Chapter 20

CHAPTER 20 "So, these are our famous squirrels?" Dr. Simon said with a menacing grin as he approached the safe house with Ruben. Merle and Pearl's bent cage remained toppled on its side up against the hitching post. "You couldn't have set their cage upright?" Dr. Simon scolded Ruben. "These are our guests. Sloppy, Ruben, very sloppy." Ruben flushed at the sight. What happened to Dusty?! he thought, but he didn't dare say anything. He hadn't told Dr. Simon he had procured a donkey to help with his hike from Nazareth. Admitting that one of their party had escaped would only mean trouble for Ruben. He glared at the squirrels. Merle responded with an innocent shrug.

"Bring them inside!" Dr. Simon ordered, and Ruben set the cage upright and wheeled it through the front door to the center of a living room area. Dr. Simon then sat in a nearby armchair and smiled at the squirrels. "Let's chat, shall we?" he said. Merle and Pearl exchanged nervous glances. "Don't be frightened. My name is Dr. Simon. I am the curator of the Antiquities Museum in Jerusalem and your biggest fan." "Our... biggest... fan?" Pearl asked, confused.

"With fans like you, who needs enemies?!" Merle added. "On the contrary! I will make you famous," Dr. Simon replied. "People will flock from all over the world to see the renowned Dead Sea Squirrels! Not only do you have the ability to speak, but you are living relics from the first century, AND super cuddly-wuddly!" "Cuddly... wuddly?" Merle questioned. "What if we don't want to be famous?" Pearl asked. "What if we just want to be normal squirrels enjoying our retirement?" "Ha!" Dr. Simon laughed. "There's nothing normal about you, nor about the rest of the collection I am assembling." "The rest of the collection?" Merle inquired. "The Bible speaks specifically of only two talking beasts: the serpent and Balaam's donkey." Merle and Pearl shared a quick look. They knew all about Balaam's donkey's descendants. Dr. Simon continued, "But there are others: Zephaniah's Cockatoo, the Perch of Galilee, the Lizard of Judah! I could go on!" "You have all of these animals?" Pearl asked. "Not all, not yet. I am in process. But once my collection is complete, I will have assembled the most extraordinary petting zoo the world has ever known!"

"A petting zoo?" Merle gasped. "That sounds horrible! I hate being petted!" "It's true," Pearl confirmed. "He's not the touchy-feely type." Dr. Simon was not interested in the squirrels' opinion on the matter and carried on with his speech. "You will remain here until the coast is clear— until your friends Dr. Gomez and Michael have given up their search and returned home." Pearl brightened, then squeaked in squirrel, "They've come for us?! I knew they would!" The squirrels had hoped that Michael and Dr. Gomez would have followed the trail

of clues they had left: the dancing video, the emails from Father Phillip, and the trail message from Noah. But Dr. Simon had just done them the huge favor of revealing their friends' whereabouts! "Yippee!" Merle responded in human. Dr. Simon raised a brow, confused by their sudden excitement. "You are strange little beasts, aren't you?" he said, shaking his head before exiting. "C'mon, Dusty! We're counting on you, buddy," Merle whispered, hoping that their donkey friend would somehow find Michael and his dad.