Lightning Strikes Twice: Escaping Great Expectations
Uncle Dan was a crazy smart computer programmer and inventor He’d invented the coolest virtual reality tech Most virtual reality gear involved a helmet or goggles with speakers to let you see and hear the virtual reality world Uncle Dan’s VR suit let you smell it taste it and feel it too And every one of Uncle Dan’s virtual reality worlds came from a classic book The only problem was that some crazy hacker had tried to ruin the program Carter had ended up battling the hacker in the virtual world more than once After the last time Carter had realized something It was a lot easier to win the war if you’d already read the book So he’d gotten into classic books On the up side his report card really rocked On the down side his backpack weighed a ton And his friends were starting to notice Carter didn’t want anyone expecting him to be some super smart nerd type They already had one kid in the family for that job He just wanted to know enough to help his uncle 6
Carter Speak of the nerd Carter thought as he turned to face Isabelle I’m on my way to algebra he yelled I know Isabelle said Carter rolled his eyes Of course she knew everything What exactly do you need Izzy Has Uncle Dan talked to you lately she asked Carter shook his head I’ve barely seen him since he got back Well she said Storm did pretend to kidnap him just a couple weeks ago I think we should check up on him You mean go over there Carter asked Uncle Dan tended to be a little paranoid and he didn’t like uninvited drop-ins Just showing up didn’t seem like a good idea at all Isabelle sighed and shoved a strand of limp blonde hair behind her ear He might not like it she said but I think he needs to be checked up on once in a while 7
So why not call him She frowned for a moment He isn’t taking my calls He’s not answering his phone Carter felt a flush of worry Uncle Dan always answered his phone Not exactly Isabelle pulled Carter out of the main hall and into a small alcove She took out her cell phone and punched in Uncle Dan’s number Using a cell phone in the school was strictly against the rules Since Isabelle was normally the queen of rules Carter knew she must be worried about their uncle She put her phone up to Carter’s ear so he could listen to his uncle’s voicemail message If you’re hearing this message I’m either away from the phone or this is Isabelle If I’m away from the phone leave a quick message and I’ll get back to you If this is Isabelle hang up I’ll call you when I need you Carter raised an eyebrow Just how many times have you called him 8
A few she said Sounds like a lot Isabelle huffed I don’t like being shut out We worked hard to get this project working for Uncle Dan Why is he shutting us out now I don’t like it Maybe he just doesn’t need us right now And maybe Storm is torturing him for information right this second Carter stared at his cousin You have a much scarier imagination than I thought Look I’ve got to get to class Isabelle stepped in front of him and put her hands on her hips Promise you’ll go over there with me this afternoon Isabelle he doesn’t want to be bothered Promise she said Or or I’ll tell everyone that you wet the bed when you were ten Hey Carter snapped I had a fever and Mom was loading me with liquids That’s just rotten 9
