Undercover Tailback Read Free

before practice that afternoon. The
     two trays he was carrying suddenly seemed a lot heavier.

3
    P arker’s good spirits had returned by that afternoon. The minute his last class was over, he headed for the locker room. After
     being chewed out the day before, he was determined to show Coach Isaac what he was really made of.
    He was very early. The equipment room was closed, and the window in the door to the coach’s office was dark. Coach Isaac wasn’t
     there yet.
    But the locker room was open. Parker went in, dumped his books in his locker, and got undressed. He put on a gray T-shirt
     and matching sweatpants. They had a dark green K for Kudzus on them. He tugged a gray hooded sweatshirt on top.
    He started to do a few torso twists and knee bends. Then he heard voices outside the locker room.
    I guess some of the guys are out there, he thought. They’ll probably give me a razzing for getting in trouble with the coach.
    But whose voices are those, anyhow? he wondered. Is that Mitch? Moose? Through the wall, it was hard to tell. It could even
     have been a bunch of girls heading for gymnastics practice.
    But when he stepped outside the locker room, there was no one in sight. Whoever had been there was gone. Then all of a sudden,
     someone wearing a gray hooded sweatsuit ducked out of the coach’s office — and quickly bolted around the corner. It happened
     so fast, he couldn’t tell who it was. But he did notice one odd thing: whoever it was had a small point-and-shoot camera swinging
     from one hand.
    Parker frowned. Why would someone be in Coach’s office with a camera? Suspicious, Parker took off after the stranger. But
     it was too late. The corridor led to the back exit from the school.It was already filled with kids milling about on their way home. There was no way to pick out anyone in that crowd.
     

    He went back toward the coach’s office. The window was still dark, but the door was slightly ajar.
    Parker pushed the door open, and the light from the hallway spilled into the office.
    “Coach? Coach Isaac?” he called softly.
    What did he think he was going to find — a dead body behind the desk? Was that why he was whispering?
    What a dope! he thought.
    There was no body behind the desk. There was nothing unusual at all in the office.
    Coach Isaac was one of those neat types, he noticed. Except for the big loose-leaf Kudzu playbook, his desk was clean and
     uncluttered.
    The master playbook was so fat with all the plays the coach had used over the years that it was hard to keep it lying flat.
     The plays were carefully drawn in dark marker, each on a separate page wrapped in a cellophane protector.A green metal paperweight was holding down one side of the open book.
    Parker picked up the paperweight.
    It was an alligator! In fact, it was a lot like a model he’d brought in to show his General Science class when they were studying
     reptiles.
    I wonder if Coach Isaac is a Gators fan, Parker thought. Hey, when he finds out they’re my favorite team, maybe I’ll score
     some extra points with him.
    Then he came to his senses. The only way I’m going to score any points, he thought, is by getting my butt out there and doing
     those laps.
    Parker was about to put the gator back on the open playbook when the overhead light went on. He hadn’t even heard anyone come
     in.
    “What are you doing here, Parker?” demanded Coach Isaac. “And what are you doing with that?” He pointed at the paperweight,
     still in Parker’s hand.
    “It was really weird, Coach,” said Parker. “I just saw someone go flying out of here. But thelight wasn’t on. So I thought something might be funny. I came in here to check.”
    Coach Isaac shook his head. “You really do have a million stories, don’t you!”
    “Honest, Coach Isaac,” said Parker. “This guy just came tearing out of here a few minutes ago. He was wearing a gray sweatshirt
     like mine, and he had a little camera.”
    “Yeah, yeah,” said Coach