6 Follow That Bird!

Chapter 6 Follow That Bird! "What are we going to do?" Sofia asked Max. Her whole body felt weary, even though they had spent the night in comfortable beds at Paulo's house. They had told Juliana that their parents wouldn't mind them staying over. Which was true, Max knew—because no

time would have passed when they returned to Starry Bay. Max sighed. Not even the bright yellow walls of Juliana's restaurant could cheer him up this morning. He shrugged. "What can we do?" "We can eat," Paulo announced. He gestured toward Antonio, who was bringing out a plate of rolls. "Brazilian cheese bread. Best breakfast ever." Antonio set the bread rolls on their table. He had dark circles under his eyes, as if he hadn't slept a wink. "Listen, I just wanted to say again... I'm sorry." Paulo lowered his voice to a whisper. "I know," he said. "You were just trying to help." Antonio gave a weak shrug. "If only there were more macaws around—flocks of them, like there used to be—the restaurant wouldn't be in trouble. The tourists loved the macaws!" Sofia bit into a roll and wiped crumbs from her chin. "Could we find them?" she asked. "Could we figure out where the flocks of macaws went after the fire?"

"I don't know," said Antonio. "I only know where the one nest is." As Juliana called Antonio back into the kitchen, Max had a sudden thought. "Paulo, you said macaws like clay licks. Maybe we could find one." Paulo looked up. "They're usually found in river bends," he said, "where there's lots of mud and sandy clay." "We could follow the macaws," said Sofia thoughtfully. "If the parents of the chicks fly to a clay lick during the day, they could lead us there!" Max slapped his hand on the table so hard that his fork rattled. "That's it!" Paulo didn't look so sure. "Following birds through

the rain forest won't be easy. But... it might be the best chance we've got." A short while later, Sofia, Max, and Paulo were hurrying through the rain forest toward the macaw nest. They struggled to keep their eyes on the sky without tripping on the undergrowth below. Suddenly, Sofia saw a blur of red. Two scarlet macaws flew overhead. "There they are!" she cried, pointing. "Let's go!" said Max. Together, they led the way over dead branches and around bushes and vines. Max kept his eyes trained on the scarlet birds that flitted from tree to tree, until he tripped and sprawled in a heap of damp leaves. "Are you all right?" Paulo asked, reaching down to help him. Max nodded. "Thanks." But as he took a moment to catch his breath, he saw that Sofia had stopped running, too. "Where'd they go?" she asked, staring at the sky. As she spun in a slow circle, her heart sank. "Did we lose them?" "No," said Paulo. "I can still hear them cawing in the distance."

Max studied the dense canopy of leaves. "Maybe we just need to get up a little higher." He reached for a vine wrapped around a tree trunk, tugging on it to see if it would hold him. "Good idea," said Paulo. "Wait, take these." He handed Max the binoculars. Max hung the binoculars around his neck and began to climb, hanging on to the vine. When he reached the lower branches of the tree, he studied the sea of green around him, hoping to spot a speck of red. He saw nothing. So he climbed higher, until he found a gap in the

leaves. Here, sunlight warmed his face. He felt as if he could see for miles. He scanned the treetops, searching for the red wings of the macaws. As his eyes drifted past a patchwork of color, he paused. He pressed the binoculars to his eyes and searched until he saw it again—a flash of reds, yellows, and blues, so bright it could have been a rainbow-colored towel on the beach in Starry Bay. Max rubbed his eyes and adjusted the binoculars. There! This time, he zoomed out until he could see the brilliant patch of color set against a muddy riverbank. His heart thudded in his ears. "I see the clay lick!" he cried, nearly losing his balance. He peered again through the binoculars. "And