“She’ll be here,” Peter whispered, so low I could barely hear him. “She has to be here.”
And then I heard a rustling sound. Padding footsteps.
I turned to see Bella coming down the front stairway. Her long dress trailed behind her. She swept back her hair, and a broad smile crossed her face as she saw us.
“You’re here!” she cried. “I’m sorry. I had given up hope.”
She practically flew down the stairs. Her smile stayed frozen on her face. Her eyes glowed with excitement.
She ran into the kitchen and rushed up to Peter and me with her hands outstretched. “You have all five?”
“Yes,” I said. “Are we in time? We brought you the five masks and —”
Her hands flew up in the air. “You did it! I’m so proud of you!” she cried. “Hand them to me. Quickly.”
She glanced out the kitchen window. The sun was a red ball, still low behind the trees.
“It’s almost dawn,” she said. “Hurry. Take off the masks. Hand them to me — now!”
“You said — you said you couldn’t touch them,” I said.
She raised her hands. She was wearing long black gloves. “Quick. Hand them to me.”
I grabbed the snow wolf mask and started to tug up on its sides. It stuck to the mask beneath it. I couldn’t get it to slide.
I gave a harder tug — then stopped.
I turned to Peter. To my surprise, he wasn’t moving. He stood staring at Bella through the mummy mask. He held the other two masks down at his sides.
“Hurry,” Bella urged. She leaned over him. “What’s wrong with you? Hand me those masks.”
Peter didn’t move. He kept his hands down stiffly at his sides. He stared out at Bella.
She made a wild grab for the alien pig mask.
Peter swung his body around to keep it safe in his hand.
“Give them to me!” Bella screamed. Her face turned bright red. “It’s almost dawn. Give them to me. Do I have to rip that mask off your head, you little punk?”
I gasped, startled that Bella was acting so furious and out of control.
“You punk! You creep! You disgusting little worm!” Bella shrieked at my brother. “Give me those masks!”
She made another frantic grab. Missed. Her hand wrapped around the belt of his karate uniform.
Peter tugged himself free. He didn’t say a word. Just stood there stiffly, in silence, holding the masks out of Bella’s reach.
A stripe of yellow sunlight spread across the floor.
“Peter,” I said softly. “What are you doing? Why —”
And then he tucked the two masks under his arm. Without a word, he reached both hands to the bottom of the mummy mask.
With one hard tug, he pulled the mummy mask off his face.
“NOOOO!” Bella and I both shrieked at the same time.
My mouth hung open. My eyes bulged. It took a while for my brain to realize — it wasn’t Peter standing next to me.
It was Screem!