The Stolen Bones by Carolyn Keene Read Free Book Online

a few minutes during lunch,”
     George suggested. “And don’t forget about Jimmy. He had all morning to prowl
     around here, and if he lives out here, he’s probably used to snakes and knows
     where to find them.”
    “Other people here might be good with snakes
     too.” I sighed. “We have a lot of work to do. But I have to lie down for a
     few minutes. I still feel all jittery.”
    “Me too.” Bess glared into the tent. “I’m trying
     to forget that the snake was on my sleeping bag.”
    “You know, maybe we should check the insides of our bags, just to be
     safe,” George said. Bess moaned. We picked up our sleeping bags, held them at
     arm’s length, and shook them out. Then just to be sure, we felt them from bottom
     to top, checking for lumps.
    Finally we all settled down. George adjusted the tent flaps for maximum
     airflow. I lay back and took deep breaths to relax my jangled nerves. “Don’t
     let me fall asleep,” I said.
    George yawned. “No way.”
    “How could we sleep after that?” Bess mumbled.
    All right, I guess I slept. That’s the only way I can explain the
     dream. Cartoon dinosaurs hid behind our tent, asking for help. Tom turned into a snake
     and hissed at me. I awoke with a gasp.
    “What?” George mumbled. She sat up, yawning and blinking.
     “Shoot,” she said. “I should’ve set an alarm.”
    Bess sighed and rubbed her eyes. “I needed that.”
    I guess I did too. Oh well, a long afternoon nap meant it would be easier
     to stay awake at night. That’s probably when anything would happen.
    We joined the others and hiked back to the dig site.
     It still felt hot, but at least the sun was at an angle so you could find shade.
    As we neared the site, I heard a strange noise. A kind of chugging rumble.
     At first I thought it was thunder, but it was too long and steady. “Hear
     that?” I asked.
    George frowned. “Some kind of car?”
    Bess had the answer, of course. “Sounds like an ATV—an
     all-terrain vehicle.”
    “You mean we have visitors out here?”
    Kyle picked up speed. George, Bess, and I hurried after him.
    As we broke out into the hollow, I saw the ATV parked up on the cliff
     ahead. Then I saw the two men standing over the rock that had been damaged.
    Kyle charged toward them like a bull. “What are you doing?” he
     bellowed.

7
Twin Troublemakers
    T he men looked up with friendly smiles and stepped toward us. They must have been around twenty. Both had blond hair and strangely light gray eyes. They were tall, lean, and good-looking. It took me a minute to decide that they weren’t actually twins, although they had to be brothers. One was a bit taller and broader, with an air of leadership, so I guessed he was older.
    Something struck me as familiar about them, but I knew I’d never seen them before. Maybe it was just seeing the two of them, so much alike, that gave that sense of déjà vu.
    The first one said, “Hi! I hope we’re not disturbing anything. We were just looking around.”
    “How did you find us?” Kyle demanded.
    The guy kept his friendly grin. “We didn’t. You found us. We wondered where the people were.”
    “I mean how did you find this site?”
    He gestured toward the ATV. “We were just tooling around in our little buggy and saw this stuff. We wondered what you could possibly be doing, out here in the middle of the desert.”
    Kyle crossed his arms. “That’s my question exactly. You know this is federal land.”
    The stranger kept smiling. “Yes, and I know it’s legal for me to be here. This area isn’t restricted.”
    “It may be legal,” Kyle admitted, “but it’s still a bad idea. Off-road vehicles cause erosion, damage the vegetation, and disturb the wildlife.”
    The guy shrugged. “You’re entitled to your opinion too.”
    The younger brother hadn’t spoken yet. He just watched everything with those pale eyes. The rest of the volunteers had gathered around us and were listening to the exchange. Bess