The Sherlock Society by James Ponti

Author:James Ponti
Language: eng
Format: epub
Publisher: Aladdin
Published: 2024-09-03T00:00:00+00:00

18 The Discovery

WE FOLLOWED THE PATH FOR Nearly a Mile across flat, grassy land without a building in sight. “This makes no sense,” Zoe said. “It’s obvious that people have driven out here because there are tire tracks. But where were they going?”

“Maybe it’s a shortcut of some sort,” I offered.

“Feels more like a long cut,” she said. “Like we’re going out of the way to somewhere.”

A few minutes later we reached a wooded area, and the grass gave way to dirt and muck. The tire tracks continued, but Grandpa stopped the car.

“I think this is as far as Roberta can go,” he said. “I’m guessing those were made by a truck with four-wheel drive. We do not want to get stuck in there.”

“Definitely not,” said Lina.

We got out and looked into the woods.

“Want me to fire up the drone?” Yadi asked. “I’ve got one more battery with a full charge.”

“Why don’t we take a look first?” Zoe suggested. “You can see a clearing right there through the woods. Maybe it’s a slough.”

The ground was squishy beneath our feet as we trudged through the muck, and the tree canopy shaded us from the sun. The woods were alive with the sounds of birds and frogs.

“Tell me that’s not the sound of a Burmese python looking for dinner,” Lina said.

“Don’t worry, it’s not,” I reassured her.

“He can identify animal sounds from his extensive Cub Scout experience,” Zoe said. “How long were the two of you members?”

“Three weeks,” I answered.

“The longest three weeks of my life,” Yadi added. “If there was a badge for getting picked on, we would’ve earned it.”

From our research we knew that the Lost City occupied a three-acre island surrounded by water shallow enough that Capone was able to haul his liquor out by horse and wagon. As we continued through the woods, we saw some water ahead and picked up the pace ever so slightly.

“That’s definitely a slough up ahead,” Grandpa said.

“And it definitely reeks,” Zoe commented as we caught a whiff of some foul stench. “If there is such a thing as a skunk ape, we may have just found it.”

Beyond the tree line, there was about twelve feet of muck and then an expanse of water and sawgrass. Twenty feet across the water was an island covered in trees and dense undergrowth.

“Would you say that island’s three acres?” I asked.

“I’d say that’s a good estimate,” Grandpa answered.

Yadi marveled at it. “I don’t want to get my hopes up too much, but this looks promising.”

“Very promising,” I replied.

“We need to verify before we get our hopes up,” Zoe said.

“How?” asked Yadi. “Is there going to be a sign saying ‘Welcome to Al Capone’s Secret Hideout’?”

“There should be the remnants of some old rotted shacks,” Zoe answered. “They were discovered during one of the archeological digs and left as they were.”

“That’s great,” Lina said. “But how do we get onto the island to check? Roberta can’t make it through the muck, and we don’t have a horse and wagon handy.

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