Secret Agent Grandma

  What would attract Grandma’s attention? you wonder. Then it hits you. The roses! Of course! She’ll definitely come running if something threatens her precious roses.

  You grab the garden hose and turn it on full blast. Then you drag the spurting hose out to the rose garden. You shove it into a large bush. Water sprays everywhere.

  “Grandma!” you shout. “Come quick! The roses are drowning!”

  Will Grandma fall for your plan? Find out on PAGE 16.

  You poke your head up and peer over the trunks.

  Two thugs in overcoats and sunglasses enter the baggage car. The same guys you saw fighting with your grandma!

  Yikes! Did you say “guys”? When they remove their dark glasses you discover they aren’t “guys” at all! Not human guys, anyway.

  Their eyes! They’re the size of Ping-Pong balls and glow a creepy yellow. Like lizards, they have no eyelids.

  Chills of terror make your fingers and toes tingle.

  You slink back down behind the trunks. “We’re in terrible danger,” you whisper to Ginny and Chuck.

  Chuck gulps. “Let’s wait until they leave, then grab your grandma and scram,” he urges.

  “How are we supposed to grab her through the force field?” Ginny demands. “It almost fried you.”

  “Then maybe we should overpower those creeps,” Chuck suggests. “There are two of them and three of us.”

  Chuck and Ginny can’t agree. They want you to decide.

  If you attack the yellow-eyed creatures, turn to PAGE 57.

  If you wait until they leave so you can free Grandma from the orange beam, turn to PAGE 87.

  You stare at the woman in the rose garden. The woman who claims to be your grandmother. You think back to the train station. Your mother’s strange phone call.

  Could the Grandma in the garden be an impostor?

  “She looks cool!” Sophie interrupts your thoughts. “Introduce us.”

  Maybe you should tell Sophie and Andrew your suspicions. They can help you keep an eye on her. Try to figure out if she’s who she says she is.

  Or maybe you’re just being silly! After all, why would anyone impersonate your grandmother?

  And she did say she wanted to meet your friends.

  If you introduce Andrew and Sophie to Grandma, turn to PAGE 84.

  If you spy on her first, turn to PAGE 78.

  You kneel down to peer under the bed. “No wonder Grandma’s suitcases were so heavy,” you remark. “There’s a lot of junk under here.”

  Sophie and Andrew help you drag stuff out from under the bed. But you can’t figure out what any of it is! Strange boxes that don’t seem to open. Bottles filled with strange liquids. You examine something that looks like a laptop. The keys have weird squiggles instead of letters.

  The only things you recognize are the two empty suitcases.

  “What are these things?” Sophie asks. You shake your head. You reach for the computer-like object.

  And freeze!

  Footsteps!

  Hide under the bed on PAGE 66.

  “Chuck!” you shriek. You race to his side. He’s out cold.

  Ginny kneels beside you. “What happened to him?” she cries.

  “The orange light. It must be a force field of some kind,” you answer. “That’s why Grandma can’t move.”

  Ginny’s frightened eyes meet yours. “What are we going to do now?” she asks.

  You wish you knew what to tell her.

  “Whoa, what happened?” Chuck murmurs. His eyes blink open. “Who hit me?”

  You and Ginny help him to his feet. “It wasn’t a ‘who,’” you explain. “It was a ‘what.’” You point to the orange force field.

  “I never knew light could feel so solid.” Chuck rubs his face groggily.

  “We better keep out of sight while we decide what to do,” you suggest. “No telling who’ll come in.”

  Chuck and Ginny nod their agreement. The three of you duck behind a set of large trunks.

  Just in time.

  You hear the door slide open.

  Turn to PAGE 74.

  Grandma makes you nervous. You want to find out more about her.

  “I’ll introduce you later,” you tell Sophie and Andrew. “Right now, there’s something you need to help me with.”

  You lead them back into the house. Sitting at the kitchen table, you quickly describe all the strange things you’ve noticed about Grandma since she’s been here.

  Sophie snorts. “So your grandmother is stronger than you. What’s the big deal?”

  “And my mom is always mixing up words,” Andrew adds. “Half the time she calls me by my sister’s name. So what if your grandma said eggs instead of seeds?

  You sigh. They don’t believe you.

  Turn to PAGE 41.

  “Let’s find out what Grandma’s doing in the garden,” you say.

  “Won’t she notice us?” Andrew asks.

  You gaze out the kitchen window. “The tree house!” you exclaim. “We can spy on her from there.”

  Sophie slaps you a high five. “Great plan!”

  You, Sophie, and Andrew dart out the door. You scurry up the tree trunk. At the top you pull yourself onto the platform. Andrew and Sophie flop down beside you on the weathered planks.

  You peer down at Grandma. She moves slowly through the rows of roses, stopping at each one.

  Sophie fakes a yawn. “Wake me when something exciting happens.”

  Grandma kneels beside a rose bush and gently brushes soil away from the roots. Then, very carefully, she brings something up from under the ground.

  A huge purple egg!

  You gasp. Grandma did plant eggs in the rose garden!

  The large purple egg in her hand pulses as if it were breathing. As if it were getting ready to burst from the shell!

  Turn to PAGE 58.

  You have a funny feeling no one would believe you if you said you have twin grandmas and one’s in trouble on the train.

  You’re not even sure if you believe you!

  You decide to investigate on your own.

  You continue through the moving train. You arrive at the compartment with the message in the window. It’s smeared, but traces of the red letters are still there.

  You aren’t crazy, after all.

  You search the seat for clues. A lost wallet. Or luggage. Anything to prove the woman’s identity.

  But you find nothing.

  You get to the door at the far end of the car and reach for the handle.

  A heavy hand lands on your shoulder.

  “Where do you think you’re going?” a gruff voice demands.

  Uh-oh. Who has you in such a strong grip? Quick! Flip to PAGE 89.

  The alien bends over, opens its mouth, and vomits out a slimy, snarling, dog-like monster.

  “Meet Fido,” the yellow-eyed creature says with a laugh.

  Fido snarls. It has three rows of razor-sharp teeth. Its fangs drip with slime.

  “I can’t tell you anything! I don’t know what you’re talking about!” you gasp.

  “Perhaps your friends will be more cooperative.” The two other aliens each vomit out a drooling dog.

  Fido lunges at you. The other monster-dogs leap at Chuck and Ginny.

  “It’s hurting me!” Chuck screams. “Tell them!”

  You desperately push the monster-dog away. You’re almost too terrified to think. Should you just tell them your address? You know your grandmother isn’t this evil Mithra-Dithra, so what difference would it make?

  But once you give the creatures what they want, won’t they go ahead and kill you? They won’t need you anymore.

  Decide quick! Fido’s drool burns your skin like acid!

  Tell the aliens where you live on PAGE 99.

  Bluff and think of some way to stay alive on PAGE 107.

  “In here!” you hiss. You, Andrew, and Sophie pile into the closet. You yank the door shut behind you just as the bedroom door bursts open.
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  You can hear Grandma bustling about in the room.

  Please don’t look in the closet, you think over and over. Please don’t look in the closet!

  Sophie has her hand over her mouth. Andrew’s eyes are shut.

  After a few tense moments, you hear the door open and close again. You glance at Sophie and Andrew. Sophie shrugs. Andrew opens his eyes and nods.

  You take a deep breath and open the door.

  Turn to PAGE 127.

  The conductor-creature snaps open a wall panel, revealing dials, knobs, and switches. Your grandma is still frozen in the force field. The conductor turns a dial.

  The train car suddenly hums with a pulsing electronic sound. With a rumbling WHOOSH the baggage car releases from the train. It shoots in the opposite direction down the track.

  “What’s going on?” Chuck yells over the noise.

  Before you can answer, the car lurches. You’re thrown to the floor. In an instant, the baggage car lifts off the ground and hurtles into the sky.

  “We’re in some kind of spaceship!” you cry.

  “Now that you realize there is no escape,” the ex-conductor suggests, “perhaps you will be more cooperative.”

  “Tell us.” The smaller alien approaches you slowly. “Where do you live? Where did your grandmother bury the eggs?”

  “I don’t know what you’re talking about!” you protest.

  “You’ll change your story,” the other creature warns. “We’ll get the answer we want.”

  Then it does something so disgusting, you nearly faint.

  What’s so disgusting? Turn to PAGE 81. If you can stand it!

  Stop being ridiculous, you scold yourself. What’s the big deal about a silver jumpsuit? Your own mother wears mismatched socks and goofy hats.

  “Come on,” you tell Andrew and Sophie. “I’ll introduce you.”

  The three of you stroll across the backyard to the rose garden. The flowers are unusually large, and have a strong odor. Almost sickeningly sweet.

  “I’ve never seen roses that color before,” Andrew says.

  Come to think of it, neither have you. Blue roses? Striped roses? This is one weird rose garden.

  Grandma stands as she sees you approaching. “Oh, goody,” she gushes. “I enjoy meeting new people.”

  “Cool flowers,” Sophie compliments Grandma.

  “Thank you, dear,” Grandma says. “Why don’t you take a closer look?”

  You, Sophie, and Andrew wander into the thicket of rose bushes. Some of them are so large, they tower over you. You gaze at a bright-green rose.

  Whoa!

  Is that a pair of eyes staring back at you?

  Gasp and turn to PAGE 103.

  You have to find out what makes the suitcases weigh so much.

  Then you have to find out how Grandma carried them so easily!

  “Okay,” you whisper to the cab driver. “But hurry!”

  You glance around. No Grandma. Great! You figure she’s still checking out her precious rose bushes.

  The cab driver fiddles with the lock on the luggage. “Hmm,” he murmurs. “I’ve never seen a lock like this before.”

  You bend down beside him. You examine the small lock on the suitcase. It glows blue and feels warm in your hand. It’s not a combination lock, and it doesn’t seem to have a slot for a key. “It is weird,” you agree.

  “Now I really want to get these bags open!” The cab driver laughs. “I can’t resist a challenge!”

  You peer closely at the lock. You notice a small rose etched into the metal.

  “I wonder if …”

  You press hard on the rose.

  The lock snaps open!

  Find out what’s inside the suitcase on PAGE 105.

  “Cookie! Cookie, over here!”

  You shudder at hearing your old nickname. You hate that name! Luckily, Ginny and Chuck aren’t around to hear it!

  “Cookie!”

  You turn toward the voice. At the end of the station you see a woman with white hair. She’s waving wildly. No way to mistake her for anyone else. Not in those clothes.

  You wave back, approaching her cautiously. Anyone who would call you “Cookie” is likely to pinch your cheeks, too.

  As you stroll down the platform, something catches your eye. Bright red letters scrawled across one of the train windows.

  A message!

  If your mother hadn’t made that strange phone call, you wouldn’t have thought twice about it. But now you have an odd feeling….

  Maybe the message is meant for you.

  Read the message on PAGE 100.

  “Those guys aren’t human,” you tell Ginny and Chuck. You shudder. “I don’t want to try taking them on.”

  You, Chuck, and Ginny scrunch down as low as you can behind the trunks. You try to not even breathe.

  Then you hear the door slide open again.

  Have they left? you wonder. Or did someone else come in?

  Only one way to find out.

  You crawl between packing crates and boxes, searching for signs of the creatures. As you slide along the floor, something hooks around your ankle.

  CRASH! A large, rectangular mirror wrapped in plastic thuds to the floor right behind you.

  Oh, no! Did those yellow-eyed creatures hear you? Are you about to be zapped?

  Hold your breath until PAGE 68.

  “We have to stop them now,” you whisper. “By the time we go for help, they could be anywhere!”

  “Doing anything!” Andrew adds with a shudder.

  But how can you stop them? you wonder. You watch the horrifying creatures, trying to think of an idea.

  “Feed well,” Grandma orders. “And then we must begin.”

  The slimy aliens swarm over the roses, munching everything in their path. Grandma strolls through the wriggling masses. You remember how she told them to feed and grow. You don’t have much time. Whatever you do, it has to be fast and effective.

  “Let’s squash them!” you decide. “While they’re all in the garden.”

  “Brilliant,” Sophie replies. “How?”

  Figure out an answer on PAGE 13.

  You wriggle out of the hand’s grasp and spin around.

  The train conductor glares down at you.

  Strange, you think. He’s wearing dark glasses.

  But what he says isn’t strange at all.

  “Ticket, please.”

  Oops. You forgot about needing a ticket.

  Now what?

  If you stall while you try to figure a way out of the situation, turn to PAGE 21.

  If you explain to the conductor the real reason you’re on the train, turn to PAGE 92.

  You tear across the linoleum …

  And smash right into your mom!

  She shrieks and drops a plate of scrambled eggs. Your dad jumps up from the table, scattering his newspaper.

  “Mom! Dad! What are you doing here?” you demand.

  “I got an emergency call from work,” Mom explains, cleaning up the mess. “That’s what I told you on the phone at the train station, remember? So we cut our trip short. We just got in half an hour ago. We didn’t want to wake you. Where’s Grandma?”

  You sneak a peek at Sophie and Andrew. “Uh—I guess she’s still sleeping,” you mumble.

  Well, it might be true. Even if she is sleeping in the garage.

  “Sit down, kids,” your mom commands. “I made a huge breakfast.”

  Excellent! You, Sophie, and Andrew wolf down three big plates of scrambled eggs. Even your dad, who usually only has coffee in the morning, manages to finish a second helping.

  “Funny,” he says. “I can’t stop eating these eggs.”

  You suddenly have trouble swallowing.

  Turn to PAGE 109.

  Grandma gazes solemnly at you. “I’m a secret agent,” she informs you.

  Your mouth drops open. “Y-y-you … what?” you sputter.

  “It’s true. Those men who grabbed me thi
nk I’m smuggling a special computer disk.”

  “Are you?” you blurt.

  She smiles. “It’s better if you don’t know for sure.”

  You have a zillion questions you want to ask her. But a sharp knock on the bathroom door startles you. Grandma pulls a small, high-tech device from her pocket.

  “What do you think we should do?” she whispers. “Should we take our chances and open the door? Or should we sneak out through the window?”

  It’s up to you.

  If you climb out the bathroom window, turn to PAGE 97.

  If you yank open the door, turn to PAGE 29.

  “I’m not really a passenger on the train,” you tell the conductor.

  “Could have fooled me,” the conductor responds.

  “I mean, that is, uh …” You’re having trouble explaining.

  “Yes? This I have to hear.” The conductor crosses his arms and peers down at you.

  “I saw this fight. A woman struggling with two guys in sunglasses. And I think the woman was my grandma.”

  “Your grandma? In a brawl?” The conductor snorts in disbelief.

  “But it’s true!” you cry.

  It’s no use. He grabs your sleeve and yanks you to the door.

  “That’s the worst excuse for not paying a fare that I ever heard!” he declares. He lifts you up under the armpits and lowers you to the platform.

  Luckily, the train hasn’t picked up much speed yet. You only stumble a few steps.

  “Cookie!” Your furious grandmother marches toward you. “What’s gotten into you? Jumping on and off moving trains! That’s it. You’re grounded!”

  Some way to start a vacation. Grounded! You can’t wait until your grandmother’s visit comes to an

  END.