CHAPTER 10
Numbuh 4 slowly opened his eyes. He could tell he was lying down. Judging by the bright light, Wally could tell he was no longer at Rainbow Monkey Sugar Land. But when he tried to move, he felt a shooting pain in his chest and arms. Wally then looked down at his chest and saw it and both his arms wrapped in bandages. He then looked to his right and saw Numbuh 3 in her nurse's outfit, sitting in a chair looking almost sick with worry.
Numbuh 3 suddenly noticed that Numbuh 4 was conscious and her face suddenly brightened. She then sat up from her chair and walked over to Numbuh 4's side.
"Wh-where am I?" Numbuh 4 asked, groggily.
"It's all right, Wally," said Numbuh 3. "You're back at the treehouse."
"Ach... What happened?"
"That monster hurt you, but it was nothing serious. You'll be okay."
Kuki extended her arm to Wally and he tenderly grasped it.
"I'm so sorry," Kuki said.
"For what?" asked Wally.
"For not listening to you," she answered. "I almost got you killed. If I'd only left when you told me..."
"Hey, stop beatin' yourself up," said Numbuh 5. Both Wally and Kuki looked to the medical bay's doorway and saw Numbuhs 1, 2 and 5 standing there.
"Yeah, none of us believed that the Headless Monkey was real," said Numbuh 2.
"Uh, how long have you guys been standing there?" asked Numbuh 4, blushing.
"Never mind that," Numbuh 1 said. "Apparently last night's incident caused quite a stir. The whole Kids Next Door is on high alert."
"Not only that, the whole town's afraid to go out at night now," added Numbuh 2.
Suddenly, an alarm sounded. Fortunately, it was only the mail alert, so Numbuh 5 pressed a button, and an envelope passed through a slot in the wall. She then picked up the envelope and read it.
"Huh," Abby said, puzzled. "It's for Numbuh 4."
Abby handed the envelope to Kuki, since Numbuh 4 was unable to hold anything. Numbuh 3 opened it and took out a piece of paper. Since Wally was terrible at reading, she read it to him.
"Dear Wally," Numbuh 3 read aloud. "I want you to know that if you ever need help, I'll be there for you. Love, Vanessa Crane?"
None of the kids knew what to make of this. Why did Vanessa Crane care about Wally so much? And what connection did she have with these past two incidents?
"Hmm, we might have to look into this later," said Nigel. "Right now, we should talk to Stickybeard, see what more he can tell us about this Headless Monkey."
"All right, let's go!" said Numbuh 4. He attempted to sit up, but Numbuh 3 stopped him.
"Whoa, whoa, whoa! You're not going anywhere!" Hoagie said.
"Yeah," said Numbuh 5. "Until you're healed you're stayin' here!"
"Speaking of which," said Numbuh 1. "How long until Numbuh 4 can return to duty, Numbuh 3?"
Numbuh 3 looked at a chart on a clipboard. "He should be okay by tomorrow morning."
"Good, because we'll need to be at full strength if we're going to take down this Headless Monkey," Nigel said.
"Aaw, do I hafta lie in this cruddy bed all day?" Wally complained.
"Sorry, Numbuh 4," said Nigel. "But you won't be any good to the situation if you hurt yourself some more!" He then turned to Hoagie and Abby. "Numbuh 2 and Numbuh 5, we're going to pay Stickybeard another visit. Numbuh 3, you stay here with Numbuh 4."
With that, Numbuhs 1, 2 and 5 left for the hangar while Numbuh 3 remained at Numbuh 4's side.
"Don't worry, Wally," Kuki said. "You'll be up and about in no time." With that she gave him a peck on the cheek. "Now get some rest."