Shadow of the Shark Page 3

  Annie grinned. “No problem!” she said. “We use one of our gold coins to wish for money so we can have a good time.”

  Jack laughed. “Okay,” he said. “That should work.”

  He reached in their bag, found the velvet purse, and took out a second gold coin. “We’ll just have one left after we use this one.”

  “I know,” said Annie. “But I think we can have lots of fun here even without magic.”

  “So how much should we wish for?” asked Jack.

  “How about five hundred?” said Annie.

  “What? Are you serious?” said Jack. “No kid carries around five hundred dollars.”

  “Well, then maybe we should wish for a credit card instead?” said Annie.

  “Yeah, and how do you expect Morgan to pay a credit card bill?” said Jack.

  “Okay. Back to five hundred dollars. We need enough for the luxury spa hotel, a four-star dinner, breakfast, and tickets for the theme park and ferry.”

  “Okay, okay,” said Jack. “Five hundred. I still think it’s too much.” He held up the coin. “Get ready for dollar bills to rain down on us.”

  “Ready,” said Annie. She held out both hands.

  “We wish for five hundred dollars—to have a good time!” said Jack. He tossed the gold coin into the air. Again, like tiny fireworks, it burst into a shower of fiery red and blue sparks. When the sparks cleared, nothing rained down from the air.

  “Oh, no,” said Jack. “It didn’t work.”

  “Yes it did! Look!” said Annie. Sitting in the middle of the raft was a neat stack of crisp green bills. She picked them up and counted. “Hurray! We have ten fifty-dollar bills.”

  “Great!” said Jack. “We can probably change them into Mexican money—pesos—when we get to the hotel.”

  “No problem,” said Annie. “Give me the purse. We’ll put the money in with our last gold coin.”

  Jack handed Annie the purse, and she stuffed the wad of bills inside.

  “Before we go, we should pull the raft higher up on the sand so it doesn’t wash out to sea,” said Jack. “Maybe someone else can use it—if they can find a paddle.”

  Jack and Annie leaned over and gripped the raft.

  “Heave ho!” said Annie. And together they pulled it higher up on the beach.

  “Wait. Hear that?” said Annie. “Listen! It’s coming from up there!”

  The sounds of musical instruments were coming from the top of the cliff. “The theme park is open!” said Annie. “Maybe they’re doing one of those song-and-dance spectaculars we read about! Let’s go see!”

  “I’d rather just get to a hotel,” said Jack. “We’ve had a full day.”

  “Oh, please,” begged Annie. “Let’s check out the show really fast, and then we’ll go straight to the hotel, I promise.”

  Jack listened to the music for a moment. It was filled with the haunting sound of flutes and thumping drums. It sounded mysterious and joyful. “Okay,” he said.

  “Come on!” Annie started across the sand.

  Jack grabbed their bag. “How do we get up the cliff?” he said, hurrying after her.

  “I saw some steps when we were coming in!” said Annie. “They’re just around those rocks!”

  As Jack followed Annie around a pile of boulders, a cool wind blew across the sand. The full moon had turned the sea to silver.

  “There! Those are the steps I was talking about,” said Annie. She pointed to a rickety wooden stairway clinging to the side of the cliff.

  “That?” said Jack.

  “I know, it doesn’t look safe,” said Annie. “But I don’t see any other way to get up there.”

  Jack looked up and down the beach. “Me neither. I guess we’ll have to try it.”

  Lugging their bag, Jack followed Annie to the stairs. Annie started up first, the weathered boards creaking with her weight.

  “Careful,” said Jack. “Hold on to the railing.”

  “You too!” Annie called down.

  Jack started climbing the rickety stairway. Gripping the handrail, he took one step at a time as the wind shook the stairs, and the sound of drums and flutes floated down from above.

  Suddenly Jack’s foot broke through one of the boards! Hanging on tightly to the railing, he leapt to the next step as the broken one crashed to the ground.

  “You okay?” said Annie.

  “Yeah, barely,” Jack answered.

  As he kept climbing, he clung to the railing and gingerly placed one foot after the other. Finally he followed Annie from the top step onto the rocky ground at the top of the cliff.

  “We made it!” Annie said.

  “I can’t believe they built such a bad staircase!” said Jack.

  “They probably want it to look as real as possible,” said Annie, “like in olden times.”

  “Yeah, but how about safe?” said Jack. “If someone falls—or this whole thing comes crashing down—people could really get hurt.”

  “We should tell our hotel to post a warning or something,” said Annie.

  “Yeah. Avoid the rickety staircase with the broken step,” said Jack.

  As he caught his breath, he listened to the drum and flute music coming from behind a high stone wall. The smell of wood smoke filled the air. By now the full moon had risen over the park, giving everything a bluish tint.

  “It sounds great, doesn’t it?” said Annie.

  “Yeah, it does,” said Jack. He had to admit that the theme park show seemed really inviting.

  “I wonder how we get inside,” said Annie.

  “Hold on,” said Jack. He took out their travel guide. By the light of the moon, he studied the map. “It looks like a wall runs all the way around the park. And the entrance is on the other side, with a ticket booth…. Oh, and there’s a visitors bureau! They can help us find a hotel.”

  “But we’re checking out the show first, right?” Annie said.

  “Sure, let’s go,” said Jack.

  As they started along the wall, bellowing horn sounds came from inside the park. “Whoa, what’s that?” said Annie. She ran ahead.

  When Jack caught up with her, she was looking through a narrow opening in the wall. “It’s definitely a song-and-dance spectacular,” she said. “Look at the great costumes!”

  Annie stepped aside so Jack could peek through the opening. He saw the long shadows of stone buildings. In front of the buildings was an open square, bright with firelight. Dancers and musicians were performing around a roaring bonfire. Dozens of people watched from the sides, some standing and some sitting on the ground.

  “It looks great,” said Jack. “Let’s find the entrance.”

  “Oh, let’s just sneak in through here,” said Annie, “before the show ends.”

  “What about our tickets?” said Jack.

  “If we spend time looking for the ticket booth, we’ll miss the show!” said Annie. “We can pay on the way out. This is a chance of a lifetime.”

  “Okay,” said Jack.

  “Yes!” said Annie. She turned sideways and slid through the narrow opening. “See? No problem,” she said from the other side.

  “Take this,” said Jack. He pushed their bulky bag through the opening. Then he squeezed sideways between the thick slabs of rock.

  Jack took his bag back from Annie, and they hurried across the grounds of the park. When they got close to the bonfire, they stood near the back of the square.

  The male dancers had feathered headdresses and beautiful feathered cloaks. They wore arm and leg bracelets made of gold and silver. They had painted faces and tattoos. Some of them waved spears and shields as they shook their bodies.

  Near the dancers, several musicians played wooden flutes. Others rattled hollow gourd instruments and rang loud bells. Some clapped sticks together, while still others banged huge turtle-shell drums and blew on giant conch shells that made deep bellowing sounds.

  While the dancers danced and the musicians played, actors moved about in front of t
he crowd, miming a story. They wore jaguar masks, crocodile masks, and bird masks. They bowed to two regal-looking men who sat on thronelike wooden seats on a platform. The two men wore enormous headdresses and animal-skin capes. Behind them stood a row of feathered warriors.

  “I’ll bet those two guys are supposed to be ancient Mayan kings,” whispered Annie, “and the ones behind them must be their bodyguards. This is spectacular!”

  Jack had to agree, even though none of it made sense to him. He looked around at the crowd watching the show. He noticed that the women and girls wore colorful dresses and large pieces of jewelry. The men and boys wore loincloths or feathered robes. Many men wore headdresses.

  “Don’t you think it’s a little weird that everyone in the audience is wearing a costume?” Jack whispered.

  “I love it,” said Annie. “Maybe this show is like a reality show, where even the audience plays a part. I’ll bet when you buy a ticket, you get a costume. I’ll find out.” She stepped over to some young boys in feathered robes who were watching the dancers. “Excuse me,” she said.

  A couple of boys turned around and looked at her. They jumped back as if frightened. Before Annie could ask about their costumes, one of them darted to a woman, grabbed her hand, and pointed to Annie. The woman cried out in alarm.

  “Whoa, what’s that about?” said Jack.

  “I think they’re just acting,” Annie said.

  More and more people were turning to look at Jack and Annie. Some whispered and pointed. All had expressions of fear and wonder.

  “I don’t think these people are acting,” said Jack.

  “Really?” said Annie.

  “Yeah, this feels really weird.”

  The music stopped. The musicians put down their instruments and stared with the rest of the crowd. Several men with spears started toward Jack and Annie.

  “Let’s go!” said Jack.

  “Wait,” said Annie. “It’s part of the show! Don’t you want to play a role in it?”

  “No! Let’s go!” said Jack. He grabbed Annie’s hand and pulled her along, heading back the way they’d come. As he hurried toward the wall, he heard shouting behind them.

  When they reached the narrow opening, Jack looked over his shoulder. The feathered men with spears were coming right at them. A few curious children were following the spear carriers.

  Jack frantically tried to push the bag through the opening ahead of him, but it got stuck. He shoved as hard as he could, but the bag didn’t budge.

  “Don’t you want to find out what’s going on?” said Annie.

  “No! I just want to get away from this crazy show!” said Jack. “I don’t want to perform in it!”

  “Too late!” said Annie.

  Jack looked back. The feathered warriors had nearly reached them. Jack pulled hard on the bag, yanking with such force that he fell backward, and the bag landed on top of him. A moment later, spear carriers were standing over him. Several surrounded Annie, too.

  “Hi!” said Annie. “This is all part of the song-and-dance spectacular, right?”

  None of the men answered.

  “We didn’t know where to get tickets,” she said. “We, uh, we thought maybe we could pay on the way out?”

  Again, no one answered. Instead the spear carriers turned to one another and spoke in frantic whispers. “Who are they?” “What are they?” “Where do they come from?”

  A girl about Annie’s age stepped forward. Like Annie, she had long, thick braids and bangs, but her hair was shiny black. The girl stared at Annie curiously and then smiled a big smile.

  “Why did they stop the show?” Annie asked the girl. “What’s going on?”

  The girl kept staring at Annie. “Who are you?” she asked. Before Annie could answer, a woman rushed forward, grabbed the girl, and pulled her away.

  One of the warriors pointed his spear at Jack. “Come,” he said. “To the House of Columns.”

  “Um…actually, we’d rather go to the hotel zone,” Jack said.

  The man stared at him.

  “But whatever’s closest,” said Jack. “We’re not picky.”

  The warrior gently prodded Jack with the tip of his spear. “Go,” he said.

  Without another word, Jack and Annie began marching across the grounds. If this is all part of the show, Jack thought, these guys are taking it way too seriously.

  Followed by the spear carriers, Jack and Annie walked through the blue moonlight, until they came to a stone building with columns. The head warrior ushered them up uneven steps, opened a heavy wooden door, and motioned for them to enter.

  “Wait for the king,” the warrior said.

  The cold, empty room had only a single window, which let in a shaft of moonlight. The warrior closed the heavy door, leaving Jack and Annie alone in the House of Columns.

  “Well, I wouldn’t exactly call this a luxury hotel,” said Annie. She shivered. A damp wind was blowing through the open window.

  Jack was too stunned to speak. He reached into the swim bag and pulled out the travel guide. He walked to the window and studied the cover by moonlight. “Oh…,” he whispered, and then pointed to one of the small paintings. “I think I get it now.”

  “Get what?” said Annie.

  Jack looked at her. “This isn’t a theme park.”

  “I was starting to think that, too,” said Annie. “But what is it?”

  “It’s real,” said Jack.

  “Real?” said Annie. “What do you mean, real?

  “I think we’ve accidentally come to the actual time of ancient Mayans,” said Jack.

  “Like when?” said Annie.

  “Like maybe over a thousand years ago, when they wore feathers and fought with spears.”

  “But—how is that possible?” said Annie. “Teddy sent us to Cozumel now, in our time!”

  “That’s what he was supposed to do,” said Jack. “But maybe when you pointed at the cover of the book, you pointed at the painting of the ancient pyramid the way it looked, like, over a thousand years ago. Teddy must not have known the pyramid painting would send us back to Cozumel then instead of now.”

  “Oh. Wow. You mean all this time we’ve been in an ancient world?” said Annie.

  “Yep. We didn’t land in a modern nature preserve,” said Jack.

  “Oh,” said Annie.

  “That’s why we didn’t see any tourists or ferries or cruise ships,” said Jack.

  “Right,” said Annie, nodding. She looked back at the cover of the guide. “Too bad I didn’t point to the luxury hotel.”

  “No kidding,” said Jack.

  “These guys have probably never seen people like us before,” said Annie.

  “Probably?” said Jack. “Definitely. We’re from the future—more than a thousand years in the future.”

  “What should we do?” said Annie.

  “There’s only one thing to do—we have to get out of here and back to the tree house,” said Jack. “Before the king comes.”

  “Can we escape through the window?” Annie walked over and looked out the open window. “Darn. Guards are patrolling the building.”

  “So we can’t get out that way,” said Jack.

  “Oh, I know what we can do!” said Annie. “We can use our last gold coin to help us!”

  “Of course! Perfect!” said Jack. He grabbed their swim bag. “Yes, yes, yes. We’ll make a wish to escape all the way back to the tree house! With no warriors capturing us or sharks attacking us! I think that would qualify as fun.”

  “Let’s make a wish to fly from this window, across the sea!” said Annie. “That would be so fun!”

  “No kidding!” said Jack. He knelt on the floor and dug inside the bag for the velvet coin purse. “Where is it?” He pulled everything out: flippers, life vests, snorkels, and face masks. “Where is it? Where’s that coin purse?”

  Jack turned the bag upside down and shook it. He and Annie shook the flippers and life vests, too, but no small green v
elvet purse fell out.

  “It’s not here,” said Jack. “Did you put it back in here?”

  Annie looked confused. “Did I?”

  “That’s what I’m asking,” said Jack. “Did you?”

  “I don’t know,” said Annie. “I remember I put the five hundred dollars in the purse…and then we pushed the raft…and then we heard the music and—”

  “So when did you put the purse back in the bag?” asked Jack.

  “I—I don’t know,” said Annie. “Maybe I didn’t…. Maybe I put it down on the sand…to push the raft….”

  “Seriously?” said Jack.

  “That’s what I sort of remember now that I think about it…,” whispered Annie. “Oh, no! I lost all our money and the magic coin! I’m so sorry!”

  “It’s okay,” said Jack. “It’ll be okay. We just need to get out of here and climb back down to the beach before the king comes.”

  “And find our coin purse!” said Annie.

  “Right,” said Jack. He took a deep breath. “Okay, one thing at a time. First, let’s—” Before he could say more, the door swung open. Jack quickly crammed everything back into their bag.

  The room was suddenly filled with fiery light. Warriors with burning torches entered the room.

  Several women followed the warriors. The women had large jade ornaments in their ears and wore dresses woven with red, yellow, and purple threads. They placed flowers on the floor, along with bowls filled with corn, beans, chili peppers, and pineapple slices.

  Two men then stepped into the room—the same two who had sat on the thrones. They must be kings, Jack thought. But why are there two of them? The two kings wore feather headdresses that were at least three feet high. Around their shoulders were jaguar skins. Their arms were covered with bracelets. The older-looking one had long white hair. A girl with black braids stood beside him—the same girl who’d spoken to Annie near the wall.

  Everyone stared at Jack and Annie.

  “Hi,” said Annie.

  “We come in peace,” said Jack.

  The younger of the two kings stepped forward.

  “Who are you?” the man asked.

  “Jack and Annie of Frog Creek, Pennsylvania,” said Annie.