The Monkey Howled at Midnight by Zack Norris Page A

thing, but that made this guy Aldo pretty mad. I think Pino might be in danger.”
    Koobi stroked his chin. “I know exactly what you are talking about. Some of these men have come to my people and asked them to catch animals for them. It is not something my people would do.” He rubbed his forehead.
    â€œThey found others who would help them, though,” he went on. “They were tempted by the things the men showed them, the jewelry, the motion-picture cameras, and other things.”
    â€œI got a couple of pictures of the inside of the warehouse just before we left,” Rae said.
    â€œSmart girl.” Koobi smiled. “If you have pictures, no one can say that the place isn’t there.”
    Rae took a big gulp of juice. “Why were you in the jungle by yourself, anyway?”
    â€œIt’s a lot safer for me than for you. I woke up and went walking to think. It’s something I’ve done since I was a boy.”
    â€œYou speak English, and the tribal language, too. How come?” asked Cody.
    â€œWell, as you can see my tribe has had contact with the world outside the forest,” he said. “Others speak English, but not as much as I do.”
    Koobi looked thoughtful. “When I was a little boy I walked off by myself into the rain forest. I must have been about four years old, and I was looking at animals. I saw a baby monkey who had wandered away from its mother.”
    He stopped talking for a moment to watch a little girl walking two baby armadillos as if they were puppies. For a moment she stared at Cody’s freckled face and then kept walking.
    â€œI lost sight of the monkey, and I got lost myself,” Koobi went on. “I hadn’t told my parents that I was leaving the village—so I don’t know when they missed me. It was the next day when some people found me while they were rafting down the river. They tried for hours to find my village. They finally gave up. Not knowing what else to do, they took me into the boat and back to their home. They raised me until I grew up and went to college.”
    Cody and Rae both stopped eating. “What about your parents?” Cody asked.
    â€œThe people who cared for me wouldn’t have known how to find them,” said Koobi. “ They became my parents, and they were very good to me. But after I finished college I felt that something was missing. I came back and found my Pirahã parents. Now I stay here sometimes and sometimes in Manaus.”
    â€œIt must be so different. Like being in two worlds,” said Cody.
    â€œIt is,” Koobi agreed. “I’ve been working with the police to nail these animal smugglers. I never found the warehouse until tonight. But you were the ones who got inside.”
    Cody put down his plate. “I’m going to ask Otis if he’s feeling well enough to travel. Then let’s get going, okay?”
    He walked over to where Otis lay in a hammock. “How you doin’, dude?”
    â€œA lot better.” Otis grinned. “Still sore, but whatever Koobi put on that bite did the trick. I can’t describe how it felt—like being bitten by a shark with hot knives for teeth.”
    Rae had crept up behind Cody and peered at Otis’s leg. “Wow, you’ve got a big bruise.”
    â€œCompared to the way it felt before, the bruise feels great,” Otis said. He smiled as he eased himself off the hammock. He took a couple of slow, careful steps, then a couple more that weren’t so careful.
    â€œHow does it feel?” Koobi asked.
    â€œGood enough,” Otis said firmly. “Let’s do this.” He turned to his brother. “You get to fly the plane though, dude. I wouldn’t trust this foot on the brake.”
    â€œAre you sure you can handle it?” Koobi asked Cody. “I can help you find the plane, but I can’t fly it.” He peered at Cody doubtfully. “Are you sure you can fly