Jessie wrapped a scarf around her neck. “Watch can’t go without a collar and a leash,” she told Benny. “We don’t want to lose him in the woods.”
The ride to the Eggleston land didn’t take long. The Aldens turned onto the long dirt driveway that led to the old house. They got off their bikes and looked around.
“I don’t see the dog,” Henry said. “Maybe he was just hiking with his owner the other day.”
“I didn’t notice yesterday, but the forest here is pretty,” Violet said. “It’s nice to see so many bright-colored fall leaves.”
“It doesn’t look like a swamp. I thought swamps were in hot places and full of alligators,” Benny said.
“Not all swamps,” Henry explained. “As long as the ground stays wet enough throughout the year, and it has a lot of trees and shrubs, it’s a swamp. We learned about different kinds of wetlands in science class. If there were mostly grasses here, it would be called a marsh instead.”
“It’s a noisy swamp. Listen to all those birds chirping,” Jessie said.
“They must really like it out here,” Soo Lee said.
A rapid tap, tap, tap sound got everyone’s attention. “I know that sound.” Violet pointed to a big old tree on the edge of the forest. “It’s a woodpecker. I see a bit of red on that tree.”
“It’s too bad we don’t have binoculars so we could tell what kind of woodpecker it is,” Jessie said. “It would be fun to hike here sometime to see how many different species of birds we could find.”
“I don’t know if I’d want to hike around here,” Benny said. He glanced around, rubbing his hands together. “It feels lonely.”
“We’re not the only ones here,” Soo Lee said. “Someone has parked a bike next to the house.”
A silver bike leaned against one side of the porch. A silver and blue helmet dangled from one of the handlebars. The children went over to take a close look. “It’s brand new,” Henry said admiringly.
“Hey, what are you doing to my bike?” someone yelled. They turned around to see Logan Ford running out of the swamp toward them. He had a backpack on and an angry expression on his face. He skidded to stop next to them. “Don’t touch that!”
“We were just looking at it,” Jessie told him.
“We were wondering who owned it,” Henry said. “It’s a great bike.”
“It belongs to me,” Logan replied. He grabbed the bike and steered it over to the drive.
“Do you know who lives here?” Jessie called after him.
“Nobody lives here,” Logan said. He got on his bike and pedaled away very fast toward Appleville.
“He really isn’t nice,” Violet said.
“I wonder what he was doing out here by himself,” Jessie said.
“I wouldn’t go into that swamp by myself,” Benny said. “I wouldn’t even come out to this house by myself. Those old twisted trees next to the house are creepy.”
“It seems creepy because the weather is so gloomy,” Jessie told him. “It would look better if it was sunny.”
“I think those twisted trees are old apple trees. They aren’t in great shape,” Henry said. Dead branches littered the ground and some of the trees had fallen over.
“I’m getting cold. Do we look for Watch’s collar first or go knock on the door?” Violet asked.
“Let’s knock on the door.” Henry and Jessie led the way. Jessie called back over her shoulder, “Try not to step in the really muddy spots.”
The porch steps creaked as the children climbed them. Up close, they could see the house was even more run-down than it looked from the road. The children had to step over spaces where some of the porch boards had rotted away. Dead leaves piled in the corners. A little mouse saw them coming and scurried into one of the big piles.
“I don’t think anyone lives here,” Violet whispered. “The shades are drawn and the windows are dirty.”
“Look!” Soo Lee cried. She motioned to two metal dog bowls that sat on one side of the porch. One was full of water and the other had a few bits of dog food in it.
“Someone must live here if they are feeding the dog,” Jessie said. “Maybe the dog lives here after all.”
“Let’s knock on the door,” Henry said before he knocked. They waited and listened, but there was no answer. No sound came from inside.
“If Mr. Hund does live here, he’s not home,” Jessie said. “Let’s look for Watch’s collar.” They tried to retrace Watch’s path through the grass, but they didn’t find the collar.
They were just about to go back to their bikes when Violet called, “Look what I’ve found.” She held up a big black feather.
Benny took a step back. “There really is a curse!” he cried.
Jessie went over to Violet and took the feather from her. “Benny, it’s just a feather. Birds lose feathers once in a while. Remember, we’ve found blue jay feathers and cardinal feathers at home in the yard,” Jessie told him.
“Yes,” Henry said. “I’m sure if we came out here all the time, we’d find lots of feathers.”
“I suppose,” Benny said. “Can we go back to Soo Lee’s house now?”
Before anyone could answer, a strange noise rang out from the swamp. “What was that?” Violet whispered.
“I don’t know,” Henry said. “I’ve never heard a sound like that. It is almost like someone was moaning, like they were hurt.” They all listened but the sound didn’t come again.
“Maybe it was just the wind,” Violet said doubtfully.
“I’d really like to leave,” Benny said.
“Me too,” added Soo Lee.
“It is getting cold,” Henry said. “And we aren’t going to find Mr. Hund here today. Why don’t we go to the pet store and get Watch a new collar.”
“Can we have lunch first?” Benny asked. “I’m hungry.”
“Yes,” Jessie said. “We’ll all be hungry by the time we ride back to Soo Lee’s house. I made a plan with Alice about lunch. She and Joe will be running errands, so I’m making everyone grilled cheese and heating up the tomato soup she made for us.”
The children pedaled back as fast as they could, ready to be somewhere warm.
Once they were back at the house, they all helped to get lunch ready. Jessie made grilled cheese while Henry sliced some apples and ladled out the soup. Soo Lee and Benny set the table, and Violet poured the milk.
Jessie put the platter of sandwiches in the middle of the table as everyone else sat down.
“Those look so good!” Soo Lee told Jessie.
“They’ll taste good too!” Benny said. “But I’ll try one first just to be sure.” He took a big bite from his.
“What do you think, Benny?” Jessie asked, laughing.
He nodded his head in approval, his mouth too full to talk.
Henry took a sandwich and set it on his plate. “I wish we had been able to meet Albert Hund,” he said.
“But Logan told us no one lives there,” Violet said.
Jessie picked up the plate of apple slices to pass around. “Someone lives there because that dog food and the water had been put in the bowl not very long ago,” Jessie said.
“I wish I knew the name of the woman we saw outside the house when we had the flat tire. She might know Albert Hund,” Henry said.
“What woman?” Soo Lee asked.
Violet described her. “She was the same woman whose pin fell off last night. The lady in the red coat,” she added.
“Oh, that’s Birdie Brinkerhoff,” Soo Lee said. “I don’t know her real first name. Everyone calls her Birdie because she likes birds and she always wears a bluebird pin. She works at the pet store.”
“Perfect. We can ask her when we go buy Watch a new collar,” Jessie said. “There’s one more apple slice. Who wants it?”
“I do!” Benny said.
CHAPTER 7
Questions at the Pet Store
A bell on the pet shop door jangled when Henry tried to push it open. The door was old
and a little crooked so it stuck on the frame until Henry tried again, pushing harder. As the Aldens followed Henry inside, they saw Birdie Brinkerhoff at the back of the store arranging some dog toys. She looked their way.
Violet waved at her. The woman didn’t wave back. She turned around and hurried through a door that said Storeroom.
“That’s strange,” Violet said.
“Do you think she didn’t recognize you?” Soo Lee asked.
Before Violet could answer, a man greeted them from behind the counter. “Hello. Welcome to the store.” The man got up from his chair and came around to where they stood. He was a small thin man wearing suspenders that had little paw prints over them.
“Hello,” Jessie said.
The man looked at them for a moment and then said, “I remember you. You are cousins to Joe and Alice Alden.”
“That’s right,” Henry said. “And you are Mr. Pawson. We came into your store last time we visited to get some dog food.”
“I remember.” The man didn’t look very happy to see them. “I can’t say I want your cousin to get elected. I don’t want to close my store.”
“It sounds like you didn’t stay for all of Alice’s speech,” Jessie said. “You won’t have to close your store, only move it. The organization that wants to take over Main Street will build you a brand new store a few streets away.”
“What? I didn’t know anything about that.” Mr. Pawson was surprised.
“Yes, you could help design the new store just the way you want it,” Violet told him.
Mr. Pawson looked around. “I could use more space. And it would be nice not to have such drafty windows. Are you sure about that plan?”
Jessie nodded her head. “We’re sure. You should talk to Alice to get more details,” she told him.
“I’ll definitely do that. Now what can I do for you today?” he asked.
“We need a dog collar,” Henry said. “Our dog, Watch, lost his. He’s a wirehaired terrier, so a medium-sized collar would fit.”
“Collars are right over here.” Mr. Pawson led them to an aisle filled with collars and leashes. “This one would be the right size for a wirehaired terrier. It comes in brown, green, and red.”
“No purple?” Violet asked. Purple was Violet’s favorite color. “Watch has never had a purple collar.”
Mr. Pawson shook his head. “No, I’m sorry.
No purple.”
“What about red?” Jessie suggested. “Red would look good on him.”
The others agreed, so Mr. Pawson took the collar to the counter to ring up the sale.
“We saw Birdie Brinkerhoff out at the old house on the Eggleston land,” Jessie said as they waited. “There was a dog out there. We were wondering if it was hers and if she lives there.”
“No, Birdie lives in another town a few miles from here,” Mr. Pawson said. “She comes to Appleville to work. Her town doesn’t have a pet store. If she was out walking around on the Eggleston place, she was probably watching birds. It’s her favorite hobby. She hikes all over the swamp.”
“She acted scared of us just now when we came in,” Benny said.
Mr. Pawson laughed. “She wasn’t scared. Don’t mind Birdie. She’s just very shy. She’s terrific with the animals, especially the birds, but she doesn’t talk to people much,” he explained.
The bell on the door jangled again and Mrs. Draper came in. “Hello,” she said to Mr. Pawson and to the Aldens. “Mr. Pawson, I need more of the specialty cat food for Boots. She just loves the sample you gave me.”
“I’d be happy to. I’ll just finish ringing up the Aldens’ purchase,” Mr. Pawson replied.
“Mrs. Draper, can I ask you a question about the election?” Henry said as he took money out of his wallet to pay for the collar.
“Certainly,” Mrs. Draper replied. “I’ll try to answer.”
“Have you ever met Mr. Hund?” Henry asked.
She frowned. “No, I can’t recall ever meeting him.”
“Do you know anyone else who has met him?” Jessie asked.
“Well, I haven’t had a chance to ask many people, but no one I spoke to last night seemed to know him,” Mrs. Draper replied.
“So how can someone run for mayor that no one knows?” Violet asked.
“I’m sure someone knows Mr. Hund, though it is strange that I don’t,” Mrs. Draper replied. “But if he is a resident of Appleville and he filled out the paperwork correctly, then he’s allowed to run for mayor. Appleville doesn’t have many strict rules about running for city positions. Some cities do, but here candidates just have to fill out one form to have their names put on the ballot.”
“Didn’t anyone meet him when he turned in the form?” Benny asked.
“No, I was told it was mailed to our office. A candidate doesn’t have to hand in the form in person,” Mrs. Draper said.
“Do you know him, Mr. Pawson?” Soo Lee asked.
Mr. Pawson walked over to the cat food shelf. “Not me. Mr. Hund is a mystery. How many cans would you like, Mrs. Draper?”
“Five please. Mr. Hund is a mystery, but perhaps a mystery candidate will get more people out to vote.” Mrs. Draper gave a big sigh. “We’ve had a terrible turnout the last few years. It’s too bad and now this nonsense about the curse on the town may make it worse. Election Day used to be quite a holiday a long time ago. Not just here, but all over the state. My grandmother told me stories about it. She always looked forward to it when she was a little girl,” Mrs. Draper said.
“A holiday? Did people get presents?” Benny asked.
“No, not that kind of holiday,” Mrs. Draper said. “People were proud to have the right to vote, so they treated Election Day as a celebration. There were parades and dances and special food.”
“That sounds like so much fun!” Soo Lee exclaimed.
“Special food? What kind?” Jessie asked. Jessie loved to learn about the foods people ate for holidays and celebrations.
“A special kind of Election Day cake,” Mrs. Draper said as she waited for Mr. Pawson to ring up the cat food. “Many townspeople made the cakes for the voters who had to travel in from the country to vote. People came by horseback or wagons into the towns, so they were often very hungry when they arrived. The townspeople would serve them Election Day cake as a treat.”
“I’d like to find a recipe for that,” Jessie said. “I like to bake.”
“I’m sorry I don’t have one,” Mrs. Draper said as she paid for her purchases and picked up the bag. “It was nice talking to you, but I have to be going.”
“We need to go too. Thank you, Mr. Pawson,” Henry said as the Aldens went out the door.
Outside, Jessie said, “It’s very odd that not even Mrs. Draper has met Albert Hund.”
“It is odd,” Henry agreed. “Mr. Hund may be an even bigger mystery than anyone suspects.”
“Can we talk about cake instead of Mr. Hund?” Benny asked. “I’m hungry. Jessie hasn’t made a cake for a long time. At least a week!”
“We could make cake to hand out on Election Day,” Violet suggested. “That would be fun.”
“Yes!” Benny said. “We can make lots of cake. People would come vote if they knew they got a piece of cake. And if they brought their children with them, the children could have cake too!”
“I wonder if Mr. Eggleston has a recipe,” Jessie said. “He mentioned he had many old recipes from his grandmother and great-grandmother.”
Henry frowned. “He might have a recipe, but I don’t know if you could get him to share it. He’s not very friendly.”
“It won’t hurt to ask,” Jessie said. “Let’s go ask Alice if she has his phone number. She should be at her campaign headquarters by now.”
“I’m sure I have Mr. Eggleston’s number,” Alice told the children. As she took out her phone to look it up, a loud clattering sound came from the kitchen.
“It sounds like something fell over,” Violet said.
“I should go look,?
?? Alice said.
Alice was heading toward the kitchen when Mr. Eggleston came in the front door. “Why are you going into the kitchen?” he asked in an angry voice.
“We heard a loud noise. I was going to investigate,” she told him.
“I’ll look.” Mr. Eggleston pushed past Alice. As soon as he opened the door, he cried out, “Someone made a terrible mess in my kitchen!”
CHAPTER 8
A Sweet Idea
The Aldens went to look in the kitchen. There was a big pile of flour on the table in the middle of the room. A metal canister lay on the floor with flour all around it.
“Which one of your volunteers did this?” Mr. Eggleston shouted. “And why didn’t they clean it up?”
“None of my volunteers did this,” Alice said. “It happened just a moment ago. Someone must have come in through the back door.”
“I see footprints in the flour,” Henry said. “They are leading to the back door.”
Mr. Eggleston walked over to it and pulled on it. “It’s locked!” he said. “Whoever did this didn’t go through this door. Now please leave my kitchen so I can clean up. I never should have let you use my bakery.”
“Can we help clean up, Mr. Eggleston?” Jessie asked. “With more people helping, it won’t take long.”
He took a few deep breaths and then said, “Thank you for offering. I’m sorry I shouted. The brooms and cleaning supplies are in the closet over there.”
The children and Mr. Eggleston got to work. As Jessie was working to clean off the table she spotted something in the middle of the pile of flour. “What’s this?” she said, picking up a tiny black disc.
Everyone came over to look at it. “I don’t know,” Henry said. “It’s like a flattened bead, but it doesn’t have a hole in it to put a string through.”
“I don’t care what it is,” Mr. Eggleston said. “Just throw it in the garbage can with the flour.”
“We should keep it,” Violet said. “It’s small, but it’s still a clue. I can put it in my pocket so it won’t get lost.” Jessie handed it to her and they went back to their tasks.