Chloe and

the Hidden

World

By Hannah Renee Trump

Chloe and

the Hidden

World

By Hannah Renee Trump

Designed to be Worthy

Published by: Designed To Be Worthy

102 W.McElhaney Road

Taylors, SC 29687

Copyright 2012 Designed To Be Worthy.

All rights reserved.

Printed in the United States of America.

First printing May, 2012

To Jenny, my mother

To my wonderful sister Madison

To Karl, my father

To all of my friends and family

Acknowledgements

Above all, I need to thank Mrs. Mary

Beth Husman. Without her talent of

teaching this book, my writing would

not be as good. Thank you for all of

your support.

I also need to thank Vanguard

Homeschool Academy, HRC, for hosting

a school. Thank you also to

Pleasant Grove Baptist Church for

letting Vanguard use their building

every Tuesday.

Lastly, but not least, I’d like

to thank you, Mom and Dad, for

letting me have the computer all of

the time. Thank you for your

patience and support towards my

novel and believing in my novel

Chloe and the hidden door.

Table of contents

Chapter 1--A New Place

Chapter 2--The Small Door

Chapter 3--New Friends

Chapter 4--The Other Mother

Chapter 5--The Stone

Chapter 6--Dancing Mice

Chapter 7--The Garden

Chapter 8--The Question

Chapter 9--The Mirror

Chapter 10—They’re Gone

Chapter 11--She Returns

Chapter 12--The Game

Chapter 13--The First Find

Chapter 14--Blacky Helps

Chapter 15--The Last Find

Chapter 16--The Picture Frame

Chapter 17--Garden

6

Chapter 1 A New Place

After three days of driving from California,

Chloe and her family arrived at their new home.

Chloe wasn’t happy about moving away from her

friends in California to a very cold place where she

had no friends.

Chloe got out of her family’s muddy car with her

head down and helped her mother, Melanie, and her

father, Charlie, unload some of the boxes.

Chloe slowly lifted her head and looked at her

house and smiled a bit. The house was huge! As

Chloe walked through the house and up the stairs,

everything creaked and smelled old. She heard

music coming from the upstairs, but she ignored it

for now.

Chloe found her bedroom and put her small box

of things on the saggy, old bed the old owners had

left here. Her room was mostly white, so colorless.

7

There was a bare shelf in the corner, so Chloe

unloaded a few of her stuffed animals from the box

and arranged them on the shelf. Chloe carefully

lifted a picture frame out of the box and set it on the

wooden table next to her bed. In the picture frame

were her two best friends from California, Billy and

Margret, waving good-bye. A small tear trickled

down Chloe’s face, but she quickly wiped it away.

8

Chapter 2 The Small Door

After Chloe finished unloading her boxes,

she went downstairs to see what her mother was

doing. She gazed out the window as she was going

down the stairs, sad that it was pouring outside.

Chloe felt disheartened at this because it had been

always sunny in California. In the kitchen, Chloe’s

mother was cooking dinner and singing. “Mother?”

Chloe interrupted.

“Yes, Chloe?” her Mother replied.

“Can I go outside and work in our garden?”

Her mother scolded, “ Chloe Alice Jones! You

will not go outside and garden in this kind of

weather!”

“But, you promised we could have a gar--”

“Blah, blah, blah! interrupted her mother

rudely.

9

Chloe sulked away with her head down and

went to find her father. Chloe pushed through the

worn double doors to find her father hunched at the

computer, typing away on his studies. “Father?”

whispered Chloe. “Can I go outside and garden?”

“It’s raining outside isn’t it?”

Chloe whined, “Yeah, So…”

“What did the boss say?

She ruled, “You will not go outside and

garden in this kind of weather, Chloe Alice Jones!”

“Then that is a definite “no”, affirmed her

father.

Chloe swung on one of the doors, rocking

back and forth with her head down, staring blankly

into space. The old door creaked every time it

opened. Expectedly, her father got annoyed. He

looked up from typing and let out a big sigh. Smiling,

he handed Chloe a notepad and said, “Here. Go and

count all the doors and windows in this monster

house and list everything blue. Go explore, Chloe!

Chloe counted 53 things blue, 21 windows,

and 20 doors, but only 19 of them would open. The

small door in the corner of the family room and right

outside of the kitchen doorway was stubbornly stuck

closed. Maybe even locked.

She yelled around the corner into the kitchen,

“Mother! Where does this hidden little door go?”

“Nowhere, Dear.”

10

Chloe reasoned, “But it has to go somewhere,

or why would it be here at all?”

Unexpectedly, her mother walked in, shaking

her head, and with her thin arms crossed. Confusing

Chloe, she disappeared back into the drab, old

kitchen. Chloe heard her fumbling in a drawer. Her

mother returned to the family room carrying the

oldest, blackest rustiest key Chloe had ever seen.

Bending down, her mother used the key to

open the small door. The door swung open and

Chloe let out a deep breath in exasperation. Her

mother had been right; the door didn’t go anywhere;

it opened into a brick wall. Chloe’s mother locked

the door again and walked back into the kitchen.

Chloe trudged dejectedly up the stairs and crashed

onto her bed without eating the nasty spinach recipe

her mother had made.

11

Chapter 3

New Friends

The next day, the rain had stopped, but a

thick white fog covered the ground. “I’m going for a

walk,” Chloe informed to her mother.

“Don’t go too far. And dress warmly.”

Chloe put on her yellow rain coat with her

yellow rain boots and her blue gloves and walked out

the front door, ready to explore outside today. The

fog covered Chloe’s rain boots, but it intrigued her

because it had rarely, if ever, been foggy in

California. Chloe walked around in the fog, peering

under bushes and under dead leaves, looking for

interesting bugs. While Chloe was moving her hands

on the ground trying to find something interesting,

she felt a small depression in the ground. She blew

away the fog, hoping to see better and brushed

across the dirt with her hand. She found a small

metal lid, the kind she knew covered a well.

She poked her finger into the small hole in

the lid, obviously for a finger, and pulled the lid up.

12

She peered down the hole but blackness hid the

bottom.

Still curious about the well, Chloe ripped a

small branch off of a nearby tree and threw it down

into the well, bending closer to the well so she could

hear when the stick hit the bottom, but she heard

nothing.

Behind her, though, Chloe heard a small

“meow.” Chloe turned around, startled, and saw a

small, skinny, black cat stuck in a nearby tree. Chloe

climbed up the tall oak tree and scooped up the tiny

cat. She held the cat closely in her arms and brushed

dirt off of him. She told him she was going to name

him “Blacky.” The cat meowed and purred in

agreement.

Chloe walked home, tucking the cat in her

raincoat so that her mother wouldn’t know there

was a cat in the house. Chloe ran up the stairs and

set the cat on her bed. Just as quickly, she ran out

and closed the door behind her.

She calmly walked downstairs and told her

mother who was on the computer all about her day.

Chloe hoped to catch her mother’s attention

reporting, “I almost fell down a well today.”

Chloe’s mother mumbled, “Uh huh,” and

continued typing crazily.

While Chloe washed her hands, she realized

the branch she had ripped off of the tree must have

been poison oak. Chloe groaned. In the bathroom,

13

she found some ointment to put on her hands to

keep the rash from going crazy, but it only seemed to

make it worse. Desperate to sooth her skin, Chloe

planned for a shower, but instead of water coming

out of the spout, a bunch of bugs spilled out.

Jumping back a step, Chloe yelled, “Yuck!”

She decided it would be best if she didn’t take

a shower that night. She instead pulled on her

pajamas and bounded down the steps for dinner.

Tonight, her father had cooked dinner.

Chloe and her mother waited at the small

table in the center of the big kitchen. Her father was

at the stove preparing to serve them. He walked

over and spooned the nastiest things on Chloe’s

plate!

“Yuck!” piped Chloe.

“What?” asked her father, pretending to be a

bit surprised.

“You know I don’t like escargot.”

“I know, Chloe ,but it’s the only thing we have

right now, soothed her father. Your mother and I will

be going to the grocery store tomorrow.”

Chloe finished her dinner quickly so she didn’t

have to endure the taste. Chloe skipped back up the

stairs and explored around the upstairs before she

went to her room for bed.

14

Chapter 4

The Other Mother

Chloe turned off her bedside lamp and fell

into a deep sleep. In the middle of the night she

heard something come into her room. Uneasy, Chloe turned on the lamp and looked

around. Finally, she looked on the floor; there was a

light brown mouse, squeaking non-stop. It ran away,

and Chloe decided to follow it, sensing there was

something really strange about this mouse. She

couldn’t quite figure it out, though.

Strangely, the mouse led Chloe to the small,

hidden door in the family room. The door was

cracked just enough that the little mouse could

squeeze in. She was sure her mother had locked it

with that rusty, old key. Cautiously, she opened the

door and a small gust of wind blew her short black

hair backwards—whish.

It was a little tunnel, but instead of the

blackness of the well, it’s rounded walls glowed with

purple and blue. Chloe took a deep breath and

15

crawled through the wee door. At the other end of

the tunnel, she opened another door.

Opening the door, she saw what looked like

her same family room, but it was decorated more

nicely and painted in soft, warm colors; this family

room was just how she had imagined her dream

house.

She heard someone singing in the kitchen, so

she walked into the kitchen. There she saw her

mother cooking, her back turned to Chloe. She was

dressed very nicely and had beautifully styled hair.

Her mother turned around and said, “Hello,

Chloe, we have been waiting for you. It’s almost

dinner time, so go wash up.”

Chloe stuttered, “ Bu- bu- bu- bu -buttons.”

“Yes, Chloe, we all have buttons on our noses

here.”

“You’re not my mother,” blurted Chloe.

“No, Silly. I’m your other mother; everyone

has one.”

“Ohhh. Ok,” nodded Chloe, stunned.

“You have an other father too,” added her

other mother. “He’s in the office doing his studies.”

Chloe ran to the office and saw her other

father playing the piano. It was a song about her.

Chloe listened and clapped when he was done.

He turned around and said, “Thank you.”

Chloe realized he had a button nose too. She

pushed that matter aside for now. Suddenly her

16

other mother walked into the office and spoke very

kindly, “ Dinner time.”

Chloe sat at the nicely set dining room table

with her other family. There was a small choo choo

train going around the table, carrying serving bowls.

Chloe’s favorite foods, chicken and mashed potatoes,

filled the bowls.

After the meal, her mom served yummy

chocolate cake. Chloe grew very tired and reported

that she was going to go up to bed for the night.

Chloe’s other parents followed her to her bedroom

to tuck her in.

Opening the door to her room, Chloe’s mouth

fell open in amazement; it was just as she had

imagined her dream room. Pink walls, a pretty bed,

a make-up dresser in the corner, and a bird cage with

chirping birds completed every inch of her dream.

Chloe went over and hugged her other

parents saying, “Thank you! Thank you so much! I

love it!”

Her other mother smiled back, “We thought

you would like it.” They tucked Chloe in and then

slipped quietly downstairs.

17

Chapter 5

The Stone

In the morning, Chloe awoke in her plain,

old, white bedroom. She was back with her real

parents. Chloe was disappointed at this. She wished

she could have awakened in the other place of her

dreams last night.

Chloe ran down the stairs and tried to tell her

parents what her dream had been about. Her

mother just kept saying, “Cool,” over and over again.

To make matters worse, at breakfast Chloe’s

mother announced that they were going to go

shopping for some new clothes for school. Chloe

groaned; school clothes shopping was not fun. Chloe and her mother arrived at the school

uniform store. The clothes were very grey and

boring. Her mother made her try on everything in

the store it seemed. She whispered under her

breath, “My other mother wouldn’t make me do

this.”

18

Chloe’s mother sighed, tired of all the

complaining.

After Chloe finished trying on everything in

the store, her mom selected a few drab outfits. On

the way to the check out, Chloe found some really

cute, colorful gloves. Hopeful for a “yes,” Chloe

politely asked, “Mother, may I have these?”

“No,” snapped her mother.

Chloe talked back, “My other mother would

have bought them for me.”

Worn out, Chloe’s mother snapped back,

“Well, why don’t you just have your other mother

get them for you?”

Chloe, her head hung in disappointment,

followed her mom out of the store. They drove

home without speaking.

At home, Chloe tried again to open the door

in the family room, but it was locked. Moving on,

she ran upstairs and stuffed her new, boring clothes

into her closet.

Chloe could not stop thinking about the other

world. She wanted to go back to sleep so she could

return there. Chloe lay on her bed for a while,

thinking about the other world.

Blacky, who had quietly been hiding in her

room, jumped up on her bed and sat in her lap. She

heard her father downstairs sneeze.

Whispering to Blacky, she said, “Uh-oh. We

had better go outside.” Chloe glided quietly down

19

the creaky, old stairs with Blacky in her arms, hoping

that no one would notice the squeaks.

Once clear of the house, she slammed the

door behind herself and bounced down the front

steps, happy to be outside.

She set Blacky down on the cold wet ground

and asked him if he wanted to go meet some

neighbors. Black meowed softly in agreement.

A few houses down the street, she walked to

the side of the a big brick house and down the brick

stairs. There was a sign on the dark door that said,

“On the air.” Chloe could hear dogs barking from the

inside. Smartly, Blacky scattered away and ran under

her front porch. Chloe knocked on the door and and

old woman greeted her, “Come in. Come in. Please

do come in.”

“My name is Marie, and this is Rosalie,”

cackled the old woman.

Chloe nodded to each, “Nice to meet you,

Ma’am, Ma’am.”

Miss Marie had bright pink hair and wore

bright blue eye shadow. She was about Chloe’s

height, but definitely a lot wider.

Miss Rosalie had long grey hair and wore blue

spectacles that she held up to her face so she could

see better. Miss Rosalie was much taller than Miss

Marie, but Chloe could tell they still were sisters.

20

Since she’d been so warmly invited, Chloe

walked in and sat down on the couch. Seven

Yorkshire terriers greeted her with kisses.

Miss Rosalie clapped, and they all left the

family room.

Miss Rosalie and Miss Marie asked Chloe a lot

of questions, and she grew very tired. She

interrupted, “I’d better get going now.”

Miss Marie and Miss Rosalie objected, “Wait!

We have something for you.”

Miss Marie handed Chloe a circular stone

with a hole in the middle. Miss Marie whispered,

“It’s for finding lost things.”

Miss Rosalie corrected, “It’s for finding scary

things.”

They were fighting back and forth about

which one it was when Chloe snuck out the front

door, slipping the stone safely into her pocket.

21

Chapter 6

Dancing Mice

Chloe pulled the stone out of her raincoat

pocket and put it on her finger like a pretty ring.

She began calling, “Blacky” nicely. Blacky came

running and jumped up into her arms.

She asked him, “Do you want to go meet our

other neighbors?” Blacky didn’t squirm away. Still

holding him, Chloe walked down the street. They

came to a very long driveway. Chloe followed the

curvy driveway and came to a house with a big

wooden door. As she was about to ring the doorbell, the

door swooshed open. There stood a very tall man

who wore a black beard. He had on a t-shirt and gym

shorts, apparently exercise clothes. She looked up at

the man and saw a pretty beat up circus hat atop his

22

head. Chloe lifted her eyebrows in surprise and

mustered, “Hello,” kindly.

Pleased to have an audience, he did many

tricks to entertain her. She heard music coming from

deep inside his home. A small mouse ran out the

door and on down the long front steps. She watched

Blacky chased after it until she couldn’t see him any

longer more.

The old strange man welcomed Chloe into his

house to see his dancing mice act. She nodded in

agreement and walked in. His house was dark, but

there was a small light coming from one room. The

old man handed her cotton candy to enjoy during the

show. Delighted, Chloe walked into the room and sat

down on the oriental carpet.

Suddenly, the trained mice came dashing into

the center of the room, dancing all around and

walking on little tightropes she hadn’t noticed until

now. After it was all over, Chloe clapped loudly and

cheered.

The old man interrupted, “It’s not quite a

finished piece yet, but I will let you know when it is.

You best be on your way now. It’s almost time for

dinner.”

Chloe walked out the door, smiling.

As she got closer to her own house, she

looked all over for Blacky. She looked up into the

trees and under the house. Blacky was nowhere to

be seen.

23

Suddenly, a boy on a bicycle came riding

down the rocky road to her house, singing. Chloe

looked closer and saw Blacky in his coat.

Chloe began to scream, “Hey! Stop! You have

my cat!”

The boy skidded to a stop and stared at

Chloe, his head tilted slightly.

Chloe demanded, “May I please have my cat

back?”

“Your cat?” asked the boy. “This is my cat.

His name is Mr. Franky.”

Chloe scowled as she crossed her arms in

front of herself, waiting for the boy to add something

else.

“My name is Marcus. What is your name?”

Chloe huffed, “ Chloe Jones.”

“Oh, Jones. You’re the new family that just

moved into the neighborhood.”

Chloe nodded and begged, “Can I please have

my cat back?”

Marcus suggested gently, “How about we just

share the cat.”

Chloe spit out, “Fine, as long as he gets to

stay at my house.” They shook on it and being

friends now, carried on with more conversation.

Marcus told her that his cousin used to live in

her house, but somehow she had disappeared and

no one had ever found her. All they found was a

24

small, black, rusty key next to a small door that leads

to nowhere.

Chloe was amazed; it had to be the same

door she had gone through.

Exceptionally curious now, Chloe asked

Marcus, “How old was she?”

“She was 11 years old. You know, I have to

get home now,” he ended.

She told Marcus good-bye, but as she walked

up to her house, she thought only of how unusually

talkative Marcus had been.

25

Chapter 7

The Garden

Inside, Chloe walked into the kitchen to

wash her hands. She told her mother about the

neighbors she had met. Her mom gave her a tight

hug and said, “I am very glad you are making new

friends.” Suddenly, her mother let out a big sneeze.

Chloe, slipped away, hopped up the stairs and

jumped into the shower before it was even warm to

wash the cat off. Since it was late, she put on her

pajamas.

Chloe stole down the long, creaky stairs and

made herself a bowl of cereal. As she walked by the

family room, she checked carefully to see if the small

door was open. The door did not look open, but she

hoped she would somehow get it open and get back

into that other world.

26

Later that night, Chloe slipped into bed,

hoping that Marcus had taken in Blacky. Surprisingly,

she heard a meow coming from the porch roof

outside her window.

Chloe looked out, and there was Blacky,

leaning against the window. Chloe lifted up the

window and let him in. Chloe lay on her bed with her

eyes open, gently stroking Blacky.

Suddenly, she then heard a tiny creak echo up

the stairs. Chloe grabbed a lit candle from her

nightstand and walked down the stairs slowly,

holding Blacky tightly in her arms. They came to the

door in the family room; it was cracked open!

She opened the door wider and a small gust

of wind blew the candle flame out. Now she was in

the dark. Seeing a light at the end of the tunnel, she

crawled through, opening the door at the other end

of the tunnel.

Her other mother greeted her. Chloe looked

back for Blacky, but did not see him.

Her other mother then invited her into the

kitchen. While Chloe sat at the pretty table, her

mother made chocolate chip cookies. The sweet

smell filled the whole house.

Chloe sat down at the nicely-set kitchen table

and her other mother sat next to her and watched as

Chloe ate her cookie. When Chloe finished, she said,

“Your other father wants to show you something.

He’s outside in the garden.”

27

“We have a garden?” squeaked Chloe.

“Why, of course, Dear. Anything for you,”

smiled her mother.

Chloe walked down front steps of the house.

Everything was nicely lit so she could see even

though it was late at night. She walked along the

brick walkway as small humming birds sang in her

ears. She spied at least one of every plant she could

even imagine.

Chloe spied her other father gardening across

a small bridge. She called to him, “This is amazing! I

love your garden!”

“Our garden, Chloe,” he corrected. “I’m glad

you like it; your mother worked very hard on it.”

Where Chloe stood, small plants tickled her

feet. She dropped happily to the ground, laughing.

Her other father swooped her up onto the motor

cart he drove. He cut the flowers that were tickling

her and handed them to her, and in a beautiful blue

glass vase, no less.

Her father pressed a button on the car and

amazingly, it flew into the air. When they got up high

enough, she saw the whole garden below. Her

father pointed to the plants; the garden spelled out

her name! Chloe gave her other father a big hug.

Shortly, they landed gently on the ground.

28

Chapter 8 The question

Chloe and her father went inside for a late

dinner. Chloe walked into the dining room and saw

that everything was set up very nicely again, and

there was the choo choo train, going around the big

table passing the serving bowls.

Amazed at all the dishes, Chloe asked her

other mother, “Who is all this food for?”

Her other mother responded, “Why, this is for

you, Chloe. We have a special surprise for you.”

Chloe wondered what kind of surprise it

would be.

When Chloe finished her meal, her other

mother set a small box in front of Chloe urging,

“Here’s a special present just for you.”

Judging by the size of the box, Chloe thought

it would be a necklace or a pair of ear rings, but

29

when she opened the box, she saw only a single

button. Chloe gasped.

Her other mother instructed, “ If you want to

live here, we will have to sew the button onto your

nose. That is the only way you can stay here.”

Chloe stuttered, “Uh, uh, uh… ummm.”

Her other mother added, “ They come in all

different kinds of colors; pink, orange, yellow, white,

green, but black is traditional.

Chloe objected, “I don’t want a button sewn

into my nose.”

“That is the only way you can stay with us,”

reminded her mother in a stern voice.

Hoping to leave this odd situation, Chloe fake

a yawn and added, “I’m getting tired. I better go to

bed.”

Her other mother insisted, “But wait, there is

still cake.”

Chloe politley answered, “Thank you, I will

have some in the morning.”

She pattered up the stairs as fast as she could

go and jumped into her bed, telling herself to go to

sleep. She heard Blacky meow, so she got up to

open the window. Blacky slithered in shaking, the

rain off his fur.

Blacky spoke, “You had better get out of here

before you can never get out.”

Her mouth fell open; Chloe was stunned!

Blacky added, “ Yes, I’m a talking cat. I can

30

only talk in this world. Never tell your other mother

about me. She hates cats.”

Chloe was amazed at a talking cat. After a

few hours of her mind whirling around, she fell

asleep, hoping she would return to the real world

while she slept.

31

Chapter 9 The Mirror

Chloe rubbed the sleep from her eyes. She

was still in the same scary house!

Shivering with fear, she walked down the

nicely painted stairs for breakfast. Her other mother

had a nice breakfast all prepared for her: warm

bacon, chocolate pancakes, and everything else that

made it her favorite breakfast. In the far corner of

the table, though, she saw the one button, just

sitting there.

Chloe got a noxious feeling in the bottom of

her stomach. She hurried through breakfast, eating

the delicious food and told her other mother she was

going for a walk.

32

She walked back up the stairs, spying a mirror

in the hallway. She slowly walked up to the mirror;

in it, she saw only herself. Peering more intently, she

noticed shadows that looked like her friends.

Suddenly, Chloe felt a tug on her left

shoulder. She spun around to see her other mother

with her button nose starring down at her.

“Chloe, my Dear,” I thought we could play a

game when you get back from your walk; hopscotch,

Life, Monopoly?”

“You weren’t in the mirror,”balked Chloe.

Her other mother smiled. “Mirrors… are never

to be trusted. Now, what game shall we play?”

Chloe shook her head quickly, “I don’t want

to play games with you. I want to go home to my

real family and play games with them.

Her other mother shook her head very slowly,

back and forth.

“I thought I loved you,” cried Chloe, “but no

matter what, I could never love you.”

Her other mother walked off into the family

room and sat on the big red sofa. Chloe slowly

33

followed her, wanting to see what she did next, but

stayed hidden behind the couch.

She heard her other mother eating

something. She quickly peeked above the sofa,

tilting her head to one side in confusion. She popped

her head below the sofa again, a look of disgust

plastered on her face. Her other mother was eating

chocolate covered beetles!

Soon after, the other mother darted out of

the room and into the kitchen.

Chloe heared Blacky behind her. “Chloe,” he

coaxed. “Now is your time to get out. The door is

right over there.”

Chloe crawled quietly to the small door, and

Blacky followed. She could hear her other mother

singing in the kitchen.

Quickly, she opened the small door and

crawled through the tunnel as fast as she could with

Blacky following behind.

When she reached her hand out for the door

back to the real world, she heard her other mother

wail, “Chloe Jones! You get back here!”

34

She looked back to see that her other mother

looked completely different: she had a long, spider-

like neck, and her hair was long and black. She was

disturbingly skinny.

Chloe grabbed Blacky and slammed the door

closed behind her. She leaned up against the door

making sure it had latched. She breathed heavily;

that was way too close!

35

Chapter 10

They’re Gone

As soon as Chloe caught her breathe she

yelled, “Mom, Dad, I’m home!” No one replied. She

tried one more time, “ Mom? Dad? I’m home!”

Chloe ran to the front window to see if the car

was parked out front. She peeked out of the small

window and saw a black mini-van, shining in the rain.

Blacky licked Chloe’s leg for comport. Chloe ran up

the chipped stairs, still yelling for her parents.

She looked for them in every room, even in

closets! She couldn’t find the anywhere. Chloe slid

down the side of her bedroom wall and began to cry,

her hands cradling her head. Blacky rubbed up

against her, but it didn’t seem to do much good.

It rained even harder outside as Chloe

walked into the kitchen, wiping away her tears. She

36

made herself a bowl of cereal, but gave it to Blacky

because she appetite was gone.

Chloe talked to Blacky saying, “How could she

do something like this? Why would she take my

parents away from me?” Blacky just starred at her.

Chloe walked down the hallway and went

into her parents’ room. Chloe lay on the big empty

bed, missing them both.

She prayed that God would bring her parents

back to her. She cried and cried hoping they would

come back.

Blacky quickly ran out of the room; he

returned with the game of Scrabble. Blacky dumped

it on the floor, spelling out lines as best he could.

Here are the lines Chloe read:

SHE HAS TAKIN

YOUR PARINTS

AND HID THEM

IN HER WORLD

SHE WANTS YOU

TO COM BAC TO HER

SO SHE CAN TRAP YOU.

IF YOU GO BAC

SHE WILL WANT TO

PLAY A GAME

WITH YOU.

BE CARFUL

THE GAMES

ARE NOT FARE.

37

Chloe picked up Blacky and squeezed him

crying, “Thank you. Thank you! You are the best cat

anyone could ever have.”

Chloe and Blacky spent the rest of the night

trying to figure out a plan for whatever game her

other mom might pick game.

38

Chapter 11

She Returns

Chloe found herself asleep on the floor

with crumbled up papers everywhere. She jumped up and ran as fast as she could to

her bedroom to get all of her supplies together. She

quickly snatched a small handbag hanging in her

closet. Blacky watched her from the door.

Chloe put all of her spy gear in this small,

ripped handbag and walked out of her bedroom

door. She suddenly stopped on the stairs,

remembering what Miss Rosalie and Miss Marie had

given her.

She ran back up the creaky old stairs and took

the cold, bluish stone out of her yellow raincoat

pocket. She put the stone up to her eye and

everything she saw through the hole was in black and

white.

Amazed, she gasped, “ Wow! This is like one

of those black and white movies.”

39

Blacky pushed the back of her leg to make

sure she kept on moving.

Soon Chloe and Blacky arrived at the small

door in the family room. Chloe took a deep breath

and opened the door, hoping not to see the other

mother.

She crawled through the tunnel with Blacky

chiming in behind her, “You know, you’re falling right

into her trap.”

Chloe assured him, “ I know it’s a trap. I just

want my real parents back.” She got to the other

door at the end of the tunnel, but it was already

open.

Chloe stepped out of the tunnel and walked

into the kitchen where she could hear her other

mother singing. Sweat began to run down Chloe’s

small face as she wiped it away.

She walked around the house looking for

anything to play the game with. On the way to her

room, she glanced at the mirror in the hallway. She

stared into it and this time saw children playing in

the mirror. She tilted her small head to clear her

thoughts.

Suddenly, the mirror fogged up and HELP US

appeared in the whiteness. Chloe whispered, “Yes, I

will help you.”

40

Chapter 12

The Game

Chloe returned to the kitchen, noticing that

her other mother looked very different again. She

was still tall and very skinny, and her neck was very

long, but now Chloe noticed that she had extremely

long nails. All this change, and she still had her

button nose. Her back turned to Chloe while she cooked.

Aware of Chloe, she spoke matter-of-factly, “So, you

decided to come back and be a good daughter.”

Chloe spelled it out clearly, “You’re not my

mother.” The other mother smirked and shook her

head. For quite a while, dead silence hung in the air,

and then her other mother broke it saying, “Here,

Chloe , “Eat up.”

The food was nasty, almost like the food in

her real home. The other mother stood by the

counter, watching and waiting for Chloe to be

finished.

41

When Chloe was done, her other mother

questioned her, “Do you think we can play a game

now?”

That got Chloe’s full attention! She responded

carefully, “What kind of game?”

“Like Hide and Seek, maybe, but with lost

things,” Mother suggested.

Chloe agreed, “OK, but which lost things?”

Chloe put this idea out for her other mother to bite

on; “The three lost buttons that belong to the

children in the mirror.”

Her other mother had a big smirk on her face

as she tapped her fingers on the table. She then

asked a very important question, “What if you don’t

find all of the lost things?”

Chloe gave her dastardly mother the perfect

answer, “Then, as long as you release my parents

and the children in the mirror, you can keep me

forever.

“Deal! But,” she warned, “you have to find all

of the items before the eclipse tonight.”

Chloe nodded slowly and said, “Can I at least

have a hint?”

“One hint, and that is all you get: you cannot

see these hidden buttons with the human eye.”

Chloe sighed, thinking maybe she was in

trouble, and the mother walked out of the room.

Anxious to find the buttons, Chloe ran out of

the door and into the now dead garden.

42

Chapter 13 The First Find

Her other father was in the dead garden

too. He looked very different too; he was extremely

overweight and moved at a very lazy speed.

Chloe removed the stone from her raincoat

pocket and held it up to her eye. She saw everything

in black and white. She looked around the garden,

but didn’t see any buttons. She walked across the

bridge, and her father appeared on the other side.

As she walked close to him, he reached out

and snatched the stone from her, jumping onto the

small bridge. He was so heavy that the bridge broke

in half, and he sunk into the water below.

Quickly, Chloe snatched the stone from his

hand before he completely disappeared under the

water.

Once again, she looked through the stone;

she saw something very shiny sparkling to the side of

43

a lily pad. She lifted up the lily pad and grabbed for

one of the lost buttons; it was green.

Chloe screamed with joy and walked out of

the garden. Looking back one last moment, she saw

that everything in the garden had lost its color. It

resembled a sketch book.

Chloe looked up at the moon; it was almost time

for the eclipse. She had three more buttons to go.

44

Chapter 14 Blacky Helps

Chloe pattered around the house, hoping

she could find all of the lost buttons in time. After a while, Chloe sat down on the arm of a

chair and cradled her head in her hands. A tear

slipped down her cheek, but she refused to cry.

Blacky brushed up against her leg. Looking

down at him, Chloe caught a glimpse of the small

mouse scurrying by.

“That’s it!” she said. “The second button is in

the old man’s house.”

Blacky replied, “Good guess. Let’s go.”

Chloe ran up his front stairs, wiping away

dried tears from her face. Opening the creaky door,

she saw a small, faded orange, striped tent in the

center of the room.

Chloe took the stone and held it up to her

eye. She saw another shiny object; it was on the

inside of the tent. She pulled the curtain to one side,

45

and on the inside were many mice; they were putting

on a show. In the corner sat the old man, very still.

He, too, had a button nose.

Quickly, she put the blue stone up to her eye

and looked directly at the old man. The shiny button

appeared to be inside his hat.

Chloe scooted closer and closer to the old

man. When she was close enough, she made sure he

was distracted by the mice show. She reached out

her right hand and took the hat off of the man.

Suddenly, rats ran out of his jacket and filled the

room.

Chloe screamed, trying to grab the shiny

button. The old man lay on the floor, stiff like a

manikin. The mice ran everywhere. Chloe spotted a

mouse with the button, and it was headed out the

front door.

Chloe ran after him, but she was too late; the

mouse slipped under the house.

The next thing she knew, Blacky squeezed out

from under the house; he had the mouse in his

mouth. Chloe ran to Blacky, picked him up, and

exclaimed, “Thank you. Thank you! Now, there is

hope!”

Chloe took the button from the mouse’s

mouth and slipped it into her handbag.

She looked back at the house; noticing

it, too, resembled a sketch book. She stared up at

the moon -- it was halfway eclipsed.

46

Chapter 15

The Last find

It was beginning to get very dark outside,

but Chloe had one more button left.

Chloe and Blacky wandered around, looking

everywhere. Blacky suggested, “There is only one

more place to look. The actresses’ house.” Chloe

picked up Blacky and ran to Miss Rosalie and Miss

Marie’s house. She pushed open the door, but

inside, it was very dark. She walked into the bedroom and held up the

stone to her eye. Chloe saw the last, small button;

Miss Rosalie held it in her hand.

Chloe gasped with excitement.

Blacky shushed her. “They might hear you!”

Chloe walked up to Miss Rosalie, who

remained frozen in place. Chloe reached her small

hand out to get the button. Suddenly, Miss Rosalie

closed her hand tightly stopping Chloe from grabbing

the button, the last button!

47

Chloe put her hands on her hips and thought

what to do. An idea popped into her head. She

asked Blacky for a favor, “Blacky, can you do this

huge favor for me?”

Blacky asked, “Yes, what?”

“I need you to go into the dogs’ room and

scare them all so Miss Marie and Miss Rosalie wake

up.” Blacky hurried out of the room.

Chloe slid under Miss Rosalie’s bed. All of the

sudden, she heard the dogs barking. She smiled

when she heard Miss Rosalie pop out of bed.

She waited to get out from underneath the

bed until she heard no one anymore. Chloe slowly

reached for the button in Miss Rosalie’s hand while

trying to not wake Miss Marie.

Miss Marie blurted out, “Rosalie?”

Chloe shot upwards, shocked that Miss Marie

had awakened. Chloe then remembered that Miss

Marie had very bad eye sight, so was hopeful. Chloe

snuck out as fast as she could. She left the house

with the last button in her hand.

Chloe looked up at the sky and saw that it

was almost a perfect eclipse. Bending low, she picked

up Blacky and put him in her bag. She entered the

front door of her other house.

48

Chapter 16 The Picture Frame

Chloe walked into the family room holding

Blacky very closely. She could see her other mother

sitting slouched and weak on the red couch in front

of her. Suddenly, she said weekly, “Well, you’ve

come back, and you brought that with you?”

Chloe slighly turned away, scared, but she

gathered her strength and replied, “No, I...I brought

a friend.” Her other mother stood up from the couch

and walked towards Chloe lying, “You know I love

you.”

“You have a very funny way of showing it,”

Chloe spit back.

The other mother switched the subject

quickly, “So where are they? The children's buttons?”

Chloe reached to hand her the buttons,but

quickly snatched them back.

49

The other mother growled and crossed her

skinny and weak arms, “Hold on. We aren’t finished

yet.”

“ No, I guess not.”

“ You still need to find your old parents. Too

bad you won’t have this--” the other mother smiled,

holding out the blue stone in her skinny hand.

Chloe’s eyes got big as she tried to reach for

it, but before she could get the blue stone, the other

mother had thrown it into the fireplace next to her.

A tear ran down Chloe’s face, but she knew

she had to be more brave. She wiped the tear away,

stood up taller and insisted, “I already know where

you have hidden them.”

“Well, produce them,” snapped the other

mother.

Chloe had to think quickly to distract the

other mother. “Behind that door.”

“Oh, they are, are they?” the other mother

sarcastically whined. She walked to the door as

Chloe stood motionless. Chloe scanned the room,

spying a picture frame with her parents in it.

The other mother quickly spun around to

check on Chloe. Chloe demanded, “Open the door.

They will be there, all right.”

The other mother opened the door,but there

was nothing. She said, “You’re wrong, Chloe! Now

you get to stay with me forever.”

50

“No, I’m not wrong!” Chloe threw Blacky

straight at her. Furious, the other mother chased

Chloe. Chloe dove for the picture frame of her

parents, sending it to the ground. It broke. She

glanced down at it and saw that the picture of her

parents had disappeared.

Chloe grabbed the key and Blacky before she

got up off the floor and scurried to the door.

She crawled through the door and slammed

it. Chloe took a deep breath and put Blacky down.

Suddenly, the door swung open again and the other

mother reached her long skinny arm into the tunnel

for her wailing, “Chloe! Come back! I need you!”

Chloe slammed the door once again, but

accidentally shut her the mother’s hand into the

door. She screamed with fear.

Chloe noticed that the other mother’s hand

had fallen off, but strangely it had turned into metal.

Chloe crawled as fast as she could to the

door at the other end of the tunnel. Almost trapping

Blacky and her leg in the small door, she hurriedly

turned the black key. Locked.

Chloe heard her other mother knocking and

screaming from the other side of the door. After a

while, the sound faded.

Chloe and Blacky lay on the floor, resting and

waiting to see what next would happen.

51

Scaring her to pieces, Chloe heard the front

door open. “Mom! Dad! Mommy! Daddy! I am so

glad to see you!”

“What is it Chloe? We have only been gone

for an hour, for goodness’ sake.”

Chloe tilted her head in confusion. She

whispered mostly to herself, “It doesn’t matter. I’m

so glad they’re back.”

Chloe gave her mom and dad another huge

hug and cried.

That night, Chloe slept on the floor right next

to her parents’ bed to make sure they wouldn’t

disappear again.

52

Chapter 17 Garden

The next morning, Chloe grabbed her hand

bag and walked out into the woods. Chloe walked all

the way to the well. She took the small black key out

of the bag and threw the key deep into the well.

Chloe made sure she securely closed the well,

so no one else could ever get inside. As Chloe

walked back home, she ran smack dap into a

surprise.

A whole crowd was planting a garden in

Chloe’s front yard!

Chloe screamed, “ A garden! For real?”

Chloe’s mother greeted her wearing pink, warn-out

gardening gloves, and gave her a hug.

“Yes ,Chloe, this garden is for real, and it’s for

you.”

Excited beyond measure, Chloe yelled out,

“Thank you Thank you! This garden will be beautiful.”

53

Miss Rosalie and Miss Marie planted yellow

roses in the flower bed. Her mom and dad planted

soft green grass among the cobble stones. The funny

old circus man planted strawberry plants in a corner

of the garden.

And not to miss a party, Marcus joined them,

saying, “ I love your garden, Chloe.”

“Our garden, Marcus,” corrected Chloe.

For the rest of the day, everyone played

games and enjoyed fresh lemonade in the warm sun.

Chloe realized that she was very grateful to have

parents like hers.

She gave her mom and dad a big hug and

reminded them, “You are the best parents ever.”

About the author

Hannah Renee Trump was born in Denver

Colorado. She lives with her Mom and Dad

and her younger sister Madison. Her hobbies

are Ballet, language, and writing.

Chloe, a 12 year old girl, moves to a new home. Inside her new home, she discovers a small door that leads to a better world. She then discovers that the new world is a bad place to be, so she has to try to get out of that world.

“Rich in mystery, intrigue, and suspense, Chloe and the Hidden World made me

wonder what was going to happen. -Friend-

In Chloe and the Hidden World, Hannah

Trump offers an adventurous mystery story;

you will travel back and forth between two

different worlds.

-Hannah’s Dad-