It’s a new week in the Trailverse and time for new adventures! I know what you’re thinking: How on earth will Jules Rivera top the action and suspense of Cherry’s Bats in the Belfry story or Mark’s Caving with the Kooks adventure? I don’t know about you, but I’m glad we had last week to recover, so I’m ready for the next blockbuster drama! Watch out, Flash Gordon!

Apparently, Rivera has adopted a common “misdirection” approach to suspense, presenting a seemingly mundane activity, one undertaken by the Trails and other families during the school year, just to present a false sense of calm before the storm.

Yet, even now, we see some hint of suspense beginning to take root: Rusty has a stone of turquoise, something I’m sure that few people outside of Nevada have ever seen, much less heard of. No doubt, it’s a magical stone once used in secret ceremonies by an ancient indigenous people, now gone extinct. I’m thinking that a student in class (perhaps Robbie) will accidentally rub the stone in a way that causes it to vibrate furiously, glow brighter and brighter, then suddenly expel a ferocious cryptid, bent on eating everyone in the room!

Hold on, I need to catch my breath.

Okay, I’m better. On second thought, maybe Rusty’s fellow students will simply laugh at his boring blue stone, sending him running back into the woods to reclaim his King of Raccoons throne.