CHAPTER 1 ~ The Pipe

"Wait up! " Called Chrissa Bradley to her older brother Jake.

Jake stopped just long enough to let nine-and-a-half year old Chrissa catch up to him before they raced down Portview Drive together. The Bradley Children turned into the dirveway of 1837. Emma Johnson and Scott Anderson, who were sitting in front of an open grage door, jumped up and ran to meet them.

"What - did - you - want?" asked Chrissa between breaths.

"Emma called us over beacuse she thought she heard something,"Scott replied.

"Heard what?" Chrissa asked.

"I thought I heard an animal caught in the drain pipe." Emma answered.

She didn' t sound happy. They all knew how ten-and-a-half year old Emma felt about animals. Emma would do anything to help any animal at all.

"What did it sound like?" Asked eleven year old Jake, who was always ready to help out.

"Well, I couldn't tell what kind of animal it was," Emma answered,"but it scratched like crazy. Let me show you the pipe it was in."


Emma led her friends to the front porch. A drain pipe ran around the perimeter of the roof. When it rained, the water fell into the pipe, and down through another pipe under ground.

"How did you get up there?" Chrissa asked.

"I didn't," Emma replied simply.

"Oh, I get it," Scott said, "it's not up there, it's in here!"

"You got it!" said Emma, "listen, you'lll hear it."
The noise didn't show up.
"I can't hear anything," hissed Chrissa.

"Shhh!," Scott whispered.

"Sorry," Chrissa whispered back.

The four friends waited and listened. Nothing.

"I don't hear anything," Jake said quietly.

"Shh! Just listen." Emma hissed. "You'll hear it, don't worry."

They waited some more. Nothing.


"Well, I think I need to go now," Scott said. "My mom told me to be home in time to set the table for dinner."

"We'd better go too, Emma," Jake said. Chrissa nodded in agreement.

"Tomorrow is Saturday," Emma called after them. "Bring your bikes over! We can wash them and get ice cream from the ice cream truck."

"Alright," Jake replied. "We'll be here."

"I'll be ready," Emma said, "and I'll pay for the ice cream!"


As they were walking home Scott questioned Chrissa and Jake. "Did you hear anything in that drain pipe?" Scott asked.

"Nope." Chrissa said.

"Me neither," said Jake, "did you, Scott?"

"No, I didn't." Scott answered. "Do you think she really heard it?"

"Of course she did!" Chrissa jumped in. "Emma would never lie! Would she?"

Chrissa never thought so, but now she was beginning to wonder if her friend was making the whole thing up. There was no reason for her to lie to them about such a silly thing. But maybe, just maybe, she thought it would be fun to try to trick them. They would surely have to find out more when they saw her the next day.