by Zack Norris
The guests blinked as they looked at Rae. “That’s right,” she said. “I read about it in a textbook of ophiology that my brother brought home from college.” She shrugged.
“But the study of snakes is herpetology, dear,” corrected Ms. Wallace.
“Um, actually, no, ma’am,” Rae said, looking at her own shoes. “Herpetology is the study of snakes and other reptiles. Ophiology is the study of only snakes.”
Ms. Wallace fluttered her lashes and raised a hand to her cheek. “Well, well, now that I think of it, you’re quite right.”
The guests murmured in surprise. All peered at the boys and the girl, their eyes moving from one to the other. “Almost like they’re kids—but not really,” whispered McNab under his breath. “They’re like walking computers.”
“I have very, very, very good eyesight,” Otis went on. “I looked at the snake’s eyes carefully. I wouldn’t recommend anyone doing what Cody and I did unless you are one hundred percent sure of the kind of snake you are dealing with. It could be deadly.”
“Oh, goodness, I don’t like the idea of snakes crawling into my bed,” said Muriel Esposito. Her body shivered as she spoke.
“Well, it’s an island, after all,” said Steve Cordell. “Islands have snakes. It could happen again, you know.” He ignored the glare he got from McNab.
“The trouble is,” said Otis, “that this island shouldn’t have this snake. Corn snakes aren’t native to the Caribbean. They live in the southeastern United States. Someone must have brought it here.”
“Anyone lost a pet corn snake?” asked Cody.
The guests were silent. Finally Cordell’s face lit up with a grin. “I think that maybe it belongs to one of you kids.” He chuckled. “You knew it wasn’t dangerous. Kids like to play pranks. Maybe you decided to have a little fun with your aunt.”
“My sons didn’t bring any snakes with them,” snapped Mr. Carson.
“It isn’t even an amusing suggestion,” Maxim added, as Rae gave Cordell an icy glare.
“And if anyone played such a silly prank, it certainly wasn’t my nephews,” Aunt Edith said indignantly.
Cordell held up his hands and backed away, but he was still grinning. “Whoa! I was just kidding around.”
Otis scowled at him. “Not funny,” said Cody.
Everyone began heading back to their rooms. As the boys passed by they saw Inez, the maid, standing there lost in thought, a strange expression on her face.
Back in their room, Cody leaned against the door. “I didn’t like what that guy Cordell said,” he fumed.
“Me neither,” Otis agreed. “I didn’t like the way he was acting before, either. There is something else about him that bothers me, too.” He yawned. “But I’m too tired to think anymore.”
“Me, too,” Cody agreed. In moments they were fast asleep.
*
When Cody woke up, the light of the moon was streaming through the window. His brother was already sitting up in bed. “I heard something,” he said.
Cody rubbed his eyes. “What?” Then he heard it, too. Thud, thud, thud, thud. “It sounds like footsteps coming from the hallway. Do you think it’s the pirate?”
“I don’t know,” Otis whispered. He had to admit that at that moment his certainty about ghosts had gone right out the window.
The two boys slipped out of bed and opened the door slowly. “Who’s there?” rasped a voice. They knew it wasn’t one of the guests.
“Who’s there?” the voice asked again. Thud, thud, thud, thud. The footsteps came closer.
Neither Cody nor Otis was able to move. Their legs felt like jelly. They both stood still as the footsteps thudded closer.
“I’m looking for my treasure,” the voice whispered. “Ahhhhhh …”
The sound faded away. The twins waited, their hearts beating fast, but there were no more footsteps. After several minutes they turned and walked slowly back to bed. Neither one dared to say a word.
[Chapter Six]
The next morning was sunny and clear. A gentle breeze was blowing. As the twins looked out their window, they saw the landscape was a riot of color. There were green trees and rainbows of flowers as far as the eye could see. Colorful birds flew through the air. The creepy feeling the place had held the night before had vanished.
“Did we really hear that ghost last night?” Cody asked Otis.
Otis nodded slowly. “I think so, but I’m just not sure I wasn’t dreaming. All that talk about it at the table might have played a trick on my mind. Maybe you were dreaming, too.”
Cody considered what he said. Sometimes he and his brother had the same dream—it was the kind of thing that sometimes happened to twins. “Maybe,” he said.
There was a rapping on the door. “Come on, you guys, get going.” It was Rae’s voice.
The twins hurried to get dressed, then they ran downstairs with Rae.
In the dining room they found Maxim wearing a kitchen apron. He had laid out a buffet of fresh fruit and muffins, coffee, tea, and juice.
He smiled when he saw them. “This is more like it,” he said, gesturing at the buffet. “People can eat like they’re on a Caribbean island instead of stranded in a bad cafeteria.”
He motioned Rae and the twins aside. “I had a talk with your aunt Edith. I’ll be in charge of the kitchen until she can hire someone,” he said. “Meanwhile, I don’t want you talking to her about what happened last night. She’s upset enough as it is.”
The three of them nodded. “Where’s Dad?” asked Cody.
“He ate early, packed up his gear, and went out to paint,” Maxim told them. “He took a sleeping bag with him and said he might stay out overnight—or nights. You know how he is.”
Rae and the twins were used to Mr. Carson’s ways. Sometimes he would spend days doing nothing but painting, barely stopping to eat or sleep.
Aunt Edith breezed in from the kitchen. She didn’t look like the same person who had been scared out of her wits the night before.
“You youngsters should go down to the beach,” she said. “It looks like a spectacular day for swimming and snorkeling. There is a big chest with some gear right out back.”
“Sounds like a plan.” Rae grinned. She loved to swim.
“Sure does,” Cody and Otis agreed. They exchanged glances. The night before, Cody had convinced Otis to help him look for the buried treasure.
“Hey, Rae,” Cody asked as they were putting together plates of fresh fruit and glasses of juice, “did you hear any weird noises last night?”
“No way,” she said, helping herself to a muffin. “I was practically asleep before my head hit the pillow.”
They took a seat at the table, where most of the guests were drinking coffee. Steve Cordell was telling everyone how he maintained his great tan.
“I never let it fade. It’s as perfect as it is now twenty-four-seven, three hundred and sixty-five days of the year. Want to know my secret? When I travel for work, if it isn’t sunny out, I go to a tanning parlor. Plus, I have my own tanning bed.”
The twins both stifled a giggle. It struck them as funny that this man would be so obsessed with tanning that he bought a tanning bed. They wondered, too, why a California real-estate broker needed to travel for work.
Everyone else looked bored—except for Albert McNab, who kept nodding as if he were hanging on Cordell’s every word. “My goodness, that’s very interesting,” he said.
Cody took a sip of juice and asked, “Anyone hear the ghost last night?”
“I did,” said Ms. Wallace. Her eyes danced. “It was incredible. He walked right down the hallway and talked about his treasure. It was wonderful.”
“What’s so wonderful about being woken up in the middle of the night by a ghost?” Cordell asked. “At least we had hot water this morning.”
Eric Barber took a seat. He shot a sour look at Cordell. “I couldn’t help overhearing,” he said. “You seem to be spreading good cheer again this morning.”
<
br /> Nobody said anything. The twins munched on their food. Cody was going to mention that he and Otis had also heard the ghost, when suddenly a cry of pain shattered the silence.
Everyone rushed to see what it was and found Muriel Esposito with one foot all the way through a porch step. She was holding her knee and rocking back and forth.
“I think it’s broken,” she sobbed. “I think my leg is broken.”
McNab hurried to her. “Can you pull your leg out?” he asked gently. “Let’s have a look at it.”
Trembling, Ms. Esposito drew her leg through the broken wood. As soon as the leg was free, McNab gasped. “Oh, no! Look over there, in the bushes,” he exclaimed.
Everyone looked around, and when they looked back, McNab’s hand was clasped around Ms. Esposito’s leg below the knee. “It’s not broken,” he said firmly.
She looked down, astonished. “What—”
“You were just surprised and frightened,” McNab said gently, withdrawing his hand. “That bone is strong. If it had been broken you would have screamed as soon as I grabbed it. Trust me. You have a little scratch, that’s all. You’ll be fine.”
“Thank goodness for that,” said Maxim. “Come on back in and have a cup of coffee, Muriel, and some fresh-squeezed pineapple juice. I picked the pineapples this morning and the juice is delicious. It’ll fix you right up.” He beamed.
Ms. Esposito smiled weakly. “Thank you,” she whispered. She turned to Mr. McNab. “Thank you so much.”
“I’m just glad you’re all right,” McNab said, giving her a warm smile. He threw an arm around her shoulders and walked her back inside.
Strangely, the other guests weren’t smiling. Cody and Otis were puzzled by their reactions.
Helen Wallace and Eric Barber were exchanging meaningful looks. But why?
Steve Cordell was looking at Sam Keller with an angry expression. Keller seemed annoyed. He kept huffing and pacing back and forth.
Aunt Edith seemed nervous, too. Of course, she would be upset at having one more accident happen. Inez looked even more nervous than Aunt Edith.
The twins and Rae stayed behind when the others went inside. They all examined the broken step. After a moment, the twins looked at each other and nodded. They had both recognized the same thing.
The wood grain on the broken step didn’t match the grain on the other steps. In fact, it looked like a different kind of wood entirely. And the nails were brand-new and shiny, not dull like the others.
“Somebody planned this,” said Cody. “They just pried up the step and replaced the board with another that was thin in the middle. I wonder who changed it—and when.”
“They had plenty of time to sneak down here when everyone else was asleep,” said Otis. “They probably had the step loosened already—then they just had to pry it up and replace it with the board they had prepared. The nails probably slipped into the worn holes easily, with mostly pushing and hardly any pounding,” he said. “After all, they weren’t building something that was supposed to last. It had another purpose.”
“Yeah, it sure did. Do you think whoever it was wanted to hurt Ms. Esposito?” Cody asked.
“Nah,” Otis replied. “I think they just wanted somebody to get hurt.”
“The question is … why?”
“Oh—you two mystery freaks,” Rae said, hands on her hips. “Maybe the step was repaired with a piece of wood that didn’t match. So what? The accident could have been just that—an accident.”
The boys had to admit that she could be right. But they couldn’t help thinking that maybe, just maybe, they had stumbled into a mystery.
When the three went back inside, Helen Wallace and Eric Barber were seated across from Ms. Esposito and Mr. McNab.
“You handled that situation so professionally,” Ms. Wallace told him. “You distracted Muriel so quickly and took her mind off what happened to her leg. It was like you had experience with such things.”
“Yes, indeed,” Mr. Barber agreed. “And you were so sure the way you grabbed her leg to see if it was broken.” He gave out a little chuckle. “If you hadn’t told me otherwise, I’d think you were a doctor.”
“Oh, that’s quite a stretch.” Mr. McNab laughed. “I’ve been a scoutmaster for many years. You have to learn about first aid to take a group of scouts into the wilderness. I just acted on instinct. Fortunately, it worked out.”
“Oh, come now. Are you sure you haven’t had any medical training?” Ms. Wallace persisted.
Mr. McNab blinked. “No, it’s just as I told you. I am a scoutmaster, and I know first aid. Beyond that, I just know it’s important to try to get someone who is injured to calm down.”
The twins watched Ms. Wallace and Mr. Barber give each other meaningful looks again. It was clear that they suspected something about McNab. But what?
“Has anyone else here ever been a scoutmaster?” McNab asked. “It’s very rewarding. How about you, Cordell—ever led a scouting troop?”
Steve Cordell acted as if he hadn’t heard a word. He sat there staring into space, drumming his fingers on the table. When McNab repeated the question, he looked at him and blinked and then mumbled, “Aw, what a waste of time.”
Sam Keller threw down his napkin abruptly. He glanced at Cordell and muttered, “I think I’ll take a walk. See ya later, Jimmy.”
Cordell slapped his hand on the table loudly enough to make everyone stop talking. He stood up and called to Keller, “Don’t call me Jimmy,” he snapped. “My name is Steve, remember?”
Keller did a double take and turned around. “I’m s-sorry, S-Steve,” he stammered. “I didn’t mean to, uh, offend you.”
Cordell was fuming. But after a moment he blushed scarlet and sat down again. He looked around the table. “Sorry, everyone, I’m kind of edgy. I didn’t get enough sleep. That ghost woke me up.”
There were shrugs and murmurs as everyone assured Cordell that he was forgiven. Cody and Otis were thinking the same thing—that this guy was really wound up. And they were surer than ever that he was hiding something.
Meanwhile, Rae announced that she was going off for a swim. “I can’t wait to get in that water,” she told the twins as she hurried away.
Later, when breakfast was over and the other guests were heading their separate ways, Otis turned to Cody and whispered, “Did you see how angry Steve Cordell got when Keller called him Jimmy by mistake?”
“Yeah—it was really weird.”
“I’ve figured out what it is about him that bothers me,” said Otis. “It’s that I know I’ve seen him somewhere before. I feel like I should know who he is, but I just can’t think why.” He frowned and shook his head.
“I know we planned to hunt for the buried treasure, but first let’s follow Cordell and see where he goes,” said Cody. “I just have one of those hunches I get sometimes. We might learn something.”
Both boys had gotten those “hunches” from time to time. They had learned to trust them.
“Let’s do it,” Otis agreed. “I’m pretty sure that he headed out to the garden. What about Rae, though? We should tell her what we’re doing.”
“Rae will be happy swimming,” said Cody. “We’ll catch up with her later. She won’t want to spy on Cordell, and she wouldn’t want to hunt for buried treasure, either. Not with that beautiful ocean out there. Let’s go.”
The boys found Steve Cordell and Sam Keller seated on a bench not far from the inn. The two were having a heated discussion. Cordell was flailing his arms around as he spoke. Keller was pointing and punching the air.
The twins made every movement as quiet as a whisper. They crept closer and closer to the two men, who were caught up in their argument.
“You’re an idiot,” Cordell said, his face thrust close to Keller’s. “You’re just a stupid, careless idiot. Why did you call me Jimmy?”
Keller pounded his fist on the arm of the bench. “Now you hold on just a minute, Jimmy,” he began.
“Stop calling m
e Jimmy!” Cordell exploded. “Do you want people to know who we are? We’re supposed to keep it a secret. You’ll ruin everything.”
“Okay, okay … Steve,” Keller said with a sneer in his voice. “If anybody will blow our cover, it’ll be you. Why did you have to make such a big deal out of a little slip? People who’ve just met do it all the time.”
It made sense. But Cordell just blustered on.
“People do it all the time? Well, you’re not supposed to do it. I had a plan all worked out. All we have to do is follow it.”
Keller snorted. “Well, excuse me if I say that your plan doesn’t seem to be working too well. Look at what just happened. I think—”
“Don’t think,” Cordell cut him off. “Just do what I told you. And don’t screw up anymore.”
“I’ve had just about enough of you bossing me around,” said Keller, pointing a finger at Cordell. “Who do you think you are? And don’t you ever, ever call me an idiot again.”
Cordell opened his mouth to say something. But at that very moment Otis stepped on a twig. It snapped with a loud crack!
The twins froze as both men jumped. “What was that?” said Cordell. “Who’s there?”
The twins’ hearts hammered in their chests. Each one held his breath as he backed up silently and quickly. Then they turned and ran. They didn’t stop running until they got to the garden.
[Chapter Seven]
Their chests were heaving by the time the twins got to the garden. They stopped and leaned against some rocks to catch their breath.
“I don’t think they knew it was us back there. It’s a miracle they didn’t run after us,” said Cody.
“We were pretty quiet.”
“So why do you think that Cordell and Keller are hiding who they are?”
Otis shrugged. “I don’t know, but I think it’s got something to do with whatever it is I can’t remember about Cordell.”
“We should tell Dad and Maxim,” Cody said.
“I know,” Otis agreed. “But we can’t prove they are doing anything wrong. Maxim and Dad will think that I’m just getting carried away because of the book about liars I’ve been reading.”