Henry chuckled. “That explains the smell. I read in my guidebook that anteaters are like skunks. They mark their territory. The scent scares off predators.”

  Violet plugged her nose. “I can see why.”

  The children laughed. Everyone was relieved that it was not really the monster from the stories. Dr. Iris led them to the tree where the anteater had been. At the base, a stream of ants was going in and out under a large root.

  “That anteater really is a master eater,” said Benny. “I never would have thought there were so many ants in there.”

  After they were done looking around the clearing, Nigel headed back to the abandoned town to check on his footprints. The rest of the group took their time. On the way, Henry said, “Didn’t Professor Cardoso say that the giant ground sloths went extinct because of humans?”

  Dr. Iris nodded. “That is the theory, yes.”

  “Well, I’ve been thinking,” Henry continued. “You said that everything that lives in the rain forest has changed over a long time so it can live here.”

  “Like the anteater’s snout,” said Benny. He listed off the other animals they had seen. “And the tree sloth’s disguise. And the toucan’s call.”

  “And the fast-growing trees,” Jessie added.

  “So if the ground sloth really did survive,” said Henry. “It would have had to adapt too. To avoid going extinct.”

  Jessie nodded. She could see what her brother was saying. “If the giant sloth survived, it would have to become an expert too: an expert at staying away from humans.”

  “That is a very interesting theory,” Dr. Iris said. She added, “And it’s possible that having a strong smell could help keep humans away.”

  “But that is different from the story of the monster,” said Violet. “According to the story, the creature chases people away. It doesn’t hide from them.”

  “Another good observation,” said Dr. Iris. “It seems like the two are describing different things.”

  When the children caught up to Nigel, he was filming the plaster casts they had created. He’d wiped dirt on his face to make himself look like he had been on a chase through the forest.

  “The creature got away,” he said into the camera, “despite all our efforts to catch it. Whatever it was, it was fearsome. The smell of it alone was nearly overwhelming. Luckily, we found some evidence.”

  After Nigel turned off his camera, Benny said, “I really think you are cheating. Some people are going to watch that and think you didn’t know it was an anteater.”

  Nigel shrugged. “That part might not be real, but these footprints are.”

  “We don’t know that,” Jessie pointed out. “We don’t know what made them.”

  They turned to Dr. Iris, and she nodded. But Nigel just shook his head. He huffed and started back down the trail.

  When the group arrived at camp, everyone was hot and tired. But Nigel seemed to be in a better mood. “I think I’ll go for a swim before dinner,” he said.

  “You can,” said Kwini. “But I should check to see if it’s safe.”

  “How do you know if it’s safe?” Violet asked.

  “I’ll show you. Let’s go down to the dock.” They followed Kwini and Nigel to the river. Midway across, they could see dolphins coming to the surface for air.

  Kwini pointed. “See the dolphins? If they are here, there are no caiman in the area, and it’s safe to swim.”

  Nigel took off his shoes and jumped into the water. He swam out away from shore, and the dolphins darted about, leaping out of the water.

  “They are having fun!” Benny said.

  For a few minutes, the dolphins swam around as Nigel treaded water. “Come on in!” he said. “The water feels great!”

  Violet looked around. She couldn’t see the dolphins anymore.

  Kwini had noticed too. “Nigel, you’d better come in,” he said.

  “Why? I don’t see anything,” Nigel called back.

  Kwini stood up. He pointed across the river to the other bank. “I see a caiman!”

  Nigel swam for the shore and scrambled onto the dock just as a caiman appeared on the near side of the river. Then everyone hurried away from the river and up to camp.

  When they were seated safely around the campfire, Benny said to Nigel, “Professor Cardoso said you got bit by a caiman. That must have been scary.”

  “And really hurt,” Violet said.

  Nigel didn’t say anything for a moment. Then he shook his head. “Not me. He really must have me confused with someone else.”

  Henry and Jessie shared a suspicious look.

  “I suppose he does,” Henry said. “But he acted like he knew you well. He mentioned you had trouble walking, and I’m sure you’d have some sort of scar from an attack.”

  Nigel stuck his legs out. “See? No scars. But I do wish I would have filmed that.” He went and got his camera. “Maybe the big guy is still down by the water. I’ll try to get some footage. Kwini, would you come along and tell me if you spot him?”

  After the two had gone down to the riverbank, Dr. Iris said, “That was quite exciting, maybe a little too exciting. If everyone is all right, I need to catch up on my notes.”

  “We’re fine,” Henry said, but as soon as Dr. Iris had gone to her shelter, he turned to his siblings. “There is something strange about Nigel.”

  “I’d say,” said Benny. “Who would want to swim when there are caimans around?”

  “I don’t mean that,” Henry said. “I mean he doesn’t seem to be anything like the person Professor Cardoso told us about.”

  Violet nodded. “He doesn’t recognize the calls of toucans and macaws, but he wrote a whole book about birds in the Amazon.”

  “Can I see the bird book?” Henry asked.

  Violet gave him her guidebook, and he opened to the first pages.

  “What is even weirder is the date this book was published,” he said. “More than twenty years ago. I don’t know how old Nigel is, but he doesn’t look that old. He couldn’t have published a book when he was our age.”

  “If Nigel isn’t the Nigel Livingstone who wrote this book, than who is he?” asked Violet.

  “I don’t know,” said Jessie. “But I think Henry is right. We should show this book to Dr. Iris.”

  The Aldens found Dr. Iris lying in her hammock and writing in her journal.

  “We think something is strange about Nigel,” Henry said. “He doesn’t really seem to be a bird expert.” He explained about the date in the book and showed it to Dr. Iris.

  While she was looking at it, Jessie listed all the other odd things they had noticed. “Nigel doesn’t shave his head, like Professor Cardoso said. He doesn’t have any scars on his leg where the caiman bit him. He doesn’t walk with a limp.”

  “And he’s not scared of spiders!” Violet added.

  Dr. Iris sat up in her hammock. “Very interesting,” she said. “Of course, I have noticed that Nigel is different from what I thought he would be, but I hadn’t thought that he might be a different person. I’m going to ask him as soon as he gets back.”

  “He’ll probably just make up a story,” said Benny. “Like he’s been doing when he’s filming.”

  Benny’s words gave Henry an idea. “He is very good at making up stories, isn’t he?” Henry snapped his fingers. “I think I know who he is.”

  REVEALED

  Before Henry had a chance to explain, Nigel and Kwini returned to camp. Dr. Iris held up the guidebook on birds as she approached him. “This book was published twenty years ago. You are far too young to have written it, and you are certainly not an expert on Amazon expeditions. I think it’s time to tell us who you really are.”

  Nigel looked at the book and then down at the ground.

  “Is the real Nigel Livingstone your father?” Henry asked.

  “What?” Dr. Iris asked.

  “You’re right, Henry!” Jessie said. “Professor Cardoso told us Nigel Livingstone had a son, and the son loved stories ever since he was a little boy.”

  “He said that the son was going to help him record a story too,” said Violet. “Is that you?”

  Nigel looked back at them. At first, it looked like he might argue. Then he sighed. “You’re right. I did not write the book. But my name really is Nigel Livingstone. I have the same name as my father. He’s the man who is the expert.”

  “I don’t understand,” Dr. Iris said. “I’m sure I had the correct email address for Nigel Livingstone, the scientist.”

  “You did,” said Nigel. “My father isn’t in good health, and I read and answer his emails. When I saw your email, I thought it was the perfect chance for me. I’ve been wanting to go on an expedition for a long time to search for the mapinguary, but I couldn’t raise the money. I thought it would help my father too. When he published his theory about the giant ground sloths still being alive, it really hurt his reputation. I thought if I found proof of some kind, it would help him.”

  “You shouldn’t trick people,” Benny said.

  “I know,” said Nigel. “But I didn’t think it would do any harm.”

  “We trusted that you would be an experienced Amazon explorer,” Dr. Iris said. “I’m not sure what we would have done without Kwini. This trip could have been a disaster.”

  “I’m really, really sorry,” Nigel said.

  Dr. Iris sighed. “I suppose since everything turned out all right, we can let this go, but you have to promise not to pretend to be your father. Or anyone else.”

  “I promise,” Nigel said, sitting down on a log.

  “And if you want to help your father, you shouldn’t post your video about the mapinguary online,” said Henry. “That will only hurt his case.”

  Dr. Iris nodded. “That’s a good point, Henry. The best way to help is not to mislead people but to find real evidence.”

  Nigel put his head in his hands. “How can I do that?”

  The others sat down around the fire. “I think you’ve already started,” said Dr. Iris. “The tunnel we saw is very interesting. And the footprints you found are as well. With your father’s help, I imagine people would be happy to fund another expedition. Finding good evidence takes time. It doesn’t happen on a single trip.”

  Nigel nodded. The children could tell that he really did want to help his father. They hoped that Nigel’s next trip would help him do that.

  Dr. Iris looked at her watch. “It’s been a long day. Tomorrow morning we need to pack up so we are ready to leave when the boat comes back. Since the other passenger is on the way to a hospital, the captain won’t want any delays.”

  The next day, the camp was all packed up by lunchtime. The Aldens sat on the dock, but there was no sign of Captain Souza and his boat.

  “What if river pirates got him?” Benny asked. “They might have stolen his boat.”

  “He wouldn’t be going anywhere where there are pirates,” Kwini said. “He is a very experienced boat captain. I’m sure there is a good explanation.”

  “There it is!” said Violet.

  The Toucan came chugging toward them. As it pulled up to the dock, they heard Figly yipping from the pilothouse.

  “Sorry I’m a bit late,” the captain called.

  “We were afraid pirates had taken your boat,” Benny said.

  The captain smiled. “No pirates. We had some engine trouble, but it’s all fixed.”

  “We’re ready to go, but it will take a bit of time to get everything loaded,” Dr. Iris said. “How is your other passenger?”

  “He’s all right. He’s sleeping now. I’ll get the other crew members to help load.”

  Once the boat was loaded, everyone said their good-byes. Nigel and Kwini waved at them from the dock as the boat pulled away. The two were going to take the canoes back to Manaus later that day. The Aldens stood at the railing watching the camp disappear from view. Behind the boat, two dolphins darted back and forth and then swam back toward the camp.

  “Good-bye, Mr. and Mrs. Dolphin!” Benny called.

  The children laughed, and then they were quiet for a while as the scenery went by.

  Dr. Iris asked, “What do you think? Are giant sloths somewhere out there?”

  “I think the tunnel that Nigel showed us was amazing,” said Violet.

  “Those footprints were cool too,” said Benny.

  “I think there might be something unknown out there,” said Jessie. “But Nigel and his father’s story needs more evidence.”

  “I hope he finds it,” said Benny.

  “And what about the legend of our rain forest monster?” asked Dr. Iris.

  “I don’t think the mapinguary is real,” said Henry. “But the story is still alive.”

  “And it’s doing some good,” said Jessie. “It helped keep our taxi driver from wandering into the wilderness when he was a boy.”

  “And it might have helped scare away those illegal loggers,” said Violet.

  Henry looked at the toucan, Figly, with his long, colorful beak. “It’s like the other things we learned about in the rain forest,” he said. “The story has changed over time. It might have started as a story about the giant sloths, a long time ago, but I think it became a story to remind people to do the right thing.”

  Violet nodded. “Good stories find a way to stick around.”

  Dr. Iris looked at the four children proudly. “I think that is the perfect way to end our show,” she said. “You all have helped me so much this summer. I can’t thank you enough.”

  The children looked out at the rain forest as it passed by. “I miss being home with Grandfather and Watch,” said Benny. “But I’m going to miss investigating stories too.”

  “I’m sure you’ll find more stories to investigate soon,” said Dr. Iris.

  Jessie put her hand on Benny’s shoulder. “We always do.”

  THE BOXCAR CHILDREN® MYSTERIES

  THE BOXCAR CHILDREN

  SURPRISE ISLAND

  THE YELLOW HOUSE MYSTERY

  MYSTERY RANCH

  MIKE’S MYSTERY

  BLUE BAY MYSTERY

  THE WOODSHED MYSTERY

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  THE MYSTERY OF THE TIGER’S EYE

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  THE STUFFED BEAR MYSTERY

  THE MYSTERY OF ALLIGATOR SWAMP

  THE MYSTERY AT SKELETON POINT

  THE TATTLETALE MYSTERY

  THE COMIC BOOK MYSTERY

  THE GREAT SHARK MYSTERY