“Just middle school,” I said. “That’s it.”
It was kind of depressing. A week from that Monday, I was going to be running around HVMS and wishing I was anywhere else. That seemed pretty boring compared to what I’d been doing for the last seven days. I’m not saying I loved every minute of The Program—or any minute of it—but you know what else? It was definitely an experience I wouldn’t forget.
“What about you?” I asked Burp.
He kind of shrugged. “I’ve got big plans,” he said. “I’m going to be… um…” But then he stopped and thought about it for a second. “Actually, just middle school. Same as you,” he said.
“Well, good luck,” I said. I meant good luck with his lying problem, but also with the whole middle school thing.
In a way, it felt like we were all going back to our own war zones. I had Stricker and Stonecase waiting for me, and Miller the Killer, and Jeanne Galletta, and all the other new kids and teachers I didn’t even know about yet. Not to mention the math, English, social studies, and science that I did know about.
But I also had Mom. And Grandma. And cheeseburgers and apple pie at Swifty’s, plus free milk shakes when Swifty made a mistake. And Jeanne Galletta. (She goes on both lists.) And my own bed. And indoor bathrooms. And toilet paper.
And yeah, okay, my sister too. I guess. But only after Mom, Grandma, real food, Jeanne, my bed, bathrooms, and toilet paper.
Because those were the things I really missed.
Home, Home, Home, Home, Home
You don’t need to know about the whole drive home—or about how I kind of, maybe, cried a tiny bit when I hugged Mom hello. But I’m pretty sure she didn’t see, and I know Georgia didn’t see, or else I’d never hear the end of it.
Hey, what can I say? I love my mom.
And guess what? She’s afraid of heights too. I never knew that before, maybe because I never had a reason to ask her. But now that my skydiving, high-rise window washing, and cell phone tower installation careers are on hold, we decided we’re going to work on this together. I’m not exactly sure how yet—it’s just one more thing I’m going to have to deal with. But I’m glad Mom’s on my side.
Meanwhile, I redrew all those comics I’d burned, in the car before we even got back to Hills Village. I wanted to do them while they were still fresh in my memory. In fact, they came out better when I did them a second time. I’ll bet Ms. Donatello would like to know that. The last time I was in her class, she was always telling me to redo stuff.
I was even thinking maybe I’d try putting some of those Loozer comics online, just to see what happens. Call me weird if you want, but I felt like I owed Loozer a favor. Poor little dude. He’s got enough problems without getting burned and forgotten.
Also meanwhile, it was amazing to get home again. It felt like seeing a whole bunch of old friends for the first time in way, way too long.
Hello, Sisters
Something else you need to know about—and it’s a big one—is that we had our meeting with Mrs. Stricker and Mrs. Stonecase on the Friday before school started.
Mom brought my completion certificate from The Program, so there couldn’t be any funny business about not letting me back into HVMS.
“I’d like to have this placed in Rafe’s file,” Mom said. She gave a copy of it to Stricker (no way were we giving up the original), and I was all for that. Because I don’t want to get all the way to the end of this book without saying—GUESS WHAT?
So at least I was going to be re-enrolled at HVMS. That was good… ish. But we weren’t done yet.
“Mrs. Khatchadorian,” Stonecase started in. “There is still the matter of Rafe’s academic adjustment to discuss before the school year begins.”
“Excuse me?” Mom said. “His academic… adjustment?”
I think I felt my eye twitch. Stricker may not have been happy to see me, but there was something about this she liked. I could just tell. It was like the old instinct kicking in.
And right now, she was looking at me the way a heavyweight champ looks at a skinny little kid who wandered into the wrong gym.
“Based on Rafe’s transcripts before and after he left HVMS,” Stricker said, “we’ll need to enroll him in some repeat and special classes.”
“Repeat?” I said. “Special?”
“We need to be certain he’s ready to tackle his grade level before we can actually let him proceed,” Stonecase said.
“Proceed?” I said. I didn’t like the sound of any of those words.
“Believe me, Rafe,” Stricker said slowly, “I want you to… succeed here just as badly as you want it.”
Well, I knew what that meant. She wanted me out of her middle school just as fast as possible. It was the one thing in the universe that Ida P. Stricker and I had in common.
“But,” Stricker said, “that may not happen as quickly as we might have liked.”
“In other words, Rafe,” Stonecase said, “now that you’ve made your way back into Hills Village Middle School, there’s really no knowing how long it’s going to take you to finish. That part will be up to you.”
“And… up to me,” Stricker said. The way she almost-but-not-quite smiled told me everything. If I was going to make her life miserable, she was going to return the favor—and then some.
I was back, all right.
Way back.
Cockroach Comics Presents
So that was my summer. How was yours?
Now that school is starting up again, I’ve got my hands full, to say the least. But that’s another story for another day—and another book. Don’t worry, I’m not going anywhere.
Still, one good thing did happen. Or at least, kind of happened. I mean, I’m the only one around here who knows about it, so I’m not sure if that counts. But you can keep a secret, right?
Yeah, that’s what I thought.
Later!
For more great reads and free samplers, visit
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James Patterson was selected by readers across America as the Children’s Choice Book Awards Author of the Year in 2010. He is the internationally bestselling author of the highly praised Middle School books, Treasure Hunters, and the I Funny, Confessions, Maximum Ride, Witch & Wizard, Daniel X, and Alex Cross series. His books have sold more than 275 million copies worldwide, making him one of the bestselling authors of all time. He lives in Florida.
Chris Tebbetts has collaborated with James Patterson on three other books in the Middle School series and is also the author of The Viking, a fantasy-adventure series for young readers. He lives in Vermont.
Laura Park is a cartoonist and the illustrator of three other books in the Middle School series and the I Funny series. She is the author of the minicomic series Do Not Disturb My Waking Dream, and her work has appeared in The Best American Comics. She lives in Chicago.
HIGH ADVENTURE ON THE HIGH SEAS!
Your sneak peek starts on the next page!
AVAILABLE NOW
1
Let me tell you about the last time I saw my dad.
We were up on deck, rigging our ship to ride out what looked like a perfect storm.
Well, it was perfect if you were the storm. Not so much if you were the people being tossed around the deck like wet gym socks in a washing machine.
We had just finished taking down and tying off the sails so we could run on bare poles.
“Lash off the wheel!” my dad barked to my big brother, Tailspin Tommy. “Steer her leeward and lock it down!”
“On it!”
Tommy yanked the wheel hard and pointed our bow downwind. He looped a bungee cord through the wheel’s wooden spokes to keep us headed in that direction.
“Now get below, boys. Batten down the hatches. Help your sisters man the pumps.”
Tommy grabbed hold of whatever he could to steady himself and made his way down into the deckhouse cabin.
Just then, a monster wave lurched over the starboard side of the ship
and swept me off my feet. I slid across the slick deck like a hockey puck on ice. I might’ve gone overboard if my dad hadn’t reached down and grabbed me a half second before I became shark bait.
“Time to head downstairs, Bick!” my dad shouted in the raging storm as rain slashed across his face.
“No!” I shouted back. “I want to stay up here and help you.”
“You can help me more by staying alive and not letting The Lost go under. Now hurry! Get below.”
“B-b-but—”
“Go!”
He gave me a gentle shove to propel me up the tilting deck. When I reached the deckhouse, I grabbed onto a handhold and swung myself around and through the door. Tommy had already headed down to the engine room to help with the bilge pumps.
Suddenly, a giant sledgehammer of salt water slammed into our starboard side and sent the ship tipping wildly to the left. I heard wood creaking. We tilted over so far I fell against the wall while our port side slapped the churning sea.
We were going to capsize. I could tell.
But The Lost righted itself instead, the ship tossing and bucking like a very angry beached whale.
I found the floor and shoved the deckhouse hatch shut. I had to press my body up against it. Waves kept pounding against the door. The water definitely wanted me to let it in.
That wasn’t going to happen. Not on my watch.
I cranked the door’s latch to bolt it tight.
I would, of course, reopen the door the instant my dad finished doing whatever else needed to be done up on deck and made his way aft to the cabin. But, for now, I had to stop The Lost from taking on any more water.
If that was even possible.
The sea kept churning. The Lost kept lurching. The storm kept sloshing seawater through every crack and crevice it could find.
Me? I started panicking. Because I had a sinking feeling (as in “We’re gonna sink!”) that this could be the end.
I was about to be drowned at sea.
Is twelve years old too young to die?
Apparently, the Caribbean Sea didn’t think so.
READ MORE IN
AVAILABLE NOW
Contents
COVER
TITLE PAGE
WELCOME
DEDICATION
Chapter 1: The End Is Near!
Chapter 2: Just a Dream
Chapter 3: Okay, Now I’m Awake
Chapter 4: Top Ten: The Best of the Worst
Chapter 5: Beware of the Bacon!
Chapter 6: Look Who’s Here
Chapter 7: Get with the Program
Chapter 8: The Sisterhood
Chapter 9: Let’s Go to the Movies!
Chapter 10: Brave… ish
Chapter 11: Hitting the Road (and Hoping It Doesn’t Hit Back)
Chapter 12: No Way Out
Chapter 13: What’s So Good About Good-bye?
Chapter 14: Sarge in Charge
Chapter 15: Busload of Misfits
Chapter 16: Base Camp Blues
Chapter 17: The Tower
Chapter 18: Chaos at Fifty Feet
Chapter 19: Tag, You’re It
Chapter 20: Quitters Never Win (But Since When Am I a Winner?)
Chapter 21: Life o’ Crime
Chapter 22: Burp
Chapter 23: Camp, Sweet Camp
Chapter 24: Just So We’re Clear
Chapter 25: Up and at ’Em
Chapter 26: More Than One Way to Play
Chapter 27: Bad News Buds
Chapter 28: Trouble Magnet
Chapter 29: All the Work and Half of the Credit
Chapter 30: Fish Talk
Chapter 31: A (Very) Quick Dip
Chapter 32: River School
Chapter 33: Camp Pizza
Chapter 34: Storm of the Century
Chapter 35: Rafe on a Raft
Chapter 36: Running the Gauntlet
Chapter 37: Taking Out the Trash
Chapter 38: Good News, Bad News, Worse News
Chapter 39: (Un)Pleasant Dreams
Chapter 40: Don’t Look Now
Chapter 41: Kerflooey, Part Two-ey
Chapter 42: Thanks, I Guess?
Chapter 43: The Marathon
Chapter 44: Just One More
Chapter 45: Solo Artist
Chapter 46: Solo, So Low, What’s the Difference?
Chapter 47: Dear Cockroach
Chapter 48: A Celebration of Sorts
Chapter 49: Gone!
Chapter 50: No I in Team
Chapter 51: Full Circle
Chapter 52: Later!
Chapter 53: Home, Home, Home, Home, Home
Chapter 54: Hello, Sisters
Chapter 55: Cockroach Comics Presents
ABOUT THE AUTHOR
A SNEAK PEEK AT TREASURE HUNTERS
COPYRIGHT
Copyright
This book is a work of fiction. Names, characters, places, and incidents are the product of the author’s imagination or are used fictitiously. Any resemblance to actual events, locales, or persons, living or dead, is coincidental.
Copyright © 2014 by James Patterson
Illustrations by Laura Park
Middle School® is a trademark of JBP Business, LLC.
Excerpt from Treasure Hunters copyright © 2013 by James Patterson
Illustrations in excerpt from Treasure Hunters by Juliana Neufeld
Cover art by Laura Park
Cover design by Neil Swaab
Cover © 2014 Hachette Book Group, Inc.
All rights reserved. In accordance with the U.S. Copyright Act of 1976, the scanning, uploading, and electronic sharing of any part of this book without the permission of the publisher is unlawful piracy and theft of the author’s intellectual property. If you would like to use material from the book (other than for review purposes), prior written permission must be obtained by contacting the publisher at
[email protected] Thank you for your support of the author’s rights.
Little, Brown and Company
Hachette Book Group
237 Park Avenue, New York, NY 10017
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Little, Brown and Company is a division of Hachette Book Group, Inc.
The Little, Brown name and logo are trademarks of Hachette Book Group, Inc.
The publisher is not responsible for websites (or their content) that are not owned by the publisher.
First ebook edition: June 2014
ISBN 978-0-316-40599-7
E3
James Patterson, Save Rafe!
(Series: Middle School # 6)
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