The Predator Read Online Free

at them helplessly. Rachel and Cassie each took a foot and got him laced up.
    “People are going to think he’s weird,” Rachel said, sounding exasperated.
    “Fortunately, it’s the mall on a Saturday morning,” I pointed out. “It’ll be full of weird people.”
    “Not
this
weird,” Rachel said. “This could be trouble.”
    “Isn’t it a little late for you to admit that I wasright and this idea is insane?” I asked her. “Besides, no need to worry. I’ll be there.”
    “Great. Then it’s sure to be a disaster.”
    We caught the bus without any problem. Ax made strange mouth noises the entire trip, but the bus was mostly empty.
    We got to the mall right on time.
    “So far, so good,” Jake said as we headed into the mall.
    I rolled my eyes. “Jake? Do me a favor. Don’t ever say ‘so far, so good.’ The only time anyone
ever
says ‘so far, so good’ is right before everything blows up in his face.”
    “So far. So far. Farrrrr. Faaaar,” Ax said, trying out the sounds. “So. Sssso far so so so good.”
    “Oh, man,” I said.

CHAPTER 5
    T he mall was a zoo. Wall-to-wall people. Old people moving real slow. Married people with squalling babies in big, huge strollers. High school kids trying to look cool. Mall police trying to look tough. Good-looking girls carrying bags from clothing stores.
    Your basic Saturday at the mall.
    “Okay, where is Radio Shack?” Jake wondered.
    “I don’t know,” I said.
    “Is it up on the second level? You know, down by Sears?”
    “Is that it? Or is that the computer place?”
    “Let me check the map over there. Ax? Come onwith …” Jake stopped suddenly. “Marco? Where is Ax?”
    I spun around. “He was right here!”
    Bodies everywhere! All I saw were bodies. Men, women, boys, girls, babies. But no aliens. At least not that I could see. We had lost Ax!
    It had taken a total of about two minutes for us to mess up.
    Then, suddenly, I saw a strangely familiar face. “There he is! On the escalator!” “How did he get all the way over there?” Jake demanded.
    We took off after him, but it was so crowded we could barely move. Jake started pushing his way through. I grabbed him by the arm.
    “Don’t run, man. The mall cops will think you’re ripping something off. Besides, we can’t attract attention. Controllers shop, too.”
    Jake slowed instantly. “You’re right. This many people, some of them are sure to be Controllers.”
    We threaded our way, moving as quickly as we could without being too obvious. I just kept saying “excuse me, excuse me,” and tried not to bump into anyone who looked like he’d get mad and pound me.
    It seemed to take forever to reach the escalator. By then we had totally lost sight of Ax.
    “As long as he doesn’t demorph we’re okay,” Jake said. “I mean, what’s the worst he could do?”
    “Jake, I don’t want to think about the worst he could do,” I said.
    “There!”
    “Where?”
    “Over at Starbucks.”
    I’m not as tall as Jake so I couldn’t see him as easily. But as we got near Starbucks, I spotted him. He was standing patiently in line.
    We got to him just in time to hear him say, “I’ll have … I-yull, Ile, have a double latte, too. Double. Bull. Bull. Latay ay ay.”
    “He must have heard someone else say it,” I whispered to Jake.
    “Caff or decaf?” the clerk asked.
    Ax stared. “Caff? Caff caff caff?”
    “That will be three fifty-five.”
    Ax stared some more. “Fi-ive.”
    Jake reached into his pocket and yanked out the money he’d brought to pay for things at Radio Shack. “Here you go,” he said, peeling off four dollars.
    I took Ax’s arm and guided him to the pickup counter. “Ax,
don’t
go off on your own, okay? We almost lost you.”
    “Lost? I am here. Hee-yar.”
    “Yeah, look, just stay close, okay?” I gave Jake alook. “See? It’s your fault. You said, ‘so far, so good.’” The Starbucks guy handed Ax a paper cup. Ax took it. He looked around to see