“You’re going to see some beautiful coral out at the reef,” Melanie said, as they boarded a glass-bottom boat later that morning. They had driven into Key West after breakfast and were taking their seats on the upper deck of a large white boat called the Fury.
“And fish, too?” Benny asked. He had already learned to identify several kinds of tropical fish, and wanted to see more.
Melanie laughed. “Over six hundred varieties. That’s enough to satisfy any fish lover!”
As soon as the boat got under way, Melanie asked the children what they knew about the coral reef.
“I know it’s over a hundred miles long,” Violet said. “And it runs just offshore of the Florida Keys.”
“That’s right,” Melanie agreed.
“Why don’t we have any coral reefs up near Greenfield?” Benny asked.
“Because the reef is made up of coral polyps, and they need warm water to survive. They die if you put them in water that’s cooler than seventy degrees.”
An hour later, they dropped anchor over a large coral bed, and everyone went below to the observation deck. “Wow, now I see why they call this a glass-bottom boat!” Benny dashed along the narrow walkways dividing glass panels that revealed the ocean floor.
“The fish are so close we could touch them,” Violet said, watching as a midnight-blue parrot fish glided by.
“I think this fish had too much to eat,” Benny said, dropping to his knees to get a better look. He pointed to a large tan fish that looked almost round.
“That’s a Southern puffer,” Melanie said. “He’s not really fat, Benny. He sucks in a bellyfull of water and makes himself look three times as big. That way, he scares off other fish who might bother him.”
Jessie admired some beautiful elkhorn, staghorn, and branch coral, and Melanie reminded her that they grow only two or three inches a year.
“It’s seems funny that coral is actually alive,” Violet pointed out.
“But it’s true. The coral reef is constantly growing new colonies of polyps on top of the skeletons of older ones. Coral can live for centuries. The reef is thousands of years old.”
As Melanie talked about the reef, Henry’s mind went back to the coral theft on the island. Would the Coast Guard be able to catch the thief? he wondered. He went over the list of suspects that they had come up with, and felt confused. That was the whole problem, he decided. There were plenty of suspects, but no real clues. And worst of all, no proof!
After lunch, the group headed to the Mel Fisher Museum to see the riches of the famous Spanish ship, the Atocha. Benny was thrilled to touch a genuine gold bar, and Jessie admired a beautiful belt studded with rubies and diamonds. “Do you know dolphins were trained to bring up some of the emeralds from the wreck?” a museum guide asked.
“Emeralds? Why would dolphins be interested in emeralds?” Violet asked, puzzled.
“Because we rewarded them with their favorite treat — mackerel!”
That evening, at bedtime, Benny thought about his own treasure — the bent coin he had found at the dock. He had seen a picture of Mel Fisher wearing a gold coin on a chain around his neck. Benny wanted to do the same thing. “Henry, can you drill a hole in my coin tomorrow?”
“Sure, Benny, I’ll be glad to.” Henry tucked the covers around his little brother, and within minutes, both boys fell fast asleep.
It was nearly midnight when Benny awoke with a start. He heard a faint rustling noise, but he couldn’t pinpoint exactly where it was coming from. And he was too scared to open his eyes.
“Henry, is that you?” he whispered. There was no answer. He strained to listen, as goosebumps rose on his arms. Should he scramble out of bed and wake his brother? He decided to wait a couple of more minutes.
He was completely awake now, and he knew he wasn’t imagining what he heard.
Something was brushing against the lampshade on his night table. Something was jiggling the brush and comb on his dresser top. Something was bumping into his bed.
“Henry?” Benny said softly, his voice trembling.
Just then he heard the door creak open. Benny lay very still, listening. But the cabin was quiet now.
Benny couldn’t stay still another minute. He jumped out of bed and raced across the room to flip on the light switch.
“What’s going on?” Henry sat straight up in bed, rubbing his eyes.
The cabin was flooded with light, and Benny pointed to the door. It was open!
“Someone was in here,” Benny stammered. “Someone was here, in our cabin.”
“Are you sure?”
“I’m positive.” He jumped back in bed and pulled his knees up to his chest. Even though the danger was over, he still felt scared, and his teeth were chattering.
Henry crossed the floor and checked the solid pine door. “It could have been the wind,” he said hesitantly. “But this is a pretty heavy door.”
“It’s not just the door!” Benny protested. “Something was moving all around the room. I heard it!” He looked around the room nervously. “Maybe it was a . . . ghost.” He lowered his voice to a whisper. “Do you think that’s possible?”
Henry peered around the open door and laughed. “Here’s your ghost.” Bingo darted into the room, barking happily.
“Bingo?” Benny said doubtfully. “Do you think that’s what I heard?”
“It must have been.” Henry reached down to pat the furry collie who immediately jumped onto the bed. “Maybe he was lonely and just wanted some company.”
Benny wasn’t convinced. “But how did he get the door open? And what was he doing under my bed?”
Henry watched as Benny scrambled under the bed and dragged out the cookie tin.
The top was half off, but his coin was safe. “Why would he be sniffing around a metal box?”
Henry shrugged. “I don’t know. Maybe he remembered when it held cookies.” Bingo jumped down and began nosing the tin. “See? It probably still smells like food to him.”
“If you say so,” Benny said, climbing back into bed.
Henry ushered Bingo out of the cabin and closed the door firmly behind him. “Let’s get some sleep,” he said, returning to his own bed.
“Okay, but I’m going to leave my light on,” Benny said in a little voice. “Just in case.”
The next morning, Henry went to the craft room after breakfast to drill a hole in Benny’s coin. “How’s that?” Henry said, holding it up. Soo Lee had given Benny a piece of jute to use as a cord, and Benny fastened the coin around his neck.
“Now I look like a real treasure hunter!” he said proudly.
Meanwhile, Jessie, Violet, and Soo Lee were sitting in the darkroom, watching as Melanie explained how to develop black-and-white photographs.
“After you put the prints in the final bath,” she said, “you carefully lift them out of the solution with tongs and hang them to dry.” She pointed to a long line that ran the length of the room. “You might want to take a look at the work that my advanced students have done. There’s some beautiful underwater photography there.”
“Oh, look at this one,” Soo Lee said, pointing to a pretty sunset scene.
“That one was done by a professional,” Melanie said. “Katherine Kelly took that photograph.”
Violet walked over to the picture and stared at it for several seconds.
“What’s the matter?” Jessie asked, noticing the serious expression on her face. “Don’t you like it?”
“Oh, yes, it’s beautiful,” Violet said. “But . . . ”
“But what?” Soo Lee interrupted.
Violet shrugged. “I don’t know. There’s something about that picture. It looks so familiar.”
“Maybe you saw it on a postcard,” Jessie teased her. “You know, sunset, water, palm trees. Everywhere you look in Key West, you see the same scene.”
Violet shook her head. “No, it’s something else. It’s more than that.” Everyone left to have lunch then, but Violet couldn’t resist taking a last look at the photograph. Why was the picture so disturbing? Where had she seen it before? She knew it was going to bother her until she remembered. She would just have to think.
Jessie came back to drag her out of the darkroom. “Hey, we’re going to be last in the cafeteria line, if we don’t get a move on. And they’re having pizza today. They might run out!”
“I’m coming,” Violet said reluctantly.
Jessie looked at the picture and shrugged. She wondered why Violet was so troubled by it. Jessie nudged her sister playfully. “Come on, Violet. You worry too much. Let’s go eat!”
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