Peter and the Shadow Thieves by Ridley Pearson EPUB & PDF – eBook Details Online
- Status: Available for Free Download
- Author: Ridley Pearson
- Language: English
- Genre: Historical Fiction
- Format: PDF / EPUB
- Size: 2 MB
- Price: Free
A SPECK ON THE HORIZON
A MANGO, THOUGHT PETER. The perfect weapon.
The scrawny, sunburned boy, dressed in a tattered shirt and pants torn
off below scabby knees, brushed the unkempt reddish hair out of his face. It
fell right back into his eyes as he bent to the sandy soil and scooped up the
plump red-and-yellow fruit sphere, a bit bigger than an orange. The mango
was squishy to the touch, too ripe for eating. But it was just the thing to
drop on somebody’s head from a great height. And Peter knew precisely
whose head he wanted to drop it on.
Holding the sweet-smelling mango in his left hand, Peter raised his right
hand over his head and, pointing his index finger skyward, sprang up and
rose swiftly from the earth. It was a dramatic takeoff, and totally
unnecessary: Peter—an expert flyer now, after three months’ practice—
could float easily upward in any position. But he enjoyed impressing the
other boys.
“Peter!” shouted young James as he trotted toward the mango tree. He
was followed by the rest of the Lost Boys, as they had come to call
themselves—Prentiss, Thomas, and, lagging far behind, Tubby Ted.
“Where are you going?” asked James, his thin voice cracking.
“To pay the pirates a visit,” Peter announced. “I’ve a delivery to make.”
He held out the oozing, overripe mango.
“Please, can’t I come?” begged James.
Peter was silent for a long moment. The only noise was the distant
sound of surf pounding on the reef outside the lagoon. Then, reluctantly,
Peter said, “’Fraid not, James. You can’t…I mean…You know.”
“Right,” said James. “I can’t fly.”
James said it matter-of-factly, but Peter saw the now-familiar look of
disappointment in his eyes. He saw it also on the faces of Prentiss and
Thomas, though all he saw on Tubby Ted’s face was mango pulp, as Tubby
Ted had decided it was time for a snack. (For Tubby Ted, it was always time
for a snack.)
Peter hovered for a moment, feeling a flicker of guilt. It seemed that
more and more lately, he’d been having his best adventures alone. He
almost decided to return to the earth and to carry out his attack by land, so
his mates could join in the fun. Almost…
But walking took so long, and if they were on foot, the pirates might
catch them. No, flying was the only way to do this.
“You’ll be safer here,” he said. “I’ll be back soon! We’ll have a game,
or a snake hunt.”
“But,” said James, “I—”
“Sorry!” interrupted Peter, shooting skyward, not looking back. He
soared above the treetops, his pangs of guilt changing to irritation tinged
with self-pity.
It’s not my fault I can fly and they can’t, he thought. Besides, they’re
safer back there. Can’t they see I’m looking out for them?
These thoughts were quickly driven from Peter’s mind by the sweeping
view that greeted him as he shot into the radiant blue sky between two
small, puffy, bright white clouds. He ascended at a steep angle, keeping his
body parallel to the dark green mountain ridge that rose sharply to form the
backbone of the island.
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