Homeroom Headhunters by Clay McLeod Chapman Read Free Book Online Page B

his voice. “I’m Yardstick .”
    The one with the acne had sketched the symbol of an atom across one forearm, while the image of a drafting compass piercing an anatomically correct heart was drawn on the other.
    â€œCall me Compass.”
    The next to step forward had LORD OF THE FRIES scrawled across the slope of his belly in a meticulously executed Old English font. There was a skull and crossbones on his forearm. Wait —scratch that. Not crossbones. A fork and knife.
    â€œThe name’s Sporkboy,” he declared as he drum-rolled his own stomach. “Got a problem with that?”
    Again with the crazy eyes.
    I shook my head— nope .
    â€œGood.”
    Each was wearing about six different whistles, like strings of silver teeth dangling across their chests.
    And they’d armed themselves.
    Compasses bent open to expose their sharp points.
    X-ACTO blades attached to protractors.
    Sharpened pencils.
    I saw Sully standing at the back. She was one of the posse. The only girl among the boys. Her choice in clothes differed from theirs. And no writing anywhere I could see. Her head hung low enough for her hair to cover most of her face, but I saw her eyes peering through.
    â€œWhat are you looking at?” she asked. “You already know my name.”
    I stared back at her with pleading eyes: Help help help help help —but she didn’t seem to receive my message.
    Or want to.
    I could almost trace the veins running the length of her pale limbs, and her eyes were overly dilated.
    Like cat eyes.
    Peashooter leaned over until we were face-to-face. I noticed something in his hand.
    Something small.
    With teeth.
    He held out his hand so that I could get a good look-see.
    A staple remover— a four-fanged pincer with spring-locked jaws—was an inch away from my nose. Without saying anything, he slipped its metallic teeth into my nostrils, and pinched.
    Not enough to break the skin. No nosebleeds here. But enough to get my attention.
    I was all ears.
    â€œEverybody’s gone for the day.” He tugged harder. “Nobody’ll hear you.”
    He released my nose so that I rocked back and forth from the basketball rim. Then he caught me by the nose again, pinching me in place.
    â€œIf I remove your gag, you better not scream. Promise?”
    I nodded. Slowly .
    He detached his staple remover from my nose again. He sunk its fangs into the wad in my mouth and tugged it out.
    A sock. I’d had a dirty gym sock stuffed in my mouth this whole time.
    I took a deep breath, then emptied all that fresh air from my lungs by yelling my head off: “Help me help me help me somebody please get me out of here help help help!”
    Nothing. No cavalry to save the day.
    â€œTold you nobody would hear,” Peashooter said. “Now you’ve gotta pay for your disloyalty.…”
    Yardstick and Sporkboy each pulled out a sock stuffed with something that appeared to be heavy. Sporkboy started swinging his over his head like a helicopter propeller, sending a slight clink-clinking sound through the air.
    They must’ve been filled with spare change.
    By my hasty calculations, about fifty-seven cents of pain each.
    Give or take.
    â€œPound him,” Peashooter nodded.
    In the blink of an eye, both boys advanced and proceeded to whack me as hard as they could. The thud of money against my body brought the holler right out of me: “Ow ow ow!”
    â€œNever break your promises. Not to us, got it? Word is bond. ”
    I gasped. “What do you want from me?”
    â€œWe tied you up to see how you’d handle yourself.”
    â€œThis is some kind of test ? Did I pass?”
    â€œHardly,” Compass huffed, the acne spread across his face reddening.
    â€œI’m getting really light-headed up here.…”
    Sully rushed up and brought an inhaler to my mouth. She squeezed off a gust into my lungs.
    â€œSomebody’s got a crush.” Sporkboy