Mean Ghouls (5 page)

Sam was her partner in home ec. They were making a pie out of rotten strawberries with moldy tomatoes and overripe avocados. As the smells of the spoiled fruit wafted through the air, Megan found herself drooling.

“We have to cook it first,” Sam said as Megan popped a furry green strawberry into her mouth and moaned.

“Just making sure the strawberries are safe,” Megan said, tipping her head over her shoulder at the Bs. “I hear the Ghouls have a plot to poison you.”

“Funny.” Sam laughed. “It's not me they are after.” He added with a wink, “New Girl.”

Megan frowned. “True.”

“Sorry for how things turned out.” Sam said. “I warned you when you got here, but maybe I should have been more specific. Or defended you in some way.”

“It's okay.” Megan picked up a bowl and began to smash the strawberries into a thick pulp. “I can handle myself.”

“All you have to do is hang in there,” Sam said. “Eventually they'll forget about you. Or sooner or later someone newer than you is bound to do something they think is worse than giving Gertrude back her letter.”

Megan didn't like that thought. She'd rather take on the Bs than pass them off to another kid.

Looking over her shoulder, Megan noticed that Happy was paired with Brooke. They were chatting as they both scooped avocado from the skin. Megan felt a little like Happy was hanging with the enemy, but Mr. Franko, the home ec teacher, had chosen the pairs.

Mr. Franko was the only teacher on staff who wasn't a zombie. He'd been a TV chef on a reality show until the entire cast got the virus. For some
reason, Mr. Franko was immune. He came to ZA with his staff, who were all now employed at the castle. “The researchers have been testing Mr. Franko to understand why he hasn't gotten the disease,” Sam explained.

“Maybe Mr. Franko is part of the cure?” Megan asked. “He might remember what tests they ran on him.”

Sam shrugged.

“Oh!” Megan remembered what she'd forgotten in the bathroom with Happy. “What about Visitors' Day?” She asked the question quickly so she wouldn't forget it again.

“What do you mean?” Sam looked at her blankly.

“When is it?” Megan asked. “I can't wait for you to meet my mom and dad and my best friend, Rachel.” Every name made Megan more and more excited. Going home would be better, but having them come visit was pretty good. “Zach is going to love coming here.”

“I don't know when it is,” Sam admitted. “I don't invite anyone anymore.”

Megan stopped crushing strawberries. “Why not?”

“No one's around for me to invite,” Sam said in a monotone that made him sound like Happy. “You
should go introduce yourself to Mr. Jones. He can tell you when it is.”

Megan hadn't made an appointment because she was nervous to meet him.

“After class,” she said, steeling her courage. “I'll go see him right after class.”

“I thought we were going to the movies today,” Sam reminded her. Sam's memory was much better than Megan's. She never saw him pull out his notebook to double-check things.

“I'll meet you at the theater,” she told Sam. “Tell Happy to save me a seat.”

Megan glanced back at Happy one last time. She was chatting with all the Bs now. It was strange…. Happy seemed … sorta happy.

 

At noon, classes were over for the day.

Megan decided that if she didn't go to Mr. Jones's bungalow right away, she never would. So after making a note to herself to go to the movie theater when she was through, Megan headed down the stone path behind the school, following the signs to Mr. Jones's house.

She hadn't been behind the school before. Since
she'd arrived the day before, she actually hadn't been outside. There were only three buildings on the ZA property: the castle; Mr. Jones's home, which was also his office; and the research center.

Mr. Jones's bungalow sat straight ahead of her, and through the trees to the right, she could see the red bricks of the center.

She meant to go straight, and yet, at the crossroads, Megan found herself turning down the side path toward the research facility.

The castle may have been centuries old, but the research center looked brand-new. There were tall windows across the front, and a slanted roof that glowed as solar panels collected sunlight. Sam had told her that the doctors had the best technology available at their fingertips.

Her curiosity took her up to the front door. Megan was surprised to find it was locked. Yes, there
had
been a theft the day before. But shouldn't the doctors be back at work, trying to re-create the cure? She tried the buzzer, but no one answered.

“Hmmm.” A few answers. That's all she wanted. If she could help find the missing vials of the cure, then maybe she could go home. But it was going to be hard if she didn't know what she was looking for.

Standing on the front stoop, Megan felt her legs begin to get heavy. Her right leg dragged as she staggered around the back of the center.

To her surprise, the back of the building was made entirely of glass. It was gorgeous. Megan imagined Dr. Verma standing in one of the sparkling new laboratories. In her vision, Dr. Verma took notes as she peered through a microscope. And when she got stuck on a problem — she would look out the huge windows to the forested area behind for inspiration. Maybe a deer or a bunny would wander by. And if no one attacked them to eat their brains, maybe the animals would begin to stop by for visits.

Megan was about to go back to the main pathway and try the buzzer again when she heard a loud metallic-sounding crash and a few raised — and very agitated — voices.

“Hello —” she began, hoping she might be let in for a tour. “I —” Megan became very quiet as she realized that she recognized those voices.

The Bs!

Frantically, Megan looked for a place to hide. She shuffled away from the building and ducked behind a thick cluster of pines.

Through the sharp, twisted needles, Megan could
see them. Brenda, Brooke, and Betsy crawled out of a broken window on the far side of the building.

“Uhhhh —” Megan threw herself to the ground and choked back the rest of her groan.

“Who's out there?” Brenda shouted. “Betsy, go look.”

“I'm not going into the trees,” Betsy said. “There are bugs and creepy things and,” she gasped, “dirt!”

“This is no time to get hung up on cleanliness!” Brenda said. “Brooke, go take a look. I definitely heard something.”

“I don't think that's such a good idea,” Brooke said. She pointed to a nasty cut on her own forehead. “I already have to explain to my parents how I got this gash. My dad warned me that head wounds don't heal. He's not going to be happy.”

“If you'd been paying attention, the cabinet wouldn't have fallen,” Brenda spat.

“Betsy knocked it over,” Brooke retorted.

“If you'd let me turn on a light, I'd have been able to see,” Betsy said. “You know it's hard to see clearly without pupils!”

“Wear your glasses!” Brenda replied.

“They've been broken for a month,” Betsy said. “You stepped on them in your high heels!”

“You left them on the floor,” Brenda said.

“You knocked them off my face when your arms popped straight out,” Betsy argued. “I'm waiting for a new pair. They have to be made special.”

If Megan could have laughed without making a sound, she would have. The girls were acting like clowns. They couldn't stop bickering and nagging one another. And although Brenda thought she was in charge, it was obvious that Brooke and Betsy were getting tired of following her orders.

“Stop this nonsense,” Brenda said sternly. “There isn't much time. We have to be ready on Visitors' Day.”

“That gives us twelve whole days,” Brooke said after counting on her fingers. “No problem.” She touched her head. The cut was small, but deep, and a sliver of her brain was slowly oozing out. Brooke used a tissue to push it back inside her skull. Betsy gave her disgusted look and handed her a tube of hand sanitizer.

Cupping her ear and tilting her head toward the woods, Brenda listened hard. “I guess there's nothing out there. Let's go back to the castle. We'll finalize our plans at midnight on Friday at the meeting spot.”

“I'll make sure Yeverman is there,” Brooke said.

Betsy had a moment of zombitus memory loss. “Remind me, where's the meeting place again?”

“The tower,” Brenda replied, pointing back toward the school. Then she turned to Brooke and asked, “Did you get what we need?”

Brooke held up a brown cloth sack. “I have them.”

Megan could hear glass clinking in the bag as Brooke gave it a little shake.

“Careful with those,” Betsy warned. “We're going to use them all!”

“This will be the best Visitors' Day ever,” Brenda cheered. “Afterward, no one will care that the cure was stolen.” The Bs high-fived one another, then rushed off toward the Zombie Academy castle.

The instant they were gone, Megan took out her ZA notebook. She wrote down everything she wanted to remember.

SUSPECTS	CLUES
Brooke	Visitors' Day
Brenda	Tower
Betsy	Glass in a bag

 

Bs meeting Friday night!!!

 

At the bottom of the page Megan wrote one last thing:

Megan didn't understand why Happy would be meeting the Bs on Friday at midnight. What were the Bs up to? And what did all of this have to do with the missing zombitus cure?

She looked at the page in her notebook and felt like that detective. The girl who solved crimes. The one in the books. In the movie. The girl with the boyfriend … Fred? Red? Ned. Yes. Ned.

What was her name? Thinking about it was giving Megan a headache.

On the way around the research center, the answer finally came to her.

Megan felt like Nancy Drew.

Thanks to the Bs, Megan knew when Visitors' Day was, so she didn't have to go see Mr. Jones. It was twelve days away. That meant Megan should invite her parents for the following Sunday!

Megan hurried back to the dorms to call her family.

Her dragging leg slowed her down and tired her out. By the time Megan reached her room, she was exhausted. Flopping back on her lumpy bed, Megan took a few breaths before dialing home.

Zach answered.

“Hey, dork,” Megan greeted. “Mom there?”

“Duh!” he said. “It's only afternoon. She's still at work.”

Megan checked the clock. Dad was probably at work, too.

“Don't you want to talk to me?” Zach asked, sounding hurt. “I want to hear all about the school and the zombies and the brains and the —”

“You can check all that stuff out for yourself,” she told her brother. “Come a week from Sunday. It's Visitors' Day.”

“OOOOHHHHH. Zombie Academy! Do we have to wear protective gloves and masks?”

Megan could hear the excitement rising in Zach's voice. “Probably,” she said.

Zach paused. “I don't mind. It's worth it. Can I meet Mr. Jones?”

“How do you know about him?” Megan asked.

“I've been reading about your disease and the school,” Zach told her. “Did you know Mr. Jones opened the California Castle in 1908?”

“I had no idea it was
that
old,” Megan admitted. She started to do the math to figure out how old Mr. Jones must be, but Zach's mind was leaping at rocket speed. “Dr. Shelley might want to come to visit, too. I mean, she diagnosed your disease
and
wrote a book about monsters. Can I bring her? Can I? Can I?” He interrupted her thoughts.

“Sure,” Megan agreed, just to get him to stop. Dr. Shelley was very old and had long gray hair.
“We can pretend she's our grandmother if anyone asks.”

“Awesome!” Zach told her he was going to write a scene for his movie that took place at the school and bring his video camera. “What time should we be there?” Zach asked.

Megan checked her notebook. Maybe she should have gone to Mr. Jones after all…. She didn't know. “Just come in the morning and stay all day.”

“Cool!” Zach said. He rattled off an itinerary for his day on campus, and plans for shots he wanted to get on video. Megan wasn't sure who was more excited about Visitors' Day, her or her brother. She was about to hang up when Zach asked, “Have you met any kids who like being zombies?”

“What are you talking about?” Megan replied. “Who'd
want
to be a zombie?”

“When I was reading about the school, it said that some people like having zombitus and don't want to be cured. I just wondered if you met anyone like that.”

“Of course not,” Megan said. “That would be crazy.” Zach really was monster obsessed. She didn't feel like talking to him anymore. “Tell Mom and Dad to come next Sunday.”

“Save me some brain soup,” Zach said as he hung up.

Megan called Rachel next.

She'd just told her about Visitors' Day when Rachel asked, “Did you hear about Brett?”

“Hear what?” Megan didn't know what Rachel was talking about.

“You'll see,” Rachel said, then fell silent.

“See what?”

Rachel didn't answer.

“Does everything have to be a mystery?” Megan asked. “Come on. Tell me the news.”

“To-mor-row,” Rachel said, stressing each syllable.

“Oh, fine.” Megan gave up. “I'll wait, but you have to come to Visitors' Day next Sunday.”

Megan could hear Rachel's smile through the phone. “You couldn't keep me away,” Rachel said.

 

“Megan Murry, please come to the nurse's office.”

Megan hadn't even known the school had an intercom system. Her name rang out and echoed down the hall.

“You'd better get going,” Happy said. “It's irritating. They'll keep calling you over and over until
you answer. Just in case you've forgotten your own name.”

“Got it.” Megan rushed to the elevator.

It was Wednesday. Rachel had said
something
would happen today. Something about Brett Hansen. Maybe there was a package for her — from Brett. Megan had been waiting all morning to find out what was going on.

It wasn't a package from Brett.

It
was
Brett.

He was standing in the nurse's office, holding a ZA notebook in one hand and a schedule in the other.

“Hi,” Megan said, talking directly to Brett for the first time without feeling nervous at all. She didn't even stare at her feet. Instead, she gazed directly into his eyes. They were bloodshot and the pupils were bright red. Other than that, he looked cute as ever. She was glad to see him. Really glad.

“Megan,” Nurse Karen said. “I hope you're willing to show our newest student around school.”

Megan nodded enthusiastically. “Of course,” she said. Brett Hansen! She couldn't believe that he went to ZA now, too. And it looked like his class schedule matched hers. Awesome!

“It's time for PE,” Megan told Brett. She was surprised at how hard it had been to talk to him in Dana Point and how easy it was here. “You're going to love shuffle ball.” She began to explain the rules to him, but soon Megan noticed that Brett still hadn't said anything. She waved a hand in front of his eyes. Brett just stared straight ahead into the distance.

They were still in the nurse's office so Megan rushed back to talk to Nurse Karen. “What's his deal?” she asked.

“Brett's transition is moving much faster than yours,” the nurse explained. “He's in zombitus shock. Give him a few days. It usually goes away on its own.”

Megan nodded and went back out to where she'd left Brett.

“Come on,” she told him. “If Coach Ipthos can't shake your shock, we'll figure out something else.”

Sam was waiting for Megan in front of the locker rooms.

Megan's heartbeat sped up a bit when she saw him, but then she remembered Brett. Brett was her … real life. When zombitus was finally cured, she and Brett would be going back to Dana Point and Sam would go to Seattle. Megan probably wouldn't see Sam ever again.

That made her a little sad, but it also convinced her that she needed to focus on Brett and helping him adjust to life at ZA.

“Who's this?” Sam asked.

“This is my friend Brett, from back home,” Megan said. “He's got zombitus shock.”

Brett couldn't shake Sam's hand, which was probably for the best since Megan worried about Sam's fingers.

“Zombitus shock?” Sam asked. “I haven't seen a case of that since nineteen —” He stopped himself midsentence. “Let's get him onto the field,” Sam said quickly. “He needs fresh air.”

“I'll go change. Meet you outside. Prepare to be beaten.”

“Monday was beginner's luck,” Sam replied with a snort. “Today, my team's going to kill yours.”

“Kill us? You can't kill zombies!” Megan laughed.

Sam chuckled.

“Uhhhh-uhhhh.” Poor Brett stood there, moaning madly, staring straight ahead, unaware of the bad comedy routine taking place around him.

“I'll take care of your friend,” Sam told Megan, suddenly serious. “We'll get him sorted out.”

“Thanks,” Megan said, her smile fading. She stood quietly, watching as Sam grabbed a second pair of shorts from his pack and led Brett toward the locker room to change clothes.

But Brett couldn't move. His knees were stuck, and so was his brain. He shuffled around for a second, then fell into a hole. And that was before the game even began.

Coach Ipthos suggested Brett join the Bs in the center of the field. “They don't play, anyways,” he said with a groan.

Megan wasn't sure that was such a good idea. If Megan was playing ball, she couldn't protect him from Brenda, Brooke, and Betsy. And he was in no condition to protect himself.

“Hurry up!” Coach called to Megan, blowing his whistle. “Game's on.”

With Brett standing next to the Bs, Megan couldn't focus. She kept narrowly avoiding falling into the holes, letting Sam score twice. At the half, while Coach pulled the kids out of traps, Megan went to check on Brett.

“Hi, Megan,” Brett said as she got close.

Whew.
He didn't seem to have any more symptoms
of the zombitus shock. Megan was relieved. “Feeling better?” she asked.

He couldn't bend his knees and one of his front teeth was supersharp, but his eyes weren't red anymore and everything else appeared normal.

“I made friends,” Brett said, putting one arm around Brooke and another around Betsy, while Brenda stood to the side grinning.

“We think he's great!” Brenda smirked.

Megan was confused. “What are you up to? Are you tricking him?” Megan wouldn't let the Bs be mean to Brett.

Brenda laughed and rolled her eyes.

“Brett's cool,” Brenda said. She was wearing a dirty pink prom dress that made her look like a poofy mud-crusted cupcake. “Cooler than you, that's for sure.”

Brett laughed. “Lucky for me, my name starts with a
B
!”

“Uh, Brett, can I talk to you a second?” Megan was going to tell him he should stay away from the Ghouls, just like Sam had warned her on her first day. She'd remind him that he was a nice guy. He liked theater. He had a mini wiener dog named Fluffy. (She'd read that on his profile.)

“I'm a Zom-B!” Brett laughed hard, in a sharp way that sounded an awful lot like his twin sister, Hailey. “And the Bs don't like you.” He raised his hand and waved. “Bye-bye.”

“Great,” Megan muttered as she turned and walked away. “Just rotten peachy.”

Now, more than ever, she needed to find the missing cure. It was the only way to get rid of the Bs once and for all. She was going to sneak into that meeting Friday at midnight in the tower, discover what they were up to, find the cure, and save Brett before it was too late.