Read Online The Ideas Pirates by Hazel Edwards - Free Book Online Page A

But with a spider inside , it shows up differently on the scanner.’
    â€˜Would you see the spider’s skeleton?’
    â€˜Doesn’t have one! ‘ Winston wanted people to know that HE knew about spiders.
    â€˜But we’d notice what’s missing. That is the clue, not just what IS there. One of the Singapore Customs guys gives me tips. Like last week , when we caught that New Zealander.’ said Gloria.
    â€˜What was he doing?’ asked Christopher.
    â€˜SHE was smuggling Australian frilled neck lizards out. At $10,000 each.’
    â€˜How many was she carrying?’
    â€˜Twenty . In her makeup case. He noticed she wasn’t wearing any makeup.’
    â€˜Good clue.’ Amy whistled. ‘Two hundred thousand dollars! Cool. Do you get paid a salary or a commission?’
    Gloria laughed. ‘Just a weekly pay cheque and a few thanks. Sometimes it’s hard for us to spot the smugglers. Airlines are proud of processing passengers clear of customs within thirty five minutes of landing. Considering some jumbos carry four hundred plus people, that’s not easy- for them or us! That’s why “tip-offs” are helpful.’
    â€˜Have you had a tip-off this time?’
    Gloria nodded. ‘Several. The missing hospital drugs are a worry. But so are ideas pirates. And we’ve had a tip about some wildlife smuggling.’
    â€˜Are you chasing Fake-Fifis too?’ asked Amy.
    Gloria laughed. ‘That’s one way of describing it. Yes. Fifi’s been having trouble with copy-T shirts.
    Others have been passing off cheap, poor quality T-shirts as Fifis. They’re destroying the reputation of her business. Now she wants to catch the thieves. That’s one reason why I’m on this flight. Finding the spiders was unexpected. Singapore security usually pick up everything. I thought they would have checked inside his video cassette case.’
    Amy wondered how much Gloria knew about the shirts in Jason’s case.
    â€˜Do you check on all the baggage that goes underneath?’
    Gloria nodded. ‘Especially if we’ve had a tip off. Last week a smuggler had a tiny turtle fitted in a box under his armpit. We named it B.O. afterwards.’
    Christopher sniffed loudly. Everybody laughed, except Winston.
    â€˜B.O. Body Odour, get it?’
    Winston didn’t, so he tried to change the subject.
    â€˜What about Quarantine?’ asked Winston. ‘That’s for the spiders, isn’t it?’
    â€˜Quarantine want to stop diseases travelling between countries. Often friends give passengers plants, seeds, cuttings, meat, fish or eggs. They’re all illegal, unless specially packaged. So is something like honey.’
    Winston looked guilty. ‘Is there honey in a fruit cake?’ he whispered to Amy.
    â€˜Probably.’
    Gloria continued. ‘Quarantine protect native endangered species like birds, eggs and certain flowers.’
    â€˜Slipper orchids!’ added Christopher with a sideways look at his sister. ‘Amy’s got something to ask you about them, Gloria.’
    â€˜Certain types of orchids. Yes.’ Gloria nodded. ‘ An orchid smuggler got six months jail for trading in wild-collected slipper orchids.’
    â€˜Is that illegal because they’re protected plants. Like the tigers?’ asked Amy.
    â€˜Tigers aren’t plants!’ said Winston.
    â€˜They’re both endangered species.’ Gloria said quickly.
    â€˜Like Motor Mouths,’ said Christopher warningly. ‘Shhh. You’ll wake up the others.’ Around them, passengers stirred in their sleep. Some grunted. Others gave little snores.
    â€˜These were wild-collected in Southern China. Thousands of specimens were found in his apartment,’ whispered Gloria.
    â€˜I read that,’ said Amy,’ That’s why when the mystery man said “slipper orchids …”.
    â€˜What mystery man?’ Gloria