The Mystery in the Snow (7 page)
“But they have nothing to do with your team,” Mr. Alden said.
Henry nodded. “That's why this mystery is so confusing.”
Just then, there was a commotion at the door. Nan and Pete were shouting at each other and tugging at something.
“Here, here. What's going on?” Mr. Mercer called.
Nan and Pete marched over. Each had hold of one of Pete's blue earmuffs. They were tugging so hard that the metal connecting band was stretched to its limit.
“She won't give me my earmuffs!” Pete complained.
“He ruined our ice carving!” Nan snapped. “We were making a castle. Now, the tower's gone.” She wiped her tears with her red scarf. “Pete did it,” she concluded. “We found his earmuffs right there in the snow.”
Pete rolled his eyes. “I didn't do it,” he defended. “Someone
took
my earmuffs.”
The Aldens exchanged disbelieving glances. Now, the mischief was aimed at
both
teams.
Everyone trekked outside to look at the ice carving Freddy's team had made. The entire castle tower had melted away.
“The sun didn't do it,” Mr. Mercer decided. “It doesn't work that fast.”
“I didn't do it, either,” Pete said.
The Aldens thought he was telling the truth. He was too busy with his stopwatch. He wouldn't have had the time to melt the ice.
“What happened?” Jimmy asked, walking up to the group clustered around the melted ice sculpture.
Nan told him.
“We have to call off this event,” Jimmy said. “There isn't enough time to finish before the judging tomorrow.”
Mr. Mercer shook his head. “Don't worry,” he said to the ice carvers. “We'll figure out something.”
“How can we make a castle without a tower?” Nan asked.
“Make something else,” Benny suggested.
“We'd better go check
our
sculpture,” Violet said, and they all paraded over there. Violet's team's ice carving had not been damaged.
“That's a relief,” she said.
Just then, Freddy and Beth ran to join them.
“What's up?” Henry asked.
Freddy raised her hand. In it was Benny's pink cup.
“Hey,” Benny said, “what're you doing with my cup?”
“I found it at the rink, Benny,” Freddy told him.
Benny's mouth dropped open. The last time he had seen his cup, his snow self was holding it.
“Someone's ruined the ice,” Beth said. “Patches are chipped and broken. People trying to skate there would have trouble staying on their feet. Racing or figure skating would be impossible.”
Freddy held up a chisel. “Whoever did it used this.”
“Who could've done this?” Benny wondered aloud.
Beth and Freddy stared at him.
“Wait a minute,” Benny said. “You don't think
I
did it?”
“Of course they don't, Benny,” Jessie assured him.
Freddy held up the cup again. “Whoever left this here wanted us to think you did it,” she said and gave it to him.
All of a sudden, Jimmy said, “I'll see you later. I have to talk to Mr. Mercer. Maybe he'll call off the games.” He dashed away.
Watching him, Freddy said, “He is really acting weird. I don't know how many times he's said we should call off the games.”
Everyone headed toward the lodge.
“He probably just wants everything to go right,” Beth said.
“With his parents coming for the awards dinner and everything,” Jessie put in.
Freddy looked at her in disbelief. “His parents aren't coming for dinner,” she said. “They never come for anything. They just drop him here. They don't even pick him up until everyone else has gone home.”
“But he told us they were coming,” Benny said.
“Wishful thinking,” Freddy responded.
Matt rushed up. “My skis are back,” he told them. “I just found them in the equipment shop.”
“This is getting stranger and stranger,” Freddy commented.
After dinner, Mr. Mercer clapped for silence. “As you all know, we've had some trouble this year,” he said. “First the keys to the equipment shop were missing, then my tires were flat. Someone damaged the snow sculptures and one of the ice carvings.” Then, he went on, “Jimmy Phelps came to talk to me at breakfast this morning. He thought we should call off the ski race because Matt's skis were missing.”
Henry leaned toward Jessie. “Didn't Matt say he left the skis by the rack just before breakfast?” he whispered.
Jessie searched her memory. “I think so,” she said.
“And he didn't know they were missing until the race?”
Jessie nodded.
“How did Jimmy know they were missing
at
breakfast?”
Her eyes wide, Jessie looked at her brother. Did he think Jimmy had caused all the trouble?
“N
ow I've just learned that the ice at the rink has been ruined. But we're not going to cancel anything,” Mr. Mercer said. Then he announced a new schedule. The ice-carving judging would be postponed. A crew was hosing the ice, and the skating competition would take place when it was ready. Sledding would be moved into its time slot.
“My message to whoever caused the trouble is this,” Mr. Mercer concluded. “It won't work. Snow Haven Lodgers never quit!”
Everyone cheered.
Henry and Jessie were on their feet, ready to go.
“Come on,” Henry urged Violet and Benny. “Let's go back to the cabin.”
“But I haven't finished my cake,” Benny protested.
Jessie pulled a paper napkin from the holder in the center of the table. “Wrap it in this,” she said, “and bring it with you.”
Grumbling, Benny did as he was told.
Henry and Jessie raced through the lounge with Violet and Benny trailing along behind.
Outside, Violet asked, “Why are we in such a hurry?”
“We have a new suspect,” Henry told them.
“Not another one,” Benny groaned. “There are already too many.”
“But this might be the
right
one,” Jessie said.
They wouldn't say another word until they were settled back at the cabin with a fire burning in the fireplace.
Then, Henry said, “So far the clues have pointed to Freddy and Pete.”
“And all of us,” Jessie added.
“Watch, too,” Benny put in.
“We know it wasn't Watch or us,” Violet said.
“It looks as if it wasn't Freddy or Pete either,” Henry said.
Violet and Benny couldn't stand the suspense. “Then who was it?” they both asked.
“Violet, remember what you said?” Jessie asked. “That it might be someone we hadn't even thought about?”
Violet nodded.
“Well, you were right,” Jessie said.
“It's the
last
person we would have thought,” Henry added. He paused to let that sink in.
“Don't tell me it was Mr. Mercer!” Benny exclaimed.
They all laughed.
“No, no, Benny,” Henry said. “Jessie and I think it wasâ¦Jimmy.”
“Jimmy?” Benny repeated.
“But why?” Violet said.
Henry glanced at Jessie.
“Don't look at me, Henry,” she said. “I don't have the answer to that question.”
“We'll leave the
why
till last,” Henry decided. “Maybe it'll come to us as we answer the other questions.”
“What made you think of Jimmy in the first place?” Violet wanted to know.
“He asked Mr. Mercer to cancel the ski race
at breakfast
,” Henry explained, “but not even Matt knew his skis were missing until after lunch.”
“The only way Jimmy could have known is if
he
took them,” Violet concluded.
“What about our snowpeople?” Benny asked. “Freddy came late for supper. She had time to smash them.”
“Jimmy was late, too,” Jessie remembered.
“There's the ice sculpture,” Violet said.
They fell silent trying to figure out when and how Jimmy could have done that.
Suddenly, Benny knew the answer. “The pail!” he said.
They looked at him curiously.
“Don't you remember? We were going for a snack and Jimmy came along carrying a pail.”
“That's right,” Jessie said. “He told us he'd found it by your snow sculpture, Benny.”
“But Alan and Debbie brought our pails back to the kitchen,” Benny said. “I'm sure of it.”
“Jimmy must have carried hot water in it,” Henry concluded. “He probably poured it on the ice castle to melt it.”
“There's still the ice rink,” Jessie reminded them.
“Everyone was too busy today to do much skating,” Henry said. “Jimmy could've chopped up that ice any time.”
“He left the ski hill after his turn,” Benny said. “He probably did it then.”
“Before he melted the castle,” Jessie added.
“What about the missing keys?” Violet asked.
“And the flat tires?” Benny added.
“I'm not sure about those things,” Henry said. “Jimmy did have the chance to do them, but â ”
“That's right!” Benny interrupted. “Mr. Mercer said he parked the truck by the ice rink. Jimmy went skating that morning â before breakfast!”
“The keys disappeared the first day,” Violet said. “Jimmy could have taken them when he signed the guest book.”
They decided to take a break from thinking. Jessie got out their homemade cookies and poured juice. Benny unwrapped his cake. They ate in silence.
Finally, Violet said, “I guess we've answered all the questions.”
“Except the most important one,” Henry responded. “We still don't know
why
he did it.”
Jessie nodded her agreement. “The only person who knows the answer to that is Jimmy.”
“Well, then,” Benny said, “we'll have to ask him.”
T
he children agreed to talk to Jimmy privately and ask him why he had tried to ruin the games. But, the next morning, Jimmy did not show up for breakfast. And no one had seen him.
“Maybe he's in his room,” Benny said.
Henry asked Freddy for Jimmy's room number.
“I don't think he's there,” Freddy said. “I knocked this morning. He didn't answer.”
“Do you suppose he's sick?” Violet asked.
“There's only one way to find out,” Henry replied.
The Aldens headed down the long lodge hall. They stopped before Jimmy's door.
Benny's idea had sounded simple. But now that they were about to face Jimmy, they were having second thoughts.
“What'll we say?” Benny whispered.
“We'll think of something,” Henry said. He took a deep breath and knocked.
No answer.
He knocked again. “Jimmy?” he called. “It's Henry Alden.”
“Ask if he's sick,” Violet urged her brother.
“Are you all right, Jimmy?” Henry called.
Silence.
The Aldens stood quietly for several seconds.
“Maybe we should get Mr. Mercer,” Violet whispered. “If Jimmy's sick, he might need help.”
They turned to leave. The door opened slowly. Jimmy peeked out. He looked pale. Even his cheeks had lost their rosy color.
“Oh, Jimmy,” Jessie said. “You weren't at breakfast; we thought you might be sick.”
“I â uh â just wasn'tâ¦hungry,” Jimmy said.
“Then you
must
be sick,” Benny commented.
That made everyone â even Jimmy â smile.
“We'd like to talk to you,” Henry said. “About the games.”
At first, Jimmy was silent. Then, he said, “Come on in.”
They followed him into his room.
Henry cleared his throat. “We've been trying to figure out who's responsible for all that's happened,” he began.
“We thought it might be Freddy or Pete,” Jessie added.
“So their team could win,” Benny said.
“But then their own ice carving was melted,” Violet said.
“I did it.” Jimmy's voice was so quiet the Aldens weren't certain they'd heard it.
After a brief silence, Henry said, “You did?”
Jimmy sank down on the edge of his bed. “All of it,” he said.
Benny nodded. “We thought so,” he said.
“You planted Freddy's glove and hat?” Henry asked.
Jimmy nodded.
“And Pete's earmuffs?” Jessie asked.
Jimmy nodded again.
“And my cup?” Benny wanted to know.
“Yes,” Jimmy told him.
“That's what was so confusing,” Henry said. “There were so many suspects.”
“I didn't want anyone to take the blame,” Jimmy explained. “First, I took the keys and let the air out of the tires. I didn't leave clues then. I thought that would be enough. Mr. Mercer would stop the games. But it didn't work.”