Chapter 1

THE DEAD SEA SQUIRRELS Whiriy Squirrelies From the co-creator of VeggieTales Mike Nawrocki Illustrated by Luke Seguin-Magee

CHAPTER 1 WALNUT CREEK, TENNESSEE PRESENT DAY (MONDAY) 11:32 P.M.

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A loud thump on Michael Gomez's bedroom window was followed immediately by the shriek of the burglar alarm Michael's dad had installed to help protect Merle and Pearl Squirrel from the man in the suit and sunglasses, a mysterious agent working for a collector of ancient artifacts. He wanted to bring Merle and Pearl back to the Dead Sea, which was the last place on earth they wanted to be. The ancient squirrels preferred modern-day Tennessee with its abundance of nuts and HVAC (Heating, Ventilation, and Air-Conditioning). After having spent nearly 2,000 years preserved in salt in a dusty desert cave, who could blame them?

Michael sat straight up in bed and looked over at Merle and Pearl, nestled comfortably in their sawdust in the enormous converted hamster cage Mrs. Gomez had constructed for the squirrels as a permanent home in Michael's room, complete with running water and shiplap. "Shhh...," Merle shushed, still half asleep, waving his paw in the air in a poor attempt to shoo away the annoying alarm sound.

Dr. Gomez popped his head into the room, dressed in pajamas and slippers and looking like he'd also been asleep. "Everyone okay?!" he asked urgently. "Yeah, we're fine," Michael responded. "Shhh...," Merle repeated as the alarm continued to sound. "I heard something hit the window," Pearl said. She was a much lighter sleeper than Michael and Merle. Michael and Dr. Gomez rushed to the window but saw nothing more suspicious than a few strands of toilet paper dangling from nearby branches. "Looks like a prank," Dr. Gomez said. "What parent would allow their kids out at this time of night? I'll go turn off the alarm." He headed out into the hallway. "Thank you," Merle said groggily. Pearl made her way over to the window. Something caught her eye, and she stood on her tiptoes to get a good angle into the bushes below. "What's that?" Michael slid the window open as the sound of the alarm cut out. "It looks like a... drone?" Sure enough, a drone lay sideways in the bushes, buzzing limply like an injured bee, its propellers tangled in toilet paper. He reached down and picked it up.