house itself.
After looking at several books, Mara finally found the one she was looking for. She located information about the house Reverend and Mrs. Long lived in. It was built in 1858, by a man named Sylvester Carter, who made his fortune from railroad investments. He owned the house until 1906, when he passed away in his sleep at the age of eight-seven. His wife had died five years before that. He had no children and since he left no will, the house was sold at auction, with the proceeds going to the state of Illinois.
Mara looked up the list of all people who had lived in the house since. Mara thought that Al Capone might be on the list, since his name and Mr. Carter’s name had both been in her dreams. Al Capone was not on the list, but Mara wrote down the names of the people who had lived in the house between 1906 until Reverend and Mrs. Long purchased the home. Mara entered each name on the internet to see if anything of significance showed up. The only thing she found was that one owner; Johnny Biagi, who lived in the house in the late 1920’s and early 1930’s, was an accountant for Al Capone. Now, Mara knew why Al Capone’s name had been in her dream.
The next morning, Mara and her parents attended a beautiful worship service at St. Christopher’s. Afterwards, while Mara’s parents were drinking coffee and visiting with the other adults, Mara joined the teenagers in Sunday school.
Kelly introduced Mara to the rest of the class. After Mara felt a little more comfortable around the other teens, she asked them how they felt about Reverend Long and the work that he did in the church and the community. They all had something nice to say about him as well as his wife. They told Mara all of the ways that Reverend and Mrs. Long had personally reached out to them and so many others as well.
“He really cares about us like we were his own kids,” said Kelly. “I was eleven when I was paralyzed in an automobile accident. I thought that my life was over. It was Reverend Long that helped me to pray to God, asking him to help me focus on my abilities, rather than my disabilities. Now, I tutor middle school students who are struggling. I also help coach the girls’ basketball team in the middle school. Reverend Long has taught me that my wheel chair only limits me if I allow it to.”
“I have been blind since birth,” said Gary. “When my parents realized I was blind, they abandoned me here at this church. Reverend Long knew a family at the church who could not have children of their own and he suggested that they adopt me. Once they laid eyes on me, they fell in love with me at once. You see, I was a very cute baby. And, as you can see, I am still very cute.”
Everybody laughed, including Mara. Then Gary continued with his story. “When I was six years old, Reverend Long found me playing the organ keys and saw how much I enjoyed it. He found a music teacher who could teach me to play the piano. He even bought me some sheet music written in Braille. He let me use the church organ whenever I wanted to. I kept practicing, and as I got better. I became more confident in my everyday life. You see Mara; I am really a shy guy.”
“Yeah, right!” shouted Kelly. This got more laughs from the rest of the class.
After hearing several more testimonials, Mara felt very confused. “Reverend Long doesn’t think that he is making a difference in this church or in this neighborhood,” said Mara. “He is contemplating retirement.”
When the class heard this, they became quite upset. “Reverend and Mrs. Long coming to this church is the best thing that ever happened to this neighborhood,” said one teenager. “We cannot let them leave” said another teen.
Mara suggested that they contact as many people who had attended the church as a teenager or young adult, and have them meet at the church on Tuesday evening. “I’ll make sure that Reverend and Mrs. Long attend the meeting as well” said Mara. “In the meantime, I have to find away to pay for the repairs that this church desperately needs, as well as funding to keep the youth services going.”
After class was over, Mara asked Gary and Kelly to stay behind, so that she could talk to them in private. When they were alone, Kelly asked; “Are you by any chance, the same ‘Mara’ who has solved mysteries all around the country?”
“Yes, I am” replied Mara. “But, please try to keep it between us, as I’d rather not have others know.”Then, Mara told Gary and Kelly, that since they knew who she was, maybe they could help her solve a mystery in their own community. Kelly and Gary were more than willing to help Mara.
Mara took out her notebook and began reading the clues aloud. Mara had not looked at the clues from her vision, since she first wrote them down. Now, she realized that Gary and Kelly were two of the clues. When Kelly heard Mara say the words coins and vault, she suggested that there were old coins buried in the basement of the church.
Mara asked Gary and Kelly if there were any Indian tribes in the area that may have built long houses long ago.
“The only long house that I know, is the house that Reverend and Mrs. Long live in,” said Gary. Mara told them that she was thinking the same thing, but she wanted to think of all possibilities.
When their parents arrived to take them home, Mara asked Gary and Kelly if they could meet her and her parents at Reverend Long’s house that afternoon. Their parents agreed to drive them to the house.
On the way to the hotel, Mara told her parents about her Sunday school experience. She asked them if they would drive her to Reverend Long’s house that afternoon. Her parents agreed. By this time, Mara’s parents realized that they would be in Chicago for a couple more days. They had decided to leave the itinerary of the trip in Mara’s hands, since God had apparently chosen Mara for a reason.
After eating lunch at the hotel, Mara and her parents drove to the home of Reverend and Mrs. Long. When they arrived, they found Kelly and Gary waiting with their parents. When they all got out of their cars, Mara led the way to the front door and rang the doorbell. When Reverend Long opened the door and saw the group of people, he looked surprised, but he invited them all in.
When everyone was seated in the living room, Mara began to explain why they were there. “As I told you on Friday evening, Reverend Long, I had a dream that concerned you and your church. This morning, I remembered that your house was also in my dream. I believe that there is a treasure involving a vault, or coins in this house or on the property. Could I have permission to walk around the house and see if I can sense anything?”
“If you can find treasure, be my guest. The church sure could use the money to make repairs,” said Reverend Long.
Mara began slowly walking from room to room, with a trail of eight adults and two teenagers behind her. As Mara entered each room, she placed her hands on the walls and closed her eyes. By the time Mara had checked the last room, she had sensed nothing out of the ordinary. Yet, she was sure that there was treasure, just waiting to be found.
“Does this house have an attic, or a basement?” asked Mara.
“There’s no attic, but there is a very small basement,” said Mrs. Long. “In fact, it is so small, that we don’t even use it.
“May I please see the basement?” asked Mara. Reverend Long led them to a closed door, opened it and led the group down the stairs. Kelly wanted to go down too, but she could not go down the stairs in a wheel chair, so her dad carried her down and set her in a folding chair that was in the basement.
When Mara first entered the basement, she realized what Mrs. Long meant about the basement being small. It was an unusual shape for a basement. It was approximately sixteen feet long, but only eight feet wide.
Mara felt that something did not seem right. As she scanned the room, she glanced up at the ceiling light fixture. It looked out of place. In most rooms, basements being no exception, ceiling light fixtures were usually located in the center of the ceiling. However, in this case, it was located about a foot away from the back wall. Then, Mara noticed something else. Three of the walls were composed of red brick, but
the back wall was made of plywood. Some shelves had been installed on the back wall for storage.
Mara walked over to the back wall, placed her hand on the wall, and closed her eyes. Slowly, she moved her hands along the wall. When she opened her eyes again, she had a big grin on her face. “It’s behind this wall,” she said. “This basement is actually twice this size. I believe that there is some kind of vault behind this false wall.” She turned to Reverend and Mrs. Long and said, “With your permission, I’d like to prove my theory.”
Reverend Long went upstairs and returned with a hammer and a screwdriver. Within a matter of minutes, Mara and her father had taken down the shelves and Mara was able to pry one sheet of plywood loose. When it was removed, the ceiling light shone into another room that was just as big as the first one. Mara was right. The room had been divided in half by the false wall. Behind the false wall, there were cabinets from floor to ceiling all along the outer walls. All of the cabinets had doors on them, so nobody could see what was in them.
Mara and her father quickly removed the rest of the plywood, and then, they dismantled the two-by-four frame. Mara opened the cabinet closest to her and discovered it contained several bins. Each bin was filled with
Mara Louis; Girl of Mystery Page 39
