“Nothing new in town, I guess,” Cap said when the boys had brought in the groceries and brushed Pilot down.
“The new thing is going to be here,” Henry told him.
Cap listened to him explain about putting up the floodlight and examined it carefully. “That’s a clever way to drive away varmints. That’s the biggest light I ever saw. Where did you think to put it up?”
“It should light both the chicken yard and the barn.”
Cap nodded. “For that, it should be fastened at the back corner of the porch. You’ll need a mighty long cord.”
Henry nodded. “I bought the longest one, but let’s check it anyway.” Violet held the plug end of the cord next to the outlet. Jessie and Benny led the cord up the wall and out of the window. Henry, on the ladder at the corner of the porch, nodded when Jessie handed him the end. “It’s going to work fine,” Henry said. “There’s even some extra.”
Benny, on the ladder, handed the nails and hammer up as Henry fastened the metal bracket to the outside corner of the porch. Cap watched as Jessie and Violet hammered in the U-shaped nails to hold the cord against the wall.
“I don’t know why I never thought of that,” Cap said as Henry set the big floodlight into the bracket. “Now I can’t wait until night to see how well it works.”
When Cap returned to the front porch with Doodle on his shoulder, Jessie turned to Henry. “Now for the barn floor?”
Henry slapped his forehead with his hand. “Jessie! I can’t believe this. I forgot to buy any extra nails.”
“We could ask Cap if he has some,” Violet suggested.
Jessie shook her head. “We need too many to explain to Cap. Let’s see if we can’t find some for ourselves.”
The search for nails went slowly. They found a few bent ones in a toolbox in the barn. Benny went up in the loft to look. “Do you need a little red wagon?” he called down.
Henry laughed. “Not that I know of, why?”
“Because there’s one up here,” Benny told him. “And a box of books with all kinds of good pictures in them.”
“How about nails?” Henry asked.
“Oh, I almost forgot,” Benny said. He came down the ladder carrying a tin coffee can full of more bent nails.
“We’ll hammer them straight on a flat rock in the woods,” Henry said. “That way Cap won’t hear the noise.”
“Somebody has to stay with Cap,” Jessie said. “He gets nervous when we’re gone too long. He was really fretting when Violet and I finally got back from the orchard today.”
“Oh,” Violet cried. “We haven’t had a chance to tell you about the holes in the orchard.”
“In the orchard!” Henry said. “Tell me about them while we straighten these nails.”
While the others went to the woods, Jessie stayed with Cap. He cocked his head. “Do I hear hammering?” he asked.
Jessie nodded. “Henry’s nailing down some loose boards in the barn,” she said. “He really likes to stay busy.”
“I’ve never seen such kids for work,” he said.
As the hammering stopped, a low eerie cry sounded from high up in a pine tree. Jessie caught her breath. She thought of that awful whistling sound they had all heard. Though this was different, it was scary enough to make her shiver. Cap leaned to peer up into the tree. “Listen to that screech owl. Doesn’t he make your blood run cold?”
“He sure does,” Jessie said, laughing at how scared she’d been. “Your birds do make some strange noises!”
Henry and Benny came back from the barn. “I heard a spook or something out there,” Benny cried.
Cap laughed. “That’s the owl this glen is named for. There’s nothing like a screech owl to raise your hair up. It makes some people think this place is haunted.” Seeing Benny’s eyes widen, Cap changed the subject. “I’m glad you boys are back,” he said, reaching for his crutches. “I’ve been smelling that applesauce all day, and I say it’s time to eat.”
Henry nodded and glanced at his sister. The screech owl had made a scary noise, but it hadn’t “raised his hair up” as badly as that awful whistle they had all heard at one time or another. But he couldn’t believe Cap’s cabin was haunted … by what?
At the table Cap turned to Henry. “So now you’re a carpenter,” he said. “Did you get the barn back in shape?”
Henry nodded. “I like carpenter work.”
“I sure appreciate all you’re doing,” Cap said, reaching for the bowl to take another serving of applesauce.
“And I appreciate applesauce,” Benny said, taking the bowl from Cap to serve himself again.
That night before going to bed, they turned on the big new floodlight. The yard and barn were almost as bright as day.
Jessie had heard the scary whistling sound the first night they spent in Cap’s cabin. She and Henry and Benny had all seen the flickering light. Benny had kept talking about a strange scraping sound. Later Henry had heard the whistling, and Violet had heard it the morning she saw the strange creature running off into the dark woods.
After Henry put up the big floodlight, everything stopped. For several days there was no strange whistling sound, no light, no scraping sound, and no more sign of the awkward dark creature that Violet had seen.
Henry was puzzled. “Did we imagine all that stuff?” he asked.
“That can’t be it,” Violet told him. “The holes were real, and Cap talked to me about that whistling.”
“Maybe that strange creature got scared when Violet saw it out by the barn that morning,” Jessie suggested.
“Or maybe it’s been afraid to come back since you put that floodlight up,” Violet said.
“Oh, I don’t like those ideas at all,” Benny said.
The others stared at him. “Why not?”
He shrugged. “That would mean we haven’t helped Cap at all. Those things could come back and scare Cap again, or make him have another accident after we’re gone.”
Jessie sighed. “Benny hit the nail on the head again,” she said. “What’s more, this trip was only supposed to last ten days. We only have about three days left.”
“Maybe Grandfather will be too busy to come get us on time,” Violet said hopefully. “Grandfather always keeps promises,” Benny told them.
The mailman hadn’t stopped at Cap’s cabin once since the children came. The very next day he stopped out in the road and tooted his horn twice. Cap looked up in surprise. “That’s a change,” he said. “I don’t get much mail. You boys want to run and get it for me?”
After Henry took the letter, Benny carried it back to Cap on the porch. “How’s the old man doing?” the mailman asked Henry. “I was sorry to hear about his fall.”
“He’s getting better every day,” Henry told him.
“I thought about stopping but I always run late. Then when I saw that he had help out here, I quit worrying.”
“You mean us?” Henry asked. He hadn’t thought of them as “help,” but he liked the way that sounded.
The mailman shrugged. “Maybe I’m wrong. I keep seeing a strange man on the road. I thought he worked for Cap.”
Henry frowned. “What does this man look like?”
“Sober fellow, never smiles,” the mailman said. As he described the man, Henry caught a quick breath. The mailman was describing Mr. Jay from the riverboat perfectly.
“Tell Cap to get well soon,” the mailman added, putting his car in gear and starting off. Henry walked back to the porch thoughtfully. It was one thing for Mr. Jay to hang around town and act strange, but hearing that he was walking up and down Cap’s road really bothered Henry.
Cap’s letter was from Mr. Alden. He read it aloud. Grandfather Alden had gotten the children’s message from Mrs. McGregor and appreciated hearing from them. He told Cap not to worry about the kids, that they were doing what they liked to do best. He said to expect him this coming Saturday. He was eager to see all of them.
“We need to fix a good fancy meal for my old friend,” Cap said. “You probably need to ride Pilot into town again. I’d hate not to give your grandfather a hearty welcome.”
“We could use a few things,” Jessie said. “Maybe we could go tomorrow. That would leave us time for other jobs.”
“What other jobs?” Cap asked. “You’ve done plenty!”
Violet grinned at him. “Oh, Cap,” she said. “Even though your ankle is ever so much better, you’ll still have to use that cane for a while. We’ve thought of lots of little things to help with before we leave.” She didn’t add what she was really thinking — that they meant to solve the mysteries before they went off and left him alone.
“Like climb the trees and pick the apples,” Benny said.
“And weed and thin the garden,” Violet put in.
“And I’d like to clean up the barn,” Henry said. “I want to sweep up the loose hay to save it for Pilot.”
Cap threw up his hands. “I give up,” he said. “But groceries for your grandfather’s dinner come first. Agreed?” |