Excerpts

Chapter 1 "Hey, check that out," Teo said. Logan looked down the sidewalk, squinting in the blinding summer sun. Outwardly, Logan and Teo were opposites-he was short and stocky, with blond surfer-boy hair and pale skin, while Teo was tall and willowy, with brown skin and short ink-black hair. They'd been best friends since the third grade, when she'd stopped Robby Thomas from sticking Logan's head through the monkey bars. Again. "What is it?" he asked, shielding his eyes. "I think it's a stroller," she said. "How did a stroller end up on the side of the road?" "Ooh, maybe there's a baby inside!" Logan sighed. Teo always hoped for things to be more exciting than they actually were. In their small town of Raven Hollow, she was usually disappointed. "Right," he said. "I'm sure someone just abandoned their baby." They walked over to the stroller. It was empty. "It probably fell off a truck when someone was moving," Logan said. "Or maybe they threw it away on purpose," Teo said mysteriously. "Why toss it? This looks almost new." She chewed her lip. "I guess. Hey, there's a name on it-Dankworth." She scrunched up her nose as she pulled out her phone and began typing. "Sounds like the smell of a swampy-butt diaper." A few moments later, she looked up. "Got it." "Got what?" "An address. Only one Dankworth in town. It's not far. Maybe we should return this." "But what about the pool?" Logan whined. It was sweltering, and he'd already put on sunscreen to keep from turning into Lobster Boy. Their plan to swim at the community center sounded a lot better than pushing a random stroller across town. "Come on, Logan. It'll be an adventure." He rolled his eyes. "What could possibly be adventurous about an empty stroller?" Chapter 2 The Dankworths' house was small but well-kept, though the front lawn was overgrown and full of dandelions. Logan stayed with the stroller beside the porch steps while Teo knocked on the front door. It opened abruptly. A young man with bags under his eyes and a short, ragged-looking beard stood in the doorway. "What do you want?" he demanded. "Uh . . . um . . . Mr. Dankworth?" Teo said. Her normal confidence was shaken by the man's harsh tone. "We . . . uh . . . found your stroller and just wanted to bring it back." He looked confused for a moment before glancing past her to where Logan stood with the stroller. Logan gave an awkward wave. Mr. Dankworth didn't look irritated anymore. He looked angry. Without another word, he slammed the door in Teo's face. She raised an eyebrow at Logan. "That was weird," he said. She walked down the steps. "And super rude." "Think we should leave it?" "I may have picked up on an I-don't-want-it vibe." "Observant of you." The door opened again, and a young woman stepped onto the porch, closing the door softly behind her. She was pale and looked like she hadn't slept in a week. "I'm sorry, kids. My husband . . . he's having a difficult time. We both are." The woman noticed the stroller. Then she put her face in her hands and began to sob. Teo looked at Logan, her eyes wide. He shifted uncomfortably. He never knew what to do when people cried, especially grown-ups. "Are you . . . okay?" he asked, then winced. Obviously not, Sherlock. "Sorry." The woman sniffed, wiping her face with her sleeve. "I didn't mean to fall apart on you. Been doing that a lot lately." "Do you need help?" Teo asked tentatively. Mrs. Dankworth's lip trembled, and Logan felt his stomach clench. He was afraid she was about to start crying again. "You can't help," she said. "It's our baby . . . She was stolen." Chapter 3 Logan stared at Mrs. Dankworth in stunned confusion. "Stolen? What do you mean?" "Our daughter, Ellie, was taken from our nursery," she said. "That's terrible," Teo said. "But I'm sure the police will find her." The woman shook her head. "They don't have any leads. No call for ransom. Nothing. She just vanished one night." Mrs. Dankworth glanced at the stroller, then looked quickly away. "The stroller was too painful a reminder." "So that's why you left it on the side of the road?" Logan asked. "It was rattling in the back of our van when I was driving, making me think of Ellie. I couldn't take it anymore, so I stopped and threw it out." Teo hesitated before saying almost apologetically, "Technically, that's littering." Logan cringed. Sometimes that girl just couldn't help herself. Mrs. Dankworth gave Teo a long, blank stare. Finally, she climbed the porch steps and said, "Thanks for being thoughtful, but please, take it away." "We're really sorry-" Logan began, but the woman closed the door behind her. As he stared at the house, a chill seeped into his stomach. "Wow, that is seriously awful," Teo said. "And strange. I mean, who steals a baby?" "So what do we do with the stroller? It's too nice to trash it." "My cousin Gabby is still a baby. Maybe my aunt Roslyn can use it." Logan called his aunt, but she didn't need one and suggested they donate it to the thrift store. They walked to Crawly Street and left the stroller at the drop-off door behind the shop. Eager to escape the heat, they wandered inside, skimming used paperbacks and looking at peculiar paintings. Teo caught Logan sniffing a book. One of her eyebrows arched so high it disappeared behind her bangs. "What?" he asked. "I like the smell of old books." She turned away, muttering, "You are so weird." When they walked outside, Teo grabbed Logan's arm and pointed. In the store window was a flyer with the photo of a baby. The caption said the child was missing and pleaded for information. "Sound familiar?" Teo asked. "But the last name's not Dankworth," Logan said. "It's a different family. So there are two missing babies in town?" A shiver ran through him as he thought of his seven-year-old sister, Meg. Hardly a baby, but still . . . "What's going on?" "I don't know," Teo said with a determined gleam in her eye. "But we're going to find out." Chapter 4 The creature stretched its long arms and sat up, blinking sleepily. Shafts of sunlight streamed through a rift in the cave ceiling, filling the chamber with a soft golden glow. Turning its back to the light, the creature lay down again and shifted to a more comfortable position on the rocky floor. A few feet away, a sharp cry rang out, then faded to a gurgling murmur. The creature did not stir. When the heat faded and the darkness came, it would rise. That was its favorite time to hunt. Chapter 5 Teo sat at her bedroom desk with her laptop open, while Logan sprawled on a beanbag chair with his phone. They were scrolling through internet search results for "who steals babies?" They came across a news report on the missing babies in Raven Hollow, but it had very little information, quoting the police as saying, "The investigation is ongoing." Teo read another article and snorted in disgust. "Did you know some women pretend to be pregnant, then steal babies just to keep their boyfriend or husband from leaving them? No offense, but you all aren't worth it." "No argument from me," Logan said. "Looks like it sometimes happens with carjacking too. The thief doesn't realize there's a baby in the back seat." "Most of the stories I'm seeing are about babies being taken from public places-parks, train stations, carnivals, that kind of thing." "Yeah, and when it happens at a house, it's usually during the day by someone who befriended the parents so they can steal the baby. Talk about creepy." Logan tossed his phone onto Teo's bed. "I'm hungry. Let's raid your dad's snack cupboard." When Teo didn't respond, he threw a pillow at her head. She glared at him. "Can I help you?" "Pay attention to me." "Logan. We're talking about missing babies here. This is serious." "Yeah, but come on, we're twelve. The police can handle this." "Not according to Mrs. Dankworth. No leads, remember?" He sighed. "Okay, but I can't search on an empty stomach." "Fine. There's a bag of Doritos in the pantry." Logan went to the kitchen and grabbed the chips. And an apple. And some cheese sticks. And a box of cookies. Teo's eyes remained glued to her computer as Logan dumped the food onto her desk. On the screen was a picture of a white room with a row of babies in small, clear-sided beds. "Looks like an alien abduction photo," Logan said. "Hey, maybe that's what happened. The kids were sucked up in a beam of light by Martians." Teo gave him a disapproving look. "This isn't a joke." "I know that," he said, his lips now stained with Dorito dust. "Just trying to lighten the mood. So what's that photo?" "It's a maternity ward. I read a story about a woman who stole a newborn from a hospital by posing as a nurse. Can you imagine giving birth and then having someone steal your baby?" "I definitely can't imagine giving birth. And I don't want to, so no details. But yeah, losing your kid like that would be awful." "There are more stories like this one. Apparently, it's happened a lot." She closed her laptop and stood. "I think we should check it out." "Check whut owt?" Logan said with a cheese stick hanging from his mouth like a giraffe's tongue. "Raven Hollow General." Logan's cheesy tongue drooped. "You want to go to the hospital? And what, walk into the maternity ward and say, 'Hey, Doc, lost any babies lately?'" "No," she said in a frosty tone. "I'll be more subtle." "You're about as subtle as an angry moose." She crossed her arms. "Are you coming or not?" Logan hesitated before blowing out a breath. When Teo got an idea in her head, she was like a shark on chum. "Fine. But then we hit the arcade. It's summer break. We're supposed to be having fun." "Solving mysteries is fun." "I guess. But remember, Nancy Drew-this is one case we are not gonna solve." Chapter 6 "So do we just, like, walk in?" Logan asked, nervously eyeing the building entrance as they locked up their bikes. He'd always found hospitals intimidating. They were filled with doctors in white coats, strange equipment, and lots of sick people. It gave him the creeps. "Follow my lead," Teo said. "And try not to act too . . . Logany." She strode to the door before he could think of a reply. Grumbling, he hurried after her. The lobby was pleasantly cool, a welcome relief after the humid bike ride that left Logan's shirt damp with sweat. Miniature trees in large planters stood on the gleaming tile floor. Generic artwork lined the walls, and the sharp smell of cleaning solution hung in the air. A curved wood-paneled desk stood across from the entrance. Teo marched confidently up to an older woman sitting behind the desk. She wore a purple vest with a large name tag that read ask me! i'm helen, your friendly volunteer. The woman looked up as they approached. "Hello, dears. How can I help?" "Good morning, Helen," Teo said with a grin. "That vest really sets off your hair color." "Well, thank you!" Helen replied, primping her auburn hair with one hand. "I had it done last week." "Excellent choice of shade," Teo said. "You remind me of my aunt Sophia, and everyone thinks she's beautiful." "Aren't you the sweetest thing," Helen said. "Are you here to see someone?" "Aunt Sophia," Teo said. "She just had a baby. We're so excited to meet my new cousin!" "That's lovely," Helen said. "What's your aunt's last name?" "Martinez," Teo said. Helen typed on a computer, then frowned. "That's odd. I don't see a patient by the name of Sophia Martinez." Teo looked politely puzzled. "My mom's already been up to see her. She texted me this morning saying it was okay for us to stop by." Helen hesitated a moment. "I'm sure it's fine for you to go up while I look into it. Take the elevators to the second floor. The maternity ward is on the right. Enjoy your visit!" They thanked her and headed to a bank of elevators. Teo wore a smug expression. "Okay, that look is annoying, but I gotta admit, that was impressive," Logan said as he pushed the button for the second floor. Teo shrugged. "Old people love me." The elevator opened onto a bustling hallway. A nurse in blue scrubs hurried past while two more sat behind a high counter beneath a large whiteboard. A woman in a hospital gown walked slowly along clutching a tall silver pole on wheels. Hanging from the pole was a bag of clear liquid connected to a tube that was taped to the woman's arm. "What do we do?" Logan whispered. Teo paused, glancing around. Then she squared her shoulders and walked briskly past the nurses' station. Logan followed, trying to look casual, but he felt like frogs were using his stomach for a trampoline. He tensed, waiting for someone to yell at them. No one did. They headed down the stark white hallway, passing several open doors. Inside the rooms were women lying on beds, accompanied by friends and family. Some of them looked happy, while others just seemed exhausted. They came to a window. On the other side of the glass was a large room with a double row of babies in clear plastic bassinets. Several nurses were checking on the newborns. Logan thought his little sister, Meg, would freak out being here. She loved babies-he thought they were messy and boring. "This looks like that photo from the article," Logan said, gazing around and wondering how someone could kidnap a baby. A nurse with a brown buzz cut and stubble beard walked up to a door beside the window. He was huge, with biceps bigger than Logan's thighs. Grabbing the ID badge that hung around his neck, he held it to a sensor above the door handle. When an indicator light turned from red to green, he opened the door and went inside. "Looks pretty secure," Logan whispered. Teo stared intently through the window, her eyebrows pulled down in a V shape. The nurse walked to the end of a row, then rolled a crib back to the door. After exiting the nursery, he wheeled the baby down the hall and entered a room. Jerking her head for Logan to follow, Teo hurried after him. Peeking through the door, they saw a woman sitting on a bed. As the nurse chatted with her, he scanned an ID band on her wrist, then scanned a similar band on the baby's arm. He nodded to her with a smile and turned to leave. Logan and Teo scrambled away from the door. She leaned casually against the wall while he pretended to be fascinated by a painting of a stuffed bear holding a yellow balloon. Excerpted from The Snatcher of Raven Hollow (Monsterious, Book 2) by Matt McMann All rights reserved by the original copyright owners. Excerpts are provided for display purposes only and may not be reproduced, reprinted or distributed without the written permission of the publisher.