R. L. Stine_Mostly Ghostly 07 (9 page)

I stuck my tongue out and made a loud spitting noise at them.

Oh no!
Why did I do that?

“Sorry,” I said. I tugged the headphones off.

“Max? How do you feel?” Dr. Smollet asked. He stepped over to my stool and took the headphones from me. “Are you okay?”

“I guess,” I said. “I don't feel very different.”

“Oh, thank goodness!” Tara cried.

“Hoo hoo hoo,” I said.

Huh? Monkey noises?

Dr. Smollet smiled and nodded. “I think the transfer is working,” he said.

“I still feel like me,” I said. “I don't really feel hoo hoo hoo very different.”

I tested my memory. I remembered my name … my address … my phone number.

Yes! I was still Max Doyle.

The brains didn't switch. I was still
me!

I suddenly thought about lunch. Would there be a banana?

Dr. Smollet kept smiling at me. “Success! I'm
very pleased,” he said. “It will take a short while for the chimp's brain to settle into Max's brain. But when it does—”

“Hoo hoooo,” I said, hopping up and down on the tall stool. “Hoo hoo hooo.”

“When the brain settles down,” Dr. Smollet continued, “Mr. Harvey will be able to tell us— through Max—everything he saw.”

“Hoo,” I said, nodding. I reached out one hand and worked at removing a piece of fuzz from Tara's shirt.

“Max, do you feel totally weird?” Nicky asked.

I hopped up and down. “Hoo hoo,” I said. “Yeah. Kinda weird. It's like there's someone else in here with me.”

Dr. Smollet picked up the chimp. “Mr. Harvey seems a little dazed,” he said. “I'm going to take him to the kitchen over there and give him something to eat.”

He turned and started walking toward a white door at the far end of the lab. Mr. Harvey waved to us over Dr. Smollet's shoulder.

“When I come back, we'll question Max,” Dr. Smollet said. “At last, you two kids will have some answers!”

He and the chimp disappeared into the kitchen.

Nicky and Tara had big grins on their faces. They were practically hopping up and down too.

“Max, this is so
awesome
!” Tara cried. “You're going to tell us what happened to our family. And maybe you can tell us how to be alive again!”

“Thanks, dude!” Nicky said. He slapped me a high five.

“Wish Mom and Dad were here,” Tara said.

“Hoo hoo,” I replied. I suddenly wanted to scratch my chest.

I struggled to think clearly. “You know, I still hoo hoo feel like me,” I said. My voice came out scratchy and high. “And I still think like me,” I told them. “But … I want a banana really badly.”

Nicky and Tara laughed. They thought I was joking.

I shut my eyes for a moment and thought really hard.

Was the chimp's brain really inside mine? If so, why did I still think like me?

Yes, I was making chimp sounds. And yes, I had some chimp feelings.

But what about the chimp memories? What about the things Mr. Harvey was supposed to reveal to Nicky and Tara? Were those memories inside my head?

“Max, why are your eyes closed?” Nicky asked.

“What is it?” Tara demanded. “Are you okay? What are you thinking about?”

Good question.

I was thinking about bananas. And about scratching myself.

But
what else?

Where were the important chimp memories?

Where was the important information?

“Uh-oh,” I murmured. A wave of dread swept over me, making me feel heavy and cold.

“Hoo hoo,” I said. “Something is wrong, guys. Something is
terribly
wrong.”

T
HEY STARED AT ME
with their mouths open.

I struggled to think clearly. If only I had a banana. Or maybe some grapes.

I suddenly had to go to the bathroom. Should I do it in my pants?

“Hoo hoo,” I said.

I shook my head hard. No time for monkey talk. I had to tell Nicky and Tara what I was thinking.

“Listen, guys,” I said in my scratchy voice. “Something is very wrong. Hoo hoo. The chimp brain is inside me. I can hoo hoo feel it.”

“Yes?” Tara asked. “And?”

I reached up to her hair and started to work my fingers through it, grooming her, searching for fleas. She pulled my arm away gently. “Max, what are you trying to say?”

“The chimp brain is
empty!”
I cried. I started hopping furiously up and down. “Hoo hoo!”

“I—I don't understand,” Nicky said. “What do you mean?”

“Give him a chance,” Tara scolded her brother. “He's part chimp. It takes him time to get the words out.”

I took a deep breath. “The brain is empty,” I said, speaking slowly, forcing myself to concentrate. “It doesn't have any memories. There are no memories of you or your family.”

“No way!” Tara cried. “You're just not thinking right, Max.”

“There's nothing to think about,” I said. “Hoo hoo hoo. I want a banana really badly. That's my only thought. Don't you see? Something is wrong. I have chimp thoughts—but no memories at all!”

I jumped down from the stool. I started toward the kitchen.

“Where are you going?” Tara cried. She and Nicky hurried after me.

I was lumbering from side to side, like a chimp.

“Don't panic, Max,” Tara said. “Dr. Smollet will be able to get the memories from your brain. You have to wait for him.”

“Hoo hoo,” I said. “There's something weird going on.”

I wobbled across the lab to the kitchen. Nicky and Tara ran close behind me.

I pulled open the door and we stepped inside.

No one there. An empty room.

And it wasn't a kitchen. It was an empty closet. With an open door at the other end.

“Dr. Smollet!” Nicky and Tara both shouted. “Dr. Smollet! Where are you?”

No answer.

All I could hear were the shrieks and cries of the lab animals far down the hall.

“Dr. Smollet? Dr. Smollet?”

We ran up and down the long halls, searching for him, shouting his name.

No answer.

“Hoo hoo,” I said, hopping up and down angrily. “He and Mr. Harvey have run away!”

T
HE WORDS MADE ME
dizzy. I sank onto the floor. I shook my head sadly.

“He … he took my brain,” I whispered. “I … I'm half chimpanzee!”

Nicky and Tara dropped down beside me. “We'll find him,” Tara said. “Don't worry, Max. We'll search the whole town if we have to.”

“We'll get the rest of your brain back,” Nicky said.

I felt sick. My stomach tightened into a knot. I didn't even want a banana anymore.

My brain. Part of my brain was inside that chimp. And part of his brain was inside me.

I didn't understand. Was it some kind of evil trick?

What if we never saw Dr. Smollet again? Would I be forced to spend the rest of my life as Max the Incredible Monkey Boy?

“No,” I murmured. “No, no, no. Hoo hoo. This can't be happening to me.”

I glanced at my watch. “I'm late!” I cried,
jumping up. “I'm late for my tryout with Ballan-tine!”

Nicky and Tara helped me up. “We'll get you to the audition,” Tara said. “Don't worry.”

“Hoooo,” I said. I started picking at one of Tara's ears. Why couldn't I keep my hands off her head?

“I'm half chimp,” I wailed. “How can I do my tricks?”

“Just act like everything is okay,” Nicky said. “I'll bet no one even notices.”

“Yeah, right,” I said, rolling my eyes. “Halfway through my tricks, I'll start picking through Ballantine's hair!”

“He'll think it's part of the act,” Tara said.

We walked down the long white halls. I could hear animals shrieking and crying on all sides. I wanted to sit down and cry too.

My brain. My beautiful, awesome brain was half chimp.

Nicky and Tara shouted Dr. Smollet's name all the way down the hall again.

Still no reply.

The front door stood wide open. Dr. Smollet and Mr. Harvey must have run out—in a very big hurry to get away.

But why?

Why run off and leave me like this?

“Go to the magic store and do your best,” Tara
said. “Nicky and I will search this whole town. We won't give up until we find Dr. Smollet and that chimp. We'll get your brain back, Max. I promise.”

“Yes, we both promise,” Nicky said.

Why didn't their promise cheer me up?

I had to go home to get my magic kit. We climbed onto the Miller Street bus and walked all the way to the back.

“Hoo hoo,” I said, shaking my head sadly.

Nicky and Tara sat down with their heads lowered, their hands clasped tightly in their laps. All three of us felt sick with worry. We didn't feel like talking.

A few blocks later, the driver suddenly stopped the bus. He climbed out of his seat and walked to the back. “Young man,” he called. “Would you please stop swinging on the poles?”

Oops.

“Sorry,” I muttered. I let go of the pole and dropped down beside Nicky and Tara. I didn't even realize I was swinging.

“Hoo hoo hoo,” I said.

The driver stared at me for a long time. “Do you kids think you're funny?” he snarled.

“Hoo,” I said.

“You know who,” he snapped. “You, that's who.”

“Hoo,” I said.

Shaking his head, he walked back to the front
and started the bus up. I wanted to swing some more. But Nicky and Tara held me down.

“You'll be okay, Max,” Tara said softly. “I promise. You'll be perfectly okay.”

Of course she was wrong.

M
OM DROVE ME TO
the magic store. I sat beside her and stared straight ahead. I gripped my magic kit tightly in my lap.

“You're very quiet today,” Mom said.

“Hoo,” I replied.

“Who? You!” She laughed. “Are you worried about the famous magician?”

“Hoo,” I said.

“You know. Ballantine,” she replied.

“I'm a little tense,” I managed to say. I put my lips together and made a loud, juicy spitting noise.

“After your tryout, I'll drive you straight to Traci's party,” Mom said.

I made another spitting noise.

“The party won't be that bad,” Mom said, pulling into a parking space. “I thought you had a crush on Traci Wayne.”

“Hoo,” I said.

“Ha, ha. Very funny,” Mom replied, rolling her eyes. “You're in a very weird mood.”

Well, yeah, Mom. You see, I've never been half chimpanzee before!

That's what I wanted to say. But of course I didn't.

I thanked her for the ride and climbed out of the car. Again, there was a big crowd around the magic store. The line of magicians stretched down the block. I wobbled my way to the back of the line.

Luckily, I had packed a couple of bananas and a few tangerines in my magic kit to keep up my energy. The woman in front of me had long red hair. I wanted to groom it for her. But somehow I managed to keep my hands to myself.

The line moved up slowly.

I couldn't help myself. I hopped up and down and shouted, “Hoo hoo hoo!”

The red-haired magician spun around. “What's your problem, kid?” she asked.

I shrugged. “Just warming up my voice,” I said. I picked a piece of lint off her poncho. Then I pulled back my lips and flashed her a toothy grin.