April Adventure Read Online Free Page B

backed away. Never taking her eyes off thehumans, she waded into the pond. She joined her mate and glared at the intruders.
    With the mother swan out of the nest, everyone could see the golden Easter eggs.
    Mr. Neater removed the eggs and handed them to the four kids.
    Suddenly the mother swan streaked over toward the kids, hissing and snapping her beak. Luke and Tom waved their arms, and she went back to the pond. But she did not look happy.
    “It’s okay, Momma Swan,” Mr. Neater said. “Pretty soon, you’ll have babies to keep you busy!”
    “Ready to get wet?” Tom asked Luke and Mr. Neater. He kicked off his sneakers.
    “How deep is the water?” Mr. Neater asked. He was pulling off his shoes and socks.
    “Not very,” Luke said, removing his sneakers. “I helped clean up some litter last year. I only got wet up to my knees.”
    “Can we help?” Bradley asked.
    “Absolutely,” Tom said. “After all, this was your idea! But first, this.”
    Very gently, Tom took the two real swan eggs out of his sweatshirt pouch. He laid them in the center of the swans’ nest.
    “Now let’s gather around the nest,” Tom said. “All seven of us will lift it together and place it inside the kiddie pool.”
    “Careful not to let the nest break apart,” Mr. Neater said.
    On a count of three, they picked up the nest and set it into the plastic pool.
    “Great!” Tom said. “Now Mr. Neater, Luke, and I will float it out to the island. I think the water is too deep for you kids.”
    The three adults waded into the water. They floated the kiddie pool—with the swan nest inside—between them. The two swans hissed and flapped their wings. They followed the group to the island.
    Bradley, Brian, Lucy, and Nate watched them lift the nest out and set it on the island rocks. Then the three adults came back with the kiddie pool.
    “This should be interesting,” Tom said. He sat on the shore. “Let’s watch and see what they do.”
    The two swans swam up to the little island. They stretched their long necks and looked inside their nest. Then they both began grunting.
    “They’ve seen the eggs!” Bradley said.
    It took just a few seconds for the mother swan to sit on the eggs. Her mate stayed near the nest.

    “I think the problem has been solved,” Mr. Neater said. He grinned at the kids. “That was a great idea!”
    “So now the raccoons and snakes won’t be able to get their eggs, right?” Nate said.
    “That’s right,” Tom said. “Where the nest was before, any creature could sneak up and steal the eggs while Momma Swan was off the nest. But now, if a raccoon or snake swims to the island, the swans would see it coming and fight it off.”
    “And trust me,” Luke said, “swans are excellent fighters!”
    They all sat on the bank and watched the swans for a while.
    “I can’t wait to see the babies,” Lucy said.
    “Come back in about two weeks,” Tom said. “Baby swans are called cygnets, and they’re real cute!”
    After a while, Bradley stood up. “Well, we have our golden eggs,” he said. “Let’s go home and get our treasure!”
    The kids thanked Mr. Neater, Tom, and Luke. Then they headed across the park toward Bradley and Brian’s house.
    Five minutes later, the four kids and Pal burst into the kitchen. Dink, Josh, and Ruth Rose were at the table, playing Monopoly.
    “We got them!” Bradley announced.
    They each placed one golden egg on the table.
    “Yeah, now we want the treasure!” Nate said. “And I hope it’s not Monopoly money!”
    “It’s not money at all,” Josh said. He walked over to the refrigerator.
    “See, I told you, it’s food!” Bradley said.
    “Good, because I’m starving!” Brian said.

    Josh opened the fridge and pulled out four tall chocolate Easter bunnies.
    “Awesome!” Nate said. Right away he broke off a chocolate ear and began chewing.
    “So, where did you guys find the golden eggs?” Dink asked.
    “It’s a long story,” Bradley said.
    Dink, Josh,