"BSC034 - Mary Anne and Too Many Boys - Martin, Ann M" - читать интересную книгу автора (Martin Ann M)

"That's right," Vanessa went on. "It's a very short ride, and you'll soon see the tide." Jordan stuck his fingers in his ears, but she ignored him. "A day at the beach is like a fresh peach. A trip to the shore leaves you begging for more. A drive to the ocean is like a . . ." she paused, temporarily stumped.
"Mom!" Byron screeched. "Make her stop that. She's driving me crazy!"
Mrs. Pike just smiled and shook her head. I should tell you that the Pikes have very liberal ideas about raising kids. (Totally opposite from my father's ideas.) The Pike kids are allowed to do pretty much what they want, within reason. They don't have to eat foods they don't like, and they can stay up as late as they want, as long as they're in bed. Mrs. Pike would never tell Vanessa to stop making up poems because she thinks that kids should be allowed to express themselves.
"Vanessa," I said gently, "you picked a bad time to make up a Ч "I nearly said "rhyme," but luckily I stopped myself.
"Make up a what?" she asked with a knowing smile.
"A ... a poem."
She shrugged. "But there's nothing to do." I braced myself for what was coming. "And you know that it's true."
"Vanessa," Jordan said warningly from the backseat.
I thought fast. "I know. We'll all play a game Ч "
"But it won't be the same." Vanessa grinned.
I sighed. I could see it was a losing battle.
"Hey, I've got one," Adam shouted. "How's this? We're stuck in the car, and the ocean is far."
Vanessa turned around and stuck out her tongue at him. I don't think she liked being upstaged by her brother.
"Hah! You're a poet, and you didn't know it!" Jordan chimed in.
I was about to suggest a game of I Spy when Mr. Pike suddenly pulled up next to us on the three-lane highway.
"There's Daddy!" Vanessa shrieked. Mr. Pike tooted the horn, and Nicky, who is eight, pulled out his cheeks and made a really disgusting face against the window.
"Yuck!" Jordan yelled as Mr. Pike sped away. "Let's get him back!"
"Darn. It's too late now, but if we hurry up we can get him next time." Adam reached for a pad of construction paper I had tucked into a tote bag. "Quick! Anybody got a Magic Marker?"
Byron grinned. "Write something really gross!" he said, fumbling in a box of toys and art materials for rainy days.
"Um, I'm not sure this is a good idea," I began. I felt I had to speak up, since Mrs. Pike was humming along with a song on the radio and watching the road. She didn't seem the least bit worried that the triplets were planning a major war!
Adam frowned, waiting for inspiration to strike. Then he smiled, just like Road Runner plotting some awful revenge, and wrote: Batman has a Bird Brain.
Batman has a Bird Brain? I turned around to stare at Adam. "I don't get it," I said. I noticed that Mrs. Pike was gaining on Mr. Pike, and the two cars would be side by side in just a minute.
Adam hooted. "Nicky is so proud of his new Batman T-shirt, he's been wearing it day and night."
"Yeah, he bought it with his own money, and he thinks he's really cool," Byron piped up.
"He won't think he's so cool when he sees your sign," Jordan said happily.
Jordan was right. Nicky was furious. He stared at the sign, glanced down at his shirt, and turned beet-red. He shook his fist at us,
just as our car suddenly changed lanes and charged ahead of them.
The triplets were practically rolling off the seats with laughter as I racked my brain, trying to think of something to do to distract them. For the next few minutes, they turned down every single car game I could think of. I guess "Get Your Brother" was more fun.
They held up the Batman sign about five more times during the next hour Ч every time the two cars came side by side. Nicky was so mad, I expected to see smoke coming out of his ears!
At last we reached the halfway point. "This is it," Mrs. Pike said cheerfully.
I have never been so glad to see a Howard Johnson's in my life. Everyone piled out of the car, and after a quick trip to the restrooms, we all met at the take-out counter. Mallory and Stacey were ordering ice-cream cones for Claire and Margo, while Nicky was struggling to make up his mind.
"Get Cherries Jubilee," Mal suggested. "Or Rocky Road."
"Don't get Rum Raisin," Margo said. "It looks like vanilla ice cream with flies."
Stacey and I led the kids to a small picnic area while Mr. and Mrs. Pike sat at the counter and ordered coffee. Stacey was the only one
of us without an ice-cream cone Ч because of her diabetes Ч so she was munching on an apple.
"Tough trip/' she said, and sighed. "It's a good thing Nicky was in a separate car from the triplets or it would have been World War Three."
I nodded. For some reason Nicky and the triplets manage to fight over everything, and I noticed that Nicky was sitting as far away from them as possible.
"How's your Pistachio Crunch?" Stacey asked me.
"Fantastic." I used to feel guilty about eating ice cream and candy in front of Stacey, but she handles her diabetes so well, I hardly think about it anymore.
Mr. and Mrs. Pike wandered out with the remains of their coffee then, and joined Mal and the triplets at one of the long wooden picnic tables.
Stacey sat on the grass and turned her face up to the sun. A few people glanced over at us curiously, probably wondering if we were part of the huge Pike family. I scanned the two picnic tables then, and something seemed out of place. What was wrong?
I did a quick head count. And came up with eleven. Eleven? There should be twelve of us.
The eight Pike kids, Mr. and Mrs. Pike, Stacey and me.
"Ohmigosh/' I muttered under my breath.
"What's up?" Stacey asked lazily. She was stretched out like a cat, enjoying the warm sun.
"Stacey," I said, not taking my eyes off the kids, "we're missing somebody."
She sat up fast. "Are you sure?" She did her own head count, without waiting for my answer.
"I'm sure." I gulped. "There are the triplets and Mal and Vanessa and Nicky and Ч " And no Claire, I added silently.
"Where's Claire?" Mrs. Pike said loudly.
"I was just wondering the same thing," I said, as Stacey scrambled to her feet. "Have you kids seen her?" The triplets solemnly shook their heads, and Mrs. Pike glanced nervously at the parking lot.