by Dan Poblocki
“Lying?” Clea’s ice-blue eyes widened. She scoffed. “We are not lying. We’ve just uncovered the biggest scandal Moon Hollow has ever seen. We’re gonna be heroes as soon as we tell the police what we’ve found. I’d be surprised if they don’t give us a medal.”
“A medal?” said Woodrow, amused. “Really?”
“Why wouldn’t they?” said Clea, her anger building. Her friends looked nervous, but the rest of the Question Marks only looked confused.
Still, Woodrow continued. “Because as soon as you mention an escaped convict to them, they’ll laugh in your face. Don’t you know why?”
Clea didn’t answer. She only stood there, looking defeated. So Viola spoke up instead. “Being a lawyer down in New York City, Woodrow’s dad has connections to the state police. I’m guessing Mr. Knox did some checking up,” Viola said hopefully.
Woodrow nodded.
“There haven’t been any recent prison breaks upstate, have there?” Rosie asked.
“Nope,” said Woodrow. “So that leaves the question … whose lair is this?”
“It must still belong to the thief,” said Sylvester. “Here’s all the loot.”
“Exactly,” said Rosie, as an idea struck her. “The loot that was stolen from the lockers. Lockers that were not broken into. A seemingly impossible task. Unless the thief had access to locker combinations. I know someone like that. Don’t you guys?”
“Gina Denucci!” said Sylvester. “She volunteers in the office. She must know where the locker combination files are stored!”
“She might,” said Rosie. “But I was thinking about someone else. In fact, this other person happened to be one of the thief’s victims.”
“Thomas,” Woodrow said with a smile. “You work with Gina, don’t you?”
Even in the warm flashlight glow, Thomas’s face blushed almost purple. “I do, but —”
“Don’t say another word,” Clea interrupted.
“Why not?” said Viola. “Don’t want to incriminate yourselves?” Every member of the Troop all stared at their feet, except for Clea. She looked defiantly into Viola’s eyes. “It all makes sense,” Viola continued. “You four were the first victims of the robberies. In fact, that’s what supposedly brought you together — the fact that someone had stolen from you. You formed your ‘troop’ in order to catch the thief. But what if you stole from yourselves to make it seem like you were victims? You were all friends before any of this started, weren’t you?”
“Like we’d really do that,” said Clea, with a smirk. “Steal from ourselves? Ha!”
“I think you would,” said Rosie. “You do have a fondness for storytelling, Clea. Remember the Lady in Green?”
“That stuff really happened!” Clea insisted. “Everyone knows about her.”
“Just like everyone knew about the legend of Tall Ted?” said Sylvester. “If I remember correctly, it was you who told the story on the bus ride after the field trip. You also planted the thought that whoever took a stone from Purgatory Chasm should watch out — the monster would come after them.”
“It did the trick,” said Woodrow. “Everyone at school has been jumping at shadows for the past few weeks. But no one’s actually seen a monster — except for you, Thomas. Of course, no one would realize you’d lied if the thief left behind a Tall Ted mask. Were you the one doing the walkie-talkie growls too?”
Thomas cleared his throat, but said nothing.
“A little paranoia works wonders when you’re trying to manipulate people,” said Rosie.
“Speaking of which,” said Viola, “where did the rumors of the escaped convict begin? I first heard about him during play rehearsal. Did you start that one too, Clea?” Clea remained stone-faced. “You needed to tie the legend of Tall Ted to a real-life thief, someone you could blame, someone you could reveal as the true villain at the center of the web. That’s why you’re up here, taking pictures. When the truth is, Clea, you’re the villain. As obvious as it now seems, you did a pretty good job of tricking all of us.”
“Gosh,” said Rosie, shaking her head, “who knew the lengths you’d go to just to get us to drop out of the play? You assumed Mrs. Glick would give you one of our parts?”
“You can’t prove any of this,” said Clea, stepping closer to her friends. “Come on, you guys. Let’s get out of here.”
“We’ll make sure this gets back into the right hands,” said Sylvester, picking up the satchel of loot.
Clea grabbed Paul’s wrist and began to pull him toward the tunnel from which the Question Marks had come. Thomas and Shanti shuffled along behind them. They disappeared through the natural doorway, taking their flashlights with them.
A few seconds went by before Viola remembered to click on her own key chain light. “I guess we should —” she began, but she was interrupted by a tremendous roar that echoed through the cavern. This was followed by sounds of wild screaming. The Question Marks froze, wide-eyed in the cold blue light.
Through the tunnel entrance, they watched flashlight beams bob as the Troop ran back toward the fake campsite. Clea and her friends burst into the room, wearing looks of pure terror. “Help us!” she shouted. “Something’s up there.”
“We heard,” said Rosie, trying to control the shaking of her own voice. “Did you see what it was?”
“I saw a large shadow coming toward us,” said Shanti. “After that, we all just turned and ran.”
“Tall Ted is real,” whispered Sylvester, sounding half-pleased and half-horrified at his realization. They all moved away from the mouth of the tunnel.
“We’ll worry about that some other time,” said Woodrow. “Right now, we have to find a way out of here.”
“We can’t go back in that direction,” said Paul. “The creature’s waiting.”
“But that’s the way out,” said Clea. “What are we supposed to do?”
They had no time to answer. The sound of something sharp scraping against stone echoed through the passage. Whatever the Troop had seen had followed them. If they didn’t make a move, and soon, they would come face-to-face with a true Purgatory beast.
“This way,” said Woodrow, pulling Viola and her key chain light toward the opposite wall — the one with the barred-off hole that led to who knew where. No one argued. All eight of them were suddenly a single unit, leaping the bar one at time, then moving deeper into the darkness of the cave system.
They shuffled away as quickly as they could, slipping and sliding through the damp labyrinth, trying to put as much distance as possible between themselves and the creature on their tail. After several minutes of barreling through the darkness, with nothing but shaky flashlights to guide their way, they paused. Listening carefully, none of them heard anything except a soft trickle of underground water flowing somewhere nearby.
“Are we safe?” whispered Clea.
“From the beast?” said Woodrow. “I’d say yes. But from the darkness, I’m not so sure. Was anyone paying attention to the direction we were running?”
Everyone shook their heads.
“Oh my gosh,” said Shanti. “How are we going to find our way back? My map doesn’t cover this part of the cave.”
“We’re lost,” said Sylvester. “Lost and doomed.”
Viola rolled her eyes. “And to think I once promised myself I’d never die in a cave with a bunch of drama queens.”
“I’m pretty sure I can get us out of here,” said Rosie. “And we won’t even have to backtrack.”
“How are you gonna do that?” asked Clea, with a sneer. “Are you suddenly psychic?”
“No,” said Rosie. “But there’s something in these caverns that can tell us which direction to go. And it’s not a monster, if you were wondering. I bet my friends know what it is. Right, guys?”
Everyone thought about Rosie’s question for several seconds, as if their lives depended on it — a good thing, because that was in fact the case.
“Is it the sound of the running water?” asked Paul
shyly.
“Yup,” said Rosie. “If we can find the underground stream that’s making that constant noise, it might just lead us out of here.”
It took the group another few minutes and a few U-turns to find the bubbling brook. The water flowed smoothly through a deep cut in the rock. Rosie led the way, following the stream when possible. Every now and again, she’d lose direction as the water disappeared into a crevice. When that happened, however, she would listen carefully, and pick up the path in another tunnel. The others listened for different kinds of sounds, like the one that had originally sent them running.
They had been walking for what seemed like forever, and though Sylvester was thankful that nothing was pursuing them — he hoped! — he wondered how much farther down they could travel. Shouldn’t they start to head upward eventually? Wasn’t that where light would be?
Seconds later, Rosie cried out, “Listen!” The sound of rushing water was growing louder and louder with every step they took. “I think we’re almost there.”
“Where?” asked Sylvester.
“The Hudson!”
Of course, Sylvester thought. Purgatory Chasm was so high up in the Moon Hollow Hills that their descent through the caves had brought them down closer to the large river’s edge. They could see light up ahead cascading toward them like a fountain. Soon, the mouth of the cave appeared.
As the group made their way out into the woods by the river, they shouted with relief. The sun hung low in the sky, over the trees across the water. They jumped up and down, spiraling in a circle, like kindergartners playing ring-around-the-rosy at recess. Viola, Rosie, Sylvester, and Woodrow had never felt so happy. Yes, they’d solved the mystery of Tall Ted and the middle school thief. But really … did that even matter anymore? They were alive and they let the woods know it!
“Arroooo!” they howled together.
After the celebration, Thomas spoke up. “How are we supposed to get back up to our bikes?”
“Who the heck cares?” said Rosie, bursting out with a roar of laughter. Her friends soon joined in, reveling in the pure joy of the spring sunlight.
Together, covered in dirt, dust, and grime, they trod along the riverbank, stepping through weeds, dead leaves, and an abundance of mud. They knew that the water would lead them back to town and civilization before sunset. They also knew they’d have to answer to their parents for what had happened, but even the thought of that was more appealing than getting forever lost in the monstrous caves underneath Purgatory.
When they reached the train station on Oakwood Avenue, the Question Marks split off from the Troop and headed up toward their own neighborhood, chatting the entire way. Just before they reached the comforting familiarity of their block, Sylvester asked a question that he knew would haunt him for a long time if he didn’t learn the answer. “What was it that roared at us in the caves?” he said. “Does anyone have an idea?”
“Oh, that?” said Rosie. “Simple. It was a bear.”
“No way,” said Woodrow, his skin erupting in gooseflesh. “We were almost eaten by a bear?”
“That’s no joke,” said Viola. “We’ve all heard about the animals up in the Moon Hollow Hills. Sure, what Clea’s Troop described sounds like it could have been a bear. Is that what clued you in?” Rosie shook her head. “Then how can you be sure what we heard was a bear?”
“Do you guys remember that stench we smelled when we first entered the cave?” Rosie asked. They nodded. “I knew it wasn’t merely dirt. I watched my step as we went farther along. I noticed some large droppings, and I instantly knew what kind of danger we might have been dealing with.”
“And you didn’t turn us around right then?” asked Woodrow.
“I couldn’t,” said Rosie. “We needed to find Clea, Paul, Thomas, and Shanti. Yes, we had a mystery to solve. But we also had to make sure that our classmates would end up safe at the end of the day. I bet it was all those burger wrappers that lured the poor thing into the Devil’s Armpit. Unfortunately, the bear encountered us instead. We probably scared it as much as it scared us.”
“You just keep telling yourself that,” said Sylvester.
The four stepped onto the lawn that made up each of their backyards. Wandering to the center, Sylvester dropped the satchel he’d carried from the cave. Exhausted, the rest of them plopped down onto the grass at the Four Corners.
A minute later, Sylvester started giggling.
“What’s up?” Woodrow asked.
Trying to control himself, Sylvester answered, “I think that’s the first time bear poop has been a clue in one of our mysteries!”
“Ew!” said Viola. “Hopefully, it will be the last time too!”
22
BULLIES, VILLAINS,
MONSTERS, AND THIEVES
A few weeks later, The Villain’s Web opened to a standing ovation in the Moon Hollow Middle School auditorium. The entire cast was ecstatic with the reception. They’d worked hard, and afterward Mrs. Glick assured them that they had deserved all of the applause.
Rosie was proud that she’d gotten through the performance without a single stomach cramp. And Viola was happy that after everything that had occurred up in the Moon Hollow Woods, Clea finally allowed her to be the true villain, as she’d been cast.
On the Monday after the Purgatory escape, the Question Marks had turned the loot in to Principal Dzielski. She asked them where they had gotten it, and the group told her the same story they’d told their parents: the truth. Later, Clea, Thomas, Paul, and Shanti were called into the office to give their own version of the tale. Unfortunately for Clea, Thomas cracked, admitting that he’d taken locker combinations from the office files. Principal Dzielski doled out her usual punishment. The Troop would spend the next week and a half in detention.
Clea begged Mrs. Glick to allow her to stay in the play. The director agreed, but only once Clea promised to keep the drama onstage, where it belonged.
“So, do you think you’ll audition again next year?” Woodrow asked the girls.
The four friends had nabbed the corner booth at the Main Street Diner after the show finished. Their parents had squeezed into the booth behind them and were chatting about how impressed they were with the middle school’s production.
The rest of the diner was crowded, as it usually was after a school function. Woodrow thought he saw Mickey Molynew sitting at a booth near the back with someone who could have been his father. Was it possible that Mickey had waved at him? It was difficult to be sure, but Woodrow thought it was nice to imagine.
Several small children ran up the aisle near the long counter wearing pale, bald monster masks. The party supply store around the corner had recently sold out of what had become known as the Tall Ted Special.
After word spread about what had gone down at Purgatory Chasm, the town had collectively shuddered that some of its own children had been capable of wreaking such havoc, but they also secretly breathed a sigh of relief.
Sometimes even grown-ups need reminding that there are no such thing as monsters.
“I’m not sure if I’ll stay in drama club,” said Viola. “I feel like I should try something new.”
“Well, I’m definitely going to do it again,” said Rosie. “Hopefully, next time Mrs. Glick won’t choose a melodrama though. All that villainy was kind of overwhelming. I realized that I don’t like playing a victim.”
“I didn’t think of you that way,” said Sylvester. “You totally put Viola in her place.”
“Don’t you mean her character put my character in her place?” said Viola, raising an eyebrow.
“Oh. Yeah. Right.”
“Well, it sure felt great to watch the good guys finally win,” said Woodrow. “I think that was my favorite part of the whole thing. The ending.”
“Absolutely,” said Rosie, popping a french fry in her mouth. “But everybody knows that all the fun is in getting there.”
BONUS
THE SCIENCE CLASS SWITCHEROO
&nb
sp; (A ???? MYSTERY)
While the rest of the Hudson Valley felt the warmth of a late spring heat wave, Moon Hollow was sheltered by the surrounding hills and cooled by wind off the water. The young people in town enjoyed the temperate weather by playing outside. They flew kites, tossed Frisbees, and ate their first ice cream cones of the season, even as their watches ticked off the seconds to their curfews.
The sun was keeping later hours, allowing the Question Marks Mystery Club to gather at the Four Corners after dinner. When they found one another in the center of their yards, it was no surprise to Sylvester, Woodrow, or Viola that Rosie had a new mystery to discuss with them. Over the course of the past year, they had all become expert detectives.
“My older brother Greg told me a good one last night,” said Rosie. “For the past couple weeks up at the high school, Greg’s science teacher has been out sick, so they’ve had a substitute teacher take over. Mrs. Chelzwert.”
“Chelzwert?” said Woodrow. “Is Greg’s sub any relation to Colby Chelzwert?”
“Who’s that?” asked Viola.
“He’s in my art class,” answered Woodrow. “He’s always drawing pictures of really gross stuff. Deep-fried snakes. Dead unicorns. Zombie versions of our classmates.”
Viola wrinkled her nose.
“As a matter of fact, they are related,” said Rosie. “Mrs. Chelzwert is his mom. Colby also has an older sister named Faina. She’s in Greg’s class.”
“She made fun of my coat at the town library once,” said Sylvester, as if he expected everyone to reach out and give him a hug. But no one did. “I almost cried,” he added to no avail. He lay down on the grass with a huff.
“Faina’s not very nice to Greg either,” said Rosie. “Once, she lobbed a spitball into his juice from across the cafeteria. Another time, she took the specimen jars off the shelves in the back of their science classroom and put them all over his desk. The jars are filled with all sorts of nasty-looking dead things soaking in preservative. Greg really didn’t want to have to touch the jars, but he also didn’t want to admit that Faina was bullying him. So he took the blame, and the teacher forced him to put them back on the shelf. The whole class watched as he walked back and forth, his arms full of creepy biological specimens. He said that everyone was so freaked out by what was inside the jars, no one has touched them since.”
