Free Kate and the Wyoming Fossil Fiasco by Janice Hanna

rightfully belonged to his brother Esau. He wanted his birthright … right?”
    “I think that’s it,” McKenzie said.
    “To get it, Jacob dressed up in a hairy costume and
    pretended to be Esau so his father would give him the blessing that really belonged to his brother.” She stopped reading and thought. “Sometimes people really
do
pretend to be one thing when they’re really another,” she whispered. “People aren’t always who we think they are.”
    “Are you thinking of someone in particular?” McKenzie whispered.
    “Maybe.” She shook her head. Who did she suspect the most, after all? Gus? Mr. Jenkins? Joel? It would be hard to say at this point.
    She wrapped up her Bible study and walked to the dining hall with the others. Once inside, Kate noticed Gus standing near the kitchen door. She nudged McKenzie.
    “Look. There he is again.”
    “He still looks grumpy,” McKenzie said. “I think we need to stay away from him.”
    “I’m not so sure.” Kate paused. “Hey, I have an idea.” She looked down at her lunch tray and saw the two doughnuts. “I’m going to try an experiment. Watch and see. I’ll make him smile.”
    McKenzie shook her head. “I don’t think so, Kate.”
    “It never hurts to try.” Kate walked over to him, and he looked up from his work.
    “What do you need, kid?” he asked.
    “Oh, nothing. I just wanted to give you something.” She reached out showed him the doughnut. He looked at her with a stunned expression.
    “What’s that for?”
    Kate shrugged. “Just because. I thought you might like it.”
    “Well I don’t. I’m diabetic. Can’t eat sugar. What are you trying to do? Kill me? Did some of those kids tell you to do that?”
    She put the doughnut back on her tray, suddenly nervous. “No. No one said a word about it. And I’m sorry. I didn’t know you were diabetic. I was just trying to be nice.”
    “Well be nice to someone else. I have work to do.”
    “But …” She watched as he disappeared through the door with the No C AMPERS A LLOWED sign above it. As he disappeared from sight, a creepy feeling came over her. She still wondered what he did back in that room. Sure, he probably shipped fossils. But what else?
    “That didn’t go very well, did it?” McKenzie asked, drawing near.
    “No.” Kate shook her head. “He’s diabetic. Who knew?”
    “Oh wow. And you offered him sugar, of all things.”
    “Yes, he thought I did it on purpose. Can you believe that?”
    “Well maybe other people have been mean to him,” McKenzie said. “You never know.”
    “Maybe.” Kate sighed. “But McKenzie. If he’s diabetic, why was he carrying around a jumbo-sized bag of brown sugar yesterday? Answer that.”
    McKenzie shrugged. “I have no idea, but you’re right. It doesn’t make sense! I will say this though. If he’s claiming to be a diabetic, that’s the perfect cover.”
    “What do you mean?” Kate asked.
    “I mean, no one would ever suspect a diabetic of using sugar to forge anything. See?”
    “Ooo yeah. Good point.” Kate nodded. “Gus will be a tough nut to crack. But I feel like we need to know more about him.”
    “It’s getting more and more obvious that he is behind this, don’t you think?” McKenzie asked.
    Kate shrugged. “Maybe. Only time will tell. One thing is for sure. He has access. He’s in that room all alone.”
    “True.”
    A familiar voice interrupted their conversation. Conner walked by carrying a large bag. “Hey, kids.” He flashed a warm smile. “What did you think of the breakfast?”
    “Good.” Kate nodded. “I really liked the doughnuts.”
    “Doughnuts?” He held one up. “Girls, these aren’t doughnuts. They’re life preservers!” Conner doubled over in laughter and before long they all joined him.
    “He’s really funny,” Kate whispered.
    “Yeah,” McKenzie nodded. “And he’s a great counselor, too. I heard some of the guys talking about him yesterday. They really like him a