Artifacts (17 page)

“How sweet,” Hook growled. “I’ll destroy her and the others once I’m done with you.”

“Why do you want the pen?” I asked, backing away toward the edge of the roof.

Hook paused. “To rewrite the stories the way they should have been written. Pompous, arrogant, idiotic little boys and girls are born into this world as princes and princesses while the true heroes are left to wait in the dark. Well, Jackson, my time has come. The names that have been read to children as they lay their heads down and drift off to sleep will soon be forgotten. Replaced with the tales of Hook, as it should be.”

I shuddered. “Those versions all seem a little too creepy and strange for me.”

“You have no choice,” Hook snarled.

“There’s always a choice.” I turned away from him, opened the long, thin, wooden box, slipped out the pen, and then opened my hand, letting the feather float away.

The breeze caught it quickly. It moved slowly from side to side, falling a bit and then blowing back up by a sudden breath of air. It skittered and flitted, skimming across the shingles until it slipped out past the edge of the roof and disappeared.

“Noooooo!” Hook yelled, racing across the roof, and leaping after the feather.

I leaned over the edge just in time to see Crunch, smiling at me with feather in hand, standing on his newly drawn stairway while Hook plummeted past him.

At the very last moment, Hook managed to lasso his cartoon hook around the eave just below Crunch.

“Are you all right?” I called to Crunch, climbing down toward him.

“Yeah, I’m good,” he called back and then looked down at his feet. “I don’t think Hook is doing too well, however.”

“I’m glad you were able to squish up against the wall flat enough so Hook couldn’t grab you on the way down,” I said, stepping onto the ledge next to Crunch.

Crunch laughed. “I think he was too surprised to grab me. He looked really shocked.”

I crouched down until I was a few inches from Hook. “I’m guessing this isn’t how you thought it would end.”

“It’s not the end, Jackson.” Hook sneered, the strain of hanging on by his hook now showing in his voice. “There will be others and others after us. We will have what we desire.”

“You’re right. There’s still one more surprise left you haven’t seen as of yet. You would have caused all kinds of havoc if you had gotten away with Jacob Grimm’s pen.” I could hear the eave splintering under his weight and saw him drop down little by little.

“Don’t bask too much in the light of your victory.” Hook laughed. “This fall certainly won’t kill me. I will be back to bury you and those other little brats. Especially Korie. Mark my words, Jackson. I’ll take my time with her.”

I slid a little closer to him, but not so close that he could grab me.

“I wrote something down before climbing onto the roof from the attic,” I whispered. “Two words, eight letters, nice and simple.” I saw the edge of his eyebrows and the tips of his mustache start to twitch in a rhythmic beat. “You know what those eight letters are?”

He looked up at me and I showed him the slip of paper.

“
tick tock
,” he read slowly. He screamed and tried to scramble back onto the ledge.

The rustling in the trees was so loud everyone in the clearing stopped and watched as Tick Tock, the monstrous crocodile raced across the grass. It stopped just short of the house, directly below the dangling and frightened Captain James Bartholomew Hook.

Climbing down off the roof, Korie ran over and hugged me. Tank and Slightly congratulated each other, while the Grumpkins raised Crunch onto their shoulders, carrying him around the clearing for all to see.

I looked back to see Hook’s legs running quickly in the air as he tried to use his momentum to climb back up onto the eave.

“What should we do with him now?”

“I’d like to let the croc eat him,” Skylights said, “but we’ll take him back to Neverland. You need to know that we can never be sure he won’t get away again.”

“I know,” I said.

“He’ll come right back after you now that he knows where you are.” Skylights shot a look at Grifter and Touch. “You could always try using Jacob Grimm’s pen.”

Reaching into my pocket, I ran my fingers across the feather. Skylights held out a piece of paper for me to write on. “How did Hook turn out to be so evil?”

“He was Blackbeard’s boatswain,” Grifter said. “The second in charge of a ship full of bloodthirsty pirates and thieves. Hook learned all of his evil tricks at the hand of the master.”

I started to write.

It was a beautiful morning and one he had been waiting for his entire life. Tired of being made fun of by the other children for being clumsy and awkward and a scaredy-cat at heart, James Bartholomew was hand-selected by Blackbeard to become a pirate. After saying good-bye to his mother at the edge of the pier, Hook turned to look up at the ship and his future. Stepping onto the first rung of the gangway, he could feel a new strength and confidence wash over him. Turning one last time to say good-bye to his mother, Hook’s feet became entangled in the ropes used to tie the ship in place and tumbled, somersaulted, and nearly cartwheeled the length of the gangway back down to the pier

Embarrassed and dazed, the young Hook ran as far from the ship as he could
.

Putting the pen down and turning back to the house, I saw the dangling Hook, now supported by his hand and holding onto the eave for dear life, disappear. He was followed closely by the Tick Tock croc, and, moments later, Smee.

“What happened?” Korie asked.

“Hook never boarded that ship,” I said. “After being so totally embarrassed, he ran away, up to a place as high as he could find, and watched as the ship left the harbor.”

“He did eventually board another ship, however,” Skylights added. “He’s the captain, and to this day, they’re anchored at the entrance to Neverland, standing guard over the Lost Boys, the Mermaids, and the Fairies. He’s now the voice of reason … and hope.”

Korie, Tank, Skylights, and I walked over and sat on the porch. After watching the Lost Boys spend a few more hours reliving a youth they missed and missing a life they now led, we saw them disappear into the forest.

With them gone, it was now time for us to say good-bye to Skylights, Touch, Grifter, Tootles and, of course, the Grumpkins.

“This has been a great adventure,” I said to Skylights.

Skylights smiled. “The greatest of our lives. It seems we all grew up a little.”

I looked over at Mouth and Crunch. “Well, most of us.”

“Will we see you again?” Korie asked.

“Hook was right when he said there’ll be others,” Touch said.

“Next time we’ll be here long before they arrive,” Grifter promised.

“Be careful going home.”

Skylights laughed. “I think our trip will be much easier than your trip back out of the greenway. Enjoy your time at camp.”

“We’re not going to camp this year,” I said. “With Hook gone, there’s nobody who can change Crunch’s grade. He’ll be in summer school for weeks and we’ll be outside every day just waiting for the last bell to ring.”

Skylights smiled. “Crunch passed English.”

I was shocked. “What? How?”

“Hook never boarded that ship,” he repeated my words. “By never boarding that ship, Hook never came to Hickory Wind Middle School and never failed Crunch trying to trap him, and you, into finding the artifact. You had a different teacher this year and Crunch passed.”

“I … passed!” Crunch gasped.

We watched as the six of them stepped into the forest and disappeared.

“Am I going to pass next year?” Crunch called after them.

“Do you think others will come looking for Jacob Grimm’s pen?” Korie asked.

“I hope so,” I said. “But we better watch
Home Alone
, like, a thousand times before they do. Let’s go home.”

“Come on kids. You’re going to be late for the bus,” my mom yelled up the stairs. “You only have one chance. If you miss this ride, your dad and I
will not
be driving you out to Camp Runamuck to catch up with the others.”

“I don’t even know if I want to go,” I said to Korie. “After the past week we’ve spent with the Lost Boys and Hook, I think camp’s going to be pretty boring.”

“Are you taking Jacob Grimm’s pen?” Korie asked.

“It’s already in my bag.”

“Then I can guarantee you it won’t be boring.”

Korie and I walked out of my room, loaded down with all my stuff.

“Do you plan on being gone until you’re in high school?” Korie laughed, nearly tripping down the stairs over the two bags she had in each hand … and the one she was sliding down the hall with her foot.

“I’m just trying to be prepared,” I said. “Besides, two of those bags are filled with Crunch’s stuff that he’s left here during the year and I know he’s going to need at camp. And the one you’re sliding with your foot is filled with Mouth’s fireworks.”

Korie stopped moving. “Then why aren’t they over here carrying the bags themselves?”

“Well, Mouth doesn’t want Tank to know he’s bringing them along and Crunch … Crunch will probably show up to the bus with no bag, no clothes, and no other choice than to try to borrow everything from everybody.”

“Come on, you kids. Get out of my house!” my dad yelled up the stairs. “Your mother and I have plans and they don’t include you.”

“Ewwww,” Sister Creature said.

“You better mind your own business, too, young lady,” Dad said to her, “or you’ll be signed up to be a counselor at Camp Runamuck so fast your head will spin.”

Korie kicked Crunch’s two bags down the stairs ahead of her. She wasn’t about to kick Mouth’s fireworks down the stairs, so she carried them very carefully.

“Are you ready?” Mom asked when we stumbled into the kitchen.

“Yes,” I said.

“Have your iPhone, iPad, laptop?”

“Yes. Yes. And Yes.”

“It’s camp,” my dad yelled. “All he needs is a fishing pole and sticks for marshmallows.”

Mom ignored him. “Picture of your mother?”

“No!”

“Plenty of clean underwear?”

“
mom
!”
I looked at Korie who was working hard to cover her smile. “Okay, time to go.”

Mom and Dad drove us down to the bus to meet the others.

“Hey, it’s about time,” Crunch yelled the moment he saw us.

“We had things to do,” I told him. “Where are your bags?”

“Here it is.” He held up a bag filled with junk food that would only last him—and us—about a day. “And there are the others.” He pointed to the bags my dad was dragging out of the car. “Thanks, Mrs. M?”

Mouth snuck up behind me. “Do you have my fireworks?”

“Yeah,” I whispered. “There in the bag.”

“Good thing you brought them,” Mouth whispered, “or you would’ve paid the price.”

I looked at him and then turned to Tank. “Mouth’s got a bag full of fireworks.”

“Nooooo!”
Mouth yelled.

“‘No’ is right,” Tank said, grabbing the bag and sliding it over. “Mouth doesn’t have a bag full of fireworks. I have a bag full of fireworks.”

We all started to board the bus. My friends said good-bye to my parents and I spent a good two minutes fighting off my mother as she tried to kiss me somewhere on my face. I walked up to my dad and stuck out my hand. “Thanks for the ride, big guy.”

“Get out of here.” He pushed me toward the bus. “I’d tell you to try and not spend too much time with these idiots, but I think it’s too late.”

We all loaded onto the bus and immediately ran to the back. We spread out as far as we could and kept a couple of seats open and wouldn’t let anybody else sit there. As the bus pulled out, I slipped a notepad out of my backpack.

The moment we got onto the highway I scribbled a few things down, and one by one, the seats filled in around us.

“So, what can we expect on our first adventure to Camp Runamuck,” Skylights asked, leaning across the aisle.

I smiled. “It will be everything we’ve ever imagined.” I ran my fingers along the edge of the feather. “And then a lot that we haven’t as of yet.”

As the faces of the Lost Boys lit up, I shot Korie a look. This was sure to be another one of those adventures.

My Middle Grade writing has always been influenced by the camaraderie exhibited in movies such as
The Goonies
,
The Sandlot
and
Stand by Me
. The ability of my characters to say whatever comes to mind, whether it’s nice or not, but in the next sentence stand together with their friends against all odds is who I grew up with. That’s why it’s in every story.

Particular thanks to my editor, Tara Creel, at Month9Books for her guidance and helping me shape the tone and voice of the novel. Special thanks to Georgia McBride and the team at Month9Books and Tantrum books for their dedication, commitment, and hard work in making this novel the best it can be.

Finally, special thanks to my family for their constant love and support, to my wife, Darla, who has had to listen over and over to all my ideas for stories until one of them finally got published, and to our daughters, Kelly and Kacy, whose imaginations are sometimes as crazy as their dad’s.