The Candymakers and the Great Chocolate Chase

  When Miles didn’t reply, she said, “Still too soon for jokes?”

  “Maybe a little,” he admitted.

  “What’s going on?” Philip asked. He and Logan had already gotten dressed.

  AJ parked the RV as far away from the road as possible, then turned to face them all. “Welcome to the official middle of nowhere. Otherwise known as the post office where Frank Griffin receives his mail. ”

  Everyone started talking at once, Philip the loudest. “What? How?”

  “I was able to remember part of the return address!” Logan said. “If we find Frank, we have another chance at finding the beans!”

  “I get that,” Philip said. “But when people don’t want you to know where they are, they don’t put their real return address on a package.” He turned to AJ. “Surely you would know that.”

  AJ nodded. “Indeed I do. I didn’t say we were at the address he wrote on the package. When people who aren’t in the lying game have to do something shady, they tend to do it only in small increments. Like in this case, they might change the name of the state or lose one number of the zip code. Frank did both. He likely made up the P.O. box number, too, but we won’t know that until we get inside. We’ll arrive before the mail is distributed and hope he shows up.” He looked at his watch. “We have twenty minutes.”

  “Wow,” Logan said. “How did you figure out where to go if the return address wasn’t real?”

  Daisy chuckled. “Entry-level spy work. You treat it like a secret code. We’ve been figuring this stuff out since before we could tie our own shoes. Plus the clues about the camping trip and the meteorite crash would have made it easier to narrow down.” She turned to AJ. “I could have helped, you know. Remember how good I am at deciphering codes?”

  “You needed your beauty sleep,” AJ replied.

  “I’m beautiful enough already.” She knew AJ’s competitive streak had kicked in. He’d wanted to be the one to figure it out.

  “So I guess this isn’t where the tree is, then?” Miles asked. He peered out the window. “Everything looks very flat here. No big hills or rivers or fog. I don’t think that pond is the River of Light.”

  AJ shook his head. “I checked all our satellite and topographical records and don’t see any geography that fits. Still, this town had a definite meteor strike about a hundred years ago. If we don’t find Frank today during our stakeout, we’ll take out the metal detector and get to work.”

  “We’re on a stakeout?” Logan and Miles asked, grins spreading across their faces. “Does that mean we get to use the disguise closet?”

  “It does,” AJ said. “Within reason.” He had to call out now because they’d already started running down the aisle. “I don’t want to see any firefighters or clowns. No stilts!”

  Daisy shook her head at AJ. “You know we don’t really need those disguises for this. Maybe Logan, but that’s it.”

  “I know,” AJ said. “But look how happy it made them.”

  “You’re turning into an old softy,” she said, elbowing him.

  “I have a strange feeling about this, Oopsa,” he admitted, lowering his voice. “I think this Franklin guy is hiding more than he’s letting on. He’s been out of the public eye for a very, very long time. People don’t do that without a good reason.”

  “Let’s go find out,” she said. “I’d better check on them back there.”

  When Daisy got to the disguise closet/storage room, she was pleased to see the boys dressed in matching Scout uniforms and baseball caps. Sure, they wore wigs under their hats that looked totally unrealistic on them, but no one had a fake mustache or a pillow stuffed under his shirt, so she was grateful for that. She was able to talk all but Logan out of the wig. He showed her how it covered a lot of his scars and said that Franklin might know about them. Evy hadn’t been surprised when she saw them, or if she had, she’d hidden it well. Daisy couldn’t argue with his logic.

  As they headed out of the room, Daisy noticed Miles was limping. She stopped. “Did you hurt your foot?”

  He nodded. “I was working on my explorer badge, and my compass broke, and I turned the wrong way and stepped into a rabbit hole. These guys tried to stop me, but they were busy fending off a swarm of wasps. I think I twisted my ankle.”

  She tilted her head at him. “I’m sorry, what?”

  Miles grinned. “I’m in character as a Scout. That’s my backstory.”

  “Nice,” she said appreciatively. “You could put a rock into your shoe. That would change the way you walk without you having to remember to limp.”

  “Good one!” Miles said. “I’ll try that next time I’m in disguise on a stakeout.”

  “What are you going to be, Daisy?” Logan asked.

  “I’ll be Girl Mailing Letters,” she said, snatching the pile of fan-mail replies from the end of Philip’s bed. “These ready to go out?”

  Philip nodded. The only good thing about having to give up the winning title for the Harmonicandy was that maybe the fan mail would stop.

  Miles insisted on limping the few blocks to the post office. Actually, he only limped when he remembered, which was about every six steps. AJ had a backpack with him, and Daisy had the letters, but the boys only brought plastic canteens filled with water, which they slung over their shoulders to complete the look.

  “Okay,” AJ said when they got to the corner. “You three stay outside, sit on the curb, and look innocent while Daisy and I go inside. Come in if you see anything suspicious.”

  “Like what?” Miles asked.

  “Like anyone who looks like he could be Frank,” Daisy said. Bells tinkled over the door as she pushed it open. The small crowd inside talked pleasantly to each other while they waited for the postal worker to finish loading the mail into the metal boxes. A quick scan told them that no one of the right age and gender was among those picking up their mail.

  Since they weren’t picking up any mail, they had to stall, or else people would wonder why they were hanging out there. Daisy spent much longer than necessary deciding which of the ten different designs she wanted for her stamps. One of Philip’s fans had been thoughtful enough to include a stamp and return envelope, but she still had three more to buy stamps for. Should it be the yellow flower stamp, the cartoon teddy bear, or the flag? She chose one of each so it would take the clerk that much longer to get them all.

  Meanwhile, the boys busied themselves by drawing in the dirt with sticks and trying to guess each other’s pictures. Logan’s were always candies, so they were the easiest to figure out. So far they hadn’t seen anyone who looked grandfather-aged. An actual Scout walked by with his dad and saluted them. They gave an awkward salute back.

  Inside, AJ searched the numbers etched on the doors of the boxes. The number Frank had written for his return address didn’t even exist at this post office branch. AJ tried to see if he could spot Frank’s name on any of the envelopes the mailwoman was sorting, but she kept her back to them.

  “Hey,” Daisy whispered, “what if he gets his mail delivered to his house instead?”

  AJ shook his head. “In rural towns they usually don’t deliver to people’s homes. Plus, judging by how secretive he is, he likely wouldn’t give out his real address. If he shows up today, we’ve got him.”

  In the end, it went down differently. Once the mail had been sorted and the tiny mailbox keys spun in their locks, the crowd gradually slipped out to the street with their mail. “Okay,” AJ whispered to Daisy. “He didn’t come in the first wave. We’ll have to stall longer.”

  “Is there anything else I can help you with?” the clerk asked them when everyone else had left.

  “My sister and I are considering opening a post office box here,” AJ said, flashing a warm smile. “Could you explain to me all the steps to do that?”

  “Certainly,” the woman replied. “I’ll go get you the paperwork.” She disappeared from view, and they were alone.

  “We’ll just have to watch the place from acro
ss the street,” Daisy said. “He could come anytime, right?”

  AJ nodded as the bells tinkled and an older woman with a baby rushed in, followed by a younger woman in dust-covered jeans and a flannel shirt that seemed too warm for the weather. The older woman just dropped some letters in the mail slot in the counter and left. The younger one lifted a key from her key chain and tried to get it to fit inside one of the P.O. boxes. She turned the whole key chain upside down and tried again. It wouldn’t turn. “Do you want me to try?” AJ asked, bending down.

  “Sure, give it your best shot,” the woman said, handing him all the keys. The mail clerk came back with a form and a pen. When she saw them trying to get the box open, she laughed. “Maggie, that was last month’s. He’s up here now.” She pointed to a box on the top row. Maggie sighed and took the key from AJ. “Thanks anyway. My boss changes P.O. boxes like most people change their… actually, I don’t know anything people change as often as he changes boxes!”

  Without waiting for a response, she inserted the key in the lock of the correct one and opened it to find it empty. She didn’t seem surprised and swung it closed. “See you tomorrow,” Maggie called out to the clerk and gave a wave as she pushed open the door.

  Daisy snatched up the form and showed it to the clerk. “We’ll bring it back if we decide to open one.” They hurried out. “Turn on the charm,” she whispered to AJ.

  “I’m on it,” AJ replied, thrusting his backpack at her. “Juice, tape, screwdriver.”

  “Got it.”

  “What’s going on?” Miles asked. Daisy swung the backpack onto her shoulder as AJ took off after the woman in the dress.

  “C’mon,” Daisy said, ushering the boys farther down the street in the direction the woman was walking. AJ had just caught up with her. They could tell the two were chatting, but they couldn’t hear their words. “Did you see her get out of a car?” Daisy asked the boys.

  Miles nodded. “It’s that tan one over there.” He pointed across the street at a parking lot with two cars in it. He’d seen the woman cross the street and go into the post office, but he hadn’t paid much attention. They’d moved on from Name That Dirt Picture to Name That Cloud, and Miles had just been about to suggest that the large one overhead looked like a cross between Philip and a dragon.

  AJ and the young woman suddenly turned to go into a sandwich shop. “That guy’s good,” Daisy whispered. “Okay, follow me. Don’t do anything weird.”

  The four of them crossed the street, Philip whistling, Logan humming, Miles limping. Daisy just sighed. They reached the car and she ducked behind it, pulling them down with her. Fortunately, the rear of the car faced a brick wall, so they didn’t have to worry about anyone coming up behind them.

  The boys watched as Daisy pulled a fairly large silver pouch out of the backpack, followed by duct tape and a screwdriver. Before they could even ask, she’d taped the bag underneath the rear of the car, completely out of view unless you were crouching like they were. “Good,” she said after testing to make sure it held firm. “One more step. Just let me know if they’re coming.”

  Philip peered around the side of the car. “All clear,” he reported.

  Daisy gave a nod, then used the end of the screwdriver to poke a tiny hole in the very front of the bag. A thin pink liquid trickled out onto the pavement, then stopped as the liquid settled in the bag. Satisfied, Daisy put the tape and tool away. “When she drives away, we’ll be able to follow the trail on the road without sticking too close. This is a great tailing method when you think you’ve been spotted or when you’re driving an enormous beast like Harvey.”

  “Why not just stick a tracking device under her car?” Philip asked. “You must have them.”

  “Of course we do, but sometimes low tech is better than high tech. Especially when you don’t know what kind of descrambling or cloaking devices the suspect has.”

  Philip looked doubtfully at the old car. “She doesn’t seem too high tech. There’s still a cassette player in her car.”

  “Oh, all right,” Daisy snapped. “Sometimes low tech is just more fun, okay?”

  Philip put up his hands. “You’re the boss.”

  Daisy smiled. “That’s what I like to hear. Now c’mon, AJ’s charm isn’t going to hold her forever.”

  “But why are we following her, anyway?” Logan asked as Daisy hurried them all back across the street. “Unless she’s much better at disguises than we are, that’s not Frank.”

  “We think she might work for him,” Daisy explained. “Hopefully she’ll lead us to him.”

  AJ joined them back at the RV ten minutes later. “Her name is Maggie Bellush,” he announced. “She works as an assistant curator for a museum. That’s pretty much all I got. But since there are no museums within a hundred miles, I figure she’s here on temporary assignment.”

  Daisy tilted her head at him and tapped her foot expectantly.

  “Fine,” AJ said. “Her accent tells me she’s from the South but has lived here at least five years. She likes her new job, but the bags under her eyes tell me she is stressed out and not sleeping enough. And judging by the number of sandwiches she just bought, she’s expecting it to be another really long day.”

  “That’s it?” Philip joked.

  “Well, she used to be a swimmer in college—the broad shoulders told me that—and her birthday is in April.”

  “Let’s just go,” Miles said, “before AJ tells us her dog’s name and her shoe size.” AJ could do in real life what he’d only pretended to do with Daisy at the rest stop. Although he’d been right about the geocachers!

  “Pogo and size seven,” AJ said, and then shrugged. “What can I say? It’s a gift.”

  They gave Maggie a ten-minute head start and then rolled out into the street. The pink juice left a nice, clear trail to follow, and in the places where the dust had already blown over it, Harvey’s heat-detecting sensors picked it up. The juice contained the same chemical as the heat dots AJ had left for Daisy to follow in the woods at the camp. “Oh yeah, don’t drink that stuff if you see it again,” she warned the boys.

  Logan and Miles kept checking out the back, half hoping someone would be following them as they followed her. Then maybe they’d get to see how well the oil slick or thumbtacks or plumes of white smoke worked! They could tell by the glances between AJ and Daisy that they were worried the juice might run out soon.

  The houses they passed began to get farther and farther apart until eventually all they saw were fields dotted with weeds and patches of dried grass. After another five minutes the road made a wide curve, and when it straightened out again, they found themselves facing a dead end. “Hold on, everyone,” AJ said as he pressed hard on the brakes. They came to a quick halt without even feeling it.

  A small, plain house sat at the end of the street. It reminded Logan of what a house would look like if a kid drew a picture of one with a crayon but forgot to put in windows. The car they’d been following sat in the short, narrow driveway, the only indication that the house wasn’t abandoned.

  “Do you really think Frank Griffin lives here?” Miles asked. “I mean, this guy’s famous—like, superfamous. He should live in a huge mansion on the ocean.”

  “He’s a famous mapmaker,” Philip said. “That’s not like being normal famous.”

  “I think we’re about to find out,” Daisy said. “Look.” They watched as the front door of the house swung open. Maggie from the post office stepped out, hesitated only a second, and then began walking over to the door of the RV. They all jumped up, not knowing what to do with themselves.

  “We can’t let her in,” AJ reminded them, as if they needed reminding.

  “Should we hide?” Miles asked.

  “I know!” Logan said. “Escape route through the fake toilet!”

  Philip shook his head. “Aurora used it by mistake. I haven’t had a chance to clean it yet.”

  Logan and Miles wrinkled their noses.

  “I’d better
go talk to her,” Daisy said. “We’d be having this conversation sooner or later.”

  Daisy pushed the front door open just wide enough for her to slip outside. Before she could shut it, Aurora sprang off the top step and barreled through it. The door swung wide open before Daisy could do anything without risking hurting the cat. The timing couldn’t have been worse. Maggie looked straight up into the RV and saw all of them gaping at her.

  Her gaze swept over each of them, and then she asked, “Is one of you Logan Sweet?”

  CHAPTER NINETEEN

  Logan looked at Daisy. She seemed as surprised as he was, but she gave him a nod. He squared his shoulders and said, “I’m Logan.”

  “Mr. Griffin would like to see you,” Maggie said. She began to walk back toward the house. Logan didn’t move. When she realized he wasn’t behind her, she turned around. “Your friends can come, too.”

  “We’ll be right there,” Daisy said, hurrying back inside. She closed the door without waiting for an answer. “Okay, guys, listen up. This guy is clever; we knew that already. He’s managed to avoid detection for decades, yet he knew we were coming—or Logan, at least. We don’t know why he chooses to live all the way out here, away from everyone, or why he changes his post office box number every month, or why he sent Logan that package in the first place and whether he knew all it contained. My advice is to let him do the talking. See what he reveals about the past before asking him about the beans. AJ and I will be able to tell if he’s lying.”

  Everyone nodded in agreement. “He seemed friendly in his letter,” Logan pointed out.

  Daisy nodded. “And we’ll hope he’s friendly in person.”

  Miles grabbed the map, contract, and bean and put them in his backpack. It didn’t feel safe to leave them behind, and they might need them for proof. He grabbed the Magic Bar, too, just in case. Daisy had sealed it in a plastic container that supposedly could withstand the weight of an elephant standing on it. Maggie was waiting by the front door for them. Up close Logan could see she was younger than he’d first thought. Probably not more than twenty-five. She gave AJ a pointed look. He simply smiled and said, “Small world.”