Free Fabulous Five 027 - The Scapegoat by Betsy Haynes Page B

were the man and woman Christie had seen before. At each table the judges
stopped and looked at the student's project from every possible angle.
Sometimes one of them asked the girl standing next to it a question. All of the
judges made notes on their clipboards before they went on to the next table.
    As Christie watched them, she noticed that the man and woman
had clipboards, too. They were making notes and asking questions right along
with Mrs. Tillington, Miss Woolsey, and Miss Finney.
    As they moved closer to Christie's table, she watched Miss
Finney's face. The teacher didn't look as if she were in a good mood. Her frown
was deeper than Christie had ever seen it. I'm dead, Christie thought. It's all
over.
    When they reached Christie's table, Mrs. Tillington smiled
at her. "Hello, Christie. This is Mr. Willoughby and Mrs. Thacker. They're
helping us judge today." Then she explained to the two judges, "Christie
and her family recently arrived here from the States."
    Mr. Willoughby and Mrs. Thacker smiled warmly at Christie.
    "What an enormous project," commented Miss Finney.
But it didn't sound like a compliment to Christie. The teacher shook her head
slightly as she made notes.
    "Well," said Mr. Willoughby, peering closely at
Christie's project. "What have we here? Is this supposed to be England?"
    "Yes, sir," answered Christie quickly. "I
wanted to show how the English people have adapted and used the things around
them. That part is prehistoric England, that one's today, and that one's
England in the future."
    "Interesting concept," remarked Mrs. Thacker. "Is
this meant to show when our island was attached to the continent?" she
asked, looking at the first part.
    "Yes," Christie replied.
    Miss Woolsey circled the table, followed by Miss Finney, who
was scribbling notes as fast as she could on her notepad. At one point Miss
Finney stopped and looked at Christie with a raised eyebrow.
    Christie could see her parents and Connie standing nearby
watching. Connie raised his crossed fingers so she could see them.
    "Hmm, one thing the project demonstrates is how the
earth's crust moves around. How interesting," said Mr. Willoughby.
    Christie thought she heard him mutter, "Ingenious."
Miss Finney continued making notes without saying anything.
    It seemed as if the judges were taking forever at her table.
Of course, my project is bigger than the others, she told herself nervously.
And Miss Finney probably needs the extra time to find all the things that are
wrong with it. I bet she's even making notes about how bad my painting is.
    "Are we finished here?" asked Mrs. Tillington
finally. The other judges nodded.
    "Very good, Christie," Miss Woolsey told her as
they left.
    Connie raced over. "Well, what do you think?"
    Christie let out the breath she hadn't realized she was
holding. "I think a couple of them liked it. But it won't make any
difference if Miss Finney wasn't impressed."
    "Maybe she was," Connie said.
    Christie remembered the look on Miss Finney's face and her
comment about the project's being big. "Don't count on it."
    When the judges were finished looking at all the projects,
they went up onto the stage and sat in a circle of chairs, talking. Phoebe,
Nicki, Davey, and Charlie joined Christie and Connie.
    "I bet they're not even talking about the competition,"
said Nicki. "They just want us to think they are so we'll be impressed."
    "They've probably already counted your project out,"
said Davey. "Who'd ever expect watching colored water run up a stalk of
celery to win, anyway?"
    "Miss Finney assigned the experiment in her classes,"
protested Nicki. "If it was good enough for her, it's good enough for me.
Besides, if I'd been more original and showed you how brilliant I really am,
you'd feel even more inferior." Davey bumped her with his shoulder.
    After what seemed like forever, Mrs. Tillington got up and
moved to the microphone. The crowd quieted.
    "Good afternoon, ladies, gentlemen, and students. I
appreciate your