“It’s for spells,” she whispered. “You never know when I’ll get these ingredients again.”
Past another crest of another hill, the pendulum began to swing wildly, indicating their proximity to the thief’s hideout.
“Be quiet, now,” Charlie said. “Crouch down, watch out for the branches and the roots. And follow me.”
Like a group of colorful, silly-looking commandos, they progressed through the thicket until Charlie stopped and made wild gestures with his fingers.
“What?” Simon whispered.
“There’s a kea burrow right there, and it should be empty at this point in the day. It’s not breeding season either, so we’re in luck. We wouldn’t want to stress out the chicks.”
“According to the pendulum, that’s it,” Shanna whispered.
“You wait here. I’ll try to squeeze into the burrow to retrieve your box. Ah, look, you can observe that beautiful bellbird on the branch over there in the meantime …”
Charlie sneaked off to the knotted roots of a giant tree, and then his arms and head disappeared into a hole beneath it. His legs wiggled like a worm as he tried to dig in deeper.
Crouching, Chris stealthed up to Simon and Shanna. “At what point should I tell him the box is right there?”
“What?” Shanna yelped, then covered her mouth.
Chris pointed to a spot next to the tree. Simon squinted and finally saw it—their precious metal box.
“Why didn’t you say so before he started squeezing himself in there?” Shanna whispered.
“He seemed really excited about doing it.” Chris shrugged. “Didn’t want to ruin his fun.”
After more groaning, Charlie poked his head back out, his face smudged with dirt and half-rotten leaves. “Sorry, guys. Can’t seem to find your stuff in there.”
“Oh, look!” Shanna said, lacking a smidge in the surprise factor. “It’s right there. You must’ve uncovered it when you crawled in.”
“A-ha!” He picked up the box and handed it to her. “Another win for Charlie, and another win for the forest.”
Shanna checked the box. The bracelet and the letter were still in there, although the lid had been opened, and the letter munched on.
“They’re very clever,” Charlie said. “Can easily open the box and shut it, too.”
A fluttering of wings came from above, and a large shape descended upon Shanna, landing on her shoulder.
“There’s the cheeky little fella,” Charlie greeted the parrot. “Meet the kea. Beautiful, aren’t they?”
The parrot was large enough to reach over the top of Shanna’s head while perched on her shoulder. It had strong black talons and a long, curved black beak. Its feathers were muted green with a hint of blue, and a splash of orange seen underneath the wing. It tilted its head, looking at the box.
“No, you can’t have it.” Shanna pressed it closer to her chest.
“Watch it, bird,” Simon grunted at the parrot.
The kea let out a soft cry, like a mewling kitten.
“Aww, it sounds so cute!” Shanna said. “Hello, you little thief.”
The kea shuffled on her shoulder as Shanna smiled at Simon, dissipating his anger over the bird. With her green jacket, silvery hair, and the parrot on her shoulder, cooing and nibbling at her locks, she looked like a forest princess.
And in his mind, Simon thanked the parrot for nicking the bracelet and giving them one last bit of adventure.
Chapter 20
“Hey, Dad. Hey, Mom. Got some updates for you.” Sitting down on the greenery, Simon picked a blade of grass and twirled it between his fingers. “New series of phones coming soon. We’re trying the folding technology. Finicky for now, but with the improvements in glass materials, I think we can work out the kinks. You’ll see, it’ll be amazing.”
