儿童英语读物 Houseboat Mystery CHAPTER 9 The Plan

When the Aldens came to the auction 1 building they found the door open. But nobody was inside.



“No auction today,” said Benny. “This isn’t Saturday.”



“Well, let’s look for someone to help us,” Jessie said. So the Aldens walked slowly down the main street, looking for a policeman. There were not many people on the street because there was no auction.



“There’s the Elm Tree Inn 2,” Violet 3 said, pointing.



Benny exclaimed 4, “Quick! The boy with the red cap! He’s going into the Elm Tree Inn.”



“No, Ben,” said Jessie. “That boy hasn’t any cap at all. And besides he didn’t look like that boy to me.”



“He did to me,” said Benny. “Let’s go in and see.”



The Aldens went in. Nobody was in the dining room. But Benny and Violet saw a boy go through a door in the back.



“Hey, wait a minute!” called Benny. “Just one minute, please!”



The boy half turned and stood still.



Henry said, “It’s all right. Don’t be afraid. You’re Mrs. Young’s boy, aren’t you?”



The boy looked up. “What of it? What do you want?”



“We’re trying to find a policeman,” Jessie said.



“I can’t help you,” the boy said.



“Aren’t you the boy who bought the clothes at the auction?” Benny asked. “We were there, too.”



The boy did not say anything.



“Why did you want the clothes?” Violet asked. “Did you need them?”



“Those old clothes?” the boy said suddenly. “We’re not that poor. A man asked me to buy them for him. He said he was too busy to go to an auction himself.”



“Did he give you money to do that?” Benny asked.



“Maybe twenty-five dollars?” asked Henry.



The boy looked at the Aldens. He decided 5 he could trust them. “Yes, that’s right. I didn’t do anything wrong. I just bought the box and gave it to the man. What’s wrong with that?”



“Nothing,” replied Benny. “Have you ever seen the man again?”



“Yes,” the boy said. “I saw him today at the Princess Hotel. He was talking to another man. I ran before he saw me. I don’t like him.”



“I don’t blame you,” said Benny. “Now could you tell us where we can find a policeman?”



This time the boy nodded. “There are two at the town hall.”



Benny said, “Why did you come to the Elm Tree Inn just now?”



“My mother is out in the kitchen. She came to sell candy.”



“Ask her if she’ll come and talk with us,” said Jessie.



But as Jessie spoke 6, the door opened and Mrs. Young came in from the kitchen. She said, “I heard every word and I am so glad Tom isn’t in trouble.”



The Aldens got up and Mr. Alden brought a chair for Mrs. Young.



Violet said, “There are a lot of people in trouble around here. We are trying to help.”



Henry said to Tom, “Do you think you could go out the back door and get one of those policemen to come in the back way?”



“Easy!” said Tom Young. “I’ll tell him it’s the folks 7 from the houseboat.” Then he was gone.



“He knew us all the time!” said Benny.



“Everybody knows you,” said Mrs. Young. “These towns up and down the river are quite small. You will find that almost everyone knows your names and when you stop for the night.”



Just then a few people went by, looking in the window.



Mr. Alden said quickly, “Before that policeman comes, do you suppose we could go into the kitchen? People can see us too well from here.”



“Oh, yes,” replied Mrs. Young. “The lady who runs this inn won’t mind. She will let you sit in the small dining room through that door.”



In a few minutes Tom came in with a policeman.



“Sit down,” said Mr. Alden. “We are all glad to see you. Look!” He pointed 8 at Benny.



The policeman looked at Benny, who began to open the mashed-potato box. He put in his hand and pulled out the vase 9.



“Whew!” said the policeman. “That vase! Where did you get it?”



Then Benny told the whole story. He told it very well. When he had finished, the lieutenant 10 said quickly, “Who knows you found this vase?”



“Nobody,” said Benny.



“Good!” said the man. “I’m glad nobody knows that you have found the vase. The men who hid it will think it is still buried in the sandbox. Yes, I think there were two men just as you do. I think one of them hid the vase in the box of old clothes.”



Benny nodded. “Then they hired Tom to buy the box and give it to them.”



“Right,” said the policeman. “They had to hide the vase somewhere, and your houseboat was just the place.”



Jessie said, “That’s why the two men were watching us when we stopped at Gull 11 Island. They were all ready to get out of town, so they wanted to get on board and get the vase if we left the houseboat alone for a few minutes.”



Benny exclaimed, “We could play a trick on them! Just let everybody know that we are going to spend the evening on land and then the men will go to the houseboat and try to get the vase back. When they get aboard 12, you can be in the cabin 13 to catch them.”



“That’s quite a plan,” said the lieutenant with a little laugh. “You can come with us. You deserve 14 to see the end.”



But Benny surprised them. He said, “No. I don’t want to see those men ever again. It’s just the way I feel about it.”



“You don’t have to,” said the policeman. “Maybe your brother will go with us? We need somebody to show us where the things are on the houseboat.”



“Okay,” said Henry. “I’d like to.”



“I know!” said Jessie. “Let’s all go out on the street and let everyone know we are having supper at the Elm Tree Inn. And then we’re going to the movies.”



“Good!” said the policeman. “News gets around here fast. Henry, right after supper, go down to the houseboat the back way. Captain John De Rosa and I will be there. Then we’ll see.”



Jessie laughed. She said, “If Benny is left behind, people will think the whole family is here.”



So the Aldens went out of the Elm Tree Inn, laughing and talking. They went into every store on the street, talking together about what they were going to do. They would have supper at the inn, then go to the movies. They asked what was going on at the movies.



People smiled and told them what the picture was. By dinnertime almost every person knew the houseboat people were in town and were going to spend the evening. Who would carry the news to the men at the Princess Hotel? Nobody knew.



The Aldens had a table right in the middle of the dining room. They had a delicious dinner. Without any talk, Henry slipped 15 out through the kitchen. He walked quickly and quietly to the houseboat. The rest of the family went to the movies and thought about the houseboat instead of the picture.