The Haunted Lighthouse by Penny Warner Read Free Book Online

found by the guards? And if they had been hidden in the lighthouse, they probably would have been found by now.
    Her mind immediately jumped to the note they’d found under Seat B-2 in the dining hall. It had read: “Candle on the Water.”
    A lighthouse.
    “Whatever happened to Diamond Dave?” Quinn asked.
    “He was finally released, after serving his time,” the ranger answered. “Then he just disappeared. No one ever saw him again. Rumor has it that he reclaimed the diamonds his buddies had hidden for him, following clues they’d left while visiting him in prison. But no one knows where the diamonds—or Dave—ended up. He could have died before finding his treasure. He could have been double-crossed by his so-called pals. Or he could have found the diamonds, left the country, and lived out his days in style. It’s one of those unsolved mysteries that makes Alcatraz so interesting.”
    Cody looked at Quinn, then Luke, then M.E. Their eyes were wide.
    “All right, everyone, this concludes the tour,” the ranger said. “Feel free to visit the gift shop and explore the rest of the island, as long as you stay out of the restricted areas.”
    “Are you thinking what I’m thinking?” Quinn whispered to the other three.
    They nodded, grinning.
    M.E. stuck out her index finger. “The e-mail you got on your computer, Cody,” she said, raising another finger, and another, and another, as she listed the clues. “The torn messages we found on our front porches. The clue we found under the bench. The story of Diamond Dave and his drawings.”
    Cody was about to blurt out the key to the clues M.E. had just listed when she noticed Matt the Brat standing nearby, obviously trying to overhear them. She raised her finger to her lips to silence the others, then finger-spelled what she’d been about to say:

    Code Buster’s Key and Solution found on this page , this page
.
    “It has to be that!” Quinn said. “So let’s go!”

J ust a sec,” Cody said, as they began to head for the lighthouse. She ducked into the gift shop and helped herself to a free brochure. Returning a few moments later, she showed the brochure to the others.
    Quinn said, “We already have a map.”
    “I know,” she said, unfolding it, “but I want tosee if there’s anything more about the lighthouse. Maybe there’s a secret entrance or something.” Cody read it over.
    “What’s it say?” M.E. asked.
    Cody skimmed it for information to share. “Ummm … built in 1854 … automated in 1963—the year the prison was closed. It’s still a working lighthouse … first one on the West Coast … built of reinforced concrete … octagon-shaped … eighty-four feet high …”
    “Skip the boring stuff,” Luke interrupted. “Is there anything we really need to know?”
    Cody frowned at him. “Only that the grounds aren’t open to the public, so we can’t go in it.”
    Quinn shot her a look of concern.
    “But we’ll see when we get there,” Cody said. “There should be a sign.”
    They climbed the steep hill leading to the lighthouse, which looked like a giant chess piece. Cody continued to read the rest of the brochure to makesure she hadn’t missed anything.
    “Did you know the lighthouse also had a fog bell that helped keep ships from running into the island?” she asked. “And sailors used signals and codes to call for help in times of trouble. For example, they communicated over the airwaves using the phonetic alphabet. Each letter matched a word, so sailors could clearly understand the call. See if you can translate this example”:
    Sierra – Hotel – India – Papa
    India – November
    Delta – India – Sierra – Tango – Romeo – Echo – Sierra – Sierra
    Code Buster’s Key and Solution found on this page , this page
.
    Cody was about to give the answer when Luke suddenly jerked her arm, startling her.
    “Hey!” she said, still annoyed at him for interrupting her earlier.
    Luke pointed to the white