Free Red Rider's Hood by Neal Shusterman Page A

laughed. Not because it was funny, butbecause Cedric thought it was. Cedric was the kind of guy who had to have his own private laugh track cackling behind his jokes.
    â€œSo, what is it?” he asked. “And it better be more than just chips.”
    I held the bag up to him. “See for yourself.”
    He took the bag, threw me a suspicious glance, then tried to look inside, but it was too dark. So he reached in, felt around a bit, and his hand came out holding a human skull. He yelped in surprise and dropped it to the musty ground.
    â€œYou think that’s funny?” Cedric barked.
    â€œNothing funny about it,” I told him. “Take a good look at it. Tell me if it looks familiar, because it should.”
    By now all the rest of the Wolves had crowded around. Cedric picked up the skull.
    â€œIs it someone I should know?”
    â€œIt’s your grandpa.”
    I watched as a whole busload of emotions drove by on Cedric’s face. By the time the bus had passed, I could tell he believed me.
    â€œWhere did you get this?” he asked through gritted teeth.
    Well, I couldn’t tell him the truth—but I had a better story anyway, and I knew I could sell it, because lately I’d become a real good liar.
    â€œWhere do you think I got it?” I said. “I stole it from my grandma. She had it hanging on the wall like a trophy, in that secret room where she keeps all her werewolf-hunting stuff.”
    The Wolves all murmured, cursing in awe and anger. Cedricscrewed his lips into a scowl. “That old woman is going down! I won’t even wait until the full moon.”
    â€œBad idea,” I said. “If you do that, you’ll never get all the others.”
    Cedric looked at me with suspicion written all over his face. “What others?”
    â€œYou know…The C.W.H.”
    He gave me a blank look.
    â€œThe Confederacy of Werewolf Hunters,” I explained. “They’re coming into town during the next full moon. They mean to get rid of all of you.” And then I corrected myself. “All of
us,
I mean.”
    The Wolves all looked at one another, whispering worry. Cedric snapped his fingers to shut them up.
    â€œIt ain’t gonna happen,” Cedric said. “Because Red here is going to feed us information and let us know their every move, so we can attack first. Isn’t that right, Red?”
    â€œI don’t know,” I said. “I thought you wanted me to be a footstool.”
    â€œYou do this right,” Cedric said, “and I’ll make A/C into
your
footstool.”
    â€œHey!” said A/C.
    â€œShut up!” said Cedric.
    I paused for effect. “Okay, I’ll do it,” I told him. “On one condition.”
    â€œWhat’s the condition?”
    â€œThat my grandma doesn’t end up in a werewolf’s belly.”
    Cedric looked at me, then broke out laughing. At first Iwasn’t sure what his laughter meant. The rest of the Wolves didn’t know, either, but they laughed along with him anyway.
    â€œWe got ourselves a master negotiator here!” he said.
    â€œYeah—maybe we oughta send him to negotiate with the Crypts,” snorted Loogie. That brought another round of laughter. The Crypts were the all-girl gang whose turf was way across town. Scary bunch, from what I’d heard.
    â€œSo,” said Cedric, “Little Red’s willing to sell out his grandma’s life’s work in exchange for her life.”
    â€œShe’s a crazy old woman,” I told him, “but she’s still my grandma, and I want her to live. If you get rid of all her werewolf-hunting friends, you won’t have to get rid of her, because she’ll be powerless.”
    Cedric began to pace the big space of the Troll Bridge Hollow, weaving in and out of his pack of Wolves. “Sure,” he said. “I’ll make her watch all her friends get eaten, and then make her watch as