The Secret of Skull Island (7 page)

[Chapter Nine]

W
inston Cato wasn't difficult to find. He was singing as he trimmed the hedges.

“
He'll
know something about the guy who got fired, if anybody does,” said Otis.

The boys walked over and stood beside the gardener.

“When you've got a minute, Mr. Cato, we'd like to ask you something,” said Cody.

Cato kept on cutting for a moment. Then he put down his shears and mopped his brow. “What is it, boys?” he asked. “I notice that you are curious about many things. You really watch what's going on. You try to figure things out.” Cato's eyes twinkled. His words surprised both of the boys. They had been so busy watching others that they never thought about being watched themselves. They hoped that they weren't the
only
ones Cato watched.

“We were wondering about one of the men who worked on renovating the inn,” Otis said. “Did you know the guy who got fired?”

“Oh, uh-huh, that one. He was something, all right.”

“Something? What do you mean?” asked Cody.

“He was up to something, that one. Always walking around when he was supposed to be working.”

“Where did he go?” Otis asked.

Cato shrugged. “I don't know.
I
was working,” he said. “But I'd see him going here and there. He was always smiling, always happy, like he was laughing at a joke of his own.”

“Wasn't he angry that he got fired?” asked Cody.

“Yeah, did he talk about getting revenge?” asked Otis.

“Angry? No, he wasn't angry. In fact, he laughed about it. He said the timing was perfect. He said that soon he was going to have all the money he needed. Isn't that strange? A guy who just got fired talking about having lots of money?”

“It sure is,” Otis agreed.

“What did this guy look like?” Cody asked.

Cato looked thoughtful. “He was about average height, with dark coloring, brown hair, and a mustache and beard. His eyebrows were kind of bushy. He called himself Kendall.”

Otis brushed a mosquito off his arm. “So, um, do you see this guy around much?”

“Nah—he left the island.”

“Are you sure?” Cody asked, his heart sinking. If the man really had left the island then someone else was causing the trouble.

Cato waved a hand in the air. “Oh, sure. Listen, I know everybody on this island, especially people who work in construction and gardening. That's because we often work together. That guy left the island, for sure … unless he's hiding under a rock.”

Cody had a thought. “If you know everybody on the island, you probably know the woman who was cooking at the inn.”

A shadow seemed to cross Cato's face. “Aida. Yes, I know her, but not very well.”

“Do you know why she left?” Cody asked.

Cato pressed his lips into a thin line. “She said she was scared to stay around here. She told me that she was afraid of the pirate's ghost, but …” He shrugged.

“You weren't sure she was telling the truth, were you?” Otis asked.

Cato shrugged again. “Well, I don't know for sure. I've got my own ideas, though.”

“Such as what?” Cody asked. “A lot of people think the place is haunted, don't they?”

“Yes, but no one on the island was afraid. The ghost has been around forever. He never hurt anyone.” Cato ran a hand through his jet-black hair and laughed. “I don't think that ghost is very smart. He's been looking for his treasure for years and
still
hasn't found it.”

He looked at the boys for a moment and scratched his head. “You know, I don't want to spoil anything for you two. But since your aunt bought the inn it's been a lot more haunted than usual.”

“Huh?” Cody and Otis both said together.

Cato took a deep breath and shook his head. “You guys are old enough to know the truth. Your aunt has been
making
some of the hauntings. She hired a company that creates special effects for the movies. They were here for a whole week installing a sound system and projectors … all kinds of stuff.”

“See, I
knew
ghosts weren't real,” Otis said with satisfaction.

Cody's shoulders sagged.

“Wait a minute,” said Cato. “I didn't say the place wasn't haunted. It
is.
I just meant that your aunt was adding to the excitement. She wanted to make sure that everyone got a chance to see and hear the ghost. She figured it would be good for business. The real one is still around, though. He was here long before your aunt arrived.”

“What about the guide? Why did
he
leave?” Cody asked.

Cato shook his head. “The guide didn't give me a reason. He just said he was getting out. Look, everybody who worked here knew your aunt was creating her own ghost. But don't spoil things for the guests. They're sure they're in a real haunted inn. Real ghosts aren't as reliable as manufactured ones.”

“We don't want to spoil the fun,” said Otis. “But if the cook and the guide weren't afraid of the ghost, why did they leave the inn? I'm sure my aunt paid them well.”

A cloud of butterflies flew by, their wings all shades of blue, red, yellow, orange, and pink. Cato watched them for a moment. Then he cleared his throat.

“Maybe someone else paid them more money to leave,” he said. “I used to see things around here at night—boats coming and going.”

Cato looked into the distance. Then he gave himself a shake. “I talk too much sometimes,” he said. “This is nothing you boys should worry about. People leave jobs all the time. Just enjoy the beautiful island.”

He put his gloves back on and picked up his hedge clippers. “Silly me,” he mumbled, “talking nonsense to a couple of boys. Forget what I said. Run along now.”

*

“That was weird,” said Otis when he and Cody were back in their room after lunch. “Cato was doing a lot of talking. Then he got kind of spacey.”

Otis was standing beside his bed, his back to the wall. Cody was in front of him, bent down under his own bed. He was looking for his sneakers.

“Do you think somebody paid the cook and the guide to leave, Otis?”

Cody waited a moment. Otis didn't answer.

“I think somebody doesn't want the inn to stay in business,” Cody went on. “It's hard to figure out. That guy Cordell definitely seems to want people to be scared of the place. And he and Sam Keller are up to something. Why isn't Cordell going by his real name? Didn't that officer Tano seem strange, too? Imagine a police officer who treats everything like a big joke.”

Cody waited for his brother to jump in with thoughts of his own. When he didn't, Cody went on talking … and talking … and talking. “I can't find my sneakers,” he mumbled several minutes later. “Have you seen them anywhere, Otis?”

When Otis didn't reply, Cody got up and turned around. “Why don't you answer me? You haven't said a word.”

Cody found himself talking to a blank wall. His jaw dropped. Otis was gone.

[Chapter Ten]

C
ody heard a pounding behind the wall. “Cody! Cody! I'm in here! Get me out!” It was Otis.

“Well, how did you get in there?”

“I don't know. I must have hit a button or lever or something. The wall slid back and I fell into this secret compartment.”

“Wow. What's back there?”

“It's just a sort of crawl space. It's just a slot behind the wall.”

“Maybe it was the pirate's hiding place.”

“Maybe. Will you stop talking and get me out of here?!”

“Oh, sorry … okay, okay.” Cody's eyes began searching the wall. His hands felt for a seam. The wall was smooth, with dark baseboard paneling.

There were carvings in the baseboard—flowers. But then hidden among the flowers was a skull. Cody sucked in his breath when he saw it, then pressed his finger to its surface.

Swoosh!
A panel in the wall slid back a few inches, then sideways to reveal Otis standing there, his face red and his hair dishevelled.

Wooo!
He exhaled a puff of air as he stepped into the room. “It was hot in there and dark. How'd you open up the panel?”

Otis pointed to the skull and then pressed it. The panel slid back into place.

“Awesome,” said Otis. “Thanks.” He took a deep breath.

“Well, I didn't want to have to hack up Aunt Edith's wall,” Cody said, slapping his brother on the back.

“I think it's more than just a hiding place,” said Otis. “The wall behind me sounded hollow. We should see if we can open that inside panel. We'll get some flashlights and—”

Rae burst into the room. “You've got to come downstairs! You're not going to believe who just came to the inn! Oh, this is amazing!” She turned her back and ran out.

Cody and Otis looked at each other for a moment. Otis shrugged. “Well, I guess we ought to go see who it is.”

They headed for the staircase. Sam Keller was already halfway down. “Hey!” he called to a tall, muscular man wearing red shorts and a gray T-shirt. The man looked at him and his mouth opened slightly. He closed it quickly, frowned, and shook his head slightly.

Rae was hovering over someone with short, dark hair who was sitting with his back to her. She was smiling but looked slightly dazed.

The boys reached the bottom of the stairs a few steps behind Keller, who was walking over to introduce himself. He stuck out his hand and the tall, muscular man shook it.

“Sam Keller.”

“Ronnie Walker.”

“It looked like they recognized each other before,” Cody whispered to his brother. “But now they act like they're seeing each other for the first time.”

“Right,” Otis agreed. “Now, who is the other guy?”

Just then the other guy stood up. Cody and Otis both gasped.

Jamal Mason gave the boys a sour look and then turned to Ronnie Walker. “What kind of bodyguard are you, anyway? I thought you said only
old
people were going to be here,” the young movie star said sullenly. “I don't want fans bugging me while I'm on vacation.”

Walker shrugged. “Sorry, Jamal. I didn't know about the kids.”

Cody and Otis both scowled and stuffed their hands in their pockets. Neither one liked the way he said “kids”—as if they ought to be in a nursery. But Rae looked as if she hadn't heard a word. She was gazing at Jamal.

“I like your wristband, Jamal,” she said.

Jamal favored her with a grudging half-smile. He held up his arm to show an elaborately woven wristband of many colors.

“A friend of mine just gave this to me. It's Egyptian,” he said, “and it's really old. He found it in a box in a cave. This guy worked with a museum and knows about ancient artifacts. He said it's probably from about 1300 BC—maybe even older.”

“Awesome,” said Rae. “But shouldn't something like that really be in a museum, because—”

Jamal cut her off. “Oh, mind your own business,” he said rudely. He turned to Walker and said, “Take care of the check-in. I'm going for a walk.” He shook his head and muttered, “I don't know about this place. Maybe I should go over to the next island. It's hipper on Tacayno.”

By now, Ms. Wallace and Mr. Barber had appeared in the lobby. They had observed the scene. So had Mr. McNab, who had been reading a book in the corner, near a sour-faced Mr. Cordell.

“That young man should be taught a lesson about manners,” Mr. McNab said in a surprisingly dark tone.

“How right you are,” echoed Ms. Wallace, as Mr. Barber nodded in agreement.

Mr. Cordell got to his feet. “I'm going for a walk on the beach,” he announced. He looked at Mr. Keller. “Wanna join me?” he said, in a tone that was more like an instruction than a question.

Rae still looked stunned. “I'm going to find Jamal,” she said, then hurried outside.

Cody and Otis exchanged glances. Rae must be starstruck—she definitely had a crush on Jamal. Still, it wasn't like her to put up with rude behavior, even from Jamal Mason. But they had something else to worry about right now. They hurried after Ronnie Walker, who was waiting at the check-in desk.

They found him there, pacing back and forth, muttering to himself. They caught snatches of speech.

“That's right—teach him a lesson … show him … find out …”

“Excuse me, Mr. Walker …” Cody began. “We noticed that Sam Keller seemed to know you … and then he didn't.”

Color flooded into Mr. Walker's face, turning it a bright pink. “Oh, the guy with the crazy red hair and the weird tattoo? Well, we met about six years ago—but just briefly. I've worked out a lot since then—I guess I wasn't sure whether he recognized me or not.” He shrugged and turned away.

“Hey, what do you kids care about it, anyway?” he asked over his shoulder, sounding annoyed. “Why don't you go play some games or something?”