by Jan Burchett
“Of course,” said Mr. Ostriander. He steered the speedboat to a small landing on the left bank. He cut the engine.
“As you can see, these are my newest trees,” Mr. Ostriander told them as they walked between the oil drums. “They’ll be producing fruit for oil production in about four years. I’ve increased my workforce by ten percent for these trees, so it’s been good for the local economy.”
Ben looked at Zoe. He could guess what she was thinking. They had to pretend they were interested until they got to the mature trees.
Mr. Ostriander pointed over to a new red roofed shed in the distance. “That’s where the next crop of oil palm fruit will be stored,” he said. “Then it will be taken to the processing factory.”
Just then, Mr. Ostriander’s cell phone rang. “I have to take this call,” he said. “Please have a look around. Let me know if you see Kawan.” He flipped open his phone and walked away.
Zoe and Ben didn’t waste any time. They ran between the rows of seedlings until they reached the lines of trees. Keeping the edge of the seedling patch in sight, they walked among the low branches of the oil palms.
They heard the calls of unseen creatures. Ben held up his BUG and pressed a button. “I’m analyzing the calls,” he said. “No orangutans. They’re just birds.”
Zoe pointed into the distance. “Isn’t that Talib?” she said. “There, coming out of the little door at the end of the shed.”
Ben got his binoculars out and zoomed in. He saw a figure carrying a heavy can.
“It’s Talib,” Ben said, surprised. “What’s he doing on Mr. Ostriander’s land? He’s supposed to be helping Mat repair the walkways.”
They crept toward the tall, wooden shed. Then they peered around to watch Talib. He stopped, put down the can, and pulled out something from his pocket.
He unwrapped it, placed it in his mouth, and began to chew. He threw the wrapper to the ground, then picked up the can and walked off into the trees.
“Did you see that?” said Zoe. When Talib was out of sight, she ran over and picked up the silver wrapper. “This is just like the one I found last night. Do you think it was Talib who sabotaged the walkway?”
“Let’s take a look inside the shed,” Ben said.
They slipped inside. Rakes, spades, and machetes lined the walls. A dirty old tarp had been thrown in one corner. Ben pulled it back to reveal four more cans just like the one Talib had taken. Ben picked it up and shook it. He heard liquid inside.
Zoe sniffed. “It’s gasoline!” she said. “But why would Talib be stealing gas?”
“If you’re right about the gum,” said Ben, “then it was Talib who sabotaged the walkway and put the bird scarer in place.” Ben’s face grew grim. “And I’d be willing to bet that he’s planning to set the reservation on fire next!”
Mr. Ostriander chatted with Ben and Zoe as he drove them back to the Adilah Reservation. They sat in the back, trying to act as if nothing was wrong.
Ben remembered the strange expression on Talib’s face when Mat told him about the broken walkway. He must have been surprised that Mat was still in one piece. Ben needed to find out more about Talib. Maybe Mr. Ostriander could help, but how could Ben bring it up without seeming suspicious?
“Too bad there was no sign of Kawan,” Mr. Ostriander said.
“I’m sure Mat will keep looking,” said Ben. “And his staff,” he added with a sudden flash of inspiration. “We know that Daud really likes him.”
“But we don’t know anything about Talib,” Zoe said, catching on to Ben’s plan. “He’s very quiet. Do you know what he’s like, Mr. Ostriander?”
“I don’t know Mat’s workers very well,” said the plantation owner. “Which one is Talib?”
“The older one with gray hair,” Ben told him.
“The cranky fella?” Mr. Ostriander said, shrugging. “Never spoken to him.” He swung the jeep through the gates of the reservation.
Mat was waiting for them in the courtyard. They climbed out of the car and headed toward Mat.
“You’re back just in time for your surprise treat,” Mat announced. “I’ll let you go and clean yourselves up first. Meet you back here in five minutes.”
Back in their room, Ben said, “Our surprise came at the worst time.”
Zoe nodded. “What are we going to do about Talib?” she asked. “He could start the fire at any moment. We have to tell Mat.”
“We can’t,” said Ben. “We’d have to tell him about the walkway and the shed. He can’t know that we’ve been investigating.”
“Then we’ll call Uncle Stephen,” Zoe said. She pulled out her BUG and pressed the hot key that dialed WILD HQ.
“Greetings!” they heard their uncle’s sleepy voice say. It was the middle of the night on his island. “Any news about Kawan yet?”
“We’ve seen him,” said Zoe. “But there’s much more to tell.”
After Zoe finished her report, Uncle Stephen was silent for a moment. “Worse than I thought,” he finally said. “Erika’s in North Borneo — I’ll ask her to anonymously alert the authorities right now. They take fire in the forest very seriously. I’m sure they’ll be on their way at once.”
“And as soon as the threat’s over, we’ll try using the call again to lure Kawan back to his old territory,” added Zoe. “There’s no bird scarer to keep him away now.”
“You go and enjoy your surprise,” said their uncle. “Leave the rest to me.”
“Are you ready?” they heard Mat calling from the courtyard. They swung on their backpacks and headed outside to find him standing by a small jeep. He grinned when he saw them. “Hop in!”
Mat steered the jeep down a bumpy trail. It was impossible to see ahead because of the dense trees. “Where are we going?” asked Zoe.
“You’ll see in a minute,” Mat said coyly.
The jeep turned a corner and entered a cleared area about the size of a football field. It led to a runway. Ben and Zoe could see that it was a small airstrip. Then they spotted a strange craft shimmering in the heat in the middle of the tarmac.
“A hot-air balloon!” Ben said.
Zoe gave a cheer of delight. “Are we going for a ride?” she asked.
“Yep!” Mat said, beaming. “It’s the best way to see the rainforest.”
They hurried toward the balloon, which was still being filled with hot air.
“Maybe our surprise came at a good time after all,” Zoe whispered to Ben.
Ben frowned. “Why do you say that?” he asked.
“If a fire does start, now we can see exactly where it is and put out an alert immediately,” Zoe said.
* * *
WHOOSH! Mat turned up the flame under the huge red balloon. A man untied the ropes. Ben and Zoe felt the basket rise up into the air. “And we’re off!” Mat said.
“It’s so bumpy!” Zoe yelled over the noise of the roaring flame.
Mat smiled. “You get used to it,” he said.
They were soon at the height of the treetops. Mat pulled on a cord. “This opens the parachute valve a little,” he told them.
Mat saw the concern on their faces. “Don’t worry, we’re not jumping!” he said. “It just lets out hot air to stop us from traveling any higher. Can you feel the tug on the basket? At different heights, the winds travel in different directions. We’ve reached a patch of wind that’s blowing southeast, which is just what we need to pass over the reservation.”
“If we have to change direction, do we just go up or down to catch a different wind?” Ben asked.
“You’ve got it!” said Mat. “I can’t guarantee we’ll land in the middle of the tarmac, but I’ve yet to miss an airstrip while landing.”
Above the forest canopy, the air felt fresher. Ben and Zoe could feel a welcome breeze on their skin.
Mat proudly gestured over his land. “This is all the Adilah Reservation,” he said.
The tops of the tallest trees reached out but didn’t quite touch each other. Sma
ll trees filled the gaps below. It looked like an endless sea of green. “Some of the trees are 225 feet tall,” explained Mat. “All sorts of creatures live up there, including monkeys, spiders, snakes, and lizards.”
Zoe screened her eyes as she looked at a barren peak far in the distance. “What’s that mountain over there?” she asked.
“Mount Kinabalu,” said Mat. He handed them binoculars. “You’ll have a good view of it now that we’re so high.”
“I don’t like the look of the dark clouds over it,” said Ben. “Are we going to get rained on?”
“They’re far away,” Mat said. “We should be back before it rains. I’m going to take you right across the reservation. We’re at the southeastern point here. You can see the oil palms stretching all the way to the edge of my land.”
“There are the seedlings,” said Zoe. “It looks like a connect-the-dots puzzle from here.”
“This will bring the tourists in,” said Ben. “You’ll be so busy that you’ll need to recruit more staff.”
“Maybe,” said Mat, laughing. “I’ll manage with Daud and Talib for the moment.”
Zoe caught Ben’s eye. “Have they worked with you for long?” she asked.
“Daud and I went to school together,” Mat told her. “Talib works for Mr. Ostriander. Peter is just lending him to me for a short while. He said I’d need more help with the reservation opening.” He stepped to the other side of the basket to check the balloon’s position with his map.
“I don’t understand,” Ben whispered in Zoe’s ear. “Mr. Ostriander said he didn’t know Talib.”
Despite the heat Zoe felt a chill run up her back. “Why would he lie?” she whispered back. “He’s a friend of Mat’s.”
Ben suddenly grasped Zoe by the shoulders. “That’s what he wanted us to think. But don’t you remember? Mat said Mr. Ostriander wanted to buy Adilah when he first bought his plantation. It all makes sense now! When Mat wouldn’t sell, Mr. Ostriander decided to get it another way.”
“So you think Ostriander’s the one behind the cancellations, the broken walkway, and scaring away the orangutans — and Kawan, too?” Zoe asked.
Ben nodded. “All that stuff about helping Mat was probably just a cover,” he said. “He sent Talib to work for him and secretly carry out his evil plans.”
“How smart,” Zoe said. “Ostriander appeared to be a hero when he had the loggers chased off. But I bet he sent them there in the first place!”
Ben nodded. “He’s been trying to make sure that the reservation fails,” he said. “I guess he’s planning to step in as soon as it does and then buy the land so he can expand his plantation.”
At that moment, the flame above them puttered and flickered. Mat turned the ring on one of the propane cylinders and frowned. “It’s out of gas already?” he said. “That’s strange. I’m sure the other two gas cylinders are okay, though.” He quickly opened the valve on another cylinder, but there was no burst of fire from overhead. Ben and Zoe could see that Mat looked worried.
“I don’t understand it,” Mat muttered. “I told Talib to fill them for the trip.”
Ben and Zoe shared a horrified expression. “Talib filled the cylinders?!” Zoe whispered to Ben.
Ben quickly kneeled down by one of them. A tiny blob of chewing gum had been squeezed in under the needle. “Look inside the glass!” Ben shouted. “Talib used his chewing gum to wedge the gauge so it looks full.”
Mat twisted the third valve open, but no gas came out. “They’ve been tampered with!” he cried. “Why would Talib do this?!”
Over their heads, the flame spluttered, then died. Ben and Zoe felt the wind throb in their ears as the balloon began to drop. The sides of the nylon envelope, no longer filled with heat, flapped loudly in the downward rush toward the dense green of the forest below.
“Get down as low as you can!” shouted Mat. “Brace yourselves for the impact. With luck, we’ll hit the canopy and our fall will be softened.”
Ben and Zoe could see how close they were to the open land of the oil palm plantation. If they crash-landed there, they didn’t stand a chance.
Zoe shrieked as she felt the basket smash down on top of the trees, throwing her against Ben. The deafening crack of breaking branches filled the air.
The basket tumbled down through the canopy, almost flinging Ben over the side. Zoe grasped his arm and pulled him back in. They held on to each other, huddled in one corner of the basket. Suddenly the basket gave a huge jolt and came to rest at a crooked angle.
The basket swung from side to side, the balloon envelope tangled in the branches above. “We’ve stopped falling!” said Zoe, pulling herself up by one of the ropes.
Ben peered over the basket’s edge. “The balloon’s caught on a tree,” he said. “We’re safe — for now.”
“But look at Mat!” Zoe said. She edged her way slowly over to where their pilot lay in a crumpled heap.
“Is he alive?” Ben asked. As he moved to get closer, the basket rocked dangerously.
Zoe felt Mat’s pulse. “His pulse is fine,” she said. “He must have been knocked out when we fell.”
Ben pulled out his BUG. “I’m going to call Uncle Stephen,” he said. “He can get help —”
Suddenly, some of the balloon fabric ripped. The basket fell to the branch below.
“There’s no time,” Zoe said urgently. “We’ve got to get down to the ground right now.”
“We can use our EELs,” said Ben. “I’ll take Mat.”
Zoe pressed the button on her EEL belt. As she leaped out of the basket, she felt the cord fasten to the branches above.
Ben gripped Mat tightly around the waist and prepared to jump. He knew he had to get them out of the basket, which was starting to rock dangerously. Mat was like a dead weight in his arms. Ben couldn’t move him at all.
There was a crack of snapping wood and the basket broke loose from the tree.
Ben fired his EEL as he felt himself being thrown into the air. He clung to Mat as hard as he could while they plummeted. Ben hoped they weren’t too heavy for the EEL’s wire. Then, to his relief, he felt the jerk of the cord.
As soon as Mat was safely down on the ground, Zoe felt his pulse. “It’s very weak,” she said, worried. “And he looks so pale.”
“We need to get him medical help as soon as possible,” said Ben. “I’ll call Uncle Stephen now.”
The chugging sound of a four-wheeler burst through the trees. “Someone must have seen the balloon come down,” Ben said. “Help’s arrived!”
“And they’ve got transportation,” said Zoe excitedly. “They can take Mat to the hospital!”
She jumped to her feet and waved her arms. “We’re over here!” she cried.
But then their hope turned to dread. Their rescuer was no rescuer at all. It was Peter Ostriander. He shut off the engine, dismounted, and ran over to them.
Out of the corner of her eye, Zoe saw Ben’s fingers reaching for his BUG. She ran forward to Mr. Ostriander to block his view.
“Thank goodness you’re here,” Zoe cried. “There’s been an accident. Mat’s hurt.”
“I saw the balloon come down,” Mr. Ostriander said in a concerned tone. “What a dreadful accident.” He walked over to Mat.
“No accident,” Mat groaned. His eyes flickered open. “Talib did this. You did this.”
“Oh, dear,” said Mr. Ostriander. His voice was suddenly harsh as he gazed down at Mat. “If you hadn’t figured that out, I might have rescued you and continued this little charade. But now I can’t let you live to tell your tale, or it’ll ruin my grand plans.”
A look of utter disbelief spread over Mat’s face. Ben and Zoe stood in stunned silence. They hadn’t thought Mr. Ostriander would commit murder to get his hands on the reservation.
At that moment, an ear-splitting chirping noise filled the air. Zoe saw Ben’s BUG drop to the ground, and she saw the slight move of his foot as he kicked it under a bush.
Mr.
Ostriander jumped in shock at hearing the loud call. He pulled a gun out from his pocket. “What’s that noise?” he asked.
“Must be a bird,” said Ben, trying to keep his breathing calm. “It’s probably scared of the four-wheeler.”
Mr. Ostriander lowered his gun. “You should thank me, really,” he said with a cold smile. “You’re going to be famous! It will be in all the papers tomorrow that Mat and two young tourists were killed in a tragic ballooning accident.” Mr. Ostriander let out a harsh chuckle. “Of course,” he said, “you won’t be alive to see it.”
“You can’t just kill us,” Zoe said. “Someone will figure out what you did!”
“Everyone will fall for it, Zoe,” Mr. Ostriander said. “And there’ll be no evidence left behind because a forest fire is going to sweep through the entire reservation.”
“I thought you were a friend, Peter,” Mat whispered. “To me, to the local people, and to the animals on this reservation.”
Ostriander laughed as he turned back to his four-wheeler. He pulled out a long coil of rope.
Zoe began to back away. Mr. Ostriander raised an eyebrow. “Stay still, Zoe,” he warned. “I would prefer not to shoot you, as bullets will survive the fire. But I will if I have to.”
“But if you start a fire,” Zoe said desperately, “it might burn your oil palms,”
“I have thought of that, Zoe,” said Mr. Ostriander. “The wind’s not heading in that direction. Talib and I checked that carefully.” He looked at his watch. “In fact, he should be starting the fire now.”
There was a sudden shriek above all of their heads. Mr. Ostriander looked up in horror to see a furious blur of orange fur hurling itself right at him.
“It’s Kawan!” yelled Zoe.
With astonishing speed, the orangutan crashed into Mr. Ostriander and sent him sprawling. The gun flew out of his hands and landed nearby.
Kawan curled his lips in a snarl and bent over to pick up the weapon. “Get rid of it, Kawan,” Mat said gently. “Throw it away.”
