#2
Beware, Dawn!
by Ann M. Martin

When Dawn starts getting threatening notes and odd phone calls while she's baby-sitting, she doesn't know what to do.

My heart skipped a beat. First the phone rang, and, according to Jenny, nobody was there when she picked it up. Next the doorbell ran, and nobody was there, either. What was going on?

I looked out the window again, just to be sure. There was definitely nobody there. I unlocked the door and opened it a crack, keeping the chain on. I looked all around. The I saw something white on the front step. An envelope!

I took the chain off the door and opened it wider - just wide enough to bend down and grab the envelope. Then I stepped back inside and locked the door behind me.

I brought the envelope back to the kitchen table and sat looking at it for a minute. I had a creepy feeling about that little white packet. Finally, I opened it and pulled out the letter. Oh, man! Talk about creepy. Did you ever see those letters that kidnappers send, you know, in the movies? They're made out of all different little letters cut out of magazines and newspapers. They do that so nobody can trace their writing, I guess.

Well, that's what this letter looked like. Here's what it said:

You'd better watch out, you'd better not shout! I'm going to get you.

And it was signed, Mr. X.

I shuddered. Who could have left this awful thing on the doorstep? Was it Jenny's Mr. Nobody?

Jenny. Could she have somehow done this? I shook my head. She's only four, I reminded myself. Still, I tiptoed upstairs and checked on both girls. They were sleeping quietly, their breathing regular.

I went back downstairs and stuck the letter in the middle of my math book. "Mr. X" had definitely upset me - but I wasn't going to show the letter to any of the other club members, or tell them about this either. The Sitter of the Month had to be someone who was in control - somebody whose sitting jobs always went smoothly. I couldn't risk anyone else knowing about what had happened.

Beware, Dawn!
Published by Scholastic Inc. 1996
ISBN: 0590440853