visited.
âWell, you know, Plainfield sounds like a safe place. Where I live, it isnât safe. Vultures are ready to eat your flesh. Vines are ready to tangle you in their grasp. You know, the usual.â
âAre you trying to scare me?â Betty asked knowingly.
âWhat! Of course not! Who do you think I am?â But Amber didnât say anything frightening anymore.
âWell, to get to the Mountains of the Old, we have to cross a bridge, row down a river, and get across a volcano,â Amber said, desperately trying to keep her voice steady. Even though Amber made it sound like it was nothing, Betty knew that it wasnât going to be that easy. It was never easy.
âOkay,â Betty said, and her tummy growled. âAmber, um, could we eat first?â Betty asked.
âI have some food in the kitchen. By the way, let me get you another pair of clothes. I donât think pajamas will be able to withstand all that weâre going to go through,â Amber said disdainfully, staring down at the freaky girl with smiley-face lounge pants. She went inside the house, leaving the map and bag lying on the floor of the balcony. Reluctantly, Betty followed. She hadnât had time to explore the kitchen, but she wasnât going to underestimate itâafter all, the rest of Amberâs house was pretty cool.
Once in the kitchen, Betty realized it was decorated like a rainforest. A green tablecloth covered a wide table that seated four, and what seemed to be like real tree branches covered the cabinets. A picture of a toucan was stuck on the wall.
âWow, this is amazing!â Betty said, her mouth open in wonder.
Amber didnât say anything but gave a small smile as she climbed on a white stepstool that had been hidden in the pantry. She pulled out some bread and a jar of red paste from the cupboard. She smeared the red paste on the long loaf of bread and then reached for her dagger, which was on the belt around her waist. She sliced the bread into two, put the two pieces on separate plates and carried them to the table.
Betty knew what was being served since she had read the first Amber book. The reddish paste was alligator jelly and the bread was, thankfully, just bread. Amber stuffed the bread with the paste in her mouth like she hadnât eaten in years. Betty, however, closely inspected the food and then seeing how much Amber had liked it, she put some of it in her mouth too. It was disgusting, like, well, how you would expect alligator jelly on bread to taste, if you could even expect anything at all. Betty wasnât going to complainâher comment might be insulting to Amber. However, there was awkward silence, and Betty felt like saying something.
âUm, itâs really good!â Betty finally blurted out. It was only a tiny lie, right? That couldnât do much harm .
âWhy donât you eat some more,â Amber suggested. Uh-oh. Maybe it could .
âIâm full,â Betty lied. She was still hungry, but would rather eat one of her momâs vegetable-loaded sandwiches instead of what she had just been served.
âYou just ate one bite though. You said you were hungry,â Amber said.
âWell, yes I was. But that one bite was just so filling.â Betty then handed Amber the rest of her food.
âOh, okay,â Amber said, and with that she stuffed the terrible bread with jelly in her mouth.
Once finished, Amber said, âIâm going upstairs.â
âIâll come too,â Betty suggested, but then she felt the urge to throw up. It was the alligator jelly, as little as she had eaten. In the small kitchen it was easy to run to the sink. Betty pulled the handle, ready for the cool water. But none came. Now she really needed water. Fast. Betty ran outside. Her search for refreshing water was rewardedâshe saw a well made of stone. It was no taller than she was. She reeled the bucket down and then back up, glad her
âWell, you know, Plainfield sounds like a safe place. Where I live, it isnât safe. Vultures are ready to eat your flesh. Vines are ready to tangle you in their grasp. You know, the usual.â
âAre you trying to scare me?â Betty asked knowingly.
âWhat! Of course not! Who do you think I am?â But Amber didnât say anything frightening anymore.
âWell, to get to the Mountains of the Old, we have to cross a bridge, row down a river, and get across a volcano,â Amber said, desperately trying to keep her voice steady. Even though Amber made it sound like it was nothing, Betty knew that it wasnât going to be that easy. It was never easy.
âOkay,â Betty said, and her tummy growled. âAmber, um, could we eat first?â Betty asked.
âI have some food in the kitchen. By the way, let me get you another pair of clothes. I donât think pajamas will be able to withstand all that weâre going to go through,â Amber said disdainfully, staring down at the freaky girl with smiley-face lounge pants. She went inside the house, leaving the map and bag lying on the floor of the balcony. Reluctantly, Betty followed. She hadnât had time to explore the kitchen, but she wasnât going to underestimate itâafter all, the rest of Amberâs house was pretty cool.
Once in the kitchen, Betty realized it was decorated like a rainforest. A green tablecloth covered a wide table that seated four, and what seemed to be like real tree branches covered the cabinets. A picture of a toucan was stuck on the wall.
âWow, this is amazing!â Betty said, her mouth open in wonder.
Amber didnât say anything but gave a small smile as she climbed on a white stepstool that had been hidden in the pantry. She pulled out some bread and a jar of red paste from the cupboard. She smeared the red paste on the long loaf of bread and then reached for her dagger, which was on the belt around her waist. She sliced the bread into two, put the two pieces on separate plates and carried them to the table.
Betty knew what was being served since she had read the first Amber book. The reddish paste was alligator jelly and the bread was, thankfully, just bread. Amber stuffed the bread with the paste in her mouth like she hadnât eaten in years. Betty, however, closely inspected the food and then seeing how much Amber had liked it, she put some of it in her mouth too. It was disgusting, like, well, how you would expect alligator jelly on bread to taste, if you could even expect anything at all. Betty wasnât going to complainâher comment might be insulting to Amber. However, there was awkward silence, and Betty felt like saying something.
âUm, itâs really good!â Betty finally blurted out. It was only a tiny lie, right? That couldnât do much harm .
âWhy donât you eat some more,â Amber suggested. Uh-oh. Maybe it could .
âIâm full,â Betty lied. She was still hungry, but would rather eat one of her momâs vegetable-loaded sandwiches instead of what she had just been served.
âYou just ate one bite though. You said you were hungry,â Amber said.
âWell, yes I was. But that one bite was just so filling.â Betty then handed Amber the rest of her food.
âOh, okay,â Amber said, and with that she stuffed the terrible bread with jelly in her mouth.
Once finished, Amber said, âIâm going upstairs.â
âIâll come too,â Betty suggested, but then she felt the urge to throw up. It was the alligator jelly, as little as she had eaten. In the small kitchen it was easy to run to the sink. Betty pulled the handle, ready for the cool water. But none came. Now she really needed water. Fast. Betty ran outside. Her search for refreshing water was rewardedâshe saw a well made of stone. It was no taller than she was. She reeled the bucket down and then back up, glad her
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