Rise of the Heroes Read Free

computer.”
    But Toby and Pete already had their noses in theon-screen browser, scrutinizing the numerous links on the colorful homepage that had appeared.
    â€œCheck out the movie trailers,” said Pete, placing an oily fingerprint on the screen as he pointed to the link. He glanced up at Emily. “If you have homework to do, don’t you have a computer at home?”
    Emily shook her head. She had an older brother at home and was used to having to fight to get her own way. She was annoyed at Pete—his attitude always seemed to change around Toby. When he was alone with Emily they had fun and he was always looking out for her. But as soon as Toby entered the equation Pete would side with him no matter what. She wasn’t going to let him get his own way this time. She opened her mouth to respond—as lightning lit up the room like a flashbulb. A second later thunder clapped the air with astonishing fury, making them all jump.
    â€œStorm’s getting worse,” warned Emily.
    Lorna followed her gaze outside as she had a troubling thought. “Toby, I don’t think you should be on the phone during a thunderstorm.”
    Toby didn’t look up, as a series of the new Hollywood movie trailers appeared on-screen. “We’re not on the phone. We’re on the Net.”
    â€œYeah, but it still uses the phone line, stupid.”
    Pete looked up at her, his mouth forming the wordsto agree. But whatever sound came out was masked by a blinding flash of lightning and a simultaneous, sonorous roll of thunder that made the pictures on the wall rattle as if a bomb had exploded outside.
    Which was close to what had actually happened. Lorna saw the jagged fork of lightning lick the top of the telephone pole at the end of the backyard, and when she closed her eyes she still had the ghostly afterimage imprinted on her retina. None of them saw the electric bolt crackle along the phone cable toward the house.
    The computer made a high-pitched death rattle before the screen went blank.
    Pete’s heart was hammering from the momentary excitement. “Wow! That was close!”
    Lorna shook her head. “It struck the telephone pole. Look, it killed the computer.”
    Toby stared at the blank screen in horror. “Oh God, no. Not now.”
    A vengeful smile tugged Lorna’s lips. “Dad is going to kill you for breaking his computer! All his work files are on it!”
    Toby felt a sudden sickness in the pit of his stomach. Lorna was right. Their father was an archaeologist and, as far as Toby knew, all his research was stored on the hard drive. He just prayed that his father had had the foresight to insure against exactly this type of situation.
    â€œDad’s not even in the country!” He wondered where exactly he was; somewhere in Mexico, Mom had said. His work meant that it was normal for him to disappear for weeks on end with only a satellite phone for communication, and that was usually temperamental at best.
    â€œLightning could have blown the fuse, or even the power pack!” said Emily.
    Pete looked at her skeptically. “Oh, you’re a PC expert all of a sudden?” he teased.
    Emily rolled her eyes and tried to hide her smile.
    Pete examined the casing. “Fan’s still on in the computer. Maybe it’s just the screen?”
    Toby thumbed the monitor’s power button with a faint trace of hope. His spirits lifted as an image slowly returned to the screen.
    â€œThank God!” he said, breathing out a huge sigh of relief. He flicked a victorious look at his sister. “It’s not broken.”
    Lorna made a face. “Well, you should get off it before you do break it.”
    Not willing to push his luck any further, Toby reluctantly agreed. “Point taken.”
    His hand found the mouse, guiding it across the virtual desktop to shut the system down, when Pete suddenly grabbed his wrist to stop him.
    â€œWait! That’s not the