Goosebumps 3 [#Wattys2016]

Chapter 24

ZACH

"Officer, I think you might wanna rush in there! Hannah can't be kept waiting, you know!"I complained.

"Sir, calm down, we are trying to locate her whereabouts as fast as possible."The chief police explained.

"Calm down?! My wife is somewhere out there with God-knows-whoever-it-is doing only-God-knows-what-with-her! I can't afford to waste anymore time sitting around waiting for you and your team to finish whatever you're doing in there! I--"

"Sir, will you please just hurry up?"Champ dragged me away from the police and smiled. The chief police nodded and walked back to his team to check it's progress.

"Champ! What the hell man?! I had it!"I hissed.

"You're losing it, dude! It's really gonna take a long time to find Hannah so you'll really have to learn thr virtue 'patience' right now."Champ suggested.

"Hannah could be suffering out there!"I protested.

"Patience."Champ repeated. I took a deep breath.

"Okay. Fine."I answered. I sat by the phone, hoping Hannah would call.

Instead I fell asleep.

...

Riiiiiinnnnnggg!!! Riiiiiiiiinnngg!!!

I snapped awake at the exact second the phone rang. The cops, Stine, Champ, and Taylor all looked up, theur faces lit with hope.

I nervously/excitedly picked up the phone and pressed it against my ear.

"Hello?"

"Zach Cooper,"A rusty metallic voice said. Not Slappy. Not Invisible Boy.

Stine gestured for me to put my phone on loudspeaker. I obeyed, and everyone heard the voice. Some cops and Taylor and Champ covered their ears with their hands while the rest decided they'd just let their ears hang on for a while.

"Yeah?"I asked. "I have Hannah. Bring me the typewriter in a week or else she suffers...along with your beloved auntie."The voice cackled and hung up.

I threw the phone at the wall. I screamed. Champ dropped a hand on my shoulder.

"Zach! We tracked her!"

I instantly got filled with hope. I turned. "She's in a vacation house somewhere in..."The cop typed some more.

"Rio de Janeiro, Brazil."

I frowned. Seriously? Rio???

Another cop rushed to me. "Sir! St. Peter's Hospital just called. Your aunt...she's not there! No one knows how she disappeared but her room there is all messed up. You know, like a super tornado hit it."

Darn it! Why does it always have to be me who suffers?! Why?!

Why?!

Stine walked over to me.

"Come on kid. Time to take on some Brazilians."