1
“I mean . . . seriously. Money. Actual money.”
Lisa Marie breathed out and watched her breath form clouds of condensation in the air. She’d been doing the same thing for the whole walk into town. It was either that or listen to her big brother’s incessant moaning.
She liked that word. Incessant. It meant “going on and on and on.” Big words were one of Lisa Marie’s favorite things, along with science, reading and chip-shop curry sauce (although not necessarily in that order).
Vernon had only been her big brother for a year, but Lisa Marie had already worked out that his favorite things were complaining, moaning and whining. Again, not necessarily in that order.
“I don’t see why I’ve got to buy him a birthday present,” Vernon grumbled. “He’s not my dad.”
Lisa Marie wheezed out another cloud of white vapor. It’s not fair, she silently mouthed.
“It’s not fair!”
“Well . . . ,” Lisa Marie began, but Vernon was still mid-rant.
“I mean, he’s all right, I like him and everything, but why do I have to use my own money to buy him a present?”
“You aren’t using your own money,” Lisa Marie pointed out. “Mom gave you twenty dollars.”
“Exactly. She gave it to me, so now it’s mine,” Vernon said. “I mean, that’s just science, or whatever.”
Lisa Marie decided not to bother pointing out that (A) no, that wasn’t science, actually, and (B) Mom had given him the money specifically so he could buy his stepdad a present. Arguing with Vernon was like trying to reason with a plank of wood.
Instead, she went back to breathing vapor clouds and looking in the windows of all the shops they walked past.
Tonight was Halloween, and almost every shop was decorated with black, orange and green displays. Some of them had fake cobwebs covering their shelves, or plastic bats dangling from elastic at the top of the windows.
“What about that?” Vernon asked, pointing at one of the windows. A flimsy plastic skeleton hung from a hook, its arms limp by its sides. “I bet he’d love that.”
Lisa Marie frowned. To the best of her knowledge, Dad had never displayed any interest in skeletons, plastic or otherwise. It was only when she saw the price tag that her stepbrother’s suggestion made sense.
“And you’re not just saying that because it’s ninety-nine cents?” she asked.
“Is it?” Vernon asked, trying to sound surprised. “I hadn’t even noticed. That’s a bonus, isn’t it?”
Vernon’s mom had offered Lisa Marie the same amount of money she’d given Vernon, but Lisa Marie had wanted to use her own. It felt like the gift would mean more that way.
“Wait! Be quiet!” Vernon hissed.
“I wasn’t saying anything,” Lisa Marie pointed out, but Vernon had spotted something up ahead and broken into a run, leaving her talking to herself.
She caught up with him outside her favorite shop. Create-a-Ted was a store that let you make your own teddy bears, dress them and take them home. Lisa Marie had built up quite a collection over the years, all in different costumes. The Arctic Explorer bear was her favorite, and took pride of place on the shelf above her bed.
She was surprised to see Vernon standing looking in the window, because he usually hurried past the place making heaving noises like he was throwing up.
There were two signs in the window. One of them was small and a bit upsetting.
It read: under new ownership.
Lisa Marie had always liked Mr. and Mrs. Chang, the shop’s owners. They were a friendly old couple who sometimes let her use the stuffing machine herself. She wished she’d known they were leaving. She’d have made them a Good Luck card.
The other sign was much larger, and was still in the process of being pasted onto the inside of the glass.
free halloween bear--today only!
“Look. Free!” Vernon said. “That’s even better than ninety-nine cents!”
“I know!” Lisa Marie said. She frowned. “Wait, what are you saying?”
“Your dad’s birthday. I can get him a free bear. Boom. Job done. Mom said I could keep the change.” He grinned. “So twenty bucks minus one free bear is . . .”
There was a moment of silence. Lisa Marie sighed.
“Twenty bucks.”
“Right. Exactly!” Vernon said.
“You want to get a forty-two-year-old man a teddy bear for his birthday?” Lisa Marie asked.
“Yes! Who doesn’t love teddy bears?” Vernon said. “Except me, obviously. I think they’re stupid. Bleurgh! But your dad will love one.”
On the other side of the glass, a youngish-looking man with thick-rimmed glasses leaned out from behind the sign. He jumped in fright when he spotted the two children staring at him, then smiled and beckoned them in.
Vernon raced inside, sending the bell above the door into a frenzy of ding-a-ling-lings. Lisa Marie followed and immediately let out a gasp of shock. The shop had completely changed inside, and not for the better.
All the colorful displays of fully stuffed bears had been shoved into one corner. A tarpaulin had been draped in front of the Costumes & Accessories section, hiding all the adorable little bear outfits.
A large cardboard box had been dumped in the middle of the floor. Someone had written FREE HALLOWEEN STUFF in marker on the side of the box, and Lisa Marie could see vampire capes, devil tridents and other spooky accessories piled up inside.
“Hello!” cried the man. He was dressed in black and hopped from foot to foot as if he desperately needed to find the bathroom. “You’re my first customers. How exciting is that?!”
“Amazing,” Vernon said, but he didn’t sound like he meant it. “We want a free bear.
Lisa Marie rolled her eyes. “Sorry about him,” she said. She held out a hand for the shopkeeper to shake. “What happened to the Changs?”
“The what?” the shopkeeper asked.
“The previous owners,” Lisa Marie answered. “Mr. and Mrs. Chang.”
“Oh, them! Yes. They, uh, they retired,” said the man.
“They didn’t mention anything,” Lisa Marie said.
The shopkeeper shrugged. “I think it was quite sudden.”
“Oh, I see. Well, I’m Lisa Marie. Maybe they told you about me?”
“Warned you about her, more like,” Vernon muttered.
“Uh, hi. I’m Josh,” the man replied, shaking Lisa Marie’s hand. “And no. No, I can’t say they did.”
Lisa Marie felt a twinge of disappointment at this. “Oh. Okay, then,” she said. “Well, I’m a regular here. And I used to re-solder the wiring on the tumble turner whenever it came loose.”
Josh blinked. “Do what to the what?”
“The tumble turner,” Lisa Marie said, pointing to the machine in the corner. “The stuffing machine. I used to fix it.”
“Right! Yes. The tumble thing. Good. Well, then I’m very pleased to meet you, Lisa Marie,” Josh...
