The Radio Mystery

by Gertrude Chandler Warner

  Then Henry’s mike went dead! He stood by Violet and Jessie. Now all three shared the same mike. It remained working for the rest of the program.

  At last the show was over.

  “What a disaster!” Frances exclaimed. “What else could have gone wrong? Gwen, what happened with your tapes?”

  Gwen was nearly in tears. “I don’t know! I put them in order right after the run-through.”

  “Somebody obviously went through your box and switched the tape labels,” said Violet. “When could they have done it?”

  “I left the soundstage after arranging my tapes,” Gwen said, “to go to the breakroom for some juice. But I was only gone a minute.”

  “It takes longer than a minute to switch labels,” Violet said.

  “Frances, did you see anyone?” Jessie asked.

  Frances shook her head. “No, but I wasn’t in the room the whole time.”

  Gwen still looked shaken. “If I didn’t know better, I might start to believe in this ghost.”

  Henry was following the trail of microphone cords to the wall sockets. “Violet’s and Jessie’s mikes were only plugged in partway,” he announced. “That was dangerous — they could have shorted.”

  “This ghost,” Gwen said, “means business.”

  They walked out of the soundstage and into the hall.

  “Sorry about today’s show,” Avery apologized to Earl. “We had technical difficulties. But the Aldens still did a great job.”

  Earl looked around. “Is Jocelyn coming today?”

  “Probably,” said Avery.

  Benny noticed a small flashlight hanging from the key chain on Earl’s belt. Was Earl the visitor last night? Did he sneak into the station and loosen the plugs on the microphones? Did he mess up Gwen’s tapes?

  Grandfather and Jocelyn pushed open the lobby door.

  When Earl saw Jocelyn, he asked her, “Are you free now?” Benny watched Earl. He had a funny expression on his face.

  “Sorry,” Jocelyn said to Earl. “Not now. James and I are taking the children out to lunch.”

  Earl left, looking disappointed.

  On the way to the diner, Violet thought about the old photo in the breakroom. “Was that really Earl Biggs in the picture of the football game? It doesn’t look like him.”

  “Yes, that’s Earl,” Jocelyn replied with a laugh. “He had more hair back then.”

  “Earl sure hangs around the station a lot,” Benny said.

  Jocelyn smiled. “He’s an important advertiser — and an important friend.”

  “I think Earl still has a crush on you, Jocelyn,” Violet said cautiously.

  Jocelyn looked surprised. Then she blushed. “You might be right, Violet. Earl has been pressuring me to date him again. I told him I need some time to think about it — I’m not sure I’m ready for that.”

  So that explained the mushy look on Earl’s face, Benny thought. Earl was in love with Jocelyn.

  Benny exchanged glances with his brother and sisters. So that’s what Earl had been asking Jocelyn on the phone!

  After they were seated, Frances came into the diner. “I’m getting my lunch to go,” she told Jocelyn, stopping by their table. “I’m going back to the station to work on the last installment of the show. What better place to write a ghost story than in a haunted station?” She laughed.

  Jessie nudged Henry. “Let’s go back, too,” she whispered, “to look for more clues.”

  Henry nodded. “We’re running out of time. Tomorrow’s our last day on the show.”

  Raindrops dripped off the trees. It had stopped raining, but jagged clouds sailed across the sky.

  The Aldens didn’t tell Gwen they were going back to the station. Jocelyn’s granddaughter went up to her room right after they returned to the house, claiming she had a headache.

  The Aldens walked into the station just as Avery turned off the long record he’d been playing and sat down to announce the day’s news.

  “Let’s check out the soundstage,” Henry suggested. “Maybe we’ll find clues we’ve overlooked.”

  As the Aldens walked into the hallway Benny grabbed Violet’s sleeve.

  “What is it?” she said.

  Benny pointed at the side door. “I hear noises,” he whispered. “Somebody’s out there!”

  Before the Aldens could investigate, Frances St. Clair ran out of the breakroom.

  “My script!” she cried. “It’s been stolen!”

  CHAPTER 8

  Violet’s Big Clue

  “Tell us exactly what happened,” Henry said to Frances.

  “I had just finished writing the script,” Frances said. “I went into the rest room to wash the ink off my fingers. When I came back, the script was gone! I don’t know how this could have happened — Avery and I are the only ones here.”

  “This just happened,” Jessie said. “The thief can’t be far.”

  “The side door!” Benny said. “Remember? I just heard someone out there!”

  “That has to be the thief’s escape route,” Jessie said. “Hurry before he gets away!”

  The Aldens dashed forward. Frances stood where she was, wringing her hands. She seemed too distraught to move.

  Jessie reached the end of the hall first. She unbolted the inside lock and flung open the door.

  Just beyond the doorway, a figure was crouched in the shadows. The person sprang up to run away.

  “Stop!” Henry commanded.

  The figure stepped into the light. It was Gwen Hawley.

  “Gwen!” exclaimed Violet. “What are you doing here?”

  Gwen looked embarrassed. “I came back here to look for clues,” she said.

  “Clues?” asked Jessie.

  Gwen nodded sheepishly. “I want to help Gran by finding the ghost. I thought I could be a detective, too. I even followed you guys to the station last night. That time you saw me in the park, I was following Frances. I thought she might be the thief.

  She’s trying to earn enough money to go to California.”

  The Aldens looked at one another. “Does this mean you didn’t steal tomorrow’s script?” Benny said.

  Gwen looked shocked. “Steal the script? No! I was looking for clues out back.”

  Henry believed her. “Well, did you see anyone out here who might have? Frances says somebody took it just a few minutes ago.”

  “Oh, no!” said Gwen. “No, I didn’t see anyone.”

  “The thief must have used this door,” Henry said, “because we came through the front door. But the door was locked — whoever used it had to have a key.”

  “Earl has a key,” said Gwen. “So does Frances. And Avery.”

  “If Earl Biggs took it, he’s already gotten away,” said Violet. “If it was Frances or Avery, they’re both still here — the script could be hidden in the station, or dropped somewhere out here.”

  Jessie spoke in a near whisper. “If Frances is the thief, she could be hiding the script right now. Maybe that’s why she didn’t follow us outside.”

  Just then, Frances stepped out of the station. “I didn’t see anyone in there,” she said.

  “Let’s look around out here,” Benny said.

  The Aldens, Gwen, and Frances fanned out to search.

  Jessie glanced at the office of the Auto Sales lot. She wondered if Earl Biggs was the ‘ghost’ — he could be making trouble at the station to get Jocelyn’s attention. Maybe he had sneaked in the side door with his key, hidden in the shadows until Frances left the breakroom, then grabbed the script and gone out the side door. Gwen had been outside behind the station, so she wouldn’t have seen him.

  “I don’t think we’re going to find it,” Frances said after they had searched a while. “I’ll just have to write the whole script over.” She sighed. “It’ll take me hours.”

  “We’ll help,” Henry offered. “With all of us working, it won’t take so long.”

  “I can’t write very well,” Benny said. “But I can staple the p
ages together.”

  Frances smiled gratefully. “Thanks, Benny. You five are lifesavers.”

  They sat down at the table in the break-room and got to work. Because Frances had just written the script, she remembered most of it. She told the story while Jessie, Violet, and Henry copied it down. Gwen wrote the sound effects directions.

  It was almost dinnertime before they finished. Avery put on a prerecorded program, changed into his running clothes, and put his work clothes in the closet. “Is everything ready for tomorrow?” he asked as the Aldens walked by the sound booth.

  “Yup,” Henry said. “The final script is great.”

  “Good,” said Avery. He picked up his duffel bag and headed for the door.

  Frances came in with her raincoat over one arm. “I just spoke with Jocelyn. She and Mr. Alden and Earl Biggs are all coming to tomorrow’s broadcast.”

  Avery paused. “If nothing goes wrong with the show, maybe Earl won’t cancel his advertising.”

  “Tomorrow’s show must go right,” Violet said.

  Frances opened the lobby door. “Avery, do you need a ride?”

  “No, thanks,” he said. “I’m going running as always.”

  Frances turned to the Aldens and Gwen. “Jocelyn asked me to tell you you’ll be eating dinner late tonight. She suggested that you stop by the diner for a snack.”

  “Sounds good to me,” Benny said. “I ate ages ago.”

  Henry grinned. “It wasn’t that long ago. But I could go for some ice cream.”

  They followed Frances outside and said good-bye as she climbed into her rusty old car. “When I’m rich and famous in Hollywood,” she declared, “I’ll buy a brand-new car.” She waved and smiled. “See you tomorrow!”

  The diner was nearly empty when the children walked in.

  DeeDee motioned them over to a large booth and signaled that she would be with them in a minute.

  “Time is running out. We only have one day to solve this mystery,” Henry reminded the others.

  “None of our suspects has a strong motive,” Violet said. “We’ve ruled out Gwen. Yes, you were a suspect until tonight.”

  “That leaves Frances, Avery, and Earl,” said Jessie. “I think Frances is the most suspicious. She wants to write a movie script, and she could be playing the ghost to help her with her story.”

  “But she seems to like the kids’ show she’s writing,” Henry pointed out. “Why would she sabotage it?”

  “Frances and Avery are both key suspects,” Violet said. “They both have keys to the station and they’re around every day. Either one of them could be stealing stuff to sell for the money.”

  “But then they’d be out of a job,” Henry pointed out. “That doesn’t make sense.”

  “That leaves Earl,” said Gwen. “He keeps telling Gran he’s going to cancel his account.”

  Jessie had been thinking. “I don’t believe he will,” she said, “or he would have done it by now. I think Earl says that to get your grandmother’s attention. Remember, he really likes her.”

  “Jessie’s right,” Violet put in. “Earl keeps coming into the station to try to talk to her. I think he just uses his advertisements as an excuse to be there.”

  “Boy,” said Gwen admiringly. “You guys are good.”

  An idea slowly formed in Violet’s mind. “You know,” she said, “maybe we should think more about the old mystery.”

  Benny frowned. “What old mystery?”

  “The one about Daphne Owens,” Jessie said. “She’s supposed to be the ghost. What really happened to her? She didn’t vanish into thin air.”

  “If she moved to another town, maybe we can find her — you know, by looking in phone books or something,” Gwen said, pulling napkins from the dispenser.

  “She’d be hard to find,” Henry put in. “She might have gotten married and changed her last name.”

  “She could be anywhere,” Benny said glumly.

  DeeDee came over with her order pad. She wore pink and yellow ribbons in a bow at her neck. “What would you like tonight?”

  “Your ribbons are pretty,” Gwen complimented.

  DeeDee touched the bow. “Thank you. I’ve been wearing ribbons every day since I was your age. My hair was long then, like yours. I always wore it in a ponytail tied with a ribbon. After I left my hometown and got married, I cut my hair. But I still wear ribbons.”

  As Violet listened to DeeDee, she thought about the other person in Deer Crossing who always wore a ribbon in her ponytail — the girl in the photographs at the station: Daphne Owens. She remembered the talent scout remark DeeDee had made. Who else was so interested in talent scouts? It can’t be, Violet thought. But somehow it made sense.

  “DeeDee!” she exclaimed. “You’re Daphne Owens!”

  The others looked at Violet in surprise.

  DeeDee nearly dropped her pad and pencil. “What did you say?”

  “I said, you’re Daphne Owens,” said Violet. “You’ve changed your name. But it’s you.”

  “Well, I’ll be —” DeeDee gave her bark of a laugh. “I never thought anybody would figure it out. Too bad. It was such fun, working in the radio station again with everyone thinking I was a ghost. My little joke.”

  “So is Rhoads your married name?” Gwen asked.

  “Yes,” DeeDee said. “And DeeDee is a nickname. After my husband died, I moved back to Deer Crossing. But since nobody remembered me, I didn’t tell them who I really was. I like having secrets.”

  “Why did you leave Deer Crossing in the first place?” Henry wanted to know. “Was it really because of the talent scout?”

  “Yes. I was so embarrassed,” said DeeDee. “I had bragged to everyone about how I was going to be a star. And then the show was a disaster! I had made a fool of myself. How could I face my friends?”

  “So you left town that day,” Jessie said.

  DeeDee nodded. “I only meant to go away for a little while — I thought I would come back to Deer Crossing once my embarrassment died down. But then I met Harold Rhoads. We fell in love and were married.” DeeDee smiled. “He called me DeeDee. I kept the name, even after I moved back here.”

  Benny had the most important question. He looked at the waitress and asked boldly, “Are you haunting the radio station?”

  CHAPTER 9

  A Simple Solution

  “Do you believe I’m the ghost of WCXZ?” DeeDee asked him.

  Benny frowned. “Ghosts aren’t real. But somebody is stealing stuff from the radio station.”

  Henry spoke up. “DeeDee, I think you like having people believe the ghost of Daphne Owens is haunting the station. In a way, it’s like you’re the star you always wanted to be.”

  “You’re very smart,” DeeDee said. “And you’re right, Henry. I do like the attention.

  I guess that’s why I kept saying Daphne’s ghost was back. I like it that people here remember me.”

  “But you’re not the one causing the trouble at the station,” Jessie stated.

  DeeDee shook her head. “I’ve never stolen anything in my life. And I never dreamed I would cause the whole cast to quit. I guess I just got carried away. I really like doing the radio show. I hope I can go back.”

  “Then why don’t you tell my grandmother?” Gwen said. “And talk to the others here at the diner so they’ll come back, too. If the show goes off the air, my grandmother will be crushed.”

  “The station may not be haunted, but spooky things are happening,” said DeeDee. “Until the real ‘ghost’ is caught, the cast won’t come back, no matter what I tell them.”

  “We’ll find the ghost,” Violet said.

  As they gathered their things, Jessie mused, “It seems like everyone wants to be a star. Frances wants to be a famous movie writer. DeeDee — Daphne — wanted to be a famous radio actress.”

  Gwen smiled sheepishly. “And I wanted to be a famous detective — or, at least, to figure out this mystery.”

  “Let’s go over the
facts again,” said Henry. “We know that the ghost must be someone who knows the station well. He knows where to find the light switches and fuse box and exactly what to take.”

  “Right,” said Jessie. “And it’s probably someone who is around the station a lot anyway — if it were an outsider, like DeeDee, how would she get in and out without anyone seeing her?”

  “But if it’s an insider, like Avery or Frances, how is the ‘ghost’ getting the stolen stuff out?” said Violet.

  Gwen was looking out the window. “There goes Avery on his evening run,” she said. “I wonder why he’s carrying that duffel bag.”

  “Gwen!” Jessie exclaimed. “That’s it!”

  “What’s it?” said Benny

  “The solution to the mystery,” Jessie said.

  “We keep thinking the thief leaves the station, like when we were looking for Frances’s script. What if he comes and goes, carrying something we see every day?”

  “Of course!” said Gwen, smiling. “The duffel bag! That must be it.”

  Henry was smiling, too. “It’s just like your best sound effects, Gwen — very simple.”

  As they walked home from the diner, the Aldens and Gwen figured out a plan to catch the ghost.

  The next day, Grandfather and Jocelyn drove the kids to the station. On the way, they stopped at the diner to pick up a dozen doughnuts. “To celebrate the final episode,” Jocelyn said.

  When they reached the station, Earl Biggs was already inside, pacing back and forth in the lobby.

  “I’m glad you made it,” Jocelyn said to him.

  Earl held open the door for them. “I was glad to come.”

  The Aldens and Gwen went into the breakroom.

  “I am so nervous,” Frances said, handing out the scripts. “I never thought I’d be so nervous about a kiddie show. But this has turned out to be one of the best stories I’ve ever written. The final episode has to go perfectly today!”

  “It will,” Jessie reassured her.

  Avery walked into the breakroom. “You guys brought doughnuts, too.”

  “You can have one if you want.” Benny selected one with chocolate icing.

  “No, thanks. I brought my own, as usual.” Avery rinsed his coffee mug.