Chapter 9
The Portable Rescue
Jack was furious. He had to tell the others.
But his position against the boulder was making it difficult for him to move. Jack stuck his feet down into the river and felt another large rock underneath. He stepped on it and pushed up as hard as he could. Then he thrust his body to the right. The river caught him and released him from the boulder.
The current swept him downstream. Up ahead, there was a fallen log in the river. Max and Mary had managed to grab on to it. They climbed over its trunk and headed for shore. Jack decided to do the same.
As soon as he was near it, he seized one of the branches and pulled himself toward the log. Then he clambered on top of the trunk and made his way to Max and Mary on the bank. Unfortunately, Callie was nowhere to be found. Mary was initially furious.
“What were those guys thinking?” said Mary. “That prank could have gotten us killed!”
Then anger turned to sadness. Tears started to well up in Mary’s eyes.
“And now,” she said, “Callie is lost somewhere on the river.”
Jack didn’t think it was the time to tell Mary about the treasure. Besides, he and his brother might still be able to find it.
“Why don’t Max and I retrieve the strongbox,” offered Jack, “while you go after Callie.”
“It’ll be impossible,” said Mary, “without a boat.”
The river was too dangerous to swim. It was also moving faster than her feet would take her.
“I have an idea,” said Max.
He pulled the GPF Kayak out of his bag. The GPF Kayak was the world’s smallest portable kayak. Max opened the square pack, and the boat unfolded like an accordion. He put a couple of waterproof seals on its edges. Then he pulled a thin, short tube out of his bag. He yanked on the ends three times and the length of it tripled. Max uncapped the two ends, and an oval piece of plastic unfurled from each. This was the oar.
“Ta-da,” said Max, handing it to Mary.
“You’re incredible,” she said.
If Max could get some compliments, reasoned Jack, so could he.
He noticed a bit of blood on Mary’s arm. Guessing she’d cut herself on a rock, he ripped a piece of fabric from his shirt and wrapped it around the wound.
“You’re amazing too,” said Mary.
Jack blushed.
The boys helped Mary carry the kayak to the river. Once she was inside, they pushed her into the flow of the water.
“Good luck finding Callie!” shouted Jack as he waved.
Mary waved back and disappeared around the bend.
Chapter 10
The Hook
Jack and Max were now free to go after the box. Jack told his brother about the men. Until now, Max had no idea that the treasure had been stolen.
“But how did they know we were coming?” asked Max. “How did they even know that we were carrying gold?”
Jack shook his head. “No clue,” he said.
There was no time to debate the possibilities. At least twenty minutes had passed since Jack had seen the men walk off with the strongbox. They were at least a mile away from the yellow-leafed tree.
“We need to retrace our steps,” said Max. “It we find the spot where they exited, we might be able to track them down.”
The brothers hiked the mile upriver until Jack spotted the tree.
“That’s where they escaped,” said Jack, pointing to it and a narrow dirt path nearby.
The problem was that the boys were on the wrong side of the river. The rope that the men had used to get across had been cut in two.
“What about our grappling hooks?” asked Jack.
“Good idea,” said Max.
Normally, the boys used these hooks to scale vertical walls. But here, they could use them as anchor points to pull themselves across the river.
The GPF’s Grappling Hook looked like a jump rope, only there was a super strong nylon rope in between the two tubes.
Jack and Max pulled their Grappling Hooks out of their Book Bags and pushed a button on one of the tubes. A three-pronged hook popped out. They held on to the other handle and threw the barbed end as far as they could over the water.
Both hooks caught on a tree branch. Jack and Max yanked on the rope to make sure it was secure, then they held on to it as they crossed the river.
When they got to the other side, they retracted the barbs and tucked their Grappling Hooks away. Jack and Max set off on the dirt path in search of the thieves.
Chapter 11
The Abandoned Town
The boys hiked ten minutes through the tall grasses that surrounded the dirt path. Eventually, the grasses disappeared, and the trail opened up into a small abandoned town. The boys knew it was abandoned because there was no one living there.
“They probably left when the gold ran out,” said Max.
Through the middle of the town was a wide dirt road with four wooden buildings on either side. Some of the wooden planks went up and down, while others ran side to side. Most of the paint on the buildings had chipped off, and the windows were either cracked or missing. Some of the buildings didn’t have doors.
On the right side of the road were the saloon, hardware store, general store, and blacksmith. To the left was the El Dorado Hotel, feed and tackle store, town jail, and a store with Chinese letters on it.
Since the town was quiet, Jack and Max could hear everything. They could hear the sound of the dirt swishing around in mini tornadoes on the road. They could hear the noise of signs creaking on iron chains. They could also hear the distinct sound of two men talking inside the saloon.
“I bet that’s them,” said Jack.
Jack and Max headed for it. They separated as they got to the swinging doors. Jack put his back up against the wall on the right, while Max took the left.
Because there was an opening at the top and bottom of the entrance, they could hear what was going on inside. But since it was difficult to see, Jack pulled out his Spy Scope.
The GPF Spy Scope was a black wire with a hidden camera on top. Once an agent synced the camera with his or her Watch Phone, he or she could spy on a criminal anytime and anywhere. The narrow, bendable wire could fit through holes, around corners, or through walls.
Jack bent the top of the Spy Scope upward and stuck it just under the saloon doors. A visual popped up on Jack’s Watch Phone screen.
Inside, there were a couple of wooden tables and chairs. On the wall behind the bar at the back was a stained mirror. Sitting on one of the tables was the strongbox. The two men from the river were talking to each other.
Jack zoomed in to get a better look at the crooks. The man with the red hair was missing a couple of front teeth. Embroidered on the pocket of his shirt was the name “Lenny.”
His twin with the white hair had all of his teeth, but he also had a large wart on the tip of his nose. His shirt pocket had the name “Benny.”
“That dog sure shut up when it fell in the water!” said Benny.
“They didn’t even know what hit ’em!” said Lenny. Lenny pulled something from his pocket and thrust it into the air. “And it’s all thanks to this bug!”
In the palm of his right hand was a small clear box with an insect inside. As soon as Jack saw it, he realized this was no ordinary bug. It was a miniaturized drone built to look like a fly.
Just then, Jack remembered talking to Mary at the pit. A fly had been buzzing around his ear.
That same fly appeared again as he was standing near the river.
The reason why Lenny and Benny knew about the gold was now obvious. The men had been using the miniature drone to spy on Mary and her camp the entire time.
“When does the boss arrive?” asked Lenny.
Jack and Max looked at each other. There was a third man involved.
Benny looked at his watch.
“Any minute,” he said.
Jack and Max didn’t want to be noticed by the “boss.”
They quickly packed away the Spy Scope and dove down an alley to the left of the saloon. They hid behind a couple of wooden crates and patiently waited for the other man.
Chapter 12
The Boss
Although they couldn’t see him yet, they could hear the “boss” coming.
CLIP.
CLOP.
CLIP.
CLOP.
The man strode by the alley and came into view.
He was riding a large brown horse with a white blaze on its nose. Behind the horse was a flat wooden cart on wheels. The top of the cart was empty.
On the man’s feet were red leather boots. Sitting on his head was a brown suede hat. The boys couldn’t see the boss’s face because the brim of his hat was casting a dark shadow. But they could tell he was bad news. There was a gun in the holster on his left hip and a knife in a sheath on his right.
The man pulled on the horse’s reigns and came to a stop in front of the saloon. He swung his leg over the horse’s back end and stepped down onto the ground. He faced the saloon and tipped his head forward. Then the man took off his hat.
Pulling a red bandanna from his back pocket, he wiped some sweat from his brow.
When he did, Jack noticed something strange. The man was missing an eyebrow above his right eye.
As soon as Jack saw that, Jack’s heart started to pound. His breathing grew shallow. Sweat started to pool in the palms of his hands.
“Are you okay?” whispered Max, noticing Jack’s strange behavior.
Jack shook his head. He wasn’t all right. He was having a panic attack. The odds of this happening to him were supposed to be next to none.
Jack took a deep breath and tried to compose himself. As soon as the man walked inside, he leaned over to Max.
“That’s Callous Carl,” he said. “The world’s most dangerous treasure hunter is back.”
Chapter 13
The Bouncing Tooth
Max’s eyes bugged out.
“Callous Carl?” said Max. “What’s he doing in California?” asked Max.
That was a no-brainer as far as Jack was concerned. The man would do anything to get his calloused hands on a treasure. What Max was really asking was how he’d managed to get there so quickly from Mexico.
“Maybe he flew,” said Jack. “Or he and his driver drove all night.”
After all, the prison was only an eighteen-hour drive from northern California.
Either way, it didn’t matter. Jack figured the wooden cart was brought in order to take the strongbox away.
“We need to stop him,” said Max.
The boys came up with a plan. Jack decided to use the GPF’s Gun Clamp to disable Callous’s gun, while Max was going to use the Tornado to catch the three men.
The Stalwarts made their way back to the front of the saloon. But as Jack stepped onto the front porch, one of the wooden planks creaked. The sound echoed through the hollow town.
BANG!
A shot rang out from inside the saloon. A bullet flew through the opening above the doors and hit one of the buildings across the street. It narrowly missed the horse, causing it to rear its fore legs and neigh in fright. Jack dove into the alleyway to the right, while Max dove left.
Carl, Lenny, and Benny rushed from the saloon and onto the front porch. The swinging doors of the saloon flapped on their hinges behind them.
“Who’s there?” barked Callous.
His eyes squinted, as he tried to find the source of the sound.
“Maybe it was the wind,” said Lenny.
“Wind don’t walk,” said Callous. He lifted his noise into the air. “Smells like we got company.”
He turned to the twins.
“I’ll load the strongbox onto the cart,” he scowled. “You two hunt the intruder down.”
Jack hurried to the back of the saloon and hung a left. Then he peered down the alley where Max was supposed to be. But he was no longer there.
“You take that alleyway,” said Benny, pointing to the place Jack had just come from. “I’ll take this one.”
With the twins closing in, Jack had no choice. He made a break for it.
He ran from the back of the saloon toward the back of the hardware store.
“There he is!” shouted Benny, spotting him at the end of the alley.
Jack went left and sprinted up alongside the hardware store. Ahead was an open window. He crawled through it and into the shop. Surrounding him was an extremely dusty space with lots of empty shelves.
“He’s probably in the store!” called Benny to his brother. “You take the front!”
Jack was in trouble. He had to think fast. Lenny and Benny were planning to come at Jack from two sides. Leaning against the front door was a shovel. Jack grabbed it and laid the blade on the floor in front of the door.
Lenny burst into the shop and stepped on the shovel. Its wooden handle shot up and smacked him square in the face.
“Yowww!” hollered Lenny as one of his remaining front teeth popped out onto the floor.
Lenny ran after it, trying to catch it as it bounced. It tumbled a few inches before disappearing into a hole between two floorboards.
“My tooth!” squealed Lenny. He got down on his hands and knees and put his eye to the hole.
Benny’s head popped through the window. When he saw his brother looking for his tooth, he grew angry.
“Lenny’ll never be able to say his ‘th’ words now!” said Benny, disappearing from view.
Jack sprinted through the front door. He quickly looked for any sign of Max in the road. But Max was nowhere to be found. Jack headed for the El Dorado Hotel across the street.
Suddenly, something grabbed Jack’s Book Bag from behind. It was Benny. Benny yanked it off, causing Jack to nearly lose his balance. He regained his footing and carried on toward the hotel. Annoyed, Benny threw Jack’s Book Bag down to the ground.
“Come here, you little brat!” he shouted.
Jack dashed through the hotel entrance. In front of him was a small, open area. There were a couple of dingy sofas with a coffee table in between them. Behind the sofas was a counter. To the right of the counter was a wall and farther to the right of that was a flight of stairs.
Jack quickly looked around. Max wasn’t in here either. In fact, it looked like no one had been in the hotel for a hundred years. He dove behind the counter and hid. Benny entered seconds after Jack.
“I know you’re in here,” said Benny. “I ought to whack you in the mouth with a shovel.”
Built into the backside of the counter were a collection of shelves. Jack looked in them to see if there was anything he could use. Unfortunately for Jack, all he could find was dust.
But then, Jack spied a painting hanging on the wall behind the counter. It was a portrait of a woman with curly black hair wearing a dress. There was a gold placard underneath with the name “Betty Lou House.”
Jack reached up and yanked “Betty Lou” off the wall. As soon as Benny reached over the counter for him, he leaped up and smashed the painting over his head. The canvas ripped open. Benny’s head popped out from underneath.
“Youch,” said Benny, looking confused.
Jack wedged the frame around the man’s shoulders and dashed from the hotel.
But as soon as he got outside, Jack’s body bounced off of something and onto the ground. He skidded on his backside for several feet. When Jack looked up to see what it was, he gasped.
It was Callous Carl.
“Looking for somethin’?” growled Callous.
To the man’s right was Max. His wrists were tied together, and his Book Bag was missing. Jack could see it lying on the wooden cart across the way. Callous’s red bandanna was twisted and pulled tight across his mouth. Although Max didn’t look injured, Jack was horrified.
Max tried to run, but Callous had him in a viselike grip. His hand was squeezing Max’s arm so hard that there was no way he could get away.
Lenny was now standing
in the road behind Callous, near where Jack’s Book Bag was. He picked up Jack’s gadget bag and tossed it onto the cart next to Max’s Book Bag and the strongbox.
Callous bent down to Jack and looked him in square the eye. For a moment, Jack was relieved. Callous didn’t seem to recognize him. But then something flickered in the man’s eyes, and his expression turned from frustration to fury.
“You’re that kid from Mexico!” he shouted. “The one that sent me to prison!”
He tossed Max to the ground like a rag doll. He called over to Lenny.
“Take care of him,” Callous barked.
Callous reached down and grabbed Jack’s shirt by the throat.
“While I take care of you,” he said.
Chapter 14
The Surprise
Max tried to run for Jack. But Lenny jumped on him and pinned Max to the ground.
“Just like wrestling a gator!” squealed Lenny.
Callous lifted Jack high up in the air. Jack tried to throw a punch. But he missed. Jack kicked Callous in the gut. But instead of hurting the man, his foot only bounced off.
Callous laughed.
Carl carried Jack toward a building up ahead. The name on it said “Town Jail.” Callous opened the door and stepped inside. Then he let the door shut behind them.
“That way,” he said, grinning, “you and I can have a little privacy.”
Callous’s eyes scanned the room. There was a broken wooden desk with three legs to the right. The only thing left of the cells were some iron bars lying on the floor.
The Race for Gold Rush Treasure: USA Page 3