the bat! You may be delusional because you’re wearing a beanie in this heat! Did you have a sun stroke or something?”
“I am all right,” the meerkat said impatiently. “I’ve made those people disappear so that they don’t get underfoot!”
“It sounds weird,” the boy said, his voice unsure. “The meerkat can’t make people disappear! It’s impossible!”
“Easy-peasy! It has to be a secret mission! I don’t want any strangers to interfere! This is my investigation,” the meerkat said, and straightened up with pride.
“Does your name mean anything?”
Notaspy shook his head vigorously. Then he said with frustration, “It means that I’m Not a Spy. I’m a disaster! And I’m painfully aware of my failures.”
“Go easy on yourself! There’s no meerkat without flaws!” The boy tried to encourage the disappointed creature.
“I must eat much ice cream to stay cool. Cool as a cucumber!” Notaspy said, and jumped on his hind legs.
“I’ve already heard these words today! In the ice cream parlor,” the boy exclaimed. “Are you the same meerkat who asked for Butter Pecan? Is the gator your friend or partner?”
“You ask too many questions for an 11-year-old boy,” the meerkat replied, and looked at him suspiciously.
“How did you guess my age?” Colin asked in surprise.
“There is nothing impossible for a secret agent,” he whispered. “Let’s go get some ice cream and talk about it!”
They ran to the ice cream cart at the corner of the street. It wasn’t abandoned, after all. The vendor was napping behind the cart. He flapped his wings to finally wake up.
“Hi! I’m Oscar the Stork. I’ll give you ice cream cones for free if you give me the correct answer to the question.”
The boy and the meerkat exchanged glances and agreed.
The vendor asked, “What is the best time for ice cream?”
“The best time for ice cream is always!” Notaspy replied laughing. His bright eyes were glittering with delight.
“That’s the right answer!” Oscar beamed. “What flavor would you prefer? I’ve got Vanilla, Mango, and Butter Pecan.”
“Butter Pecan for me!” Notaspy yelled with joy.
“I’ll take Vanilla!” Colin said to the vendor.
They were racing to see who could finish the ice cream cone first, and the meerkat won.
CHAPTER FOUR
“Why are you wearing a beanie hat?” Colin asked Notaspy anxiously. “Aren’t you a bit warm this time of the year?”
The meerkat’s bright eyes were glittering mysteriously. He looked around to make sure that nobody could eavesdrop on what he was going to tell the boy in strict confidence.
“That’s a spy tool,” whispered Notaspy. “It increases the ability to think rationally. Emma left me a secret message in invisible ink. I can’t make out what she wrote.”
“Who’s Emma?” Colin glanced inquiringly at the meerkat.
“BCI Special Agent. Emma was the best student in the Defense Intelligence School. Now she’s the most successful and prolific undercover crocodile agent, best known for her undercover work on Ko Ta Pu or James Bond Island.”
“What does BCI mean?”
“The BCI stands for the Bureau of Crocodile Investigation. You’ve mentioned that you met Hunter,” the meerkat said in a low and worried voice, “What did he want?”
“Hunter told me about the meerkat who had stolen the ancient jewelries. He asked me to call him if I saw a suspicious meerkat,” Colin said with caution.
“Are you going to call Hunter and turn me in?” Notaspy asked. He was staring ahead; his pupils were pinpoints. He got up and started collecting his belongings.
“No, I’m not,” the boy said in a confident voice. “You don’t look suspicious. I’ll call Hunter if I find the meerkat who stole the treasure. I’ve got no proof that you’re the one.”
“Nice to hear it. I appreciate that you believe in me.”
“At first, we must figure out who’s the thief!”
“I’m out!” Notaspy said firmly, “I’m NOT a SHERLOCK!”
“Based on?”
“A number of things. My failures mostly. As a detective I’m useless. We don’t need to go around this topic again.”
The meerkat pensively toyed with the tail. He was wearing sunglasses now. Colin could barely see his muzzle.
“Don’t give up. A spy is always a detective. Remember?” Colin said, patting his paw. “Together we will find the thief!”
“Never call me a spy. I don’t deserve that,” he added, and scratched the back of his neck nervously. “I can’t even read Emma’s message! I’m hopeless.”
He put the sunglasses on the back of his head.
“Are you checking for a tail or just want to look good?” The boy burst into laughter.
“These are Rear-View Glasses! You must never be caught off guard. Knowing what’s happening behind you can mean the difference between life and death!” Notaspy was serious.
“Nobody moves!” Hunter the Bat shouted in a loud voice. “Notaspy, you won’t escape. Not this time!”
“The bats! They’ve been tracking us,” the boy cried out.
The meerkat dashed to the box, took a corn cob, and threw it on the sidewalk. It spewed dense clouds of smoke reducing visibility to almost zero. The bats began sneezing and coughing. A chill of horror ran down the meerkat’s spine as he heard a snapping sound above his head.
“Spinning knives,” he thought; the pain engulfed him. He took hold of the boy’s sleeve and crawled up to his shoulder.
“They are trying to encircle us! Come on, Colin, run!” Notaspy shouted at the top of his voice.
The boy darted away as fast as he could.
CHAPTER FIVE
Emma the Crocodile shivered suddenly, although the water was warm. She soaked in a tub. It was her day off. Emma got a job in the Crocodile World Amazement Park. Two performances every day, except Monday!
Something was very wrong. Her instincts never lied to her. The crocodile wondered
