“Food will be ready in an hour,” Dad said. “How was the parade? Did you find a good viewing spot?”
Doug laughed. “Yeah, we pretty much got the best seat in the house.”
Dad shot me a side glance. “Sounds interesting.” Then he went over to the desk in the dining room and brought out a file. “While we have a minute, I’d like to talk to you kids about something.”
Oh, no, now what? Will the testing never end?
Mom took Loopy over to the love seat and sat down. “We have a birthday present for you, Doug.”
A birthday present?
That got my attention. I ran over and sat next to Mom.
Zoe threw all her cold weather clothes on the floor and plopped down on the couch. Doug just stood in the middle of the room. “Ah, you didn’t have to get me another thing. That food bucket was the best!”
Dad sat down next to Zoe and opened the file. “Doug, we’ve been praying and planning and asking a lot of questions of your social worker . . .”
Doug narrowed his eyes. “My social worker?”
“And we went to visit your grandma,” Mom added.
Doug smiled. “Really? Wow. I love my gram. I miss her a bunch.”
“And she misses you.” Dad stood up and walked toward Doug. “And, it’s very interesting, but did you know that when you turn twelve, you have a little more say in where you want to live?”
Doug shrugged. “I do? I knew turning twelve was going to be cool.”
Dad nodded. “Oh, it’s cool all right. Anyway, we’d like to offer you a home here, with us.”
“You’d like to offer me a home? Here? With you?”
“That’s what I said, Doug.”
Doug looked around. “For how long?”
“As long as you want. Now, I know we’re not a perfect family—”
“Especially Arcade,” Zoe said.
“. . . but if you think you can stand us, we’d like to begin the adoption process.”
Doug stood there, speechless. Actually, we all were. It was a moment I’ll never forget.
Finally, Doug cracked a smile. “I’d love to live with you guys.” Then he turned to me. “Dude, Santa works fast.”
I don’t think it was Santa, Doug. You just got a Manhattan Miracle.
Chapter 38
Bye, Bye, Flames
“Zoe! How’s it look up there?”
“Ugh, this is SO embarrassing, Arcade!”
Flames munched shrimp while riding in Milo’s cage, covered with a blanket. Doug and I pulled him in an old wagon we found in our storage room.
“We’re going to get you outside for a little sunshine, my friend.”
Zoe walked in front of us, scouting out empty paths in the Ramble. “I really don’t know how you plan to keep him hidden from people.”
“It’s early on Black Friday, Zoe. Everyone’s out shopping.”
The Ramble was quiet. It seemed that even the birds were huddled up somewhere else.
“Can flamingos stand the cold?” Zoe shivered, and pulled the collar of her coat up.
“Yes! They can. According to my library book, Feisty Flamingos, as long as they have room to roam and lots of food, they can be happy in any climate.”
“Yeah, well, we’re running out of shrimp.” Doug scratched his head. “We’re gonna have to get another donation from Dooley’s brother pretty soon.”
I pulled the blanket off the cage, opened the door, and helped Flames out. “Welcome to Central Park, Flames! You’ve been trapped in Doug’s bathroom long enough.”
Squawk! Squawk!
“Arcade, what if he flies away?” Zoe put her hand up to her mouth.
“Are you kiddin’?” Doug held out a large plastic bag of shrimp. “He won’t leave the Food Dude.”
Flames walked around on the dirt, just off the path in a little corner of the Ramble. Zoe and I sat on a bench, watching Doug follow Flames around.
“Well, here you go, sis. You’re birdwatching in the Ramble. You can check off that goal.” I licked my finger and then made a checkmark in the air. “You don’t have to thank me.”
“Thank you? I’m freaking out sitting here thinking that any minute we’ll be arrested for sneaking a flamingo into a city park! Why would I thank you for that?”
I shook my head. “You’re so dramatic.”
“And you’re so annoying . . .”
Doug snapped his fingers. “Hey! Bro! Sis! I won’t tolerate this kind of bickering in my new family. Can’t we just chill and hang with Mr. Flames here?”
Squawk!
At that moment, Flames began to flap his wings, and run. REAL FAST.
“Whoa! Wait up, Mister! That’s not the way to the food!” Doug ran after Flames. Zoe and I got up and did the same.
“I told you this would happen!” Zoe huffed as she tried to keep up with Doug and me. Flames ran farther and farther into the Ramble.
“He’s headed to the cave site!” Zoe yelled and pointed to a sign. “It’s closed off! We can trap him there!”
Oh, yeah! The cave. That’s DOPE!
Flames flew down a narrow Ramble path and under a metal rail post. Zoe, Doug, and I followed.
“Can flamingos navigate stairs?”
Flames disappeared down a stone staircase that lead deeper into the Ramble.
“Looks like the answer’s yes,” Doug said.
We flew down the stairs.
Zoe gasped. “The cave! There it is!”
It was blocked off to the public, and to flamingos, but I could see where people used to bring their boats in to hang out inside.
We had Flames cornered. Doug held out shrimp.
“How are we going to get him back to his cage now?” Zoe asked.
A hot sizzle shot through my torso. I reached down.
We’re not done yet.
“I don’t think he’s going back to his cage. Or Doug’s bathroom . . .”
* * *
The token didn’t burn as hot as before. No flames, sparks, or snaps. When I pulled it out of my shirt, it glowed gold, and lights twinkled all around it.
“It’s dazzling!” Zoe stared, mesmerized.
Glitter flew out of the token and transformed the boarded-up old Ramble cave into a beautifully carved, golden elevator. Gold flakes, real gold flakes by the looks of them, fell from the sky.
Doug gasped. “Where we gonna go, Arcade?”
Squawk!
I smiled at Doug. “What do you say we take Flames back to the Beijing Zoo?”
* * *
The elevator doors open right inside the bird house at the Beijing Zoo.
“Good job, Arcade,” Zoe says with a little sass in her voice. “Being specific saves a lot of confusion.”
The only problem is, I’m not ready to say goodbye.
“So this is where it all began,” Doug says as he watches all the birds flying around. “I LOVE China!”
Zoe rolls her eyes. “Oh, brother. You need to see the giant pandas.”
I reach down and smooth Flames’s feathers. “I hope your family recognizes you now that you’re orange.”
“He’s pink.” Zoe laughs.
“Orange.”
“Pink.”
“Orange.”
Squawk!
“Well,” Zoe says. “Whatever color he is, he’s home.”
I look down at the ground. “I’m going to miss him. Taking care of him the last couple of months while searching for Loopy really kept me going.”
“Well, we got a bathroom to renovate now. That’ll keep the memories alive.” Doug reaches over and pats me on the back as I reach down for one last flamingo hug.
“Take it easy, Flames. I hope they feed you top-notch shrimp here at the Beijing Zoo.”
Flames wraps his neck around my arm and stays that way for a minute. Then he steps away, flaps his wings, and flies back into his flamboyance of flamingos.
“Let’s go see the pandas while we still have time,” Zoe says. She grabs D
oug’s elbow. I turn to follow, but then I spot someone off in the distance.
It’s the Triple T woman.
She walks over to a kiosk next to the flamingo exhibit. I meet her there.
“You weren’t joking when you said things were going to heat up.”
She smiles. “I don’t joke . . . about that.”
“Did I pass the tests?”
She nods. “I had no doubt. You’re compassionate and you wear loyalty and kindness . . .”
“. . . around my neck as a reminder?” I finger my gold chain.
She looks me in the eyes. “There’s so much more for you to learn, Arcade. And with each discovery, you can help someone be their best self.”
“I like the sound of that. But I have some work to do. With the Badger brothers. And then there’s Wiley Overton . . .”
“They’ll come around. If they choose to.”
The Triple T woman turns from me and points to the sign. “Flamingos are an odd bird. But I’m not surprised you like them. Do you know where the name flamingo comes from?”
I wrack my brain. In all my reading, I don’t think I’ve ever come across that information.
I step toward the sign and read out loud what it says.
“The word ‘flamingo’ comes from the Spanish word ‘flamenco,’ which is derived from the Latin word ‘flamma’ meaning . . .”
WHAT???
“Flame. Or FIRE!”
“Dude! I’ve LITERALLY been surrounded by fire for the last three months! THIS IS DOPE!”
I turn, and the woman is gone.
“Zoe’s never going to believe this!” I run toward the exit of the bird house. “Zoe! I have proof! Flamingos really ARE better than pandas!”
And right then, the Triple T Token—my little fiery metal tester—drops back on my chest.
Arcade and the Fiery Metal Tester
Discussion Questions
Do you set goals for yourself? If so, what kinds of goals do you focus on? Goals of achievement, or goals to help you build your character? If you could pick a character trait to work on this year, what would it be?
If you were challenged to set a specific fun goal, what would it be?
Do you have places in your town that are famous tourist attractions, but you’ve never been to them? I challenge you to go to the library and find out about those places. See if you can visit them this year.
What is your favorite animal at the zoo? What do you think it would be like if you had a chance to have that animal as a pet? What adjustments would you have to make to your house? What foods would you have to keep around? If you don’t know, do some research on that animal. Or better yet, visit the zoo and ask a zookeeper.
Have you ever had a good friend move away? How did you handle that difficult situation? Or were you the friend who moved away? If so, how long did it take you to adjust to your new town? Was it easy or hard to keep in touch with your friends from your old town?
Do you think that going through trials can make you a better person? If so, how? What is a trial you have lived through? How do you think you are a better person because of it?
Had you ever heard the term “mettle” before reading Arcade and the Fiery Metal Tester? What situations in your life test your mettle? How are the words medal, metal, and mettle connected to each other in this book?
How did you feel about Wiley Overton when you first met him in this book? Did your feelings toward him change in the end? If so, what caused the change?
Do you have any friends with disabilities? If so, what have you learned from them about toughness and never giving up? What are some ways you can encourage them this week?
Have you ever failed a test? Did you fail because you didn’t study, didn’t pay attention, or because the subject matter was difficult to understand? How did you handle the failure? Did you do something different the next time that helped? What was it?
Are there people in your life who serve as mentors (experienced and trusted advisors)? If so, who are they? Do they seem peaceful to you? Can you ask them questions about life and share your frustrations with them? What kind of wisdom have they shared that has helped you?
Are you the kind of person who likes to control everything that happens? Do you think controlling everything is possible? How do you think trying to control things could hurt you or others?
If you were the owner of the Triple T Token (of course, that would be DOPE!), would you use it to help someone? Give an example of whom you might help and how.
The first T on the Triple T Token stands for TRAVEL. The second T stands for TESTING! Did you figure that out? Why do you think it’s important for people to go through tests in their lives in order for them to develop good character?
What do you think the third T stands for? Write your guess here: __________________
While you are waiting for the 4th book in the Arcade series to come out, get some friends together to discuss the story so far. What do Arcade and his friends still need to learn about themselves and each other?
Acknowledgments
I owe an unpayable debt of gratitude to the only One through whom anything is possible for any of us. Thank you, Lord, for blessing me with the abilities and the guidance to live a life that far exceeds my childhood dreams. I pray that something we’ve done with this series thus far has made you proud.
Momma and Daddy Jennings—You are the headquarters for my heart. When I look back over my entire life, I can honestly say that I wouldn’t change a thing about you. You stayed the course despite some of the most impossible odds and sacrificed more than I can fully imagine to make sure that I could go out into an uncertain world and succeed. I will always cherish everything about you both!
Jill Osborne—Who would have thought that after meeting just a year ago, we would be three amazing books in and working on an absolutely awesome fourth! I must tell you that I stand amazed at your creativity, dedication, and diligence. I don’t know how long you work with authors on average, but something tells me that this series is just the beginning of years of outstanding work together on many incredible projects to come. Keep up the fantastic work! You are an extraordinary writer whom I am extremely proud to work with and know. Thank you! Thank you!!
Keith Bell—I still get a kick out of that .gif I sent you and Jill of Jim Carrey furiously typing at the keyboard in Bruce Almighty! I love it when you, Jill, and I get together to brainstorm for Arcade’s adventures. I still don’t know how you come up with so many amazing ideas and storylines. Best I can tell you must be up in the wee hours of the morning going at the keyboard just like Bruce! Seriously though, I know that God has gifted you with a special level of creative thinking. And I truly appreciate all that you do to help me make my visions for Arcade a reality for the readers! I look forward to all the exciting things God has in store for us, and for YOU!
The Zondervan/Zonderkidz Team—Sometimes I have to pinch myself to make sure this is really happening! YOU ALL ROCK! Keep up the great work. As I told you before, I am super-excited about this and future projects. I truly feel that though things are already AWESOME with this publishing relationship, the best is yet to come! You totally inspire me to want to keep sharing my life and gifts with the world, and especially with the kids!
Every kid who reads this book—If you read the first two books, or even if you haven’t yet read done so, please know that I still see you. I still believe in you. You are still amazing. Let no one tell you otherwise. And if you’re not already enjoying your own Arcade adventures, stick around. My buddy Arcade Livingston is sure to inspire you to get up and get after it. So enjoy this book, and be on the lookout for the next one. And as always, enjoy the ride!
Also by Rashad Jennings
The IF in Life
The Coin Slot Chronicles Series
Book 1: Arcade and the Triple T Token
Book 2: Arcade and the Golden Travel Guide
Copyright
ZONDERKIDZ
Arcade and the
Fiery Metal Tester
Copyright © 2020 by Rashad Jennings, LLC
Illustrations © 2020 by Rashad Jennings
Requests for information should be addressed to:
Zonderkidz, 3900 Sparks Dr. SE, Grand Rapids, Michigan 49546
Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data
Names: Jennings, Rashad, 1985-author. | Osborne, Jill, 1961-author.
Title: Arcade and the fiery metal tester / Rashad Jennings, with Jill Osborne.
Description: Grand Rapids, Michigan: Zonderkidz, 2020. | Series: The coin slot chronicles; 3 | Audience: Ages 8–12. | Summary: As New York City experiences the hottest summer on record, eleven-year-old Arcade Livingston is tested like never before to use the Triple T token’s powerful ways to outsmart a bully, find a place for his best friend to live, and spy on some pesky villains from the 1900s.
Identifiers: LCCN 2019038439 (print) | LCCN 2019038440 (ebook) | ISBN 9780310767459 (hardback) | ISBN 9780310767466 (epub)
Subjects: CYAC: Adventure and adventurers—Fiction. | Friendship—Fiction. | Brothers and sisters—Fiction. | Magic—Fiction. | New York (N.Y.)—Fiction. | African Americans—Fiction.
Classification: LCC PZ7.1.J4554 An 2020 (print) | LCC PZ7.1.J4554 (ebook) | DDC [Fic]—dc23
LC record available at https://lccn.loc.gov/2019038439
LC ebook record available at https://lccn.loc.gov/2019038440
Scripture quotations are taken from the Holy Bible, New International Version®, NIV®. Copyright © 1973, 1978, 1984, 2011 by Biblica, Inc.® Used by permission of Zondervan. All rights reserved worldwide. www.Zondervan.com. The “NIV” and “New International Version” are trademarks registered in the United States Patent and Trademark Office by Biblica, Inc.®
This is a work of fiction. Names, characters, places, and incidents are products of the author’s imagination or are used fictitiously and are not to be construed as real. Any resemblance to actual events, locales, organizations, or persons, living or dead, is entirely coincidental.
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