Free Crown of the Cowibbean by Mike Litwin

objects…glittering jewels and gold coins…there was even a sea snake’s head mounted on the wall. It was everything Chuck had hoped for.

    Standing in the middle of a room full of riches, they now both knew that they never had to doubt Marco again. And the two of them couldn’t help but agree on one thing: that really was some treasure hunt.

For hundreds of years, the secret, sunny island of Bermooda was a rather uneventful place. There were plenty of exciting and enjoyable moments, of course, but always in the name of progress or good fun. It was rare that the cows of Bermooda saw anything dangerous or out ofthe ordinary happen. Most things on this tiny tropical paradise were just as peaceful and predictable as the constant rolling of ocean waves upon the shore. But that was all before the days of Chuck and Dakota Porter.
    Sure, lots of folks have talents. Some folks have a knack for swimming and sailing, some have a knack for baking coconut cheesecake, and some even have a knack for growing beautiful hibiscus flowers. In the case of Chuck and Dakota Porter…well, they had a knack for finding trouble, even in a place like Bermooda.
    It had all started the day Chuck found Dakota washed up on a sandbar. Dakota was
not a cow like Chuck. Nor was he a pig, a bird, a monkey, or any of the other animals that walked,
talked, and lived on the island. Dakota was a hu’man, a savage creature everyone believed had been
extinct for ages. No one on the island had ever seen a hu’man before, and no one seemed to know much
about them, except for the legend about how they were nothing but monsters that ate cows and
breathed fire. To keep the island from plunging into panic, Chuck dressed Dakota in “cowmouflage”—a
cow costume to hide his real identity. Since Dakota had no home and no family, Chuck brought him
home to the Porter House. Dakota was eventually adopted into the family, though no one had any clue
he was really a hu’man.
    Ever since then, life on Bermooda had become much more eventful. Chuck was a
daring calf, and if he couldn’t find any excitement, he’d simply make some. This bold spirit
constantly led him and his newly adopted brother into dangerous and thrilling situations. It seemed
like every day was a new adventure.
    Today, however, was not one of those days. Today was quiet and peaceful. No
mysteries, no discoveries, no adventures of any kind. Just the crashing of waves, a warm breeze, and
the gentle cawing of seagulls. As far as Dakota was concerned, it was the perfect way to spend a
Saturday. Dakota was far less interested in adventure or excitement than Chuck. He would much rather
spend the day lying in the thick grass under the tall trees, wearing a straw hat and filling up on
delicious bananas. That is what they were doing on this Saturday in particular.
    â€œPass me another banana,” Dakota said.
    â€œThis is the last one,” Chuck said, tossing it to him. “If you want more, you’ll
have to climb another tree.”
    Dakota looked up at the trees towering over them. Bermooda’s banana trees stood
nearly twenty feet tall. Clumps of yummy yellow bananas teased their eyes, dangling up out of reach.
Bermooda’s cows were capable of doing many things that an average cow could not, but climbing trees
was not one of them.
    However, Dakota was excellent at climbing trees since he had fingers and toes
instead of hooves. His climbing was not quite as fast as a monkey’s, but it saved them the trouble
of dragging out a ladder. But Dakota felt quite relaxed at the moment and was not in the mood to
scramble back up and fetch any more bananas. Propping his back against a tree, he pulled his straw
hat down over his eyes and folded his hands behind his head.

    Meanwhile Chuck paced back and forth in the grass. “I’m soooooo boooooored!” he
mooed. “Aren’t you bored?”
    â€œNope,” Dakota replied from under his