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halfway through Treasure Island and imagining himself kidnapped on a pirate ship—but it was hard to concentrate with Josie missing and in danger.
    â€œWhat if a mountain lion ate her?” Jack asked sadly.
    â€œI don’t think they eat other cats,” Simon said. “That would be too weird.”
    â€œYeah,” said Henry. “Like cannibalism .”
    But he wasn’t so sure. For a mountain lion, was eating a cat any different than eating a raccoon or a squirrel? They were all just tasty pieces of meat, weren’t they?
    â€œDo you think we should go back up there and look for her?” Henry said this softly, afraid that Mrs. Barker, who was unloading the dishwasher, would hear.
    Simon scanned the jagged silhouette of Superstition Mountain. “Maybe,” he said. “But we can’t go anytime soon. Mom and Dad are still too nervous.”
    It was true that their parents had been unusually watchful and attentive for the last few days. Mrs. Barker stopped work to check on them frequently, even when they were only playing in the driveway, and when Mr. Barker came home at night, he required a full account of their day.
    â€œThey’re like prison guards,” Simon complained. “We can’t do anything.”
    There were two things the boys wanted to do: find Josie and figure out the real danger of Superstition Mountain. Henry and Simon had quickly decided that however scary mountain lions and rattlesnakes might be, their parents and the policeman were worried about something else entirely. What was it?
    â€œThere’s something they’re not telling us,” Simon said.
    â€œYeah,” Henry agreed. “They’re being sneaky, like those people in movies who pretend they don’t know anything about the crime. You know, when the police interrogate them.”
    Of course, there was also something Henry, Simon, and Jack weren’t telling Mr. and Mrs. Barker. They’d said nothing about the three skulls. At night, before Henry fell asleep, he could see them clearly: ghostly white blobs perched on the ledge overlooking the canyon. He was sure those skulls had a story to tell … especially the one with the dent in it.
    Mrs. Barker opened the sliding door and looked down at them, hands on her hips. “Boys, come on. I know you’re upset about Josie, but I still think she’s okay. Don’t you remember in Illinois, that time she was gone for a week? She came back all fat and happy, like she’d been on vacation.”
    Henry smiled a little. It was true. They’d been so worried about her, but when she finally appeared at the back door, she was round and well-rested. She didn’t even seem particularly glad to be home.
    Mrs. Barker picked up Henry’s neglected book and tucked the bookmark securely in place. “It’s only been three days, Hen. She’ll come back.”
    â€œHey!” Simon jumped to his feet. “I know! We can make flyers with her picture on them and put them up around the neighborhood.”
    â€œThat’s a good idea,” Mrs. Barker coaxed them. “I’ll get you some markers. Why don’t you work at the kitchen table?”
    She returned with a fistful of colored markers and some blank paper. “Now I have to get to work too, okay? So no interruptions, please. I’m on deadline for that book on sports medicine, and I have several drawings I have to finish by the end of the week.”
    When she left the room, Simon whispered, “Finally she’ll be out of our hair.” Henry hoped so. They all much preferred their mother busy with work than nosing around in their affairs.
    Glad to have something to do, they huddled over the blank paper.
    â€œI’ll draw a picture of her!” Jack announced cheerfully, grabbing a thick black marker.
    â€œJack—” Simon started to protest.
    â€œLet me do it,” Jack insisted. “I’m a good