Invasion

CHAPTER 17

In panic, I tried to run. But my tail was caught. Suddenly I was free! How had that…

I realized what had happened. My tail had snapped off. Looking back, I saw it, still trapped by the giant shoe. It squirmed as if it were still alive. It wiggled like a worm on a hook.

The shoe lifted and flew through the air again.

I shot up the side of the wall and froze in place.

The giant had not seen me. It had not tried to stomp me. It had been an accident. And now my tail… no, the lizard's tail…

The giant walked on, shaking the ground as it went.

I focused one lizard eye on the figure. It was like trying to make sense out of one of those carnival fun mirrors. But even so, I was pretty sure it was Chapman.

I watched him head down the hall. And with all my power, I ordered my lizard body to follow him.

I tried not to think about the spider in my stomach, or the fact that it was still not completely dead. I tried not to think about the fact that part of my body was back on the floor, jerking like it was still alive. I just raced along after Chapman.

Because Chapman might reveal something that would help Tom.

I planned to follow Chapman to his office. I'd hide under his desk and listen to him make phone calls. I figured sooner or later he might let something slip about the location of the Yeerk pool.

Cassie and I had talked about it. She'd said it could take days of hiding in Chapman's office before we learned anything. Besides, we could only stay in a morph for two hours. And meanwhile, I would be skipping class. Sooner or later, I'd get in trouble over that.

And the really funny thing is, when they catch you skipping class, you get sent to the assistant principal.

Mr. Chapman.

I could just imagine that scene… Sorry I skipped class, Mr. Chapman, but I've been in this lizard body, watching you because I know you're a Controller and part of a giant alien conspiracy to take over the earth.

I would have laughed, only lizards can't laugh. So I just followed Chapman as he marched down the hall.

Suddenly he stopped. Were we at his office?

I looked around as well as I could, ft didn't look like the office. The spider gave a kick in my stomach.

He opened a door. It swung right over me with a big rush of air. It went just above my head as I hugged the floor.

I concentrated on making sense of the sights. Wait a minute! This was the janitor's closet, a mess of mops and buckets and cleaning solutions. What was Chapman doing…?

He went inside. I followed, careful to stay away from the high leather walls that were his shoes.

I heard a loud click. He had locked the door behind him.

It was a long way up from the floor, but I could more or less see him doing things to the sink faucet. I thought he grabbed one of the hooks they used to hang up the dirty mop heads. I was pretty sure he twisted it because I could hear a squeaking sound.

And to my total and complete amazement, the wall opened.

There was a doorway where the wall had been. Strange smells and stranger sounds wafted up from inside the doorway.

Chapman stepped through. There were stairs just inside, heading down into a purple-lit pit. From far away, as if it came from a hundred miles down, I heard a faint sound.

It was a scream. A scream of fear and despair. A human voice, crying out in the darkness of that horrible place.

"Noooo!" the voice moaned. "Noooo!"

I knew what the scream meant. I knew what was happening. Somewhere down there, a human being was feeling the Yeerk slug slither inside its brain. Somewhere down there, a human being was being turned into a mindless slave of the Yeerks.

Chapman headed down the stairs.

The door closed behind him.

I had found the Yeerk pool.

It was right under my school.