Gertrude Warner - Great Shark Mystery

That evening, the Aldens stepped off the plane in Florida. A cheerful young woman approached them. She had long blond hair and bright blue eyes, and her skin was deeply tanned.

“I’m Emily Ballard. Are you the Aldens?” she asked with a friendly smile.

“Yes, we are,” said Grandfather. “I’m James Alden. I’ve heard so much about you from your dad. It’s nice to finally meet you.”

“I’ve heard a lot about you, too,” Emily said. Then she turned to the children. “You must be Henry, Jessie, and Violet.”

“And I’m Benny,” Benny piped up.

“Come on, let’s go get your luggage,” Emily suggested. As they headed down the walkway, she and Grandfather talked about her father and how he was doing.

At a pause in the conversation, Violet asked, “Emily, what do you do at the park?”

“I’m the head animal trainer. I help care for the animals, feed them, and teach them tricks for the shows,” Emily said.

“Wow, that sounds cool!” said Jessie.

“It is,” Emily said. “I love what I do. It’s the best job in the world.”

When they arrived at Ocean Adventure Park, the Aldens found it was not at all what they’d expected. They couldn’t help noticing how run-down and shabby everything was. The buildings needed fresh paint and the fences needed to be repaired. Weeds grew up over the edges of the cracked sidewalk.

“Looks like this place could use a little work,” Mr. Alden said.

“You’re right about that,” Emily said. “Unfortunately, there just isn’t enough money in the budget right now for that.”

“Really?” Grandfather asked. “Is the park having trouble?”

“We’ve had a hard time competing with all the fancy theme parks nearby,” Emily said.

“I bet you won’t have a problem getting people to come now that you’ve got a great white shark,” Henry said.

Emily frowned. “Yes, it’s nearly empty now, since the park has just closed for the day. But it was quite crowded earlier.”

Henry noticed Emily’s frown. “I would think you’d be happy about that.”

“It’s not that I don’t want the park to do well,” said Emily. “It’s just … that shark is a living, breathing animal. But to some people here, all that matters is how much money it’s going to make.”

Grandfather was silently studying Emily’s serious face.

“What do you mean?” Violet asked.

“Oh, I shouldn’t have said that. …” Emily shook her head as if to clear away whatever she’d been thinking about. “Come on, we’ll drop off your bags and then I’ll give you a tour.”

They were passing the main office building when someone called out, “Hello!”

The Aldens looked behind them to see a young man wearing a bright blue baseball cap coming up the path. He seemed to be calling out to them, but the Aldens didn’t recognize him.

“Is that someone you know?” Violet asked Emily. “He seems to be trying to get your attention.”

Emily glanced back at the man and frowned. “No one I know,” she said, turning to a gate with a sign that read EMPLOYEES ONLY. She pulled a white card key out of her pocket and slipped it in a slot beside the gate.

As Emily led them down the path on the other side of the gate, Violet stopped and looked back. The man was standing at the gate, which had closed and locked behind them. He was still watching them. Who was he, and why was he trying to get their attention?

Violet hurried to catch up with the group. They had stopped in front of a small cabin. Emily was saying, “Here’s where you kids will be staying.”

“What about you, Grandfather?” asked Benny.

“I’ll be staying with Emily’s father,” Mr. Alden told them. “I’ll head over there after we see the shark.”

“My dad’s house is about an hour from here,” Emily said. “But if you kids need anything, my cabin is right next door. Your grandfather said you like to be on your own.”

“We do,” said Jessie.

“You live right here in the park?” Henry asked.

“Yes, it’s much easier, since I work long hours,” Emily explained. “I have no commute to work, and I don’t have to worry about paying rent.”

The Aldens entered their cabin and found themselves in a small sitting room with a couch, chairs, and a table. At one end was a kitchenette with a small refrigerator and stove. Off the sitting room were two bedrooms, each with a pair of beds.

“Violet and I will take this room,” said Jessie, claiming the room on the left. “You boys can take the other room.”

“Okay,” said Henry, putting his suitcase down.

“Now can we see the shark?” Jessie wanted to know.

“Sure,” said Emily. She led the way out the door and back up the path. Violet was curious to see if the man was still at the gate, but he was gone.

The Aldens strolled along next to Emily. They passed several different exhibits. Some were open tanks, like the tropical fish pool. Others were buildings marked with signs such as PENGUIN HOUSE or MANATEE HAVEN.

“I love penguins!” Violet said.

“I’ve never heard of a manatee,” said Benny.

Emily laughed. “I can see this is going to be a busy week,” she said. “Don’t worry, we’ll spend time with all kinds of different animals.”

At last they came to a building with a large sign that simply read SHARKS! in menacing black letters. “The smaller sharks are in there,” Emily explained. “But we needed a larger tank for the great white, so it’s in the old Beluga whale tank over there.”

The Aldens followed Emily toward a large enclosure. A hastily painted sign on the outside read COME FACE-TO-FACE WITH A GREAT WHITE SHARK!

“Are you ready?” Emily asked.

The Aldens looked at one another. Grandfather smiled, and the older three children nodded eagerly. Benny took a deep breath and then slowly nodded.

One by one, the Aldens stepped through the doorway, with Benny bringing up the rear.

Ahead of them was a huge glass tank. The Aldens stepped to the glass and peered in. In the dim light, it was at first hard to make out what was in the tank. But then a shape began to move toward them, slowly, slowly. It seemed to be swimming straight at them.

The Aldens were face-to-face with a real live shark. And there was nothing between them and the shark but a pane of glass.

As the shark glided by, it opened its mouth slightly. The Aldens caught a glimpse of rows and rows of sharp, pointed teeth.

“Look at all those teeth,” said Violet.

“And look how big they are!” said Jessie.

“Sharks have several rows of teeth,” said a voice behind them.

“Thousands of teeth altogether. When some fall out, others fill in. And their teeth can be as big as three inches tall.”

Emily and the Aldens turned around to face the speaker. He was tall, dark-haired, and muscular. His skin was weathered from many years in the sun and wind. He smiled kindly at the Aldens, then turned to Emily. “Are these the visitors you told me about?”

“Yes, Mac,” she replied, motioning to each one as she said their names. “This is James Alden, and his grandchildren Henry, Violet, Benny, and Jessie. This is Mac Brody, animal curator here at the park.”

“Wait a minute,” Henry said, looking at Mr. Brody and then at Emily. “Did you say Mac Brody? I think I read a book about you. Tales of …”

“The Sharkman?” Mr. Brody chuckled. “That’s my autobiography. I’m glad to hear somebody’s reading it.”

“Wow! Did you really do all those things, Mr. Brody?” Henry asked.