The Mystery of the Tiger's Eye (8 page)

“Melanie took the book?” Benny said. “Why? It belongs in Mr. Singleton's library.”

Dorsey shrugged. “I don't know. I thought maybe I'd find out more about the cabinet that Houdini sent to this house. I didn't, though.”

Violet had been studying the photograph of Harry Houdini. Now she remembered what it was about the picture that had been bothering her.

“He's wearing a ring here,” she said, pointing to his hands in the photograph. “But in the pictures in the book, he never has on any jewelry.” She flipped through the book, stopping at a section of photographs.

“You're right,” said Jessie. “He's pretty young in this photograph. Maybe after he became a famous magician he stopped wearing rings because they got in the way of his magic tricks.”

“Good thinking,” Henry praised. “He probably didn't want people looking at his hands too closely when he was performing. I read somewhere that magicians talk a lot while they are performing tricks, to distract people from what they are really doing.”

“It's called patter,” said Dorsey. “I read about it, too. There's a book on magic in Melanie's workroom.”

Jessie and Henry exchanged a glance.

“We didn't know Melanie was interested in magic,” Jessie said.

“She reads a lot,” Dorsey said. “The book is in a bookcase in her room.”

“We need to tell your great-uncle we've found you,” said Henry. “But we can stop in Melanie's office on the way downstairs and check out this magic book.”

To himself, Henry wondered if Dorsey was telling the truth. Dorsey could have taken the book and picture of Houdini and hidden them in the attic.

Melanie's room was as messy as they remembered. Collectibles and papers were piled on the floor, on chairs, on the bookcases. Fishing line, thumbtacks, copper wire, and other small items tumbled from the bottom desk drawer.

Dorsey walked over to a table and picked up a small red volume. “This is the book I was telling you about.”

Violet read the title out loud. “Magic Tricks in Five Easy Lessons.”

Henry walked over to the typewriter. The label in the roller read,
Ferris Wheels.
Again, he saw the
l
in
Wheels
was wiggly. Where had he seen those wiggly
l
's before?

But Benny had made another discovery. “Isn't that Melanie's backpack?” He pointed to a black leather knapsack in the corner.

“Yeah,” said Jessie. “She takes it everywhere. Her car keys are still on the key loop.” She drew in a breath. “Melanie said she was leaving. But she didn't. Melanie Preston is still in this house … somewhere.”

“People sure disappear around here a lot,” said Benny. “First Dorsey, now Melanie.”

“I didn't disappear,” Dorsey said defensively, holding Houdini. “I was in the attic.”

“But where is Melanie?” asked Henry. “We looked all over the house when we were searching for Dorsey.”

“We should tell Mr. Singleton,” Jessie said decisively. “He needs to know Dorsey is okay, anyway.”

They ran back downstairs. Edward, Grandfather, and Iona were in the laundry room.

“There you are!” Edward said to Dorsey, relieved. “We were worried about you.”

“I'm okay,” said Dorsey, putting Houdini back in his cage. “I was just … looking for something.”

“We think Melanie is here someplace,” Jessie told Edward. “Her backpack is in her workroom.”

“I don't understand,” Edward said. “She said she had to go home and feed her dog.”

“I thought she had a cat,” said Benny. “Yesterday she said she had to go home and feed her cat.”

“I bet she doesn't have either one,” Henry stated. Now he realized what was bothering him. He pulled out the latest card from Madame ZaZa's booth. “Look at this.”

The others gathered around.

“Notice the
l
in
leave.
See how wiggly it is?” he said. “The labels in Melanie's typewriter have the same wiggly
l
. And this card is brand-new. The others that came out of the fortune-teller are yellowed and brown-edged with age.”

“Are you saying Melanie typed this fortune card?” said Edward.

“Let me check out one thing first.” Henry went through the kitchen and into the dining room.

Everyone hurried after him.

Henry looked behind the fortune-telling booth. Reaching under, he pulled out a length of nylon fishing line.

“This is connected to the switch in the back,” he said. “It runs along the baseboard, but you can't see it because it's clear.” On his hands and knees, he followed the line to the swan chariot. The line was thumbtacked to the underside of the seat.

“We found fishing line and copper wire in Melanie's workroom,” said Jessie. “We also found a copper wire inside the clock that made it strike at odd times.”

Grandfather examined the line under the chariot seat. “I see. Whoever sits here just gives a little tug and the fortune-teller starts.” He pulled the line to demonstrate. Sure enough, Madame ZaZa whirred into action. “Good work, Henry!”

“But who sits in that seat?” asked Edward.

“Melanie does sometimes, but so does Iona and even Dorsey,” answered Violet.

“I didn't — ” Dorsey began.

At that moment, they all heard a thump.

“Help!” came a muffled voice.

“It's coming from the hall!” Benny exclaimed.

They all rushed into the entryway.

Thump, thump!

“It sounds like someone is in the big cabinet!” declared Violet.

Edward grasped the wooden handles. “It's locked. I always keep it locked.” He produced a small brass key from the ring in his pocket.

“Help me!” cried the voice. “Please!”

Edward quickly unlocked the doors and opened them wide.

But the cabinet was empty!

“P
lease get me out!” begged the voice.

“The magician's ghost is in there!” Dorsey exclaimed.

“It's not a ghost,” Benny said firmly. He looked up at the tiger perched on top. The tiger seemed to be looking back at him…

“Help!” the voice cried.

Benny noticed the interior of the cabinet seemed smaller than the outside. Was there another door at the back of the cabinet? He began feeling along the inside for a latch or switch.

His search was rewarded. Suddenly a panel slid back, revealing a secret compartment.

Melanie Preston stumbled out of the compartment, pale-cheeked and in tears. “Thank you!”

“What were you doing in there?” Edward demanded.

“After the Aldens found Houdini's note, I knew this was one of his special cabinets,” she answered. “I figured it had a place for him to hide. I was right.”

“Melanie is your secret prankster,” Henry told Edward.

Edward stared at her. “Is this true?”

“It's a long story,” said Melanie. “May I sit down?”

“I think we all need to sit down,” said Iona. “I'll make fresh coffee and some cocoa for the young people.”

Soon they were all settled in the parlor with hot drinks and a plate of peanut butter cookies.

After a few sips of Iona's strong coffee, Melanie looked better. She took a deep breath and began talking.

“I take drama classes at school,” she said. “But I'm really a magician.”

“You've been practicing your tricks in this house,” Violet accused. “Trying to fool Mr. Singleton.”

“I practice whenever I can,” Melanie said defensively. “Practice makes perfect, they say. But not in my case. When I do a card trick, the cards always land somewhere else.”

“You made the cards fly in the kitchen!” said Benny.

Melanie nodded. “The flying card trick actually worked that time. I'd never been able to get them to stay together before. The secret is gravity.”

“Show us how it works,” Henry said.

Melanie drew a deck of cards from her pocket. She held them in her hand with her thumb on top, fingers beneath.

“The jokers are on the top and bottom,” she explained. “I press the cards together to get the air out. Watch carefully.” She pulled the top and bottom cards back about an inch. Then she threw. The cards flew in a solid block about ten feet, landing in a neat stack as before.

“You're still holding the jokers,” Henry observed. “That's why they were missing from the deck we found.”

“I know what you're thinking,” said Melanie, as if she could read minds as well. “How can anybody as shy and awkward as me ever be an entertainer? But I want lots of friends and people to admire me.”

Iona spoke gently. “You don't need to hide behind a magic act. You have friends right here.”

“If I were Uncle Edward, I wouldn't be your friend!” Dorsey blurted. “You haven't been very nice, sneaking around playing tricks.”

Melanie hung her head. “I know. But I had a reason.”

“Please explain,” said Edward. “We're listening.”

“Last year I did my term paper on Harry Houdini,” she began. “I learned a lot about him. I even found out about how he used to be hired for private parties. Then I found out he and his brother had been in this very house.”

“You got a job here,” Violet said, “so you could look for whatever Houdini had left behind.”

“Yes,” said Melanie. “I figured it was a formula for a terrific trick. If I found it, I could be a great magician like Houdini. Maybe even greater.”

Edward looked confused. “I gave you free run of my house and all my collections. Why did you play tricks on me? You could have found Houdini's secret and I would never have known.”

“I didn't know what I was looking for,” Melanie admitted. “It could have been a piece of paper or a magic item — anything. I practiced my tricks here. If I could fool you, I could fool an audience. But I still had to hunt for Houdini's secret.”

Benny spoke up. “You sneaked in at night, didn't you? I saw your flashlight outside the other night.”

“I used my key to slip in after everyone was in bed,” Melanie said. “While I looked, I moved pictures and stuff, so Mr. Singleton would be spooked. I hoped to make him nervous so he wouldn't notice I was almost finished with my job.”

“You pushed books out of bookcases — ” Iona said.

“And rigged the clock and saltshaker in the dining room,” said Jessie.

“Along with the fortune-teller,” added Henry. “You used your typewriter to type that last fortune card. I recognized the
l
from the labels in your workroom.”

“You moved the mirror the first night we were here,” said Violet. “You act like you aren't very strong, but we caught you lifting that heavy box in the attic.”

“I work out at the college gym,” Melanie confessed. “I'm a lot stronger than I look. Yes, I did all those things.”

Edward shook his head. “Why did you pretend to leave tonight?”

“These kids were getting close to the truth,” said Melanie. “While you were all looking at the birds on the deck, I came back in the house.”

“You believed Houdini's secret was in the carved cabinet,” Violet guessed. “How did you get in it?”

Melanie pulled a bent paper clip from her pocket. “Not very magical, I'm afraid, but it worked. I thought there might be a hidden compartment in the cabinet. It was the only place I hadn't looked yet. And I got trapped.”

“That was a foolish thing to do,” Iona chided. “The doors locked behind you.”

“I know,” Melanie said glumly. “And I didn't even find Houdini's secret.”

Benny bit into his third cookie. “I know what Houdini's secret is.” While the others had been talking, he had figured it out.

Everyone stared at him.

“You do?” asked Grandfather, his eyebrows raised.

“Yeah. It's not
in
the cabinet,” he said. “It's
on
the cabinet.”

“What are you talking about?” Jessie asked her brother.

Benny stood up. “Come in the hall. I'll show you.” In front of the cabinet, he pointed to the tiger. “The thing Houdini left behind is on the tiger. But we can't reach.”

“I'll get a ladder.” Edward was back in a few minutes with a stepladder. He brought the tiger down and set it carefully on the marble floor.

“What did Houdini leave behind?” Grandfather asked Benny.

Benny touched the right eye of the tiger. It popped out in his hand. When he held it up, they could all see the eye was really a gold ring set with an amber-colored stone. The stone had a dark stripe down the center, like the pupil of a cat's eye.

“The ring in the photograph!” Violet exclaimed. “It's the ring Houdini is wearing in that picture we found!”

“I'll get the picture,” Jessie offered, racing upstairs. She returned with both the book about Houdini and the photograph.