Free The Monkey Howled at Midnight by Zack Norris Page A

animals couldn’t hurt. And there was a lot of money in the illegal business. Plenty to give some to an officer who was willing to take a bribe.
    Then he wondered … if Bezerra was involved, just how far would he go to stop the men from finding the warehouse?
    They walked on. Cody found the camp. “Now I’ll start looking for the trail marks,” he announced. “We’ll find that warehouse for sure.”
    They all kept walking. Cody found one of his trail marks on a tree. Then he found another and another and another.
    â€œI know we’re on the right track,” he told the officers. “It shouldn’t be much farther now. Keep walking on this path. I’ve got to go for a minute … y’know … nature calls …”
    â€œGo ahead, you don’t have to explain, Cody,” said Captain Montez. “We’ll all slow down.”
    Cody left the path and walked a few yards into the dense woods. The moment he stopped, someone grabbed him from behind and clamped a hand over his mouth.
    â€œKeep quiet,” the man’s voice said harshly.
    Cody recognized Officer Bezerra’s voice. His mind started racing. Why didn’t I hear him? he wondered.
    The officer had crept up behind him without making a sound. Now Cody nodded to let him know that he wouldn’t scream. He could probably have used karate to get free and then run back to the group, but he wanted to hear what Bezerra had to say.
    Slowly, Officer Bezerra took his hand off Cody’s mouth. “Listen to me, kid,” he said. “You don’t want the police to find that warehouse.”
    â€œI think I do,” said Cody. “I think the police want to find it, too. It seems like you’re the one who doesn’t want it to be found. Why don’t you want to save a lot of animals from being mistreated?”
    â€œOh, you’re worried about animals being mistreated, are you?” Bezerra said with a sneer in his voice. “What’s wrong with living in a zoo—or being a pet?”
    â€œThey aren’t free. They’re wild animals. They’re supposed to be free.”
    Officer Bezerra snorted. “Free to be eaten by another animal? The animals are kept in clean cages. They’re fed well and given water. What’s wrong with that?”
    â€œWhat happens to them after they leave the place? Why don’t you want them to be freed?”
    â€œYou’re all mixed up, kid. This is a breeding farm. The only animals for sale are animals bred in captivity. They only sell the offspring.”
    â€œThat’s a lie,” said Cody. “Even if it were true, it would still mean that wild animals are caged up. It’s a lot easier to just poach wild animals than breed them. That’s what’s going on.”
    Officer Bezerra stamped his foot. “Why can’t you understand, kid? This thing makes a lot of money. These animals are worth big bucks.”
    â€œSo what?”
    â€œUm—I’ll tell you so what,” he said. “Do you want to make a lot of money? Want to buy you and your brother a couple of ponies? Want to take some trips to Disney World? How about if you could take your dad on a trip to Europe? Wouldn’t you like to buy all the games you want?”
    Cody was getting angrier and angrier. Who did this guy think he was? He was acting like he was talking to a toddler. What kind of a police officer was he to offer someone a bribe?
    He gritted his teeth and forced himself to calm down. He was going to let Captain Montez take care of this. He played along.
    â€œOkay. How much money are we talking about? Enough for lots of vacations and a racecar?”
    â€œHa! Yeah, kid. Enough for lots of vacations. Enough for a racecar. Now you’re getting smart. I’ll tell you what. I’m going to talk to the guy I work for and explain what you’ve done for us. I know he’ll give you lots of money. All you have