The boys turned their heads slowly to look at Irene, eyes wide. "A menehune?" said Robby.

"What the heck is a menehune?" said Harry.

"The little people of Hawaii!"

Harry crossed his arms. "There's no way he's a menehune, he's a leprechaun!" The helmet was off now, and they could see that the little man had short-cropped, tight curly brown hair and striking emerald green eyes. His face looked as brown and as leathery as a fisherman who's been exposed to a lot of sun. At first glance, one would think that he would get squashed like a bug. But as Harry and Robby quickly found out, that usually worked in Lilliberulo's favor as that meant the element of surprise was on his side.

"If by leprechaun you are not only referring to the fact that I am of Gaelic descent but also to the fact that I am quick and in charge of the situation, then Harriman, you are very right," said Lilliberulo as he unzipped his jumpsuit to reveal slacks, a grey-green shirt, grey shoes and a grey belt. Now that he was here in person, Robby could hear the myriad of different accents in his voice that only made his voice sound so rough. On the phone, he could only hear the strongest accent, that of an Irish or Scottish accent.

"You're Mr. Lilliberulo?" blurted Irene.

Lilliberulo gave her a curt bow of the head. "Indeed I am. And you must be Irene Marshall."

"Oh yes, I am, pleased to meet you," said Irene with a quick bow of her head.

"Not quite were you expecting, huh?" he asked with a slight curl of his lips.

She smiled sheepishly. "Well not, not really. Not with the way the Hoenigs and Harry were talking about you."

"Ah yes, my woes, my reputation is bigger than I am, I'm afraid." By now he had walked up to the door, and the height difference was more noticeable. Irene was only six inches taller than him, but she felt bigger. He nodded at the house. "Show me what you found, Robertson."

"Yes sir." Robby quickly turned and led the way back into the house. Irene hung back as the two boys showed Lilliberulo everything they had found. Lilliberulo nodded as they revealed their thought process about everything they had seen in the house.

"Very good," said Lillibulero. He turned to Irene. "And you talked to the neighbors?" Irene nodded and told him everything she had found out. "And you are sure it is the treasure he is looking for?" he asked.

The boys nodded. "Oh yes," said Robby, "we talked to Maggie before we came to pick you up. She confirmed it. He was looking for the treasure."

Lillibulero rested his chin on his hand and nodded. "That does make sense, and yet, it doesn't."

"Huh?" chorused the three teens.

"But it does make sense!" said Irene. "Maggie said so herself Jack was looking for the treasure!"

"Wait, do you know something about this pirate guy?" asked Harry.

"Does kidnapping Jack not make sense for him?" asked Robby. "If so, why?"

Lillibulero eyed the three. "Those are not the questions you need to be asking."

Irene crossed her arms. "And why ever not? We've been the ones asking all the questions."

Lillibulero nodded. "I know, I know, but I am taking over this investigation. I will be the one asking questions from here on out. Unless I ask you to help, which you should be right now."

Robby sighed. "What do we need to do right now, Mr. Lillibulero?"

Lillibulero pointed at him. "Now that is a question worth asking. Right now, Robertson, I would like to see this Uncle Billy's place, and then you will take me to this Kailoa's where you saw this, um, pirate guy."

"Right." Robby took the keys out of his pocket and handed them to Lillibulero.

"Thank you, Robertson." He paused and glanced over the living room. "You did show me everything, right?"

The boys bobbed their heads. "Yes sir," they chorused.

Lillibulero nodded. "Good." He glanced around the living room again before his eyes fell upon the coffee table. He stepped towards it and rubbed his fingers over the top. "A fine piece of furniture . . ." He hand went under for a little bit before he snatched swiftly. "Robertson, Harriman, help me turn over this table."

"What?" exclaimed Irene as Harry and Robby leaped forward to help Lillibulero take everything off the table and gently flipped it over. The teens gasped when they saw what was underneath. "Why, it's a map of Dolphin Bay!" The map was covered in a grid with x's placed on several of the squares.

Robby pointed to an island just off the coast of the area marked as ICS. "And there's Devil's Hat! This must be how Jack was keeping track of his progress in looking for the treasure!"

"Very thorough," muttered Lillibulero, "a very intelligent man."

"Definitely," said Harry with an awed scoff, "I would have never thought of looking underneath the coffee table."

"Of course you wouldn't have, Harriman, not many would have thought of it, in fact, which is precisely why Jack put it here. A very smart place." Lillibulero traced the map with his finger. "And it seems Jack was almost finished with his search. There's not very many places left to look. We can use this to our advantage." Lillibulero quickly peeled the map off without tearing it and folded it quickly before putting it in his pocket. "Now help me right the table." The three turned the table back over and returned everything back to its former place. Lillibulero looked around the living room once more before leading the way out to the Jeep. "Robertson, direct me to Uncle Billy's," Lillibulero told Robby as he climbed into the passenger seat. Irene and Harry jumped into the back.

"Yes sir," replied Robby as he buckled in. He directed Lillibulero to Uncle Billy's with some help from Irene. They pulled into the driveway and Lillibulero led the way inside. Instead of going to the front register, he went straight away to a table. Billy came over to the table to take their order, and he was quickly introduced to Lillibulero.

"A pleasure to meet you," said Billy as the two men shook hands.

"Yes, a pleasure," said Lillibulero. "I was told that you have boats to rent."

"Aye, whatever suits your fancy. And I might even have scuba gear that can fit you too."

Lillibulero opened his mouth, paused, and thought a bit before speaking. "That might not be a bad idea. I would like to see what you've got."

Billy nodded. "Righto! Is there anything the four of you would like to eat, or are you here just for a boat and gear?"

Lillibulero waved his hand. "You can take their orders, I'm paying. I'll just take a fish sandwich. And do you have any tea, by chance?"

Billy hook his head. "No tea, unfortunately, maybe iced, but I mostly serve soda, lemonade, and water."

Lillibulero let out a quick, soft sigh. "A lemonade will do then."

Billy nodded and wrote it down before taking the teens's orders. "Now, if you want to come with me, I'll drop this off in the kitchen and they can work on it while I show you boats and the gear."

"Good," said Lillibulero. Robby began to stand but Lillibulero shook his head. "You three stay here, we shouldn't be long."

"Oh, we'll definitely be back in time for me to pick your orders, don't worry about that," said Billy before the two walked away.

"I think I see what you mean by Uncle Billy reminding you of Mr. Lillibulero, "said Irene as the two men disappeared around the back of the building. "They're both gruff and stern, but the more you get to know them, the better you like them." She glanced between the boys. "But Uncle Billy is still nicer."

Harry scoffed. "No kidding. He also smiles a lot more than Mr. Lillibulero."

Robby nodded. "Oh yes, I think I've only seen Mr. Lillibulero smile twice in the time that we've known him. Never heard him laugh, that's for sure." He glanced at Harry and Irene. "I wonder if he's ever laughed at all, or if there's anything that will make him laugh."

Harry shrugged. "Whatever it is, we haven't found it yet."

Robby sighed and shook his head. "Nope, and we might never find it."

"Yeah," said Harry, "but one thing's for sure, when they were walking away, they looked like Santa Claus and his elf in charge of the naughty list were heading out on vacation." He grinned, and Robby and Irene laughed.

"Speaking of, why did you scream and call him a mene . . . whatever it was you called him?"

Irene glanced down sheepishly and began to fiddle with her hair. "He took me by surprise and, well, the menehune are the dwarf-like people of Hawaii, and, well, that was the first thing to cross my mind when I saw him." She glanced between the boys with a hint of worry in her eyes. "You don't think I offended him, do you?"

The two shook their heads. "He's probably been called every name of little people in his travels," said Robby matter-of-factly. "With someone of his size, and his attitude, he's probably used to it by now."

"I'm sure he is," said Irene, "but I do feel slightly guilty about it."

Harry shrugged. "Then just apologise, he won't bite your head off, I can promise that."

Irene smiled. "Thanks."

Harry grinned back. "No problem."

There was a moment of silence before Irene spoke again. "So um, do you think we had better warn Uncle Billy about the pirate?"

"Well, I would say don't worry about it, with Mr. Lillibulero, this mystery will be solved by Saturday night at the latest," said Robby. "But with his arrival, that pirate guy might try to move his plans much more quickly, and since Uncle Billy does know his way around Devil's Hat better than most . . . well, I think it's best to be safe rather than sorry. I think we should warn him, but add that with Mr. Lillibulero on the case, it will be over real soon."

Harry nodded. "I agree, we still don't know what kind of guy we're dealing with and how desperate he is to get the treasure. If Jack hasn't helped him narrow down where the treasure is, with Uncle Billy helping too, he might find it faster."

Irene nodded. "OK then, we'll do that." At that moment, Billy and Lillbulero came back around the corner.

"So, Mr. Lillibulero here has been telling me that this mystery guy of yours is pretty dangerous and is most likely after the Hawaiian Heist," said Billy as Lillibulero sat down. "He's even telling me that I had better keep an eye out for my own skin should this fellow think he needs my expertise to find it faster."

"Oh yes, Uncle Billy, you must be careful!" exclaimed Irene as she grasped the man's hand. "This guy has been horrible, and I haven't even seen him yet!"

Billy patted her hand. "Don't worry, I figured it was time to take up your father's offer and spent the next few nights at your place. I figure that should help me keep a low profile."

Irene smiled. "Yes, yes that will be perfect!" She reached into her pocket and pulled out her phone.

"Oh, don't worry about texting your father, I already texted him myself," said Billy. "I'll head over once I close up the restaurant."

Irene sighed with relief. "That's great!"

"Good! Now that that's taken care of, let me get your order. Mr. Lillibulero was telling me he also wants you to retrace your steps and show him where all the attacks occurred."

Lillibulero nodded. "That's right."

"Be right back," said Billy. He walked off and returned a few seconds later with their order. The four ate fairly quickly. Lillibulero paid the bill and they were soon on their way to Kailoa's. Again, Robby and Irene gave the directions. Robby and Harry breathed with relief when the man who hosted them and Jacob that fateful evening was taking orders when they came in the door. He remembered Robby and Harry from that night too.

"We were wondering if you remember another fellow," said Lillibulero. "Red hair, full beard, striped shirt, full black raincoat?"

Kaleo's eyes bulged. "I, I, I d-don't know who you're talking about!"

Lillibulero's eyes narrowed. "Yes, you do, and he's threatened you to keep your mouth shut. But you have to tell us what you saw and heard that evening concerning that man."

"I-I can't! I have a family, sir, and . . ."

"That man has already threatened this life of this boy," said Lillibulero, pointing at Robby. "He's also kidnapped a scientist from ICS, has harmed a dolphin, and is threatening to kidnap Uncle Billy to find this Hawaiian Heist. You must tell me. I alone can provide you guaranteed safety."

Kaleo blinked as he glanced over Lillibulero's stature. "Um, begging your pardon, sir, but . . ."

"I am Lillibulero of the International Bureau of Police, I was sent to take this man into custody and I need your help to keep your bay safe." Kaleo seemed uncertain.

Irene stepped forward. "Please, Mr. Iona? You can trust him."

"But how can you guarantee the safety of my family and me?" asked Kaleo in a hoarse whisper.

Lillibulero indicated for Kaleo to bend over. "Let me tell you a secret." He whispered something in the Hawaiian's ear.

Kaleao's eyes widened in surprise. "Are you sure that will work?" Lillibulero nodded. Kaleo thought a moment and sighed. "Very well, I shall take your advice, both in what you have just told me and to give you the information." Kaleo took a deep breath before continuing. "Well, I can't deny that the guy was giving me weird vibes when he walked into the restaurant, but he seemed friendly enough and simply wanted to eat. So I got him his seat, took his order, and delivered it. He thanked me before he started eating. You know, a typical customer interaction. A few minutes later, Dr. Von Hoffer and these two boys showed up and placed their order. We got to chatting while we waited for their food to come out." Kaleo nodded at Robby. "You, though, were noticeably quiet and kept looking all over."

Robby winced. "Yeah, that's probably how he figured I had seen him."

Kaleo nodded. "I think so too, because as soon as you left with the food, he got up and watched you leave, I assume. I wasn't paying that close of attention as I was taking care of another customer, but I couldn't help but notice that. I said nothing, though, and had nearly forgotten the whole thing when he approached me after he had finished eating and asked about you. I just simply told him everything your grandfather had told me, which wasn't much, mind you. I was starting to get suspicious and asked him why he wanted to know." Kaleo gulped. "Apparently that was the wrong question to ask as he got in my face and told if I ever told anyone about this that I would regret it and my family would get hit first."

"What?" exclaimed Irene.

"OK, that's downright evil," said Harry.

"Did he give you his name?" asked Lillibulero.

"Y-yes, he said I would never forget it, and I haven't," said Kaleo. "He said his name was Captain Julian Vandal."

(Author's Note: As promised, here are the next two chapters as well. Just wanted to get the tenth chapter out of the way. And now we've got a name for a our villain! More will be revealed in later chapters, so stay tuned! Not all of it in these two chapters, unfortunately, lol, but the information is coming soon. Plus some other information that's needed to help them blow this case out of the water . . . pun slightly intended. ;P Thanks for reading and have a wonderful day! God bless!)