The Monkey Howled at Midnight (5 page)

There was no juice served this time. Otherwise, what took place was about the same as in the last village. Pino and Aldo left to talk to some men for about fifteen minutes. When they returned, neither one looked happy. They didn't say anything as they told Rae and the twins to get into the plane.

Cody watched Aldo and Pino carefully as they walked to the plane. Aldo's jaw was clenched. Pino's face was red. It looked like the two of them had been arguing … probably with each other.

He wondered if it had something to do with a small crate he'd seen being unloaded in the village. He'd watched as some men opened it and pulled out pistols. Why would they need pistols? Surely they didn't need them to hunt for food.

Cody followed Pino and Aldo as closely as he dared. He managed to catch some snippets of conversation.

“I can't believe they didn't find anything for us,” Aldo said angrily. “Why weren't you tougher on them?”

“Because I'm getting a little tired of this whole thing,” Pino said irritably.

“Well, get over it,” Aldo snapped.

They hadn't said anything about guns. Cody's heart was hammering as he boarded the plane. He wanted to tell Otis what he had seen, but he couldn't while Pino and Aldo were around.

The rest of the ride down the river was tense. After a couple more hours, Aldo landed the plane on yet another air strip hidden among the trees.

Aldo insisted they get far away from the river. They walked for four hours before he announced that they could make camp.

The sunset was a beautiful pink and gold that cast glittering diamonds of light across the river. Birds soared into the treetops and sang out good night together.

Soon they were joined by other not-so-welcome companions. Swarms of flies and mosquitoes began to thicken.

They all sprayed themselves with insect repellent and put on long-sleeved shirts and pants. They stuffed the pant legs into their socks and sprayed some more. Scores of tiny black flies added themselves to the cloud of mosquitoes.

Aldo began hanging up hammocks and mosquito netting.

“I'm going to go get some firewood,” said Pino.

The twins and Rae insisted on going with him. At least moving around would keep some of the mosquitoes and flies away.

“Try to find sticks and branches that feel dry,” said Pino. “It isn't so easy to build a fire in the rain forest because of the moisture in the air.”

He was right. Even though everyone picked the driest wood they could find, it still took three tries to flame the fire.

From the cooler Aldo took fish wrapped in leaves, cheese, fresh fruit, bottled water, and juice. Rae and the twins heard their stomachs growling. They hadn't realized how hungry they were until they smelled the food cooking. When it was finally served they wolfed it down without a word.

“Oh, that was so good,” Rae said finally. She wiped her mouth.

“Um-hmm,” echoed Cody and Otis, who were still eating as fast as they could.

Aldo looked at them with a steely gaze. “I hope you three can do as you're told,” he said in an icy voice. Pino looked at him and furrowed his brow. Aldo stared back at him. “Don't give me that look. I mean what I'm saying.” He got up and walked away.

“Don't worry about Aldo,” said Pino quietly. “He just gets … nervous sometimes.”

“Um, sure, we understand,” said Rae. Cody and Otis nodded. The three exchanged glances. They all wondered about Aldo's personality change. Ever since the trip had begun they'd caught him staring at them from time to time with a stony expression. Otis wiped his mouth and yawned. “I can't believe how tired I am,” he said. “I'm going to turn in.”

“Me, too,” said Rae.

They never went to sleep before nine, but the day had been so long and hot it felt like nearly midnight. Even Aldo didn't stay up much longer. Soon, just Cody and Pino were left sitting by the fire.

“I don't take many landscape photos,” said Cody. “What f-stop do you use?”

“Two point eight,” he said. “It's what I always use.”

“Ah.” Cody nodded. “I'll remember that.”

The two sat in silence for several moments. Cody was about to turn in when Pino spoke up.

“I like your father,” he said. “He doesn't bully you or your brother.”

“You think your father bullies you?” Cody asked.

Pino poked the fire with a stick. “In some ways. Like the way he says that my brother and I have to go into the coffee business. I want to go to art school and become a painter, but my father doesn't like the idea. He hasn't even looked at any of my paintings in years. I've asked him, but he refuses. If my mother were alive, maybe she could change his mind.”

“A painter,” Cody repeated, turning the idea over in his mind. It was a surprise. “What happened to your mother?” he asked.

“When I was eleven years old, she was flying back from visiting my aunt in Rio de Janeiro. The plane crashed.”

Pino sighed. “My mother was the only one who could always tell my brother and me apart.”

“You must miss her,” Cody said quietly. “My mother died in a car accident when Otis and I were babies. I don't remember anything about her really. Sometimes when I wake up I think I dreamed about her, though. My brother says the same thing.”

“I still dream about my mother sometimes, too,” Pino said, poking the fire again. After a few moments he yawned and stretched. “I'm getting tired,” he said. “I guess it's the heat and all the traveling. You should turn in, too. We'll get an early start.”

Pino got up and started toward his hammock. “Douse the fire before you go to sleep,” he said and pointed to a bucket of water. “If Aldo and I are gone when you wake up, we're just getting more firewood. Don't go anywhere, okay?”

“Why don't you wake us up so we can help?” asked Cody, but Pino didn't answer. He just got into his hammock and pulled the mosquito netting over his head.

Cody sloshed water on the fire and turned in. He listened to the chattering of the tree frogs as he drifted off to sleep.

Hours later, he was awakened by a deafening, long roar.
Mooaaahhh!
He sat bolt upright. It almost sounded like a dying cow.
Mooaaahhh!

Cody shook his head to get the sleep cobwebs out of his brain. Otis and Rae were awake, too. “What was that awful noise?” he asked.

“A howler monkey,” said Rae. “They're considered the loudest land animal in the world.”

“Louder than an elephant, even?”

“Louder than an elephant,” she answered.

The howler monkey sounded off one more time. Cody and Otis believed that Rae was right. It was
loud
.

Rae switched on her flashlight. “Hey, guys?” she called. “I think Aldo and Pino went somewhere. We're all alone.”

[
Chapter Eight
]

C
ody and Otis switched on their flashlights. Aldo's hammock was empty. So was Pino's.

“Check the ground for snakes before you get out of your hammock,” said Cody.

“Yeah, and check before you put your shoes on, too,” said Rae. “I read about people finding snakes and bugs in their shoes.”

In less than a minute they all had on their hiking boots and were standing near the dead fire. “Why would they take off like this?” Rae said.

“Who knows? It doesn't seem too good,” said Cody. “It looks like they were in a hurry to get somewhere. They weren't too careful when they left. Look at the rumpled sleeping bags, and somebody stepped on a dish and broke it.”

“I don't think the business that Pino and Aldo are involved in is photography,” said Otis.

“Me, neither,” said Rae. “I started wondering as soon as I had to tell Pino to turn his camera around. No photographer who knows what they're doing carries a camera on their shoulder with the lens forward. It could bang into things before you noticed they were there.”

Otis nodded. “Yeah. At first I thought it was just a slip. He said he had a lot on his mind. But there were more things.”

“Like taking landscape photos without a tripod,” said Rae.

“That's right. The shots would all be blurry.” Otis swatted at a mosquito on his arm. “He said he had taken thirty shots outside one of those villages. He wasn't taking sports photos. Landscape photographers take time to set up the shot. And then tonight he told me that he
always
sets his f-stop at two point eight.”

“It's dead wrong,” Cody said as he shoved his hands into his pockets. “He should have used, like, f-twenty-two. He's not into landscape photography, that's for sure.”

He exhaled a long sigh. “Pino told me he wants to study painting … not photography. And his father won't pay for him to go to art school, so he needs to make money. I don't want to jump to any conclusions,” he said. “But whatever he and Aldo are up to … well … I don't think it's any good. There is something I've been wanting to tell you both.”

Cody crossed his arms. “At the last village, I saw some men unloading a crate. It looked like it was full of … pistols.”

“Pistols!” Otis and Rae exclaimed together.

“Yeah. It doesn't make any sense, does it? The villagers wouldn't use pistols for hunting. The crate was small, so it wasn't like they were transporting mass quantities to sell. I just don't get it.”

“Well, it doesn't sound good at all,” said Otis.

“Maybe we should get out of here right now,” said Cody.

The three looked at each other. “Nah,” said Otis. “We need them to help us find our way out of this jungle. Let's follow them and see where they went. I want to find out what's going on.”

“So do I,” Rae said. “They took a lot of trouble to make those airstrips. It must have cost a lot of money. Too much money and trouble to spend a few minutes taking photographs.”

“If he took photos at all.” Cody sighed. “Okay, we'll track those guys. How far could they have gone? I'll bet they keep the plane here because it's a place they come to a lot. Maybe there is something hidden around here.”

“Let's make sure we can find our way back, though,” Rae said.

“I'll mark the trees with my Swiss Army knife,” said Cody. “We'll have to stick together. Nobody comes back without the other two.”

“Unless one of us gets captured,” said Otis.

“Or two get captured,” said Rae.

“Let's just make sure that doesn't happen,” Cody told them. “If they've gone too far, we'll have to come back to camp. We can't risk being caught out in the jungle overnight. We've got enough problems without that.”

“Actually, Cody, we have more problems than you think,” Rae whispered. The twins couldn't see her face in the darkness, but it had gone pale.

Something about the tone of Rae's voice sent a chill running up their spines. They turned slowly and saw two red eyes looking at them from the ground about six feet away. By the light from their flashlights, they could make out the form of an animal. It was a caiman—a crocodile. A big one.

[
Chapter Nine
]

N
obody moved. Nobody said a word. Nobody even breathed.

The three knew that if the crocodile took off, whoever he came for didn't have a chance. The thing to do if you see a crocodile is run—usually. If you are in reasonably good shape you could outrun it. That is because crocodiles are fast, but they tire quickly on land.

But this crocodile was so close, there was no way they could outrun it. They just had to hope it wasn't hungry.

Seconds ticked by. Each one felt like hours. Rivers of sweat ran down every forehead. Mosquitoes feasted and flies landed on faces and hands without being noticed.

“I hope you're working your animal magic, dude,” whispered Cody.

Otis had a way with animals. Cody and Rae had seen him charm angry dogs. But he wasn't charming this crocodile.

The caiman took a slow, lumbering step forward. Then another. And then …