Dead Letter by Betsy Byars Read Free Book Online Page B

shielded by the trees—he couldn’t get her here—she glanced at the car. With a screeching of tires, the car roared by and disappeared in a cloud of reddish dust.
    It really was gone this time.
    Keeping to the edge of the trees, Herculeah ran toward Main. As she rounded the bend, she could see the lights ahead, the cars, the people moving and shopping. She hurried to be one of them.
    As she walked, she bent and began to brush off her coat. “And I was going to take such good care of this coat,” she said.
    Herculeah came to Main Street. When she crossed she looked both ways, the way her mother had taught her to when she was a child.
    Then Herculeah turned for home.
    But she had the terrible feeling she would see that black car again.

14
    SWFET OLD DAD
    â€œYou’re filthy, Herculeah! Where on earth have you been?”
    â€œOh hi, Mom.”
    â€œLook at yourself.”
    Herculeah glanced in the hall mirror. “Oh, no. I don’t care about myself,” she said. “Look at my coat. This is my new coat! I love this coat. It’s ruined.”
    â€œI’ve got a brush. I’ll have a go at it.”
    â€œThanks.”
    â€œBut where have you been?”
    â€œI was checking out some construction over on ...” She made a quick decision to leave off the name of the street. “On the other side of Main Street. That’s where I was.”
    â€œI thought you’d outgrown digging in the dirt.”
    â€œOh, Mom.”
    â€œSee, that’s where Tarot got his ‘Oh, Mom’s’ from.”
    Her mother left the room and returned with a brush. “Take it off,” she told Herculeah. Herculeah shrugged out of the coat.
    â€œWhat happened? Did you fall?” With long, sure strokes, Herculeah’s mother brushed the coat. “It’s coming out. See?” She paused to look at Herculeah. “So did you? Fall?”
    â€œMom, it was very strange. I was on my way home. The street I was on ...” again she was careful not to give the name, “is very narrow. They’ve dug ditches for pipes and haven’t filled them in. The dirt’s in huge piles, some of it out in the street.
    â€œSo I was walking along and I heard a car behind me. I looked around. It was a black car. No lights. No big deal—it was just sunset. And then the car started coming at me—right at me. So I scrambled up the pile of dirt, slipped, and fell down on my knees—that’s where those two circles of dirt came from. Then I threw myself over the top. That’s where the rest of the dirt came from.”
    Her mother had stopped now, the brush suspended over Herculeah’s coat. “Do you think the driver did it on purpose?”
    â€œWhy would he?” Herculeah asked evasively.
    â€œYou tell me.”
    â€œIt was dark. It’s possible he didn’t see me.”
    â€œDid you get the license number?”
    â€œNot hardly. I was on my face in the dirt when it passed.”
    Herculeah decided not to mention that the car had tried to stay with her and that she had to make a frantic dash for safety.
    â€œAnyway, it’s over. I’m unharmed. I’m safe. I learned my lesson.”
    She grinned at her mother. Her mother didn’t grin back. “I wish I could believe that.”
    â€œBelieve it. Oh, I’ve got to hurry. Dad’s picking me up, remember?”
    Her mother was still watching as Herculeah started up the stairs.
    â€œOh, Herculeah—”
    â€œMom, I have learned my lesson, all right?”
    â€œMeat stopped by and left something for you. He said it was important.” Mrs. Jones picked up a folded sheet of paper from the hall table and handed it to Herculeah.
    Herculeah unfolded it. “It looks like a Xerox of some sort of note.” She felt a quickening of interest because it might have something to do with the coat.
    â€œYes, that’s what Meat said. He was just back from