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Deception in December (Fern Valley Mystery Book 2)

By Doreen McAvoy

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Chapter One

Will Abbott pedaled home, brooding over his basketball team’s first loss. He was disappointed in himself. He had not played well, leaving his friend, Brandon, to pick up the slack. With Jack and Micky away this weekend, the team really needed me. I must do better.
As he passed the park, a strange shape jolted Will from his thoughts. He skidded to a stop. Backing, he glanced around the darkened street for a witness to confirm he was not imagining the gigantic animal standing on the playground in front of him. There was only one car parked under a flickering streetlamp. Will couldn’t tell if the old jalopy was occupied. Probably not. Who would be out on such a cold night? The temperature felt more like January than the end of November.
He fumbled for his phone and tried to work the camera through gloved fingers. No luck. He kept his eyes trained on the animal, ready to bolt if necessary. As he struggled to pull a glove off with his teeth, the phone slipped through his other hand, bounced off his bike, and hit the pavement. Crack. Startled, the massive head swung around, eyes locking with Will’s. Will’s heart pounded. He calculated the distance to the safety of the jungle gym. But instead of charging, the creature turned and loped off toward the woods. With one swift motion, Will reached down, scooped up his phone, and snapped an off-balance picture.
Will peered at his phone but, in the darkness, couldn’t see anything—except he was going to be in trouble when his mother found out the screen was shattered. He had just gotten the phone in September for his thirteenth birthday. Bummer. He slipped the phone in his pocket and sped the rest of the way home, eager to see the picture he had captured. He threw open the front door and a gust of cold air came rushing in with him, drawing a frown from his twin sister, Wendy. He leaped over the back of the couch, scattering papers everywhere, and displacing their dog, Buster, who had been curled up next to her.
“Will,” she yelled. “My homework!”
“Look,” he said, ignoring her displeasure. “Look at this.”
She looked over his shoulder. “Oh no … your screen,” she said in dismay.
“No—the picture.”
Wendy squinted, trying to make out the image behind the spidery web of cracks. She shrugged. “That’s a deer.”
“No.” He pushed at her. “Look closely.”
She sighed and held the phone to the light. “A big deer?”
“No, I saw a moose.” Will reached for the phone but froze when he saw Wendy’s big green eyes widen.
Mrs. Abbott came in from the kitchen. “What did you say about a moose?”
“Oh … uh … I saw a moose tonight,” Will said as Wendy quickly slipped the phone between the couch cushions. “… at the park … near the slide, and then I—I guess I made a noise, and the moose ran off into the woods.”
“You’re lucky the animal didn’t turn on you, Will,” his mother said.
Wendy looked incredulous. “You really believe him? How could there be a moose in Fern Valley?”
“Moose have come down from the mountains. In fact, I saw one myself in Fern Valley when I was about your age.”
“Where?”
“I was at the same park with friends—but we almost weren’t as lucky as you, Will. One of the guys decided to taunt the moose, and the poor creature charged us.”
“Sounds like a stunt Boris would pull,” Wendy said, referring to her and Will’s brutish eighth grade classmate, “Beefy” Boris Bobrick.
Will nodded, his blue eyes round. “What did you do?”
“We scattered. I ran up the slide and stayed there until the moose ran into the woods.” She bent and started picking up the papers. “You should ask your friend Betsy if her Uncle Jerry ever mentioned the story. I’m pretty sure he was with us.”
“Was he the one who got too close?” Will asked.
“No, that was … someone else.” Mrs. Abbott handed the papers to Wendy. “Oh well, too bad you didn’t get a picture.”
Will waited until she left the room before diving into the cushions for his phone. “I can’t believe you don’t—”
“Forget the moose,” Wendy said. “You’re not going to believe what I have to tell you.” She leaned closer and lowered her voice. “We played Maple Grove today and—”
“Did you win?”
“Yes, thanks to Ava. She made a three-point shot at the buzzer.”
Will grinned and pumped his fist. The basketball rivalry between Fern Valley and neighboring Maple Grove was legendary. Knowing his friend, Ava Flores, made the winning basket softened the sting of his own team’s loss.
“Anyway, I was guarding this girl on Maple Grove, and she was staring me down—you know, trying to intimidate me.”
Will chuckled. “What did you do?”
“Well, I stole her pass, but I noticed something unusual.” Wendy lowered her voice to a whisper. “She had one blue eye and one brown eye.”
Will gasped. “She’s a Mayfield.”

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