The Pearl of Bengal (10 page)

L
ondoners are famous for staying up late, and Dash Mistery was a total night owl. But the fresh air of Scotland, combined with a very big dinner, made him doze off at nine. One minute he was sprawled on the living-room couch with a plaid blanket over his knees, listening to his granddad Ian and younger cousin Agatha as they sat by a crackling fire, trading stories of their adventures in faraway places. The next, he was out like a light. Was he dreaming, or did someone lift him up gently and carry him into his bedroom, the way his mom used to when he was a kid?

Dash opened his eyes at seven the next
morning. The room was eerily silent. Where were his seven computers and the hip-hop mix he always woke up to? For a moment, he had no clue where he was. Then he saw the emerald hills outside the window, crisscrossed with ancient stone walls, and it all flooded back. He was in his grandfather’s country house on the outskirts of Edinburgh, where the Mistery family was gathering for their traditional hot-air balloon weekend. There was no time to lose!

He and Agatha were joining Granddad Ian at noon for a balloon flight over the Scottish Highlands. But before they took off, he had a chore to get out of the way. He was already sorry he’d let himself get roped into it.

“Childhood friends are a pain in the butt,” he groaned, rolling over in bed. It would be sweet just to go back to sleep. Instead, he kicked off his five layers of blankets, like a deep-sea diver coming up for air.

He yawned and stretched, padding into the bathroom. He reached for the hair gel he always used to sculpt his floppy hair into a work of art, then paused in midmotion. “No London style around here,” he said to himself with a grin. “If I go to meet Aileen looking like a total slob, maybe she’ll quit stalking me with all those texts full of little hearts!”

Aileen Ferguson was fourteen years old, the same age as Dash. Her parents had sent her to a fancy boarding school in Edinburgh, but she was spending the weekend in the little Scottish town of Bowden, where Granddad Ian lived. As soon as she’d heard Dash was coming, she’d insisted on catching up with her old friend.

“Okay, make it Saturday morning,” Dash had finally agreed. “I’ll meet you for breakfast, but I’m warning you, I’ll have to leave in a hurry.”

Dash rummaged through bureau drawers until he found a heavy wool sweater that looked
like the side of a sheep. He pulled on a pair of stiff corduroy pants and tucked them into a pair of bright green rubber boots. He looked at himself in the mirror. “I look like I fell off a haystack.” He grinned. “I bet this is the last time Aileen will ever want to lay eyes on me!”

Dash had met Aileen several summers ago, when he spent a few weeks with his granddad. Everyone in Bowden called her Dorothy, because she always wore a blue checkered pinafore with red shoes, and tied her two pigtails with ribbons, like the girl in
The Wizard of Oz
.

Dash checked the time on his EyeNet, a high-tech gadget that doubled as cell phone, computer, and anything else a budding detective might need in the field. It was almost eight. “And if everything goes well, I’ll be a free man by ten!” he told himself out loud.

He scrawled a quick note on the message board next to the door, then went outside and
grabbed his bike. Within a few minutes, he was weaving along winding roads through the green Scottish countryside. There were thistles and heather and even a few grazing sheep. He soon arrived in the village of Bowden, passing an ancient stone church and a line of pastel Georgian houses. There weren’t many people out this early on a Saturday morning, and the inn where Aileen had arranged for them to meet looked completely deserted.

Dash entered boldly and strode right up to the counter.

The innkeeper wore a chef’s hat and had a tea towel over one shoulder as he rolled out dough for a tart. “Young Mr. Mistery?” he asked without turning around.

Dash paused, dumbfounded. “Uh, yeah, that’s me,” he stammered. “How did you know?”

“Table six, in the corner,” the man replied, picking up a knife to slice pears.

Dash looked around the elegant dining room, wondering why Aileen had booked a table for two in the corner. Was she trying to create a romantic atmosphere?

He sat down with a sigh and waited.

The innkeeper came over, lit the candle in the center of the table, and walked away without a word.

Dash gave another sigh, even deeper this time.

Suddenly, the door swung open. A slender girl stood on the threshold, sun striking her light brown curls. She had bright green eyes and the face of an angel, and was wearing a dress that any girl in London would have called cool. In short, she was gorgeous. And she was walking right toward him!

“Hi, Dash.” Aileen greeted him with a perfect smile. “Sorry I’m late.”

The young detective could feel himself
blushing. “Uh, oh, hi, Dorothy,” he managed to blurt. Embarrassed, he tried to correct himself. “I mean, Aileen.”

She sat down at the table. “I like your look. Very retro, you know?” she said with a smile as she picked up her menu. “You look like an old-school Scotsman!”

Dash caught a glimpse of his reflection in the window and felt a sinking shame. Could he be any more of an loser? The annoying little girl he remembered had grown up to be totally cool. How was he going to catch up? He decided the best way to impress Aileen was to show off his EyeNet. It usually left people openmouthed, asking where they could get one. The answer, of course, was that they were only available to students of Eye International Detective Academy, but Dash’s plans to become the world’s greatest detective were a secret.

“Hey, check out my new cell phone,” he said
slyly, pushing the EyeNet onto the table. “It’s a brand-new prototype, not on the market yet!” He readied himself to respond to a thousand questions, but Aileen barely glanced at it.

“Want to try the vegetarian haggis?” she asked, fixing him with a magnetic stare.

It was hard to imagine a worse combination than tofu and the traditional Scottish pudding made of organ meats, oatmeal, suet, and spices. Dash muttered a few words in response. Luckily, just at that moment, the EyeNet gave a shrill beep. Like lightning, he grabbed it to look at the screen, which was flashing code red.

It was a message from Eye International.

An urgent mission!

Dash jolted out of his seat. “Right now?” he blurted, realizing he had to get back to Agatha as soon as possible. She was the only one who could help him with an urgent investigation. He stared helplessly at Aileen. He would so much
rather stay with her a little bit longer…she was awesome!

But duty was duty. Dash let out a big sigh and muttered, “Uh, um, excuse me, Dorothy, I’ve got to go. It’s superimportant…I’ll call you as soon as I’m finished, I promise!” He blushed again. “I meant Aileen. Sorry, Dorothy!”

Feeling like a fool, he rushed out the door.

Aileen watched him get back on his bicycle and speed away, then gave a long sigh of her own. To console herself, she ordered a fruit salad with whipped cream and hot fudge sauce. “You know something, Mr. MacGaylin?” she said to the silent innkeeper. “There are easier things than having a crush on a wack job like Dashiell Mistery!”