That evening, Jessie read the last chapter of The Twisted Clue aloud. When she was finished, Henry, Violet, and Benny clapped their hands.
“I liked the surprise twist at the end,” Henry said. “I didn’t see it coming.”
“Me, either,” said Violet. “Mila Jones and Jake Winston write cool mysteries.”
The Aldens had gathered in the room Jessie and Violet shared. Even Watch was curled up on the end of the bed.
“What’s the next book coming out, Jessie?” Benny wanted to know.
Jessie, who was sitting on the edge of the bed, flipped to the back of the book. She read aloud: “‘Partners in crime Mila Jones and Jake Winston have put together another great plot sure to leave you on the edge of your seats! Don’t miss THE JIGSAW-PUZZLE MYSTERY, coming out soon!’”
The children looked at each other in surprise. Then they burst into laughter.
“Can you believe that?” said Jessie. “The next book is about a jigsaw puzzle!”
“And we just found a stone jigsaw puzzle!” Benny’s eyes were huge.
“How funny is that?” said Violet, who was sitting on the window seat.
“I’ll tell you what would be funny,” said Henry. “If the next Detective Club mystery has a clue in it about the rings of time.”
“Oooh!” Violet shivered a little. “Now, that would be weird.”
“It sure would,” Benny said in the middle of a yawn.
Jessie had to bite her lip to keep from laughing. “Benny, you look just like the Yawning Tree.”
“Oh my gosh!” Violet put a hand over her mouth in surprise. “I think we got it wrong.”
“What do you mean, Violet?” Jessie asked.
“When you mentioned the Yawning Tree, it suddenly hit me,” she said. “We were looking for a tree in a hollow. But I think we should be looking for a hollow in a tree!” She sounded excited.
“You think something’s hidden in the hollow of the Yawning Tree?” Henry asked.
Violet shrugged. “It’s worth checking out, don’t you think?”
After a moment’s thought, Jessie said, “I think we might be getting warmer.”
“Let’s just hope Steve doesn’t get there first,” said Benny.
“I can’t quite reach it,” said Henry, who was standing on his tiptoes. The Aldens were standing under the Yawning Tree the next morning. Henry was straining to reach the hollow in the trunk.
“You can do it, Henry!” Benny was hopping up and down with excitement. “Just a little higher.”
“It’s no use,” Henry said, turning around to face his brother and sister. “I’m not tall enough.”
But Jessie had a solution. Lacing her fingers with Violet’s, they gave their older brother a step up. Henry managed to reach a hand into the hollow and patted around inside.
“Hurry, Henry,” Violet urged, straining under his weight.
“Anything there?” Jessie wanted to know.
Even Benny had stopped bouncing. He was holding his breath.
“I don’t think so, but … wait!” Henry cried.
“What is it?” asked Jessie.
When Henry stepped down, he was holding a tin box, no bigger than the palm of his hand.
“Open it, okay?” Benny urged, as they sat down at the picnic table.
Henry lifted the lid from the box. Inside, they found a piece of paper folded to the size of a postage stamp.
“I wonder if it’s another riddle,” Violet said, her voice scarcely above a whisper.
“There’s only one way to know for sure,” said Henry.
He unfolded the paper, then read the words in black ink aloud:
A gown of white
young Dora wore
on her birthday
number four.
“Hey, it’s a riddle about Dora!” Benny cried out in surprise.
Henry nodded. “When she was four years old.”
“It’s not much to go on,” said Jessie.
Benny jumped to his feet. “Let’s show it to Amanda,” he said. “She might know what it means.”
But Jessie didn’t look too sure. “Maybe we should keep this to ourselves for now.”
Henry thought about this, then nodded. “You’re right, Jessie. Amanda might tell Steve about it.”
“I forgot about that.” Benny sat down again. “She doesn’t know he’s up to no good.”
“We can’t be sure what Steve was talking about on the phone,” Violet pointed out.
“That’s true, Violet,” Jessie said. “But I still think we should try to figure a few things out on our own first.”
“If you ask me,” said Henry, “we should be looking for a picture of Dora.”
Benny agreed. “On her birthday number four.”
“There must be a family album somewhere,” Violet said. “I’m sure Amanda won’t mind if we browse through it.”
“Let’s ask her!” cried Benny.
The children found Amanda working at her computer in the den. She swiveled around in her chair as they came into the room.
“Hi, kids,” she said, flashing a smile. “Any luck with the spy game?”
Jessie didn’t want to lie, but she also knew it was best not to mention the mystery just yet. “We’re still working on it,” she said truthfully.
“Oh.” Amanda looked disappointed.
Henry said, “We were just wondering if we could take a look through your family album.”
“The family album?” Amanda gave them a questioning look. “There’s one in the living room,” she told them. “And there might be some family photos in Dora’s old hope chest.”
Before Amanda had a chance to ask any questions, Steve poked his head into the room. When she motioned for him to come in, he opened the door wider.
“I was out for a walk,” he said to Amanda. “I remembered how much you like daisies.” He pulled a bouquet out from behind his back.
“How sweet!” Amanda smiled as she reached out for the flowers.
Jessie couldn’t help noticing Steve blush a little. She wondered if he had a crush on Amanda. But why would he want to steal from somebody he liked?
Steve looked over at the Aldens. “Found any gold yet?” he asked, a teasing twinkle in his eye.
Benny blurted out, “Well, we did find—” Henry poked him. Then Benny remembered they were not supposed to talk about the mystery.
Steve was instantly curious. “You found something?”
“The stone riddle,” Jessie said, after some quick thinking.
“Oh, that,” said Steve. “Yes, it’s a tough one to figure out. I bet you’re going around in circles.”
Violet spoke up. “Can we put the daisies in water for you, Amanda?” she asked, trying to change the subject.
“Thank you, Violet.” Amanda held the bouquet out to her. “I think you’ll find a vase in the bottom of the dining-room cabinet.” As the children headed for the door, she added, “Oh, I was wondering about tomorrow night. Why don’t you just stay over? It would give you a break from all that biking back and forth.”
“That would be wonderful,” said Jessie, and the others nodded. “We’ll have to check with Grandfather. But I’m sure he won’t mind.”
Amanda seemed pleased to hear this. “Steve’s giving me a lift into town tomorrow to run some errands. But Mrs. Dawson will be here,” she said. “And don’t forget your swimsuits,” she added. “If it gets hot, you can cool off in the creek.”
The children agreed that it sounded like fun. Then Henry and Violet headed to the living room to find the Penner family album while Jessie and Benny went to look for a vase. In the corner of the dining room was a cabinet with glass doors. As Jessie reached a vase from the bottom shelf, Benny tapped her on the shoulder.
“What is it, Benny?”
“Look,” he said, pointing through the glass doors.
There, on one of the cabinet shelves, was a set of Detective Club books. “Oh!” Jessie said. Her mouth dropped open in surprise.
Benny stood with his hands on his hips. “Amanda told us she’d never heard of the Detective Club books,” he said.
“She said they ‘didn’t ring a bell.’” Jessie recalled.
“Why would she lie to us?” Benny asked.
Jessie pulled out a book and opened it to the first page. The inscription read: THIS BOOK IS THE PROPERTY OF AMANDA PENNER.
There was no doubt about it. Amanda really did lie to them. But why?
Henry and Violet came in and saw the books, too.
“Maybe she just forgot she owns them,” Henry said.
But Jessie wasn’t convinced. “Remember when I mentioned the Detective Club authors—Mila Jones and Jake Winston? Amanda changed the subject as fast as she could. Did you notice?”
The others nodded. They’d noticed, too.
“But why would she pretend she’d never heard of the Detective Club books?” Violet wondered. “That’s the part I don’t understand.”
“It does seem odd,” Henry said. “But I think we should concentrate on one mystery at a time. “
The others agreed. “Let’s find that picture of Dora!” said Benny. |