Aunt Louise picked up the Grool and placed it in the palm of her hand. She studied it for a long while.

Then she turned to me. "Kat, it's only a dried-up sponge. What's the big idea?" "But—but—" I sputtered.

"Oh, I get it!" she laughed. "You really had me fooled! I thought you were serious!" She tossed the Grool to me.

I tried to catch it, but I didn't want to touch it. It plopped to the floor.

"Pretty funny, kid." She chuckled as she turned to leave. "You have a great imagination. Just like your aunt."

I picked up the Grool and examined it closely. Not warm.

Not breathing. Not moving at all. Dry and hard.

An ordinary sponge.

Aunt Louise thought I was joking. But the joke was on me. The Grool had tricked me again!

I hurled the creature back into the gerbil cage. It lay there lifeless. "I hope you rot in there!" I exploded.

Before my amazed eyes, the dry brown sponge began plumping-up. In a few seconds, it became fuller and moister.

"Yuck!" I groaned, watching it turn pink and then red. The Grool huffed and puffed. Whoa-ahhhh. Whoa-ahhh. Those little black eyes peered out at me excitedly.

The Grool snickered softly.

Why was it so pleased with itself? I wondered. Nothing horrible had happened. Or had it?

I thought of Dad's fall off the ladder. The tree branch. Mrs. Vanderhoff's fingers. Killer running away. My spoiled birthday party. Our dry, rotted backyard.

It was all too much. Too much!

With a desperate cry, I yanked the evil thing out of its cage. Then I slammed it down hard on my desk.

Breathing hard, my heart pounding, I grabbed one of my heaviest textbooks. And I slammed it down onto the Grool.

"Die!" I shouted. "Please! Die!"

I raised the book high. Pounded the Grool with it.

Again. Again.

I pounded hard enough to kill anything.

Finally, I stopped. Gasping for breath, my arms aching, I stared down at what I'd done.

Yuck. What a mess.

Brown and pink shreds of Grool littered my desk. I had smashed it to pieces.

"Yes!" I cried breathlessly. "Yes!"

Finally! I had finally destroyed the evil creature! "Yes!" I cried again.

But the cry stuck in my throat.

As the pink and brown shreds started to move, I stared down in horror—and began to shake all over.