The children and teachers in the room were scared. They dropped to the floor. Many of the adults standing by the sides of the room did, too. The four police officers hurried in.
Two Secret Service agents and the police officers walked slowly through the room. Cam looked behind her. All she saw were people on the floor. She turned and looked up at the large front desk.
Two Secret Service agents were crouched on the floor beside Governor Zellner. Another had pushed the Pearls behind the desk.
Cam turned and watched the two agents and the police officers go to the back of the library. She looked at the large windows in the new library. She looked up at the skylights. She took a deep breath and then whispered to Eric, “I don’t see or smell smoke. If a gun was shot in here, there would be smoke.”
“Maybe someone shot from outside.”
“No,” Cam whispered. “The windows are closed, and not one is broken.”
“Then why are we on the floor?” Eric asked. “Why do the Secret Service people look so worried?”
“They want to know what made that noise.”
“I do, too,” Eric said.
People in the room began to whisper.
One of the agents in the back of the room waved. Then one by the desk said, “There’s no need to be afraid. Please, return to your seats.”
Cam, Eric, and the others in their class looked at Ms. Benson. She looked to the back and saw the two agents who had searched the room. They were smiling. Ms. Benson returned to her seat. Then Cam, Eric, and the others did, too.
“I wonder what made that noise,” Ms. Benson said.
“It wasn’t me,” Danny told her. “I’ve been good.”
The two agents who had searched the room were now by the front desk. They spoke for a moment with the other two agents and Dr. Prell.
Dr. Prell laughed. She said something to Governor Zellner. He laughed, too. Dr. Prell took a large yellow book from a shelf on the side of the room. Then she tapped on the microphone to get everyone’s attention.
She smiled and said, “That was frightening, but no one was hurt. This is a library. There are lots of books here, and one of them fell. We don’t have carpeting yet, so when the book hit the concrete floor it made that scary sound.”
Dr. Prell dropped the yellow book onto the desk.
Bang!
The book fell flat.
A few children dropped to the floor again. Others laughed.
Dr. Prell tapped on the microphone. When everyone was quiet, she introduced Governor Zellner again.
“We are delighted and proud to have him here,” she said. “We hope this will be his first of many visits to our school.”
The governor waved and smiled. Lights flashed as photographers took his picture.
“I am very pleased to be here,” the governor said. “This is a great day for your school and our state. I am happy to share it with you and with my good friends Sam and Emma Pearl. But what’s more important, the Pearls are great friends of libraries and schools.”
“Please,” Cam whispered to Eric, “let me have your notebook.”
Eric gave Cam the notebook. She put it on her lap and pushed it off. It dropped to the floor. First the edge of the notebook hit the floor. Then it landed on its side. It made just a small sound when it hit the floor. She picked it up, put it on her lap, and pushed it off a second and a third time. Each time, it landed on its side.
“This beautiful new library,” the governor said, “made possible by the generosity of the Pearls, should be a model for libraries in schools throughout the state and nation. To be truly great, a nation needs great schools, libraries, and readers!”
He waved and smiled again. Lights flashed as photographers took his picture.
“Books don’t just fall,” Cam whispered, “and they don’t fall flat.”
Mrs. Pearl went to the microphone. She was a small woman. Dr. Prell lowered the microphone for her.
“Sam and I are happy to be here with you today,” Emma Pearl said. “This is where we met. We were in the same second-grade class. We’re so very glad we are able to give this great school a new library.”
“And books,” Sam Pearl said. “We are giving the school one thousand new books.”
The governor, Dr. Prell, and the others applauded.
“Something strange is going on here,” Cam told Ms. Benson. Photographers took pictures of Governor Zellner, the Pearls, and Dr. Prell.
Dr. Prell said, “Let’s get some children and books in the picture.”
She asked Cam, Eric, Danny, and Beth to stand beside the Pearls.
“Smile!” one photographer told the children.
“Say, ‘Cheese’!” another said.
Cam, Eric, and Beth said, “Cheese.”
Danny said, “Parmesan and Muenster.”
Lightbulbs flashed.
“Thank you,” Dr. Prell told the children.
“I have to show you something,” Cam told Dr. Prell. “It’s very important.”
“Not now,” Dr. Prell said to Cam. “You’ll show me later.”
“But I have to show it to you now.”
Dr. Prell didn’t answer Cam. Instead, she stood beside Governor Zellner and posed for another picture.