Mystery of the Wild Ponies (4 page)

“So? Lots of people leave lights on. That doesn’t mean I was up looking at horses or whatever.”

From where she was standing, Violet was able to see in the wide sliding glass doors. A painting rested on an easel in Winifred’s airy living room.

The painting showed a black stallion on a dune.

“Is that all?” Winifred was saying. “If you don’t mind, I have work to do.”

“Thanks,” Henry said, leading them off the deck. “We won’t bother you anymore.”

On the way to the college boys’ house, Violet told the others what she had seen.

“Where did that painting come from?” Jessie wanted to know. “Yesterday she was mad because none of the horses showed up to model for her. Could she have seen what Benny saw?”

“Maybe she copied the horse from a picture,” Violet said. “Artists do that sometimes. But how did she paint it so fast?”

Those were questions the children couldn’t answer. Maybe the boys next door would have more information.

Jeremy Ross was rinsing sand off his bodysurfing board. He turned the hose off when he saw the Aldens.

“Hey there,” he said, glad to see them. “I was just going in for a snack. Want to join me?”

The kids followed him into the kitchen. Jessie muffled a giggle when she saw the mess. Empty pizza boxes, soda cans, and chips bags littered the counter. It didn’t take a detective to see three messy college kids lived here!

“Where are Drew and Paul?” asked Henry.

“Still surfing. I’m afraid they’re going to get waterlogged,” said Jeremy. He pulled a loaf of bread and a jar of mayonnaise from the refrigerator. A bowl of bananas sat on the counter. The Aldens watched Jeremy make peanut butter, mayonnaise, and banana sandwiches.

“Hey! That’s my favorite!” Benny exclaimed. And, he thought, that was the same sandwich that disappeared from their deck.

“Mine, too,” said Jeremy. “Guys come into my dorm room all the time for a Ross Special. That’s what they call it.”

He asked if they were hungry and quickly slapped together five gooey sandwiches. Benny bit into his with delight.

“By the way,” Jessie began, “did you happen to see a horse last night?”

Jeremy poured them all glasses of milk. “A horse? The only thing I saw was the inside of my eyelids,” he joked. “I was asleep.”

“We were just wondering.” Henry finished his sandwich.

Jeremy didn’t seem interested. “Did I ever tell you guys about the big stunt I pulled last semester?”

Benny shook his head. “What was it?”

“I’m surprised you didn’t read about it in the papers,” the older boy crowed. “It was that great.”

“What did you do?” asked Violet, curious.

Jeremy grinned teasingly. “Tell you someday.”

Jessie picked up their plates and glasses. Jeremy obviously liked to tease. “We should go,” she told him. “Our grandfather will be home soon.”

“Come back anytime,” Jeremy said, opening the door. “Maybe I’ll tell you about the Greatest Stunt in the World.”

“He’s fun,” said Violet as they crossed the wooden walkway. “I wonder what he did.”

“I bet Jeremy is still pulling stunts,” observed Henry. “He could have taken Ms. Gorman’s towel.”

“And my sandwich,” Benny added. “We both like the same kind.”

Jessie wasn’t listening. She was watching a boy with hair so blond it was nearly white. The boy carried a beach chair down the road. Stenciled on the blue canvas back was a bird. She’d seen that bird somewhere.

“Look at that boy,” she said to the others. “Where could he be going with a chair?”

Henry shaded his eyes. “That bird design looks familiar.”

“It’s just like the sign at the Seagull Resort,” Violet said. Last night she’d practiced drawing a bird with one line.

“Violet’s right!” said Jessie. “But where is he going? The resort is down the road. Why would he carry a chair all the way up here?”

“Maybe it got washed up on the beach,” Benny offered.

Henry shook his head. “The current brings things south, not north. The chair would have been found south of here and he’s walking from the north. Whoever he is, he didn’t find that chair around here.”

“I’ll pick you up in about twenty minutes,” said Grandfather.

The children scrambled out of the station wagon. When Grandfather said at breakfast that he needed to pick up some items he’d forgotten at the grocery store, the children leaped at the chance to visit the wild horse sanctuary again.

“We’ll be right here,” Henry said to Grandfather. He noticed Thomas Hyde’s Jeep parked outside the gate.

When Grandfather drove off, the Aldens walked up the sandy road.

Benny climbed on the gate. “No horses,” he said, disappointed.

“Maybe they’ll follow Officer Hyde back here like they did the other day,” said Jessie.

They didn’t have to wait long to see the sanctuary officer. He came down the path and opened the gate, then closed it behind him.

“You guys are up early,” he said.

“We came to visit the horses while our grandfather is at the store,” said Henry. Then he remembered a question he wanted to ask. “Did you see a lady here the other day? An artist? She always wears a big straw hat.”

Officer Hyde shook his head. “I didn’t see her. Did she want to see me?”

“She’s our neighbor,” Jessie replied. “She was trying to paint the horses. She was mad when they didn’t show up.”

Officer Hyde fumbled with the padlock, clearly upset. “They’re wild animals. They don’t care about human schedules.”

Violet sensed something was wrong. “Is everything okay?” she asked, concerned.

“One of the horses is missing,” Officer Hyde said.

“Missing!” Benny gasped.

Officer Hyde nodded. “Yes. At first I thought Midnight had simply wandered away from the herd. But I searched the sanctuary yesterday and this morning. I can’t find him.”

“Maybe he got out,” said Jessie. “You said they do that sometimes.”

“They do, but not for very long. You see, Midnight is the leader of the herd. Last week I noticed another stallion acting aggressive.”

Benny frowned. “What do you mean?”

“There can only be one leader of a herd,” Officer Hyde explained. “If another stallion wants to take over, he’ll fight the leader. I think that’s what happened. Midnight got in a fight and lost. He was driven away from the herd.”

“Does that mean Midnight can’t come back?” Henry asked.

“No. Midnight could take over again. But he can’t be gone too long or the herd will accept the new leader instead.” Officer Hyde gazed over the dune. “In any case, I need to find him. He may be injured.”

“I guess Midnight is black,” said Benny. He thought of the horse he’d seen pawing the beach the other night.

“Like midnight,” Officer Hyde said, smiling. “Listen, if you kids see or hear anything, please let me know immediately. The sooner we find him, the better chance he has of regaining his place in the herd.”

“What happens if he doesn’t?” Violet asked, feeling sorry for the lost horse.

“It means he’d have to find a new herd,” said Officer Hyde, opening the door to his Jeep. “That would be hard since the herd is so small. There are only a few new colts born every year.”

“We’ll be on the lookout,” Henry promised.

Officer Hyde climbed in and drove off.

“I wonder where Midnight could be,”

Violet said. “We know it can’t be the horse Benny saw on the beach that night.”

“Mine was a ghost,” Benny insisted. Then he had a thought. “What if Magic the ghost horse is the horse that had a fight with Midnight?”

“How could that be?” asked Henry gently. “Officer Hyde said he knew the other stallion that was trying to take over.”

Benny wasn’t about to let go of his idea. “But Shad told us Magic appeared when he wanted to go back to his herd.”

Violet nodded. “That’s right. Shad said when we see Magic, he’ll be coming back to reclaim his rightful place in the herd.” She quickly added, “But it’s just a story, Benny.”

“There are no ghosts,” said Henry firmly. “Not even ghost horses.”

At that moment, something whinnied behind him. Startled, the kids spun around.

“Oh, look!” Violet said softly.

Three horses stood at the gate, shaking their shaggy heads. Two of the ponies bent to crop the grass growing at the base of the gate. The third horse gazed at the kids.

“Such big brown eyes,” said Jessie, fascinated. “It’s like she’s telling us something.”

“I know what she’s saying,” Benny said. “She wants Midnight back.” Then he spoke louder, so the horses could hear. “We’ll find him. We promise.”

Henry smiled at his little brother’s enthusiasm. He realized how important it was to find the missing stallion. The Outer Banks might look small on the map, but the island they were on was actually fairly big. Midnight could be anywhere.

When they got back to the cottage, the kids changed into their suits and went down to the beach. Henry carried a cooler of drinks and snacks. Jessie brought a blue-and-white-striped umbrella. Violet brought her art things, the towels, and a sack of toys for Benny.

They found a nice spot between the dune and the ocean. Violet laid out the towels.

Henry stabbed the umbrella into the sand and opened it. Then he yelled, “Last one in the water is a rotten egg!”

With screams of laughter, the Aldens plunged into the waves. Jessie and Henry took Benny’s hands and led him past the breakers. He squealed with delight as they played in the gently swelling waves.

Farther out, they saw Jeremy and his roommates bodysurfing, and Benny waved and shouted hello.

Jeremy yelled hello back to them and caught the next wave in. He landed at the foamy water’s edge next to Benny.

“Hey,” he greeted them, “do you want me to show you how to catch waves?”

“Yes!” they all cheered at once.

Jeremy coached Benny in the water close to the shore and gave Violet, Jessie, and Henry tips on catching the swells a little farther out.

While stopping together to catch their breath, Benny remembered something he’d wanted to ask their friendly college neighbor.

“Jeremy, you never told us about your big stunt,” Benny said. “What was it?”

Jeremy grinned at the memory of his last big practical joke. “I ‘borrowed’ a goat from the veterinary department and dressed him up in my English professor’s hat and scarf.”

Benny laughed and Henry Jessie, and Violet couldn’t help smiling, even though they didn’t approve of the prank.

When the kids grew tired of riding the waves, they thanked Jeremy and walked back up the beach. They wrapped themselves in thick, fluffy towels and sat in the sun to dry.

Suddenly Henry gave a cry. “Look! Dolphins!”

“Where?” Benny demanded. Then he saw their dark gray glistening bodies arch out of the water.

The Aldens watched, enchanted. “They’re playing, just like Jeremy and his friends,” Jessie exclaimed.

Violet turned back. She saw Winifred Gorman on her deck, working. “I wonder if Ms. Gorman sees them.”

“Let’s go tell her!” Benny said. He didn’t think anybody should miss the dolphins. They all walked back to Winifred Gorman’s house.

She saw them coming. “What is it now?” she said grumpily.

“We just wanted to tell you about the dolphins,” Violet called out. “They’re straight out in front of you. They are so beautiful when they jump like that.”

Winifred glanced toward the ocean. “I don’t see them.”

“We’ll come up and show you,” said Benny, taking the steps two at a time.

The others followed.

Benny pointed to the spot where the dolphins dove and popped up. “They’re the same color as the water, but you’ll see them in a minute. There!”

“Now I see them,” said Winifred finally, and a faint smile softened her face. “And they
are
beautiful.”

Violet was studying the half-finished painting on the easel. It showed another beach scene. “That’s very nice,” she commented politely.

“No, it isn’t.” With her brush, Winifred slashed red paint across the canvas. “Listen, you kids, I’m expecting important company.”

“We were just going,” said Jessie. “Benny wanted to show you the dolphins. That’s all.”

But Winifred didn’t answer or even say good-bye.

When the Aldens were back on the beach, Jessie said, “She never has anything nice to say. What a grouch!”

“She
did
smile a little this time, though,” said Violet, and she gazed back at Winifred’s deck. “I don’t think she’s happy with her paintings.”

“Well, we can’t worry about her,” said Henry. “We have to help Officer Hyde find Midnight.”

“But first,” said Benny, opening the cooler, “I need a soda and some pretzels! I can’t think on an empty stomach.”

The others laughed.

“You must do a lot of thinking,” teased Violet. “Your stomach is never empty, Benny!”

They played catch with a beach ball, then took another dip in the ocean. Soon Jessie spotted Grandfather waving from their deck.

“Time to go in,” she told them. “Grandfather warned us not to get sunburned.”

They packed up and hopped across the hot sand. When they reached the little boardwalk between Winifred’s house and theirs, they set their things down to rinse off with the outdoor hose.