âBut now they act like theyâre seeing each other for the first time.â
âRight,â Otis agreed. âNow, who is the other guy?â
Just then the other guy stood up. Cody and Otis both gasped.
Jamal Mason gave the boys a sour look and then turned to Ronnie Walker. âWhat kind of bodyguard are you, anyway? I thought you said only old people were going to be here,â the young movie star said sullenly. âI donât want fans bugging me while Iâm on vacation.â
Walker shrugged. âSorry, Jamal. I didnât know about the kids.â
Cody and Otis both scowled and stuffed their hands in their pockets. Neither one liked the way he said âkidsââas if they ought to be in a nursery. But Rae looked as if she hadnât heard a word. She was gazing at Jamal.
âI like your wristband, Jamal,â she said.
Jamal favored her with a grudging half-smile. He held up his arm to show an elaborately woven wristband of many colors.
âA friend of mine just gave this to me. Itâs Egyptian,â he said, âand itâs really old. He found it in a box in a cave. This guy worked with a museum and knows about ancient artifacts. He said itâs probably from about 1300 BCâmaybe even older.â
âAwesome,â said Rae. âBut shouldnât something like that really be in a museum, becauseââ
Jamal cut her off. âOh, mind your own business,â he said rudely. He turned to Walker and said, âTake care of the check-in. Iâm going for a walk.â He shook his head and muttered, âI donât know about this place. Maybe I should go over to the next island. Itâs hipper on Tacayno.â
By now, Ms. Wallace and Mr. Barber had appeared in the lobby. They had observed the scene. So had Mr. McNab, who had been reading a book in the corner, near a sour-faced Mr. Cordell.
âThat young man should be taught a lesson about manners,â Mr. McNab said in a surprisingly dark tone.
âHow right you are,â echoed Ms. Wallace, as Mr. Barber nodded in agreement.
Mr. Cordell got to his feet. âIâm going for a walk on the beach,â he announced. He looked at Mr. Keller. âWanna join me?â he said, in a tone that was more like an instruction than a question.
Rae still looked stunned. âIâm going to find Jamal,â she said, then hurried outside.
Cody and Otis exchanged glances. Rae must be starstruckâshe definitely had a crush on Jamal. Still, it wasnât like her to put up with rude behavior, even from Jamal Mason. But they had something else to worry about right now. They hurried after Ronnie Walker, who was waiting at the check-in desk.
They found him there, pacing back and forth, muttering to himself. They caught snatches of speech.
âThatâs rightâteach him a lesson ⦠show him ⦠find out â¦â
âExcuse me, Mr. Walker â¦â Cody began. âWe noticed that Sam Keller seemed to know you ⦠and then he didnât.â
Color flooded into Mr. Walkerâs face, turning it a bright pink. âOh, the guy with the crazy red hair and the weird tattoo? Well, we met about six years agoâbut just briefly. Iâve worked out a lot since thenâI guess I wasnât sure whether he recognized me or not.â He shrugged and turned away.
âHey, what do you kids care about it, anyway?â he asked over his shoulder, sounding annoyed. âWhy donât you go play some games or something?â
Codyâs eyes flashed. He opened his mouth to say something but Otis put a hand on his arm and shook his head. He held a finger to his lips and then said, âYouâre right, sir. Weâll just go do that.â
When they had walked a few yards away, Otis said, âNo sense ticking him off. We want to find out what game heâs playing.â
âYeah, I think what he said was lame. It looks like
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