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whispered to Theodore when she found him. “But you’re sitting next to Zera, I’ve had enough of that brat for one day.”
    The Toad gave Zera a look she knew well, raised eyebrows, wrinkled forehead. His expression clearly asked, “What did you do now?”
    As they sat waiting, Zera felt satisfaction about speaking up, rude or not. It surprised her that she’d had the courage. Nonny would be proud. Her satisfaction was a little undercut, however, by fear of Tiffany’s revenge. Zera didn’t feel quite so certain now that Tiffany would let her open her grandmother’s gifts when they got home.
    On the stage at the front of the room, Bob Cadger’s secretary introduced Chet Wrangler, the CEO of All-American Burger Depot. A giant of a man in a tan suit, Stetson cowboy hat, and faux alligator boots, stomped up to the podium. His long, thick mustache and doughy features reminded Zera of a walrus, yet his massiveness, his tree trunk body and legs, brought to her mind the image of a mighty oak.
    “He looks almost as strange as I do,” Zera said under her breath.
    “Shhh.” The Toad narrowed his eyes at her from behind his dark-framed glasses.
    “Good evening.” Wrangler tipped his hat. “I appreciate y’all coming tonight to our little celebration, the Colorado opening of Americo’s first All-American Burger Depot.”
    Applause thundered from the audience.
    “I want y’all to know that we couldn’t have done this without our partnership with the scientific geniuses at BioTech.” Wrangler bestowed a smile as big as Texas upon Cadger, seated to his right. 
    Cadger nodded in return. 
    “Tonight,” continued Wrangler, “you’ll taste two of our newest products. First our dee-licious Beefy Fries, developed from a potato enhanced with the genes from a cow! These babies are going to once-and-for-all change the words ‘French fries’ to ‘American fries.’ All-American fries!”
    The crowd chuckled.
    “These beefy fries have been off the charts in every single taste test. They’re going to be big, real big.” Wrangler spread out his long, meaty arms to illustrate exactly how big. “I just hope they don’t get too big, and make hamburgers obsolete — or my little 500,000-head cattle ranch back in Texas is in trouble!”
    The crowd laughed again .
    During this part of the speech, several people smiled at her uncle, and Zera watched him actually puff up. Just like a toad , she thought. She’d heard all about The Toad’s masterpiece, Beefy Fries, for months. They were made from something that looked like a regular potato but were far from it; they oozed a little of a blood-like substance when harvested and sliced into fries. The Toad said that was just a minor concern, and soon they’d have a “new and improved” version. Zera thought up another nickname for her uncle, “Lord of the Fries.” She envisioned another amphibian, a frog, sitting on a lily pad, his tongue darting out at winged fries mooing and buzzing above his head.
    “Our second creation,” Chet Wrangler said, “is our Marilyn Milkshake, named after our sweet little mascot, whom I’m sure y’all have met.”
    The crowd nodded and smiled. A few people chuckled. Someone called out “Moo!”
    “These milkshakes are rich and tasty, and they are absolutely cutting edge, having both public satisfaction and health in mind. They are the first milkshakes ever that induce weight loss, by way of a secret ingredient added to the recipe.” Wrangler winked.
    “Ooooh!” murmured the audience.
    Wrangler’s grin revealed a glitter of white teeth below his mustache. “I welcome you to a new era, an era where good old scientific know-how is paving the way for our food. And this is only the beginning. We’ve got a lot of projects, just as fantastic, on the back burner.”
    A man yelled out, “Yeah, the Bunsen burner!” and a few in the crowd tittered.
    “But what is so extra-special about All-American,” Wrangler hooked his thumbs into his