“Mandy! Is it really you? How long has it been since you stole your mother’s keys and let us in?”
She made a show of putting her finger to her lips and shushing him. “Shh. Nobody knows I still do that.”
“So, you were what? Three or four when we opened the secret combination? You still playing with the Snow White doll we found?”
“I was eleven, and you know it! And, yes, I still have the doll you gave me.”
Adam leaned against the wall as he studied her. “So, the first recipient of our scholarship is all grown up now. What are you up to? Besides breaking into elementary schools.”
“Actually I’m still in school. For some reason they asked me to present you with the award tomorrow.” She and Adam had hit it off when they first met back in 2002. Lance had been the center of attention and Adam had walked off to the side to do some quiet exploring—much like he had done now. Clearly not enthralled with the handsome Lance, Mandy had struck up a conversation with Adam and had even helped them solve the clue. In the end, after the hunt was over, it seemed right to present Mandy with the first scholarship. “I’m going to come back here to teach art when I get my degree.”
“Mandy, that’s wonderful!”
“So, where’s that other guy?”
“Wow, after all this time you still don’t like Lance! That will truly puncture his ego.”
She gave a dismissing wave of her hand. “Oh, he has enough to go around.”
Adam tilted back his head and gave a laugh. “I can’t wait to tell him I saw you again!” He looked over when the door opened and his family came back inside. “Hey, Beth, this is Mandy. You know, the girl who helped Lance and me and got the first scholarship.”
“It’s really nice to meet you all, but I need to get going. I saw Adam and just couldn’t help teasing him again. See you tomorrow at the ceremony.”
Mandy waved as she left the building. Adam was smiling as he showed his family the treasures in the hallway.
“Dad, are you sure this is the right tree? It doesn’t look very good.”
The cottonwood tree in discussion was a sorry sight. It had been struck by lightning in 2007, plus the ravages of time and disease had not helped matters. The community had planted a new tree nearby.
“Yeah, that’s it, poor thing.” Adam had been searching all over the trunk while his family amused themselves reading the signs that had been posted highlighting the special features of Walt’s old homestead. “Hey! Here it is! Come here, you guys.” Adam was excited as he pointed out a faint impression in the gnarled bark.
“What does it say? I can’t tell, Dad.”
“Alex, that’s Walt’s initials. W. E. D. That was what Uncle Lance and I were looking for and showed us where to dig. Yeah, this started it all for us.”
“Can we go to the barn? The sign says we can write a message there.”
“I want to send Peter a picture of the tree. I’m going with Alex.”
“And off they go.” Adam shook his head. “After what Peter and Catie went through at Disneyland, I thought they might be more interested in what I had gone through.”
Beth took his hand and they slowly walked toward the barn. It was a replica of the barn that had been on the farm in Walt’s time, but it was just as emotional an experience for the multitudes who visited. Adam wanted to see if his message was still visible. “Oh, they’re young and involved in their own things. How often did you listen to your dad talk about Disneyland and when he worked there?”
Adam had to admit she was right. “Yeah, I guess you’re right. At least now you’ve seen the first part of the quest. You didn’t come in until later.”
Beth looked around at the lovely scenery by the small lake and gave his arm a squeeze. “I’m very happy to be here! I was hoping you would say yes when Toonfest asked you to come. We’d better go see what the twins are doing. I don’t want them fighting over some choice spot to write their names…. What are you doing?”
Adam had walked around the side of the barn, past the rail fence that marked the entrance. “Just wanted to look a little more closely, that’s all.”
Beth gave a knowing smile. “Looking for another clue?” Her smile faded as she thought about it. “Do you think there might be another one here? This isn’t the same barn, you know.” In spite of her words, her eyes began to scan the upright slats that made up the side.
“Yeah, I know.” Adam gave a self-conscious laugh. “I guess I’m just caught up in the memories. There couldn’t possibly be something else here.”
“You’re probably right. We’re just being silly.”
But, as they neared the entrance, their eyes were continually moving.
Flashback — Disneyland — 1965
“Well, what do you have to report? It’s been a while since I’ve heard from you.” Walt looked up from the papers on the table next to his tapestry-covered wingback chair. A frown crossed his face as his visitor turned back from the window that overlooked Main Street. He had come to his apartment to get some uninterrupted work done—and now he was being interrupted. The irritation in his voice was noticed.
“Yes, Walt. I know and I apologize. I’ve been keeping a close eye on Margaret ever since she discovered the clue, but I don’t think she’s the one you want.”
The schematic in Walt’s hand lowered. That was news to him. “Oh? And why not? What do you mean?”
His visitor’s throat was cleared. “As you know, the clue was pretty simple. Once she found the canister, I had the mermaids removed as you suggested to see how determined she would be to carry through.” At the expected nod, the explanation continued. “Margaret figured out the clue quickly.”
“Then what’s the problem?”
There was a frustrated shrug. “She just gave up. Even after the mermaids were returned to the show building she never went back to check on them. I think she’s too wrapped up with John Michaels.”
Walt thought back. He had the uncanny ability to remember just about everyone he met and the name sounded familiar. “I’ve met him somewhere. Builder at the Mansion, I think. Nice chap if I remember correctly.”
“They’ve been dating ever since he jumped on her in the pool during practice.”
That earned a small laugh from the boss. “Hey, whatever it takes, I suppose. I guess we’re back to square one on this Hidden Mickey quest. We’ll have to wait and see who finds the capsule next. You were able to retrieve the clue and the key and put them back, right?” It didn’t come out as a question but more of an assumed fact.
A shoulder was raised and lowered again. “Well, not exactly. I can’t find where she hid them.”
Walt held up a restraining hand. “I don’t want to know what you’ve done to find them. That’s up to you.” Rising from his chair, he walked to the door to his private patio. He stared unseeing at the wicker chairs arranged around a small table. He wasn’t pleased. “I gave you a very simple clue trail to monitor and now I don’t know if you’re capable of handling it.”
This didn’t sound good. Feet were shuffled when Walt went silent. “Just let me keep on it. I’ll get this right for you, Walt.” Drat. That sounded really desperate. “Once I find the mermaid.” Ooh, probably shouldn’t have added that.
Walt did a slow turn when he heard the mumbled last words. “Excuse me? What about the mermaid?”
“Err, the sub captains seemed to have made a game out of hiding the redheaded mermaids. Once they disappeared the first time and no heads rolled, they decided to take turns and hide them around the park. Whoever finds one of them and returns it, wins.”
“Wins what?”
Oh, this isn’t going to go over well…. “A beer at a local bar.”
He continued to stare at the person who seemed to have taken root in the middle of the apartment. “My quest is in jeopardy over a beer?” Walt gave a groan and shook his head. “I noticed you didn’t mention any names of those involved.”
“They’re just kids having fun, W
alt. I didn’t want anyone to get in trouble over this. I can fix this.”
The plea in the voice was ignored as Walt made an instant decision. “I have another job for you, actually. You’ve been here too long, anyway.” He stopped and expected an argument. When that didn’t happen, he continued in an even voice. “I want you to take a break. I’m sending you to Florida to watch over my project there.”
“Florida! But, what about the mermaid?”
Walt looked straight into the other’s eyes. “You said you can fix this. You will come back periodically to check on it.” The tone of his voice left no room for discussion or argument. The boss had spoken. “You know how to do that, right? To come back?”
“Yeah, Walt, I know how to do that.”
Walt retook his chair and picked up the neglected blueprint. With that motion, his attention was back where it had been before the interruption and the interview was over. He failed to see the flash of anger as his entry door shut with a soft click.
Fullerton
Wolf stared at the photograph of the mermaids as they relaxed by the pool at the Disneyland Hotel after practice. Peter had unnecessarily pointed out which girl was his grandmother. Wolf remembered her from those days, but she wasn’t the one who received his intense stare. He concentrated on the exotic-looking girl on the far right. Even though he had only seen her briefly at the darkened Park, he knew she was the same person he had chased. What confused him was that she appeared to be the same age now as when this photograph was taken. Could this be the daughter of the mermaid in the photo? Peter didn’t seem to think so. He had seen her at least three times and was definite she was the same person.
As his mind whirled around the possible explanations—none of which seemed feasible—his attention was drawn to the noises Peter made as he worked on the mermaid from the Mansion. With Kimberly and Lance at work and the other two boys on a play date, Wolf had taken the opportunity to come to their house in Fullerton to see for himself what it was Peter had actually found. They had taken over the table in the dining room and pushed aside the elaborate flower arrangement.
Peter seemed determined to get that mermaid open—even if it meant taking a saw to it. Once Wolf heard that was one of Peter’s options, he wisely vetoed that idea and told him to figure out another way.
“Gosh, this is like the Chinese water torture!” Without looking up, Peter continued to grumble in an undertone as he flipped the mermaid over yet again.
“You’ve never been in anything even close to a Chinese water torture. Do you even know what….”
Peter glanced up when Wolf suddenly went silent. “Do I know what what?” He protested when Wolf took the mermaid from his hands. “Hey, I was working on that.”
The intense look that had been on Wolf’s face slowly cleared as he stared at the girl. The confused thoughts and possibilities swirling through his mind seemed to come together as the girl was handed back to Peter. “It’s just something you said. Something about the Chinese water torture.”
“Should we put her under a dripping faucet until she opens?” Peter gave a laugh at his own joke without looking up to see his friend’s reaction.
“No, not that.” He paused again and looked at the little gold key on the table next to the clue. “Maybe we’re thinking about this in the wrong way. The clue seems so simple that there must be something else to it. Possibly some kind of a puzzle.”
“You mean like a word game?”
Wolf slowly shook his head back and forth. “No, I don’t think so. I was thinking more like a puzzle box. I saw a lot of them when I was in Chinatown.”
“I don’t understand. There’s a puzzle hidden in a box somewhere? How do we find that without another clue?” Completely confused, Peter set the mermaid down and stared at Wolf.
“No. What I’m thinking is the box is the puzzle and the mermaid is the box. You have to move certain parts in a certain way to get it to open.”
Peter looked at the redhead again. “But she’s all smooth. Well, except for the pearls. And the scales on her tail. And, oh, her hair. You know what I mean.”
“Did you check to see if any of those things actually moved?”
Peter began to get the sense of what Wolf was telling him and got a big grin on his face. “No. I was just trying to find a place to insert the key.”
Wolf glanced at the grandfather clock in the corner. “I have to get back to the Park. Now that I have a new radio,” he stopped to glare at the oblivious Peter, “I’d like you to call me if you find anything. Got it?”
“What? Call you? Sure.”
When Peter happily got back to work and ignored him, Wolf gave a small smile. “I’ll see myself out.”
“Oh, wow! The second pearl moved! Cool! Now what?”
Peter was elated when he was rewarded with the slight movement. He had pushed and prodded just about every square inch of the mermaid’s body and had been ready to give up.
The pearl had only slid to one side a mere quarter of an inch. But that was all Peter needed to see a tiny button inside. The opening was so small that only the tip of the key would fit inside to push the nub. That slight depression of the button caused the index finger on her right hand to lift. Peter yelped in delight and eagerly reached for the key he had just set aside. But, looking closer, he didn’t see the expected keyhole. Or another button to push.
“Now what? Did I break it?” He tried to move the finger up and down and it snapped shut again. “Uh oh. Better not do that again.”
By repeating the first movements, the finger lifted again. As he tried to lift it back further and met resistance, he had to slow down and think about what he was doing. He didn’t want to possibly break her hand. Moving the finger slowly side to side seemed to work as one of her eyes suddenly flipped up. “Eww. Catie wouldn’t like that. Aww, no keyhole.”
After gently trying to move the eye around with no results, Peter tried to push down on it. He heard a click and something nudged against his hand that held the green tail. One of the scales just below the waist had opened on a small hinge. “Bingo!” The keyhole was under that scale.
“I guess this is the key to the mermaid’s tail. Hey, it was a word puzzle! The clue said it unlocked the mermaid’s tale, not tail.” Peter had the small key between his fingers, but he held back from inserting it and gave a sigh. “I’d better call Wolf first. He did make me promise.”
Wolf held the radio away from his ear. “Peter. You’re yelling. Say it again?”
Peter was in Lance’s office. In perfect, unintended imitation of his dad, he had leaned back in the leather chair and had his feet up on the desk. “Wolf, it was so cool! I moved the pearl and it went to the side and I found a button but it was too small and I had to use the back of the key and it went ‘ping!’ and the finger lifted but it wasn’t there so I tried to move it but it went back down but I got it to open again and then it was, like, ‘squeak’ and her eye popped out! It was so gross I was, like, eww! Then I moved the eye back and forth and I felt the scale open and it was in there!”
His enthused recital was met with silence. Wolf tried to sort out all the details he had just heard in one breathless rush. “Are you saying you got the mermaid to open?”
Peter made a sound that would have translated into ‘duh.’ “That’s what I just told you! I found the place to turn the key!”
“What was inside?”
“Uh, I thought I had to call you first. I didn’t open it.”
Wolf gave a small smile. “Go ahead. Just let me know what you find. And, Peter? I want you to tell your parents about this before you do anything. Understand? I want you to promise me.”
Peter knew better than to argue with him. He bit back a groan but knew Wolf couldn’t see him roll his eyes. “Yes, sir.”
“And, Peter?”
“What?”
“Don’t roll your eyes at me.”
Back in the dining room, key in hand, Peter again hesitated. “Wonder if I should wait for
Catie and Alex to come home? They’d be disappointed it I opened it without them.” Fairness warred against impatience over the discovery of the keyhole. Peter didn’t know what he should do. The Michaels family wouldn’t be home for at least four more days. That was, like, forever. A smile suddenly broke out on his face. “I could ask Catie if it was all right. She lets me do anything I want!”
Peter reluctantly set the key next to the mermaid and ran upstairs to his computer. He would send Catie a text and see what she said.
The answer came back almost immediately.
So excited!!!!!! Wait 4 me!!! No, wait, Alex says go ahead. :( Umm, Mom says hi. LOL
Peter stared at his computer screen. He didn’t know which twin to go by. To play it safe, he texted Catie again. Do I open it or not?
Gosh, Peter, I said yes. LOL Wish I was there 2. Oh, Dad says get off phone. He is getting award now. Bye!!!!!!!!
“I guess that means yes.” Peter clicked off the monitor and ran down the stairs to the first floor.
His heart beating in suspense, he found the little brass key fit perfectly into the lock. With a small twist, the locking mechanism that had kept its secret for fifty years popped open. The entire tail section proved to be hollow, but it wasn’t empty. The item that had thudded inside the tail fell out onto the table and bounced off to the floor.
“Oh, gosh!” Peter hastily set the girl on the table and went to retrieve the fallen object. “Hope it’s not broken. Hope it’s not broken. Hope…. Whew, it’s still in one piece. Hey, it’s a gold ring! Wow, that’s a weird design.” The mutters continued as he examined the shining band of gold.
The ring comprised of two well-detailed hands that met in the middle of the face to hold a heart. The heart itself was inlaid with small diamonds. An elaborate crown sat atop the curved portion of the heart and was also encrusted with diamonds.
HIDDEN MICKEY ADVENTURES 3 Page 6