The 39 Clues [Cahills vs. Vespers] 05 - Trust No One by Linda Sue Park Page B

his eyes and peeked through his fingers.
    “Not nudist,” he announced, and Jake could hear the relief in his voice.
    About a dozen other people were in the pools, with a handful more lounging in deck chairs on the extensive patio. Jake moved a little closer to Amy.
    “What’s the plan?” he asked, his voice low.
    He followed her gaze as she looked around. The hot tub, two big pools, the patio . . . There was a lot of ground to cover.
    She didn’t answer, so he went on, “We can start with this pool, it’s the biggest. Atticus, you and Dan take the perimeter. Amy and I will search the rest of it.”
    “Is that an order?” Amy said and crossed her arms over her chest. “Or just a suggestion?”
    “I’m only trying to help,” Jake said. “And Atticus, you don’t go anywhere on your own. One of us always has to be next to you, understand?”
    Atticus seemed about to talk back, but Jake’s expression clearly indicated zero tolerance on this. With a shrug, he cannonballed into the pool, followed immediately by Dan.
    Amy was watching Dan. Her expression seemed to soften a little; Dan already appeared free of any effects from the curare.
    She cleared her throat and turned to Jake. “We should try not to look like we’re searching,” she said.
    “Agreed.” Jake thought for a moment. “Can you swim the butterfly stroke?”
    “Yes,” she said, “not great. But why —”
    “I can’t,” he said. “So you can teach me. That’ll be our cover for going back and forth across the pool a million times.”
    “Good idea,” she said.
    Which felt almost as good as making her laugh.

    “I don’t get it,” Dan said to Atticus as they inspected the perimeter of the first pool. “If it’s a manuscript page we’re looking for, a swimming pool would be the worst place to hide it, right? If it got wet, it could be ruined forever.”
    Atticus thought for a moment. “Yeah, but maybe that’s why she hid it here. Because no one would think of looking for it in a pool.”
    “I don’t know,” Dan said, shaking his head. “Even if she wrapped it up really good, it seems like an awfully big risk.”
    Atticus scanned the whole area carefully. “Maybe you’re right,” he said slowly. “How about this:
near
the pool, but not
in
it?”
    They climbed out of the pool.
    “You start here and I’ll start over there,” Dan said, pointing toward the outer edge of the patio area. “We can meet in the middle.” He headed for the fence that bordered the patio.
    Atticus decided that searching the permanent structures first made the most sense. Surely Dr. Siffright wouldn’t have hidden the manuscript page under something like a lounge chair or patio table that could easily be moved.
    A few yards from the pool, there was a hut for towel storage. It wasn’t much more than a wooden counter beneath a palm-frond roof. Clean folded towels were stacked on one end of the counter; at the other end, a rectangular hole had been cut into the wood, with a rolling laundry bin underneath.
    Atticus walked to the hut to begin his search, then took a quick glance around. Jake and Amy were still checking out the pool. Dan was examining the wrought-iron fence. Atticus didn’t see anything suspect, but just in case . . .
    He reached for a towel and began drying himself.
    “Oh, that feels good!” he said loudly and wiped his legs and arms with exaggerated motions. As a final flourish, he draped the towel around his neck.
That should throw off anyone who might be spying,
he thought with satisfaction.
    Atticus searched the little hut thoroughly.
I have to find the folio. Dan got hurt because of me.
    He even moved the laundry bin so he could inspect the floor space underneath.
    Nothing.
    He rolled the laundry bin back into its place under the counter. As he straightened up, his glance fell on one of the bamboo poles supporting the roof of the hut. He followed it with his gaze to the palm fronds overhead.
    What if it’s hidden up