Mystery in the Old Attic (4 page)

By the time the Aldens were ready, it was snowing harder than ever. The wind whipped through the branches of the pine trees, blowing snow all over Henry, Jessie, Violet, and Benny as they skied through the backyard. The soft winter light made the snow sparkle.

“It's too bad Watch isn't here,” said Jessie as she slid across the snow, then fell. She planted one of her ski poles firmly on the ground to push herself up. Soon Benny fell, too, then Henry. But not Violet. She glided across the snow, using her poles to help her.

“Violet, you're a natural,” Henry said, looking very impressed.

Violet laughed. “It's sort of like walking, except you have to remember you're on skis.”

Aunt Sophie's yard was enormous. Oak, pine, and maple trees surrounded the spacious lawn. Near the house were flower beds of all shapes and sizes. No plants were in bloom now, but their vines covered the ground like a thick gray mist.

Beyond the flower beds, the Aldens had plenty of room to practice turning, gliding, falling, and getting up again.

“Maybe we can go on one of the ski trails tomorrow,” said Henry as he circled a pine tree. “I think I'm getting the idea now.”

“Me, too,” said Benny just as the tip of one of his skis hit a rock — and down he fell. “Maybe I shouldn't have said anything,” he said, laughing.

After more practice, Benny felt confident enough to follow Henry, Jessie, and Violet into the woods behind the lawn.

There, the trees grew so thickly, their branches blocked out most of the sunlight. “Look, there's a little trail through the woods.” Henry pointed it out with his ski pole.

“It's awfully dark in here,” Benny said. He tried to keep up with the others, but his ski poles kept getting tangled in the brush.

“Benny, take your time,” Henry called reassuringly. “We don't have to go too far into the woods.”

“Oh, look, a chipmunk,” Benny said. The chipmunk scurried in front of Benny, then hid in a clump of bushes growing on one side of the trail.

Before they decided to turn back, the Aldens saw three red squirrels, two deer, and a flock of geese circling overhead.

“I bet those geese are going south for the winter,” observed Jessie.

“Probably,” Henry agreed. “You know, some of these animals seem awfully tame,” said Henry. “I'm surprised that chipmunk and those squirrels came so close to us.”

“Maybe someone feeds them,” said Jessie.

“Maybe,” said Henry.

“You know, it's getting really cold out here, and I'm hungry,” Benny hinted.

“It certainly is cold,” agreed Jessie as she wrapped her wool scarf more tightly around her neck. “Come on, Benny, I'll race you home.”

Jessie took the lead, and Benny followed. When he came near the flower beds, Benny kept his eyes on the ground in front of him so he could steer around the vines. That was why he did not see the man in the brown tweed coat until it was too late.

Benny and the man ran right into each other, and both fell in the snow.

“Oops,” said Benny.

Professor Schmidt glared at Benny as he dusted snow off his wool trousers. He did not appear to be hurt. Neither was Benny, but he was so embarrassed he could feel his cheeks turn bright red.

“Would you please watch where you are going?” said the professor as he took off his spectacles and wiped the snow off with a handkerchief. “It's dangerous to race around in this weather. Besides, this garden is not a good place for skiing.”

“I know,” said Benny. “And I'm, uh, really sorry, sir. I didn't look where I was going.”

“That's obvious,” answered the professor as he continued on his way. Henry, Jessie, Violet, and Benny watched as the professor walked slowly across the lawn and into the woods.

“He doesn't seem very nice,” said Benny when the professor was out of earshot.

Henry nodded. “We just need to stay out of his way,” he said. “He made that clear the first time we met him.”

“I wonder why he doesn't like children,” said Jessie.

When the Aldens returned to the house, they gathered in the kitchen. Jessie put a pan of milk on the stove to heat for hot chocolate. The others hung their damp jackets on the coatrack by the kitchen door.

Benny was the first one to notice another little door that did not reach all the way to the floor. He had to stand on tiptoe to open it. And when he did, he found himself staring into a dark opening. Inside was a wooden platform with two ropes on one side of it.

“It looks like an elevator shaft,” said Jessie as she poked her head inside the little door. She could see that the platform had a roof and two sides. It looked like a box. When Jessie looked up, she could see a big wheel that turned when she pulled on one of the ropes.

“Oh, look, you just made the platform go higher,” said Benny as he poked his head inside the opening, too.

“You know what this is, don't you?” asked Henry, looking very excited.

“What?” asked Benny.

“It's a dumbwaiter.” Henry made sure to say the word
waiter
very clearly. “It's used to send food from the kitchen up to the other floors,” he explained.

“Why do they call it that?” asked Benny.

“It brings you food like a waiter, but it doesn't talk, so it's called dumb,” answered Henry.

“But it makes some noise,” Violet pointed out. “Look how much it creaked when you pulled on the rope.”

“Exactly,” said Henry, looking at the others. Just like the waiter in the riddle.”

“Oh!” exclaimed Benny.

“Of course! Why didn't I think of that?” said Jessie. She pulled a piece of paper out of the pocket of her jeans. “Here's the riddle. I copied it down,” she said.

My ring lies near the waiter who brings me up my tea.

As I hear his creaking sounds,

I hope my ring will not be found
—
by anyone but me.

Benny was so excited, he jumped up and down. “That's it. This has to be the waiter Emily wrote about.”

Henry nodded. “Now all we have to do is look on every floor of the house, near the dumbwaiter.”

“For the special place Emily talks about in her diary,” added Violet.

Benny wanted to start looking for the ring right away. But the others convinced him to eat dinner first. Then the Aldens were so tired from their skiing and cleanup efforts, they went right to bed.

“I hope we find the ring tomorrow,” Benny told Jessie as she tucked him in.

CHAPTER 6

Afternoon Tea

T
he next day, Henry, Jessie, Violet, and Benny began to look for the ring right after breakfast.

“We should probably look in the kitchen closet near the dumbwaiter,” said Benny.

“I don't think we need to,” said Jessie. “The riddle says, ‘My ring lies near the waiter who brings me
up
my tea.'”

“Oh, that's true,” said Benny, who was already on his way to the second floor. There, the Aldens found the dumbwaiter door and looked inside. Benny pulled on the rope. The wooden platform creaked and rattled. Soon it was on the second floor.

“I'm going to ride in it,” Benny announced.

“Go ahead. It's plenty strong, and you're the only one small enough to fit,” said Henry as he held the platform steady while Benny scrambled onto it.

“Oh, boy,” said Benny. “This is almost as fun as an amusement park.”

“Do you see any openings in the wall, someplace where a little box could be hidden?” asked Henry.

“The riddle says the ring is
near
the dumbwaiter, not
in
it,” Jessie reminded them.

“I know,” said Henry. “But it's a good idea to check anyway.”

“I don't see anything,” said Benny as he felt the walls inside the dumbwaiter with his hands. “But it's very dark in here. I think I need a flashlight.”

“I'll get you a flashlight,” said Jessie. “There's one in the kitchen.”

In no time at all, Jessie was back with the flashlight, which she handed to Benny.

“Okay, hold on, I'll send you up to the next floor,” Henry told Benny.

“I'm ready,” said Benny as he made himself comfortable.

Henry pulled one of the ropes and Benny went higher and higher.

“Ah-choo! Ah-choo!”

“Benny?” called Henry as he looked up the dumbwaiter shaft. “Are you all right?”

“All this dust is getting in my nose,” answered Benny. His voice sounded muffled.

“Are you at the next floor yet?” Henry called.

“How can I tell?” asked Benny.

“There should be a little door in the wall like this one,” Henry explained.

“Oh,” said Benny. “Yes, I see a bolt like the one on your floor.”

“Do you see anything near the door?” asked Henry.

It took Benny a long time to answer. “No,” he finally called.

“Can you go farther?” asked Henry.

“Yes,” said Benny. Henry pulled on the rope. Benny rode up to the attic. Then he had Henry bring him down to the kitchen. Then back up to the second floor.

“This is so much fun,” said Benny as he climbed out of the dumbwaiter. He had dirt and dust in his hair and on his arms, hands, and face.

“Oh, Benny, you look like a chimney sweep,” said Jessie, laughing.

“A what?” asked Benny.

“Someone who cleans chimneys,” answered Jessie.

“There was a lot of dust up there,” said Benny. Violet handed her little brother a packet of tissues from her pocket.

“Well, what are we waiting for?” asked Benny after he had blown his nose and wiped his face.

The Aldens searched and searched. On the second floor, near the dumbwaiter, they found closets full of clothes, sheets, and towels.

“Nothing here,” said Benny as he walked out of the linen closet.

“Well, there's actually a lot in that closet,” said Henry. “Just no ring.”

“Not even a box that could hold the ring,” said Violet. “Remember, Emily said she put the ring in a box with other things from her mother.”

Henry nodded.

“Don't forget, we have to be quiet on this floor,” said Jessie as the Aldens walked up the staircase to the third floor. “We don't want to disturb the professor.”

“I'll say,” Benny whispered as he tiptoed up the rest of the stairs. At the top, he looked around, trying to guess which door belonged to the professor.

Henry found the dumbwaiter at the end of the hallway. “There isn't a closet on this floor,” he said. “At least not one near the dumbwaiter.”

“Good,” said Benny. “I was getting tired of looking at sheets and towels.”

Violet laughed. “If you were Emily, where would you hide a ring?”

“In a safe place,” said Jessie. “Maybe even in a safe.” Jessie laughed a little at her joke.

“A what?” asked Benny.

“A safe,” Jessie repeated. “It's a place where people keep their most valuable things.”

“Safes are usually built into the wall,” said Violet as she took a painting of a trumpet off the wall so she could look behind it.

“We should look behind all these paintings and the furniture,” said Henry as he moved a heavy armchair away from the wall.

The Aldens looked and looked. They found coins, bobby pins, and spools of thread, but no ring.

“I wish Emily had given us more clues,” said Henry as he hung a big mirror back on the wall.

“Clues,” said a loud voice. “What were you looking for behind that mirror?” Kimberly came bounding up the steps holding a leash with a miniature white poodle on the end.

“Is that your dog?” asked Henry, happy to change the subject.

Kimberly nodded. Her cheeks were flushed from the cold. She wore several scarves tied loosely around her neck, above her hot pink jacket.

“This is Juniper.” Kimberly picked up her dog so Henry could pet it. “I take her out for a walk every day, but she really isn't used to snow.”

Henry patted Juniper's curly white fur. Juniper whined and gave a shrill bark. “She's cute,” he said.

“So what are you doing on this floor?” Kimberly asked. “And what is all this talk about clues?”

“Oh, nothing really,” said Henry.

“You are looking for something, aren't you?” said Kimberly.

“Well, yes,” Henry admitted. “But, uh, it's nothing important. We'd better go.” The others nodded and hurried down the stairs before Kimberly could say anything more. The Aldens heard her close the door to her apartment with a loud bang. Even so, they waited a little while before they ventured up the stairs again to the attic.

The attic was a big room filled with trunks, old toys, hatboxes, and shelves that held books, blocks, tops, baseballs, and clocks.

“There is a lot to explore here,” said Violet as she went over to look at a mannequin dressed in a long black cape.

“First let's find the dumbwaiter,” said Henry. “It's a good thing you brought the flashlight.” Although there was a bare light-bulb hanging from the ceiling, it did not produce much light.