The Mystery of the Man in the Tall Black Hat (10 page)

“We’d better go back, Barney. He doesn’t seem to have sense enough to stay where he belongs.”

The boys turned and started back, the dog romping happily ahead and then returning to be patted. When they were near the house where Mr. Fitzsimmon lived, Tod ordered MacDuff to stay where he was. Without looking back the boys walked along nonchalantly. A minute later Tod heard the padding of the dog’s feet behind them.

“He’s not going to stay, is he, Tod?”

“It doesn’t look like it. Let’s toss a stick for him to fetch, and then we can run like mad before he realizes we’ve gone.”

Tod turned to the side of the road and located a small branch from a tree. “Fetch, MacDuff,” he called as he threw the stick.

Without waiting, the boys dashed on down the road. They turned the corner before they stopped.

“It looks like our trick worked,” said Tod confidently.

“He was such a nice dog. I sort of wished he’d follow us home.”

“Barney, he belongs to Mr. Fitzsimmon. We’d just have to return him.”

They had only gone a short distance when Barney turned around again. MacDuff was plodding along behind them keeping a short distance away. In his mouth he held the branch that Tod had thrown.

“Come here, MacDuff,” called Barney happily. The dog dropped the stick and dashed the short distance which separated them. He was barking excitedly and wagging his tail so frantically that his whole hindquarters wiggled.

“Oh, no!” cried Tod. “Now we’ll never get rid of him.”

“At least we can take him home and feed him,” said Barney, his eyes sparkling with happiness. “You said yourself he looked skinny.”

“What will your mother and dad say about it?” asked Tod. He hated to remind Barney of his folks’ feeling toward pets.

“Couldn’t we feed him at your house?”

“That’s a good idea. We’ll have to take him back to Mr. Fitzsimmon anyway.”

The boys passed Barney’s house and were soon at the Mitchells’ watching MacDuff wolf down the scraps that Mrs. Mitchell had found for him.

“He really is hungry!” exclaimed Barney. “If Mr. What-ever-his-name-is can’t take better care of him than that, he doesn’t deserve to have him!”

“But, Barney. You can’t just steal somebody’s dog!” exclaimed Tod.

“Who stole him? He followed us home, didn’t he?”

When Barney started to leave for home later in the afternoon, Tod did his best to hold the whimpering dog, but without a collar, MacDuff had soon wriggled out of Tod’s grasp.

“Tod, we’ve got to think of some way to make him stay with you,” said Barney in despair. “My folks won’t let me have him at our house. You know how they are.”

“Maybe I can find a piece of rope,” suggested Tod. The boys headed for the woodshed with MacDuff following at their heels. They dug around in some boxes where Mr. Mitchell kept odds and ends of stuff he thought might be useful someday.

“Mom keeps after Dad to clean all this junk out. She says Dad won’t ever use it, but every now and then something comes in handy,” Tod commented, as he dug deeper into the box.

“Here,” he said at last, as he held up a short length of rope. “It isn’t very long, but it will do until you are gone. I can let him loose later.”

He tied one end of the rope around MacDuff’s neck and led him to a tree by the porch. MacDuff tried to pull away as Tod tied the rope to the tree.

“He doesn’t like being tied up, Tod. I’d better go home so you can let him loose pretty soon.”

As Barney turned to go, MacDuff whimpered and tugged at the rope. When he finally realized he couldn’t get loose, he sat down and gazed after Barney. A little later Tod left to deliver his papers.

After dinner was over that evening, Tod took the leftover scraps outside. MacDuff was lying near the porch with his head between his paws. Tod put the dish beside him and then untied the rope from his neck. The dog jumped about excitedly and then settled down to gobbling his food. When he had finished, Tod played with him for a little while and then tied him up again.

“I’m sorry, but if I let you go you’ll end up at Barney’s, and his folks would only chase you away. Tomorrow we’ll take you back home where you belong.”

Barney arrived just before dark. “You shouldn’t have come, Barney. How will I ever get him to stay without tying him up if you keep coming around?” Tod was annoyed.

“I just had to say goodnight. Did you feed him?”

“Of course I fed him!”

After Barney had left, MacDuff began to whimper and tug at the rope.

“Mom,” asked Tod, when he went into the house. “Would it be all right if I took MacDuff up to my room to sleep—just for tonight?” He saw the indecision in his mother’s eyes. “Please, Mom?”

“I think he’s a very nice dog, Tod, but I really don’t approve of your taking him into your room.”

“He’s so lonesome out there!” Tod was disappointed.

“Why don’t you sleep outside with him?” suggested Mr. Mitchell from behind the evening paper.

“That’s a great idea! Hey, do you think Barney could come over and sleep out, too?”

Tod saw his dad and mom look at each other. He decided he’d better leave before they changed their minds. He dashed from the house, and a few minutes later he was back. Barney was tagging behind, carrying a sleeping bag and a paper sack.

After the boys were ready for bed they untied MacDuff, who dashed about in excitement at being free again.

“He won’t go away now that you’re here, Barney. I’ll bet he even gets into the sleeping bag with you.”

Barney giggled. “No, he won’t.” He crawled into his sleeping bag and zipped it up. MacDuff dashed up beside him and began to lick his face.

“You won’t get any sleep if he keeps that up,” laughed Tod.

Barney put his pillow over his face, and MacDuff finally settled down beside him, his tongue hanging out. Barney lifted the pillow from his face and MacDuff stood up and licked him again.

“Where’s my sack, Tod?” asked Barney. “I brought some stuff to eat.”

“You left it upstairs in my room. I’ll go get it.” Tod unzipped his sleeping bag and went into the house, while Barney sat up and petted MacDuff.

When Tod returned with the paper bag he also had two bottles of pop he’d taken from the refrigerator. He handed them to Barney while he slid back inside his sleeping bag. Barney handed the pop back to Tod and opened the sack.

MacDuff sat close to Barney with an expectant look on his face. He sniffed when Barney tore open a bag of potato chips. Barney reached in and got one and held it out to the dog. MacDuff opened his mouth and the potato chip disappeared. He cocked his head to one side waiting for another.

“You can’t have them all. Tod and I want some, too.”

The boys began to share the potato chips. Every couple of seconds Barney popped another one into the dog’s open mouth. When they were gone he crumpled the bag and laid it on the ground. MacDuff pawed at it, sniffed it, and finally lay back down close to Barney.

When the boys had finished eating, Barney snuggled down inside his sleeping bag. “I wish MacDuff were my dog,” he said.

The boys lay quietly for a few minutes. Tod was trying to find the Little Dipper in the star-studded canopy under which they lay.

“Tod, do you think if we prayed, God might let me keep MacDuff?”

“I told you, Barney, he belongs to Mr. Fitzsimmon. We ought to take him back tomorrow.”

“Tomorrow is the treasure hunt.”

“So, we’ll take him back in the morning.”

“I’m going to pray that God will let me keep him all the time.”

“You’d better ask Him to change your mom’s and dad’s minds about having a pet, then.”

“You pray first,” suggested Barney.

Tod folded his hands on top of him, and he talked to God and thanked Him for saving him and for saving Barney. When he had finished he listened to Barney’s prayer.

“Dear Jesus, thank You for coming into my heart. Please let me keep MacDuff if maybe Mr. Fitzsimmon doesn’t want him, or something.” MacDuff seemed to sense that Barney was praying about him as he snuggled closer against the sleeping bag. “And dear Jesus, change Mom’s and Dad’s minds so they will let me have him.”

Tod didn’t know what to say when Barney had finished. He was sure that Mr. Fitzsimmon wouldn’t give away his dog, and he was even more certain that Mr. and Mrs. Sebastian weren’t going to change their minds about letting Barney keep a pet. Mrs. Sebastian was too fussy for that!

He listened to the night sounds around him. A cricket nearby was chirping loudly while those in the distance produced a singing hum. He remembered hearing somewhere that you could tell the temperature by how fast the crickets rubbed their hind legs together. He knew that was what made the chirping sound. He wished he could remember the formula.

Off in the distance he detected the soothing chorus of frogs and the lower basso of the bullfrogs. A soft breeze sighed through the branches of the firs nearby, and the indistinct warble of a night bird caressed the velvet darkness. Tod closed his eyes.

Suddenly the quiet night was pierced by the eerie scream of the hospital siren. Tod had been sleeping snugly, but now he felt a chill creep up his spine. It was like the time on the hill when he’d seen the man in the stovepipe hat for the first time.

“Tod,” whispered Barney after the noise had died away. “Maybe they finally discovered he’s missing.”

MacDuff had started up and now sat beside Barney howling loudly. Barney reached out and stroked the bristling fur.

“MacDuff? Here MacDuff.” Tod heard Barney’s voice through a curtain of heavy sleep. He moaned and turned over in his sleeping bag.

“Tod?” Barney was shaking him.

“What’s the matter?” Tod mumbled in his pillow.

“MacDuff’s gone. He’s not around anywhere.”

Tod groaned and sat up, his sleeping bag still around him. He brushed his hair from his eyes and looked around. “He’s probably not very far away.” He felt the dampness of the early morning air seeping in around his shoulders. “Go back to sleep.”

“I can’t. I think I’ll get up and look around for him.”

Tod watched as Barney crawled out onto the damp grass to put on his shoes. “You’ll freeze, Barney.”

“No, I won’t. I’ll just look around the corner of the house and out by the woodshed and then I’ll come back.”

Tod lay down, turned on his stomach, and put his head down inside the sleeping bag. A few minutes later he heard Barney unzip his sleeping bag and make an attempt at getting settled.

“I just can’t go back to sleep, Tod,” he said at last. “I keep wondering about MacDuff.”

“He probably went back home where he belongs,” suggested Tod.

There was a long silence before Barney spoke again. “Tod, do you think God answers prayer?”

“Sure, Barney.” He thought for a moment. “But God doesn’t always answer like we expect Him to.”

“I think I’ll just stick around all day and see if MacDuff comes back.”

“Today’s the treasure hunt. You don’t want to miss that!”

“What if I go on the treasure hunt and he comes while I’m gone?”

“Don’t worry about it, Barney.” Tod sat up and unzipped his sleeping bag. “Since we can’t sleep we might as well get dressed. Come on.” He waited while Barney crawled out of his bag, and then they got up and dashed across the damp grass and into the house.

*  *  *

Mr. Taylor, the club sponsor, was waiting when Tod, Barney, Tricia, and Donna arrived at the church for the treasure hunt later in the day. Pam was already there with her friend, Skinny Peterson. Tod was glad nobody laughed when they saw the shovel Barney was dragging.

At one o’clock Mr. Taylor began to give instructions to the sixteen young people who had gathered. “How about Tod Mitchell for captain number one and Jeff Jacobs for captain number two?” he suggested.

A few minutes later the teams were divided evenly with Tricia, Donna, Skinny Peterson, Pam Dobson, Jim and Bill Faris, besides Tod and Barney on team number one.

“OK, kids, after I read the first clue each team, with their captain, will figure out what it means and proceed to the next clue. When a clue is found, the captain is to read it aloud to his team, then replace it for the other team. The team that finishes the hunt first will be given final instructions for locating the treasure. Now, here’s the first clue. Listen closely!”

“That doesn’t make any sense!” exclaimed Tod.

Mr. Taylor was walking toward his car. “You’ll figure it out. Have fun!”

Tod sat down on the church steps and shoved his hand through his hair while his team gathered around him. “Let’s go, Tod!” urged Tricia impatiently.

“Yeah, Tod. Jeff’s team has already left.”

“So, let them leave. They didn’t even stop to figure out the clue. How do we know they went the right direction?”

“Sure, the only sensible thing to do is to figure it out first and then start,” commented the skinny Peterson girl.

“‘North, south, east or west, choose the way you like the best.’ Not much of a clue. You get a big choice.”

“‘Up and over a gentle rise—”’ Tod stood up and looked around. He pointed west. “It’s all flat that way, so that’s out.”

“And that way is flat and goes downhill pretty quick,” Bill pointed out.

“That eliminates north,” said Barney. “And that way is mostly woods and doesn’t start up until you reach the gravel pit.”

“So that leaves the road to our place!” cried Tricia. “It’s flat, then goes over that hill and down again. That must be it. Come on, everybody, let’s go!”

“Keep your eyes open along the way, and if you find a clue wait for me!” cautioned Tod as they scattered.

Tod listened to the scraping of the shovel Barney dragged behind him. “Why didn’t you leave that thing behind?” he exclaimed.

“It might come in handy—in case the treasure is buried.”

Tod groaned.

As they started down the far side of the slope, several of his team mates were calling. “Down here, Tod. We’ve found an arrow drawn on the road!”

Tod ran down the hill leaving Barney lumbering after him, the shovel clanking against the loose gravel.