Since the group was so large, Roarke and Leslie met the seven Australians in the main room of the Markham bungalow, one of three recently-built ones that had two bedrooms. Everyone settled into seats; Roarke and Leslie noticed that the two families maintained separate and distinct camps, making sure there was a fair amount of distance between one another and eyeing each other distrustfully. No one spoke, so Roarke took it upon himself to break the ice. "Have you all settled in and had a chance to rest?" he inquired.
"As a matter of fact," said Dorianne Markham, "I was planning on taking a swim, but my brothers convinced me this was more important." She shot Hugh, Angus and Colin a dark look; Angus was the only one who defiantly met her glare. Hugh looked a little sheepish and Colin glanced away.
"It is important, little sister," Angus said flatly. "We're all in this together, and that includes you, so get used to it."
Linda Carpenter leaned forward and deliberately addressed Roarke. "To get down to the business at hand, Mr. Roarke…what can you tell us about this alleged descendant of the Black Phantom? How did you find this horse and get it to Fantasy Island?"
Roarke sat back and smiled. "The horse, also named the Black Phantom, has always been on the island. Its owner preferred to remain anonymous. He passed away last month, and in his will he stated that the horse be returned to Australia and its rightful owners."
"That wasn't in the newspaper article we read," said Graeme Carpenter.
"Of course not," said Leslie with a smile. "Otherwise we'd have been overrun with claims from horse farms all over Australia. We simply decided to state that a possible descendant of the legendary Black Phantom had turned up on the island."
"Quite so," Roarke concurred. "Now that you are here, and since each respective family is claiming ownership, I have a question for you. Your ancestors worked together and jointly owned the original Black Phantom; so it appears only logical that the horse should be awarded to both families."
Before he could go on, Angus Markham snarled, "Over my dead body!"
"We could arrange for that," Graeme Carpenter offered sweetly.
"It's always been obvious that the Carpenters stole that horse and hid it away," Dorianne Markham shot back. "Tell me why on earth we'd want to share such a valuable animal with a family full of traitors."
"Speak for yourself," Melissa Carpenter said hotly.
The sniping and insults went on for another couple of minutes; Roarke and Leslie looked at each other doubtfully. Finally, during a lull in the war of words, Roarke spoke again. "Excuse me, ladies and gentlemen," he said, his voice frosting over. "Since it's plain that none of you can come to an agreement, I see it will be necessary to determine which family is to be granted ownership. And, according to the terms of the will of the Phantom's late owner, there is only one way to do so."
"How?" seven Australian voices demanded all at once.
"A contest," Roarke told them. "Nothing strenuous, mind you; rather, it's an exercise in mystery-solving. There is a legend revolving around the original Black Phantom that will reveal how to determine if the horse is truly his descendant. Your task is to find out what that legend is. The first family to discover it will notify either me or my daughter, after which I shall ascertain the lineage of the current Black Phantom."
Everyone stared at him blankly, including Leslie. Roarke met each gaze in turn, leaving Leslie for last and smiling when he got to her. She smiled back; his message was clear enough to her. She was going to be let in on the secret.
Carpenters and Markhams alike began to exchange odd glances, united in their perplexity. The Carpenter sisters leaned to each other and whispered; Angus gave his brother Hugh a sharp jab in the ribs. Hugh blinked at him and blurted loudly, "Ow."
"Shut up," said Angus, clearly ritualistically. He turned to Roarke. "Never heard of this so-called legend, Roarke. You sure it's not just something you made up?"
"Oh, it's real, Mr. Markham," said Roarke with a faint smile. "It's very real indeed."
"How are we supposed to find this legend?" Colin Markham asked.
"By searching for it, of course," Roarke replied. "Your ancestors who founded the original farms knew the legend, but as you can see, they took that knowledge to their graves. There was mention of the legend in the late owner's will as well. I am instructed to inform you that the legend holds the secret of the Black Phantom's unsurpassed ability to win races." He took in the thoroughly bewildered looks on all seven faces for a beat or two; then he made a point of taking out his gold watch and checking it. "That is your first clue, ladies and gentlemen. Now, if you will excuse us, we have other guests to attend to. Leslie?" He rose; she followed suit and accompanied him out.
They left behind seven stunned Australians, who sat in silence for a moment and stared after the door Roarke had closed behind him and Leslie. Then Angus snorted loudly. "Legend, hah! I don't believe a word of it."
"Fine for you," Colin spoke up suddenly. "You can drop out, then, and the rest of us will work towards finding the legend. Hugh, Dori, comin'?" He got up and started toward the door; Hugh and Dorianne looked at each other, shrugged at the same moment and followed him.
Graeme Carpenter shot Angus a smug grin and arose. "Linda, Liss, come on then. We have a lot of work to do." They filed out after the Markhams, leaving Angus glaring after them. His eyes glittered with a sudden rage, and he slowly got to his feet, pacing the floor and thinking furiously.
Shortly after lunchtime, Melissa Carpenter and Dorianne Markham stopped in at the main house, looking a little perturbed. Leslie was alone when they came in, but Roarke had filled her in on everything she needed to know; so she was able to give them the information they wanted when Linda demanded, "How are we to find the next clue? Is this supposed to be some sort of scavenger hunt, or what?"
"Not necessarily," Leslie said. "The first clue is intended to make you think. After all, Mr. Roarke said that the legend holds the secret to the Black Phantom's incredible track record. What advantage did the Black Phantom have that would enable him to so easily beat every competitor he ever faced? That's the question you're trying to answer."
Dorianne scowled. "I don't see what that has to do with any legend."
"You will," Leslie assured her. "Once you've figured it out, you'll be a lot closer to seeing the connection." The phone rang at that moment and she smiled apologetically. "Excuse me. Good luck." She lifted the receiver and greeted the person on the other end, her gaze shifting away from the two women. It was clear that she had said all she was going to say; stymied, they left the house, so busy thinking that they even forgot their longstanding enmity and were soon meandering down the Main House Lane side by side.
"Well," Dorianne mused aloud after awhile, "I always did hear that Mr. Roarke was an enigma anyway. Shouldn't be surprised he'd come up with something so cryptic."
"That's true," Melissa agreed. "But who'd've thought his daughter would be the same way? Ever heard anything about her, Dorianne?"
"Call me Dori. No, actually, I didn't even know he had a daughter. And y'know, she wasn't all that much help." She made a face.
Melissa grinned reluctantly. "She and Mr. Roarke are going to be totally neutral, of course. They have to be."
"True." Dori sighed, then stopped short and studied her. "There must be something about this island. Listen to us, talkin' to each other like real human beings. It makes a nice change from all the fightin'."
"I'll go along with that," Melissa said and laughed. "Well, where do you suppose we're to find this clue Leslie mentioned?"
"There has to be a library on this island somewhere," Dori reasoned. "Let's find a native and ask about it, and then we can go from there."
It didn't take them long to reach the library, and when they walked in the door, they saw immediately that they had been the last in their respective families to come up with this idea. Hugh and Colin Markham, Graeme and Linda Carpenter all looked up and scowled at the pair. Dori and Melissa glanced at each other sheepishly and apologetically, then split up to join their siblings.
"Turnin' traitor, little sister?" Graeme asked ominously as Melissa sat down.
"I had a question for Leslie the same time Dori did, that's all," Melissa retorted. "And I'll tell you something, I'm sick of all the stupid fightin'. It's a shame it seems traitorous to you to want to live in peace, whether you're friends with your neighbors or not." Graeme stared at her as if a second head had sprouted out of one of her shoulders, and she rolled her eyes. "Have you managed to find anything, with that one-track mind of yours?"
"Not yet," Linda spoke up then. "I've already been through three books and all they talk about is the Phantom's disappearance."
Dori, meantime, sat at a table opposite Hugh and Colin, glancing between them. "Where's Angus?" she asked.
"Probably plotting," Colin said gloomily. "I'm telling you, Dori, ever since we got here and had our first chat with Mr. Roarke and Leslie, he's had a fanatical look about him."
Hugh, who had always been developmentally slow, glanced at him and shrugged. "I ain't seen nothin' about Angus," he remarked. "Guess he just didn't want to come with us. What're we lookin' for again?"
Colin and Dori looked at each other with tolerant patience; they were used to Hugh's slow-witted ways. "A legend," Colin said.
"Just look for the Phantom's name in the index of all the books you have there," Dori said. "If you see it, tell me or Colin and we'll look a little more." She pulled a book off the top of a stack in front of Colin. "Let's get to it."
By early afternoon they were still at it and had been visited once already by Roarke, looking in on them. He had noticed the absence of Angus Markham, of course, but hadn't commented on it. He'd simply wished them luck and departed; now, mid-afternoon, Colin sat up and arched his back, trying to work the kinks out of it.
"I feel like goin' to the beach," Hugh said unexpectedly.
"You want to stop?" Colin asked. "We haven't had lunch anyway."
"Wait," Dori hissed all of a sudden, sitting up straight, her finger on the page of a book. "There's an interview in here with the owner of one of the horses the Phantom beat in a race in 1864. He said the Phantom just floated right out in front with hardly any effort and stayed in the lead almost from the beginning. Says here, 'Mr. Harrigan adds, "Seems like that horse has wings, the way he leaves 'em in the dust." ' "
Graeme Carpenter spied a short piece in a large coffee-table book in front of him. "I think this is the first thing I've seen that doesn't talk about the Phantom's vanishing act," he told his sisters in wry surprise. "Listen here. It quotes some guy named Johnson about the way the Phantom beat every other horse he ever raced. Says, 'Many people were heard to remark on the unusual ability of the legendary Black Phantom, but Mr. Johnson perhaps said it best when he observed, "That horse seems like a bird sometimes. He just sort of flies out ahead of the entire pack." ' "
"As if there were wings on him, maybe?" offered Melissa.
Hugh Markham peered at his brother and sister. "Ain't no such thing as a flyin' horse," he said placidly, with perfect logic.
Dori and Colin stared at each other. "But there were flyin' horses in legends," Dori said, eyes widening.
"What sort of horse would have wings, Liss? For cryin' out loud…" Linda began.
Graeme lifted a hand. "Wait a minute, Lin. Roarke mentioned a legend, remember? There might never have been any real horse with wings, but there was a legendary one."
"Pegasus," breathed Melissa, awed.
"Pegasus," Colin said, barely loud enough for Dori to hear.
Absolute silence reigned for about two seconds; then there was a mad scramble as chairs were frantically shoved back and several pairs of feet stampeded out of the library. The librarian watched disapprovingly, then glared at Hugh Markham when he clapped a battered hat on his head and cried belatedly, "Wait up!" before charging out in the others' wake. He didn't quite understand what they meant by Pegasus, but he had no intention of being left behind in this game.