The girl shouted something at Amelia through the window. Amelia thought she might have said, “Where’s Duke?” She decided it was safe to open the door.
“I’m looking for Duke,” the girl said.
“He lives downstairs. But he’s not home right now.”
Amelia couldn’t take her eyes off the snake. It was at least six feet long and all different shades of brown and orange swirled together. It never stopped moving, slowly slithering around the girl.
“I was supposed to be here hours ago,” the girl said. “Duke probably thought I wasn’t coming. My car conked out on me, and I had to walk miles because the stupid bus driver wouldn’t let me on the bus. I got a lot of weird looks, I can tell you!”
“You can come in here and wait for Duke.”
“I guess so. But I don’t have a lot of time. I’m Pia, by the way.”
“Amelia.”
Pia’s hands were constantly moving, keeping up with the snake. “This is King Kong. He’s not exactly light. But it was easier to carry him this way than in a box.”
“Is he trying to get away?”
“No. He’s just a bit stressed.”
Pia followed Amelia into the house. “We’ll go in the kitchen,” Amelia said. “Do you want a glass of water or something? Or I could make some iced tea.”
“Water’s good. I’m parched.” Pia peeled the snake off her shoulders. “Okay if I put him on the table?”
“Sure.” Amelia set a glass of water in front of Pia. She did a quick inventory of Pia’s piercings. Six earrings in each ear, a nose stud, and two silver spikes in her lower lip.
King Kong took up most of the table. He curled up like a coil of thick rope and rested his head.
“Will he stay there?” Amelia said.
“I think so. He’s getting tired.”
Pia looked at her watch and groaned. “It’s quarter after four! You don’t happen to know when Duke’s coming back, do you?”
“No. Sorry. Is King Kong sick or something?”
Pia looked surprised. “King Kong? No way. Duke’s just going to look after him for the summer. I’m going up the coast to a fly-in fishing camp tomorrow. I go there every year and cook. And get this—they think King Kong would freak out their clients, so I can’t bring him. That’s so lame.”
“Yeah,” Amelia agreed. “What kind of snake is he?”
“Carpet python.”
“He’s amazing.”
“You got that right.” Pia drummed her fingers on the table. “How’s old Beaker doing?”
“Good.”
Pia whipped a phone out of her pocket. Her fingers flew as she texted. “Okay, okay,” she muttered. “I’m coming.”
She stuck her phone back in her pocket, drained her glass of water and looked at her watch again. “God, I’ve got a million things to do today. I’m gonna have to go.”
“Right now?”
“’Fraid so. You’ll have to watch King Kong for me until Duke gets back.”
“Me? By myself?”
“That’s okay, isn’t it?”
“No! It’s not okay. What if he wants to get up? It’s not like he’s asleep. His eyes are still open.”
“Snakes don’t have eyelids, so it’s kind of hard to tell. He might be asleep.” Pia yanked her phone out again and texted madly. She stood up. “Trust me, he’s wiped. He’ll crash for hours. Honestly, I have to go. I haven’t even packed yet, and I’m leaving at, like, four in the morning. I haven’t even cleaned out my fridge!”
“No.”
“Pleeease.”
Amelia sighed. Gabriella was always home by five, which was only a half hour away. She’d know what to do with King Kong. “Oh, all right.”
Pia’s face lit up. “You’re a lifesaver! I owe you one!” She patted the snake’s head. “See you, King Kong. Be good.” She hesitated. “Maybe you should stay beside him. Just in case. I’ll let myself out. And tell Duke I’ll call him.”
When the front door clicked shut, Amelia’s heart started to race. King Kong with Pia was not too scary. King Kong by himself was a different story. She eyeballed the snake. He wasn’t moving. Not at all. Asleep or…a prickle ran down her spine. Dead. It was a boiling-hot day. He could have died of heatstroke.
Great. She was babysitting a dead snake. She stood up and pushed her chair back, which made a scraping sound on the floor. She sat down immediately. If King Kong was asleep and not dead after all, the last thing she wanted to do was wake him up. Did snakes have ears? How was she supposed to know?
The clock on the kitchen wall made a ticking sound as the minutes clicked by. Amelia felt like a prisoner. From her chair, she could see out the window to the front walk. She kept her eyes peeled for Gabriella. She thought about dashing into the living room and getting the laptop. It would take her fifteen seconds, max. She weighed the pros and cons.
Too risky. Snakes probably did have ears, hidden somewhere under their scales. King Kong asleep (or dead) was okay. King Kong slithering around the kitchen would be a nightmare.
She stopped thinking about the laptop and thought about how she needed to pee.
Five minutes later, still no Gabriella.
She held her breath and slid off her chair. No sign of life from King Kong. She tiptoed across the floor and, with one last glance at the snake, slipped through the door and ran.
Forty seconds in the bathroom. World record. She dried her hands on her shorts as she raced back.
She slammed right into Diane.
Diane dropped a handful of mail. “Really, Amelia. Slow down.”
“Mom! What are you doing here? You’re not supposed to be home for ages.”
“Miss Jane had a migraine.” Diane bent down to pick up the scattered letters. “We’re going to go in early tomorrow to finish the inventory. And yes, it’s nice to see you too.” She dropped the letters on the table. “I’m going to put the kettle on and make some tea, and then I’m going to have a nice cool shower.”
“No! I mean, have your shower first!”
“Amelia Jane, you are acting very strange.”
“Wait! Come back! DON’T GO IN THE KITCHEN!”
Too late! Amelia clamped her hands over her ears. Even through her closed fingers, her mother’s bloodcurdling scream sent chills down her spine.