Veronica's hands shook as they held the note. It had come in a plain white envelope, addressed to her, but with no return address. Inside was a scrap of paper in which this strange note was written.

"Good God," she muttered. "DAD!"

She rushed into the kitchen, where Mr. Robinson sat at the table, reading the Springfield Times and drinking black coffee.

"What is it?" he asked, looking up.

"Look at this," Veronica shoved the note into her fathers hand.

Mr. Robinson read the note, and a dark expression appeared on hes face. Like a shadow had fallen over it. But as quickly as it appeasred, his expression vanished.

He smiled a little. "Honey," he said. "This is a prank. Maybe it's from one of your friends."

"A...a prank?" Veronica's churning insides were tied in knots.

"Perhaps one of your friends got bored and decided to send silly notes."

"Oh."