Bella Read Online Free

busy.”
    Maria grinned when she opened the bag and pulled out the socks. “These are so cool,” she said. “Thanks!” Then she put them down. “So, what’s going on?”
    Lizzie was ready for the question. Even though she was keeping a secret from her best friend, she did have something to tell. Something very interesting. “There’s a mystery next door,” she said. “Something strange is going on.”
    “Really?” Maria looked interested. “What?”
    “I — um — happened to wake up at four-thirty this morning. And I saw lights on at our neighbor’s house. You know, the Schneiders', next door? They moved out last month, and somebody new just moved in. I could see a person moving around downstairs in the kitchen: taking food out of the oven, setting the table, sitting down to eat. A little while after that, the shades went down and all the lights went out, first downstairs and then upstairs.”
    “Huh,” said Maria. “It’s like they’re doing everything backwards, having dinner in the morning and then going to bed.”
    “Exactly,” said Lizzie. “But why?”
    Maria looked even more interested. “I wish it were a weekend so I could sleep over. We could stay up all night and spy.”
    Lizzie and Maria had recently read
Harriet the Spy
, and they were thinking of going into the spybusiness themselves. Lizzie had bought a notebook for taking things down (it had a collie on the cover) and Maria had asked for a flashlight for her birthday.
    “Mm-hmm,” said Lizzie. It was just as well that Maria couldn’t sleep over, since then the secret about Bella would be out. “Too bad. But I’ll keep an eye out myself and let you know what happens.”
    Lizzie’s heart fluttered as she pushed open the door when she got home from school that day. Had Bella made it through the day? The house was very quiet. Where was the puppy? Buddy came running into the hallway to greet her, but before she could even ruffle his ears and say hello, he dashed back toward the living room. “Mom?” Lizzie called.
    “In here.” Mom was in the living room, with Bella in her lap. She looked very tired. Buddypadded around the room, unable to sit still. He whimpered a little and put a paw up on the couch, trying to get close to Bella. “No, Buddy.” Mom sighed. “It’s been a long day,” she told Lizzie. “Bella cried almost constantly, and it’s been like a fulltime job to keep Buddy away from her. Your dad is napping now so he can do the first night shift.”
    “But Bella looks good.” Lizzie picked up the tiny pup. “Check it out! I think she has three new freckles.” Ms. Dobbins had explained that as she grew, Bella’s coat would show more and more red spots. Lizzie kissed Bella’s round, soft tummy. “I can tell that she ate well today, too.” Lizzie thought Bella might have gained at least a pound since she had first seen her.
    “She did,” said Mom. “I really think she’s going to make it.”
    “I do, too,” said Lizzie. But she sounded more certain than she felt. Bella was still the youngestpuppy the Petersons had ever fostered, and she needed so much care. Lizzie was tired, and so were Mom and Dad. How long could they give Bella the attention she needed?
    A little bit later, Lizzie held Bella while Mom mixed up some puppy chow slurry. Charles had gotten home by then and he was trying hard to keep Buddy away from Bella, distracting him with toys and treats. But it was like Buddy was magnetically attached to the newborn pup. When the food was ready, Lizzie brought Bella into the kitchen to eat. Buddy followed close at her heels. “Charles!” Lizzie yelled. “Come get Buddy!”
    Bella ate, slurping greedily. “She likes it,” Lizzie said.
    “Good,” Mom said. “The more of this she eats, the fewer bottles we’ll have to give her.”
    “And the better she’ll sleep.” Lizzie held up both hands, fingers crossed. “Hopefully.”
    But Bella’s cries woke Lizzie over and over again in the night. No