Free The Diamond War by Zilpha Keatley Snyder Page B

what I’ve got.” He untied the top of his sack and began taking stuff out. First he took out two baseball bats and then a shiny, sharp-looking hatchet. He picked up the hatchet, looked at Carlos for a moment, and then handed it to Eddy. “Here, Eddy. You take this,” he said. “You get to have first turn with the hatchet.” He handed one bat to Carlos and the other to Web. Then he reached back into the sack and pulled out—a gun.
    The gun looked rusty and kind of handmade, but it had a long evil-looking barrel. “Hey, Bucky, we don’t need that thing,” Carlos said. “Put that back in—”
    “It’s for the snake,” Bucky said. “I told you, it’s just for the snake.” He looked at Eddy. “You don’t want to start chopping trees with a live python in one of them, do you?”
    Eddy stared at the gun. His eyes had a strange, glazed look to them. Nodding and shaking his head at the same time, he said, “Yeah, yeah. I don’t like live snakes.”
    “See, Carlos,” Bucky said. “We’ve got to be prepared for anything. Come on, you guys. I’ll lead the way.” He climbed up out of the Pit, with Eddy and Web following close behind him. “Come on, Garcia,” he called back over his shoulder. “Forward march.”
    As Bucky started across the Weedpatch carrying his pellet gun like an assault rifle, with Eddy and Web stumbling along behind him, Carlos brought up the rear, still trying to get Bucky’s attention. “Bucky,” he kept saying, “Bucky, wait a minute. I don’t think this…I’ve got this awful feeling…” But Bucky just kept on going.
    They were getting pretty close to the grove by then and—nothing was happening. Maybe, Carlos thought, with a great rush of relief, there’s not going to be anyone there.
    But then Bucky stopped and Eddy and Web ran into him and Carlos almost ran into them.
    “Look,” Bucky said. “I just saw a face. Right over there in that bunch of bamboo.”
    While the three PROs and Web were walking across the Weedpatch, a lot was happening inside the grove. Kate was doing most of it. First she grabbed Aurora and Carson and dragged them back behind the overturned picnic table. Ari followed.
    “Yeah,” Kate said. “You too, Ari. All of you. You crouch down right there behind the barricade and get your slingshots ready. You too, Susie.”
    “No.” Susie was jumping up and down looking like a fierce, wild-eyed baby rabbit. “No. Not me. I’m going with you. I’m going to go with you, Kate.”
    “Well, okay, but be quiet,” Kate said. “I’m just going to go look out the spy hole.”
    “Yeah, yeah, me too,” Susie said.
    Kate stepped carefully over the booby-trap string and disappeared, with Susie right on her heels. Ari stood up for a moment to watch them go and then crouched back down behind the barricade between Aurora and Carson. Aurora had dropped her slingshot and was sitting perfectly still. Carson had a rock in his sling and was trying to aim it, but the wide rubber band was stronger than he was. Every time he pulled on the rock the slingshot tipped over backward. Ari decided to try his.
    Even though Ari was stronger than Carson he didn’t have much better luck. Every time he had his slingshot almost aimed his bulletproof vest got in his way. A phone book might be a good bullet stopper but it sure was big, not to mention heavy. The shoestrings were beginning to hurt the back of his neck. He was still trying to adjust his vest when Kate and Susie came running back into the clearing. Kate’s eyes were wide and excited.
    “Get ready,” she said as she ducked down behind the barricade. “Get ready. Here they come.”
    Crouched behind the picnic table, Ari could hear feet tromping and leaves rustling. He heard the stomping get louder—and then, suddenly, a startling metallic clatter. Kate giggled wildly. “The booby trap,” she said. “Get ready.”
    Ari was watching Kate loading her slingshot and trying to do exactly as she did, when suddenly