20-A GLITTERING WHITE GHOST

A GLITTERING WHITE GHOST Bouncer CAME UP with a plan. "Wait for me here, Mousey Mouse," he said. Then he took off. In the meantime, the two scoundrels had reached the island. "Forward MARCH!" ordered the captain. The chubby one lit an oil lamp. He grabbed a shovel and started trudging through the sand. I cringed. They were headed straight for me! But where was Bouncer? Just then, I heard a rustling sound behind me.

A white ghost emerged from the shadows. He was moaning, "SCRUM! MOVE IT! GET LOST!" I opened my mouth to scream, but my vocal chords were frozen. Then the ghost whispered in my ear. "Pretty good, huh, Mousey Mouse?" I should have known. It was just Bouncer. Before I could respond, he galloped down the path. "SCRAAAAAM! MOOOOVE IT! he howled in a spooky voice. GET LOOOOST!" When the two crooks saw him, they turned white. "A ghost!" they cried. They tore down the path and jumped into their canoe. They paddled away so fast, you'd think they were in a speedboat. "I rolled in the quartz crystal sand," Bouncer told me. "Pretty cool, huh, Mousey Mouse?"

It was then that I noticed the crooks had lost their treasure map. "'Under the rock shaped like a cannon, the treasure is found,'" I read aloud. I was curious. Was there really a treasure? Bouncer scratched his head. "Er... I'll bet my fur I've seen that rock somewhere around here," he mumbled.