Free The Girl Who Owned a City by O. T. (Terry) Nelson

you!”
    Don’t get so emotional, she cautioned herself. She wanted to hurt him for hurting Todd.
    â€œI don’t blame you, Tom . . . really.” Her words softened. “And I don’t want any trouble with your gang. It’s just that we don’t need your help. We can take care of ourselves, and we will!”
    The children were silent. What gave Lisa the courage to say those things?
    Tom’s confidence was shaken. He could scare them into an agreement, but there was something about her that stopped him. He walked away, saying nothing more. His gang followed him back to Chidester.
    It took some time for the militia meeting to return to order. No one wanted what the gang offered, but they were uneasy about Logan’s threats. They had food and supplies and a strong plan for defense, but still they worried.
    â€œAnyone want some more popcorn?” Lisa asked, hoping that the old bribe would bring the meeting back to order.
    â€œNo thanks” was the general reply. The popcorn could be saved for another time. They began to ask a hundred questions about the Secret Place and the militia.
    Lisa whispered to Craig. “Don’t forget your promise. They must not know where the Secret Place is.”
    Craig nodded, thinking about Lisa. Sometimes she seemed a little crazy. “Don’t worry, I’ll keep the promise,” he said. The whole day seemed incredible. This morning he was starving, and now he was the general of an army and an insurance policy for a little boy.
    Lisa, even more than the other children, understood the day’s importance. “Come on,” she hollered above the many voices, “let’s go to Lake Ellyn for a campfire. I’ve got a whole sack of marshmallows, and there’s soda and chips in my trunk. Craig, help the boys get some wood to burn. We’ll build a bonfire by the boathouse. You girls go get the blankets. Julie, get your boom box and some tapes. We’ve got batteries for it. Todd, give me a hand with the pop.”
    In a few minutes, Grand Avenue was empty. Every child happily joined the procession to Lake Ellyn. The bronze Cadillac led the way and 20 kids were following it, singing a Christmas carol.
    They had almost forgotten about Christmas, and it was coming soon. When Eileen, one of Jill’s kids, wondered if Santa would bring presents this Christmas, Lisa assured her that he would. There had been thousands of toys in the warehouse.
    Lisa turned to Charlie. “Run back to your house and get all the Christmas tree decorations you can find,” she said. This surprised him. It was still a little early for Christmas, but he did as she asked.
    They had built a huge fire near the lake by the time Charlie came back with the box of ornaments. “What do you want these for?” he finally asked.
    â€œWhat do you think? We’re going to decorate a Christmas tree.” But when Lisa carried the boxes to a pine tree near the fire, the children began fighting over the decorations. “Wait a minute! We can’t all do it,” Lisa said. “Katy and Todd will decorate the tree.”
    They sang all the Christmas carols they knew. There were a lot of them, because Julie had a fantastic memory for songs. The marshmallows were gone in no time, the fire was huge and bright, and the children laughed and sang and forgot about their problems.
    It was just like the parties in the old days. They were children again, and life was fun.
    Charlie, who had been more afraid than anyone, began to act like his old, mischievous self, teasing his sisters and making them mad. Even that was fun, except, of course, for Julie and Nancy. The children laughed until very late into the night. They hardly noticed the cold.
    The moon was full and shining on the icy lake. Lisa wandered toward the shoreline to be alone for a moment. There were many problems to think about, and this would be a good time for thinking. What will happen to us?