Free The Second Adventure by Gordon Korman Page B

can’t stay here anymore.”
    â€œThat’s why we came,” Griffin confirmed. “We’ve still got one secure location left. Pitch and Ben are at Camp Endless Pines. It’s only another twenty miles down the road.”
    â€œHow are you going to get there?” Logan pointed to the pool truck, which was disappearing down the road. “There goes your transportation.”
    Griffin grinned. “I’ve memorized the schedule for all the delivery guys up here. The bakery van should be coming through in half an hour or so. Don’t worry about us. Everything’s part of the plan.”
    Their rendezvous was brief. Logan and Melissa knew that they had to get back to camp before anyone missed them. They were the two biggest stars of the Showdown — Comedy Abe Lincoln and Annie who sang with all the exquisite yearning of a young orphan girl.
    Back at Ta-da!, the revelry was winding down, and the visitors were climbing back aboard their buses for the trip home to Spotlight.
    Logan and Melissa received countless high fives, and even scattered applause. They were no longer the camp losers who had fought with the captain and alienated the judge. Everybody knew they were the two performers who had put Ta-da! over the top.
    â€œAh — there you are.” Mickey Bonaventure came over to them. “I just wanted to let you know that I have no hard feelings for what happened between us.” He turned to Melissa. “In all my professional experience, I have never heard ‘Tomorrow’ sung so beautifully, even on Broadway. Congratulations. And you” — to Logan — “that was the most creative, unexpected, hilarious performance I’ve ever witnessed. I’m going to tell everyone I know in Hollywood to be on the lookout for Ferris Atwater, Jr.” And he melted into the crowd.
    â€œNo! Wait! I’m not Atwater, I’m Kellerman! K — E —” He made to run after the judge, but his way was blocked by two very angry bus drivers. The older man was limping heavily. The younger man’s spiky hair was considerably flattened. As well, his face was mottled by a fine mesh pattern, a souvenir of his sudden meeting with the bug dipper.
    â€œAll right!” growled the man with the bad leg. “Where’s the dog?”
    Logan drew himself to his full height, looked the man square in the face, and said, “What dog?” It was so outrageous that even Melissa stared at him in disbelief. Half an hour ago, the Doberman had been center stage in front of hundreds of people.
    Spiky Hair’s face reddened. “Don’t give me that! Where’d you stash the pooch?”
    Logan stood firm. “Sorry, I really don’t know what you’re talking about.”
    â€œWe’re all loaded up,” called the Spotlight head counselor from behind them. “Let’s go.”
    â€œYou haven’t heard the last of me!” the older man promised as the two drivers reluctantly retreated to their buses.
    â€œWow!” breathed Melissa. “Where’d you get the nerve to stand three feet away from two professional criminals and lie to their faces when we all know there
was
a dog?”
    â€œIt wasn’t lying,” Logan replied honestly. “It was
acting
.”
    â€œActing?”
    â€œI was portraying a character who
hadn’t
seen a dog. Listen, Melissa, you’re a genius at computers, and I guess you’re pretty good at singing, too. But you’ve got a lot to learn about the theatre. Any bunch of idiots can put on a decent show if they practice hard enough. But to tell two hired goons there’s no dog after they found him, shot him, chased him, and almost got him in the end — now,
that’s
a performance!”
    From: Griffin
    To: Ben
    On our way. Get ready for Operation Hideout: Phase Three.

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G ordon Korman’s first four books featuring Griffin Bing