Lola raced downstairs, screaming “Dad! Mom!” the whole way, but no one answered.
Max ran down behind her.
In five seconds, they had searched the entire first floor. No one.
“They were here! They were right here!” Lola stared accusingly at the pizza boxes and plates on the kitchen table.
Max shifted uncomfortably. “You heard what Lord Kuy said.”
“You know I don’t believe that stuff!” Lola opened the front door and looked out. “Their car’s still there. They can’t be too far away.”
Max shrugged. “Maybe they went for a walk,” he suggested halfheartedly.
“Why would they go for a walk when dinner’s on the table?” asked Lola. “This isn’t ‘Goldilocks and the Three Bears.’ ”
“Do the Maya tell that story, too?”
“Don’t be stupid. We don’t have bears in the jungle. Or girls with golden locks.”
“I only asked. You don’t have to bite my head off.”
“If you must know, Dad just told me that story. We were reading some of my old baby books. He was trying to fill in some of the gaps in my education.” Lola paced around the kitchen. “They wouldn’t have kept my baby stuff all this time if they were going to leave me again, would they?” She started pulling out drawers and looking in cupboards like a crazy person. “Where are they? Why didn’t they leave me a note?”
“You know where they are,” said Max quietly.
“Nooooooooo!” Lola wheeled around. “I can’t lose them again! I have to find them.”
“Should we eat?” asked Max. “The pizza’s getting cold.”
“Did someone say pizza?” Hermanjilio had ducked in through a gap in the plastic sheet that covered the hole in the wall and was surveying the bare space that used to be Uncle Ted’s sitting room. “I came to help with the cleanup, but it looks like I’m too late.” He helped himself to a slice of pizza. “I half thought I’d come here this evening and find out it had all been a dream. I’ve been going over and over it all day. Why did this house suddenly fill up with mythical monsters? And why did they all vanish as quickly as they came? I’ve been wondering if there was something in that wasp larvae paste.”
“They vanished because they’d done their job,” said Max. “And that was to frighten me into going down to Xibalba with Lord Kuy.”
Hermanjilio stopped chewing. “Wait, what? You think you went down to Xibalba? But that’s impossible. I was in the room with you the whole time. You never left.” He felt Max’s forehead. “Have you been eating wasp larvae again?”
Max pushed him away. “You didn’t see it because Kuy made the room freeze. But I can prove it. Ah Pukuh sent me a gift.” He pulled the bracelet out of his pocket and showed it to them.
Lola grimaced. “What is that thing?”
“Bat intestines.”
Hermanjilio put down his pizza. “I seem to have lost my appetite.”
“But you believe me?” asked Max.
“Yes. I’m sorry for doubting you. It’s just that the whole evening was so hard to believe.” Hermanjilio sighed. “If only I could have filmed those monsters for my Maya Mythology class. That would increase attendance.” He looked more closely at Max and Lola. “What’s wrong with you two? Has something else happened?”
“Lord Kuy came back,” said Max.
“He’s kidnapped my parents,” said Lola.
“He’s keeping mine in jail,” said Max.
“Not again,” groaned Hermanjilio, remembering how Max’s parents had been held captive in Xibalba when he and Max had first met. “Why this time?”
“Ever heard of a place called Cahokia?” asked Max.
“Yes, of course. It’s famous in archaeological circles. It used to be the largest city in North America,” said Hermanjilio. “Nothing left now but some mounds of earth. Why do you ask?”
“Because some guy has set himself up as a Maya king there. He has his own Jaguar Stones and everything.”
Hermanjilio looked at him like he was crazy. “That can’t be right. A Maya king at Cahokia? But it’s not a Maya city. It was built by the Mississippian culture.”
“Whatever,” said Max, trying to get Hermanjilio back on the subject. “But Kuy wants us to steal the guy’s Jaguar Stones.”
“Are they real?”
“Of course they’re not real. How could they be real? The real Jaguar Stones are in Xibalba,” said Lola impatiently. “Which is a place I don’t believe in.” She saw Max about to argue with her. “Even though I’ve been there,” she added.
“Kuy said that we won’t see our parents till we do it,” Max finished up.
“I don’t understand,” said Hermanjilio. “I thought Kuy and his friends in Xibalba would be busy with their own Jaguar Stones, bringing about the end of the world and all that? Why do they care about a sideshow in Cahokia?”
“It’s complicated,” said Max. “Ah Pukuh said he’s reformed and he wants to use his stones for good. He doesn’t want this new guy getting in his way.”
Hermanjilio looked confused. “If Ah Pukuh’s reformed, how does he explain the monsterfest last night?”
“He said he was trying to get my attention.”
“Well, he certainly succeeded. So are you going to Cahokia?”
Lola didn’t hesitate. “NO!”
“I’m not allowed to leave San Xavier,” Max pointed out.
Hermanjilio was thinking. “Something doesn’t add up. Why, with the whole world in his grasp, would Ah Pukuh care about some crackpot in southern Illinois? And why does it have to be you two who go and investigate?”
Max and Lola looked at him blankly.
“Have you considered,” he continued, “that these are the real Jaguar Stones? That they somehow got transported from Xibalba to Cahokia? And now Ah Pukuh wants them back? That would explain why his world domination plans have stalled.”
“But if they’re real,” said Max, following Hermanjilio’s logic, “who is the new king?”
Hermanjilio rubbed his hands. “I vote we go to Cahokia and find out.”
“Seriously?” Lola raised an eyebrow. “Why would we do that?”
“First of all, to get your parents back. And second of all, to find out what’s going on up there. Whether the stones are real or not, we need to understand Ah Pukuh’s little game. Know thine enemy, as Lord 6-Dog always says.”
“We’re not going to Cahokia,” said Lola.
“I understand that after everything you’ve been through, you’re reluctant to get involved. But the future of the world is at stake. You’re not going to live a long and happy life with your parents if no one stands up to Ah Pukuh.”
“Why does it have to be us?” asked Lola. “Why can’t someone else stand up to him?”
“Because most people on this Earth have no clue about the danger they’re in. And they wouldn’t believe us if we told them. Sooner or later, Ah Pukuh is going to make good on his promise to end the planet. And before you say anything, Max, I do not believe for one second that he’s reformed. So if we have a chance to foil his plans, we have to take it.”
“We?” echoed Max. “You’d come with us?”
“Of course I would. After what I saw last night, this is my battle, too. Are you in?”
“We need to do this, Monkey Girl,” said Max.
“Where is this Cahokia place anyway?” asked Lola.
“It’s near St. Louis, on the Mississippi,” replied Hermanjilio. “I’d show you if we had Internet. Does your dad have an atlas?”
“Maybe in his office.”
“There’s a map in my room,” said Max. “I’ll go and get it.” When he came back, Hermanjilio was telling Lola about Cahokia. “I’ve always wanted to see it,” he was saying. “We could fly direct to Chicago and drive down from there.”
Max felt a rush of excitement. Then, just as quickly, the feeling drained away. “I can’t do it. They’ll arrest me at the airport if I try to leave San Xavier.”
“Then we’ll smuggle you out,” said Hermanjilio. He took the map from Max and spread it out on the floor. “Here’s San Xavier. And here’s the Gulf of Mexico. And here”—he tapped on the map—“is the mouth of the Mississippi River.” With his nose almost touching the paper—“This map is old, it’s hard to read”—he traced the blue line of the river up from the sea with his finger and jabbed at a point about two thirds of the way along. “Here it is! Cahokia Mounds!”
Lola knelt next to him to study the route of the river. “New Orleans, Memphis, St. Louis. I’ve read about those places. Mom and Dad were going to take me on a road trip. It was going to be my first-ever vacation.”
“They’ll still take you,” said Hermanjilio. “Come to Cahokia with us and we’ll get them back.”
Lola said nothing.
Max was still staring at the map. “But how would we get there? Could we drive all the way?”
Hermanjilio shook his head. “Too risky. Armed guards at the border.”
“A boat?” suggested Lola. “Across the Gulf of Mexico and up the Mississippi?”
Hermanjilio sounded dubious. “The coast guard is always on the lookout for smugglers. And the waters around here are dangerous. Too many reefs and strong currents.”
“But look.” Lola pointed at San Xavier on the map. “There’s a dotted line just off the coast. Someone’s drawn in a shipping lane around the reefs.”
Hermanjilio looked closer. “That’s no shipping lane. Where did you get this map, Max?”
“It was in Sylvanus Morley’s car.”
Hermanjilio did a double take. “Sylvanus Morley? As in Vay Morley, the great archaeologist who excavated Chichen Itza?”
“Yes. I met him at the White Pyramid when we were running from the zombies. He threw me the keys to his car—his jalopy, as he called it. Eusebio drove me and Lola home in it.”
“Of course! That old car! How could I have forgotten?”
“You were too angry to remember anything that day.”
“Why was I so angry?”
“That was the day you found out that Lola had stolen the White Jaguar and Chan Kan had jumped into Xibalba with it,” said Max. “I’ve never seen you so mad.”
“We were talking about shipping lanes,” said Lola, quickly changing the subject.
Hermanjilio tapped the map excitedly. “I think we’ve found our escape route! Do you know anything else about Vay Morley, Max?”
“I know that it’s his fault my middle name is Sylvanus.”
“Well, I’m sorry about that. But did you also know he led a double life? He used his cover as an archaeologist to spy for the US navy. He was looking for German submarine bases along the Yucatán Peninsula.”
“Cool,” said Max flatly, not understanding the relevance of this fact.
“Don’t you see?” Hermanjilio was yelling. “That dotted line, it was drawn by Sylvanus Morley! It must be the submarine lane.”
“This sounds like an interesting conversation,” said a young Maya man coming in through the terrace doors.
“Hi, Lucky!” called Max.
“Hi, Jaime,” called Lola.
Jaime Ben, known by almost everyone as Lucky or Lucky Jim, was Uncle Ted’s former right-hand man and now a trainee schoolteacher. “Hey, you two,” he said, high-fiving them. “Is this pizza up for grabs?”
“It’s cold,” Lola warned him.
“Even better,” said Lucky, taking a huge slice. “So what’s going on? I had a message from Mr. Murphy to come by after school. Sounds like he has a construction project he wants my advice on. Whoa!” Lucky dropped his pizza in surprise as he registered the damage in the sitting room. “What happened here?”
Max plunged into the story from the first time he saw the upside-down bird through to his encounter with the queen of the bats to his late-night flight down to Xibalba and Lord Kuy’s return visit to the villa. Most people wouldn’t have believed any of it, but Lucky wasn’t most people. He knew all about the craziness that was the Maya underworld.
When he was caught up, Max showed him the map. “So this is Cahokia Mounds, where we need to get to.”
“If we decide to go,” added Lola.
“But Max is not officially allowed to leave San Xavier,” explained Hermanjilio. “So we’re thinking of ways to sneak him out.”
“And that’s why you were talking about submarines?” asked Lucky.
They nodded.
Lucky had a strange look on his face. He opened his mouth to speak, then seemed to think better of it and clammed up again.
“What were you going to say?” asked Lola.
Lucky shook his head guiltily. “I better not.”
Max thought for a moment, then leapt to his feet. “Uncle Ted’s got one, doesn’t he?” he screamed excitedly. “Down there in the cellar?”
Lola turned to Lucky. “I know Dad used to be a smuggler, but that’s crazy. Isn’t it?”
Hermanjilio looked from face to face in disbelief. “Are you telling me that Ted Murphy has a submarine stashed away somewhere?”
“It’s just a small one,” said Lucky defensively. “A mini-sub.”
“I knew it!” said Max. The first time he’d stayed at the Villa Isabella, he’d discovered the secret staircase leading from Uncle Ted’s office down to the cellar and the underground HQ of his smuggling operation. Since many of the tunnels led out to sea, he’d imagined finding a James Bond–type submarine dock in among all the high-tech equipment. Now he was delighted to discover that his fantasy had been true all along.
Lola looked shocked. “But Dad promised me he’d given up smuggling.”
“He has,” Lucky assured her. “He bought it just before he made that decision. He’s never used it, I promise. But it’s not that easy to offload a sub without people asking questions.”
“I can’t believe it,” Max said gleefully. “My. Uncle. Has. A. Submarine.”
“Can you drive it, Jaime?” asked Lola.
He nodded. “But please call me Lucky. I tried to go back to Jaime, but even my family calls me Lucky. And we’re going to need a lot of luck to pull this off.”
“We? You’re going to help us?” Max punched the air.
Lucky laughed. “So who’s coming with me?”
Max and Hermanjilio put their hands up straightaway.
Slowly, Lola put hers up, too.
“I’m going to regret this,” she said.
Hermanjilio put an arm around her. “You’re doing the right thing. You can’t run away from problems. You have to face them. And we’ll face this one together, the four of us.”
“Four’s a full load,” said Lucky. “I warn you, it’s pretty cramped in the sub. It wasn’t built for comfort.”
“How far can it take us?” asked Hermanjilio.
Lucky knelt over the map and took some measurements with his thumb and forefinger. “You’re headed for the Mississippi River, right? The sub can go fifteen hundred nautical miles without refueling. That should get it to New Orleans and back.”
“Can’t you take us all the way to Cahokia?” asked Lola.
“If people saw a sub refueling on the Mississippi, it might attract attention, don’t you think? Besides, I’m a teacher now. I have a class full of children waiting for me.”
“So how long to New Orleans?” asked Max.
Lucky thought for a moment. “At a cruising speed of twenty knots, I’d say two days at most.”
Max looked worried. “Does the sub have a kitchen? What will we eat?”
Lola nudged him playfully. “Don’t worry, Hoop. We won’t let you starve.”
Hoop! She’d called him Hoop! Things were back to normal between them! Max grinned at her. “So we’re really going to do this, Monkey Girl?”
“I guess so.” She looked like she couldn’t believe what she’d just said. “I guess we’re going to Cahokia.” She shook her head in wonder. “Looks like Lord Kuy was right. Max and Lola save the world—again!”