“Those are endangered green sea turtles, all right,” Ned said. “But there are no turtles in the Marlins’ tank. Your uncle and I keep tight control over what goes in there. One of us checks the tanks before each and every game.”
Kate crossed her arms. “I definitely saw one in the tank!” she said.
Mrs. Hopkins looked at the turtles. “Maybe it was just a piece of coral or something,” she said. “I don’t think the Marlins would keep endangered species in their tanks at the ballpark.”
“You sure you’re not seeing things?” Mike asked.
Kate glared at Mike. She reached out to pinch him, but he jumped away. “Don’t you believe me?” she asked.
Ned stepped forward. “I’m sure you think you saw one,” he said. “Why don’t you ask your uncle to inspect the tanks with you before tomorrow’s game?”
“I guess,” Kate said. She made a face at Mike. “Then I’ll be able to prove I was right!”
Ned opened the door. “I’ve got to check on a few more animals,” he said. “I’ll see you later.”
After Ned left, Mike and Mrs. Hopkins played a game of checkers, and Kate read more about endangered animals. In a little while, Uncle Oliver came back. He walked in, dropped his briefcase on the table, and gave a deep sigh.
“What’s the matter?” Mrs. Hopkins asked.
“I’m okay, but Panther Park isn’t,” he said. “I’ve just had a meeting about it. We barely have enough money to stay open. It’s costing too much to feed and take care of all the animals rescued from poachers and smugglers. The money we get from visitors isn’t enough.”
“Oh no!” Kate said. “If you close, what will happen to the animals?”
“If we have to shut down, we’ll try to get them good homes at other zoos and aquariums,” Uncle Oliver said.
“Well, I know where one endangered animal found a home!” Kate said. She told Uncle Oliver about the rare turtle she’d seen at the ballpark.
Uncle Oliver listened to Kate, then shook his head. “I don’t think we have a turtle in our tank,” he said. “But I can bring you in early to have a look, just in case.”
Uncle Oliver checked his watch. It was just after seven-thirty. “Would you like a tour of Panther Park?”
Kate brightened up. “Sure,” she said.
Uncle Oliver led Mike, Kate, and Mrs. Hopkins out the back door of the house onto a big wooden deck. Even though it was after dinner, the sun was still up. They followed a wooden boardwalk past towering trees and lots of green plants. The air felt warm and moist and hummed with the sound of crickets and other insects.
The path led into a sandy area with large habitats on either side. Mike and Kate ran over to the one on the right. Two large cats with yellow eyes prowled along the fences at the edges of their habitat. Their fur was a deep tan color, but their ears and the ends of their tails were black.
“You might know those cats as cougars, pumas, or mountain lions,” Uncle Oliver said. “But down here we call them Florida panthers. In fact, they’re our state animal. We rescued these from a poacher who was selling them.”
“They’re beautiful!” Kate said. She took pictures of the panthers. Then she noticed a sign in front of the habitat. It stated that panthers don’t roar. Instead, they growl, hiss, whistle, and purr. The sign also noted they can weigh up to 130 pounds or more.
“What’s that?” Mike asked. He ran over to a wooden pen on the other side of the clearing. “Cool! An armadillo! Kate, come see.”
The armadillo looked like a little pig with a hard shell on its back. It had a narrow head with small ears and a long tail covered with a leathery shell. Kate snapped some pictures of it.
“Most people think you only find armadillos in Texas,” Uncle Oliver said. “But Florida has them, too. I guess they like our weather. This one is recovering from an injury.”
“Hey, look!” Kate said. She pointed at the sign in front of the pen. “Armadillo means little armored one in Spanish.” Kate was interested in anything that had to do with Spanish. Her father had learned to speak Spanish because he was a baseball scout and he worked with lots of players who spoke the language. Kate’s father often wrote her emails in Spanish so Kate could learn, too.
“All that armor looks a little uncomfortable to me,” Mike said. “I’d rather just wear a T-shirt!”
Uncle Oliver laughed. “I don’t think I’d like a hard shell on me, either, especially since it gets so hot around here,” he said. He waved his hand. “Come on. I’ve got something else to show you.”
Uncle Oliver led them down a path between tall coconut palm trees. High overhead the long leaves rustled in the evening breeze. The path ended near a small, brightly colored building. Uncle Oliver gave a sharp whistle. A moment later, the door opened and Ned stepped out.
But he wasn’t alone. He had two large parrots on his shoulders. One was mostly green with bright blue feathers. The other had red head feathers and green and blue tail feathers.
Ned placed the green-and-blue parrot on Mike’s shoulder. After standing for a moment, the parrot started strutting back and forth.
“Hey, that tickles!” Mike said as he tried to hold still. But the parrot ignored Mike’s wiggles. It seemed very happy on his shoulder.
“You look like a pirate!” Kate said. “Ahoy, matey!”
“Let’s make you look like a pirate, too,” Ned said to Kate. He had her stick her right arm out in front of her. He placed the red-and-green parrot on her wrist.
“Oh wow!” Kate said. “This is great! I thought its claws would hurt, but I can barely feel them!”
Mrs. Hopkins took pictures of Kate and Mike with their birds. Then the red-and-green one hopped onto Mike’s wrist. Mike put the green-and-blue one on Kate’s shoulder. Finally, Ned took the birds back to their roost.
“I’ve saved the best for last,” Uncle Oliver said. “Let me show you where we raise my baseball fish. You can also get a peek at my favorite one of all. He has the brightest red markings yet. I’ve named him Marlin, after the team.”
Uncle Oliver led them through the clearing to a large black-and-white building. Once they were through the doorway, Uncle Oliver flipped on the lights. The room was filled with fish tanks.
Uncle Oliver gasped.
“What’s the matter?” Mrs. Hopkins asked. “Is anything wrong?”
Uncle Oliver reached out his hand to the wall to steady himself.
“Yes,” he said. “Marlin is missing!”
The next day, Kate and Mike quietly opened the door to the baseball fish building.
“You sure it’s okay to be here?” Mike whispered to Kate.
“Yes.” Kate nodded. “Uncle Oliver said we could look around.”
“But I’m not sure he wanted us going inside the buildings!” Mike said. He bounced his green tennis ball on the concrete floor.
It was Friday morning. Mrs. Hopkins was back at the house, working on her story. Uncle Oliver had told Mike and Kate they could explore the nature center grounds if they wanted. Later that morning they were heading to the Marlins’ ballpark for a game.
“Come on,” Kate said. “We only have an hour until Panther Park opens. We need to look for clues to help Uncle Oliver. I’ll start near the windows. You check by the fish tanks. You know what we’re looking for?”
“Anything fishy,” Mike said with a smile. “Get it? Fish tanks. Fishy …”
Kate rolled her eyes at Mike’s bad pun. “Look for anything strange,” she said. She bent down to look at the window frame. “If Uncle Oliver won’t go to the police, we’re his only chance.”
After they had discovered the night before that Uncle Oliver’s favorite fish, Marlin, was missing, their uncle had told them a secret. It wasn’t the first time someone had stolen his fish. Two baseball fish had been taken the week before. But Uncle Oliver didn’t want to call the police. He was worried the Marlins might fire him from taking care of their fish tanks and hire someone else. And without the Marlins job, Uncle Oliver wouldn’t hav
e enough money to keep Panther Park open.
“First we have an endangered turtle. Now we have missing fish,” Kate said while she was searching. “Those are two strange things. I think they’re connected.”
“I don’t know, Kate,” Mike said. “It may only be missing fish. Nobody else has seen your phantom turtle!”
“You’ll see it later this morning when we check the tanks with Uncle Oliver,” Kate said. “It’ll prove I was right.”
Mike and Kate searched the fish tank room for twenty minutes but didn’t find any clues. Kate was about to give up when Mike stopped her. He pointed to a small crack between the fish tanks and a heavy desk.
“I think I see something in there,” he said. “Help me move the desk.”
Mike and Kate pulled the desk a few inches to the right. As they did, something dropped to the ground.
Mike picked up an inch-long object. It was bright blue and shaped like a shark. It even had a little blue fin on its back.
“Know what this is?” he asked.
“I sure do,” Kate said. “But just because you eat them all the time! It’s a gummy shark.”
“Exactly,” Mike said. “I think it’s a clue. Maybe the thief dropped it while he was taking the baseball fish.”
“Or she,” Kate said. “We don’t know if the thief is a man or woman. Or if some kid stuck it in here.”
“Nah, I know it’s a clue,” Mike said.
Just then, Mike heard a noise outside the building. Mike and Kate glanced at each other. But before they could move, Ned stepped through the doorway.
“What are you two doing here?” Ned asked. “The nature center isn’t open yet!”
“Uncle Oliver said we could look around. We’re searching for clues to the missing fish. Look what we found!” Mike said. He held out the gummy shark. “We think the thief dropped this by mistake!”
Ned’s eyebrows went up. He looked at the candy for a moment. Then he smiled. “I’m not sure that will help you much,” he said. “Kids drop all sorts of stuff. Especially candy, which they’re not supposed to eat in here.”
“Shoot,” Mike said. “I thought it was a real clue.”
“Good try, though,” Ned said. “I’ll let you know if I find anything while I’m working.”
“Thanks!” Kate said. “We’ll see you later.”
They weren’t leaving for the game for another hour, so Mike and Kate went back to Uncle Oliver’s house. Kate plopped down at Uncle Oliver’s desk. She started to poke through one of his many books about animals. Mike sat on the couch. He turned on a sports show on TV.
Kate was just closing the book when she gave a low whistle. “Ah, Mike?” she said. “Can you come here for a minute?”
Mike popped up from the couch. “Why?” he asked. “Did you find a rare turtle hiding in the desk?”
Kate shook her head. She handed him a letter. “This was under the book I was reading,” she said. “I wasn’t trying to snoop, but the word insurance caught my eye.”
Mike read the letter. It was from an insurance company. It showed that Uncle Oliver had bought a big insurance policy for his baseball fish.
“I hope that doesn’t mean what I think it means,” Mike said.
“What?” Kate asked. “That Uncle Oliver is smart because he insures his business?”
“There may be more to it,” Mike said. He pointed at the bottom line. “Those fish are insured for a lot of money.”
“So?” Kate replied. “He’s just being careful.”
“He’s being careful not to tell the police!” Mike said. “The more fish that are missing, the more money he’ll make.”
“What do you mean?” Kate asked.
Mike leaned over. “I hate to say something bad about Uncle Oliver,” he whispered. “But what if he’s stealing the fish himself for the insurance money?”
“That’s crazy!” Kate said.
Mike started pacing back and forth. “I know. But think about it,” he said. He ticked off the reasons on his fingers. “Uncle Oliver took out a lot of insurance on the fish. He doesn’t want to call the police. He could be in danger of losing his job with the Marlins. And Panther Park is having money troubles. It all fits together.”
Kate sank into the chair. She shook her head. “I don’t know,” she said. “I really don’t think Uncle Oliver is stealing his own fish.”
“Well, we have to consider everything,” Mike said. “Someone is taking the fish!”
“Okay.” Kate sighed. “Let’s keep an eye on him at the game.”
When they arrived at the stadium later that morning, Mrs. Hopkins headed to the pressroom. Uncle Oliver led Mike and Kate to the fish tanks behind home plate to check for Kate’s turtle. Kate watched their uncle carefully for any clues.
The stadium was empty except for workers preparing for the day’s game. Batting practice wouldn’t start for another hour.
“You said you saw the turtle in that tank, right?” Uncle Oliver pointed to the tank along the first-base line. Kate nodded. The three of them scanned the water from top to bottom and left to right. They saw lots of fish and bright coral. But no turtle.
Kate poked the glass in the middle of the tank. “It was right there,” she said. “I definitely saw a small green sea turtle right there. It was a little bigger than my hand. Where’d it go?”
Uncle Oliver unlocked the long green top of the tank with a key. He scanned the water from the top. Still, they saw nothing except fish.
Uncle Oliver shut and locked the top. “I know you think you saw a turtle, Kate,” he said. “But there’s no turtle in there now.”
Kate scuffed at the red clay of the warning track with her sneaker. She hated to be wrong.
Just then, a voice called to Uncle Oliver from the stands. A man wearing a Marlins warm-up jacket and a tall man wearing a bright green shirt came down to the infield.
Uncle Oliver shook hands with the man in the Marlins jacket. “Mike and Kate, this is Buck Thompson, the Marlins team president,” he said.
Mike and Kate said hello to Buck. Then the man in the green shirt stepped forward. He slapped Uncle Oliver playfully on the back. “Look what the cat dragged in,” he said. He gave Uncle Oliver’s shoulder a tight squeeze.
Uncle Oliver winced. He cleared his throat.
“And this is Don Dixon,” Uncle Oliver said. “He runs Critters and Creatures, the biggest fish and pet store in town. I think he’s a bit jealous that the Marlins hired me to raise their fish!”
Don Dixon snorted. “Oh, don’t get ahead of yourself,” he said. “They hired you, but they can also fire you! After all, Critters and Creatures is the best fish and pet store in Miami.”
“And what does that mean?” Uncle Oliver asked.
Don Dixon waved his hand. “Well, we don’t have a nature center to run, so we can focus on the fish,” he said. “Anyway, I’m just here for the game. Let’s not talk shop.”
“Good idea,” Uncle Oliver said. “I have to leave for a business meeting soon anyway.” He said goodbye to Buck and Don Dixon. Then he nodded at Mike and Kate. “I’ll see you two back at the house later. Ned will be by soon to check the tanks before the game. You can help if you want.”
As Uncle Oliver headed for the exit, Mike and Kate slipped into a couple of seats right behind the fish tanks to wait for Ned.
Kate stared at Don Dixon. “I don’t trust him,” she said. “Did you hear how he talked to Uncle Oliver?”
Mike nodded. “He was kinda mean.”
Don Dixon and the Marlins president continued their talk near home plate. After a few minutes, Mike nudged Kate. He pointed at Don Dixon. “Look, they’re leaving together,” he said. “Let’s follow them!”
“What about waiting for Ned?” Kate asked.
“We already checked the tanks with Uncle Oliver,” Mike said. “We’re not going to miss anything with Ned. I think we need to figure out what Don Dixon is up to!”
Don Dixon and the Marlins president left the inf
ield and walked up the aisle. As they did, Mike and Kate followed. They pretended to play catch with Mike’s tennis ball. When the two men reached the top of the steps, they leaned against a railing overlooking the ballpark.
Mike motioned for Kate to throw the ball high. The ball sailed over Mike’s head and bounced into the seats just below the two men. Mike scrambled over the seats to get the ball.
“Hey, Kate,” he called. “I can’t find the ball. Help me out.”
When Kate came over, Mike showed her the tennis ball in his hand. But he put his finger to his lips. Above them, behind the railing, Don Dixon and the Marlins president were talking. Mike and Kate pretended to keep looking for the ball.
The first thing they heard was Don Dixon laughing.
“I know that Oliver’s nature center is having some trouble lately,” Don Dixon said. “Who knows how much longer he’ll be able to keep it going.”
Kate’s fingers curled into a fist.
“Well, you know we like Oliver a lot. But let me give you a key to the tanks,” Buck said. “It might come in handy for what we talked about.”
“Thanks,” Don Dixon said. “Critters and Creatures would be happy to take over if Oliver runs into problems!”
“See? It’s not Uncle Oliver! It’s Don Dixon!” Kate said as they found their seats a few minutes later. “He must be trying to cause problems for Uncle Oliver so he can get the Marlins’ business! He’s the one stealing the fish!”
They were sitting about ten rows behind home plate. A group of schoolchildren in bright purple T-shirts was next to them. All around them, the stadium was filling up.
“Maybe,” Mike said. “But Uncle Oliver is still a suspect because of that insurance.”
“Well, I think it’s Don Dixon,” Kate said. “We can look for clues at his pet shop. My mom can take us tomorrow.”
When the game started, Guppy Gomez ran out to the mound. The other Marlins players jogged out to their positions. The fans cheered. The first batter for the Arizona Diamondbacks took practice swings in the warm-up area.
The Missing Marlin Page 2
