Read Online Benjamin Franklinstein Meets the Fright Brothers by Matthew McElligott - Free Book Online

understand,” Franklin said into the cone. “You want us to meet you in Mexico? That will not be possible. Please clarify.”
    â€œNiort, France.”
    â€œScott,” Victor whispered, “hand me that pen and paper.”
    â€œI’m afraid we cannot meet you in France, either,” continued Franklin. “Perhaps—”
    â€œEdinburgh, Scotland . . . Neryungri, Russia . . . Five Finger, Alaska . . . Nejran, Saudi Arabia.”
    Victor scribbled furiously. The voice repeated the entire list once more, and then the electrophone went silent.

    Half an hour later Victor, Scott, and Franklin were enjoying a snack in the Godwin kitchen, huddled around a large map of the world. Mrs. Godwin was in the living room watching TV.
    â€œThere’s Five Finger, Alaska,” said Scott, pointing at the map. “Maybe we’re supposed to go there.”
    Victor shook his head. “I don’t think that’s what this is about. The last time we spoke, the voice said that someone might be listening in. What if these locations are actually some sort of coded message?”
    â€œI was thinking the same thing,” Franklin said. “When General Washington commanded the Continental Army, his coded messages helped us win the war. Let us find the other locations on the map.”
    â€œHere’s Edinburgh,” said Victor, circling it in red. “And Neryungri, Russia. There’s Saudi Arabia . . .”
    â€œI see Niort,” said Scott.
    â€œThere’s Nejran,” said Franklin. “And there, near the tip of Mexico, I see Mérida. But what does it all mean?”
    Even with all the cities plotted on the map, the message wasn’t any clearer. There didn’t seem to be any logical order to the locations. Victor tried rearranging the letters in their names. Franklin suggested connecting the cities with lines, with the thought that they might form some sort of shape, like an arrow. Scott wanted to buy tickets and fly to each city.
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    CITIES IN THE ELECTROPHONE MESSAGE

    After several hours of frustration, they called it quits. Franklin wished everyone a good night and agreed to meet the next morning to try again. Victor and Scott joined Mrs. Godwin in the living room and collapsed onto the couch, exhausted.
    â€œDid you boys get anywhere with your puzzle?” she asked.
    â€œNot really,” said Scott. “It’s a tough one.”
    â€œI’m sure you’ll figure it out.” She turned off the TV. “I heard you mention Edinburgh. I was there years ago.”
    Victor perked up. “You were?”
    â€œOnly for a short time. It was an emergency stopover on the way to Paris.”
    â€œWhat happened?”
    â€œThere was a terrible storm. Lightning struck the wing, and we lost an engine. We weren’t sure we were going to make it.” She shuddered. “I was never so happy to see an airport in my entire life.”
    â€œWow. You don’t remember anything special about Edinburgh, do you?”
    She shook her head. “Only the terminal. We spent a couple of hours there waiting for them to put us on a new flight.”
    Victor sighed, disappointed at hitting yet another dead end.
    â€œHey, Mrs. Godwin, have you ever been to Nejran?” Scott asked. “Or Niort? Or Five Finger, Alaska; Mérida, Mexico; or Neryungri, Russia?”
    Mrs. Godwin laughed. “I’ve never even heard of those places.” She looked at her watch. “Speaking of trips, isn’t it time you two took a trip up to bed?”

    Victor struggled to fall asleep. Every muscle in his body was exhausted, but his mind was racing. Something in his mother’s story nagged at him. The airplane? The storm? The airport?
    When he finally did fall asleep, he had terrible dreams. At one point he, Scott, and Franklin were flying in a fierce storm. Their plane rocked from side to side as lightning flashed in the sky. Through the window,