Belly Up

by Stuart Gibbs

  I almost felt bad about what I had to say next. “The thing is, Doc, none of this proves Martin killed Henry.”

  Doc paused, thinking. “No, I suppose it doesn’t. But I do have proof that Martin’s been responsible for many other animal deaths here—and I know he hated Henry. He always called that hippo the greatest mistake he’d ever made. He couldn’t wait for him to die. He even fantasized about killing him. I recorded him in my lab one day. The audio clip’s on the f lash drive too.”

  I had to admit, it seemed like a pretty good case, although something still bothered me about it all. Before I could say anything, the sound of engines cut through the silence. The newborn wildebeest and its mother looked up, startled, while a herd of impala stampeded away in fear.

  Two Land Rovers crested a rise in the distance, coming fast. I instantly knew they meant trouble. No one was supposed to drive quickly inside SafariLand for fear of harming the animals.

  “Security,” Doc said. “They must know you’re here.” He hustled me into his truck. By the time I’d buckled my seat belt, he already had it in gear. We rocketed away in a cloud of dust.

  Behind us, the Security Land Rovers gunned their engines and took up the chase.

  The dirt roads in SafariLand hadn’t been built to drive quickly on. They were mostly used by the safari vehicles, which always had a dozen tourists in them and therefore moved at a top speed of three miles an hour. In fact, FunJungle’s designers had demanded that the roads not be cared for, as it would help the guests feel like they were really in Africa. Thus, the roads were muddy, pocked with potholes, strewn with rocks and often had animals that weighed half a ton sitting in them. In short, it was extremely dangerous to speed on them—but that’s exactly what Doc and I were doing.

  We flew over the top of a hill so fast we left the ground, only to find a herd of elands blocking our path. Doc swerved wildly to avoid them as they scattered in panic.

  I gripped the dashboard so tightly my fingernails scratched the paint. “How are we supposed to get to J.J.?” I asked.

  Doc risked turning away from the road ahead for a split second to give me a worried look. “I thought you knew how to do that. Aren’t you tight with his daughter?”

  “I thought I was. But I don’t think I can trust her.”

  “Why not?”

  Behind us, the Land Rovers roared over the top of the hill.

  “She was the only one who knew we were in the room with the blueprints. And then security just happened to show up there?”

  “That doesn’t prove she told them.”

  “Buck said J.J. sent them. How’d J.J. know we were there unless Summer said so?”

  “There are other ways. J.J. has this park wired tighter than Fort Knox. How do you think security found you in SafariLand now? Summer didn’t tell them that.”

  I gritted my teeth, unsure of what to believe.

  “It couldn’t hurt to call her,” Doc said. “I don’t see that we have many other options. . . . Oh, boy.”

  We rounded a clump of trees to find a mother rhino with a month-old calf blocking the road. Doc slammed on the brakes, skidding to a stop only a few feet from them. The mother snorted angrily and lowered her head, aiming her horn at us. Rhinos are fiercely protective of their young and have extremely bad eyesight; their eyes are so far to the sides of their head, they can barely see anything in front of them. The mother rhino probably couldn’t tell if we were a rival rhino or a hungry lion. All she knew was, we were a threat.

  “Hold on,” Doc said. “This could get hairy.”

  He threw the truck into reverse and punched the gas.

  The rhino charged.

  Despite the fact that it’s as aerodynamic as a cinderblock, a rhino can run up to thirty-five miles an hour. The speed of our truck in reverse on that crummy road was less than that. We jounced along backward, Doc trying to steer over his shoulder, while the rhino churned toward us, ready to do damage.

  I could hear security’s Land Rovers on the other side of the trees.

  Doc suddenly cut to the right. His truck slewed wildly through a patch of mud, nearly pitching me out the door.

  The Land Rovers rounded the trees.

  The rhino thundered past us. Maybe it didn’t see us turn—or maybe it perceived the incoming cars as a bigger threat.

  The lead Land Rover braked and swerved. The rhino broadsided it. The security guards yelped in surprise as their car upended and toppled onto its side.

  The second Land Rover spun out in the mud, nearly slamming into us.

  Doc gunned the engine. Our tires spun wildly for a moment before finally catching. We sped off, showering the second Rover—and everyone inside it—with mud.

  The rhino wasn’t hurt by its crash; it might as well have been bitten by a mosquito. Instead, it got angrier. While the security men hid behind the upended Rover, the rhino jabbed the car with its horn, smashing the exposed engine to bits.

  The second Rover resumed the chase, though we’d gained some ground.

  I dialed Summer. She answered on the first ring. “Dude! Where’ve you been?”

  “Trying to not get arrested,” I said. “How’d Buck know we were in the blueprint room?”

  “I screwed up. Apparently, Dad has something built into the system that alerts him whenever I use his security code.”

  “But you used it before at Hippo River. . . .”

  “And he knew. He’s known every time I’ve ever used it. . . . He just never busted me for it.”

  “So why’d he send Buck after you this time?”

  “’Cause this time he didn’t know it was me. I told him I was getting a Coke—and suddenly someone’s breaking into his top-secret blueprint room. He assumed his code had been compromised. He’d already dispatched Buck by the time I got back.”

  “And you didn’t alert us?”

  “I didn’t know he’d done it! He didn’t tell me. The funeral was about to begin.”

  A family of warthogs darted across the road in front of us. Doc nearly flipped the Rover trying to avoid flattening them.

  My stomach did a backflip. “Why’d your dad tell Buck my folks were in the ALF?” I asked.

  “What?” Summer gasped. “I don’t know anything about that.”

  “You didn’t know he had my parents arrested?”

  “No! He . . . I don’t think he’d do that.”

  “Well, he did. Buck arrested them and said your dad had ordered it.”

  “I don’t . . . I can’t believe that. That’s not right.” Summer’s confusion sounded genuine. Either she really didn’t know what had happened, or she was an incredible actress.

  “Where’s her father now?” Doc asked, and I repeated the question.

  “He’s here,” Summer replied. “In his office, freaking out. That stunt you pulled at the funeral royally screwed up his day. He’s had to offer free lifetime passes to everyone who got splattered by hippo guts.”

  “See if she can get you to him,” Doc said. “As fast as possible.”

  “Me?” I asked. “You’re not coming?”

  “I don’t think I can get through that .” Doc pointed ahead of us.

  The entire herd of water buffalo was stretched across the road. There were fifty in all, ranging in size from week-old calves to thousand pound bulls. They completely blocked our exit route and they weren’t about to move.

  We could hear the second Land Rover coming, just around the bend behind us.

  Doc snapped the flash drive off his keychain and slapped it in my hand. “Get out before they see you! I’ll divert them!”

  I didn’t have a moment to protest. He practically shoved me out the door.

  I tumbled down a small slope into a patch of tall grass. My foot planted right into a water buffalo poop. Despite this, I lay perfectly still, not daring to move a muscle.

  Doc floored the accelerator and turned off the road, speeding across the fake savanna.

  The Rover rounded the bend. No one saw
me hidden in the grass. They shot past me, following Doc.

  I waited for them to leave me behind, then carefully made my way toward the exit.

  Water buffalo are dangerous, but they’re not as skittish as rhinos. They didn’t perceive me as a threat. Still, they all kept a close eye on me as I wandered past. I fought every instinct I had to run; that would have only put them on edge.

  Summer was still on the phone, saying, “Teddy? Are you there?”

  “I’m here,” I whispered. “But I need your help. I have to get to your father right away. I know who killed Henry.”

  “Oh my God! Who?” Summer said it so loudly, the water buffalo went on alert.

  “Keep it down!” I hissed. “I’ll tell you when get there. Can you meet me at the service entrance of the building?”

  “No can do. My shadows have me on lockdown. I’ve given them the slip one too many times.”

  “Well, then, how . . . ?”

  Summer told me the secret code; it was the date of FunJungle’s grand opening. “Daddy’s gonna kill me for sharing that. His office is on the top floor. Let me know when you’re on your way up.”

  “I will . . . if I make it.”

  “Oh, and Teddy . . .” There was a long pause, as though Summer was having trouble getting out what came next. “I’m sorry we abandoned you with the tiger last night. . . .”

  Before I knew it, I was saying, “That wasn’t your fault. Your dad’s the one who ran—”

  “Like a coward. I know I’ve been AWOL since then. I kept meaning to call you, but . . . I was too embarrassed by what we’d done. We nearly got you killed! Can you ever forgive me?”

  Despite everything that had happened that day—and despite being surrounded by dangerous animals at the moment—I felt relief wash over me. Doc had been right; I’d completely misjudged Summer. “Of course,” I told her.

  “Thank you, Teddy. For understanding . . .”

  The sound of an engine cut the silence behind me. The second Land Rover was racing back my way. The guards must have caught up to Doc and realized I’d jumped out. Now I could see them yelling and pointing toward me. The driver honked at the water buffalo to get out of the way.

  The buffalo stiffened in response.

  I wasn’t through the herd yet. Heads with giant horns perked up all around me.

  “I gotta go,” I told Summer, and hung up.

  Seeing that the buffalo weren’t about to move, the guards leapt from the Rover and started toward the herd and me.

  I knelt down and found a rock the size of a potato. The buffalo were all watching the guards, slowly forming a defensive wedge with the biggest bull in front.

  I heaved the rock, nailing him in his rear haunch.

  The buffalo bellowed in surprise and ran.

  The others took his lead. Within seconds, their delicate state of alertness became panic. They stampeded the way they were facing: toward the guards.

  The guards’ eyes all went wide with terror. They fled back to their Rover.

  My path to the exit cleared like the Red Sea before Moses as all the buffalo charged the car. They piled around it, gouging the metal with their horns. The guards screamed for help.

  I ran the other direction. There was a steel door at the edge of SafariLand, but it was designed to keep people out, not in. I pushed through it and hauled ass down the service road, looping around the edge of the park. I didn’t see another person until I got to the administration building.

  There was a guard posted outside . . . but it was Large Marge. Instead of keeping an eye out for me, she was playing a game on her phone. I slipped past her with ease. I couldn’t believe it. For once, I was having some luck. . . .

  And then Charlie Connor exited the mascot changing room. His shift must have been over, because he was in his street clothes, lighting a new cheap cigar. He went ballistic at the sight of me. “You!” he shouted. “You’re dead! You sicced security on me!”

  Marge snapped to attention and saw me. Her hand immediately dropped to her holstered Taser. “Freeze, Fitzroy!” she ordered.

  I ran instead.

  Marge thundered after me. She snapped out her radio and informed everyone, “This is O’Malley! I’ve spotted Teddy Fitzroy outside the administration building!”

  Meanwhile, Charlie Connor came at me from the other direction. “I told you not to tell anyone you talked to me! But you went right to Buck and gave him my name!” He lunged at me, but I sidestepped him.

  Large Marge wasn’t quite so nimble. She slammed into Charlie and fell, f lattening him to the pavement. I chanced a look back. All I could see of Charlie were his feet, sticking out from under Marge like the Wicked Witch of the East’s after Dorothy’s house landed on her.

  I reached the loading dock, entered Summer’s code on the security keypad, and yanked on the door.

  It didn’t open.

  INVALID CODE, the keypad read.

  My heart sank. I couldn’t believe it. Summer had betrayed me again.

  Marge staggered to her feet, leaving Charlie Connor laid out like a pancake, and charged at me. Like a rhinoceros, she could move surprisingly fast for her size.

  I was about to run, but took one last chance on Summer. Maybe she hadn’t tricked me. Maybe I’d simply entered the code wrong in my haste.

  I tried again.

  The door clicked open.

  I ducked through it. Marge was almost on top of me. She jammed her foot in the crack as I tried to slam the door shut, then threw her bulk against it and knocked it open.

  I ran down the hall and into the stairwell.

  “He’s in the administration building!” Marge screamed into her radio. “The fox is in the henhouse!”

  I charged up the stairs, dialing Summer as I ran. “I’m coming!” I gasped.

  Now that we were climbing, Marge quickly fell behind, but I didn’t slow down. I knew every member of Buck’s force would be converging on the stairwell soon.

  “There’re two guards on this floor,” Summer told me. “They’re waiting for you outside the stairs—but they’ll expect you to stop when you see them. Don’t. Keep going straight for my father’s office. It’s at the end of the hall. I’ll do what I can.”

  I faltered, uneasy with this. But there didn’t seem to be any other option. I heard the stairwell doors bang open down on the first floor and the shouts of more security men as they entered. And I could hear Marge gasping for breath as she thudded up.

  So I charged on. I reached the top floor and hit the stairwell door with everything I had.

  The security men were right there, two massive guys, but like Summer had said, they were expecting me to stop. It took them a second to recognize I wasn’t going to, and by that time, I was upon them. They swiped at me, but I darted between them, then sprinted for the imposing doors of J.J. McCracken’s office.

  The guards spun around and came after me. They were much bigger than me and I was exhausted. I could feel their hands reaching for my shoulders. . . .

  Summer threw the office doors open as I approached. “Teddy! C’mon!” I could see her startled bodyguards grabbing for her just beyond.

  The security men tackled me as I reached the door. We slammed into Summer’s bodyguards and went down in a pile on the floor. I was buried under a mountain of men.

  “What in the world is going on here?” J.J. McCracken leapt up from behind his gigantic desk and then gasped as he laid eyes on me. “You! How did you . . . ?”

  “It’s urgent!” Summer protested. “Teddy knows who killed Henry!”

  In that moment, I hated myself for any doubts I’d ever had about Summer. She’d been a good friend all along. I was the one who’d failed her by questioning her loyalty.

  The security men and the bodyguards all seized me at once, yanking me to my feet, glaring at me like they were ready to pummel me.

  “Let him go!” J.J. snapped.

  The guards all looked at him, surprised.

  “The boy’s gon
e through a heck of a lot of trouble to get here,” J.J. told them. “He’s not getting out again. So let’s hear what he has to say.” J.J. fixed me with a hard stare. “Who killed my hippo?”

  “Martin del Gato,” I said.

  “I told you he’d say that,” said a reedy voice.

  Then Martin del Gato stepped out from behind the door and took his place by J.J.’s side.

  Martin didn’t look the slightest bit unsettled by my accusation. Instead, he sneered at me haughtily, like a poker player who had the ace of spades up his sleeve. “This little brat needs to accuse someone to get his parents off the hook and he’s always had it in for me.”

  Behind me, Buck Grassley and a few more guards raced through the door. Large Marge staggered in behind them, gasping for breath after hauling herself up five flights of stairs.

  “It’s about time you got here,” Martin snarled at them. “Arrest this kid. I’m sure he’s complicit in all this with his parents. At the very least, he cost this park a ton of money today.”

  Buck snapped at his men. They wrenched my arms behind my back to handcuff me, but I squirmed away and raced around the office.

  “My parents are innocent!” I shouted. I pulled out the flash drive and waved it at J.J. as the guards pursued me. “The proof’s on here! It’s from Doc. Martin’s been using your animals to smuggle emeralds from Venezuela!”

  Martin’s sneer faded. J.J. shot him a suspicious glance, then looked at me. Finally, he shifted his gaze to Summer, as though seeking her idea on what to do.

  “I’d check it out,” she said.

  The guards cornered me by J.J.’s desk and closed in.

  “Keep your hands off him!” J.J. ordered.

  The guards froze, inches away from me.

  “This is ridiculous!” Martin snapped. “The kid’s bluffing!”

  “Then you don’t have anything to worry about, right?” J.J. took the f lash drive from me and plugged it into his computer. It only took him a few seconds to find the first incriminating documents. He turned to Martin, stunned. “What’s going on here?”

  Martin stepped back, wild-eyed, all his confidence blown, and desperately tried to lie his way out. “Okay, I admit, I smuggled emeralds. . . . But I did it for the park! I was only trying to cover the cost overruns. Trying to keep this place solvent . . .”