The Super Secret. Melissa Perry Moraja

she suggested, looking at me.

      I smiled—and just as I was about to say okay, my ears started to tingle. Then I heard this static sound, as if a radio were lodged in it. Within seconds, my ears picked up on the sound of a car rounding the corner of our street. “Dad’s home,” I said.

      Mom looked at me, confused. Then she glanced at the clock above our oven. It was six o’clock, which was the time that Dad usually came home.

      Madison carefully handed Max to me and then ran to the side door leading out to the garage. She opened the door.

      “Huh?” she said, giving me a weird look. “Dad’s not here.”

      “Duh. It’s because he just pulled into our driveway,” I said.

      The garage door opened.

      Madison’s face turned pale.

      “How did you know Dad was home before he was really home?” asked Madison.

      Everyone turned and looked at me.

      How did I hear Dad’s car? I thought.

      Then Mom said, “Josh, stop teasing your sister and take Max upstairs so Dad doesn’t get an unexpected surprise before I get a chance to talk with him.”

      Not giving it another thought, I bolted upstairs with the bird. Jake and Madison followed.

      The three of us stayed in my bedroom the rest of the evening, hanging with Max. Every now and then, we tiptoed out to the stairs, trying to eavesdrop on our parents’ conversation. But none of us were able to hear a word they said.

       CHAPTER 4

      Spider for Breakfast

      The next morning, I woke up and, to my surprise, Dad was sitting on the edge of my bed with Max snuggled in his huge hands.

      I gulped in air. My stomach felt unsettled as I gazed into Dad’s dark brown eyes.

      “So, Mom tells me you found this little guy in the wild,” he said in a deep serious tone.

      I almost choked on my spit, I was so nervous. I cleared my throat and replied, “Yes, sir.”

      As Dad was talking about why wild animals shouldn’t be pets, my ears started to tingle and then I heard that static sound just like I did the night before. I couldn’t help but tune in. The sound was unfamiliar and was coming from the far corner of my bedroom window. Max must have heard it too because his little head turned in the same direction. Both of our eyes zoomed in on a small black spider making its way down my window.

      Klee klee! Klee klee! Max called.

      “Hey, little guy. What’s wrong?” Dad asked, petting his head.