The Shark Rider Read Online Free PDF Page B

to the director’s office. Thanks for the help with the blacktip.”
    â€œSure,” Tristan said. On his way out he noticed a door he didn’t remember seeing before. “Where does that go?”
    â€œThat’s the entrance to the new chemistry lab. It used to be the old algae grow room for the Sea Camp water. Thanks partly to you, Tristan, and, shall we say, a boatload of new funding, we’ve been able to expand and renovate the area. And we’ve brought in an expert chemist to do some exciting research.”
    Tristan headed for the director’s office, thinking : What sort of research did they need a new chemist for ?

4
    THE SECRET ASSIGNMENT
    T HE DOOR TO D IRECTOR D AVIS ’ S OFFICE WAS ajar. As he approached, Tristan could hear the camp’s leader talking. It sounded like he was on the phone.
    â€œYes, we’ll do that. So far nothing definite, but we’ve never had so many power problems. Since Rickerton wasn’t able to hack into the system, we’ve been waiting to see if he would try something else. This might be it.”
    Tristan had been about to knock. He hesitated. Had he heard right? Did the director just say that crazy, evil billionaire guy, Rickerton, tried to hack into Sea Camp’s computers and might be messing with the power?
    â€œThe added security should help on that end. I’ll be in touch.”
    Tristan peeked around the door.
    â€œTristan, c’mon in. How’d it go at the Rehab Center?”
    â€œGood.”
    â€œGlad to hear it. Have a seat.”
    Tristan’s mind was racing. J.P. Rickerton was the guy whose yacht they sank in the Bahamas last summer. He killed a bunch of sharks for their fins and kidnapped three campers. Had he found out about camp and what they’d done? Tristan didn’t want to ask the director straight off. That would make it seem like he’d been eavesdropping. He sat on one of the simple wooden chairs in front of the director’s desk and glanced uncomfortably around the room. A photo of Jade, Rusty, and Rory on the lagoon dock with their arms around each other had been added to the wall of campers’ pictures. On a table nearby sat the elaborate LEGO model of an undersea community. He still couldn’t believe the detail in the domed structures, underwater vehicles, and marine life all built out of interlocking, multicolored pieces of plastic. On the opposite wall was the map of the world’s oceans. It was color-coded for depth and had little flags over the locations of organizations and facilities that partnered with the camp. Something new sat beside a flag over the Bahamas. Tristan looked closer. It was a miniature model of a tall sailing ship.
    â€œOh, I see you’ve noticed the latest addition to the wall,” the director said proudly. “I thought it only fitting to recognize the final resting place of the Santa Viento . After all, since the discovery of the shipwreck,thanks in part to you, we’ll have sufficient funding for years to come.”
    Tristan thought of the gold coin he found last summer. “Did they find more gold?”
    â€œWe’re still exploring the wreck and photographing and documenting the site. But yes, they found more gold and silver as well; also some jewelry and numerous other artifacts. The marine archeologist we brought in is thrilled. She thinks the wreck will reveal a lot about how people lived and traded back in about the seventeenth century. We don’t know the total value yet, but it could be in the hundreds of millions, maybe even billions.”
    â€œAwesome. Did that guy, uh, Rickerton, try to get the wreck or find his yacht?”
    Director Davis’s expression turned more serious, and he paused noticeably before speaking. “Mr. Rickerton seems to be a rather persistent man. Once we made a claim on the shipwreck, though, he had no rights or access to it. He has, however, recovered his yacht from the Tongue