#4
Kristy and the Missing Child
by Ann M. Martin

Kristy can hardly believe it when little Jake Kuhn is reported missing.

Suddenly I just felt incredibly sad about the whole thing. "You know, whatever happened to Jake, this whole experience must be really hard on him." I thought of Jake, and how scared or confused - or both - he must be. And before I knew it, my eyes filled up with tears and one of them had spilled over. I could have died! I never cry in front of anyone. That's Mary Anne's thing, crying. But I'm different. I'm Kristy. I'm tough.

"Kristy," Bart said. "It's going to be okay." He leaned toward me. I closed my eyes.

"Hey, you guys!" yelled Karen as she slammed the door open and ran into the den. "Jake's on TV!"

My eyes pooped open. "Jake?" I asked. "Jake's on TV? You mean they found him?" I sat up straight.

"No," said Karen. "Just his picture is on TV. They're talking about how he's missing." She leaned down and turned on the little TV that we keep in the den. "See?"

Jake's face filled the screen. I felt my stomach tighten up when I saw his big brown eyes. I recognized the picture that was being shown: It was Jake's school picture, which I'd last seen hanging on the wall in the Kuhns' front hall. The TV people had superimposed the word MISSING, in red, over his chest.

Kristy and the Missing Child
Published by Scholastic Inc. 1996
ISBN: 0590448005