The Falcon's Feathers (5 page)

The kids stepped outside Ellie's and saw Officer Fallon standing on the corner.

“Hi, kids,” he said. “What're you doing on such a nice day?”

“Hi, Officer Fallon,” Dink said. “Did Doc Henry call you about the break-in?”

Officer Fallon pushed the “walk” button on a traffic light pole. He was carrying a small black case. “I was just
heading over there with my fingerprint kit,” he said. “The doc told me about these disappearing falcons. But how are you kids involved?”

Josh filled him in on how he'd been watching the falcons' nest.

“When we went to look yesterday, the falcons were gone,” Ruth Rose said.

“And we think we know who did it!” Josh said.

Interrupting each other, Josh and Ruth Rose explained how they thought Grace Lockwood was stealing falcons and training them to race.

“Well,
I
don't think it's her,” Dink said.

Officer Fallon nodded slowly. “I tell you what,” he said. “When we get there, let's just watch and listen.” He smiled. “Maybe we'll all learn something.”

Officer Fallon and the kids walked into Doc Henry's outer office. Through
the window, they could see him and Grace putting a cast on a dog's leg.

“It would be neat to be a vet,” Josh said. “You get to play with animals all day.”

“It's not play, Josh, it's hard work,” Officer Fallon said. “Some vets get called out in the middle of the night! Besides, I thought you wanted to be a bird artist.”

Josh grinned. “Couldn't I do both?”

Doc Henry came out, wiping white plaster dust from his fingers. “Thanks for coming over,” he said to Officer Fallon. “Come on, I'll show you what's left of my lock.”

The kids watched Grace lift the dog off the table. She carried him to a cage and gave him a dog cookie.

“You guys are wrong about Grace,” Dink whispered. “She really likes animals.”

“Lots of crooks like animals,” Josh reminded Dink.

Ruth Rose nudged them. “Come on. Let's go watch Officer Fallon get fingerprints.”

The problem was, there were none. Officer Fallon spread the dust, but no prints appeared. “Well, I guess he wiped the door or wore gloves,” Officer Fallon said.

“Or
she
wore gloves,” Josh muttered.

Dink remembered something else. “Mrs. Wong said there were tiny letters on the leg band,” he said to the vet. “Did you read them?”

“I sure did, Dink. Come on inside and I'll show you.”

Officer Fallon and the kids crowded into the office. Grace Lockwood was filling out some papers at the desk. Josh stared at her until Dink gave him a little shove.

“Hand me that leg band, would you, Grace?” the vet asked.

Grace nodded and gave the band to Doc Henry. The vet picked up a magnifying glass from his desk and handed it and the leg band to Dink. “Tell me what you see, young man.”

Dink peered at the band through the glass. “Letters and numbers,” he said.

“Can you read them?”

“ ‘GLKS-6-17,' ” Dink read. He looked up. “What does it mean?”

Doc Henry took the band and the glass.

“The letters are a mystery to me, but the numbers may be dates,” he said. “If I'm right, the numbers mean Flash was born on 6/17—June 17th.”

“Could the letters be the initials of the person who took Flash?” Josh asked.

“That's good thinking,” Doc Henry said. “Those letters
could
be initials. But whose?”

“Without any fingerprints,” Officer Fallon said, “I'd say our thief has gotten away free as a bird!”

Dink stole a look at Grace. Her name tag stood out against her white jacket. Maybe the GL on the leg band stood for Grace Lockwood!

Dink gulped. Was Josh right? Was Grace Lockwood kidnapping falcons after all?

The kids walked Officer Fallon back to the police station on West Green Street.

“So are you going to arrest her?” Josh asked.

“Arrest who, Josh?”

“Grace Lockwood!” Josh said.

Officer Fallon smiled and shook his head. “We don't have any proof that she's done anything wrong.”

Dink decided not to say anything about the GL initials on the band. Josh
was already trying to throw Grace Lockwood in jail!

“Don't worry, Josh,” Officer Fallon continued. “I'm sure we'll catch whoever's doing this.”

The kids watched him walk into the station. “Come on,” Dink said. “Let's go to the petting zoo for a while.”

“Dink, don't you care about the falcons?” Josh asked.

“Sure I care. But you heard Officer Fallon,” Dink said, crossing West Green Street. “We don't have any proof that it was Grace Lockwood.”

Josh kicked at a stone. “Trust me, you guys. There's something weird about her!”

Dink laughed. “Josh, you just think she's weird 'cause she caught you staring at her cheeseburger!”

The kids cut around the library and entered the zoo. Llamas and baby deer
nibbled pellets from kids' hands. A goose waddled along in front of six goslings. There were a few animals in cages, but most were loose.

Several teenagers walked around selling animal food. They wore dark green shorts and shirts with big round badges. The badges said
GLPZ
, for Green Lawn Petting Zoo.

“Wait a sec, guys,” Ruth Rose said. “I want to feed the fawn.”

Dink and Josh watched her hurry over to one of the teenagers.

“Well, I still think Grace Lockwood's the one,” Josh insisted. “We should tell Curt about her.”

“Tell him what, that she gave you a dirty look?” Dink asked.

“For one thing, I'm gonna tell him about the initials on that leg band,” Josh said. “He might know what they mean.”

Ruth Rose came back with a small
bag of pellets. “Want some?” she asked Dink and Josh.

“Better not give any to Josh,” Dink said. “He might eat 'em!”

“Haw haw,” Josh said, taking a few of the pellets from Ruth Rose's bag.

They fed the deer and the llamas, then left the zoo.

Josh called Curt Striker's office from the lobby of the Shangri-la Hotel.

He hung up. “Not there.”

“Now what?” Ruth Rose said.

“Let's go to his cabin again,” Josh said. “If he's not there, we can leave a note.”

“Saying what?” Dink asked.

Josh dug a pencil out of his pocket. He got a piece of paper from Mr. Linkletter, the hotel clerk, and wrote on it.

“This,” he said, showing the paper to Dink and Ruth Rose.

Dink stared at Josh. “What do you think GL stands for?” he asked.

Josh grinned. “Grace Lockwood!”

“But what about the KS?” Ruth Rose asked.

Josh shrugged. “That's what we'll ask Curt. Come on!”

The kids hiked up River Road to Bridge Lane. Halfway there, Ruth Rose suddenly stopped.

“What's the matter?” Dink asked.

She was staring into space. “Something's bugging me. It was something I saw at the DEP office, but I can't remember what!”

“Maybe it was that stuffed owl,” Josh said. He made big owl eyes at Ruth Rose.

“No, I think it was something I saw on a desk.” She stomped her foot in the dusty road. “Why can't I remember?”

A few minutes later, they reached Curt's cabin. Josh walked up and knocked on the door.

There was no answer.

“Guess he's not home,” Dink said.

“Maybe he's in the backyard,” Josh suggested. “Let's take a look.”

The backyard was empty except for a pile of firewood.

Ruth Rose pointed to a dirt path that led into the woods. “Maybe this is how
he got to the tree yesterday,” she said.

Suddenly, they heard a low whistle.

“What's that?” Josh said.

“Just someone calling his dog,” Dink said. “Come on, let's get out of here. We're trespassing.”

The whistle sounded again. Josh started running up the path. “That's a falcon!”

Dink and Ruth Rose followed Josh. They found him standing in front of a small shed. On one side, a window flap had been propped open.

“Listen,” Josh whispered.

The kids heard tweeting sounds and more whistles coming from the shed.

“There are falcons in there!” Josh said. He ran around the side and started tugging at a thick padlock on a door.

“Stupid thing is locked!” Josh said.

Ruth Rose went back to the window. “Boost me up, guys.”

Dink and Josh crisscrossed their arms. Ruth Rose climbed on and hoisted herself up. “There are about ten cages in there filled with falcons!” she said.

Josh and Dink let her down.

“I'm going inside,” Josh said.

“We're going with you!” Ruth Rose said.

A wooden barrel lay in the tall weeds a few yards away. The kids rolled it over and stood it under the window.

Standing on the barrel, Josh was able to crawl through the opening.

Ruth Rose went next. Then Dink.

The inside of the shed was cool and dark. In the dim light from the window opening, Dink counted at least a dozen falcons in cages.

The birds flapped their wings and let out low whistles. Their dark eyes watched the kids' every movement.

Suddenly, the light from the window was blocked. Curt Striker was glaring in at them!

“You brats just couldn't mind your own business!” he said. “You had to snoop, didn't you?”

Then his face disappeared. A moment later, the window flap slammed shut.