Big Change for Stuart Read Online Free Page A
Author: Lissa Evans
more.
Then he tried one of the other handles again. This time it opened easily.
Grinning, Stuart added a line to his description.
He crouched down and stepped inside the pyramid. It was quite roomy â easily big enough for an adult to sit in. He could almost imagine the scene on stage, as Teeny-tiny Tony Horten introduced the trick: â
Ladies and gentlemen, my lovely assistant Lily will now climb into the Pharaohâs Pyramid. As you can see, once the side is closed again, she will have no possible means of escape â¦
â
And yet there had to be a way out: a concealed button, or a spring, or a handle, operated from the inside, so that the assistant could secretly get out. Stuart ran his fingertips over the walls and felt, near the top of each, a little loop of metal, just big enough to hook a finger into and coloured the same jet-black as the rest of the surface. He checked, and found that there was one on the open side as well.
He hooked his finger into the latter and heaved. The side began to swing shut.
Should I wait for April?
he wondered.
No
, he thought, pulling harder.
I want to solve this myself
.
After all, what was the worst that could happen? He could be stuck inside the pyramid until April or Rod Felton turned up. A bit embarrassing, but not actually disastrous.
Unless, of course, the pyramid was air-tight.
In which case he might start to suffocate and be found unconscious or possibly dead some hours later, so perhaps it wasnât such a great idea after all â and maybe, on second thoughts, it would be better if he didnât actually fully shut theâ
There was a loud and definitive
click
, and Stuart found himself in utter darkness. Not the faintest chink of light was visible. He pushed at the walls but they didnât budge. He pulled at the metal loops: nothing.
âBrilliant,â he muttered, trying not to panic.
And then he saw a glimmer of red light, a glimmer that strengthened and grew and multiplied â a constellation of glimmers all around him. The red stars were luminous!
Nine or ten twinkled from each wall; as he twisted round to look at them, a glimpse of red on the floor caught his eye. One single star shone from the centre of it.
Stuart reached out to touch it, and instead of a flat, painted surface, his fingers felt a series of grooves and, at the centre of them, a little flat button. Cautiously, he pressed it. There was a metallic squeal, like a hinge in need of oiling, and one of the sides shifted just a little, enough to let in a narrow triangle of light. He gave it a push and it opened completely.
So thatâs how it worked
, thought Stuart.
Great-Uncle Tonyâs assistant, Lily, would press the button and sneak out of the back, and when Great-Uncle Tony opened up the pyramid for the audience to see, it would be empty!
It occurred to him that he could play a trick on April to pay her back for being late â he could hide inside the pyramid, wait until she was in the room, and then creep out and surprise her. Confidently this time, he pulled the side shut. He waited for a while in the red-starred darkness before something began to nag at the back of his mind, something about the luminous star on the floor.
Once again he reached down to touch it, and with his fingertips explored the pattern of grooves. There were six of them, radiating out like the spokes of a rimless wheel. He felt a great surge of excitement. He delved into his pocket and took out the metal star â it would fit, he just
knew
it would.
Heart trotting, mouth dry, he slotted the star into place.
The effect was instantaneous.
All four sides of the pyramid fell open with a noise like a thunderclap, and Stuart screamed.
He was in the middle of a desert.
SLOWLY, VERY SLOWLY , Stuart stood up and looked around.
Instead of the side room of Beeton Museum, he saw a sweep of greyish sand peppered with rocks. A few low thorn trees were the only vegetation; not far away,
Then he tried one of the other handles again. This time it opened easily.
Grinning, Stuart added a line to his description.
He crouched down and stepped inside the pyramid. It was quite roomy â easily big enough for an adult to sit in. He could almost imagine the scene on stage, as Teeny-tiny Tony Horten introduced the trick: â
Ladies and gentlemen, my lovely assistant Lily will now climb into the Pharaohâs Pyramid. As you can see, once the side is closed again, she will have no possible means of escape â¦
â
And yet there had to be a way out: a concealed button, or a spring, or a handle, operated from the inside, so that the assistant could secretly get out. Stuart ran his fingertips over the walls and felt, near the top of each, a little loop of metal, just big enough to hook a finger into and coloured the same jet-black as the rest of the surface. He checked, and found that there was one on the open side as well.
He hooked his finger into the latter and heaved. The side began to swing shut.
Should I wait for April?
he wondered.
No
, he thought, pulling harder.
I want to solve this myself
.
After all, what was the worst that could happen? He could be stuck inside the pyramid until April or Rod Felton turned up. A bit embarrassing, but not actually disastrous.
Unless, of course, the pyramid was air-tight.
In which case he might start to suffocate and be found unconscious or possibly dead some hours later, so perhaps it wasnât such a great idea after all â and maybe, on second thoughts, it would be better if he didnât actually fully shut theâ
There was a loud and definitive
click
, and Stuart found himself in utter darkness. Not the faintest chink of light was visible. He pushed at the walls but they didnât budge. He pulled at the metal loops: nothing.
âBrilliant,â he muttered, trying not to panic.
And then he saw a glimmer of red light, a glimmer that strengthened and grew and multiplied â a constellation of glimmers all around him. The red stars were luminous!
Nine or ten twinkled from each wall; as he twisted round to look at them, a glimpse of red on the floor caught his eye. One single star shone from the centre of it.
Stuart reached out to touch it, and instead of a flat, painted surface, his fingers felt a series of grooves and, at the centre of them, a little flat button. Cautiously, he pressed it. There was a metallic squeal, like a hinge in need of oiling, and one of the sides shifted just a little, enough to let in a narrow triangle of light. He gave it a push and it opened completely.
So thatâs how it worked
, thought Stuart.
Great-Uncle Tonyâs assistant, Lily, would press the button and sneak out of the back, and when Great-Uncle Tony opened up the pyramid for the audience to see, it would be empty!
It occurred to him that he could play a trick on April to pay her back for being late â he could hide inside the pyramid, wait until she was in the room, and then creep out and surprise her. Confidently this time, he pulled the side shut. He waited for a while in the red-starred darkness before something began to nag at the back of his mind, something about the luminous star on the floor.
Once again he reached down to touch it, and with his fingertips explored the pattern of grooves. There were six of them, radiating out like the spokes of a rimless wheel. He felt a great surge of excitement. He delved into his pocket and took out the metal star â it would fit, he just
knew
it would.
Heart trotting, mouth dry, he slotted the star into place.
The effect was instantaneous.
All four sides of the pyramid fell open with a noise like a thunderclap, and Stuart screamed.
He was in the middle of a desert.
SLOWLY, VERY SLOWLY , Stuart stood up and looked around.
Instead of the side room of Beeton Museum, he saw a sweep of greyish sand peppered with rocks. A few low thorn trees were the only vegetation; not far away,
Readers choose
Greg Pace
Katherine Cachitorie
Jessica Knauss
Kate Douglas
Ryan Schneider
Sherry Turkle
Christie Ridgway
Rebecca Demarest
Michael Fowler