The Visitor by K. A. Applegate Read Free Book Online Page B

“Probably at the worst possible time.”
    I wondered if they were right. It was definitely a strange, powerful feeling, knowing that I could become four very different animals. Strange and powerful and disturbing. Inside of me I had animals that ate one another. It wasn’t a good image.
    Suddenly I felt exhausted. “Look, guys … I’ve acquired Fluffer now. But maybe we should do therest of this tomorrow night. I’m … I don’t know if I’m at my best right now.”
    â€œAnother night,” Jake agreed. He looked relieved. I think he was worried about me. That’s the way Jake is.
    â€œI guess we can let Fluffer go now,” Cassie said. She opened the carrier and the cat climbed out cautiously.
    I watched him run off into the night. “Probably going off to kill your shrew,” Marco speculated.
    The idea made me shudder all over again.

A
aaaaahhh! Aaaaah! Aaaaaah!”
    â€œWake up. Rachel, wake up!”
    â€œAaah!
Oh. Oh. Oh.” I sat up. I was gasping for air. It was dark, but I could just make out Jordan’s face. She was shaking me awake.
    I felt my face. Lips. Eyes. Nose.
    I patted myself down frantically. Human. I was human. No fur. No tail. Human.
    The details of the dream came rushing up to my consciousness.
    â€œOh, no,” I moaned. I threw back the covers and stumbled to my feet. I staggered toward the bathroomdoor. The bathroom connects my room and the room Jordan and Sara share. I tried to turn on the light but missed the switch. I dropped to my knees in front of the toilet and threw up.
    Jordan kept saying, “Are you all right, Rachel? Are you all right? I better get Mom.”
    â€œNo,” I said, as soon as I could talk. “No, I’m fine. Don’t wake Mom up.” Fortunately, little Sara can sleep through anything.
    I brushed my teeth and drank some water. I looked sheepishly at Jordan. She looks nothing like me. I guess I look more like my dad, and Jordan is like this smaller version of my mom: dark hair and dark eyes. She looked pretty scared.
    â€œI’m okay,” I said again. “Just a bad dream. I guess it made me kind of sick, is all. But I’m fine now.”
    Jordan relaxed a little. “Must have been
some
dream.”
    â€œI guess so. I can’t even remember it now. You know how it is. Dreams fade away so you can’t even remember them.”
    â€œI can’t believe you would just forget a dream that made you scream
and
hurl.”
    I shrugged. “I’ve never been very good at remembering dreams. You better get back to bed.”
    She looked at me solemnly. “I know I’m just your little sister by two years, but you would tell me ifsomething bad was happening to you, right? I mean, I wouldn’t tell Mom or anyone. You could trust me.”
    I smiled and drew her into a hug. “I know I can trust you. If anything bad was going on, I’d tell you.” It was a lie, of course, and the lie made me feel even worse. I trusted Jordan. I knew in my heart that she was not a Controller.
    Of course, that’s just what Jake had said about Tom.
    I hugged my sister a little closer. I hated the way suspicion had crept into every part of my mind. I hated the way I wasn’t sure, not really, totally sure, that I could trust her.
    â€œGood night,” I said. “Thanks for rescuing me from that nightmare. Whatever it was.”
    She started to walk away. Then she turned, lit from behind by the garish bathroom light. “Before you started screaming, you were yelling something.”
    â€œWhat?” I asked, afraid of the answer.
    She looked puzzled. “I think it was ‘maggots.’ Something like that.”
    I forced a shaky smile. “Good night, Jordan.”
    I crawled back into my bed. The pillow was soaked with sweat. The sheets were clammy.
    Maggots. Squirming, crawling, busy little white maggots. They were all over a piece of rotting