The Puzzle Master Read Free

tonight. I gotta go.”
      “Tonight?” She laughed. “You’re not going anywhere. You’ve spent more Mondays at that store than some people ever go in there in a lifetime. And if you can’t keep track of your time, well, that’s your problem.” Marshall groaned inside. What rotten luck. If he’d just left the store before Luke had spoken to him, he wouldn’t have been late. But had he left without talking to Luke in the first place, he never would’ve known about the surprise.
      Rotten, rotten luck. His mind faded back to his mother’s voice.
     “You start sixth grade in one week. And you don’t need to be going to some junk store every chance you get just to find a stupid toy. Besides, it’s really too much smoke for your condition.” She pushed the ‘on’ button and they listened to the trickle of coffee spitting out of the spout.     
     “It’s not just a toy mom,” he said, his brown eyes moistening over her speech. “I’m looking for something, like Mason’s guitar.”
     She grunted, which sounded like a mix of a sigh and laugh, and then wiped strawberry jam off of Leila’s face. “I won’t let you go tonight. You need to learn to be a boy of your word. Because a boy of his word grows to be a man of his word.” She saw the frustration in his face, and sighed again. “I bet if you asked him, Mason would give you that guitar. It’s not like he actually plays it.”
     Marshall wanted to scream. She didn’t get it. Not at all. There was a mysterious joy, something he couldn’t explain to her in finding that treasure; the treasure. He didn’t want Mason’s stupid guitar.   
     “Anyway,” she said suddenly on to other things, “You need to get out there and mow the lawn. Daddy said he was going to, but forgot last night, so come on. Stop pouting and get out there.”
     She put a hand through his hair, patted his chin and headed for the washing machine. Her actions said that she loved him, but it didn’t feel that way. All he felt was anger and rage at the injustice. Leila always got what she wanted, Mason did too. So, where did that leave him?
     Out to mow the grass.
     He felt that fuzzy feeling move in his lungs and he puffed on his inhaler. He walked back into the garage.
     Boy of his word. He snorted. Man of his word. Another snort. His daddy hadn’t even mowed the grass … he hadn’t kept his word. Why should Marshall?
     Marshall backed the crusty lawn mower out and yanked on the cord. It sputtered. Nothing. He did this about five times, and finally the mower roared to life. He pushed it onto the green and began his last Monday morning of summer vacation.
      He had to have a better plan , he thought. The “no” from his mom just wasn’t going to work this time. He steadied the mower, while his brain worked, and he tried not to sideswipe the hydrangeas while making his plan-of-attack.
     He had to find out what the surprise was. He had to get to Luke’s tonight—even if it was the last outing he ever had.

Chapter 2: Iris
     
    All that day, Marshall thought about his plan. He had to get to Luke’s without his mom knowing. But by four in the afternoon, he almost didn’t care if she found out. A surprise from Luke had to be something good. He would risk grounding for a month just to have it.
    By dinnertime, Marshall had made up his mind: he was getting out.
    Leila and Marshall were sitting at the dinner table when their father walked in from work.
    “Daddy!” Leila yelled, running up to give him a hug. She glanced at Marshall once then faced her father again, hand on her waist. “Daddy, Marshall is grounded for coming home late this morning.”
    His father set down Leila and patted her on the head, ruffling her blond hair. His father had never wanted to move to Sacramento. The only reason they were there, and had been for nearly ten years, was because of Marshall’s asthma.
    Marshall was about to hug his father, but after Leila’s words, it seemed all