The Mystery in Washington, D.C.

  Amira hesitated. “Now I see them. Fish sticks.” She reached for a plate of french fries and plunked it on his tray.

  Benny looked up at her, puzzled. “I love french fries, but you forgot the fish sticks.”

  “I’ll get them,” Jessie said quickly. “Here you go, Benny.”

  They moved quickly to the cashier, and Amira looked embarrassed. Jessie looked at her new friend thoughtfully. It seemed that Amira had never seen or heard of fish sticks before.

  “What does your father do, Amira?” Henry asked when they were settled at a table.

  “He’s … in business.” Amira ducked her head and began eating quickly.

  “Really?” Henry persisted. “What kind?”

  “It’s hard to explain,” she said slowly. She sounded uncomfortable, and looked nervously at the group. “He’s in … foreign business. International business.”

  “He must travel a lot,” Jessie said. “It must be fun going with him.”

  “Oh, I usually don’t travel at all,” Amira told her.

  “What kind of music do you like?” Jessie asked.

  “I … I don’t listen to music,” Amira said quickly.

  “You don’t listen to music?” Benny was amazed.

  “No, I don’t.” Before anyone could ask her any more questions, Amira grabbed the guidebook, and began reading aloud about the Capitol. Violet only half-listened, her mind racing. Amira seemed to know a lot about history, and almost nothing about everyday things. And she obviously didn’t want to talk about herself. Their new friend was very mysterious.

  Henry was thinking, too. He noticed a pair of men in dark suits who were sitting a few tables away. They were both reading newspapers, but they glanced over at the Aldens every now and then.

  Henry knew he had seen them before.

  They had been right behind Benny in the cafeteria line. There was nothing unusual about that, he told himself. He relaxed and began eating, and then suddenly it dawned on him. The men in dark suits had been right behind them, strolling up the Capitol steps! And he was sure he had spotted them walking along the same leafy side street toward the Smithsonian. He closed his eyes and tried to remember. Yes, it was definitely them! One had a mustache and one had a funny way of walking with his elbow jutting out. These were the same men.

  But why were they following the Aldens? Henry looked over at one of the men just before he ducked his head back behind his newspaper. Yes, there was something going on. They were in the middle of a new mystery!

  CHAPTER 3

  We’re Being Followed!

  “Some new guests arrived today,” Mrs. Parsons said later that afternoon. “That’s why I’m cooking an extra large pot roast.” A delicious aroma drifted in from the kitchen.

  “May we help you?” Violet offered.

  “You can give me a hand with the vegetables and dessert, if you like.” Mrs. Parsons led the way to the kitchen. Within minutes, Henry and Benny were busily chopping vegetables, while the girls sliced apples for a crumb-topped pie. “Your father called today,” Mrs. Parsons said to Amira.

  Amira immediately put down her knife and looked worried. “Is anything wrong?”

  “Why, no, of course not.” Mrs. Parsons seemed surprised. “He just wanted to make sure you’re having a good time.”

  “Well, I am,” Amira said slowly, “thanks to my new friends.” Everyone began talking about their visit to the Capitol, and Jessie noticed that Amira seemed happy as long as the conversation didn’t revolve around her. She never wanted to talk about herself or her parents. Jessie suddenly realized that she didn’t even know whether Amira had any brothers and sisters, and decided to ask her.

  Amira immediately looked guarded. “I have two brothers and a sister, but they’re back with … I mean, they’re at home with my mom.”

  “That’s nice,” Violet said warmly. She seemed to sense that Amira was uncomfortable.

  “What time is dinner?” a voice boomed into the kitchen. Everyone turned to see a large woman in a dark purple dress.

  “It’ll be ready at six, Mrs. Wentworth.” Mrs. Parsons turned and slid a pan of biscuits into the oven.

  Mrs. Wentworth consulted her watch. “Well, I hope it’s going to be served promptly at six,” she retorted. “I haven’t had a bite to eat since lunchtime.”

  “I’ll be glad to make you a cup of tea,” Mrs. Parsons said a little wearily.

  “Just concentrate on dinner,” Mrs. Wentworth snapped. “That will be quite enough.”

  “Wouldn’t you like to meet the children — ” Mrs. Parsons began and then stopped abruptly. Mrs. Wentworth had already swept out of the kitchen.

  “Wow,” Benny said softly. “Is she going to be eating with us every night?”

  Mrs. Parsons bit her lip as though she were trying not to laugh. “Yes, she is, Benny. I’m sure she’s very nice … once you get to know her.”

  Mrs. Wentworth barely nodded when she was introduced to the Aldens and Amira, and frowned all through dinner. Luckily there were other guests to talk to, and Violet started a conversation with Mr. and Mrs. Cooley, who were professional photographers.

  “I have a new camera,” Violet confided, “and I’m still learning how to use it.” She was very proud of the camera that Grandfather had bought for her.

  “Do you develop your photographs yourself?” Henry asked.

  “Yes,” said Mrs. Cooley.

  “No,” said Mr. Cooley at the same time. They looked at each other and laughed nervously.

  “What we mean is …” Mrs. Cooley began, and her voice trailed off.

  “Sometimes we do and sometimes we don’t,” Mr. Cooley explained.

  There was a long silence. Henry was puzzled, but didn’t say anything. The Cooleys seemed so uncomfortable talking about their work.

  Jessie spent most of the dinner hour talking to John Sudderth, a quiet man from New England who said he was an artist. He seemed to know a lot about Washington, and was enthusiastic when she told him they were visiting the Smithsonian the very next day. “Make sure you visit the Air and Space Museum,” he advised her. “It’ll be quite an experience.”

  “We have our own personal tour guide,” Benny spoke up. He smiled at Peter Marshall, who brought coffee and apple pie in from the kitchen.

  Peter made a thumbs-up sign to Benny. “Air and Space at noon,” he said.

  “We’ll be there!” Benny said happily.

  After turning out the lights later that night, Henry glanced out the window. He was sharing a bedroom with Benny at the front of the house, and he had a good view of the tree-lined street. Suddenly he noticed a pair of headlights creeping down the road. Curious, he watched as a long black limousine paused in front of the Parsons’s front door, and then slowly moved on. What was the limousine doing? he wondered. And who was inside?

  Benny stirred sleepily and sat up in bed.

  “Is that the long black car again?” he asked drowsily.

  Henry nodded, still staring out the window. “It’s a limousine. Have you seen it before?”

  Benny yawned. “It passed by the house three times tonight.”

  Henry turned in surprise. “Are you sure?”

  Benny nodded. “I’m positive. I bet it belongs to someone really famous,” he said. “Maybe it’s the president of another country, and they’re looking for the White House.”

  “Maybe,” Henry said thoughtfully. He glanced over at his brother, who had already pulled the covers over his head. Something strange was going on. He was sure of it. First there were the men in sunglasses who seemed to be following them at the Capitol, and now the limousine.

  And he also had the feeling that something was wrong at the Parsons’. Mrs. Parsons had reached into her purse for a ten-dollar bill after dinner, and had come up empty-handed. When Jessie had asked her if everything was all right, she had made light of it.

  “Things have a way of disappearing around here,” she had said.

  But was that all there was t
o it? Henry wondered. She had complained about missing a roll of stamps and some money from petty cash just the day before. And now money was missing from her purse. Was there a thief in the house? Henry turned away from the window and climbed into bed. He decided to talk to Jessie and Violet the next day. If something was going on, everyone needed to be on their guard.

  Benny was beside himself with excitement when they arrived at the Air and Space Museum the following morning. There was a huge DC-3 hanging from the ceiling, and they walked under a model of the Wright Brothers’ plane.

  “We learned about the Wright Brothers in school,” he said, tugging at Jessie’s hand. “They flew the very first plane at Kitty Hawk, North Carolina.”

  “Orville and Wilbur,” Amira added quietly. As usual, she seemed to be up on everything.

  “Look,” Jessie said, reading a plaque. “They only flew for a total of twelve seconds. They went up a hundred and twenty feet into the air and then came down.”

  “It’s amazing they got up at all,” Violet pointed out. “See how fragile the plane looks.”

  “May we touch the moon rock?” Benny asked, darting a few feet away. “The sign says it’s okay.”

  “I guess so.” Jessie followed him to a small exhibit near the front door and watched as he touched a flat triangular stone.

  “It doesn’t feel like anything special,” Benny said, looking at his fingertips. “If I saw it lying on the sidewalk, I probably wouldn’t even recognize it.”

  “It’s four billion years old,” said a guard nearby.

  “Wow!” Benny touched it again. “Who found it?”

  “It was the Apollo crew,” the guard explained.

  “I wish I could take a piece of it home with me,” Benny said.

  The guard laughed. “So do a lot of other people. But I have a better idea. How would you like to take home real astronaut ice cream?”

  Benny clapped his hands together. “May I?”

  “You can buy it in the gift shop. It’s freeze-dried, of course.”

  “After lunch, Benny,” Violet said, pulling him away. “Peter’s waiting for us.”

  The glassed-in cafeteria had a wonderful view of the Mall, and the Aldens and Amira joined Peter Marshall at a long table by the window. Everyone munched on submarine sandwiches while Peter described the Sea-Air Operations exhibit. “It’s just like being on a real flight deck, Benny.”

  “May we go there right now?” Benny was excited.

  “I want to take a picture first,” Violet said, standing up. “Scoot in close together, everyone.” She backed a few feet away from the table. “Smile!” she said as the camera clicked.

  “I think I got the Capitol in the background. Oh, darn,” she added, “that’s the last one on the roll.”

  “Don’t worry,” Peter told her. “There’s a place around the corner that develops pictures in an hour. We can drop off your film after lunch, and it will be ready this afternoon.”

  CHAPTER 4

  Danger in Airspace!

  After lunch, Peter took everyone to the Sea-Air Operations section of the museum.

  “This is fun!” Benny shouted, bounding up the stairs. For the next half hour, he pretended he was commanding the air-traffic control tower of a real aircraft carrier. Everything was painted battleship-gray, and he played with dozens of dials and gauges.

  “This seems so real,” Amira said, her eyes wide.

  Later, when Peter and Amira were looking at an Amelia Earhart exhibit, Henry drew Violet, Jessie, and Benny aside. “I think we need to talk tonight, when we get back to Mrs. Parsons’.”

  “I think I know what you’re going to say. There’s something funny about Amira, isn’t there?”

  Henry shrugged. “A lot of things about her just don’t add up.”

  “She sure knows a lot,” Benny said.

  “But there are some things she doesn’t know anything about,” Jessie said. She had noticed at lunch that Amira was amazed that they could order toppings on their pizza.

  “Maybe she’s just shy,” Violet said. She liked Amira and was happy that they were friends.

  “I think it’s more than that — ” Henry broke off suddenly when he noticed the same two men in dark sunglasses standing behind Peter and Amira. They were back!

  “Can we go to the movie?” Benny pleaded, interrupting Henry’s thoughts. “There’s one starting right now.” He pointed to the sign for the “To Fly” show at the theater inside the museum.

  “That’s a great idea,” Henry said, opening his wallet. “Why don’t you get in line and get tickets for all of us? Just wave to me when you have them.”

  As soon as Benny scampered off, Henry turned to Jessie and Violet. “See those two men over there?” he asked in a low voice. “They’ve been following us.”

  Violet stared and then gulped. “You’re right,” she whispered. “I saw them yesterday.”

  “Are you sure?” Jessie looked uncertain.

  “I’m positive. I thought it was really strange that they were wearing sunglasses inside,” Henry said. “And Benny saw them, too.” Then he told them about the black limousine.

  “What can we do?” Violet asked nervously.

  Henry looked over at Benny, who was holding a handful of tickets in the air. A “sold out” sign flashed over the ticket window, and Henry grinned. “I think we can lose them,” he said. “At least for forty-five minutes.”

  Moments later, the Aldens were settled in the darkened theater with Peter and Amira.

  “This was a great idea,” Jessie whispered to Violet.

  “I know.” Now that they were finally settled, Violet relaxed a little. The men in sunglasses had tried to follow them into the theater, but were turned back because they didn’t have tickets. Still, would they be waiting for them outside? The movie started then, and Violet was on the edge of her seat, caught up in the excitement of the show.

  When the film ended, Benny felt a little dizzy. Now he knew how a bird felt, swooping off cliffs and plunging into deep canyons.

  Jessie blinked a little as they stepped back into the museum. The men in dark glasses were nowhere in sight. Peter had to go to class, and they spent the rest of the afternoon looking at hang gliders and the Charles Lindbergh exhibit.

  “Don’t forget to pick up your film, Violet,” Jessie reminded her. Peter had offered to drop off her film to be developed on his way to class.

  “Let’s do it on the way back to Mrs. Parsons’. I can’t wait to see how they come out!”

  The lobby was quiet when they trooped into the Parsons later that day, but a radio was playing softly in the kitchen. “Is that you, Amira?” Mrs. Parsons called. “I have a message for you.”

  “Please excuse me,” Amira said to the Aldens, heading toward the kitchen.

  “Let’s go upstairs,” Henry suggested. “This would be a good chance to talk.”

  The four Aldens went into Henry and Benny’s room and Henry shut the door. “Let’s have a look at those pictures,” he said.

  Violet opened the envelope and flipped quickly through the pictures. Then she stopped. “Just as we thought.” Everyone turned to look, and she held up the picture she’d taken in the museum cafeteria.

  “What’s wrong with it?” Jessie asked, puzzled. Then she gasped. At the edge of the picture, she recognized two figures at a nearby table. The men in sunglasses!

  “We’ve got to get to the bottom of this,” Henry said. “They must have been watching us all day.”

  “Please don’t say anything to Amira yet,” Violet pleaded. “You know how timid she is. This would just upset her.”

  “We have to settle this sometime,” Henry said grimly.

  A light tap at the door made everyone jump. “Is it okay to come in?” Amira said.

  Violet exchanged a look with Henry, and he took a deep breath. Maybe his sister was right. Maybe they shouldn’t say anything to Amira right now.

  “Sure, Amira,” he said, opening the door. He carefull
y slipped the cafeteria picture in his pocket.

  Later that evening, Mrs. Wentworth came into the dining room in a terrible mood. “I have an announcement to make,” she said loudly. Everyone stopped talking and looked at her. She put her hand to her throat. “My brooch is missing!” she said dramatically.

  “I’m so sorry — ” Mrs. Parsons began, but Mrs. Wentworth cut her off.

  “I don’t care about how sorry you are,” she said angrily. “I want my brooch back. It’s been in my family for years, and it means a lot to me. It’s not expensive, but it belonged to my grandmother. I’ll never find another one like it.”

  “I’ll help you look for it, Mrs. Parsons,” Violet said when Mrs. Wentworth left the dining room. She quickly began clearing the dinner dishes away, with Benny’s help.

  “We’ll all pitch in,” Jessie offered. As soon as the kitchen was cleaned, the Aldens began a thorough search of the hallway, living room, and dining room. Nothing turned up, even when Amira turned over all the sofa cushions, and Benny crawled under the furniture.

  “I just can’t understand it,” Mrs. Parsons said, settling into a wing chair by the window. “I’ve never had a bit of trouble with thefts, and now something seems to be missing every day.”

  “When did it start?” Henry asked.

  Mrs. Parsons thought for a moment.

  “About a year ago, I guess. But it’s always been little things, so I didn’t think much about it. A few dollars here and there, a roll of stamps. And now this …” She cupped her chin in her hands and her voice trailed off.

  “Don’t worry, Mrs. Parsons,” Jessie said soothingly. “We’re going to help you find that brooch.” She glanced at Amira and the others. “All five of us.”

  CHAPTER 5

  A Trip to the Money Factory

  The next morning, Violet went down to breakfast early and found Peter Marshall alone in the dining room, reading the paper.

  “Thanks a lot for taking us to the Air and Space Museum yesterday,” she said. “We really enjoyed it.”

  “I had fun, too,” Peter told her. He passed her a platter of hot buttered rolls. “There’s blackberry jam,” he added. “Mrs. Parsons makes it herself.”