Previous chapters of the Vista Falls story:
1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15

How should the story continue? Voting is open on the current chapter!

Last time, Lucy—convinced that her cousin Kate had crept out of the house—heard noises coming from the basement. Nervous that whomever had left the mysterious flowers on their front steps had somehow gotten into the house, Lucy grabbed her softball bat and hurried into the basement to attack whomever was down there. Lucy was surprised to find Kate in the basement and was unaware that for some strange reason Kate was hiding Blaine in the basement. Kate managed to get Lucy to go upstairs, but not until she made it clear to a hidden Blaine that Officer Littlepoole, Chief Colbert and their friends were on their way over. Once the girls were upstairs, Blaine realized that there was no way out of the basement and that if the police people and the other teens searched the basement, he’d be caught. What did Blaine do? Here’s what you decided.

Chapter 11: Basement Case
By Joseph Crisalli

Lucy shut the basement door.

Blaine waited a few seconds and then slowly left the cupboard.  He listened to the girls walking upstairs and wished that they’d hurry up and leave.  He had to get out of that basement.

Blaine heard Lucy and Kate continue to talk.

“You’re acting very weird.”  Lucy said.

Blaine listened as their footsteps moved further away from the basement door.  He wondered if he dared try to sneak up the stairs and out the back door while the two girls were still in the house.  He didn’t dare be caught there in case the two police officers, spurred on by Lucy’s suspicion, searched the basement.  But, if he tried to escape, would they all catch him anyway?  He wondered, “Should I just wait here?”

Blaine looked around the Molton’s basement.  It was a typical Vista Falls cellar and housed the washer and dryer, bins of stored clothes and tools and other things the family didn’t use on a regular basis. 

“If I could only find a way to create a diversion.”  Blaine thought to himself.  “Then, I could get Lucy down here to look around and slip up the steps and out of the house while she wasn’t looking.”

Blaine walked over to the far corner of the cellar and saw a box of Christmas decorations.  He thought he might smash a few glass ornaments on the floor to get Lucy’s attention.  But, that was too mean, even for Blaine.

He then noticed that a box of toys sat gathering dust in the corner.  They were toys that Lucy and Vera must have played with when they were little kids.  One of the toys was a stuffed bear.  Blaine picked up the bear and noticed that it had a string with a pull-tab in its back.

“I wonder what this does.”  Blaine muttered softly to himself, pulling the string.

Suddenly, the toy began to make noise.  In a recorded voice, it said, “I love you.  Will you be my friend?”

Blaine tried not to laugh.  He pulled the string again, certain that the sound would get Lucy’s attention. 

It certainly did.

From the floor above, Blaine could hear Lucy say, “What was that?  I hear voices again!  I know someone is down there!”

Blaine hurried to the empty space under the basement stairs as he heard the door open.  Within seconds, he heard Lucy’s footsteps as she rushed down the creaky wooden steps.

He watched from under the stairs as Lucy hurried past him toward the sound of the toy bear.

He then took that moment to hurry up the steps.  He ran as quietly as he could into the kitchen toward the back door.

Just as Blaine thought he had gotten away with it, he opened the back door to see Chief Colbert, Officer Littlepoole, Rick, Ward, Vera, TJ and Delia standing there. 

“Blaine!”  Vera gasped.  “What on Earth are you doing in my house?  Where’s my sister?”

“I’m right here.”  Lucy said, panting as she hurried up the steps.  “And, yes, I’d like to know why Blaine’s in our house, too.”

“Hey, there’s Kate!”  Rick pointed when he noticed Kate lurking in the hallway.

“I thought you were missing.”  Vera smirked.

“I was in the basement.”  Kate said softly.

“Yes, after I talked with you, I found Kate hiding in the basement.”  Lucy said to her sister.  “It seems she wasn’t hiding there alone.”  She looked at Blaine.  “I assume it was your feet I heard pounding up the basement stairs just now.”

Blaine didn’t answer. 

“Blaine, why are you in our house?”  Lucy demanded.

“It’s not like we’re friends.”  Vera added.  “There’s no reason you should be in our house.”

“It’s true, Blaine.”  Chief Colbert said seriously.  “You’d better tell us what you’re doing here.”

Blaine smiled smugly.  “Let Kate tell you.”

“Kate,” Officer Littlepoole said gently.  “Can you explain what’s going on here?”

Kate began to sweat.  She knew she couldn’t tell the truth.  If she did, Blaine would certainly seek revenge.  He’d made her swear she’d never tell why he asked her if he could hide in the basement.

Kate looked at Blaine.  She didn’t like him.  She had never liked him.  He was always so mean to everyone.  And, he was certainly the most mean to Kate.

She hated the fact that she was even thinking about lying to her family and her best friends.  And, she especially hated the fact that she would be lying to Chief Colbert and Officer Littlepoole.

What should Kate do?

Voting results for how the story continues:

Vote!

Vista Falls Ch. 11: What should Kate do? Tell them the truth? 71.4% Say that Blaine had come by to find items for a scavenger hunt? 21.4% Lie and say she invited Blaine over? 7.1%   Version 2.03

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