Ship of Secrets by Franklin W. Dixon Read Free Book Online Page A

morning, when this ship docks in Miami’s harbor, it will be the center of Bartleby’s Auction House’s biggest auction yet.”

    The news reporters swarmed, some taking photos, others asking the man questions. One reporter asked how much it was worth, while others asked why he’d decided to auction it now.
    “The time felt right,” he said. He wrapped his arm around his wife as he spoke. Beside them the two teenagers looked uncomfortable in front of all the cameras. The girl looked to be several years older than Frank and Joe, with long brown hair braided down her back. The boy looked older, maybe seventeen, and kept checking his cell phone when his parents weren’t looking.
    “Who is that?” Frank asked, turning to his father.
    Mr. Hardy was staring at the scene at the end of the dock. “I read about this in the papers,” he said. “I just forgot. That’s Sir Reginald Heartpence II, some businessman from London. He’s bringing that antique pocket watch to Miami to sell it in an auction.”
    “I hope those cameras aren’t following him onto the boat,” Mrs. Hardy said. They pushed past with their suitcases, walking toward the ramp that led to the ship’s entrance.
    But Joe and Frank were caught up in the excitement. They’d never seen so many news vans in one place. Cameras flashed, and people shouted out questions. Even as Sir Reginald and his family walked off toward the ship, the reporters followed.
    “Is he a duke? Or a knight?” Frank asked his parents.
    “Maybe he’s a king!” Joe yelled.
    “Definitely not a king,” Mr. Hardy said, laughing.
    “Though he does act like one,” Mrs. Hardy added, passing the suitcases off to a steward, who promised to bring them to their room.
    “Can we go explore?” Frank asked as they stepped into the ship’s glass elevator. Next to some of the top buttons were little signs. One said POOL LEVEL, another GAME ROOM, and another AQUARIUM.
    “The pools!” Joe yelled. “We have to see those first!”
    Joe and Frank hadn’t been so excited since the first day of summer vacation. Their parents had been talking about this cruise for weeks, telling them about all the fun things there’d be to do on the ship. But when the elevator doors finally opened on the main deck, it was better than anything they could have imagined.
    “The Great Wall of China!” Joe yelled, racing to a giant pool in front of them. There were slidesthat looked like an old wall that went down into the water. There were already twenty or so people in the pool, splashing about.
    “Look! There’s the pyramid!” Frank cried out. There was a twenty-foot-high pyramid with a lazy river underneath it. A few boys went through a tunnel in bright blue inner tubes.
    Joe ran around the deck, past some of the other pools they’d seen in the brochure. Real-life gladiators walked around the ship’s deck, taking pictures with people. Frank drew his invisible sword again, but this time he pointed it at one of the men in costume. “This is going to be the best vacation ever!” he cried.
    Joe followed his brother’s lead, pretending to pull out his sword again. He couldn’t stop laughing as they charged forward, toward the pool.



2
Watch Out!
    T he Tyrannosaurus rex opened its mouth and roared. Frank and Joe pulled more basketballs from the gutter and threw them into the hoop beside the dinosaur’s head. “We are halfway there!” Frank yelled. “Keep going.”
    They grabbed another ball, then another, and tossed them into the hoop. Each one was painted white and purple, which was supposed to make them look like dinosaur eggs. The basketball hoop was shaped like a nest. The boys had discoveredthe game this afternoon, and they’d spent the last few hours inside the arcade, shooting hoop after hoop. Dino Ball (which is what it was called) had earned them more than fifty tickets. If they won fifty more, they could have their choice of prizes from the arcade.
    “There you are!” Mrs. Hardy yelled