When Jessie woke up again, she heard a lot of different sounds. The horse whinnied in the barn as Henry talked to it. She heard the chickens fussing in their yard, and a noise like a kitten crying “Mew” over and over. Violet was in the kitchen putting on water to make coffee for Cap.
“What a good idea,” Jessie told her. “Cap probably wants coffee first thing, just like Grandfather does. Oh, and I wanted to tell you. I heard a kitten cry, too.”
“We’ll keep watching for it,” Violet said.
Jessie nodded in agreement. “Now, what can we cook?”
“I found a ham bone in the refrigerator,” Violet told her. “I’ve cut off a bowlful of little pieces. If there are eggs out there, we could have an omelet with toast and jam.”
“Wonderful!” Jessie said. “There’s a wire basket hanging on the porch. I’ll go look for eggs.”
She found eggs in every nest, altogether a dozen plus two. Henry, coming from the barn, opened the back door for her to carry them inside.
The ham sizzling in the skillet and the rich coffee smell brought Cap swinging out of his room on his crutches. Doodle rode on his left shoulder. “I’ve never smelled anything as good as this morning,” he said, peering at the ham before he sat down. “Was there really that much meat on that bone?”
“Sure was,” Violet told him. “With enough left over for soup.” She smiled at him. As she spoke, she whipped six eggs in a bowl with a fork, then added them to the ham.
“I hope that Susie and little Ned are getting on as well as you do,” Cap said. “They have their mother, at least.”
“Don’t they ever come over to see you?” Benny asked.
“Not these past months,” Cap told him. “They must be visiting grandparents off somewhere. I miss them, too.”
The omelet had been divided up and was half eaten when Benny looked at Cap. “What was that funny light I saw out in the woods last night?” he asked.
“Lightning bugs?” Cap asked.
Jessie and Henry exchanged glances. So much for keeping the strange lights a secret from Cap!
“It didn’t dance. It flickered,” Benny said.
Cap’s face darkened, and his voice sounded doubtful. “There’s such a thing as a will-o’-the-wisp,” he said. “They say it flickers in marshy places.”
“Will-o’-the-wisp!” Violet cried. “I love that name.”
Cap shook his head, looking very grumpy. “If you’re seeing such strange lights as that, I don’t want you stepping out of this house after dark. You hear?”
The children nodded and went back to their breakfast. But Jessie caught Henry’s eye. Any mention of strange things upset Cap. She was sorry Benny had seen the light. They needed to solve these strange little mysteries fast so the old man’s mind could be put at ease.
When the breakfast dishes were done, the four children told Cap that they wanted to explore his little farm. The garden was just beyond the barn with the orchard on the far side of that. Suddenly Henry, who was still prowling around the barn, called to the others. “Come look,” he said. “I want you to see something.”
Jessie and Violet ran to him at once. “Isn’t this about where we saw the flickering light last night?” he asked.
“It looks right to me,” Jessie said, looking around for Benny, who had seen it, too.
“Where did Benny go?” Henry asked.
“He was with us in the garden,” Violet said, looking back. When Benny didn’t answer Jessie’s call, they all three ran toward the woods, calling his name.
Suddenly his little round face appeared above them from the dense foliage of an oak tree. “Here I am,” Benny cried happily. “I found a squirrel house.”
Henry went to the foot of the tree and looked up. “Squirrels don’t have houses, Benny,” he said. “They have nests. Where are you, anyway? I can’t see you.”
“Right up here. Come see for yourself,” Benny called. “This house is full of nut shells like squirrels leave, and a lot of trash. Oh,” he said suddenly, “and a fire truck.”
Violet frowned. Henry was right. Squirrels lived in nests instead of houses, and they didn’t play with fire trucks, either. “I want to see, too,” she called up to Benny.
Henry had already shinnied out of sight up into the tree. “Be careful,” he called down to his sisters. “There is a tree house up here, but the wood is old and rotten.”
Soon they were all crammed into the little house. Its roof was slanted with holes cut out for windows. “Isn’t it great?” Benny asked. “And look!”
He held up a tiny metal fire truck with only three wheels and most of the red paint worn off. Violet turned the little truck in her hand. She said quietly, “I’m sure that this tree house belonged to Cap’s son Jason. And this must be his fire truck. Cap must have loved his son very much to make him such a nice playhouse. He must still miss him a lot, too.”
“But he’s never once mentioned him,” Jessie said.
“Maybe it hurts Cap to think about him,” Henry said.
“Can I take the fire truck?” Benny asked, holding the toy tightly in his hand.
Henry looked at his sisters. “I think it would be all right if you don’t let Cap see it,” Violet said. “Seeing it would only remind him and make him feel even more sad.”
“I could stay up here forever,” Benny said. “I love this place.”
“It is great,” Henry agreed, “but Cap will worry if we’re gone too long.”
“What were you going to show us back by the barn?” Jessie asked Henry. “Did you find a clue there?”
“Not exactly a clue,” he said, leading them to a place near the end of the barn. “I just wanted to show you something. This is where we saw the light. Right?”
When Jessie and Benny nodded, he told them to feel the ground. “Why, it’s as dry as an old bone,” Jessie said.
“Then we can’t have seen a will-o’-the-wisp as Cap suggested. That only happens on wet marshy ground,” Henry reminded them. “We saw something else flickering out here.”
“You’re right,” Jessie said. “And Violet and I found something really confusing in the garden, too. Cap said he hasn’t been out in his garden since his accident.”
“But everything is perfect out there,” Violet added. “The beans and tomatoes look as if they have been picked every day. The carrots have even been thinned, and none of the spinach has gone to seed.”
The children stared at each other. “Do squirrels and possums eat vegetables?” Benny asked.
“They do,” Henry said, “but they just bite chunks out. Only a person would thin carrots and spinach.”
“But who?” Jessie asked. “There’s no one around here. There’s not even a house close by.”
Henry shook his head. “The more we look for answers, the more questions we get,” he said. “Let’s not upset Cap more by telling him about this. What do you say?”
Benny nodded. “His ankle never will get well if he just swings around on those crutches all the time being worried.”
Violet made soup with the ham bone and vegetables. It smelled so good that everyone wanted to eat early. The boys made popcorn, which they all ate out on the porch.
That night before going to sleep, the children held another whispered conversation. “We can’t go another day without getting in touch with Grandfather,” Jessie said. “If he doesn’t hear from us, he might get worried. He might even think he has to come get us.”
“Oh, he mustn’t!” Violet cried. “Cap really needs us. And we can’t leave here until we solve these mysteries.”
Benny, lying in bed on his stomach, said, “Just call home and tell Mrs. McGregor. Grandfather is always in touch with her. And be sure to ask how Watch is, too.”
Jessie grinned. Benny always had a good plan. And she didn’t mind that he thought of Watch as his dog even though he really belonged to Jessie herself.
“I’ll call Grandfather. Who wants to walk along with me to town?” Henry asked. “I need to buy some other things, too.”
“I’d love to go,” Violet said. “We’ve got plenty of soup left over for lunch, and we’d be back for supper.”
“Check the peanut butter before you go,” Benny mumbled drowsily. |