Read Online Shadows at Predator Reef by Franklin W. Dixon - Free Book Online

can tell us how it got there?”
    â€œI—” Mr. V started, then closed his mouth. A moment later, he gave us a weak smile. “You are even better detectives than I had been led to believe.”
    He stood up. “I have a confession to make.”
    Now it was our turn to be speechless. Was Mr. V about to admit to stealing Captain Hook?
    â€œIf you’ll follow me, there is something I’d like to show you.” Mr. V turned and began walking down the hall at the far end of the room.
    My brother and I exchanged a grim look. Normally, we’d be a lot more cautious before blindly following a suspect somewhere, but curiosity had the better of us. We let him lead us down a spiral staircase and past a long corridor to a library at the back of the house.
    It was an ocean lover’s dream. The shelves were lined with endless leather-bound volumes and academic texts with titles like The Early Voyages of Jacques Cousteau , Biodiversity in the Indo-Pacific Reef Environment , and Advances in Submersible Design and Technology . I could have spent a month flipping through the pages and been totally happy! The room was decorated with all kinds of nautical artifacts and maps. There were saltwater fish tanks too, some filled with specimens so rare even Bayport Aquarium didn’t have them.
    But all that was nothing compared to what we were about to see.
    Mr. V ran his fingers along a row of books, settling on one with a battered leather spine and pulling it toward him.
    Joe and I stood there with our mouths hanging open as the entire wall slid away, revealing a secret lair that rivaled the Batcave in coolness.
    We were staring at Mr. V’s own magnificent private aquarium.
    The twelve-foot-high walls were made entirely of floor-to-ceiling glass. Behind them must have been at least two hundred thousand gallons of salt water filled with a flowing kelp forest and an array of awesome creatures, including rays and small sharks. It may not have been as big as Predator Reef, but to find something like this hidden inside a house made it just as impressive. It felt like we were standing underwater in the middle of a vast seascape.
    â€œThis was to be Captain Hook’s new home,” Mr. V said quietly.
    Joe and I shared a glance, reading each other’s minds. There was no doubt anymore that Bradley Valledor was the one who’d built the escape hatch beneath Predator Reef.
    â€œI’m ashamed to admit that there were selfish motivations for my participation in the aquarium’s new exhibit,” he said. “Still, I pride myself on being a conservationist as well as a collector. When Captain Hook arrived at the Bayport Aquarium, I saw the perfect chance to acquire a rare and remarkable creature for my collection without supporting the poaching trade or taking one of the precious few remaining animals from the wild.”
    â€œSo you pretended to be helping the aquarium by building Predator Reef when the whole time you intended to steal its mascot and betray the entire community?!” I asked in disbelief.
    â€œI probably deserve your disgust, but let me finish and then you can render judgment,” Mr. V said. “I discovered the tunnels beneath the aquarium during my initial planning and designed the hidden holding tank under the exhibit to take advantage of them.” He took a deep breath. “So yes, I confess . . .”
    Here it came, the big confession. Villains don’t normally lure detectives to their secret lairs just to reveal their master plans, though. Not unless they also intend on disposing of said detectives so they can’t tattle to the authorities. So by this point, I was beginning to expect the worst.
    â€œ. . . I was the architect of the crime,” he continued in a shaky voice. “But I wasn’t the one who committed it. Someone else took Captain Hook before I had the chance.”
    I was too baffled to respond. Had Mr. V just