The Mystery of the Midnight Dog

by Gertrude Chandler Warner

“Sure,” said Benny.

  “Me, too, me, too,” several other people said. Cameras clicked. One man even had a video camera trained on them. Kate Frances laughed.

  “Wasn’t that wonderful, Elizabeth?” a young woman said to the older woman standing next to her. It was the woman in the dark glasses, red lipstick, and big hat.

  The woman turned up a corner of her mouth. It might have been a smile. “I’m hot,” she complained. Then, almost reluctantly, she said to Kate Frances, “That wasn’t bad. You could almost be a writer.”

  “Thanks,” said Kate Frances as the group began to wander away.

  The younger woman smiled. “Elizabeth should know!” she said brightly.

  “Come on. Let’s get out of the sun,” the woman named Elizabeth muttered.

  The group on the sidewalk broke up and people drifted away. Henry looked at his wristwatch. “Wow,” he said, “almost time for supper.”

  “We’d better head back,” said Kate Frances.

  By the time they got back to Mrs. Wade’s house, the evening shadows of the trees had grown long and the sun was almost down. Grandfather Alden was setting the wooden table inside the screened porch.

  Soon dinner was on the table and Watch was eating a bowl of dog food nearby.

  “Fried chicken,” said Grandfather. “If it tastes as good as it smelled while you were cooking it, Sally, it will be delicious.”

  “It is,” mumbled Benny who’d already reached for a drumstick and taken a big bite.

  While they ate, they talked about everything they’d seen that day.

  “When I grow up I’m going to have a purple house just like the pink one,” Violet said.

  “But it won’t be just like the pink one if it is purple,” Henry teased her gently.

  “When I grow up, I’m going to move to Elbow Bend and eat dinner just like this every day,” Benny said.

  “Well, we don’t eat like this every day, Benny,” said Mrs. Wade. “But I’m glad you like my cooking.” She looked pleased.

  Watch finished his meal and walked to the edge of the porch. He pressed his nose against the screen. He tilted his head as if he were listening to something that no one else could hear.

  “This town has lots of stories in it. But no mysteries so far,” Jessie said. “Not real mysteries, anyway.”

  “You like mystery stories?” Lainey asked.

  “Oh, yes,” said Jessie. “We like to solve them.”

  “Solve them?” Lainey looked a bit surprised.

  “Sure. We’ve solved lots of mysteries,” Henry said. “Even one with a singing ghost.”

  Kate Frances laughed. “Well, with all the ghost stories people tell around here, maybe a mystery will turn up yet.”

  Just then, Watch gave one short, sharp bark, then threw back his head and let out a long howl.

  Everyone at the table froze.

  Then Benny dropped his fork, pushed back his chair, and hurried over to the small dog. “What’s wrong, boy?” he asked.

  In answer, Watch howled louder.

  “Watch?” said Jessie. “Are you okay?”

  Then, as quickly as he had begun, Watch stopped howling. But the fur on his back stayed up and he kept his nose pressed against the screen for a long moment.

  Benny wrapped his arms around Watch’s neck. Watch turned his head and licked Benny’s cheek.

  Looking up at everyone at the table, Benny said, “I know what Watch saw. He saw the ghost dog!”

  “Benny! You know there is no such thing as a ghost. Or a ghost dog,” Jessie said.

  Violet didn’t say anything. She stared out at the darkness and the fireflies, half expecting to see a ghost dog float by.

  “Watch could have been howling at anything,” Henry said. “An owl hooting that we couldn’t hear. Or a siren far away.”

  “Come have dessert, Benny,” Grandfather said. “I’m sure the reason Watch howled is as simple as a hooting owl. No ghosts.”

  Benny looked through the screen at the night, but he didn’t see anything. Whatever had caused Watch to howl had stopped—or gone away.

  Later that night Benny and Watch came into Henry’s room. Benny who was wearing his pajamas, rubbed his eyes and yawned. Henry looked up from his book.

  Benny said, “Watch and I came to say good night.”

  “Good night,” said Henry. “And remember, I’m just across the hall if you get scared or anything.”

  “Scared?” Benny said. “I’m never scared. Only, maybe, a little worried sometimes.”

  Henry smiled at his younger brother. “Well, if you get a little worried, just call me. I’ll be right here.”

  “Okay,” said Benny. “And if you’re worried about the ghost dog, don’t be. Watch will protect us.”

  “There isn’t a ghost dog, Benny. That’s just a story,” Henry said.

  Benny looked as if he might want to argue with Henry. But all he said was, “Good night.”

  “Good night,” said Henry.

  When Benny stepped into the hall, he saw Lainey, who motioned for him to follow her. “Come on,” she said. “We’ll help the ghost dog pay Henry a visit.”

  “How?” asked Benny.

  “With an old Halloween mask I found in the closet in my room. It’s a basset hound mask.”

  “You mean, play a joke on him?” ask Benny.

  “Yep,” said Lainey.

  A few minutes later, wearing the dog mask, Benny walked back down the hall. When he reached the door, Lainey turned off the hall light.

  No light showed under Henry’s door. Benny wondered if his older brother was already asleep.

  If he was, Benny and Lainey were about to awaken him!

  “Scratch on the door a little, like a dog, but softly,” Lainey told Benny.

  Benny scratched on a lower panel of the door. As he did, Lainey let out a soft moan.

  Benny thought he heard a sound from Henry’s room.

  He scratched again. Lainey let out a low howl that sounded pretty scary to Benny.

  “What? Who’s there?” Henry’s voice sounded as if he had been asleep.

  Lainey howled once more.

  The light in Henry’s room came on. He threw open the door. Lainey howled again, and Benny did, too.

  Henry jumped back. Then he realized who it was.

  “Benny! Lainey!” he exclaimed.

  “No, it’s the ghost dog,” said Lainey, turning on the hall light. She and Benny began to laugh.

  Henry shook his head, grinning. “You almost fooled me. Almost.”

  Benny threw his arms around his brother. “Good night,” he said again. “We promise not to let the ghost dog wake you up anymore!”

  Henry rolled his eyes. “I’ll count on it. Good night.”

  “That was a pretty good joke,” Benny said.

  He went into his room and got into bed. Benny put his flashlight by his bed, just in case, then turned out the light and pulled the sheet up to his chin. He stared at the darkness. Was that a ghostly white shape by the window?

  He clicked on the flashlight.

  No, it was just a vase of white flowers.

  Benny yawned. A moment later he was sound asleep.

  Violet blinked and sat up in her bed. What had awakened her?

  She glanced at the clock by her bed. It was midnight, exactly.

  Just as she realized how late it was, Violet heard a low-sounding howl float through her open window. And then another. And another.

  The ghost dog, Violet thought and grabbed the covers to pull them up around her.

  Then another howl, much closer, made her gasp.

  It was coming from inside the house!

  Violet dropped the covers, grabbed for her robe, and ran out of her room. She just missed crashing into Jessie, who was running out of her room, too.

  They heard the howl again.

  “Benny’s room,” Jessie cried. “Hurry!”

  Henry bolted out of his room and joined them. He threw open the door of Be
nny’s room and switched on the light.

  Benny was kneeling at the window seat, holding Watch’s collar. He turned toward them. “The ghost dog!” he cried. “It’s here!”

  Just then, Watch threw back his head and let out another long howl. It made the hair on Violet’s neck stand up, almost like the hair on Watch’s neck.

  More howls from nearby yards and houses joined Watch’s.

  And then, just as suddenly as it had begun, the howling died away.

  Now the night was perfectly still. Not even the crickets sang.

  “Watch, are you okay? What’s wrong, boy?” Jessie asked. She went to Watch and patted his head.

  Watch didn’t seem to notice. He just peered out through the window screen into the night.

  “What’s going on?” It was Kate Frances, with Lainey behind her. They stood in Benny’s doorway.

  Benny turned to face everyone. “It was the ghost dog,” he said. “It was calling Watch and all the other dogs, too.”

  “What? That’s impossible!” Kate Frances said.

  “I thought I heard dogs howling,” Lainey said.

  But Jessie said, “Real dogs, Benny. Only real dogs were howling. In the first place, there’s no such thing as a ghost.”

  “It was probably an animal of some kind he heard,” Kate Frances said. “Just like he did during dinner this evening. Maybe a raccoon or a fox is living in the strip of woods along the creek that runs across the bottom of the backyard.”

  “If it was just an animal, Watch would have barked, not howled,” Benny said.

  “It’s nothing to worry about, Benny,” Henry assured him. “Why, Grandfather and Mrs. Wade slept right through it. If it hadn’t been for Watch, we probably would have, too.”

  Benny sighed.

  “Let’s get some sleep,” Henry said. “We’ve got a big day tomorrow.”

  Kate Frances was frowning. But she said, “Right. Y’all are going to Elbow Bend State Park with Lainey and me tomorrow.”

  When everyone had left and the room was dark and quiet again, Benny whispered to Watch, “If you see the ghost dog again, Watch, just howl. And we’ll catch it!”

  CHAPTER 4

  Clues in the Park

  But Watch didn’t howl anymore that night and when Benny woke up, sunlight was pouring in through the window. He jumped out of bed and got dressed as quickly as he could.

  As he and Watch hurried down the stairs, his nose told him that someone had already made biscuits. He joined everyone else in the kitchen for a breakfast of buttered biscuits with blackberry jam, along with grits and ham. Even Watch got a piece of ham.

  Grandfather said to Benny, “I hear Watch did some midnight singing last night.”

  “He howled,” Benny agreed.

  “I understand Watch wasn’t the only dog in town who howled at midnight,” Mrs. Wade said.

  “Something made Watch and all the other dogs howl last night,” Benny said.

  Jessie shook her head. But she only said, “I think I’m going to have another biscuit.”

  “Me, too,” said Violet. “They are delicious.”

  “When we’re finished with breakfast, it’ll be time to go to work,” Kate Frances said.

  “Are we going to work with you?” Violet asked.

  Kate Frances smiled. “Maybe we can find a job for you, if you want one.”

  Elbow Bend State Park was by a big curve in the river. Kate Frances drove past a small ticket booth and waved at the older man inside, who was wearing an ELBOW BEND STAFF cap. She parked the car in a small parking lot behind a building made of rough-cut wood and led the way inside.

  “Good morning, Kate Frances. Good morning, Lainey.” A woman came out of a small office right by the front door.

  “Good morning, Ms. Hedge,” said Kate Frances. “I’ve brought some volunteers for the day.” She introduced the four Aldens.

  “We have plenty of work for you. We need someone to stack all the pamphlets in our information booths and to help hand out maps.”

  “I can do that,” Violet said.

  “Me, too,” said Benny.

  Ms. Hedge said, “Kate Frances, I’m counting on you to help me plan the Stories Under the Stars program. It’s only two days away, you know.”

  “Stories Under the Stars?” asked Henry.

  Ms. Hedge nodded. “Yes. There is a storyteller who lives near here. She’s a well-known storyteller and she’ll be here tomorrow night at our outdoor theater. You should come. She’s wonderful.”

  “We will,” said Jessie.

  “We can sit in the employee section,” Kate Frances said. “My grandmother was already planning on coming and I know your grandfather would enjoy it, too.”

  “Good,” said Ms. Hedge. She turned to Lainey and continued, “The ground crew needs a little help today, Lainey, if you don’t mind pitching in. Someone knocked over all the litter containers on Bluff Trail and Overlook Trail.”

  “Good grief,” said Lainey. “Who’d do a thing like that?”

  “Maybe it was a wild animal,” said Violet. “A raccoon. Or a bear.”

  “No bears around here,” Ms. Hedge said, to Violet’s secret relief. “And I doubt a raccoon is strong enough to turn over those big containers.” Her lips tightened a little. “No, it was someone’s stupid idea of a joke.”

  “Well, let’s get to work,” said Lainey. “Henry, Jessie, you want to come along?”

  “Sure,” said Jessie.

  “And we can look for clues,” Henry added. “Maybe we can solve the Mystery of the Garbage Can Litterbug.”

  Lainey laughed. “Maybe. Let’s get packs from the equipment room and some sandwiches. We’ll have a picnic lunch on the trail.”

  Kate Frances said, “And we’ll have a picnic right here.”

  “See you this afternoon,” Violet said. She and Benny went to work in the visitors’ center while Henry and Jessie set out on the trails with Lainey.

  “Wow,” Jessie said as she stuffed newspaper into the litter sack slung over one shoulder. “Some people sure are litterbugs.”

  It was hot, hard work. Henry and Jessie looked for clues that might help them figure out who would upend all the litter cans—or why. But there were too many footprints on the trail to point to any one suspect and they could find nothing else that helped.

  “Whew! That’s done. Let’s head back,” Lainey said at last. “I just hope whoever pulled the trash can tricks doesn’t come back.”

  “Me, too,” said Henry.

  As they came out of the woods into the main clearing of the park, Henry said, “What’s that old cabin over there?”

  “Oh. That’s one of the cabins of the original European settlers here,” Lainey said. “Or what’s left of it. In this corner of the park and back through the woods are what’s left of several houses of the people who used to live here over two hundred years ago. Dr. Sage sometimes camps out here. She’s the archaeologist in charge of digging up the historic sites in the park. Why don’t we go meet her?”

  As Lainey, Henry, and Jessie approached the old ruined cabin, a woman peered from around the back of the house. “Stay between the ropes,” she barked. “Or you’ll be trampling on history.”

  Henry and Jessie were a little startled by this sharp welcome, but Lainey seemed used to it. “Hi, Dr. Sage,” she said. “It’s just me. I brought some friends to meet you. This is Henry and Jessie. They’re staying with Mrs. Wade and doing some volunteer work in the park.”

  Dr. Sage came out from around the corner of the house. She was a small, strong-looking woman, with dark skin. Her dark brown eyes seemed to miss nothing. She wiped one hand on the leg of her dirt-smudged jeans and said, “Hello.”

  Jessie and Henry said hello and shook hands.

  “So you’re volunteering. That’s good. Saves the park money. Money saved is money I can use to do my digging and research,” Dr. Sage said.

  “I’m glad,” Jessie replied politely.

  Dr. Sage gave a short lau
gh. “Just don’t mess with anything around our dig. It may look untidy, but we can tell when someone’s been here who shouldn’t have been. People on the tour groups have actually tried to pick up artifacts to take home!”

  Jessie and Henry both were about to protest that they knew better than to touch historic ruins uninvited, but Dr. Sage stopped them by raising her voice and shouting, “Brad! You’ve got company!”

  “Coming,” a voice called from the edge of the nearby trees. A few seconds later a tall, lanky young man with long hair pulled back in a short ponytail came ambling out of the woods. Although it didn’t seem possible, he was covered with even more smudges of dirt than Dr. Sage.

  “Lainey’s here to say hello to you,” Dr. Sage said.

  “And to introduce some volunteers,” Lainey said quickly. Henry noticed that Lainey was blushing. When he looked over at Brad, he thought Brad’s cheeks were red, too, but it might have been sunburn.

  Brad smiled and shook hands with the Aldens. “Hi, I’m Brad Thompson.”

  “Are you finding anything interesting?” Henry asked Brad after they’d been introduced.

  “As a matter of fact, I’ve found some very interesting pottery fragments,” Brad said. “It leads me to believe that I’m on the right track to the town dump.”

  “Dump?” ask Jessie, thinking of all the garbage and litter they’d just picked up along the trail.

  Brad nodded eagerly. “Yes! Isn’t it great news?”

  Seeing their puzzled looks, Dr. Sage explained, “If we study what people of earlier times threw away, it can tell us quite a lot.”

  Jessie laughed. “Wait until we tell Benny that the scientists here are studying garbage, especially after we cleaned it up all day.”

  Lainey shook her head and smiled. “I guess we should go and let you get back to work.”

  “Good idea,” Henry agreed.

  They all said good-bye to Dr. Sage and Brad. Brad looked up and said, “ ’Bye, Lainey, and, uh ... everyone.”

  Dr. Sage didn’t even notice that they were leaving.

  “Are they always like that?” Henry asked.

  “Worse,” said Lainey with a little sigh. “Brad and Dr. Sage would work all day and all night if they could. They’d be happy if we closed this park to everyone but scientists and historians.”