Big City Blues: Back to Wonderland

Big City Blues: Back to Wonderland — page 5 — B 1 C 2 D 3 F 4 G 5 H 6 J 7 K 8 L 9 M 10 N 11 P 12 Q 13 R 14 S 15 T 16 V 17 W 18 X 19 Y 20 Z 21 Carter saw the problem with that right away The numbers in the code from his phone went much higher than 21 He squinted as he studied the numbers looking for a pattern He spotted it quickly They were all odd numbers Carter rewrote his replacement code using only odd numbers B 1 C 3 D 5 F 7 G 9 H 11 J 13 K 15 L 17 M 19 N 21 P 23 Q 25 R 27 S 29 T 31 V 33 W 35 X 37 Y 39 Z 41 Carter wrote Now the code worked for the original message it out quickly agigcomenow He grinned as he broke it into words and added punctuation A gig Come now Uncle Dan must have set a date for the ﬁrst public use of his virtual reality suits Finally they were going to be able to show other people how cool it was to enter a virtual reality world 6

Big City Blues: Back to Wonderland — page 6 — based on a book Carter thought about the last few weeks as he pulled on a pair of jeans After they’d ﬁnally caught the hacker who wanted to destroy Uncle Dan’s invention the ﬁnishing touches on the project went fast Then Uncle Dan had looked for a place to exhibit the ﬁnished product When his stomach grumbled again Carter decided he’d better feed the beast before dashing off to Uncle Dan’s house When he hit the kitchen he spotted the green and white box on the counter Yes Doughnuts He ﬂipped the lid back and scowled There were mostly raspberry jelly doughnuts yuck He nudged aside two plain cake doughnuts boring Then he found a lone chocolate and snagged it Uncle Dan would just have to ﬁll the rest of his junk food needs As he hauled open the front door he heard his mom’s voice Is that you Carter Yesph he said around a mouthful Your dad wants you to mow the lawn 7

Big City Blues: Back to Wonderland — page 7 — Carter sagged against the door frame and quickly swallowed I got a text from Uncle Dan He needs me Can I do the lawn when I get back Will Isabelle be there Carter groaned His parents adored his brainy cousin Yeah I’m sure she will Good his mom called back See if she has some time to help you with that algebra that stumped your dad Another groan Okay Can I go Yes go go But don’t forget the lawn Thanks Mom Carter had the door closed by the time he said Mom He would have to do the lawn but he believed in putting off any hot sweaty tasks as long as possible When he turned up the drive to his uncle’s house he could see Isabelle’s bike peeking out from behind the trash can corral Though they lived about the same distance away Izzy always beat Carter to the house Either that or she sat outside Uncle Dan’s just waiting for a call 8

Big City Blues: Back to Wonderland — page 8 — Carter wouldn’t put anything past her Uncle Dan answered the door in a purple party hat He plunked a matching one on Carter’s head and blew a roll-out noisemaker at him We’re celebrating he said You got a place to demonstrate the suits Carter asked as soon as he slipped the goofy hat off his head Yes a children’s bookstore in the city Uncle Dan said It’s called Alice’s Wonders They have a special room for author presentations that will work perfectly We’re on for next weekend Uncle Dan had led the way to the kitchen where Isabelle leaned against the counter She wore two of the kids hats giving her the look of horns Do you think you can avoid being grounded for a week Izzy asked You don’t want to leave Uncle Dan shorthanded I can manage Carter grumbled He turned to his uncle What exactly will you need us 9

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