Wild Rescue (5 page)

Chapter 16

By lunchtime
Toby and I had ridden almost all the fun rides. We avoided the lines as much as we could, and when everything filled up, we ran to the water park.

Happy Canyons is actually two parks in one. The first canyon has roller coasters and other rides that take your breath away. The second canyon is a water park with slides and even a wave pool. We hit the water and skipped lunch so we would be really hungry for dinner.

A few hours later Toby and I were at the top of the Toilet, a ride that takes you and your inner tube up to a big tank and then flushes you to the bottom, splashing you through a tube that swirls like a real commode. Girls scream and guys try not to.

I was two kids from being flushed when I spotted Ashley at the concession stand near the haunted house. She was buying a snow cone, and I thought about yelling to her, but then I noticed something strange. In the haunted house someone in a car at the top held out a water balloon, and it looked like the person was aiming straight at Ashley and Hayley.

Most people think water balloons are harmless, but the summer before we were launching some with a bungee cord to see how far they would go. I was in the field, marking distances and protecting myself with a plastic sledding saucer. I held up the saucer to block a shot, and it hit so hard I got a bloody nose.

The hand looked ready to throw, so I yelled.

Ashley looked up and smiled, pointing. Hayley waved.

“No!” I gestured at the haunted house. “Look out!”

Just as the balloon fell, I was pushed into the Toilet, swirling down through the green tube with the force of a hundred flushes. I hit bottom and went under, wondering if my sister was okay.

Chapter 17

I saw the water balloon just in time
and backed away. It hit the concrete with a
splat.

The man behind the stand cursed. “Where’d that come from?”

I pointed, but whoever had thrown it was gone.

“Could have hurt somebody,” the man said. “Get kicked out for that.”

Hayley and I ran to the haunted house, but the cars ended on the other side and I saw no one I knew.

“That had Liz and Denise written all over it,” Hayley said.

Hayley and I headed to the common area. We were all supposed to meet there soon, so Mr. Scarberry and the other adults could make sure we were all okay.

“Do you want to ride the Brain Buster?” Hayley said.

“Not me,” I said. “I’ll just watch. Then we can go to dinner.”

I spotted a gift shop and stepped inside to look for something for Dylan. He likes cars, stuffed animals, and just about anything. I found a little tiger key chain for a few dollars and kept looking around, keeping an eye on the spot where Hayley was supposed to meet me.

After about 15 minutes I got worried. What if something had happened on the ride? I went to the ticket area. No Hayley. I described her to the woman taking tickets, and she shook her head.

Chapter 18

Toby and I changed in the locker room
and walked back to the other park. On the way I noticed Ashley’s friend Hayley talking with a girl I hadn’t seen before. The girl held a huge stuffed giraffe, and Hayley looked concerned. I wondered where Ashley was, since they were supposed to be buddies, but by the time I got to her, Hayley had run the other direction into the crowd.

You learn a lot about people at an amusement park. Working with them in class is different than playing, and Toby was a lot of fun. I started feeling bad about thinking his dad had stolen Mrs. Watson’s jewelry. The facts were not adding up. Plus, if he stole stuff at Hayley’s house, how did he get in without tripping the alarm?

“Bryce! Over here!” someone called.

It was Ashley, waving frantically. I hurried over, looking at my watch.

“Hayley’s gone,” she said. “Disappeared.”

“I just saw her run that way,” I said.

“What? But it’s time—”

“She’ll meet us there,” I said. “Come on.”

Chapter 19

I’ve never seen Mr. Scarberry so upset.
I told him I would keep looking for Hayley, but he gritted his teeth and ordered me to sit down. He made the whole group stay put—“the consequences,” he said, “for breaking the rules.”

“This stinks!” somebody said.

One of Bryce’s percussion mates scowled at me. “Why’d you have to mess it up for the rest of us?”

I racked my brain, trying to think where Hayley might be. There couldn’t have been a mix-up about the meeting place. But what about Bryce seeing the girl with the stuffed giraffe? What had she said to Hayley to upset her? Could someone have kidnapped her? My knees trembled.

Duncan walked past Bryce and didn’t say anything, which was unusual.

The smell of corn dogs, popcorn, cotton candy, and funnel cakes wafted over us. It should have been such a happy day, but people were glaring at me.

“Look,” Toby said.

A girl walked by carrying a huge giraffe.

Bryce said, “That’s her!” And we both bolted for her.

Mr. Scarberry yelled at us, but I wasn’t about to stop.

The girl turned and stared like we were space aliens. She was about our age, with freckles and red hair. An oversized hockey jersey reached her knees. She took a step back, clutching her giraffe.

“You talked to my friend Hayley,” I said. “What did you say to her?”

She frowned. “Are you Ashley? You don’t look hurt.”

“What do you mean, hurt?”

“These two girls said they’d give me this giraffe if I’d do them a favor. They pointed to this girl Hayley on the Brain Buster and said a friend of hers, Ashley, was hurt really bad. They said they had to go or they’d get in trouble and would I give Hayley the message. She was supposed to meet the ambulance in the parking lot.”

Mr. Scarberry ran over, but before he could scold us, I explained.

“Let’s hope she’s still there,” he said. He turned to Giraffe Girl. “Do you see the two girls who gave you the giraffe?”

She scanned the crowd and shook her head. Frankly, I didn’t see them either.

Mr. Scarberry found a security guy to radio someone and have them look for Hayley. The parking lot was on the other side of the park.

Several minutes went by. The walkie-talkie clicked. “No response here. Sorry.”