Nole and Moptop were now trying to sneak through the neighborhood into which the thugs' getaway car had turned. Moptop's attempt at going through one of the labyrinthine houses had been disastrous, as he had been forced to find a ghostlike child who was playing hide-and-seek. They couldn't afford another delay such as that, so they did their best to slip behind bushes and fences, though the bright sun was not conducive to being stealthy.
Sure enough, Brunk spotted them from the back of the car and screamed, in an extremely high voice, "Helpmehelpmehelpmehelpmehelpmeeeee!"
"Really? Why are we even trying to save this guy?" sighed Moptop.
The car sped off to lose the two attempted rescuers, but it was obvious that they were headed to the mansion at the top of the hill, which was surrounded by an extensive garden. Making it on foot would be difficult, at best.
Nole walked up the trail fairly quickly, but Moptop couldn't help but notice the strange wildlife in this garden. He saw a dizzying array of spiders, some large and colorful. He also noted a tiny blue lizard on the ground, which appeared to be dancing to unheard music.
"Did you see that?" he asked Nole.
"No," Nole replied, curtly.
The pair eventually arrived at the main lawn, where they saw the mastermind of this kidnapping plot--the Fat Man. He was flanked by his two fearsome bodyguards, Moonface and Nathor.
"Bring him out! Let him go!" demanded Moptop.
"No!" shouted the Fat Man. "He's mine!"
"Why do you want him?"
"It doesn't matter! You can't have him! Get 'em, men!"
The thugs lumbered toward them, but Nole pulled out a frying pan and smashed it over both of their heads. In fact, as if to drive home the point, he chased them around and did it repeatedly. Moptop and the Fat Man looked on in disbelief.
"Okay, fine." the Fat Man said. "You can have him back."
Brunk joined the party.
