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that popped out of the set and attacked me,” Chet replied. He pointed to reddish marks on his neck.
    “He was wearing a blue-skinned, bug-eyed mutant costume,” Frank said.
    Willingham looked puzzled. “I didn’t script any scare tactics before the start of the game,” he said. “That might influence the competition. Plus, we don’t have any bug-eyed monsters. They’re a cliché. Ask Ms. Kendall if you don’t believe me.”
    “You mean there’s someone running around this warehouse in a monster costume who’s not part of the game?” Joe asked incredulously.
    “I hope not,” Willingham said. “I’ll notify security.Mr. Morton, you take all the time you need to recover before starting your next challenge.”
    Chet nodded.
    “Could your cameras have caught the attack on film?” Frank asked.
    “I doubt it,” Willingham replied. “The crew is just moving in from another set now. I’ll check, though. Excuse me. I have to start another game. Morton can rest, but I’m still expecting you two boys on the set on time.”
    Frank and Joe nodded, fighting down the anger they still felt over this latest incident.
    As Willingham walked away he punched the walkie-talkie function on his mobile phone and began checking with the rest of his crew.
    “Could this all be part of some crazy publicity stunt?” Joe asked.
    “Hard to tell,” Frank replied. “If the story turns up on the evening news, we’ll know. Chet, do you and Daphne need us?”
    “We’re fine,” Daphne said.
    “I’ll be ready to go in a couple more minutes,” Chet replied. “Then—mutants, watch out!”
    Joe and Frank chuckled. “I want to poke around a bit,” Frank said, “and see if we can figure out who was under that monster costume.”
    “Whoever attacked Chet was a pretty big guy,” Joe said. “Bo Reid, Jay Stone, or even Willingham might have fit in those shoes.”
    “Jay’s way too skinny,” Chet said. “I could take him any day.”
    “Maybe not if he caught you from behind,” Frank said.
    “What about Todd?” Daphne asked.
    “His ankle is busted up,” said Chet.
    “Maybe that’s just what he wants us to think,” Frank said. “Come on, Joe, lets see what we can find out before our game starts.”
    “Good idea,” Joe replied. He and Frank ducked through the rusting maze set and headed back toward the center of the warehouse complex.
    They passed through a number of the other game areas on their way back, but didn’t see either Jay or Bo in any of them. They found Lily sitting on a darkened set, but neither Bo nor her brother was with her.
    “Todd was here a minute ago. He just went to find Bo,” Lily said. “Our next event is starting soon.”
    “How long has Bo been missing?” Joe asked.
    “I haven’t seen him since lunch,” she replied.
    “How’s Todd’s ankle?” Frank asked. “We haven’t seen him this afternoon.”
    “He’s been hanging out with me since lunch,” Lily replied. “His ankle’s getting better. Too late for the competition—unfortunately. The doctors said it’s a minor sprain.”
    “Not enough to stop him from searching for Bo,” Joe noted.
    “One team member has to stay in the event staging area,” Lily said. “Otherwise, we could forfeit.”
    “Speaking of forfeiting,” Frank said, “we don’t want to miss the start of our own event. See you later, Lily.”
    “Yeah,” Joe added. “Good luck.”
    “You too,” Lily said, waving as they left.
    “Well,” Joe said when they were out of earshot, “Todd may have an alibi, but Bo Reid’s on the loose somewhere.”
    “That doesn’t mean he attacked Chet,” Frank said. “And we still don’t know what Jay Stone’s been up to.”
    A few minutes later they arrived at the staging area for their next event.
    “About time you got here,” Missy Gates said. She and Jay were leaning against a nearby wall, looking bored.
    “So much for Jay’s whereabouts,” Frank whispered.
    “You’re our competition in this