Mystery of the Spider's Clue (5 page)

Jessie, Violet, and Benny thought hard for a minute. Then Jessie's face brightened as she suddenly caught on. “I do figure eights whenever I go skating!”

Henry nodded. “Exactly.”

Benny was confused. “Jessie's a good skater, but what does that have to do with anything?”

Just then Violet said, “Oh!” She put one hand over her mouth in surprise. “I think I know what Henry means. Skaters can do figure eights on ice ponds!”

“Ice Pond Road!” cried Benny. “Come on!” He was already halfway out of the boxcar. “Let's go check it out.”

The Aldens set off for the Morningside neighborhood once again. In no time at all they reached the corner of Ice Pond Road and Blue Street. The children hopped off their bikes and took a good look around at the four corners of the intersection. Their gaze took in a barbershop, a vacant lot overgrown with weeds, a bookstore, and a small restaurant with a pink awning.

But there wasn't a hollow tree anywhere in sight.

“I don't get it.” Violet checked out the street signs again. “According to the clues, this should be the spot.” She looked over at Henry. “Right?”

Henry nodded. “Has to be,” he said.

“Then where's the hollow tree?” asked Benny.

Puzzled, they all looked at one another. Then Jessie shook her head.

“Something doesn't add up,” she said. “Maybe we read the clues wrong.”

“What now?” Benny wanted to know, his shoulders slumped with disappointment.

The Aldens looked at one another. They didn't know what to do.

The Aldens refused to give up. The next day they went back to riding their bikes up and down the streets of Greenfield.

“We've been all over the Morningside neighborhood,” Jessie pointed out as they sat on a bench in the town square. The children were taking another look at the map. “And we've checked every street downtown, too.”

“What I can't figure out is why the clues lead right here,” Violet said. She pointed on the map to where Blue Street and Ice Pond Road crossed.

“I vote we ride over and take another look around,” said Benny. “Maybe we missed something.”

The older children weren't sure about this. Still, it couldn't hurt to take another look.

Henry folded the map and tucked it into his back pocket. “I guess it's possible we overlooked some kind of clue.”

The four Aldens walked across the brick-paved square to where they'd parked their bikes in a lot. They were deep in thought when a voice raised in argument caught their attention.

“I'm warning you! You'll be sorry if you do.”

The Aldens turned to see a silver-haired man standing at a pay phone making a call. Although his back was toward them, Jessie recognized the mystery man immediately. She ducked out of sight behind a parked car and motioned to the others to do the same.

Now the man was almost shouting. “We agreed to see this mystery through to the end! I expect you to keep your word.” The man suddenly hung up the phone, then turned and walked away, looking upset.

After peering all around, Benny said, “I think the coast is clear.”

Jessie turned to Henry as they came out from their hiding place. “That was the same man I saw across from Sam's house, and then again at the library.”

Henry looked at Jessie in surprise. “Maybe something
is
going on.”

“Who is he?” Benny wanted to know.

“I don't have a clue who that man is,” Jessie answered. “But I know he's up to something.”

“He mentioned a mystery,” Violet pointed out. “Do you think he was talking about the mystery of the Spider's Clue?”

“I'm sure of it,” answered Jessie.

Henry frowned. “That can only mean one thing.”

Jessie looked at him. “What?”

“That he got an invitation in the mail, too.”

“Do you really think so?”

Henry nodded. “Why else would he be talking about the mystery?”

Jessie was certain Henry was right. “That would explain his interest in Sam,” she said thoughtfully. “And maybe it explains his interest in us, too. He's probably trying to find out how much we know.”

Violet walked her bike beside Jessie. “I bet he's hoping we'll lead him right to the code word.”

“We'd better keep an eye on him from now on,” suggested Henry.

“And we'd better find the code word fast!” Benny added.

When they arrived at the corner of Blue Street and Ice Pond Road, the children made a careful search of the area. But once again, they found nothing that would help.

“Looks like we struck out again,” Henry said.

Jessie looked at her watch. “It's almost noon,” she pointed out. “Why don't we talk about this over lunch?”

The children decided to eat at the restaurant on the corner of Blue Street and Ice Pond Road. They waited for the light to change, then crossed the street. After leaving their bikes under the pink awning by the window, they went inside.

The restaurant was bright and cheery. It had a pink-and-white-tiled floor. There were pink leather booths along one side of the room and wooden stools with comfortable pink cushions at a counter on the other side. Pink roses in pretty vases had been placed on every table. And a collection of plants in pink ceramic pots hung in the window of a sunny little alcove.

“Somebody sure likes pink,” Benny remarked as he looked around. Suddenly he spotted a familiar face. “Look! Isn't that Thomas?”

Sure enough, Thomas Paintner was sitting at a booth in the corner. There was a young woman in a pale yellow business suit sitting with him. She was wearing reading glasses, and her dark hair was pulled back from her face with a shiny gold clip.

When Thomas saw the Aldens, he waved them over. “It's good to see you again!” he said with a friendly smile. Then he introduced them to his legal assistant, Melissa Campbell.

The children nodded politely and said hello, but the young woman barely looked at them. She was busy making notes in the margins of some papers.

“Any luck with Sam's mystery?” Thomas wanted to know.

His legal assistant suddenly glanced up.

“No luck yet,” said Henry.

“Oh,” said Thomas. “Too bad.” He sounded disappointed.

“But we'll figure it out,” put in Benny. “Just wait and see.”

Melissa Campbell smiled with amusement. “Pretending to be detectives, are you?”

“We're not pretending!” Benny said indignantly. “We've solved lots of mysteries!”

Melissa gave the Aldens a sharp look. “Oh, I'm sure you've solved
hundreds
of them.”

Benny could feel his face turning bright red. He wasn't used to anyone making fun of him. “We haven't solved hundreds,” he said, “but . . . but . . .” His voice trailed away. He didn't know what to say.

Henry squared his shoulders. “We
have
solved quite a few,” he said, looking Melissa straight in the eye.

Thomas spoke up. “Actually, these kids are real pros,” he told his assistant. “They have a real talent for figuring out clues.”

Melissa rolled her eyes. “I bet they even have their own office with a big sign out front.”

Jessie was ready with an answer. “Our boxcar is all the office we need.”

“We found it in the woods,” Benny added proudly. “And now the boxcar's in our backyard.”

“How very . . . unusual,” said Melissa. Then she turned away and went back to her paperwork.

“Feel free to stop by my office anytime.” Thomas handed his business card to Henry. “I'm on Elm Street,” he added. “And I'm never too busy for a visit from the Aldens.”

Henry tucked the card into his shirt pocket as everyone said good-bye.

“That lady wasn't very nice,” whispered Benny as the children made their way toward an empty booth. “Why doesn't she believe we solve mysteries?”

“Some grown-ups are like that,” Henry said as they settled into a booth. “They don't realize kids can figure things out for themselves.”

“Did you notice how Melissa ignored us at first?” Violet said after a moment's thought. “Until Thomas mentioned the mystery, that is. Then she was suddenly very interested.” Violet frowned. “Don't you think that was odd?”

Henry shrugged. “I guess she thought it was funny.”

But Violet thought there was more to it than that. She had a hunch Melissa Campbell had taken a special interest in them for some reason. But why?

As they looked over the menus carefully, they forgot all about Thomas and his assistant. Before long, an older woman in high heels came over to take their orders. Henry asked for a grilled cheese sandwich with coleslaw and milk. So did everyone else.

The waitress suddenly let out a long sigh. “These high-heeled shoes are killing me,” she confided. “It's impossible to walk in these things.”

The Aldens looked over at her. The waitress was dressed all in pink. There were even pink bows on her high-heeled shoes, and her long fingernails flashed with pink nail polish.

Although Benny was trying not to stare, the waitress caught his look.

“It makes me feel cheery to wear pink,” she said, smiling. “Pink's my favorite color.”

Violet spoke up shyly. “Purple's my favorite color.”

A warm smile spread across the woman's face. “That must be why you're wearing a purple ribbon in your hair!” She looked thoughtfully at the Aldens. “You're friends of Sam Snow, aren't you?” When the children stared at her in surprise, she gave them a wink. “I heard you mention Sam. I'm afraid you can't help overhearing things when you're a waitress. It goes with the territory.”

“Are you a friend of Sam's, too?” Violet asked.

“Yes, Sam and I have known each other for years.” The waitress held out her hand. “My name's Rose Hill. I own this little restaurant.”

“It's nice to meet you,” said Violet, shaking hands. “I'm Violet Alden. And this is my sister, Jessie, and my brothers, Henry and Benny.”

As everyone shook hands, Rose said, “Welcome to the Hollow Tree!”

The Aldens all looked at one another in disbelief. “Did . . . did you just call this place the ‘Hollow Tree'?” Benny asked, astonished.

“That's right,” replied Rose. Then she sighed. “I'm not surprised you didn't know the name of my restaurant. The sign on the awning out front is badly faded.” She tucked her notepad into her apron pocket. “I'm hoping to have some money soon to fix up this old place. By the way, if you see Sam,” she added, “tell him I'll be taking him out for lunch tomorrow. And I won't be taking no for an answer!” With that, she teetered away in her high heels.

The children were still so shocked by what they'd heard, they couldn't speak for a moment. Then Jessie said, “I can't believe it! We're actually sitting in the Hollow Tree.”

Henry nodded. “Good thing we decided to stop for a bite to eat!”

“So,” reasoned Violet, “if this place is the Hollow Tree, then the Spider's Clue must be around here somewhere.”

“But where?” Benny said thoughtfully.

The children kept craning their necks and peering around the room over lunch. But they weren't sure what they were looking for. What kind of clue
was
the Spider's Clue?

“What do we do now?” asked Benny as he finished the last bite of his sandwich.

“Wash windows,” answered Henry. He wiped his mouth with a napkin. “We promised Mr. Arnold, remember?”

The four Aldens were anxious to work on the mystery, but they didn't want to break a promise. Mr. Arnold was one of the senior citizens on Sam's list.

Violet borrowed Jessie's notebook. She made a quick sketch of the room to study later. Then the children paid their bill and hurried away.

Nobody noticed that though Thomas Paintner had left the restaurant, Melissa Campbell still sat at the table, waiting and watching the Aldens through narrowed eyes.