The Creature from Club Lagoona

  CONTENTS

  Chapter 1

  Chapter 2

  Chapter 3

  Chapter 4

  Chapter 5

  Chapter 6

  Chapter 7

  Chapter 8

  Chapter 9

  Chapter 10

  Chapter 11

  Chapter 12

  Chapter 13

  Chapter 14

  Chapter 15

  Chapter 16

  Chapter 17

  Chapter 18

  ‘Field of Screams’ excerpt

  About R.L. Stine

  1

  “‘Club Lagoona,’” Mom read from the booklet. She had to practically shout to be heard over the small plane’s engines. “ ‘The water adventure of a lifetime!’ ” She grinned at me.

  I pointed to my ear and shook my head. Maybe if I pretended I couldn’t hear her, she’d give up.

  But she continued reading. “ ‘Relax in Club Lagoona’s fabulous saltwater Atlantis Swimming Pool. You’ll think you’re in the ocean.’” She stopped and squeezed my arm. “It’s the biggest pool in the world, Tad! Sounds great, huh?”

  I tried to smile. “Can’t wait.” I put my copy of Jaws down on my lap. The plane was really small, and we were the only passengers, so I glanced out the round airplane window.

  Maybe I shouldn’t have. Below me was endless ocean. Probably crawling with sharks.

  “I’m going to snorkel! And learn to scuba dive!” Polly, my younger sister, shouted from across the aisle. She’s nine and loves to swim.

  “Listen to this,” Dad chimed in. He had a copy of the booklet too. “They’ve got a glass-bottomed boat, a Log Flume of Doom, and something called the Creature Water Slide!”

  “Great!” Polly shouted. She would have bounced out of her seat if she weren’t strapped in.

  “How about you, Tad?” Dad flashed the booklet at me. “You ready for the Log Flume of Doom?”

  “Count me in,” I replied. I gave him two thumbs-up.

  I picked up my book again and flipped nervously through the pages. How could I tell them the truth? I’d kept my secret for twelve years. I covered it up so well that no one guessed.

  They probably wouldn’t have believed the truth anyway. They would never have imagined that I, Tad Hawkins, captain of the Shadyside Middle School soccer team, king of slam dunks, all-around jock, was actually scared to death of—

  “Let’s get wet!” Polly squealed, interrupting my thoughts. “That’s Club Lagoona’s motto. Cool!”

  I slammed my book shut.

  Water. Water scares me to death.

  I hate the way water gets in my nose and eyes. I hate the way my wet hair sticks to my face and neck. And I particularly hate not knowing what’s under the water. I guess I hate everything about water.

  All these years I avoided swimming lessons by being too busy with soccer and basketball.

  But at Club Lagoona, there would be no escape!

  “Ready to get wet, Tad?” Polly shrieked at me. She kicked her feet against her seat.

  I ignored her.

  “Don’t be such a wet blanket, Tad,” Polly teased. “Get it? Wet blanket?”

  I shot her a nasty look. She tugged her baseball cap low over her dark hair. But I could still see her green eyes laughing at me.

  Polly and I look alike. “Like two peas in a pod,” Mom always says. But, boy, are we different. Especially when it comes to water.

  “Can you keep it down, Polly?” I complained. “I’m trying to read.”

  “How can you read now?” Polly demanded. “We’re going to Club Lagoona! All the kids in Shadyside are totally jealous. Club Lagoona looked awesome in the TV commercials! And even better in the booklet!” She waved a brochure at me. Then she opened it up to read from it.

  “Everything in Club Lagoona has to do with water,” Polly reported. “The rooms are decorated in blue and green. There’s an underwater restaurant. And there’s even a video arcade with the new, advanced Underwater Terror 2 game!”

  “Great,” I grumbled.

  It all sounded like torture to me.

  I’ve been scared of water for as long as I can remember. I still think about the time I lost my tooth in the bathtub. It was sucked right down the drain.

  I shuddered, trying to shake off the image of that vanishing tooth. Swirling and swirling down that dark hole. I lowered my eyes to my book again. The shark in the book circled a kid on a raft. It moved closer and closer. It opened its mouth. It—

  “Got you!” my sister yelled, reaching across Mom and jabbing me with her snorkel.

  My head nearly hit the roof of the plane. “Quit it!” I shouted back.

  “Stop arguing, kids,” Mom ordered.

  “Look,” Dad called. “We’re here!”

  I closed my book and gazed out the window. Lagoona Island was a small private island off the Carolina coast. The only thing on it was Club Lagoona.

  Oh, man! Not only was the island surrounded by all that ocean, there was water all over the island!

  The tallest fountain I’d ever seen sprayed straight up into the air. A gigantic pool of water shimmered nearby. People on Jet Skis zoomed around a wide moat circling the hotel.

  A helicopter hovered nearby. I could see someone dropping boxes marked SUPPLIES out of the helicopter to the moat-surrounded resort. That’s weird, I thought. Why don’t they just carry the stuff there?

  I flopped back against my seat and shut my eyes. I had a feeling this was going to be the most awful vacation in the history of the world.

  “That must be the landing strip,” Mom pointed out, leaning over my shoulder.

  Dad and Polly looked out their side of the plane. “I think I can see the Log Flume of Doom!” Polly cried.

  “Come on, everybody. We’ll be landing in a minute. Grab your stuff,” Dad commanded.

  I shoved my book into my backpack and within minutes we all piled off the plane. We gathered at the colorful entrance sign to Club Lagoona. I squinted in the bright sunlight and gazed across the broad moat. Exotic smells filled my nostrils.

  “It looks like a fairy-tale kingdom by the sea!” Polly whispered.

  “A tropical paradise!” Mom agreed.

  “A fantasy island!” Dad added.

  My worst nightmare, I thought.

  “Welcome to Club Lagoona!” a voice boomed over a loudspeaker. “Get set for the water adventure of a lifetime!”

  The tall bushes made it hard to see what was on the other side of the moat. But I knew all the same—water. And lots of it!

  Polly stood up on tiptoe. “I see water towers and slides!”

  “Just look at those palm trees!” Mom added.

  “Listen!” Dad commanded.

  As we stood in silence, I could hear the sound of water rushing and people shouting and laughing.

  “Let’s go in!” Polly urged.

  “How are we supposed to get to the hotel?” I demanded. “The whole place is surrounded by water!”

  We all stared at the moat. It stood between us and the resort.

  “Do we get to swim across?” Polly exclaimed, all excited.

  Mom laughed and shook her head. “Sorry, Polly. There’s a sign pointing to a bridge.”

  I shouldered my backpack and trudged slowly behind the others.

  Ahead of us was a rickety rope bridge. The kind you see in Indiana Jones movies. The kind that always gives way when someone’s halfway across. So that’s why they can’t carry supplies to the resort, I realized.

  I stopped walking. “Uh, is that thing safe?” I asked.

  “It must be safe,” Mom replied. “There’s no other way to get into Club Lagoona.”

  “Sure,” Dad added. “It�
��s perfectly safe. Look.” He took a few steps onto the bridge. He jumped up and down. The bridge shook but didn’t break.

  I watched the three of them make their way across. The bridge wobbled, but it looked as if it would hold me. I didn’t like the way the bridge seemed to dip in the middle though. It practically touched the water.

  That made me nervous.

  I stepped onto the bridge. It jiggled a little, but I took a deep breath, gripped both handrails, and kept going.

  I stared straight ahead. One foot in front of the other. That’s it, I told myself. You’re doing fine.

  “Hurry up, Tad,” Polly shouted from the other side. “We’re missing all the fun!”

  That’s when I made a mistake. I looked down.

  Water. On both sides of me. And there I was, stuck right in the middle of it.

  I swallowed hard. The bridge shook more violently. Then I realized my trembling knees were making it vibrate.

  Just keep your eyes straight ahead, I ordered myself. Stay focused on Polly, Mom, and Dad. And keep walking. That’s the only way off the bridge—without getting wet!

  I approached the middle of the bridge. My heart pounded harder. The bridge sank even farther than I thought, dipping just a little into the moat.

  Water sloshed over my feet, soaking my sneakers. I gripped the handrails harder.

  I trudged on, teeth clenched, feeling the water swirl around my ankles.

  Then something caught my attention, just outside my view. What was it? I turned quickly to face it.

  Something black and triangular cut smoothly through the water.

  Is that a fin? I wondered. I thought of the horrible shark in my book. The black triangle disappeared behind me.

  Panic made my whole body shudder. I tried to calm down.

  There wouldn’t be a shark in the moat, I reassured myself. It would be too dangerous for the people at the resort. It had to be my imagination.

  But then I thought about Jaws. Nobody believed there was a shark there either. Not at first.

  I took five deep breaths to calm down. Then I started walking again. The other side of the moat grew closer. I was nearly there. I was going to make it across.

  “Tad! Look out!” Polly screamed.

  I heard a splash. Something behind me broke the surface of the water. Waves washed over my feet.

  The rickety bridge shook and swayed.

  I clung to the sides, desperately trying not to fall.

  I glanced over my shoulder.

  The biggest shark I had ever seen rose up out of the water. Its massive jaws opened, revealing a mouthful of deadly teeth.

  Then it lunged for me!

  2

  “Noooooooo!” I shrieked.

  Rows of razor-sharp teeth flashed in the sunlight. I let go of the handrails and covered my head. I backed up against one of the rope rails, trying to escape the shark. I held my breath, waiting for the sharp teeth to chomp down on me.

  Nothing happened.

  Did the shark sink back underwater? Did I frighten it with my scream? Or was it under the bridge, about to attack from the other side?

  I peeked between my fingers.

  The shark waited right in front of me now. Huge. Menacing. Awesome.

  And only inches from my face. It opened and shut its massive jaws. I froze. Was I going to be a shark snack?

  The jaws opened again.

  “Welcome to Club Lagoona!” a tinny voice said.

  Huh? A talking shark? I leaned forward. I could see a tiny speaker in the shark’s throat!

  “It’s time to get wet!” the shark added. A stream of water shot from its mouth. It squirted me in the face.

  Then the shark sank under the water again.

  It’s a robot fish! I realized. Of course! Like the ones they use in movies.

  I plastered a big smile on my face and tried to look casual. As if I hadn’t been faked out by a mechanical fish. I could hear Polly laughing hysterically as I dried my face on my T-shirt.

  “Get wet!” she shouted. She laughed so hard, she doubled over.

  I shot her my nastiest look.

  “Come on, Tad,” Dad called. “Quit clowning around. Let’s get checked in.”

  Checking in was the last thing I wanted to do. I was ready to turn around and head home.

  I joined my family at the entrance to the club. The building looked like a gigantic whale head. To get in, we had to walk into the whale’s wide-open mouth.

  Cute.

  Inside the whale’s mouth was the lobby of Club Lagoona. I had to admit, it was pretty amazing. Huge banana trees and coconut trees grew right up to the high glass roof. Red and blue parrots flew around free. Tiny green chameleons scampered among tropical plants.

  The reception desk stood in the center of the room. Polly, Mom, and Dad clustered at the desk. They were firing hundreds of questions at the receptionist.

  “Sign me up for scuba lessons and a trip on the glass-bottomed boat!” Polly requested.

  “Great!” the receptionist replied cheerfully. “And what about water-skiing?”

  “Sure!” Dad agreed. “Put me down for that!”

  I flopped into a chair beside the desk. It was shaped like an open clamshell. I wished it would just close up, and I could spend the rest of the vacation hiding inside. Not getting wet.

  “Tad?” Dad turned and glanced at me. “You want us to sign you up for all this great stuff?”

  “Sure,” I mumbled. “Put me down for everything.” Then I had an idea. “Hey, do you have soccer or basketball here?” I asked hopefully.

  “Sure do!” the receptionist bubbled.

  My hopes rose. I darted over to the desk, ready to sign up. Hooray! I would be able to avoid swimming after all.

  “Want me to put you down for Aqua Goals and Wet Hoops?” she asked.

  “Aqua Goals and Wet Hoops?” I repeated uncertainly.

  She laughed. “They’re the Club Lagoona version of soccer and basketball. We play in the pool! Even better than boring land games, because this way we can all—” She paused and gazed at my family.

  “Get wet!” they shouted in unison.

  Get me out of this place, I thought. My entire family is turning into a bunch of aqua-nuts.

  The receptionist lined us up for a photo. As soon as she snapped the camera, my family unfroze and began firing questions at her again. “I’m sure we have activities for all of you,” I heard her say as I wandered off.

  I explored the reception area. Maybe I would find something that didn’t involve water. The lobby floor was blue and white marble. Everything else—the walls, the decorations, even the Club Lagoona uniforms—was aqua. I felt as if I were already in the water just being there.

  Scattered around the walls were large color photographs of the attractions at the club. I found a picture of the Log Flume of Doom. It was really high. Really really high! Everyone in the picture looked as if they were screaming as they shot down the flume! Right into the deep pool below. Definitely one ride to avoid.

  Another picture was of the Creature Water Slide. It showed people riding tubes down an amazingly tall slide. The slide was shaped like a giant Loch Ness monster. Another no-no for me.

  Then I came to an aerial shot of the whole resort. It was huge. No doubt about it—I was definitely stuck on an island. Completely surrounded by water. And I could see that the moat circled the entire resort. No escape—except for the rickety rope bridge.

  I wandered through a doorway into a long hall. More photos lined the walls. I stared at them as I continued walking.

  “Oops! Excuse me,” I said as I collided with someone else. I turned to see who I bumped into. A very short man wearing a bright green jump suit stood in front of me. My nose wrinkled. I could smell chlorine. I figured that must be what he carried in his bucket.

  “It’s okay,” he said. He had bushy gray hair and nearly black eyes. He stared at me a minute. Then he peered around nervously. “I saw you on the rope bridge just n
ow,” he whispered.

  Oh, great. I sighed. People had seen the dorky way I acted on the bridge. I felt my face flush. “Pretty silly, huh?” I smiled weakly. “Being scared by a mechanical fish.”

  The man glanced around again. He stepped closer to me. “You’re not silly at all,” he assured me. He seemed nervous, as if he didn’t want anyone to overhear him. “This place is dangerous. Take my advice—watch out for the deep end!”

  “Huh?” What deep end? What was this guy talking about? I wondered.

  But before I could ask, the little man turned and hurried away. “Wait!” I called after him.

  Mom, Dad, and Polly rushed up to me. The little man disappeared around a corner.

  “All set, Tad,” Dad declared. “We signed you up for just about everything.”

  I nodded. But I wasn’t really listening. Instead, I thought about the little man’s warning. Could things really be dangerous around here?

  “That nice young woman at the desk took care of our luggage, so let’s check out the grounds,” Mom suggested. “I want to see the restaurant and the gym.”

  “I want to see everything!” Polly cheered.

  I trailed along behind them, but I kept thinking about the little man with the chlorine bucket. Who was he? Why did he look so nervous? Why should I watch out for the deep end? The deep end of what?

  I tried to imagine what there was to be afraid of. After all, the scary shark turned out to be mechanical. And Club Lagoona was a resort. A place for people to have fun.

  But something about the man bothered me. The way he whispered and kept glancing around. Why was he being so careful—as if he were letting me in on some sort of secret?

  “Tad, you’re not keeping up,” Mom called. “Don’t you want to explore with us?”

  I’d seen more than enough already. “I think I’ll find my room and unpack.” My family stared at me as if I were nuts. I guess they couldn’t imagine why anyone would want to be in a hotel room when they could be out getting wet.

  “My sneakers are soaked and my shirt’s wet from being sprayed by the shark,” I explained. “I figured I’d change my clothes.”

  “That’s probably a good idea,” Mom said. “We’ll find one another later.” She handed me a small map of the resort. Our rooms were marked with X’s. Then they rushed away.