Back home, the men met at Adam’s apartment on Monday. As they talked, Adam fingered the gold button with the raised black lettering. SFDR. Santa Fe and Disneyland Railroad. It could be nothing else. This button was no longer used since Santa Fe had pulled out of their Disneyland sponsorship in 1974. Amtrak had moved in on their passenger train business in 1971 and Santa Fe could no longer justify the expense. The little button was now a much-sought after collector’s item.

“You agree, Lance?”

“With what?” Lance was stretched out on Adam’s beige sofa, the papers once carefully piled on the cushions now littered the floor. They had been discussing the possibilities of the clue for a couple of hours.

“Button. Train. Remember?”

“You have any beer? Never mind.… Yes, but I was thinking about the canyon and rope part. It sounds more like spelunking than rappelling like we did in San Francisco.”

Adam hoped not. “I don’t know any caves deep enough at Disneyland for that.” Mentally picturing the topography of Disneyland, he suddenly gave a light laugh. “We could rappel down the Matterhorn. That would be fun since we now have so much climbing experience.”

From the look on Lance’s face, Adam could tell he was actually considering it. He was relieved when Lance finally shook his head. “No, it all points to the train, the big train. And considering we found the clue inside Walt’s little train, it follows a certain logic. My guess is that the trains come along every five minutes at certain times of the year—depending on how many are running, of course.”

Looking back at the clue’s ‘this canyon isn’t so grand,’ Adam felt it couldn’t mean the Grand Canyon Diorama that was installed in 1958. Since it was secure behind glass, they couldn’t get to it from the front. An obscure bit of trivia popped into Adam’s mind: “Did you know the Diorama was painted on one huge sheet of canvas? There aren’t any seams in it.”

“And all the trains were blessed by a Hopi chief when it opened. Common knowledge.” Lance didn’t skip a beat.

“Oh, I forgot about the chief. You remember his name?” Adam threw that out there hoping to stump him.

“Yes.” Lance just gave him a smug smile.

“Too bad that didn’t come up on the Mouse Adventure race. That would have been worth some points.”

Lance’s answering chuckle lacked his usual humor. “Maybe next time we can actually finish the race. Are we doing it again this fall?”

Distracted by the clue, Adam didn’t notice. “Don’t know. Probably. Why do you think we need a rope for this?”

“Maybe we need to go up on the roof of the Diorama building and drop inside the display. Do you think the roof is alarmed?”

“How in the world would we get down there and back up in less than five minutes? Plus search for a clue? The area is huge. It can’t be that.”

Lance sat up and stretched. “The only way to know is to go to the Park and ride the train. Check out all the tunnels on the ride and be prepared for anything. Including jumping off if need be. You have any rope? I took all the equipment we used back to Hans.”

”Wait a minute.… You rented that automatic ascender? You didn’t shell out $8000 like you told me?”

Lance gave him a wry grin. “Now why would I pay that much money for something I’d only use once? You didn’t say for sure you wanted one….” Seeing the look on Adam’s face, he wisely broke off. “So, do you have any rope or not?”

Adam nodded and bit back the remarks on the tip of his tongue. He knew it would make no difference. “In my truck. I have some pretty strong line left over from a job. It’s a thin nylon that’ll hold either of us.”

“Not both of us?”

“I ain’t hanging on to you and jumping off a cliff.”

Chuckling, Lance asked when he wanted to start.

Adam checked his clock and saw it was a little after 3 p.m. “What do you think? If we go now rather than in the morning, the employees might be a little drowsier after working all day. Might help if we have to jump or dive or whatever.”

“There are shift changes to consider, but you’re probably right. Are you going to jump or do you want me to?”

Adam knew his friend and his effect on people. “You’re better at distractions than I am. When you’re around, people tend to ignore me. I’ll do the jump.”

Lance shrugged his indifference. “What are you going to wear?”

“What do you mean ‘wear’? A prom dress?”

“No, smart aleck. If you don’t want to be noticed doing whatever you’re going to be doing, you should probably be wearing something darker and less obvious than your bright yellow Michaels Construction shirt.”

“Oh.” Adam looked down at his clothes. Yes, the yellow shirt did stand out in a crowd—which is why he had them printed for his crew in the first place. “Fine. You go ahead to the Park and check out the trains while I change,” Adam suggested. He looked at his watch. “Let’s meet in an hour, at four o’clock, at the Main Street station and start at the beginning.”

Before he went out the door, Lance had more advice. “Wear a dark hat. Your blonde hair stands out. Oh, and a black jacket you can take off in a hurry might be a good idea. Empty the pockets. I’ll get the rope out of your truck on my way out.”

Adam pulled the baseball cap a little lower on his forehead and resisted the urge to tug at his collar. It was too warm to be wearing three layers of clothes and be dressed all in black.

“Quit fidgeting.” Lance noticed Adam’s nervousness when they met in front of the train station. “This has to be it.”

Adam looked enviously at Lance’s khaki-colored shorts and white polo shirt as they walked up the brick steps and through the station. They gave a quick glance at the replica of the Lilly Belle encased in glass inside the station. “I’m not fidgeting about the clue. It’s too hot today for black jeans and a jacket. Where is the rope? They didn’t see it at the Security check, did they?”

“Not to worry. It’s in my backpack. The gal hardly looked through it.”

Adam grinned. “Yeah, go figure.”

Lance missed his point. “Do you still want to sit in the back car?”

Adam nodded, thinking ahead. “Have you been here long enough to see how many trains are running?”

“I’ve seen two trains.” They sat on one of the wooden benches as Lance recounted what he had seen. “There’s one with the regular passenger cars and one Excursion car. The Excursion might be best because the seats face forward.”

The regular passenger car had seats facing the right side of the train. It made it easier to load and unload passengers, but also made it more difficult for what he had planned. If Adam had to jump off the slow-moving train, he would rather everyone be facing another direction.

“You’re right. Let’s….” Adam quit talking when he saw a group of five girls taking their picture. Well, he figured they were taking Lance’s picture. He was just probably in the way.

“Let’s what?” Lance, as usual, was oblivious to the attention he was receiving.

When Adam indicated with his head what was going on, Lance looked over at the girls and flashed them a smile.

They heard one long and one short whistle—the signal that a train was approaching the station. The Fred Gurley steamed by and squealed to a stop. The crowd waiting in the station surged toward the entry gates as some of the passengers got off and headed for the exit. The girls held back, obviously waiting to see where Lance went.

“Get rid of the girls.” Adam had turned away from the onlookers as he whispered to Lance. “Pretend you’re getting on the train.”

Lance stood up and walked towards the open gate. Looking back at the girls, he indicated the gate with a sweep of his hand. “Ladies? After you.”

Trooping through the gate and grinning broadly, they went into the first car with a few open seats. Scooting down far enough to leave one open space for Lance, their giggling stopped when he went back to the bench and sat down next to Adam. As the train started with a jerk and slowly pulled out of the station, Lance waved good-bye.

“How do you stand it?” After seeing it over and over, Adam still had to ask.

“Stand what?”

“Never mind.” With a sigh, Adam glanced at his watch. “Let’s see how long it takes the next train to arrive. The clue said five minutes, but we can’t be sure how many trains were running when Walt wrote it. In peak times, they can get four trains going at the same time. That’d be rough if I have to jump.”

Lance leaned back, stretching his long legs out in front of him. “Well.” He had to stop for a long yawn. “There are only two trains today. If,” he stressed, “we figure out what it is you’re supposed to do.”

Adam checked his watch again, getting up to pace the platform. Lance watched him through half-closed lids. “Will you sit, Adam? You’re making me nervous.”

Adam looked over Lance’s 6’ 2” frame. There wasn’t one inch of nerves showing. If anything, Lance looked ready for a nice long nap. Still, to keep the peace, Adam sat down and rechecked his watch. Five minutes had passed and no train yet.

“I’ll do it if you want, Adam. I offered before, you know.”

“You draw too much attention. We already talked about that. I need you for the diversion.”

Lance shrugged. He didn’t see what all the fuss was about. “Okay. How much time so far?”

“It’s been five minutes. This is good. More time to figure it out.”

“You have the train signals memorized?”

Adam nodded but still drew a little notepad out of his shirt pocket. “Yeah. But the only one we have to worry about is one long whistle—which is train in distress.”

They were silent with their own thoughts as the station filled with more people. Adam couldn’t believe it had only been four days since they were in San Francisco. It seemed a life-time ago. And here they were preparing to possibly do the same thing again. To keep from dwelling on what was ahead, Adam looked around at his surroundings. It was late afternoon, a sunny, beautiful day with a light breeze causing the flags overhead to flutter. From where they sat, they could see more people coming in through the turnstiles. Many of them took a moment to pose by the huge floral Mickey face centered on the hill beneath the train station. The mood around them was light and happy. Even the youngest of children had had their lunch and a nap and were excited to ride the Big Train.

Presently they heard the approaching whistle as the P.A. system announced the train’s arrival and called with a long, drawn-out, “Board!”

Adam glanced at his watch. It had been ten minutes. Good. That helped. The men stood as they saw the E P Ripley pull past with the Excursion cars. Some of the people waiting around them groaned when they saw the forward-facing seats. Not wanting to turn their heads to watch the scenery, they forestalled cricks in their necks by waiting for the next train. The guys took the rearmost seat in the last car, putting the backpack between them to take up more room and discourage anyone from sitting next to them.

A conductor named Louise walked the length of the last two cars checking to see if everyone was properly seated. She waved her arm to signal the next conductor that all was fine. The signal was carried up to the engineer who gave two short blasts on the whistle as they got underway. Louise settled on her outside perch at the front of their car, her arm around the standard for stability. Adam noticed she glanced a second time in their direction and waved at her. She didn’t see him, her eyes focused on Lance. He smiled to himself. Good. That will help.

The recorded announcement started as they chugged around the Park. The guys carefully examined all the tunnels on the circuit. The tunnel leading to the Frontierland station was corrugated metal. The tunnel leading into Critter Country opened into Splash Mountain, but the ride section was behind glass. The tunnel before Fantasyland was way too short. In about eighteen minutes, they were at the entrance to the Grand Canyon Diorama and Primeval World. They knew this wasn’t the answer, but they examined it anyway. As they already knew, the whole display was behind glass. The other side of the long, dark tunnel was broken up by exit doors. There had to be something they missed in the other tunnels.

Lance looked over at Adam. “Once more around?”

Adam just nodded as he fingered the SFDR button in his pocket. None of the cast members working the trains had that particular button on their uniforms since Santa Fe had withdrawn. The clue had to mean this train. It had to be here. He just knew it.

More people climbed off and less got back on. It was nearing dinnertime—as Adam’s stomach reminded him. Louise was still with them as she waved her signal and climbed back on her perch.

The first tunnel had been added in the mid-1960s and went over the Pirates of the Caribbean ride. The second tunnel was built at the same time and went through the berm behind the Haunted Mansion façade. Adam knew that if the clue was pointing to something hidden on the big train, it would have to be in one of those two tunnels. But there was nothing in the first tunnel. It was short, bright, and had no breaks in the metal. However, in the second tunnel he noticed two small lit caverns on the Park side. Twenty-five seconds later they rode over the trestle through Critter Country.

“Lance, did you notice those two holes off on the side? One was blue and one was yellow? They looked like caves with little stalagmites.”

“Yeah, I saw them the first time through.”

“You think that could be it?”

“I didn’t see anything in them.”

Adam shrugged. “Wouldn’t that be the point? We wouldn’t necessarily see anything. We would have to go after it.”

“You willing to give it a try?”

Mouth dry, he nodded. “Yeah, I have to.”

“I’ll go if you want,” Lance offered again.

“No, you’re too tall. Those openings didn’t look very big.”

“You’re claustrophobic.”

“Not anymore.” Adam reached for the backpack. Pulling it close, he found the hidden rope and stuffed it inside his jacket. His hands were a little shaky as he rezipped the pack. “I’ll be fine.” His words were more for himself than for Lance. “When we ride around again, take the backpack to the front of the car. Make sure the conductor sees you. Transfer at the Frontierland station.”

“You’ll have to come out the far end of the tunnel into Critter Country.”

Adam looked up. He hadn’t thought that far ahead. “That’s right. I’d be in sight of the whole train station if I came out in Frontierland.”

“And you know to go out on the left side of the tunnel, don’t you?”

“Umm, no. Why? Because of the window into Splash Mountain?”

“Not just that. There’s a sheer drop on the right side that ends up in the ride flume.”

Adam winced. “That could hurt. What’s on the left side?”

“A wooden gate and stairway down to the ground level. It goes either into a cast member-only door or into the ride line.”

“When did you see all that?” Adam was faintly impressed.

“Last time around. I think you were timing the tunnel or something.”

Adam was thoughtful. “Cast member-only area, huh? Great. Well, I’ll worry about that when the time comes. You just cause a diversion as soon as we’re in the tunnel.”

Lance smiled as he looked up at Louise. “I think I can do that.”

They were silent as they rode around the Park again. The canoes were paddling around Tom Sawyer’s Island. Fantasyland Theater was still showing Mickey’s Detective School—A Musical Toondunit. Autopia cars in Tomorrowland were crashing in to each other in spite of the warnings to ‘not bump the car ahead of you.’ Ferde Grofe’s “On the Trail” was still playing on the sound system as they rode past the Grand Canyon diorama again. More people got on and off at the various stations. The conductor Louise stayed with them and eyed Lance as he swung down from the train at the Frontierland station. Adam saw her little smile when Lance got in the second seat in their car, about three people in. Yes, there would be enough of a diversion. Louise was perched about four feet away from him.

Adam found he was breathing harder and his pulse rate accelerated as the train pulled away from Frontierland. I don’t think I’ll ever get used to stuff like this, he admitted to himself. He slowly edged toward the far side of the car until he was next to the railing. It seemed like hours before the train entered the tunnel. It was getting darker when he heard Lance’s loud voice. “Excuse me, coming over, excuse me.” He began to climb over the people seated next to him. “Can I have the end seat? Excuse me.”

“Sir, you have to remain seated while the train is in motion.… Sir.… Ok, Lance.” Adam could hear the soft change in Louise’s voice as Lance settled on the end seat.

However, Adam didn’t have time to listen to Lance’s pick-up lines. A quick glance at the few riders in front of him showed that they were all turned toward the commotion in the front. Grasping the metal railing, he quickly threw himself over the side and dropped with a grunt on the graveled ground. He immediately crouched into a dark ball, motionless. If anyone looked back, they would be hard pressed to see his black clothes in the darkness of the tunnel. Waiting, he resisted the urge to cough in the smoke-filled tunnel. Listening to hear if someone may have seen or heard him, the noise of the train faded as it continued its journey. Only then did Adam risk peeking out of his crouched position. When the back lights of the train disappeared, he unzipped his jacket as he ran toward the first little opening.

Reaching in first, he felt around for a capsule. Doing the same at the next cavern, he came up empty. Sticking his head in the opening, he found it was big enough to drop into. He then set his watch’s timer for eight minutes to give himself an extra two minutes. Going to the opposite side of the tunnel, he felt around for somewhere to attach the rope. The exit door would probably be alarmed. Finding a wooden beam pulled away from the wall, he tested it with his weight and hoped it would hold.

Quickly securing the rope around the beam and tugging, both the beam and his knot held. So far, so good. Going over to the first cavern, he tossed the rope in, somewhat surprised it played out. It was deeper than he thought. Checking his watch again, he now had five minutes to get in and out and get the rope off the track before the next train arrived.

With a silent prayer and a curse, he took hold of the rope and backed over the rim of the blue-lit cavern. With his back against the far wall, he walked down the rope, using the blue light for visibility. Every few inches he felt around, but found no cracks, no edges, no inset and no capsule. Reaching the end of his rope, he could see the empty bottom of the cavern. Reversing the process, he worked his way up hand over hand. Suddenly hearing two short blasts of the train whistle, his alarm went off. He had to get out of the tunnel—now!

Working faster, he popped out of the cavern and coiled the rope into a tight circle. Leaving it behind the beam, he sprinted through the tunnel and kept away from the glass opening of Splash Mountain. With a quick look around, he vaulted over the wooden gate and ran down the stairs to the cast members-only door. Leaning against it, he tried to look casual as the guests waiting in line for Splash Mountain gave him questioning looks and stares. Within a minute, the Fred Gurley steamed past; its passengers all looking off the right side of the train, away from his hiding place.

Knowing he was in plain sight and in a prohibited area, he tensed when he heard the train give one long and two short whistles. That either meant a general greeting, like someone waving from the Hungry Bear Restaurant, or there was a crew member on the track. There was no way for him to know which. But since the train was on a trestle and there was no alarm, he hoped it was a greeting for the crowd below.

With a deep, calming breath that did nothing for his pounding heart, Adam hurried up the stairs and opened the gate as if he knew what he was doing. Once in the tunnel, he sprinted back to his rope and drug it over to the second cavern—the yellow one. Repeating the process, he lowered himself into the bright hole. I’m too old for this, he groaned. This cavern proved to be deeper than the blue one. There were a few more feet beyond the end of the rope. By stretching out his legs, he found his feet would be on one side of the cavern and his back tight against the other. Hoping he could get back up to the rope, he muttered a curse and let go to edge lower.

It wasn’t until he had gone down another three feet that he felt the indentation on his back. He worked his body to the side and reached inside. Heart still pounding, his fingers closed over a wide capsule. It felt like the same smooth plastic as the others they had found. Holding it up to see, he was about to congratulate himself when the alarm went off.

“Crud!” He had forgotten the time. Jamming the capsule in his pants pocket, he pushed back with his aching leg muscles and inched upwards. His fingertips grabbed at the rope, but it swung away from him. “Crud!” Pushing up higher, he finally grasped the rope. Just as he reached the edge of the cavern, the headlight from the E P Ripley began to illuminate the tunnel. Not bothering to coil the rope, he hurled it at the opposite side of the tunnel, taking only enough time to make sure it was completely off the track.

As the train neared, Adam realized he didn’t have time for subterfuge. As he broke into a full run down the middle of the track, he heard the whistle shrill one short blast—Attention! “Crud!” He ran past the Splash Mountain window. The headlight was getting brighter against his back. Grabbing the edge of the tunnel, he swung himself around the corner and dropped like a brick over the short gate. Falling down the wooden stairs, he rolled through the line of guests. Not taking time to apologize to the startled people, he climbed to his feet, pulled off his jacket and cap and ran under the trestle. The train emerged from the tunnel just as he rounded the corner out of their sight. He heard another short whistle and could tell from the sounds that the train had slowed down. Not daring to look back, wiping the sweat from his face, Adam headed for the Golden Horseshoe where he knew Lance would be anxiously waiting for him. Looking like any other visitor in his white T-shirt, he hoped he blended in. If only his heart wasn’t pounding loud enough for everyone to hear.…

When he got to the curve around Splash Mountain’s entrance, he did, finally, glance backwards. The train hadn’t stopped, as he feared, and was now out of sight.

Inside the tunnel, holding flashlights, two crew members examined a rope tied to the wall and wondered what they should do next.

Billy Hill and the Hillbillies were into their lively rendition of “The Orangeblossom Special” as Adam tried to locate Lance in the cool darkness of the Golden Horseshoe Saloon. When his eyes finally adjusted to the change of light, he found Lance seated on the left side of the room under the curving staircase. Totally relaxed and keeping time to the music, Lance seemed to be enjoying the show. The tray on the table was littered with the remains of Lance’s dinner. He seemed surprised when Adam grabbed his soda and finished it off in one gulp.

Adam dropped into the chair opposite Lance, leaned his head back against the rail, and tried to get his heart rate back to normal. He became irritated when Lance adjusted his chair. Apparently he was blocking Lance’s view of the stage.

“Enjoying the show?” The sarcasm was obvious as he used one of the napkins to wipe his forehead.

The room exploded in hoots and applause as the song finished with Lance heartily joining them. “These guys are hilarious! You would have liked the sing-a-long.”

Adam just glared at him.

“The Orangeblossom Special” turned out to be the last song of the show. Billy and his troop said their good-byes to a thunderous applause. The main lights of the room came on, wooden chairs squeaked as they were pushed back and the audience surged toward the exit doors. Lance offered Adam the four French fries that were left in the paper basket. Adam just sat there and stared at him.

Lance relaxed in silence until there were only a few tables occupied around the room. Some guests were still up in the balcony. Only when the majority of people were gone, did he speak. “Where’s your jacket?”

“With my hat.”

“And that would be....”

“Probably either taken to Lost and Found by now, or being trampled on in Critter Country.”

“Or Security,” Lance suggested with a half grin.

Adam closed his eyes and groaned.

By now they were almost alone. A few of the Golden Horseshoe hostesses were busy as they wiped tables and picked up some of the litter left behind.

“Now that the place is empty…did you find anything?” Lance spoke low enough so he wouldn’t be heard by the cast members who worked around the floor.

Adam realized why Lance had been waiting. “Sorry. I guess I’d make a terrible spy. My heart is still pounding. But, yes, I did. It’s in my pants pocket. It’s a little bigger than the other capsules.”

Lance gave a half grin. “I thought you were just happy to see me.”

Adam made a rude noise. “I don’t want to open it here. Let’s go back to my place. I need a shower….and a stiff drink.”

Lance opened the gray capsule while Adam showered. A heavy piece of gold fell out first. It looked like some kind of coin that had been inexpertly cut in half. The jagged cut obscured what was left of the embossing. The back of the coin was mostly smooth with some almost illegible writing in what could have been Spanish or Latin. After admiring the weighty coin, he dug out the paper wedged inside the capsule. It was the same kind of paper as all the other clues—pages torn out of the old diary.

The clue read: “Ride the cab to see the cup and walk 20 paces N. Sometimes my heart is like an island. Look for Jeremy B. He has the other half.”

Lance was pondering the message when Adam came out, a pair of shorts carelessly pulled on. Adam headed for the kitchen and his bottle of 15-year Glenlivet Scotch. Not finding a clean tumbler, he used a water glass and dropped in some ice before returning to his living room. His offer to Lance met with a negative shake of his head. Lance held out the clue as he again looked over the half-coin. Taking the piece of paper, Adam dropped heavily onto his sofa.

After taking a healthy swallow of the smooth scotch, Adam read the clue a couple of times. His mind still on his narrow escape from the tunnel, he found he couldn’t concentrate. Another swallow and some of the edge wore away as the scotch warmed its way down his throat. “What’s that?” He spied the coin Lance was still studying.

“It’s fascinating, actually.” Lance felt along the ragged edge and around a small hole pierced in the top. “Somebody was in a hurry when this was cut. What do you think about the hole at the top?” Knowing it was probably solid gold and wouldn’t shatter, Lance tossed it to Adam. Lance was excited about this find, very excited. It fit in with what he had thought all along—that there’s more to the picture than some stock certificates and souvenir buttons. His face, though, was a blank mask. But his eyes…his eyes were bright and alert as he watched Adam with the gold.

Silently examining the coin, Adam felt the hole. “Yeah, that wasn’t there originally, I’ll bet. The sharp points out the back show it was done with some kind of an awl. I have one in the shop that would do about the same job. This seems pretty old to me. You know anything about gold coins? Any idea what these markings are?”

“Most of the markings seem to be on the other half of the coin that apparently ‘Jeremy B.’ has. The writing might be Latin. I think the first words curving upward are His Majesty. But, the way the hole is punched, do you think we’re supposed to concentrate on the front of the coin?”

Adam slowly nodded. “What about the clue? Riding in a cab and seeing a cup suggests Disneyland to me. The old Skyway ride and the Mad Party Tea Cups. I don’t think Walt would have us grab a taxi and go somewhere.”

Lance walked over to the big Disneyland souvenir map Adam had thumb-tacked to the wall a few days ago. “Twenty paces north from the Tea Cups would be the Storybook Land Canal Boats. Even though the Skyway is gone, all three rides were there in Walt’s time. But, what do these have to do with an old coin? It looks more like pirate loot—authentic pirate loot—than something from Fantasyland.”

“That would be interesting, wouldn’t it? Some pirate stash buried under the Canal Boats!” Adam gave a dismissing chuckle. “No, I think we should concentrate on the island clue and finding somebody named Jeremy who worked for Walt. The coin will probably explain itself once we find him and match the two halves together.”

Lance’s head had jerked up when Adam jokingly mentioned some kind of loot. You don’t know anything yet, Brentwood, he told himself; pure speculation. “Do you want me to work on the person or the island?”

“Let’s start with the person. You work on the computer and the Disney records. I’ll go through the books I still have and see what I can find. We might have to go to the Disney Archives.”

With a new purpose now, the men once again got to work. Lance pulled up countless databases from different times in Walt’s history. Adam searched through the indexes of his reference books. Neither could find anyone with that name. “Should we go to the library?” Hours had passed and the room had gotten dark.

Frustrated by their fruitless search, Adam rubbed his eyes. “Too late today. How about getting something to eat? I’m starved.”

“I ate at the Golden Horseshoe.”

“Yes you did, didn’t you.”

Lance grabbed up the coin. “I’m going to head home. I’ll see if I can reference this.” Still fascinated by the coin, he held it up in his fingertips. “What time tomorrow? You want to go back to the Park?”

Adam just nodded, still thinking about the clue. “Maybe we need to ride the Canal Boats.” At Lance’s groan, Adam had to agree. “Hey, it’s not my idea. Seems Walt wants us to.”

“Well, we’d better do what Walt wanted. He didn’t like to be told no!” With a grin, Lance closed the apartment door behind him.

“No, he didn’t.” Alone now, Adam found he was talking quietly to himself. “And that’s how he got to be as great as he was. He got an idea in his head and didn’t allow anyone to turn him from it with a no.” He finished his scotch and tried to find something to eat in his barren refrigerator. “Need to go shopping one of these months.” With a grimace, he wondered what that brown thing in the back was.

“Want to go to Lost and Found and see if they have your jacket?” Lance sounded serious the next day as they rode the tram from the parking structure to the main gate.

“You’re kidding, right?” Adam wasn’t sure if Lance was joking. “I don’t even know if I can get in the front gate.”

Lance chuckled. “As long as the pockets were empty, you’ll be fine. You weren’t wearing one of your Michaels Construction hats, were you?”

“No, it was a Disneyland cap. Cost me $8.”

“I’ll buy you a new one,” Lance crooned to him, receiving a glare for his efforts. “You remember the route of the Skyway, don’t you? How it left the Chalet near the Casey Jr. Train, went up through the Matterhorn, and then dropped down to the terminal near the Tomorrowland Autopia?”

“Right. Maybe we should check out the Chalet before riding the Canal Boats—even though I know how anxious you are for that.” It was Adam’s turn for a dig.

They looked around as they entered the Main Gate turnstiles. “A lot more people here for a Tuesday. The line might take a while for the Boats. For some reason they’re really popular.”

“Come on, admit it.” Adam had to tease him. “You know you want to ride them.”

Lance ignored him as they rode the Omnibus down Main Street. He was reading some of the names stenciled on the windows above Main Street. Each window was a tribute for a person singled out in the Disney industry. The ornate lettering would have their full name or just their first initial and last name. Then it would give their department or specialty as if that window advertised their place of business. “Adam, have you checked out these windows and who they represent? There could be a J and a last name starting with a B.”

Getting out his notepad, Adam wrote down the suggestion. “Worth looking into. Might be a performer, for that matter. Good idea.”

When the Omnibus deposited them between the entrance of Tomorrowland and the Castle, the men headed up the drawbridge and through the Castle. Lance gladly turned left, away from the dreaded Storybook Land Canal Boats and went toward the far edge of Fantasyland. The Casey Jr. Circus Train was loading passengers in its “Monkeys” and “Wild Animal” cages, getting ready for its trip through the miniature world of Storybook Land. The train saw the same scenes as the Canal Boats but from a different elevation and was a lot faster than the slower-moving boats.

Above the busy walkway that led to a short-cut between Frontierland and Fantasyland was a profusion of pine trees and flowering vines. This neglected vegetation hid what used to be the Swiss Chalet, the starting point of the popular Skyway to Tomorrowland ride. The brown railings with the multi-colored carved tulip cut-outs were still visible to anyone who thought to look up. The cement steps were also in place up the curved path through the plants and flowers, blocked off only by a drooping rope. A Bavarian-themed souvenir stand and ice cream cart stood in front of the walkway with one busy cast member helping guests with postcard choices. Edging behind the check-out stand, the men waited a moment to see if there was any opposition. Hearing the sale go on and on, they stepped over the rope and walked slowly up the path. “Always act like you know what you’re doing,” Lance had wisely suggested earlier. “More people will tend to believe you have a right to be there.” Once out of sight, they relaxed and walked to the front of the Chalet.

The opening where the Buckets took to the air had been enclosed and all the ride mechanisms were gone. The huge wheel that had held the cable and allowed passengers on and off before swinging the cab around to the drop-off was gone. The inside was now dirty and filled with dead leaves and a creeping vine. They stood back a ways from the edge, out of sight of anyone who might look up. The pine trees that used to be severely pruned to allow the Skyway Cabs clear sailing had been neglected and now encroached on the view. However, they could still see where the wire would have crossed over the Tea Cups before heading up higher into the Matterhorn.

Their trip down the wide steps was not so uneventful. Roger, the cast member, was now unoccupied. He spotted them as they stepped over the rope and reached for his walkie-talkie when he stopped them. “Hey! You aren’t supposed to be up there! What do you think you’re doing?”

Adam’s heart started pounding again. It had been too easy. Lance, though, was all innocence. “Oh? Us? I’m sorry, Roger,” after he checked the nametag. “I thought the men’s room was up there. Didn’t it used to be there?”

The walkie-talkie lowered. “Uh, no, it’s over there.” Roger pointed to the other side of the walkway.

Lance looked so surprised. “Oh, gosh, do I feel stupid! Well, what was up there? I wondered what that rope was for.” He looked so sincere Roger felt obligated to tell him the history of the Skyway Ride. “Aww, that sounded fun. Can I get an ice cream from you while we’re here? You want anything, Gary?”

It took Adam a moment to realize Lance wasn’t using their real names. “Sure, Percy. That sounds good.”

Lance hated his middle name. When he tossed Adam the frozen-solid fudge bar he had just bought, it hit him in the chest like a rock. “There you go, Gary. Thanks, Roger, you were really helpful.”

Roger turned to other customers as the guys walked off. Dropping his unwanted ice cream in the first trash can they found, Adam resisted rubbing the sore spot on his chest. He knew there would be a bruise. Standing at the northern edge of the Tea Cup Ride, they looked in each direction. To the east was the Matterhorn with its Bobsled ride. To the south was the Alice in Wonderland ride. West was the Mad Hatter Hat Shop. After checking the distance from the Tea Cups to the Canal Boats, they got in the long line. “That was longer than twenty paces.”

“Maybe it depends on which part of the ride he meant.” Lance looked over the heads of the others in line. “The canal runs past the walkway for a good ways. The entrance is farther away, yes, but was Walt referring to the entry or the ride itself?”

Adam just shrugged as they worked their way slowly around the chain maze. This attraction was the only ride just north of the Tea Cups. In thirty minutes, they were ushered onto the Ariel boat along with twelve other passengers. The cast member Tally perched on top of the engine housing of the little boat—designed with Dutch, English and French influences—and spieled with enthusiasm, adding a true storybook accent to her descriptions of the small objects along each side of the boat. The six minute trip included complete descriptions of all the miniature houses and villages, but nothing stood out to the two men. They could see no tie-in to the clue or the coin.

With a sigh, they got in line again. Their next boat was the Snow White and Suzi motored their boat through Monstro’s gaping mouth. After passing through the twenty-foot tall whale’s jaws, the boat went through a tunnel and back into daylight, finally entering the narrow canals once more. The Casey Jr. Circus Train tooted by overhead and they were all encouraged to wave to the “Wild Animals” in their cages. Miniature trees and closely-pruned shrubs enhanced the manicured lawns. On the back hill, plants of various colors were contained inside square boxes jointed by giant cross-stitches, making it look like a gigantic quilt made of alternating squares of colored flowers. They saw the miniature pumpkin coach on its way up the steep hill to Cinderella’s Castle. They looked through the waterfall at the end of the ride to see Ariel’s Grotto, but the miniature set, like all the other sights along the ride, seemed to hold no secret.

After lunch at the Redd Rocket Pizza Port in Tomorrowland, the guys rode Space Mountain just to placate Lance so he wouldn’t do anything drastic. Smoothing his wind-blown brown hair back into place after the high-speed roller coaster, Lance himself led the way back to the Canal Boats and silently got in line like a martyr going to the fire.

There were thirteen different Canal Boats all named after Disney heroines. Lance swore they had ridden all of them at least twice and Adam started taking pictures as the afternoon wore on. The cast members were starting to look at them strangely as the men kept coming back over and over. Even Lance’s charm didn’t hold up to two grown men without kids riding the Canal Boats for over two hours. The women were secretly relieved when the men exited the ride the last time and never came back.

Adam bought a Cherry Coke at the Refreshment Corner on Main Street. Lance ordered a warm Mickey-shaped pretzel and seemed delighted to bite its head off. Sitting in the white wire-backed chairs, they listened to the Ragtime piano player who was entertaining the diners. The perky music helped lift them out of their ride-induced stupor.

“I think we need to go home and download these pictures.” Adam got back to the task once the caffeine and sugar hit his system.

Lance groaned. “You go home and download those pictures. I can’t take another minute of it. You do that and I’ll work on the names in the windows on Main Street.” He finished his pretzel and wiped the salt from his fingers. “How about we meet at your place on Thursday?”

Adam let out a sigh and frowned. “Yeah, I guess I’m tired, too.” He looked around as he thought for a moment. “I have to get caught up on some work, check on Mrs. Anderson’s remodel, and…I need to get some sleep.”

Frustrated, they were silent all the way to Adam’s apartment. Lance kept the coin and promised to research it as well. There was nothing more to say.

They felt like they had run into a brick wall.