Pyro Watson and the Hidden Treasure (12 page)

The hide-out kept them busy until it was time to go for a last swim and head back into town. They'd made brooms out of branches with bunches of leaves tied to the end and swept a centre area so it was smooth. They'd climbed up a branch that let them look out over the sea and then quickly climbed down again when they discovered an ant's nest.

And not once did they see the Worries.

Pyro had been watching out but they were nowhere to be seen. He would have liked to mention his adventure with the dinghy and how they'd escaped but somehow it seemed difficult to say.

It didn't seem fair for a start to talk about the fun he'd had with Geezer when he hadn't invited Min to join in.

And this was Min's town. Maybe Min wouldn't think it was funny if he heard how Geezer had helped to trap the Worries. They didn't seem to worry Min too
much so maybe, just maybe, it was Pyro they were after because he didn't belong in this town.

The
Olga
's crew of brave pirate fighters were regulars at the Lanky Lizard and Guts Tavern when they weren't stranded on islands fighting pirates. Or waiting around to find some pirates to fight.

Or being told not to have fun together.

It was their tavern whenever they were in town.

‘They'd be newcomers,' Sneeze the First announced as he slid into a seat at the Lanky Lizard Tavern. They usually sat at the bar. They usually had the stools right on the corner so they could Yo-ho-ho louder than anyone else. But this time the end of the bar was full of neatly dressed sailors who all sported a hat with a red pompom attached to its middle.

‘Like their hats,' said Derrick the Cook.

‘I likes a good hat,' agreed Blowfish. ‘And they's pretty darn good if you ask me.'

The sailors with the pompoms were laughing and calling out loud. ‘C'est bon!' they cried. ‘C'est bon bon bon!'

‘What's a bon-bon then?' asked Sneeze.

‘One of them pully fings what you get at Christmas,' said Derrick.

‘They makes a bang and scares the pants off yer,' Blowfish snorted. He liked scaring people.

‘It don't mean they can take our place but!' sniggered Smit the Cabin Boy's Father.

Everybody had a bit of a think about that.

They were still thinking when Smit said they should all get up and give ‘em a good push off them stools.

The Cabin Boy, Jimmy Little Smit, wasn't too sure.

Neither was Sneeze. And Derrick and Blowfish were worried about the red pompoms. ‘They'd be rooned,' they said.

So nobody at all got up. They sat crowded together in their little booth and scowled with black frowny looks instead.

 

‘Hurry up.' Min was waiting on the far side of the bridge. ‘What're you doing back there?'

Pyro hurried. They'd been throwing rocks down into the water and had seen the sudden flash of a flathead. It'd made them laugh because nobody was going to be able to catch it on their fishing lines. They could see it so clearly and their lines were way too short.

‘I'll show you another way to my house,' Min said. ‘We can cut up the back lane if we duck along the top road for a bit.'

 

They'd passed the last of the shops and were heading out on the main road that led to the edge of town. Houses here were set back from the road with higher fences that had big wrought iron gates at the front. Colourful trees drifted tall branches over lawns and made shady corners where glimpses of table settings could be seen.

‘These are the posh houses,' Min said. ‘Look in there.'

Pyro peeped through a gap in the fence.

It really was splendid. The house at the end of the garden had tall pillars above the door and there was a balcony at the top. ‘That's where Plonker lives,' Min said.

Pyro felt the hairs on his neck stand up.

‘Sandy Grivett lives on the other side.'

Pyro glanced behind him, fully expecting to see the Worries – Plonker and Sandy Grivett with the sausage lips – looming out from behind the bushes on the other side of the road.

‘You've just got to keep an eye out for them,' Min said. ‘And keep out of their way.'

Further on they turned down a steep hill and Pyro found himself in a long grassy lane that led past the backs of the houses.

‘We go past all their backsides.' Min giggled.

Pyro giggled too.

It was fun wandering along while the houses were busy keeping their best side facing the street. They saw washing lines full of sheets and knickers and backyards with broken toys littering corners. They saw pots that
were waiting for a new batch of plants and they saw plants that were looking for a new batch of pots.

Min's gran's house was way down the end and they'd almost reached it when Min grabbed Pyro's arm.

‘Quick,' he said, ‘duck into the Fielders' backyard.'

Pyro didn't know who the Fielders were, and he wasn't sure they'd like two boys scampering through their backyard, but he was in there before he had time to think.

It was just as well. Wandering along, headed up the lane to the top end, were the Worries. They were busy checking out something that Plonker had in his hands so they didn't see the sudden escape route the boys had taken.

‘See,' said Min, ‘you just keep out of their way. Easy!'

It was easy when there were two of them watching out.

But, as Pyro discovered walking back to the caravan park by himself, it wasn't that easy to look north, south, east and west all at the same time.

But it was only till tomorrow afternoon that he was going to be alone, and Plonker and Sausage Lips were going to be at school anyway. At least Pyro hoped they'd
be at school. And then, his heart lifted at the thought, Min was coming over to do some more work on the hide-out.

Pyro snuggled down in his lookout spot in the front of the camper. It was almost a hammock the way he had to roll carefully so he didn't clonk his elbows or his shoulders on the way over.

Pirates had hammocks.

And pirate fighters.

Perhaps they could build a hammock in the hide-out. There was a branch that would probably work and he could find a sheet or an old quilt or something. He could hear Geezer listing all the things they'd have to check, but that'd be okay. Min'd be buzzing around testing it out and, if it didn't work, that'd be okay as well. And Becks'd bark. She was the barkiest dog he'd ever known.

San Simeon sat on the far side of the sandhill. Behind him his crew worked away at their various tasks without making a sound.

There was no laughing.

There was no hooting and giggling and falling about and tripping each other so that someone got splashed or dumped into the waves.

Sweet Calamity drifted over the ridge. The flowers in her lovely curls drooped a little as if they too were no longer feeling happy.

‘Aren't you coming over to keep an eye on the crew?' she asked sweetly.

Simeon looked up at her lovely face. He wasn't sure he wanted to keep an eye on his men. Looking at them
was making him feel very bad indeed. He was pretty sure, as well, that they weren't wanting to be his best friend just now either.

‘They be right,' he said.

‘But there's an edict over there,' Calam went on.

Simeon didn't care. He was rather hoping that they would break the new rules and then he could go over there and sort them out properly and find out, once and for all, who was the traitor in the camp.

‘Stand up, you traitor, you!' he'd roar. ‘Admit that you're the one that's making all of us miserable and twitchy!'

‘Do you want me to keep an eye on them for you?' Calamity said. She touched one lovely finger onto his head. ‘I can see you're not doing too well.'

San Simeon stood up. He stood tall and strong. ‘Miss Calamity,' he said firmly. ‘They's my crew and they'd be my problem at the minute and I'll thank you to go back to your quarters and keep yourself out of our business.'

Poor Miss Calamity flung herself around. Her sweet hand flew to her mouth and she bit on her fist to stop herself crying out. But the tears flowed down her cheeks as she left.

‘I'm sorry,' she cried. ‘I shouldn't have said anything. They are your crew and you know them best.'

Simeon let her go. Her tears pierced his heart but she'd spoken the truth. They were his crew and he did know them best so it was best that he was the one to try to deal with them.