Free Avalanche by Tallulah Grace Page A

the
timing didn’t sync up with the time stamps on the photos.
    “Photos can be altered,” Red said aloud, wanting to give
Pamela’s theory as much credence as possible. He didn’t find any information
about Chase’s whereabouts for the rest of the week, so he could have
come in and out of Starsdale, unnoticed.
    Satisfied with the video feeds, he packed up the computer
and all of the packaging debris. His credit card had taken a serious hit, what
with purchasing the surveillance software, not to mention eight cameras, but it
was worth it if it helped him catch the stalker.
    Glancing at his watch, Red realized how late it had become.
He’d told Pam he’d be in touch this afternoon, but time had slipped away from
him.
    Turning on a few lights inside the home, Red locked the
doors, then double checked that her car doors were locked as well. Staging the
house to look like she was home was easy. Now all they had to do was hope the
stalker showed up.
     
    ~~~
     
    “And then Mac turned to the teacher, as innocent as can be,
and said, ‘But Mr. Samuels, I thought you wanted us to bring the frogs.’
You have to picture it, Red and Mac, standing at the counter in the lab, a box
of giant bull frogs sitting in front of them. Within seconds, every frog in the
box had escaped, turning the lab into chaos.” Pamela laughed with Chelsea as
she retold the story.
    Mac, manning the grill, couldn’t help but chuckle at the
memory of Mr. Samuels’ face.
    “We nearly got expelled for that one,” he added. “Thanks to
Dad, and Mr. Starling, we only had to have detention for a month, and we had to
clean up the lab for the rest of the semester.”
    “I’d say you got off lightly,” Chelsea leaned back in the
swing, pushing it slowly with her toe. “The next thing you’re going to say is
that it was all Red’s idea.”
    “No, it was both of ours,” Mac tossed her a grin. “Although
JB did help us catch the frogs, but he didn’t get into trouble. He had sense
enough to let us take the heat.”
    “You should have seen it, Chelsea. Frogs jumping everywhere,
girls screaming, trying to get out of the room. I think most of the beakers
were broken during the melee. And poor Mr. Samuels, he was so mad at them, you
could almost see steam coming out of his ears.”
    “He retired after that year, as I recall,” Mac said,
sheepishly.
    “Can you blame him? You boys were a handful, to say the
least.”
    “Nah, it wasn’t us. He was just ready to quit.”
    “You keep telling yourself that, MacIntyre. Between you and
Red and JB, it’s a wonder Starsdale High kept any teachers.”
    “Now Pamela, you’re giving us too much credit. As I recall,
you and your friend, what was her name, Stacie, got into your share of
trouble.”
    “Yeah, but nothing like….sorry, it’s Red.” Pamela answered
her phone.
    “Hi, Red.”
    “No, I’m with Chelsea and Mac at the B&B.”
    “Tell Red to come for dinner,” Chelsea interrupted.
    “Did you hear that? Chelsea invited you to dinner.”
    “Okay, yes. I’ll see you soon.”
    “Is he coming?” Mac asked when Pamela placed the phone on
the table.
    “Yes, he’s on his way. I’m surprised that I haven’t heard
from him before now.”
    “He knew that you would be safe with us,” Chelsea told her.
“Which reminds me, did you ever get JB on the phone?”
    “Yeah, didn’t I tell you? He’s hanging out with Artie this
weekend. They’re on watch again.” Mac chuckled.
    “Maybe this time their luck will change,” Chelsea added, not
at all amused.
    “Artie?” Pamela asked.
    “You remember Artie Pike? He and Sue have a farm, just
outside of town.”
    “Yes, I remember Artie and Sue. What are he and JB watching
for?”
    “Aliens,” Chelsea said seriously, sending Mac into a fit of
laughter.
    “You’re joking, right?”
    “Oh no, she’s dead serious,” Mac explained. “Artie swears
that, for years, he’s been visited by some kind of alien spacecraft. It just
hovers above his