Mystery of the Wild Ponies (7 page)

The car had a star painted on the side. It was from the sheriff’s office.

By the time the children ran over to the cottage, two uniformed deputies were sitting in the living room with Grandfather.

“I’m Deputy Knight,” said a tall, dark-haired man with a deep tan. “And this is Deputy Perelli.” His brown-haired companion nodded.

“I’m James Alden,” said Grandfather. “These are my grandchildren, Henry, Jessie, Violet, and Benny. How may we help you?”

Deputy Knight removed a black-and-white photograph from his clipboard and passed it to Grandfather.

“Have you seen this boy? We think he is somewhere in the vicinity,” said the officer.

James Alden studied the photograph, then shook his head before handing it to Henry. “No, I’m sorry. I’ve never seen him.”

The others gathered around Henry. The photograph showed a blond-haired boy around fifteen years old. He was wearing a necklace.

Benny was startled. He was sure he’d seen that boy’s picture before. It was in the newspaper Grandfather had bought their first day. But the boy wasn’t by himself. He was in a group of other boys.

Jessie thought she recognized that face, but she wasn’t sure. It looked like the blond boy she’d seen watching them from the dune yesterday. And the boy she’d spied carrying the Seagull Resort beach chair.

“Who is this boy?” Grandfather asked the deputies.

“His name is Austin Derrick,” Deputy Perelli replied. “He has run away from summer camp on the mainland. We have reason to believe he is hiding on the island.”

Deputy Knight continued the explanation. “Apparently Austin didn’t want to go to this camp. He argued with his parents, but they both had long business trips this summer. Austin went to camp, but left after the first week.”

“Did he call his parents?” Grandfather asked, concerned.

“Yes, he did,” said Deputy Perelli. “He told them he was with a friend. But they checked out his story. The friend he was supposed to be staying with hasn’t seen Austin all summer. So then they called the police. The parents are on their way now. They should be here by this evening.”

“Why do they think he is here?” Grandfather probed.

“Because the boy’s father has an older, distant cousin who lives here,” replied Deputy Knight. “Apparently Austin spent a few summers with the cousin. He was angry when he learned he couldn’t stay with the relative this summer.”

Grandfather nodded sympathetically. “Sounds like the boy is lonely, with his parents away a lot. Have you contacted the cousin yet?”

“He doesn’t have a phone,” said Deputy Knight. “And we can’t locate him at his residence. We’ll keep trying, but we’re worried because his house is quite a bit out of the way, and it’s possible that the boy may have become lost. That’s why we’re checking out the whole island.”

“We’d like to help,” said Grandfather. “My grandchildren and I will keep an eye out for this boy. We’ll call you if we see him.”

The officers stood and shook Grandfather’s hand.

“Thanks for your cooperation,” said Deputy Perelli.

As Grandfather showed the men to the door, Benny went over to the coffee table. He found the old newspaper, tore a page from it, folded it, and jammed it into his pocket.

Henry watched his brother and knew Benny was on to something.

“We’re going out,” said Henry to Grandfather. “We need some air.”

Outside, they all began talking at once.

Henry held up a silencing hand. “Wait a minute! I know Benny knows something.”

“So does Jessie,” said Violet. “She’s got that look on her face. Spill, you two.”

Benny and Jessie told Violet and Henry where they thought they had seen the boy before. Benny showed them the newspaper photograph of the campers. Sure enough, the blond boy stood in the front row.

Violet gasped. “It
is
him! You can even see the shark’s tooth necklace around his neck!”

“I knew I’d seen that necklace someplace else before. But who could the relative be the policemen were talking about?” Benny wondered out loud.

“I have an idea,” said Henry. “Follow me.”

He led them across the road to the docks. At the end of the dock, Shad Toler was cleaning his catch. Shad’s pelican friend was watching intently.

The fisherman looked up when he saw them approach.

“Hey,” he said. “Think I ought to throw Greedy here a fish?”

Henry glanced into the bucket. Shad had caught a lot of fish today—enough to feed two people.

“I don’t know if you can spare a fish,” he said carefully. “It depends on how much Austin eats.”

Shad stared at him. “Pardon?”

Benny showed him the newspaper photo. “Some policemen came to our house today. They’re looking for this boy. Do you know him?”

“What makes you think I’d know him?” Shad said, suddenly unable to look them in the eye.

Jessie pulled the shark’s tooth necklace from her pocket. “This is Austin Derrick’s necklace. We found it on the beach. When we showed it to you, you said it was bad luck to wear shark’s teeth. But I think you were really afraid that we’d find out about Austin.”

Violet noticed the sky behind them growing very dark. A storm was approaching from the mainland. She remembered what Grandfather had said about storms being dangerous on the Outer Banks.

“Storm’s comin’,” Shad said nervously. “I’ve got to go home and … check on things.”

“Maybe we should come with you,” said Henry. “I think it’s time we found out the whole story.”

Shad looked out over the water. “Maybe it
is
time you knew. I’m getting tired of keeping secrets.”

Shad walked the Aldens to his place. It seemed to take a long time and the sky grew darker all the while. He lived in an old house with several outbuildings near the shore.

“Come see this first,” said Shad, leading them to a shack half buried in a thicket of wild grapevines.

Rusty crab pots and ripped fishing nets hung from plank walls. In the middle of the floor was a narrow, low platform covered with a bright green beach towel. Nearby was a fish-market bucket half filled with apples. The only other furniture was a blue canvas beach chair.

“That looks like our bucket,” Jessie said. “And those must be Winifred Gorman’s apples. And her beach towel. I wonder why she said she found it.”

“I bet that chair belongs to the Seagull Resort,” Violet added. “It has the same seagull design on it.”

Henry looked at Shad. “Is this Austin’s hideout?”

Shad nodded ruefully. “I didn’t know he was here until a few days ago. He told me his folks dropped him off, which I thought was strange. All he had was his backpack. This morning when I was doing chores, I found this shack had been fixed up. He’s been here longer than I thought.”

“You didn’t know Austin had run away?” said Benny.

Shad shook his head. “Something seemed funny, the way he just showed up. But his parents are always traveling, so it seemed possible they would leave him with me for a while. He’s always welcome here. I supposed they could have been in a big hurry and didn’t have time to talk to me. But, like I said, it’s strange.”

“His parents called the police,” Henry said.

“When you told me the police were looking for him, I figured Austin was in trouble,” said Shad. “He hid out in this old fishing shack until he got too hungry. Then he came to me. Told me that story about his parents dropping him off. I think he’s scared, too.”

“We can help him,” said Jessie. “Where is he?”

“Up at my place.” Shad pointed toward a rambling wooden house at the end of a sandy driveway.

As they walked to Shad’s house, Henry noticed an old Cadillac convertible parked in the yard.

“Cool car,” he said.

“Hasn’t run in years,” Shad informed him. “But I get by without one. I walk anyplace I need to go.”

Violet glanced back at the threatening sky. “We’d better hurry inside.”

They thudded up on the porch. Shad opened the front door, which was unlocked.

His house was plainly furnished with an old sofa, scuffed coffee table, and a well-used rocking chair. In the kitchen was an oak dining table with four matching chairs. A carved duck decoy stood on the fireplace mantel.

There was no sign of Austin Derrick other than a burgundy backpack lying in the corner.

“Austin!” Shad called into the two small bedrooms and single bathroom. “Where are you, boy?”

Henry watched gray storm clouds gather outside. Wind whipped the trees as thunder rumbled over the sea.

Shad came back, his face creased with worry. “He’s not here!”

“Where could he be?” Violet asked.

“I don’t know,” said Shad. “Unless …”

“Unless what?” Henry demanded. “You have to tell us everything or we can’t help.”

At that moment, a clap of thunder rattled the windowpanes. Shad switched on the lights.

Violet ran to look out. “It’s starting to rain. If Austin isn’t under cover, he’ll get soaked.”

Before she finished speaking, rain fell from the sky in sheets. It was impossible to see out the windows. Seconds later, the refrigerator in the kitchen quit humming and the lights blinked off.

“Power’s out,” Shad declared. “Happens a lot on the Banks. Wait just a minute.”

He fumbled in a side table drawer, pulling out candles and a box of matches. He also drew out a large flashlight, which he clicked on briefly to test the batteries.

“Should have bought batteries this week,” he muttered.

Jessie helped him light the candles. The flickering flames made the old house seem spooky, especially with the trees lashing outside.

“I hear something!” said Benny. “It sounds like … a horse. I bet it’s Magic!”

Shad looked at him. “Do you really hear a horse? Your ears are sharper than mine.”

Henry heard the noise, too. “It’s not an animal. It’s a person!”

Heavy footsteps clumped on the porch. Then the front door burst open.

A very wet blond boy stood in the doorway.

Shad ran over to him. “Where have you been?”

“I’ve been checking on—” Just then Austin saw the Aldens and broke off. He looked as if he might run outside again. “Who are they?” he asked, instantly suspicious.

“They’re okay,” Shad reassured him.

Violet found Shad’s bathroom and brought Austin a towel.

“The police are looking for you,” Shad told Austin.

“Your parents are very worried,” added Henry. “They thought you might be here, but no one could find Shad.”

“I don’t have a phone,” Shad said. “And I’m out all day.”

“I knew this was a mistake,” Austin moaned.

“Why did you run away?” asked Benny.

Austin looked miserable, dripping on the bare floor. “I didn’t want to go to camp,” he replied. “My folks are always gone. I wanted them to stay home with me. They said they couldn’t, so I asked if I could visit Shad.”

“And they wouldn’t let you?” asked Violet.

Austin shook his head. “They’d already signed me up for camp. Camp was okay but I wanted to be with Shad. So I called my folks at their hotel and told them I was staying with a kid I know. Then I left.”

“How did you get here?” Henry asked.

“The camp is over on the mainland,” Austin replied. “Just over the bridge. I got a ride with the guy who delivers bread to the camp. He lives over here. I told him I was spending the weekend with another kid in Southern Shores. He let me out there and I walked the rest of the way.”

Benny was amazed. “You sure like to make up stuff!”

Austin looked sheepish. “I guess I do. My mom says I let my imagination run away with me.”

“That’s not all that ran away,” Shad said sternly. “You shouldn’t have left that camp without your folks’ permission.”

“I knew you’d say that,” Austin told Shad. “That’s why I hid in your fishing shack the first few days.”

“I can’t believe I never even knew you were there,” said Shad.

Jessie remembered the scene at the restaurant. “Did you try to get a job as a busboy at the Seagull Resort?”

Austin nodded. “How did you know?”

“We were there the night the waiter got mad because you dropped the tray,” she replied.

“I needed money for food,” said Austin. “I was willing to work for it, but nobody would give me a job. So I had to—” Once more, he broke off and flushed with embarrassment.

“Steal,” Violet finished for him. “You took Benny’s sandwich from our deck.”

“Was that your sandwich?” Austin asked Benny. “Sorry.”

“I’m sorry you were hungry,” said Benny.

At that moment, thunder crashed and the door was flung open. Winifred Gorman clung to the door frame, drenched.

Austin ran over to her. “Did you find him?” he asked.

“Yes,” she reported, taking off her wet hat. “He’s on the other side of the ravine. I can’t get him out. We need help.”

Shad’s jaw tightened. “Austin, if anything happens to him …”

Jessie was confused. “Do you all know one another?” she asked Austin.

“Winnie and I just met a couple of days ago,” he replied. “And Shad met Winnie today.”

Winnie! Jessie couldn’t believe her ears. Their grumpy neighbor was friends with a runaway boy!

“What are you kids doing here?” asked Winifred as Violet handed her a towel.