FROM ACROSS THE LAKE, CALVIN STUDIED THE COMPOUND through his binoculars. The boat was hidden behind a hummock of ferns and saw grass. He could see the barn and the fenced-in grounds. The service road leading up to the gate was too muddy to tell if anyone had used it recently. His hopes dimmed. Maybe he was wrong. Perhaps Uncle Yaha had meant something else. He had failed Emmet.

Putting down the binoculars, he studied the map of the Everglades that he carried in the boat. Calvin tried to think of anyplace else that Emmet could be. He was certain he’d understood Yaha correctly, but he had circled the entire lake looking for any sign of Emmet or Dr. Catalyst. There was nothing here.

The Dragonfly 1 had a quiet electronic motor for trolling. Calvin started it up. On the off chance that Dr. Catalyst was somewhere in the area, he didn’t want to alert him. After another turn around West Lake he would head back home. He’d probably get in trouble again, but he would take the punishment. Emmet was counting on him, and Calvin had let his friend down.

Just as he was about to hit the throttle, he heard shouting. Calvin grabbed the binoculars and brought them to bear on the barn. He saw Emmet being shoved out of the door. Dr. Catalyst stood in the doorway. They were yelling back and forth at each other, but Calvin couldn’t make out the words. After a few seconds, the door slammed shut. Emmet lay there on the ground a moment as if stunned and then took off running.

He was here. Emmet was here. Uncle Yaha had been right all along.

But why had Emmet been left alone outside? And how could Calvin get his attention without alerting Dr. Catalyst? He still didn’t have a clear idea what was going on, but he pushed forward on the throttle and maneuvered the boat the remaining distance from the center of the lake toward the compound. The sun was coming up, but hopefully he would still be hidden well enough by the darkness to keep Dr. Catalyst from discovering him.

A few minutes later the boat nudged up against the shore and Calvin scrambled out. He tied the bowline to a mangrove root and, with his backpack in hand, headed toward the fence. Standing next to it, he realized it was impossibly tall. There was no way to climb it.

Staring through the chain links, he could no longer spot Emmet. There were too many trees and shrubs in the way. He still had no idea what was happening or what was the best way to help Emmet. Why had Dr. Catalyst shoved him out the door of the barn? Was he letting Emmet go?

His question was answered when a small metal door on the side of the barn slid open and the cat creature immediately slinked through it. Calvin couldn’t believe his eyes. Dr. Catalyst was sending the beast after Emmet. Emmet would never stand a chance.

Calvin pulled out his cell phone and hit the emergency button. It would send a distress signal to the task force, and they would send help immediately. But it would take them time to get here. He had to do something.

He slung the backpack off his shoulder and dug inside, removing a pair of bolt cutters. The same bolt cutters he and Emmet used to break into Undersea Land and rescue Apollo not long ago.

He had an idea.

With the bolt cutters, he went to work on the chain-link fence.

Snipping away.