The Secret of the Skeleton Key (6 page)

W
hen the radio alarm clicked on at 0530 military time—5:30 a.m.—Cody jolted awake. Pulling off her puffy comforter that had completely covered her head, she gasped for air. Seconds earlier, she'd had the distinct sensation of being smothered by a large woman in a flowery dress.

Lying back down, Cody glanced at the radio alarm. She slapped the Snooze button, shutting off Acne's latest hit, “Everything Stinks.” Five thirty? It felt like the middle of the night. In fact, it was about the same time Skeleton Man's house had caught on fire the previous morning.

She glanced at her ceiling. The glow-in-the-dark stick-on stars shone brightly. It was way too early for school. In fact, it was too early for anything.

Just before she drifted off again, her eyes sprang open again. She'd almost forgotten! The alarm hadn't been set for school. It was for the clandestine meeting of the Code Busters. They were supposed to meet in front of Skeleton Man's charred house at 0600 sharp.

She had less than thirty minutes to get ready.

Moving into hyper-speed, Cody ran through her usual morning rituals. By five minutes to six, she was dressed in a fresh pair of jeans, yellow tank top, flip-flops, and red hoodie, with her hair in a ponytail. Although there was a chill in the early morning air, the day would turn warm by noon—perfect for her cool-weather fashion statement.

Holding a cinnamon bagel in one hand and her backpack in the other, Cody slipped out the door, closing it quietly. She'd left a note on the kitchen table to let her mother know she'd be meeting M.E. early so they could go over their spelling words before the test. It was partly true.

The street was eerily deserted as Cody crossed over to Skeleton Man's house; the area was lit only by the nearby streetlight. Moments later Quinn appeared, wearing a relativity is all relative T-shirt and khaki slacks, followed by Luke, who wore his usual skater shorts, oversize shirt, and Vans. M.E. arrived minutes later, in red tights, a tie-dyed skirt, and Ed Hardy tattoo-style T-shirt.

“Yo,” Luke said, yawning. M.E. groaned loudly.

“Quiet!”
Quinn hissed. He glanced up and down the street. “We don't want to get caught before we even start.”

Cody turned to the gutted house. Even in the dawning morning light the place looked creepy. Outside, the wood was scorched black. Quinn walked into the backyard and waved the others to follow him. Once inside the yard, they ducked behind the fence.

“We'll go around the back where no one can see us,” Quinn whispered.

As she passed by the front of the house, Cody caught sight of the yellow caution tape and a sign that read, no trespassing! keep out! danger! Uh-oh. They were probably doing something illegal. If her mother found out…

“No one will see us here,” Quinn said, as the group collected at the back door of the house. The yard was filled with metal sculptures that blocked the view of most neighbors.

“I'm not so sure this is a good idea,” M.E. said, gawking at the soot that had collected on her shoes. Cody noticed her own toes were black. Wearing flip-flops had not been the best idea.

“We'll just take a quick look around and see if there's anything like a safe or a will or gold,” Quinn said. “Then we're outta here, okay?”

The others nodded. Quinn tried the doorknob. It came off in his hand. Luke stepped up, grasped the hole where the knob had once been, and yanked the door open. After brushing the soot off his hands, he stepped inside. Quinn, Cody, and M.E. followed him into the shell of the old man's home.

Cody wrinkled her nose at the lingering smell of charred wood. She scanned the interior, her eyes wide with a mixture of horror and wonder. The interior walls appeared rippled and shiny, like a frozen waterfall. Everything was shiny black or shades of gray. Some of the furniture had melted, while other pieces were just charred remains, like bony skeletons. She stepped carefully to avoid broken glass, while trying to identify blackened objects that looked surreal.

“Let's split up,” Quinn said, checking his military watch. “We'll make better time. M.E., you check the bathroom; Luke, the living room; and Cody, the kitchen. I'll search the back room.”

Cody tiptoed into the kitchen, hoping the floor didn't cave in. She marveled at the spectacle in shimmering black. Although the walls, floor, and ceiling remained, they were scorched and ripply. The appliances had melted and blistered and were covered with a shiny black skin. The room looked as if all the color had been sucked out.

After a few minutes of searching the gutted cupboards, Cody found one cupboard door intact. She pulled it open and spotted a bunch of medicine bottles, unharmed by the fire.
Wow
, Cody thought as she glanced at the unfamiliar labels.
Skeleton Man must have been sick.
She tried to pronounce the various medications: Citi-something, Tenecte-something, Cere-something.

I wonder what was wrong with him
, she thought.

After making certain there was nothing left to explore in the kitchen, Cody returned to the front hallway and met up with the others. Quinn had a black smudge on his cheek and black fingertips. Luke had handprints on his shorts from wiping his sooty hands. M.E.'s black-and-white athletic shoes were now just black. Cody would have to scrub her feet
and
her face and hands before going to school. “Find anything?” Quinn asked, wiping his forehead and leaving a black streak.

Cody shook her head.

“Nothing,” Luke said.

“Me, neither,” added M.E. “I think we better go.” She glanced around nervously. “This whole place could fall down on us any minute. I saw it in a movie once.” She started for the back door.

“Wait!” Quinn grabbed her arm with a filthy hand.

“No, Quinn,” Cody said. “M.E.'s right. It's too dangerous in here. And there's no sign of anything like money or treasure. We checked everywhere but upstairs, and we can't get up there because the staircase is too damaged for—”

Cody stopped. Catching a movement in the corner of her eye, she turned to see Luke waving at them from the hallway.

“Hey, look at this.” Luke was pointing at something on the wall.

It appeared to be a framed certificate, scorched but not completely charred, hanging by a thin wire. Although the glass had shattered from the intense heat, the frame was intact and dangled crookedly on the wall. The certificate inside was severely singed, with only a few readable letters remaining in one undamaged corner.

Quinn read the letters aloud.

“Looks like…C
I
A… ”

“Dude,” Luke said, blinking rapidly. “You think Skeleton Man was a
spy
for the Central Intelligence Agency?”

Quinn peered at the letters. “Maybe. He was always staring out his window and watching us.”

Cody pointed to an imprint on the certificate. “There's some kind of official emblem.”

Quinn reached out to touch the raised design, but as soon as his fingers made contact, the paper crumbled into bits and drifted to the ground like black snow.

“Dang,” Quinn said, frowning.

Cody glanced back at the frame. “Hey…there's something hidden behind the paper. It looks like…a piece of metal.”

She reached up and tried to pull the frame from the wall, but it fell apart in her hands, the pieces dropping to the floor. Bending over, she retrieved the metal object, which had come loose. It was about the size of an Altoids container. She blew off the black dust, then ran her fingers over the smooth top. She flipped it over and noticed the underside felt rougher than the top. Holding it up in the dim light, she tried to catch a reflection. That's when she noticed the smudges she'd left on the bottom of the tin.

She caught her breath.

“There's something written on this!” Her dirty hand had left particles of ash inside the indentations. Quickly, she swiped her other hand over the surface, cleaning off the residue, while at the same time depositing ash in the tiny crevices.

The darkened words jumped out at her.

WILL
you find
THE
money?

No, it's not
INSIDE
.

LIES
are in the
ASH
es.

Not a place to hide.

Cody felt a wave of excitement. This was definitely a message of some kind. From Skeleton Man?

“Okay, that's just weird,” M.E. said aloud.

Quinn's eyes grew wide. “I
told
you there was something valuable hidden in this house. This
proves
it!”

M.E. frowned. “Quinn, this doesn't prove anything. It doesn't even make sense. If it's supposed to be a poem, it doesn't rhyme. And even if we could figure out what it means, it doesn't prove that there's money or a will hidden around here.”

“I think Quinn's right,” Cody said. “It's some kind of code or puzzle.”

“And we have to solve it,” Quinn added. “I mean, if Skeleton Man worked for the CIA, he probably used a lot of codes. He's not going to just
tell
people where to look for his treasure.”

“It doesn't look like any puzzle we've ever solved before,” Luke said, leaning over Cody's shoulder to see the object better. “And if he really worked for the CIA, this isn't going to be an easy code to crack.”

Cody, who'd been studying the puzzle while the others argued, drew in her breath.

“What's wrong, Cody?” M.E. asked. “You look

like you've seen a ghost.”

Cody pointed to the second-to-last line of the puzzle and read it aloud. “Listen. It says, ‘Lies are in the ashes.'”

“Yeah, so?” M.E. asked, scrunching up her face.

“If Skeleton Man wrote this, don't you think it's a little weird that he'd use the word
ashes
?” Cody looked at their blank faces. She picked up a handful of the feathery silt from the floor and let it sift between her fingers. “How did Skeleton Man know his house was going to burn down?”

“Unless he planned it, and set fire to it himself…,” M.E. said.

Before they had time to think about it further, Cody heard a noise coming from the living room. She grabbed M.E.'s arm and pointed to the source of the sound.

“I heard something,” she mouthed, barely breathing. “It came from behind the couch!”

J
ust as Cody was about to make a dash for the door, a streak of black lightning shot past her from behind the couch.

“Eeeek!” M.E. screamed, ducking behind Luke. “What was that?”

The black ghost seemed to have vanished into thin air.

Quinn blew out a deep breath of air. “It was just one of Skeleton Man's cats
.
The SPCA was here last night, picking them up. I guess they missed that one.”

M.E. came out from behind Luke and looked in the direction of the black cat's path. “Poor thing! Here, kitty, kitty,” she called. “Where did it go?”

Cody pointed toward a broken window. “I thought I saw it run through there, but I'm not sure. It was moving pretty fast.” Cody took a step toward the window, then stopped abruptly.

“Shhhh!” she hushed the others. “Someone's coming! Quick! Hide! Back in there!” She pointed to the living room.

“Hope it's not the cops,” Luke whispered as he darted into the living room. The others followed, and all four ducked behind the charred couch where the cat had been hiding only moments ago.

Seconds later they heard a key in the front door lock.

Then footsteps in the hall.

Cody and the others crouched down, not breathing, ears alert. If it were the police, the kids would surely be discovered, Cody thought. And then what would happen to them? Would they be hauled off to juvenile hall for breaking and entering or illegal trespass or whatever they called it on
CSI
? Her cop mother and lawyer dad would just love that. She'd be grounded until college.

The footsteps grew louder as the intruders entered the living room. Cody tried not to breathe, but her lungs were tightening. She hoped the cramps in her legs would ease before she collapsed and gave away their hiding place.

Something small and warm touched the side of Cody's leg. She startled.

A rat?

Or worse?

What could be worse than a rat?

Whatever it was had come from under the couch. She shivered, suddenly feeling chilled. What if the rumors were true? What if the house really was…haunted? She bit into her lip to hold back a scream from escaping.

She felt the movement again. There was something definitely touching her leg.

Something alive.

And furry.

She bent down, straining to see under the couch in the semidarkness, hoping her joints wouldn't crack. A black paw reached out and stroked her leg.

The black ghost cat! It had returned to the couch.

Cody reached underneath and swept the animal into her arms. To keep it quiet, she began petting it, then realized the cat's black color was coming off in her hands.

This was no black cat! It was Punkin! Covered in soot.

She kept a tight hold on him, stroking him behind the ears to keep him from darting out and attracting the attention of the intruders.

The cat began to purr.

Loudly.

The footsteps in the living room came to an abrupt halt.

Silence.

Then, a man's squeaky voice: “What was that?”

“I don't know,” came a woman's booming voice. “Sounded like it came from over there.”

Cody couldn't see where the woman pointed, but she felt dots of sweat break out on her forehead. She tightened her grip on Punkin.

Bad move. The cat arched its back, gave a loud caterwaul, and leaped from Cody's arms into the open.

Someone screamed.

Cody froze. They were sure to be discovered now.

Expecting footsteps to head her way any second, Cody signaled to the others in sign language to be ready to run. She figured it was their only hope. She began counting down, holding up one finger, then two…Just as she was about to raise the third finger, one of the intruders spoke again.

“Jeepers, Jezebel! Do you have to scream like that?” the male voice croaked. “You nearly busted my eardrums…and I'm already half deaf from all your yapping. It was just one of Junior's stupid cats.”

“Well, it nearly scared the pee out of me, Jasper!” the woman named Jezebel cried. “I almost wet my pants.”

Cody slowly peeked out from behind the couch to get a quick look at the two people in the growing light. As she suspected, it was the couple she and Quinn had spotted on Skeleton Man's porch the other night.

The man called Jasper was shorter and thinner than the woman. He wore a rumpled, mismatched suit that looked like it came from the thrift shop, and scuffed dad-type shoes. His sparse comb-over hair looked pasted to his mostly bald head.

Jezebel was twice his size, with big frizzy hair, a big flowery dress, sagging knee-highs, and heel-less slippers. She'd overdone the makeup and looked like a clown with too much red lipstick, pink blush, and purple eye shadow.

Cody ducked back down out of sight.

“It's
them
!” she mouthed to the others.

“You're always peeing your pants, Jez,” the man mumbled. “If you'd quit screaming all the time, maybe that wouldn't happen so much.”

“Shut up, Jasper, you old fart. I wet my pants 'cause that's what old ladies do. At least I don't stink up the place like you.” Cody heard her sniff the air. “What's that rancid smell, anyway? Your breakfast?”

Jasper let a loud one rip.

Cody nearly wet her own pants trying to stifle a laugh. Luke held his nose, while Quinn covered his mouth to keep himself from laughing out loud.

M.E. buried her face in her hands.

“That's the smell of money, Jezebel,” Jasper said, laugh-snorting. “Junior's money. And we better get to finding it before the cops come and clear us outta here. This place is probably condemned, you know. It could come falling down on us any second.”

Cody heard something land on the floor behind her and jumped. A seared picture had fallen down from its spot on the scorched wall. She hoped the two intruders didn't decide to investigate it.

“What was that?” Jasper asked.

Jezebel sighed. “Oh, don't be such a scaredy-cat, Jasper. It was just a falling picture frame. Now quit farting around. Remember, if we don't find that money, we won't be able to help your dear ailing cousin with his health care and widdle puddy tats.”

Hmmm,
Cody thought. They might be weird, but maybe they really cared about Skeleton Man, and that's why they were looking for the money. Maybe she and the Code Busters Club members could help them find it.

Cody was about to step out from her hiding place to offer assistance when she heard a pair of hideous cackles.

They were laughing!

She'd almost believed those two were here to help.

“Of course, if something should happen to my dear cousin, I guess we'd have to use some of the money for his funeral,” Jasper said, still giggling.

“Yeah, twenty bucks ought to buy him a nice pine box, don't you think?” asked Jezebel. “Maybe we could bury him right out there in his own yard with all his ugly sculptures. We'd save a bundle that way.”

“And we could use the rest of the dough for our own health care, just like you said, Jez,” Jasper continued. “There's nothing like a cruise to Mexico, a new Cadillac, and a condo in Maui to improve your health!”

Cody couldn't believe her ears. These so-called relatives were just wolves in tacky clothing!

More snorts and cackles accompanied footsteps as Jasper and Jezebel shuffled out of the living room and into another part of the house.

Cody turned to the others and finger-spelled a word:
.

Code Buster's Key and Solution found on pp. 202, 206.

The four club kids waited, not moving, behind the couch, as they listened to the footsteps returning to the hallway. Cody wondered what the “cousins” were doing.

“Find anything?” Jezebel growled. Cody heard the woman brush off her hands.

“Nothing!” Jasper snapped.

“Well, it's gotta be here somewhere,” Jezebel said. “I'll bet that old ape-faced cousin of yours hid it and then made a puzzle out of it. He was always doing things like that—making up mysteries and such, before he got woo-woo in the head. He probably knew we'd come after it when he was gone.”

“Yeah,” Jasper said. “And if he wasn't right in the head when he hid it, we might never figure it out.”

“Well, we ain't going to find anything standing around here,” Jezebel said. “We gotta tear this place apart. But we'll need a few tools from the hardware store first, like a saw and a hammer. Come on. Let's get out of here before the cops find us. I don't want to answer a bunch of stupid questions. We'll come back later when we've got our supplies.”

Cody and the others listened as the couple headed out the door. They waited a few minutes until the coast was clear, then Quinn peeked out over the top of the couch.

“They're gone,” he whispered. His gelled, spiked hair had gone flat from all the nervous head rubbing he'd done.

Luke stood up and checked his watch. “Great! We're going to be late! We'll have to run all the way to school or we'll get detention. My
grand-mère
will have my hide.”

“What about Punkin?” Cody asked, glancing around. The ghost cat seemed to have disappeared again. “We can't just leave him here alone. He'll starve to death.”

“He'll be okay until this afternoon,” Quinn said. “We can come back after school and look for him if he doesn't turn up.”

“Dude, what about the money or the will or whatever?” Luke said. “We've got to find it before those two creeps come back and steal it.”

“Wouldn't it be great if we actually found some kind of treasure?” Cody asked. “We could use it to help Skeleton Man's—I mean, Mr. Skelton's—cats.” Her mother didn't like it when she used the nickname for the old, eccentric man. And now that he was in the hospital, Cody didn't feel good about it, either.

M.E. tapped her temple. “Sure sounds as if he was mental. Maybe that's why he was a hermit.”

“We can't let those two get the money just to go on a cruise, that's for sure,” Quinn added. “Now let's get out of here. We'll make a plan after school.”

Cody led the way out the back door, bending down as she hurried around the side of the house. She prayed the neighbors wouldn't spot them. If she was late for school again this year, she'd get a Saturday detention. Saturdays were holy days to Cody—her one day to be with her father, who took her to a movie or the university museum or the Oakland Zoo. She couldn't let detention interfere with that.

“Hurry,” she said, glancing back at the others as she turned the corner. “We've only got five—”

“Watch out!” Quinn yelled.

Too late.

As Cody rounded the corner, she ran smack into what looked like a flower-covered refrigerator. The blow knocked her and the giant bouquet to the ground.

For a few seconds, Cody couldn't breathe. She'd had the air knocked out of her before, and it was a scary feeling—as if she'd never be able to breathe again. But seconds later she caught her breath. She stood up and brushed herself off. A smear of red covered her left arm.

Blood?

She swiped it with a finger. Lipstick.

“Jeez Louise, would you watch it!” The giant bunch of flowers known as Jezebel wheezed as she tried to catch her own breath. She lay flat on her back on the ground, her floral print dress up around her waist, displaying giant granny underpants with little hearts on them.

Luke groaned at the sight and turned away. “Duuude!”

“I'm…s-so sorry!” Cody stammered. She reached down and offered a hand to the woman.

Jezebel swatted Cody's hand away. “You kids get on out of here!” she screeched. She pushed herself onto her elbows, then sat up and attempted to pull down her skirt. “This here is private property. You kids have no business being here!”

Jasper, who'd been watching the scene from behind one of Skeleton Man's metal sculptures, stepped forward timidly. “Yeah. You kids are, uh, trespassing. I'm going to, uh, call the cops.”