11 SURPRISE INSIDE

CHAPTER 11 SURPRISE INSIDE The boys crouched behind a stump near the rickety old bridge. "Why doesn't that snombie have a face?" Alexander whispered. "Who cares?!" said Rip. "It stole Nikki's hat!" He stood up. "Rip, no!" whispered Alexander. He grabbed Rip's elbow. Rip broke free and charged onto the bridge, swinging his fists. "Nobody steals from the S.S.M.P.!" he shouted.

The snowman didn't move. PLOFF! Rip knocked its head off with a single punch. He caught Nikki's hat before it hit the ground. The snowman's body shook. Clumps of snow fell away from its middle ball, revealing a blue- faced girl with fangs and braces. "Nikki!!!" Alexander ran over. He and Rip brushed away the snow. "How did you get covered in snow?" Rip asked. "The sn-sn-snombies g-g-got me!" she said, shivering. "I heard that clinking noise, and a bunch of snombies rose up from the snow! They clobbered me with snowballs until I was c-c-c-overed! I couldn't move! I think they were trying to FR-FR-FREEZE me!"

CLINK-CLINK! "W-w-w-watch out! There's that n-n-n-noise again!" yelled Nikki. Four growling snombies rose up from the snow on the far side of the bridge. Some had broken sticks for arms. Some had lopsided heads. They all looked angry. The bridge shook as the monsters rolled toward Alexander, Rip, and Nikki.

"Let's knock their blocks off!" said Rip. "No way—there are too many of them!" yelled Alexander. "And besides, Nikki is still half-frozen!" ZING! ZING! The snombies whipped dozens of snowballs through the air. The three friends ducked. Then they raced off the bridge. "It's hard..." said Nikki, to run... in snow." "Head to the salted path," said Alexander. "There's hardly any snow there!" "Yeah," said Nikki. "And the snombies seemed to be avoiding that trail."

They soon made it back to the cabins, leaving the monsters behind. "Luckily, snombies move slower than cold snot!" said Rip. Nikki dashed into the girls' cabin. She came back out a minute later in dry clothes, wrapped in a towel. "I'm warmed up, and ready for battle!" she said. "Let's— "Those screams are coming from campfire circle!" said Rip. "The other campers!" said Alexander. "We have to help them!"