“I guess,” said Jessie.
Just then, Brianna drove up. “You’re nice and early,” Brianna said as she got out of her car.
“Benny thought we should be,” Henry said, laughing.
“Yes,” said Benny. “We beat you. And Katy!”
Katy, who had just walked up to the shop from her house, smiled. She said, “Well, let’s go in the back way, since we’re not open today.” She led the way around the side of the Ice Cream Barn and stopped so suddenly that Jessie, who was right behind her, almost crashed into her.
“Oh, no,” said Katy.
“What?” asked Brianna.
Katy pointed. A small stack of square white boxes and two large containers, all decorated with a blue stripe, stood by the back door. The box labels read MARTINE BLUE RIBBON ICE CREAM VENDORS.
“Those look like ice-cream sandwiches,” Katy said. “But...”
Brianna rushed past her and pried open the lid of the top box. “They were ice-cream sandwiches. Now they’re just a melted mess.”
“These say ‘Vanilla Ice Cream,’ ” Violet said, leaning over to inspect the printing on the side of the two large containers. “Five gallons each.”
“Vanilla ice-cream soup,” said Henry, observing the milky puddle spreading out from the bottom of one container.
“Here’s a bill taped to the back door,” said Brianna. “It’s from Marcos. I don’t believe it!” She turned to Katy. “Did you order ice cream for today, Granna?”
“Of course not!” Katy said, shocked. “We’re always closed on Tuesdays and Marcos knows that. We never take deliveries on Tuesdays.”
“Maybe he forgot,” said Benny
“Marcos would never forget something like that,” said Katy.
Brianna unlocked the back door and pushed it open. They followed her through a small storage room. On their left were the tall, gleaming doors of a large walk-in freezer. Next to the freezer was a short hall leading to a closed door with the word OFFICE painted on it.
Katy said, “Brianna, why don’t you show the Aldens around while I make a few phone calls and try to find out from Marcos what happened.”
Brianna nodded. She took a deep breath and smiled a little. “Mistakes happen,” she said. “It’s just too bad this had to happen just as we’re trying to expand our business.”
“It’ll be okay,” Violet said sympathetically.
Brianna smiled again. “Thanks, Violet. Okay, folks, here’s where the grand tour of the Ice Cream Barn starts. We’re standing in the main storage room. On the shelves over here are the supplies we use most often: straws and napkins and sprinkles and nuts. Those shelves hold our dishes for sundaes, our glasses for ice-cream floats, and so forth. That big stainless steel door opens onto our walk-in freezer.”
“Wow, that’s a lot of ice cream,” Benny said, peering inside.
“It’s actually pretty small for a walk-in freezer,” Brianna said. “I’ve seen much bigger ones. But unlike some places, we don’t keep our ice cream for a long time. Granna thinks it changes the flavor, and I agree.”
“What do you do with ice cream you don’t sell, then?” asked Henry.
“Throw it away. But that hardly ever happens,” Brianna said. “We know just how much to make and how much to order. Granna Katy has been in this business for a long time. Anyway, over there is our big refrigerator, for supplies that don’t need to be in the freezer, like whipped cream.”
Brianna led the way into a small room with high windows. In the middle was a stainless steel object that looked sort of like a very old washing machine. “And this is where we make our own ice cream.”
“Wow,” said Henry.
“Amazing,” said Jessie.
“It works more or less like a small ice-cream maker,” Brianna explained. “We put in cream and eggs and sugar and flavorings, and the ice-cream maker churns the ingredients and freezes them to the right texture and temperature. But it takes longer and makes lots more ice cream than the kind of machine you can buy for your home.”
“Is that what you use to make new flavors of ice cream?” Violet asked.
“Not right away. First we use a regular ice-cream maker to make very small batches of the flavors. If we like them, then we use this machine to make bigger batches and try them out in the store.”
They went back out into the storage room and Brianna reached up and took down two smaller ice-cream makers from a shelf.
They’d just set them on the counter when Katy joined them. She was frowning.
“Did you reach Marcos?” Brianna asked.
Katy looked up and her frown deepened. “I did,” she said. “But he says he didn’t make a mistake. He says that someone called and placed an order with him and told him to leave it out back first thing this morning.”
“Who?” demanded Brianna.
“I don’t know,” said Katy. “He remembered the order, because he had trouble hearing it. He thought it was a bad phone connection. He wasn’t sure if the caller was male or female. Whoever it was, the person said he or she worked for us. The caller claimed to be the new assistant we hired because we were going to be open seven days a week.”
“So it wasn’t a mistake,” said Jessie.
Katy said, “No, Jessie, it was not a mistake. Someone did it deliberately. But why?”
CHAPTER 3
Hard Work and Free Ice Cream
There was a long silence.
Then Brianna said, “Maybe it’s somebody’s dumb idea of a funny joke.”
“Not funny,” snapped Katy “Expensive. We’re going to have to pay for that ice cream even though we can’t sell it. With all the costs of buying the ice-cream wagon, the new equipment for it, and Butterscotch, we’re really going to have to watch every penny now.”
“What if it’s not a joke?” asked Jessie slowly. “What if someone did it to hurt you?”
“If it’s not a joke, then, well, I don’t know what to think,” said Katy. “Who would want to do this to us?”
Brianna seemed to hesitate for a moment. Then she shook her head firmly. “No one would,” she said. “No one would want to hurt our business.”
Henry asked, “Who knows you order from Marcos’s company?”
“Anybody who has seen his truck parked outside and him unloading it,” Katy said.
“Or anyone who has seen the signs in here,” Brianna said, pointing. “We label all the ice cream we order from Marcos and we label our own special flavors and treats so customers will know which is which.”
“Oh,” said Henry.
“That’s not much of a clue, then,” said Violet.
“Well, I’ve told Marcos to only take delivery orders from me from now on,” Katy said. “And he’s going to call before he delivers, just to make sure.”
“That’s good,” said Brianna.
“Making ice cream would be good, too,” Benny hinted.
Katy smiled at him. “You’re right, Benny. Let’s get started. Any ideas about new flavors?”
“Peanut butter,” said Benny.
“Chocolate anything,” said Henry.
“Maybe both,” suggested Jessie.
“And crunchy, too,” added Violet.
“Sounds delicious! Let’s gather some ingredients, then,” said Brianna. Violet was relieved to see her smiling again.
Later that day, as the Aldens wheeled their bicycles home, their stomachs too full to ride, they talked about the prank at the Ice Cream Barn.
“I just don’t believe it was meant to be a joke,” said Jessie. “It was too mean.”
“I agree,” said Henry. “But why? And who? It could be anybody.”
“I think Brianna has an idea about someone who could have done it,” said Violet softly.
“I noticed that, too,” said Jessie. “When Katy wondered who might do something like that, Brianna almost said something. But then she stopped.”
“Do you think whoever it is will play any more jokes?” asked Benny.
&
nbsp; “I don’t know, Benny,” said Henry. “But I do think we should keep a sharp eye out for clues—and for more trouble.”
“I think you’re right,” said Jessie. “I think it’s the beginning of a mystery.”
“I know,” said Benny. “I could get a job at the Ice Cream Barn and look for clues that way!”
“I don’t think you’re quite old enough yet, Benny,” said Violet.
“Are you sure?” said Benny.
“But it’s not a bad idea, Benny,” said Henry. “Maybe I’ll see if they want to hire me. I’m old enough. I’ll go back tomorrow and talk to Katy and Brianna.”
The next day, Jessie, Violet, Benny, and Watch waited on a bench in the park near the ice-cream shop while Henry went to talk to Katy and Brianna about a job. Benny was very excited. If Henry got a job at the Ice Cream Barn, he would be able to watch for suspects. And maybe, Benny thought, he’d be able to bring home lots of ice cream!
So when Henry came walking toward them a little while later, Benny bounced up, shouting, “Did you get the job? Did you?”
Henry grinned, but he shook his head. “No. But I did get some interesting information. ”
He sat down on the bench and began to pet Watch.
“What did you find out?” Jessie asked.
“Well, they can’t afford to hire anybody right now, for one thing,” Henry said.
“We should have guessed,” said Violet.
“I offered to help out until they could afford to pay me, but Katy said no,” Henry went on. “She said they already had to let one assistant go and he would be the first one they hired back when they could,”
“Katy fired someone?” asked Jessie.
“Yes. When Brianna came, she laid off an assistant named Preston. Brianna’s doing his job and driving the ice-cream wagon,” said Henry. “To save money.”
“That must have made Preston very unhappy,” Violet said softly.
“Yes,” agreed Jessie. “Maybe unhappy enough to call in a phony order.”
“How do we prove it?” Benny asked. “We have to find clues.”
“One way we can do that is by checking out the Ice Cream Barn and its customers,” said Henry.
“We can’t just show up and stay and stay and stay,” objected Jessie. “That would look very suspicious. And weird.”
“No, we can’t do that,” said Henry with a smile. “But even though they couldn’t hire me as an assistant, I did get a job. For all of us.”
Benny’s eyes widened. “What?” he asked. “Driving Butterscotch?”
“No, nothing that exciting, Benny. But Brianna’s having a bunch of fliers and posters printed up. We’re going to help deliver the fliers and put the posters up all around Greenfield this afternoon. In return, we get gift certificates for free ice cream. Five scoops each!”
That afternoon, the Boxcar Children loaded up their backpacks and bicycle baskets with fliers and posters and tape. Violet and Henry went in one direction. Benny and Jessie and Watch went in another direction.
They put fliers on front stoops and in stacks on the counters of stores. They asked for store owners’ permission, and soon posters advertising the Ice Cream Barn and the new ice-cream wagon, pulled by “The Amazing Butterscotch,” hung in the windows of the hardware store, the pet supply shop, the bicycle shop, and just about every other store in town.
Jessie and Benny even put up a poster on the bulletin board outside the mayor’s office at Town Hall. They’d just hung a poster on a telephone pole near the post office when they met Mr. Bush.
He scowled harder than ever when he saw them.
“Hello, Mr. Bush,” said Jessie politely.
“Hi,” said Benny.
Mr. Bush leaned over to peer at the poster. “Take it down,” he said.
“What?” asked Jessie, startled.
“Take the poster down, or I will,” said Mr. Bush.
“Why?” asked Benny.
“Because you’re defacing public property,” Mr. Bush said. “You can’t put posters up without permission. Do you have the permission of the phone company to use their telephone pole for advertising?”
“Uh, no,” admitted Jessie.
Watch barked once. Mr. Bush didn’t notice. Benny squatted and put his arm around the dog. “Shhh,” he warned.
“Then take the poster down,” Mr. Bush said. He folded his arms.
Jessie didn’t know what else to do. She took the sign down. As she rolled it carefully, Mr. Bush snorted. “‘The Amazing Butterscotch,’ indeed,” he said in a scornful voice. Then he went into the post office without another word.
“He’s really, really mean,” said Benny.
“I guess he’s right, though,” said Jessie.
Benny wasn’t listening. “Really mean. Mean enough to play that melted-ice-cream joke,” he said.
Jessie blinked. “I hadn’t thought about that, Benny,” she said. “I guess he could have.”
“I think he did,” said Benny.
“We’ll have to talk it over with Henry and Violet. Let’s put up the rest of the posters and then find them.”
“Okay,” said Benny. To Watch he said, “Come on, boy. And if you see Mr. Bush, you can bark as much as you want!”
They found Henry and Violet outside the bookstore, talking to a tall, lanky boy not much older than Henry. The boy had straight black hair and round black glasses.
He was pointing at the poster in the window as Jessie, Benny, and Watch came up to them.
“So you’re the ones who’ve put up the posters all over Greenfield,” he said.
“Yes,” said Jessie. “The Ice Cream Barn is expanding.”
“And they hired you to put the posters up,” the boy went on.
“I guess you could say they did,” Henry began.
The boy narrowed his eyes angrily. “They hired you—two of you!—and they fired me. Said they couldn’t afford me!”
“Well, they’re not exactly paying us—” Jessie started to explain.
But the boy didn’t let her finish. “Fine,” he said. “Just fine. But they’re going to be sorry they didn’t keep me around. You’ll see.” He turned and almost ran away, his cheeks red with rage.
“Good grief!” said Jessie. “I think we just met Preston.”
“He’s mad, too,” said Benny.
Violet said, “He’s mad, too?What do you mean, Benny?”
“Mr. Bush got mad at us for putting up posters just now,” Benny explained. “By the post office.”
“Oh,” said Violet.
“Benny thinks Mr. Bush might be the one who phoned in the fake ice-cream order,” Jessie explained. “And after the way he acted just now, I think Benny could be right.”
“Maybe,” said Henry. “Or it might be Preston. He seems pretty upset.”
“I wonder if Brianna suspected Preston,” Jessie said.
“I don’t know,” Henry said. “But now we’ve got two suspects.”
“And a mystery,” said Benny.
CHAPTER 4
Who Took the Posters?
“No dessert?” Grandfather Alden sounded surprised. “Not even you, Benny?” The Aldens had just finished dinner together. Grandfather knew that Benny always had room for dessert.
“I had ice cream this afternoon,” Benny said. “Two free scoops.”
“Big ones,” said Henry. “We all had ice cream this afternoon —although none of us had quite as much as Benny did.”
“I thought none of you seemed very hungry,” said Grandfather, a twinkle in his eye.
“We got paid in ice cream,” Violet explained. “For delivering fliers and putting up posters.”
“You told me about putting up the posters, but not about the ice-cream payment,” Grandfather said.
“We didn’t think you’d think it was such a good idea to eat ice cream so close to dinner,” explained Benny.
“Noooo, I don’t. But I guess you won’t do it again,” Grandfather said.
“N
o,” said Violet. “Not even to solve the mystery.”
Grandfather nodded. His four grandchildren had told him all about what had happened at the Ice Cream Barn. He knew if anybody could find out who had placed the fake order, it was them.
“Will you be going to the Ice Cream Barn tomorrow?” he asked.
“Probably,” said Henry. “Then we can look for more clues.”
“But I don’t think we’re going to eat as much ice cream,” said Jessie. “Even Benny has had enough for a while!”
But the Aldens didn’t go to the Ice Cream Barn the next morning. Instead they did a few errands for Grandfather and Mrs. McGregor. They mailed letters for Grandfather. They took Mrs. McGregor’s books back to the library. Then they stopped by the bike shop to put air in Benny’s bicycle tires.
That was when Violet noticed that the poster she had put up in the front of the bike shop wasn’t there.
She stopped. She looked at Henry. “Didn’t we put a poster up right over there, yesterday afternoon?” she asked.
Benny looked, too. “Yes,” he said. “Where is it?”
“It isn’t there,” said Jessie.
“Maybe the owner of the store took it down,” said Henry.
“But he said we could put it up,” Violet reminded him.
They went inside. As soon as he saw them, Louis, one of the store’s owners, smiled and said, “More posters today?”
“No. I mean, yes, maybe,” said Jessie. “Because the poster we put up yesterday isn’t there. Did you take it down?”
“No,” said Louis in surprise. He called over his shoulder to a woman repairing a bicycle. “Thelma, did you take that ice-cream shop poster down?”
“Nope,” Thelma answered.
“Okay, thanks,” said Jessie. They turned to go. Then Jessie turned back. “If we bring another poster, may we put it up in the window?” she asked. “On the inside?”
“Sure,” said Louis. “No problem.”
But there was a problem, the Aldens soon realized. Most of the posters they’d put up the day before had been taken down. Only the shops where they’d put posters on the insides of the windows still had posters up. And many of the places where they’d left stacks of fliers had no fliers left, either.