Free Case File 13 #3 by J. Scott Savage Page A

it changed into Torrie. “Even someone like you can do better than that.”
    Kimber pulled down her sunglasses. “How did it do that?”
    â€œIt’s not a doll. It’s alive.” Rebel snatched for the homunculus, but it danced out of her reach, bunched up its fists, and, in a perfect impression of Tiffany’s comment that morning, said, “Kimber Tidwell is such a twit.”
    Nick grabbed the creature. It twisted in his hands, but he refused to let go. “That’s enough show-and-tell.” He gave Angelo a desperate look and hid the homunculus behind his back. “If you girls want your own, check eBay.”
    â€œeBay?” Kimber asked. She moved around to get a better look. But Angelo stepped in front of her.
    â€œRight,” Angelo said. “But good luck getting one. The technology prototypes are nearly impossible to find. Especially with the remote control and facial duplication feature. It takes some serious microprocessing power to pull that off.”
    Torrie took off her hat. “What are you talking about? Don’t try to tell me that thing’s some kind of robot. It moved and talked. It’s real.”
    â€œReal impressive animatronics technology,” Dana said. “I’m surprised you haven’t heard of it. But then again, you three don’t pay attention to that kind of stuff. You’re too busy with princess dresses.”
    Tiffany laughed. “Maybe you should keep up with the trends.”
    Kimber’s face went bright red. She spun around. “Come on. Let them play with their toys. They’re too lame to have any real friends.”
    Torrie and Rebel followed her across the playground. But Rebel kept glancing overher shoulder. “I don’t think it was a toy.”
    As soon as they were gone, Nick gave Carter the homunculus. “Put that thing away and make sure no one sees it.”
    Carter patted the creature, which seemed exhausted by its performance. Wrapping it gently in what looked like a doll blanket, he put it inside his backpack. “Don’t worry. I think it’s going to sleep.”
    â€œWhat are you guys going to do with it?” Angie asked. “Please tell me burp breath isn’t keeping it as a pet.”
    â€œWe’re returning it to its primary habitat as soon as possible,” Angelo said. “And you three have to swear not to say anything about it.”
    Dana tugged at a strand of honey-colored hair. “We won’t tell. But are you sure it’s a good idea to take it back?”
    Nick watched Carter put the homunculus to bed and realized that, just like his friend, he actually felt sort of protective of the little guy—or girl. “What else would we do with it?”
    Dana twisted the strand of hair back and forth. “Who knows if it can live in the wild now that it’s been around humans? Besides, it is an entirely new species. Scientists would go ape to learn more about it.”
    â€œYou want to let people do tests on it?” Angelo asked.
    â€œThey wouldn’t have to do tests,” Angie said. “They could keep it somewhere safe and study it. Even put it on display.”
    Carter balled up his fists. “Nobody’s doing tests on Carter Junior. And nobody’s putting him in a zoo.”
    â€œFine.” Dana held up her hands. “I’m just saying we should at least give it a little thought before we decide anything.”
    â€œ We aren’t deciding anything,” Nick growled. “Angelo, Carter, and I are taking Carter Junior back to where he belongs, and the three of you are pretending you never saw a thing.”
    Angelo tapped his notebook silently.
    Angie nodded. “You three found it. You can do what you want with it. Come on,” she said to Dana and Tiffany. “Let’s finish our lunch before the bell rings.”
    â€œThat was easy,” Carter said. “I’ve never seen Angie give up