When dawn broke, Henry awakened and jumped out of bed. Quietly he went into the kitchen. Jessie joined him. Then Violet and Miguel came in.
And last, Benny slowly shuffled toward them. He gave a wide yawn and rubbed his half-closed eyes. “Is it time to get up?” he asked sleepily.
“No,” Henry said. “I couldn’t sleep.”
“Neither could I,” Jessie said.
“Me neither,” Violet echoed.
“I woke up lots of times,” Miguel said.
“I didn’t sleep very good either!” Benny said.
In the half light Henry moved toward the fireplace. Suddenly he halted, unable to go another step.
Jessie, who was beside him, stopped also. “The chair!” she exclaimed. “It’s ripped to shreds.”
“So it wasn’t my imagination after all,” Violet said in a husky voice, a hand flying to her flushed cheek. “To think the intruder was in the house while we were sleeping!” She shivered, hating to think how near a stranger had been.
“Well,” Henry said, trying to laugh, “it looks like Pete has one ruined chair.”
“I’ll say,” Benny said in a low tone. “The chair is all stuffing and springs.”
They stared at the damage, not quite knowing how to handle this.
Jessie was the first to stir. She forced a cheerful smile. “There’s not much we can do about the damage.” She hesitated, then continued, “Besides, that old chair was so caved in that you almost sank to the floor.”
“Oh, Pete won’t care. It’s just the thought of someone . . .” Henry didn’t finish.
“Someone being so close,” Miguel finished.
“Right,” Violet said. Her face was pale. “Shall we go for help?”
Jessie, attempting to keep her smile, said, “If word gets out there’s a prowler, we won’t be able to finish.”
Henry nodded. “We’ll be very careful. We have to keep our eyes open every minute, and we have to stay together.”
“Will he come back tonight?” Benny asked in a small frightened voice, his eyes fastened on Henry’s face.
They all shifted their feet uneasily, but Henry was positive. “Absolutely not! We only have one more night here, and we’ll take turns standing guard. We’ll work in the library today and if we don’t find the missing sword, then I guess it will never be found!”
Jessie leaned down, looking at Benny. “You must eat some breakfast, Benny.” Benny shook his head.
“I can’t believe you’re not hungry,” Miguel said with concern in his dark eyes. “You must eat so you can help at the library.”
“I’m tired of working in the library.”
“Then you can be our lookout today,” Henry said. “You won’t have to lift books anymore.”
“Really?” he said, slowly weakening.
“Yes,” Jessie said.
Benny stared at Jessie with his big brown eyes. “Can we have pancakes?” He smiled impishly.
Violet laughed. “That’s just the breakfast I was thinking of,” she said.
“Then, I guess I’m hungry, after all,” Benny said, going into the kitchen.
They all pitched in, making the morning meal. Henry set the table, Jessie made the pancakes, Violet poured the milk, and Miguel set the syrup and butter on the table. Benny folded napkins and set one at each place, but every once in a while he stopped and glanced at the ruined chair.
Everyone ate a hearty breakfast, trying to forget the intruder who had been in their house.
They decided to bike to the library and on the way Henry began to sing, and soon everyone joined in. In the bright sunlight, the stranger didn’t seem so ominous. Besides, it was their last day, and tonight the lookout would warn them if anyone approached the little house.
When they reached the library, Henry paused before opening the door. What if it was a mess again? He shook his head to get rid of the awful picture of yesterday’s chaos, and flung open the door.
All was as they had left it yesterday. Everyone crowded behind Henry, peeking over his shoulder.
“It’s all right,” he laughed. “You can come in.”
Row after row of books lined the shelves. Boxes of books, tied with string and labeled, hadn’t been opened.
“Wow,” Benny exclaimed. He beamed his approval.
“Doesn’t everything look grand?” Henry said, surveying the room with his hands on his hips.
Jessie stood beside him. “All our hard work has paid off.”
“Wait until Grandfather sees how lovely the library looks,” Violet said with a sweet smile.
“What’s the matter, Miguel?” Henry motioned the boy forward. “You helped in this, too, you know.”
“It’s the nicest library I’ve ever seen,” Miguel said, but he still hung back.
Jessie and Violet exchanged glances. They knew why he wasn’t in a happy mood. The wind had died down, and now Miguel would have to face the two fishermen who would soon be brought to shore. Miguel might be the happiest boy in the world or the most heartbroken. Jessie took Miguel’s hand, pulling him into the group.
“We only have the upstairs and we’ll be finished,” Henry said briskly, attempting to distract Miguel so he wouldn’t think too much.
“There aren’t many books upstairs,” Jessie said lightly, already mounting the steps.
“Now, Benny,” Henry said gravely. “You stay downstairs and be our guard. If anyone approaches, you yell a warning.”
“Okay,” Benny said, feeling important. He climbed atop the circulation desk. “I’ll sit right here and look out the window,” he said, swinging his legs.
“Good boy,” Henry said. “We don’t need to worry with you as our lookout.”
“You bet you don’t!” Benny grinned, glad not to have to handle any more books. Being a guard was much easier.
Violet patted Benny’s knee. “We shouldn’t be too long.”
“That’s okay,” Benny answered, resting his chin in his hand and staring intently out the window.
Henry, Violet, and Miguel went upstairs where Jessie was already straightening books.
After two hours of hard work, their job was almost ended.
Suddenly they heard a thud. Then another.
“What was that?” Violet asked in a shaky voice.
Henry laughed. “Did you see the rubber ball sticking out of Benny’s back pocket?”
“Oh, is that it?” Violet said in relief, listening to the steady bounce of the ball.
All at once the noise stopped.
They all listened.
Benny shouted, “Hurry, hurry! See what I’ve found.”
They rushed downstairs.
Benny, bending over a hole in the floor, pulled and tugged at something below the floorboards.
“What is it, Benny?” Jessie questioned, her brown eyes sparkling with curiosity.
“I was playing with the ball, and it rolled into the hole,” Benny panted. His face was beet-red, and he grunted with huge effort. He gave one final pull and lifted out a rusty black object.
“What in the world did you find?” Violet asked.
“It looks like the point of the sword,” Miguel said.
Jessie eagerly seized the metal from Benny. “It is!” she cried triumphantly. “It’s the missing sword piece! Now our Civil War sword is complete!”
Henry said slowly, “I hope we can get it home without the stranger finding out.”
Just then the back door slammed.
Benny jumped.
Everyone’s eyes darted from one to the other.
“Is it the prowler?” Jessie whispered.
“Nonsense!” Henry said with a snort. He ran to the back door and quickly returned. “Not a soul in sight. It was only the wind,” he said heartily. But there was doubt written all over his face.
The others were doubtful, too.
“How come the backdoor wasn’t locked?” Violet asked.
Benny looked sheepish. “I opened it before to look outside.”
Henry sighed. “Remember I said we have to be careful . . . very careful.” |