90% Human Read online

  PRAISE FOR

  CURSE OF THE KOMODO

  A beautiful writing style draws young readers into this unique plot laced with valor, virtue, and humor. Curse of the Komodo is imagination and creativity residing comfortably with characters of reality. Readers will be waiting for the second book in this trilogy while forming fan clubs for their new favorite author.

  Deanna K Klingel

  Author of “Rebecca & Heart”

  The power of transformation is a strong message, in the boys learning about love and compassion for their respective brother and for their grandfather. The animals use their traits to fight for each other, and for good to win over evil. As well, the curse is in fact a blessing, for in animal form they learn what matters most in life.

  Kathleen Marusak

  Joey, my 11-year old son, is a reptile enthusiast! As we were reading Curse of the Komodo together, we made so many text-to-world connections between the story, his knowledge of reptiles, and our frequent visits to the Detroit Zoo and the Toledo Zoo. We can't wait for 90% Human!

  Randy and Joey Maddock

  Troy, Michigan

  Curse of the Komodo is a fun read for young adult readers as well as adults! Filled with animal facts and a spell-binding story, this book hooks readers from start to finish!

  L. Burnham

  Teacher, Toledo, Ohio

  90%

  Human

  M.C. Berkhousen

  Illustrations by Kalpart

  No part of this publication may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system, or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic, mechanical, photocopying, recording, or otherwise, without the written permission of the publisher.

  Text Copyright © 2018 Margaret C. Berkhousen

  All rights reserved.

  Published 2018 by Progressive Rising Phoenix Press, LLC

  www.progressiverisingphoenix.com

  ISBN: 978-1-946329-77-6

  Printed in the U.S.A.

  1st Printing

  The characters and events portrayed in this book are fictitious. Any similarity to real persons, living or dead, is purely coincidental and not intended by the author.

  Edited by Carol Gaskin

  Book Cover Design by Kalpart

  Visit www.kalpart.com

  Front Cover illustration by Kalpart

  Book interior design by Polgarus Studio

  Visit: http://www.polgarusstudio.com

  For Mariden and Alyssa

  Acknowledgements

  It takes a lot of people to get a book from the author to the reading public. First, my thanks go to Amanda Thrasher and the production team at Progressive Rising Phoenix Press for their help in publishing this book. A special thanks to the artist at Kalpart for the cover design and art work, and to the folks at Ingram/LSI for producing a beautiful book.

  Thanks also to my supportive and helpful editor, Carol Gaskin, for polishing the manuscript and making it the best it could be. Thank you Tim Herman, herpetologist, for answering questions about animals, and to Connor and Evan Muse for helping me with plot points.

  A special team of people read the manuscript to find any mistakes or content issues. Thank you Leslie Burnham, Pamela Kelso and Jennifer Muse for your thoughtful review, helpful comments about events at the camp and ongoing encouragement. Thanks also to readers Riley Park, Sara Roza, Tim Wiemer, Maxwell Kelso, and David Wiemer for reading the manuscript and providing helpful feedback about specifics. First Draft Writers, my writing critique group, provided feedback and suggestions throughout the development of this book. Thank you Pamela Kelso, Judith Scharren, Joette Rozanski and Charles Abood.

  Last, I’d like to thank the most important group, my readers! You are the reason I write.

  Table of Contents

  Chapter One—Camp Fort Jackson

  Chapter Two—Roping Clinic

  Chapter Three—Cougar

  Chapter Four—Missing Trackers

  Chapter Five—Junior Lifeguard

  Chapter Six—Shell Necklace

  Chapter Seven—Swimming Lessons

  Chapter Eight—Pig Toss

  Chapter Nine—The Nightmare Begins

  Chapter Ten—Pandemonium

  Chapter Eleven—Terror Island

  Chapter Twelve—Rescue

  Chapter Thirteen—Home is Where You Don’t Have to Hide

  About The Author

  Chapter One—Camp Fort Jackson

  Marshmallow and chocolate oozed down my hand from between the graham crackers. I took a bite and licked my sticky fingers. Yum. S’mores were the best thing about campfires. My brother sat on a log across from me, eating around the sides of his S’more. His third. Not that I was keeping score.

  We’d both been sent to Camp Fort Jackson in Michigan for two weeks. I liked camp, but Austin didn’t. He was more of a “hotel” camper. He liked heated indoor pools, movies on the TV, and calling for room service. He especially liked hotels where housekeeping turned down the beds and left little wrapped chocolates on his pillow.

  Going to camp was my favorite vacation. Listening to the wind rustling trees around me, I felt quiet inside. When darkness settled over the forest, I could hear the creep and howl of nocturnal animals. Some nights the counselors let us bring our sleeping bags outside and sleep on the ground around the campfire. As we lay on our backs and gazed up, the sky seemed like a big bowl of twinkling stars, tipped over to form a dome around us. We’d often see shooting stars. Comets. Those were the times I wished Gramps was at camp with us so he could tell us about them.

  My group was the Warriors, the unit of the camp for older kids with more camping experience. Austin’s unit, the Trackers, was for kids ten to twelve years old. Both groups were divided into two sections, Section A, for girls, and Section B, for boys. Tonight the Warriors and the Trackers—boys’ sections—had gotten together for a hotdog roast. Before we cooked the hotdogs, the Warriors showed the Trackers how to build a campfire. Austin already knew, because I’d shown him that a long time ago.

  Mom told Austin he didn’t have to go to camp, but he insisted on signing up. I had the feeling he was here to keep an eye on me. I wasn’t sure why. He didn’t know about my secret. No one knew. Not even Mom or Dad. I’d been very careful to keep it to myself. I always wore tee shirts so no one could see the downy feathers under my arms. If anyone found out, they’d probably send me to a hospital and dissect my body for research.

  Terry, one of our counselors, threw a couple of logs onto the fire, sending sparks up into the air. The flames leapt higher, throwing orange light across my brother’s face. He was wiping marshmallow from his fingers with one of those little packaged wet wipes.

  Then Terry started a song. It was one of those songs you only sing at camp, and nowhere else. Since this was my fourth year at camp, I knew all the words. It was Austin’s second year at camp and he knew all the words too. Any factoids that crossed Austin’s path were quickly devoured by his brain. He remembered everything he read and everything he heard. He could list everything he got for Christmas five years ago. He probably even remembered his birth.

  Our other counselor, Levi, handed around packets of mosquito repellent. I tore the package open and rubbed the mosquito repellant wipe over my face and neck. It smelled like butter that had been left out in the sun for three days. I didn’t care about the smell as long as it worked. Camp mosquitos left bites the size of a quarter.

  Austin pushed himself up from his log and came around to my side of the fire. He sat down next to me. “What do we have to do to get out of this place early?” he whispered.

  I slapped a mosquito off my neck. “Why? Don’t you like it?”

  “Tonight was okay, but the food in the mess hall sucks.”

  I laughed. “I
thought you weren’t going to complain about food anymore.”

  Austin sighed. “Okay. I take it back. The food here is a lot better than the food at the zoo.”

  He wasn’t talking about the burgers, fries, and hotdogs they sold at the zoo’s restaurant or food carts. He was talking about food that was fed to the bears and reptiles. Austin and I had spent three days at the zoo last fall, but not as visitors.

  We’d gone to the zoo on a school field trip. A really wild storm came up, and lightning hit the water tower. The next thing we knew, Austin and I were on the wrong side of the animal exhibits. I’d become a scaly, dangerous Komodo dragon. Austin, who quit karate class because he was afraid of hurting someone, had turned into the world’s tamest grizzly bear. We were trapped inside those animal bodies for three days. The zookeepers fed us the things zoo animals eat. Frozen rats. Raw fish. Warmed-up dead rabbits.

  Our grandfather, who teaches physics and astronomy at the college in town, came to find us. He rescued us and helped us change back into humans. Our lives had been pretty normal since then, except for one thing. When we got home from the zoo, I found tiny white feathers under my arms. They were left from when I turned into an eagle to rescue a friend. I only had feathers on less than ten percent of my body, so I figured I was still ninety percent human. After what Austin and I had been through, that was good enough. I was grateful just to be home.

  Now school was out and we were at summer camp. I was in a cabin with five other guys. One was Jim Cox, who was also my “buddy” for swimming and hiking. The other four were Jerry Hill, Matt Philips, Jake Parma, and Bill Carlson. Jerry and Matt were swimming buddies; so were Jake and Bill. Buddies had to stick together, especially during water sports, riding, or hiking in the woods. Buddies kept an eye on each other. It was a safety thing.

  Jake came around the fire to sit next to me. I moved away from him, but I wasn’t fast enough. He’d already grabbed the skin above my waist and was pinching as hard as he could. I yelped in pain.

  “What’s the matter?” asked Austin. He was on my other side and couldn’t see what Jake was doing. “Did you get stung or something?”

  “What’s the matter, little baby?” Jake used a high, squeaky voice. He pinched me again, twisting my skin beneath his fingernails. It was so painful I almost got tears in my eyes. I jumped up, rubbing my side. I wanted to punch Jake in the mouth, but the camp had zero tolerance for fighting. We could both be sent home.

  “Mommy’s little baby has delicate skin,” chirped Jake. “Little baby Lukey makes me want to pukey.”

  “Knock it off, Parma.” Levi walked over to our side of the fire. “Go to the cabin and get on your bunk. Stay there until I say you can get off.”

  “What about him?” Jake pointed at me. “He started it.”

  “He didn’t do anything to you,” said Jim. “Looked to me like you were doing something to him.”

  “Did Jake do something to you?” Levi’s voice was low and kind, but the guys still heard him. Everyone was staring at me. Bill, Jake’s buddy, grinned.

  “Nope,” I said. “A mosquito bit me.”

  Jake’s pinches hurt bad, but there was no way I’d tell a counselor. The camp didn’t tolerate bullying, so the counselor would report it to the camp director, Mrs. Harris. She would tell the camp nurse. The nurse would examine me and find the feathers. I’d never be able to explain how I got them. No one would believe what really happened.

  Levi was still waiting. “Answer me, Luke. Did Jake do something to you?”

  I shook my head again. “Nope.”

  “You sure?” asked Levi. “Why are you rubbing your side?”

  “Mosquito bite.”

  Levi lowered his voice. “We’ll talk about this later.”

  The other counselor, Terry Miller, started another song, and Levi passed out more graham crackers, chocolate squares, and marshmallows. I gave mine to Austin. My side hurt so much I couldn’t eat. I wished I could turn back into a Komodo just long enough to gobble up Jake Parma. I wouldn’t have to totally swallow him. Just one little bite would do it. That’s all it would take to inject enough Komodo venom to cause him a lot of pain and send him to the hospital.

  Why was Jake doing this? I’d never met him before camp, but he seemed to be out to get me for some reason. I usually really liked camp, but Jake was ruining it. I watched him walk to our cabin, kicking leaves and twigs out of his way. I didn’t like him being in there alone. He could go through my suitcase, eat the candy bars I had hidden, wreck or even steal my stuff.

  I got up to walk to the restroom. Austin shoved himself up from his log and followed me. I told Levi where we were going and that we’d be right back. The bathhouse, which contained showers and toilet stalls, was about a hundred yards away on the other side of a small pine forest. The trees made it smell like Christmas. The woods were dark and filled with shadows, so we aimed our flashlights at the ground to light the path.

  “You didn’t have to come with me,” I said.

  Austin’s voice came from behind me. “I had to go. Besides, I don’t trust that Parma kid. Can’t you get moved to another cabin?”

  “I’d have to explain why.”

  “So explain. He deserves to get into trouble.”

  Jake would only get into trouble, but I’d be exposed as a freak! I didn’t know what to say, so I didn’t answer.

  In the bathhouse, I went to the sink and washed my hands. I didn’t have to go to the bathroom. I just wanted to get away from the other kids for a little while.

  “When’s that roping clinic you’re going to?” asked Austin.

  “Tomorrow.” I ran cold water on a paper towel and held it on my side. Austin watched me, frowning.

  “Maybe you could get transferred to horse camp.”

  I shook my head. “I’m afraid I’d make the horses nervous. I think they’d sense the Komodo. Even though I don’t show it, it’s never very far away.”

  Austin nodded. “I feel that way about the grizzly too. If I got angry, it might come out when I don’t want it to.” He was quiet for a few seconds, staring at the concrete floor. A daddy longlegs spider was walking toward the drain. Austin moved his foot away so he wouldn’t step on it. Then he said, “Let’s say you get good at roping. How will you use it? There aren’t many jobs for cowboys anymore.”

  I ran cold water on the paper again. When I looked up, Austin’s eyes met mine in the mirror. He licked his lips. “You think we’re going to the island, don’t you.”

  He was so freakin’ smart. I sighed. “It’s a possibility. If any of our animal traits get worse, we might not have a choice.”

  Neither of us said the name “Komodo Island.” A mysterious place, far, far away, occupied by a gigantic reptile that had humans on its list of prey. A reptile that could run faster than most humans, swim, and eat a goat in two bites.

  “You’re going to need help,” said Austin. “Say we corner a big one and it’s pink. It’s bucking, snorting, and trying to eat everybody in sight. And that’s after we shoot it with the tranquilizer gun.”

  “Maybe it won’t come to that.” I took the paper towel off my side and examined the skin. There was a big purple spot with four fingernail dents in the center.

  Austin lifted my shirt. “What’s going on with your back, Luke? You’re covered with bruises. Did Jake do this to you?” He frowned with anger. “You can’t let him get away with this. You have to do something about it.”

  “I wish I had some ice.” I put another cold paper towel against my side and leaned back against the counter.

  “I’ll get you some ice. There’s an ice machine near the mess hall.” Austin crossed his arms and leaned against the counter next to me. “We could fix Parma good, you know. He deserves it.”

  I shook my head. I just couldn’t risk it. Besides, I’d dealt with a much worse bully than Jake. “Do you remember how that night guard, Dunn Nikowski, zapped us with that cattle prod when we were in the bodies of zoo animals?”

/>   “It burned like fire,” said Austin. “Jake reminds me of him for some reason.”

  “He’s a bully, that’s why.”

  “There’s one big difference between them,” said Austin. “Jake is alive and well. Dunn Nikowski is dead.” Austin shoved himself away from the sink. “How can you sleep with that guy in your cabin? Maybe I should hang out next to your cabin and watch through the window.” Then he grinned. “One good shake from a grizzly would teach him a lesson.”

  “Or just a little Komodo venom,” I added.

  Laughing, we went back to the campfire. Austin sat down in my place, next to Jake, who’d been allowed to come back to the campfire. Jake looked down at him and sneered.

  “I don’t sit next to Trackers.” He got up and went to the other side of the campfire, giving us the finger behind his back. For the rest of the evening, he sat staring at the dirt. He was probably thinking up more ways to make trouble.

  How could I stop Jake from bullying me? A fight would result in both of us being sent to the director, and then to the nurse. I had to avoid that, no matter what. I couldn’t let anyone see those feathers. There had to be another way to teach Jake a lesson.

  The next morning I woke up so early it was still dark. I grabbed my shower bag and walked down the wooded lane to the bathhouse. I turned on my flashlight so I could see where I was going. Squirrels scampered across the path in front of me. Birds shrieked and flew away, as if they were angry I’d awakened them. The bathhouse was completely dark inside. Running my hand across the cold concrete wall, I found the light switch. I flipped it on. Something brown with yellow stripes was coiled in a corner. A garter snake stretched out to a length of about four feet and oozed across the floor. It disappeared through a hole under the door.