The Niagara Falls Mystery

by Gertrude Chandler Warner

  The Aldens hardly breathed. They wanted to hear every word.

  “I don’t want to sell it,” the man said. “I just want to know how much it’s worth. In the hundreds or the thousands?”

  The store clerked cleared his throat. “I have no idea of its value. I’ve only been working here for a couple of weeks. As for the other items you asked about, you’ll have to come back when Mrs. Fustworth is here. She does all the buying and selling. Is there anything in the store I can help you with?”

  The man didn’t answer. The next thing the Aldens heard was the front door slam.

  “Come on, let’s go!” Jessie said, halfway out the door. “We have to find out why that man was asking about the guest book.”

  Up ahead, the Aldens saw a tall blond man dash across the street to a bus stop. He seemed to be in a hurry, and when a bus pulled up, he climbed aboard.

  “Hurry! I’m pretty sure that’s the man we’ve been seeing,” Henry said. “Let’s get on that bus.” Henry stopped suddenly. “The walk light just turned red,” he said, disappointed.

  The Aldens were stuck on the other side of the street. Finally the walk light flashed again. Looking both ways, Jessie took Violet’s hand, and Henry took Benny’s.

  “Now!” Henry raced to catch the bus across the street.

  The children were out of breath when they reached the stop — just in time to see the bus pull away.

  “We missed it,” Jessie said. “Here comes another one. Maybe it’ll catch up to the one that man is on.”

  After Jessie bought four passes, she and the other children took the seats right in front. They were going to keep an eye on the bus in front of them no matter what.

  “You kids headed for the Aero Car?” the driver asked the Aldens. “It’s quite a ride on a clear day like this.”

  “Um … we’re not sure yet,” Henry answered. “Is that where this bus is going?”

  “Oakes Garden, Great Gorge Adventure, Whirlpool Rapids, the power plant. You name it, I go there.”

  As they traveled along the Niagara River Parkway, the Aldens held on to the safety bars of the bus. The other passengers looked this way and that at all the tourist spots along the route, but the Aldens never took their eyes off the bus ahead of them.

  “Okay, let’s get off!” Henry said when he saw the tall blond man step off the bus in front of them.

  “Thanks for the ride,” Violet said to the driver.

  After the bus pulled away, the Aldens looked around. The whirling rapids of the Niagara River were far below.

  “Is that man getting on the Aero Car?” Jessie asked.

  Henry stood on his toes to see above the crowds of people. “I think so. Let’s get in line. We shouldn’t be too far behind him since we already have our tickets.”

  “Hooray!” Benny said, though he made sure to take hold of Henry’s hand. That Aero Car was awfully high above the water. The cable it traveled on was awfully skinny.

  “It looks like the water is in a big mixing bowl down there,” Jessie said. “Are you sure you want to take the cable car ride, Benny? We can wait here while Violet and Henry go on it.”

  “No way!” Benny answered. “I want to go, too.”

  The shiny red Aero Car was parked on a landing platform overlooking the gorge. The cable that would carry the car stretched above Whirlpool Rapids. The children saw the tall blond man in line ahead of them.

  “The Aero Car is a lot like the cable cars we rode on in San Francisco, only the wheels are on top instead of on the bottom,” Jessie explained to the younger children. “The cable slowly goes around a big spool. The wheels on top carry the cable car across the gorge.”

  “All aboard,” a guide called out. “Whoa, stop right there,” he said to the Aldens. “I have to do a head count. We’re only allowed to let a certain number of people onboard.”

  The man counted the passengers already on the cable car.

  Benny tugged at Jessie’s sleeve. “Do you think we’ll fit?”

  “Okay,” the guide said. “We can take four more. Go ahead.”

  After the door closed, the Aldens sat down in the last few seats. The tall man was on the other side, facing the opposite direction. The cable engine began to hum. The car glided slowly from the platform and over the raging water.

  The Aldens didn’t look at the water or even notice how high up they were. All they cared about was talking to the strange man. Did he know anything about the Prince of Wales guest book? The Aldens meant to find out.

  They peeked at the man as often as they could without attracting attention.

  “I can’t really see him,” Benny whispered. “He’s facing the other way.”

  “Just enjoy the ride,” Jessie said. “It’s really amazing way up here. We’ll try to talk to him when we get off.”

  Benny wriggled in his seat. He just had to get a closer look at the man. There was one empty spot on the other side.

  “Is it okay to change seats?” Benny asked the guide.

  The man smiled at Benny. “Just as long as you don’t rock the cable car or jump up and down.”

  Smooth as could be, Benny moved from his seat to the other side of the cable car. He heard Whirlpool Rapids swirling below. He tried not to look down, but he couldn’t help it.

  “Wow!” He took a deep breath when he saw the churning water.

  Something else got Benny’s attention, and it wasn’t the rapids. On the steep hill across the gorge, Benny saw something move. His feet froze in place.

  “Benny?” Jessie called when she came over. “Are you dizzy? Come sit down again.”

  Benny started to speak, but his throat was dry.

  “What is it?” Jessie asked.

  Benny pointed to the cliff below. “Look,” he said, “there’s somebody down there. Doesn’t it look just like …”

  “Angus!” Jessie said. “He’s climbing up that hill over there. Wait, I’ve got my binoculars in my backpack.”

  Jessie returned to her seat. She took out her binoculars. “It is Angus! Look.” She handed the binoculars to Henry.

  “It sure looks like him,” Henry said when he spotted the bearded man making his way uphill.

  The children shared the binoculars. What was Angus doing near Whirlpool Rapids?

  By this time the Aero Car was on its way back to the landing platform. The ride was nearly over.

  “Let’s get off first,” Jessie said. “I don’t like to push ahead, but we have to find Angus.

  The Aero Car glided to a stop. The Aldens looked for the tall blond man among the other passengers.

  “Should we split up?” Henry asked Jessie. “You could talk to that man while I search for Angus.”

  Jessie shook her head. “No, let’s all go. Finding Angus is more important. Let’s look for him across the gorge.”

  Violet squeezed Jessie’s hand. “I’m glad we’re going to find Angus. I know he has a good reason for disappearing.”

  CHAPTER 9

  A Ride Through the Mist

  The children looked across the deep gorge of Whirlpool Rapids. Now that they were back on the ground, the hill where they had seen Angus looked very far away.

  “How will we get over there?” Violet asked. “Angus might be gone.”

  Jessie flipped through her guidebook. “It looks as if we can take a bus. One route loops around to the other side of the gorge. I hope it doesn’t take too long.”

  But the ride did take too long. By the time the children boarded one of the buses, ten minutes had passed. Ten more minutes passed while the bus moved slowly along the Niagara River Parkway.

  “Finally,” Henry said when the driver called out the stop. “I hope Angus is still over here.”

  The children ran to the viewing area at the top of the hill.

  “Okay,” Jessie said. “Here’s where the Aero Car turned back. That means we’re at the top of the hill where we saw Angus. I wonder if there’s a path. The hill is pretty steep.”

  The
children looked down the cliff. There wasn’t a path in sight. Before they could explore any more, the Aldens noticed a park guard nearby.

  “Let’s ask him,” Henry suggested. “Maybe there’s a hiking trail to the bottom. After all, Angus got down there somehow.”

  The guard spotted the Aldens. He didn’t look too pleased when he saw the four of them so close to the cliff. “Come away from there,” he yelled out. “Stay behind this fence. There’s loose rock.”

  “Sorry,” Jessie yelled out. “Is there a path to the bottom of this hill? We’re looking for somebody.”

  The guard raced right over. “Why? Did someone fall? I’ll call headquarters. Give me the details.”

  Jessie shook her head. “No. No one fell. While we were riding the Aero Car, we saw a person we know climbing this hill. So we came back here to look for him.”

  “Impossible!” the man said. “No hikers are allowed beyond this fence. You can’t climb this hill. There are no paths. No one goes down there. It’s too dangerous.”

  Benny could hardly stand still. He had seen Angus with his own eyes. “But our friend Angus was down there. I saw him. We have to find him right away.”

  The guard rubbed his chin. “You don’t mean Angus Drummond?”

  Violet’s face lit up. “You saw him, too? Tell us where.”

  “I haven’t seen Angus since the police were searching for him a couple days ago. It seems he may have stolen an old book or something,” the guard said. “He used to have an old fishing shack down by the river. The park service made him tear it down, I think. Anyway, Angus couldn’t get up and down these steep hills too easily.”

  Benny was practically jumping up and down now. “Yes, he could! He’s like a mountain goat.”

  The man smiled. “Well, I could almost believe it. Anyway, Angus isn’t here.”

  It was no use. The park guard wasn’t going to let the four Aldens past that fence. If Angus was down by the river, nobody would know it.

  “Too bad,” Jessie said, while they waited for the next bus. “We lost the tall man. Now we can’t find Angus.”

  Benny kicked at a pebble on the ground. “What do we do now that our adventure is over?”

  “Who says it’s over?” Henry pulled out his map. “Let’s do what we set out to do in the first place. We’ll go on the Maid of the Mist boat. The bus stops right there.”

  “Hey, it’s the foursome,” the bus driver said when the Aldens boarded another bus. “Don’t tell me you kids have been riding around on the buses all morning. Why, there are dozens of other things to do in Niagara Falls, you know.”

  “We know,” Benny answered. “We’re going on the Maid of the Mist.”

  The bus driver smiled. “Well, you’ll enjoy it. Now tell me. Did you folks ride the Spanish Aero Car?”

  Benny couldn’t wait to tell about his ride. “We sure did. And know what? When it got near the other side of the gorge, guess what?”

  “What?” the driver asked.

  “We saw our friend Angus Drummond climbing the big hill,” Benny told the driver. “But the guard wouldn’t let us go find him. It’s too steep.”

  “You saw Angus Drummond?” the bus driver asked Benny.

  “You know who he is?” Jessie asked. “Have you seen him?”

  “Not today, but I saw him a few days ago,” the driver said. “It wouldn’t surprise me if he’s down in that fishing shack of his somewhere. He moved it into the backwoods after the park service told him to take it down. Too close to the river, they said. If I see Angus, I’ll let him know you’re looking for him.”

  “Did you see a tall blond man?” Benny asked. “He was on that other bus.”

  “Hmmm,” the bus driver said. “I get more than one or two tall blond men on my buses. I can’t help you there. Okay, now, here’s where you get off for the Maid of the Mist.”

  Soon the Aldens were in line for the blue raincoats all the Maid of the Mist passengers wore so they wouldn’t get too wet.

  “How do I look?” Benny asked when he posed for Jessie’s camera a few minutes later.

  “Look behind you!” Jessie lowered her camera and pointed behind Benny.

  The other children whirled around. Just a few feet away stood the tall blond man from the antique shop. Like the Aldens, the man had on a blue raincoat.

  The Aldens forgot all about their picture taking. They ran after the man and joined the same line of people boarding the Maid of the Mist.

  “Sorry, full boat,” the ticket taker told the Aldens.

  Henry was quick. “We got separated from somebody. Can you let us on? Our friend, Will Lasalle, works on these boats.”

  Will’s name worked like a charm. The ticket taker opened the gate and let on all four children. “All right. Just you four. Will’s working in the engine room this shift. You’ll see him somewhere on the boat, no doubt.”

  “Whew. We made it,” Violet said, pulling on her hood. “I can already feel the mist from the falls.”

  The Maid of the Mist chugged toward Horseshoe Falls. The Aldens followed all the other tourists onto the deck. They wanted to get as close as they could to the roaring falls. They wanted to hear the roar. They wanted to get wet!

  The children were not disappointed. Niagara Falls was closer, louder, and wetter than they had hoped.

  “It’s a good thing we have these raincoats!” Benny yelled. Nobody heard him over the roar of the crashing waters.

  Finally the sturdy vessel turned away from the falls and headed back to shore.

  “It’s hard to find that man in this crowd of blue raincoat people,” Henry said. “Let’s go inside. Maybe we can find Will.”

  The children didn’t take long to spot Will Lasalle.

  “Will!” Henry shouted when they passed the engine room.

  “Look!” Jessie said. “Will is in there with the man we were following.”

  Will didn’t see or hear the Aldens. Their raincoats made them look like all the other tourists. The loud hum of the boat’s engines and the waterfalls churning in the background drowned out everyone’s voices. But the Aldens didn’t need to hear Will to understand what was going on. They could see that Will and the tall man were arguing. In a few minutes, when the boat engines quieted down, they heard the young men’s voices, too.

  “I told you not to come here when I’m working,” the children heard Will say. “I’ve got work to do on this boat. I can’t have you coming here or snooping around the shop when I’m so busy. Granddad already made up his mind. You had your chance to run the shop, Michel.”

  The children looked at each other. Where had they heard that name?

  “Will is so upset,” Violet said. “I wonder why that man is bothering him.”

  “I know. Michel is Will’s cousin,” Jessie said. “He mentioned his cousin Michel to Grandfather. They’re in some of those old photos Grandfather showed us. Remember?”

  Henry smiled. “Right! Will was the dark-haired cousin and Michel the light-haired one.”

  “But why are they fighting if they’re cousins?” Violet asked.

  “Let’s find out what this is all about,” Jessie whispered when Will’s and Michel’s voices grew even louder.

  “I’m telling you, I didn’t take the guest book,” Michel Lasalle said. “Maybe Angus Drummond took it. And what about those people you hired instead of me? Complete strangers. How do you know they didn’t steal Granddad’s guest book?”

  “You had the keys,” Will said. “And you admit you put those fliers on the cars to make everybody think Granddad’s shop was closing. And taking away all the brochures we need to advertise the shop. You did all that. Why should I believe you didn’t steal the guest book to make me look careless?”

  The Aldens heard nothing but the humming engines for a few seconds.

  “I’m sorry, Will,” Michel Lasalle said. “I just thought if it looked like you weren’t doing a good job, Granddad would hire me back. He doesn’t think much of me. But you … he’d r
ather have you part-time than me full-time. I wanted to make you look bad.”

  “Thanks a lot! You did a good job of it,” the Aldens heard Will say before they heard a door slam.

  “Hey! What are you kids doing here?” Will asked when he and Michel came out of the engine room. “I didn’t know you were on the boat. I wish I could talk or give you a tour, but I’m too —”

  “Upset,” Henry said, finishing Will’s sentence. “We overheard you and your cousin talking. We’ve been following him around Niagara Falls today. We’ve thought he was up to no good since the first day we got here.”

  Michel Lasalle interrupted, “Why have you been following me? Why is my business any of your business?” he asked the Aldens.

  “Because we believe you took the Prince of Wales guest book, that’s why. We heard you ask the man in the antiques store what it was worth,” Jessie said, not at all afraid to speak her mind.

  Everyone stared at Michel Lasalle. No one spoke for the longest time.

  Will spoke to his cousin in a quiet voice. “Did you try to sell the guest book, Michel? You’ve got to tell me.”

  “No,” Michel answered. “I promise you, Will, I was just trying to learn more about Granddad’s collection. I don’t have the guest book.”

  Will stared at the Aldens, then at Michel. In a low voice, full of hurt, he spoke to his cousin. “Then who does?”

  CHAPTER 10

  Yours Till Niagara Falls

  By the time the Aldens left the docks, Will and Michel Lasalle had calmed down. The children decided to head back to the bungalow.

  This time there were no flashing lights or police cars when they turned onto Waterfall Street. Crowds of tourists filled the streets. People went in and out of the restaurants and shops. But on this busy weekend, Lasalle’s Curiosity Shop was still closed.