The Camp-out Mystery (5 page)

“He's right,” Jessie said. “It was probably my imagination.”

Henry and Jessie had no sooner gone back to sleep than Benny woke them. “I think we should go find Grandfather,” he said.

“Let's have breakfast first,” Jessie suggested. “Maybe he'll be here by the time we've finished.”

They ate fruit and bread and jelly. They used paper napkins as plates so they wouldn't have to spend time washing dishes.

Afterwards, Henry looked at the map. “The path along the stream is a short cut,” he said.

“If we go that way, we might miss Grandfather,” Violet objected.

“But Grandfather might still be at Doris's,” Jessie said. “It's early. If we take the short cut, we'll be there sooner.”

Henry spread out the map. “The shortcut meets the main trail here,” he said. “Even if Grandfather starts back, chances are we'll meet up with him.”

“What if he comes back and we're not here?” Benny asked. “He'll look for us. We could keep missing one another all day.”

“Let's leave a note,” Violet suggested. She took a piece of paper and a pencil from their supplies, and wrote:
Went hiking. Back soon.
“How's that?” she asked.

Everyone agreed that was fine. They left the note in the middle of the table. Henry put a rock on it so it wouldn't blow away. Then they all started out of camp.

Benny and Watch ran on ahead. Suddenly, they stopped. The others caught up to them.

“What's the matter?” Henry asked.

Benny put a finger to his lips. He pointed across the stream. There, in the woods, something small and white flicked back and forth through the trees.

“It's a deer!” Violet whispered.

The animal bolted out of sight.

Hoping to see more deer, they kept an eye on the woods as they moved along the trail. Where the stream trail and the main trail met, they saw something else: a cabin.

“I didn't notice that cabin when we hiked to our campsite,” Henry said.

Set far back in the thick clump of trees, the log house was easy to miss.

“It's hard to see,” Violet said. “It blends into the woods so well.”

“It needs a white tail,” Benny joked.

Henry started toward it. “Maybe whoever lives there saw Grandfather. Let's ask.”

Jessie hesitated. “That says
‘No Trespassing.'
” She pointed to an old wooden sign.

Just then a woman came out of the cabin door. She was tall and thin and she was frowning.

“She doesn't look very friendly,” Benny whispered.

Moving still closer, Henry called out, “Hello!”

The woman put her hands on her hips and glowered at the children.

“We're looking for our grandfather,” Henry told her. “We thought you might have seen him pass by.”

“Can you read?” the woman asked.

“Why—uh— yes,” Henry said.

“Then why don't you?” she snapped. “ ‘No trespassing' means
no trespassing.
”

“Oh, we didn't mean to break any rules,” Jessie explained. “We just thought—”

The woman turned on her heel and went back inside the cabin.

“She certainly
is
unfriendly,” Henry said.

“You were right about that, Benny.”

“Could that be Doris's sister?” Violet wondered aloud.

The others thought about that possibility.

“Grandfather did say she lived in a cabin,' Violet reminded them. “And she liked going off by herself.”

The main path was full of puddles from the night's rain. Along the sides, earth had been washed down into the gullies. The children picked their way along trying to avoid the mud and deep holes.

The trail headed up the hill. Near the top, Watch pricked up his ears. He sniffed the air. For several seconds, he stood stone still. Suddenly, he broke into a run and disappeared over the crest of the hill.

“What do you suppose he heard?” Violet wondered.

“Whatever it is, he's sure excited about it,” Henry said.

“He's probably chasing an animal,” Benny offered.

That worried Jessie. Watch was a brave dog, but he was no match for a cornered raccoon or some other wild animal. “Watch!” she called. “Come back!”

Watch came running toward the children. He circled them, yapping excitedly. He took off again. Then he came galloping back to be sure they were following him.

In the lead, Henry picked up his pace. “Come on,” he said. “Watch is trying to tell us something.”

Forgetting the puddles and the mud, they all raced along the path. At the top of the hill, they looked for Watch. He seemed to have disappeared. But they could hear him barking.

“Watch! Where are you?” Jessie called.

Benny saw something move in the ravine below. He stepped to the edge of the path and looked down. “There he is!” he shouted. “And
Grandfather
is with him!”

CHAPTER 10

Rescuing Grandfather

“G
randfather!” they all said at once.

Mr. Alden was half sitting, half lying under a stone ledge at the bottom of the ravine. Watch stood beside him like a bank guard.

“Are you all right?” Violet called.

“I'm fine,” Mr. Alden assured them. “Except for my ankle. I twisted it when I fell.”

Henry climbed down the steep slope. The other children followed.

“Be careful,” Grandfather warned them. “It's slippery.”

“How long have you been here, Grandfather?” Jessie asked.

“All night,” Mr. Alden replied.

“Weren't you scared?” Benny asked.

“Well, Benny, I was a little nervous.” Then he said, “I don't think I can put any weight on my ankle.”

“You can lean on us,” Violet said.

Henry slipped Mr. Alden's arm around his neck. “That's right, Grandfather, lean on us.”

Jessie and Violet took the other arm.

Mr. Alden shook his head. “Even with your help, I'd never get back up to the path.”

Henry looked up toward the trail. It was a hard climb. Grandfather was right, they'd never make it. “We need help,” he said.

Benny started up the slope. “Let's hurry!”

“I'll stay with Grandfather,” Violet said.

“Watch, you stay, too,” Jessie told the dog.

Violet took off her jacket and folded it. “Here, Grandfather, let's put this behind your head.”

“You're sure you'll be all right?” Henry asked.

Grandfather nodded. “I'll be fine with Violet and Watch to take care of me.”

Back on the trail, Benny said, “Let's get the ranger.”

“The cabin is closer,” Henry told him.

“But that woman is an old crab,” Benny argued. “She won't help us.”

“Henry's right, Benny,” Jessie said. “Even if the woman won't help us, she might have a telephone. We can call the ranger from there.”

They trekked back to the cabin and knocked on the door.

No one answered.

“Please help us,” Jessie called. “Our grandfather is hurt!”

They knocked again. Just as they were about to give up, the cabin door flew open.

“What do you want?!” the woman snapped. “Didn't I tell you to stay away from here?”

“Please let us use your phone,” Henry said.

“Telephone!” the woman repeated. “You think I'd have a telephone? What would I want with a telephone?”

“Our grandfather fell down a ravine,” Henry said. “We need help to get him out. Could we look around? Maybe you have something we could use to make a stretcher.”

“People who can't take care of themselves should stay in the city where they belong!” she shouted. “You need help—go get Andy Watts to help you!” She waved toward the hill behind the cabin and slammed her door.

“Who's Andy Watts?” Benny wondered aloud.

Already running toward the hill, Henry said, “Let's find out.”

Beyond the hill, another cabin squatted among the trees.

Henry reached it first. He knocked and called, but no one answered.

“We're wasting time,” Jessie said. “Let's head back to the ranger's station.”

They were just about to leave when a man carrying a long walking stick came toward them.

He smiled, “Hello, children,” he said. “I'm Andy Watts. That's my cabin. What can I do for you?”

“Oh, Mr. Watts, we were looking for you,” Henry said. “Our grandfather fell down a ravine and hurt his ankle. We can't get him out. Will you please help us?”

“Of course I'll help you,” Mr. Watts said. He hurried into the cabin, saying, “I'll be right back.” He came out with a rolled elastic bandage, which he put in his pocket. “Now, show me the way,” he said.

The four of them hurried back along the trail.

“How did you know about me?” Mr. Watts asked.

“We went to the other cabin,” Jessie told him. “The woman there said a man named Andy Watts would help us.”

Mr. Watts nodded. “That's Hildy,” he said. “She's something, isn't she?”

“Unfriendly is what she is,” Benny said.

Mr. Watts laughed. “Her bark is worse than her bite,” he said.

They reached Mr. Alden and Violet and climbed down beside them. Watch got between Mr. Watts and Grandfather. He growled softly.

“That's strange,” Jessie observed. “He's usually friendly.”

Mr. Watts said, “He's just doing his job —guarding your grandfather.” Then he put his hand out toward Watch. The dog sniffed it and wagged his tail. Mr. Watts patted his head. “I like animals,” he said, “so they usually like me.”

Henry made the introductions, and then Mr. Watts said, “Let me see that ankle.” He carefully pulled Mr. Alden's sock down. “It's swollen all right,” he said. “Can you move it?”

Grandfather made a slow circle with his foot. “Yes,” he said, “but it hurts.”

“I don't wonder,” Mr. Watts said. “It's a bad sprain. Lucky you didn't break it.”

“I thought I did,” Mr. Alden told him. “It got twisted under me when I fell.”

“How did you fall, Grandfather?” Jessie asked.

“I waited at the store hoping the rain would stop,” he said. “When it didn't, I decided to hike back anyway. I was walking along, when suddenly there was a blast of music. It startled me and I slipped. The next thing I knew, I was down here.”

“The soil washes away in a heavy rain,” Mr. Watts said. “They need to plant more trees along the trail.”

“Why don't they do that?” Benny asked. “Then it wouldn't be so dangerous.”

“Planting trees costs money,” Mr. Watts answered. “People sometimes object to spending their tax money that way.”

“They wouldn't if they fell down like Grandfather,” Benny said.

Mr. Watts took out the elastic bandage.

“Should I take off Grandfather's shoe?” Violet asked.

“Not until we get him back to camp,” the man answered. “His shoe will give him some support.” He wrapped the bandage under and over Mr. Alden's shoe and up around his ankle. When he'd tied it securely, he said, “Now, let's get you out of here.”

“How will we get Grandfather up the slope?” Henry asked.

“We won't,” Mr. Watts answered. “There's a narrow deer path behind this stone outcrop. We'll follow that until the terrain is more even.”

Henry and Mr. Watts helped Grandfather up.

“Put this arm around my shoulders,” Mr. Watts directed.

“I'll take his other arm,” Henry volunteered.

“The path is too narrow for three of us,” Mr. Watts said. He gave Mr. Alden his walking stick. “Use this. It'll help.”

“I'll carry these,” Benny said as he picked up the thermos, and the lantern Grandfather had bought.

“Henry and Violet and I will go on ahead to clear the way,” Jessie said.

Mr. Alden and Mr. Watts hobbled along behind them. Before too long, the trail and ravine were just about even.

“We'll go up here,” Mr. Watts said.

They started up the slope, but Mr. Alden lost his balance and nearly fell.

“Henry, you and Benny go ahead of Grandfather,” Jessie said. “Violet and I will be behind him.”

“Good thinking,” Mr. Watts said. “Henry and Benny, you take hold of the walking stick. That way you can pull us up.”

“And we'll push,” Violet said.

With everyone working together, they got Grandfather up the slope to the trail. But it was still a long way back to camp.

“I need to rest,” Grandfather said.

“Me, too,” Benny piped up.

Mr. Watts helped Mr. Alden to a tree stump. “Stay here and rest,” he said. “I'll be back shortly.”

When he was gone, Violet said, “Being out in the rain all night must have been awful for you, Grandfather.”

“I was able to pull myself under the ledge,” Mr. Alden said. “It kept me fairly dry. And I had the new lantern.”