儿童英语读物 Bicycle Mystery CHAPTER 8 Catch as Catch Can

Benny said suddenly, “Now I know where we are! There’s the old lighthouse where we stayed that summer. Remember?”



“That was fun, living in that lighthouse,” said Violet.



Henry said, “It shows we are not many miles from Aunt Jane’s.”



They all looked toward the old lighthouse, but they did not stop.



As they came near Aunt Jane’s big farmhouse 2, they heard a dog barking. Shadow barked in answer.



“That must be Aunt Jane’s dog Lady,” Violet said. “When Lady was a puppy 3, we gave her to Aunt Jane. I hope Lady and Shadow won’t fight.”



Aunt Jane and Uncle Andy waved from the front porch 4.



“How good to see you!” Aunt Jane said. “We have been looking for you. But Lady saw you first.”



Uncle Andy said, “You didn’t tell us you were bringing a dog.”



Henry held Shadow. “We didn’t have a dog then,” he said. “We don’t want the two dogs to fight.” He put Shadow on the grass. The two dogs wagged 5 their tails. They seemed friendly, although they kept on barking.



Then the four Aldens told how they happened to have the dog.



Uncle Andy said, “Here, Shadow, let me see you.” He looked carefully at the little dog. “That’s a Skye terrier,” he said. “Those dogs come from Scotland. From the island of Skye. That kind of a dog is more than three hundred years old.”



“You know everything, Uncle Andy,” Benny said.



“Well, boy, I’ve traveled a lot. You go get that red dictionary in my den 1. You’ll find a good picture of your dog.”



Benny soon brought out the red book. “That’s Shadow all right,” he said. “When we get home we will advertise in the paper, Found: Skye Terrier.”



“I wonder how he got lost,” said Aunt Jane.



“That’s our mystery, Aunt Jane,” Jessie said. “You know Benny always has to have a mystery.”



“Do you think he was stolen?” Uncle Andy asked. “You said he didn’t have a collar.”



Henry answered, “We don’t know. But that man and woman who stopped in their car thought we had stolen him!”



“That’s exactly what they thought!” Benny said.



“Let us know what happens to Shadow,” said Aunt Jane. “I’m sure you don’t know it, but Uncle Andy wants to fly to Spain. He wants me to go with him.”



“Right!” Uncle Andy said. “Your Aunt Jane always goes where I go. I’m going to the airport this afternoon to pick up the tickets.”



Benny said, “That is just like you, Uncle Andy. Always going somewhere.”



“Lunch, kids!” Uncle Andy said next. “I’ve been waiting for you, and lunch was ready a long time ago.”



“Well, I’m ready,” said Benny. “You can believe that, Aunt Jane.”



“Yes, sir!” Aunt Jane said—she remembered Benny’s appetite very well. “It is hard to fill you up.”



The Aldens were delighted to see Maggie, who had worked so many years for Aunt Jane. She had made an enormous egg salad for lunch. She had platters of ham, glasses of milk, and hot rolls.



After lunch, Jessie and Violet sat down to talk with Aunt Jane. Henry and Benny rode along with Uncle Andy to the airport. They took Shadow with them. Just as they parked the car, Uncle Andy said, “Look at that!”



A big dog was running across the parking lot for the airport. A man was trying to catch him.



The dog was a boxer 6. The Aldens could see that the dog didn’t want to be caught. The man was having no luck at all.



“Hi!” Benny called. “Come back here and I’ll catch your dog for you.”



“Oh, Ben, don’t say that,” said Henry. “You can’t catch a strange dog.”



“Yes, I think I know a way,” said Benny.



The man called, “I can’t run after that dog any more. I have to meet a plane and I’m wasting time.”



Benny called, “Don’t worry. I think I can catch him.” He got out of Uncle Andy’s car and let Shadow out, too. Shadow began to trot 7 after the big dog.



“Stay!” said Benny. Shadow sat down.



“My,” said the stranger. “I wish my dog would mind like that.”



“He would,” Benny answered, “if he took lessons. Now just wait. Stand behind that little truck where your dog can’t see you. Have his leash 8 ready.”



The boxer noticed that nobody was chasing him. He looked back and saw Shadow sitting in the parking lot.



The boxer wagged his short tail and trotted 9 back to see the strange dog.



Benny asked the man, “Are you ready? Catch your dog while he is making friends with my dog.”



The boxer walked up to Shadow. He wagged his tail. Shadow never moved. He just wagged his tail, too. That was hard because he was sitting on it.



“I’m coming out slowly,” the man whispered.



“Right,” Benny agreed. Now everyone was watching to see if the man could catch his boxer.



The big dog was so busy making friends with Shadow that he didn’t notice when his master snapped 10 the leash on his collar.



“There!” Benny said. “There’s your dog.”



Uncle Andy said, “That’s pretty smart, Benny. I didn’t believe you could do that.”



“Thanks, boy,” said the man. “Now I can meet the plane all right.” He put the dog in his car.



A woman had been watching all this time. She said to Henry, “Your dog is a Skye terrier, isn’t he?”



“Yes, we think so,” replied Henry.



Benny broke in, “He isn’t our dog. He just follows us.”



The lady looked at Benny. “I just came from Boston,” she said. “My sister lives there and she told me a friend of hers had lost a Skye terrier.”



Benny shook his head. “This dog could never have come from Boston. We are going to find his owner as soon as we can.”



“Good luck,” the woman said. “He’s a beautiful dog.”



That evening Aunt Jane said, “I’m sorry you aren’t staying with us longer. But I know you want to get home to solve the mystery of Shadow’s owner.”



Jessie said, “We were going to stay just one night anyway. We’ll come back for a longer visit in the fall.”



The next morning the Aldens packed up again. Maggie gave them another set of emergency rations 11. She said, “Come again soon. I like to have young people around and two barking dogs, too.”



The Aldens got on their bikes and rode off as Aunt Jane and Uncle Andy waved good-bye. Lady barked and wagged her tail. Shadow barked, too.



Benny said, “I like to hear you bark, brother. It’s much better than whining 12.”



Shadow ran ahead of the bikes. Jessie said, “I believe that dog knows he’s going home. He seems glad to go back.”



“Maybe that’s why Shadow has whined 13 so much,” Henry said. “He knew we were going the wrong way. Don’t let him run too long, Benny. His paws will get sore.”



Benny said, “Pretty soon I’ll give him a ride.” And in about a half hour, he picked Shadow up and set him in the basket in front of the handlebars.



As they rode along, the four riders began to sing. It was a slow song and they really needed a guitar. When Shadow heard it, he began to howl.



Benny was singing the guitar part, “Plunk, plunk, plunk!” He laughed. “That’s what makes you howl, Shadow. I didn’t know you could howl.” Then he went right along singing.



The minute the song was over, Shadow stopped howling. He just rode along in his basket, looking happy. That made Benny laugh again.



“You win, Shadow,” Henry called. “We’ll stop singing and you stop howling.”



After a few hours of pedaling 14, Benny said, “Look, we are coming to a crossroad. It looks like heavy traffic ahead!”