“It’s not a farmer’s market,” Zoe said, skipping into the kitchen with Jeanine trailing behind her. “It’s a big kid playground with a swirly slide.”

“No way,” Jeanine said. “Swirly slides are responsible for more injuries than any other piece of playground equipment.”

“But I love swirly slides,” Zoe said.

“I do too,” Jim said.

“See!” Zoe stuck her tongue out at Jeanine. “We’re getting a swirly slide. We’re getting a swirly slide,” she sang.

“Sorry. No farmers’ markets or swirly slides,” Jim said.

“You’re…you’re mean,” Zoe said and ran out of the room before Mom could get her to take it back.

“Don’t expect Mom to make coffee now that she’s not getting a farmers’ market,” I said.

“No, there’ll be coffee,” Mom said. “Walter’s up there already making some. We’re even doing snacks. But I want to know what’s wrong with a farmers’ market.”

“Nothing,” he said. “It’s a good idea. And I’m not saying we’re not going to do it, but that’s not what the meeting’s about.”

“Is it better than a farmers’ market and maybe colder?” Josh and I, and just about everybody else in Petersville, were wishing the town surprise was a place to skate that we didn’t have to shovel when it snowed. We didn’t even need an indoor rink since there’s one in Crellin, just something covered. Ice hockey is huge in Petersville, probably because winters here go on forever.

“It’s not better than a farmers’ market or an ice rink or a swirly slide. It’s not better than anything.” Jim lowered himself into a chair as if he suddenly remembered he was too tired to stand.

“Jim?” Mom said.

He tugged on his beard. “See, it’s not better than anything because it’s not something good.”

“Then you really shouldn’t have called it a surprise,” Jeanine said.

Mom narrowed her eyes at Jeanine, and Jeanine gave her a “What?” look.

“I needed people to be there, and I didn’t want to worry anybody,” Jim said.

“So it’s a bad surprise?” I said.

“Oh, yeah,” he said slowly as he rocked back and forth in a full-body nod. “Town’s disappearing.”

Just then my father called from upstairs, “Guys! We should go.”

Jim looked at his watch and stood up. “Shoot. I’m going to be late to my own meeting. Now that’s just not professional.”

And then he was out the door before we could ask him how a town could disappear.

Chapter 5

“Places don’t disappear,” Jeanine said as we drove to the meeting. “It’s impossible.”

“What’s a duck’s favorite time of day?” Zoe asked.

Jeanine groaned.

“Somebody say ‘what,’” Zoe said.

“What?” I said.

“The quack of dawn! Get it?”

“I’m just saying, a place is a place forever,” Jeanine said to her own reflection in the car window. “It doesn’t go away.” She sounded just as sure as she always does, but if she’d been trying to convince someone besides herself, I’m pretty sure she would have been facing the other way.