled
eggs!

“No. Oh, please—no.”

I squeezed my mushy ankle. I couldn’t bear to look down. I didn’t want to see
what was happening to me.

But I had to.

Slowly, I lowered my gaze.

And saw that I was squeezing one of the egg creatures. Not my leg.

I let go instantly and raised my hand. A relieved laugh escaped my throat.

“Oh wow!”

How could I think that mushy blob was my leg?

I watched the little Martian scurry back to its pals.

I shook my head. Even though no one else was around, I felt like a total
jerk.

Just calm down, Dana, I scolded myself.

But how could I?

The air in the lab seemed to get colder. I couldn’t stop shivering. I clamped my jaws tightly. But I couldn’t stop my teeth from
chattering.

I squeezed my nose. Cold and numb. I rubbed my ears. They were numb too.

This is no joke, I thought, my throat tightening. I’m going to get frostbite.
I’m really going to freeze.

I tried thinking warm thoughts. I thought about the beach in summer. I
thought about a blazing fire in the fireplace in our den.

It didn’t help.

A hard shiver made my whole body twitch.

I’ve got to do something to take my mind off the cold, I decided.

The egg creatures had spread out over the room. I raised my hands again and
formed a triangle.

They stared up at it, but didn’t move.

I curled my fingers into a circle.

They ignored this one too.

“I guess you guys got bored, huh?” I asked them.

I tried to bend my fingers and thumbs into a rectangle. But it was too hard.
Fingers and thumbs can’t really bend into a rectangle.

Besides, the egg creatures weren’t paying much attention to me.

I’m going to freeze, I told myself again. Freeze. Freeze. Freeze. The word
repeated in my mind until it became an unhappy chant.

I lowered myself to the floor and pressed into the corner. I curled up,
trying to save body warmth. Or what was left of it.

A sound on the other side of the window made me jump up.

Someone was coming. Dr. Gray? To let me out?

I turned eagerly to the door. I heard footsteps out in the hall. Then a clink
of metal.

A slot opened just above the floor to the left of the door. A food tray slid
in. It plopped onto the floor.

I hurried over to it. Macaroni and cheese and a small container of milk.

“But I
hate
macaroni and cheese!” I screeched.

No reply.

“I hate it! I hate it! I hate it!” I wailed.

I was starting to lose it again. But I didn’t care.

I leaned over the tray and held my hands over the plate of macaroni. The
steam warmed my hands.

At least it’s hot, I thought.

I sat down on the floor and lifted the tray to my lap. Then I gulped down the
macaroni, just for the warmth.

It tasted horrible. I hate that wet, clotted, cheesy taste. But it did warm
me up a little.

I didn’t open the milk. Too cold.

Feeling a little better, I shoved the tray aside and climbed to my feet. I
strode over to the window and started pounding the glass with my fists.

“Dr. Gray—let me out!” I shouted. “Dr. Gray—I know you can hear me. Let me
out! You can’t lock me in here and make me eat macaroni and cheese! Let me out!”

I screamed until my voice was hoarse. I didn’t hear a reply. Not a sound from
the other side of the glass.

I turned away from the window in disgust.

“I’ve got to find a way out of here,” I said out loud. “I’ve
got
to!”

And then, I had an idea.

Sad to say, it was a bad idea.

The kind of idea you think of when you’re freezing to death in a total panic.

What was the idea? To call home and tell Mom and Dad to come get me.

The only problem with that idea was that there were no phones in the room.

I searched carefully. There were metal shelves up to the ceiling against the
back wall. They contained only scientific books and files. There was a desk in
one corner. The desktop was bare.

Nothing else.

Nothing else in the whole room. Except for the dozens of egg creatures and
me.

I needed another idea, an idea that didn’t call for a telephone.

But I was stumped. I tried the door again. I thought Dr. Gray might have
gotten careless and left it unlocked.

No such luck.

I checked out the slot where my food tray had been delivered. It was only a
few inches tall. Way too narrow for me to slip through.

I was trapped. A prisoner. A specimen.

I dropped glumly down to the floor and rested my back against the wall. I
pulled up my knees and wrapped my arms around them. I curled into a ball, trying
to stay warm.

How long did Dr. Gray plan to keep me here?

Forever?

I let out a miserable sigh. But then a thought helped to cheer me. I suddenly
had a little hope.

I remembered something I had forgotten. I had told Anne where I was going!

This morning in her backyard, I had told Anne I was going to take the egg
creature to the science lab.

I’m going to be rescued! I realized.

I leaped to my feet and shot both fists into the air. I opened my mouth in a
happy cheer. “Yesssss!”

I knew exactly what would happen.

When I don’t show up for dinner, Mom or Dad will call Anne. Because that’s
where I’m always hanging out when I should be home for dinner.

Anne will tell them I went to the science lab on Denver.

Mom will say, “He should be back by now.”

Dad will say, “I’d better go get him.”

And Dad will come and rescue me.

Only a matter of time, I knew. Only a matter of a few hours, and Dad will be
here to get me out of this freezer.

I felt so much better.

I lowered myself back to the floor and leaned against the wall to wait. The
egg creatures all stared at me. Watched me in silence. Trying to figure me out,
I guess.

I didn’t realize that I fell asleep. I guess I was worn out from all the
excitement—and the fear.

I’m not sure how long I slept.

Voices woke me up. Voices from out in the hall.

I sat up, instantly alert. And I listened.

And heard Dad’s voice.

Yes!

He was here. He was about to rescue me.

Yes!

I climbed to my feet. I stretched. I got ready to greet Dad.

And then, from the front hall, I heard Dr. Gray say, “I’m sorry, Mr. Johnson.
Your son never stopped here.”

“Are you sure?” I heard Dad ask.

“Very sure,” Dr. Gray replied. “I’m the only one here today. We’re closed. We
had no visitors.”

“He’s about this tall,” I heard Dad say. “He has dark hair, and he wears
glasses.”

“No. Sorry,” Dr. Gray insisted.

“But he told his friend that he was coming here. He had something he wanted
to show to a scientist. His bike is gone from the garage.”

“Well, you can check outside for your son’s bike,” Dr. Gray told Dad. “But I
don’t think you’ll find it.”

He moved it!
I realized. Dr. Gray moved my bike so no one would find it!

I let out a shout of rage and ran to the window. “Dad—I’m in here!” I
shouted. I cupped my hands around my mouth so my voice would be even louder.
“Dad! Can you hear me? I’m in here! Dad?”

I took a deep breath and listened. My heart was thudding so loudly, I could barely hear their voices from the front.

Dad and Dr. Gray continued talking in low, calm voices.

“Dad! Can’t you hear me?” I screamed. “It’s me, Dana! Come back here, Dad!
I’m here! Come let me out!”

My voice cracked. My throat ached from screaming so loud.

“Dad—
please!”

My chest heaving, I pressed my ear against the window and listened again.

“Well, it’s very strange, Mr. Johnson,” Dr. Gray was saying. “The boy never
came here. Would you like to look around the lab?”

Yes, Dad!
I pleaded silently.
Say yes.

Tell him that you’d like to look around the lab, Dad! Please!

“No, thanks,” I heard Dad say. “I’d better keep searching. Thank you, Dr.
Gray.”

I heard Dad say good-bye.

I heard the front door close.

And I knew I was doomed.

“I don’t believe this,” I murmured out loud. “Dad was so close. So close!”

I sank back to the floor. I felt as if my heart were sinking too. I wanted to
keep dropping, down onto the floor, into the ground. Just keep sinking till I
disappeared forever.

My throat ached from screaming. Why couldn’t Dad hear me? I could hear him.

And why did he believe Dr. Gray’s lies? Why didn’t Dad check out the lab for
himself?

He would see me through the window. And I would be rescued.

Dr. Gray is evil, I realized. He pretends to be interested only in science.
He pretended to be worried about my health, about my safety. He said that’s why
he was keeping me here—to make sure I was safe.

But he lied to my father.

And he was lying to me.

Crouched on the floor, I shivered as the frigid air seemed to seep right
through my skin. I shut my eyes and lowered my head.

I wanted to stay calm. I knew I had to stay calm to think clearly. But I
couldn’t. The chills I felt running down my back weren’t just from the cold.
They were also from terror.

Voices in the front snapped me to attention. I held my breath and listened.

Was that my dad?

Or was I starting to hear things?