What Emma Left Behind

by Anne Spackman

  * * * * *

  "Hurry up, Caera! The guests'll be arriving any minute now!" Claudia and Ana called from the hallway. Caera pulled on the long, elegant white gloves that she and Ana had found while rummaging in the closet and quickly hurried out of her room. Stopping at the stairway, she paused dramatically before slowly descending, her hands just itching for a feathered fan.

  Just then the doorbell rang. Caera hurried down the rest of the way and stood beside Ana and Claudia while Mr. and Mrs. Campbell went to get the door. A minute later, the Robinsons came into the living room where Caera, Ana, and Claudia had gone to sit down (as well as they could) on the sofa.

  "Oh, it's just your family, Ana." Caera whispered as all three girls relaxed. It was still a few minutes until seven, the time when the party officially began. Most of the furniture in the living room had been moved back to clear space for people to dance, although Caera felt she would need the whole room for herself just to turn around. Yup, she decided, old dresses were definitely not designed for mobility. The dress was even uncomfortable.

  Why hadn't that surprised her? she wondered, then remembered that she had worn one as Emma in her dreams.

  Mr. Campbell had chosen to be Peter Pan this year, (someone near and dear to his heart), and his costume looked good, even though it was strange for everyone to see him wearing green tights. Mrs. Campbell had decided to be the Sugar Plum Fairy, and she sparkled in a frosty white costume and silvery tights. Caera actually thought she looked more like Tinkerbell and wished she'd opted to be, since her father was Peter Pan.

  As for Mrs. Robinson, she appeared as a giant size Alice while her husband, dressed in the costume of the March Hare, hopped along after her.

  But Caera liked Jason's costume the most. She thought coming as a pirate was really dynamic! The leather outfit was as black as a pirate's heart was rumored to be. The blousy white shirt with long sleeves wasn't bad either, Caera thought.

  When the Robinsons arrived, Jason remarked that Ana didn't look like the sister he knew and loved? (which was as close to a compliment as he could give her), while to Caera and Claudia he merely said, "You guys look... nice."

  Actually, Jason was having difficulty with the fact that his sister and her little friends didn't look so little anymore, (Caera supposed it was because it made him feel old), so while his mother fawned over "how lovely the material was" and "how much she always wanted to wear dresses like these", he made his way over to the punch table, poured himself a glass, and took a few slices of cherry cake.

  At that moment, the doorbell rang again, just as the clock in the living room chimed seven. Mr. and Mrs. Campbell and Caera went to the door to greet those who had arrived--a party of ten or twelve people, at the head of which were the four Summits, ( Caera was surprised they hadn't made it there before the Robinsons) and introductions were in order since the Campbells had never met Mr. and Mrs. Summit.

  Mrs. Campbell could have sworn that she was shaking hands with the real Lois Lane--somehow Mrs. Summit's camera hung so naturally around her neck, but Mr. Summit looked a bit ridiculous as a major league baseball player. Behind his parents, Christopher was wearing a native American Indian costume with leggings, moccasins, and a vest.

  Somehow, Marie had gotten hold of a spectacular Cleopatra outfit that Caera was particularly jealous of. Marie even had a black wig and an Egyptian headdress.

  The other people wore the usual gamut of witches, pumpkins, black cats, animals, vampires, and super-hero costumes. And once these guests were welcomed, everyone headed to the living room, the dining room, or the den, and a low buzz of conversation was soon audible.

  As Christopher Summit turned around and asked Caera whether or not anyone else had already arrived, she was forced to re-appraise him. She definitely had not been paying attention when he came in, she decided. He was definitely a looker, and though he was too old for her, looking didn't hurt!

  "Nope, just the Robinsons. Y ou guys are the first to get here." Caera said casually as they all came into the living room. As if noticing for the first time, Chris said,

  "Wow, Caera, that dress looks really good."

  "Really?" Now don't go blowing it by putting your foot in your mouth, Caera! she told herself.

  Chris talked a while and then left to get some punch. As Caera looked around the room, she noticed Marie heading toward the punch table where Jason was helping himself to the divinity and fudge, and she edged closer to hear them.

  "Hello." Marie was saying as she gave him a winsome smile. Caera giggled and pitied the prey before going over to where Claudia and Ana were signaling her to come.

  Ten minutes later, as the doorbell rang again, Caera seemed to remember that her parents were in the den serving champagne to the older guests, so the three girls went to answer the door. When they opened it, Mrs. and Mr. Miles paraded past, or rather, Marilyn Monroe and Joe Dimaggio. (Caera wondered why she had imagined that they were coming as Marie Antoinette and Louis the Fourteenth.)

  Behind them were Emily and Erica, the latter of which looked like a picture-perfect Snow White. Emily Miles was dressed as Sleeping Beauty (at least, Caera thought that was who she intended to be), wearing a blue ballgown that looked too big for her. (It had probably either previously been her mother's or Erica's). Her hair was in ringlets with a tiara holding it behind her ears, which somehow, Caera thought, made her look more like Goldilocks.

  Emily's eyes narrowed in acute jealousy as she came in and saw Ana and the twins' costumes. As they had guessed, Emily had been hoping that her own costume would be the best. Emily said nothing as Erica exclaimed,

  "Wow, your costumes are really great! Where did you get them? They look so real!"

  "They are," said Claudia. "We just had them restored."

  "That's great," Erica said, but she was soon swept along by the current of newcomers.

  A minute later, just when Caera was about to close the door, Mr. and Mrs. Stuart came in; Mr. Stuart was dressed as Elvis Presley and his wife wore a black bouffant wig in imitation of Priscilla Presley. George followed, miserable in a Count Dracula costume which Caera was sure he had worn for Halloween, and behind him David dashed forward rakishly. Caera wasn't sure who he was supposed to be in his Renaissance costume, sword, tights, and all, but she figured with his disposition he must have been dressed up as Romeo.

  "Oh look, Ana! Here comes Todd Miller!" Claudia exclaimed as she peered at the end of the line near the door. Mr. and Mrs. Miller were approaching on the front pathway, wearing Tweedle Dum and Tweedle Dee outfits. Todd was supposed to be Prince John, Claudia noticed, if Alex and Andrew (who followed close behind) provided any clues. Alex was none other than Robin Hood, complete with hat, bow and arrow, and green tights! (Claudia thought that he and her father might have an interesting conversation.) Behind, Andrew seemed uncomfortable as the Sheriff of Nottingham. Although the girls had no way of knowing it, Alex and Andrew had been fighting all afternoon over who got to be Robin Hood, but in the end, the dispute had been settled by a coin.

  As Alex, Andrew, and Todd came in, they all immediately noticed the girls' costumes, which was nothing new to the girls by this point. Todd managed to say,

  "Wow, Ana! Great threads! Uh, I mean, it looks really nice... Um, excuse me," before fleeing to the safety of the living room, throwing over his shoulder at the last minute,

  "See you guys."

  Andrew's mouth had been open, for a put-down no doubt, but all he said was, "Yeah, pretty cool duds. " Alex just stood staring at Claudia, unable to fathom out the reasons why he had suddenly become so uncomfortable.

  As yet more people came in, the Davenports continued downstream. Coming upstream through the door were a few adventurous souls garbed in original outfits. Michael Goodman was a wizard, possibly Merlin, and he wore a fake beard and a star-studded silver and purple robe, while Brian Goodman (Caera wasn't sure if they were cousins or what) looked absolutely demonic in his red Devil costume. R
eally good for a Christmas Party, Caera thought, laughing at his nerve and audacity.

  Justin Porter fit the occasion better in his elf costume, complete with hat, bag of toys, and green tights! (Caera wondered if green tights were going to be the theme for this year's party. Was the Green Lantern to be next?) Justin's sister Amy, only ten months younger than him and also in the seventh grade, was leaning on him, the reason being soon made clear. Amy had come as Cinderella, and after Justin broke away from her, she hobbled around for a while, probably only wearing one glass slipper.

  Jessica Ford was behind Amy as Little Red Riding Hood, a wicker basket hanging from her hand. Jessica had expressed a regard for Mrs. Campbell's brownies and cherry cake the year before, Caera remembered, eyeing the basket suspiciously as Jessica sprang past.

  Five minutes later, it appeared as if all of the guests had arrived, including the twins' parents' friends, some of which Caera and Claudia didn't know, so Claudia, Ana, and Caera headed back to the living room where the dance music was just starting up. In a corner of the room, Emily and Marie sat together, watching Jason Robinson as he tried to ignore them. On seeing his sister come in, he leaped up and asked her to dance, whispering in her ear that she'd better do it or else, and she said goodbye to the twins.

  Emily and Marie watched, scowling as Jason and Ana whirled past, and considering the expressions on their faces, Caera was surprised when Brian asked Emily and Justin asked Marie to dance. Both of them shrugged and looked at each other and then accepted, and soon nearly all of the assembled company was swaying to the beat.

  Caera was getting restless (after all, there was only Claudia left to talk to), and she went over to the punch table to refill her glass; as Caera turned around, she bumped into Christopher Summit, who had just re-entered the living room. Luckily, she managed not to spill any punch on him, but she did manage to bowl him over with her hoop skirt.

  Caera helped him up, apologizing profusely, but Chris didn't seem to mind, and after looking around he said, "Hey, ya wanna dance?"

  "Uh, I guess so." Caera tried not to sound too thrilled and smiled demeurely.

  At the other end of the room, Claudia hoped her sister wouldn't embarrass herself as Caera and Chris moved onto the dance floor, noticing Andrew following them with his eyes. When the dance ended, Claudia saw Jason Robinson approaching her.

  "Claudia, y'wanna dance?" Jason grinned, and if Claudia hadn't known Jason as well as she did, she might've even been flattered. All she said though was,

  "Sure. I got nothin' better to do with my time." Jason mocked a hurt expression, while behind him, Ana was looking anxious and broke in gloomily,

  "Todd hasn't asked me to dance, Claudia. I really don't even know if he likes me in the slightest, but—"

  "Why don't you just ask him, then? He's probably too embarrassed."

  "You think so?"

  "Sure."

  "Okay, I guess the worst thing that can happen is for him to refuse." As Ana went over to ask Todd Miller to dance, she saw the Davenports sitting by themselves.

  "Whatsamatter, guys?" she asked them.

  "Oh, nothing." Andrew said sarcastically. "We just love sitting around and watching everyone else have a good time."

  "Why didn't you guys dance with Jessica and Amy when they asked you?" Ana hadn't seen Todd come over, but he suddenly appeared beside her.

  "We didn't feel like dancing then."

  "Yeah." Andrew nodded. As Alex and Andrew continued to stare into the crowd, Ana looked at Todd and fidgeted before asking him to dance, a proposition he accepted.

  At about eight o'clock, Mrs. Campbell brought her prize Christmas cake in ceremoniously, and those people who weren't socializing or still dancing began lining up for a piece. Caera and Claudia had switched dancing partners several times but were getting tired, so Ana met them, and all three girls went to get a piece of cake. While they were standing in line, Claudia narrowed her eyes and nudged Caera's elbow.

  "We saw you dancing with Christopher Summit, Caera."

  "Isn't he too tall for you, Caera?" Ana asked.

  "And maybe just a little too old?" Claudia added, grinning.

  "Well, I think he just asked me to dance 'cause he remembered me from the survival trip and felt sorry for me 'cause he'd heard I'd been sick or something."

  "Well, I guess that'd be about the only reason," Claudia smirked, and Caera batted her on the arm, unable to exact thorough revenge in the cumbersome dress she was wearing, but it could wait until later.

  Caera picked up a plate then as the line ended, and she looked for the largest piece of cake, which she lost no time in finding or in putting on her plate. Later, when Ana and Caera were still eating, Claudia sat back in her chair with her hands crossed in her lap. She was getting pretty dozey, but she was soon jolted by someone suddenly jumping in front of her and by a bright flash of light that blinded her at about the same time as she heard the "click" of a camera shutter.

  Blinking, she thought she could make out Marie Summit standing in front of her with her mother's camera. Claudia had seen Marie traveling around the room, taking pictures of various costumes which she would probably publish in the school's newsletter when it was time to go back.

  Marie disappeared, and in a minute or so, Caera and Ana were done with their cake. Corey Richardson, who was dressed as a scarecrow, came over and asked Claudia to dance, while Caera and Ana were asked by Brian Goodman and Justin Porter.

  After three glasses of punch, Caera suddenly began to feel woozy and had to sit down for a while. Brian asked if he could get her something to eat, to which she replied,

  "Why, yes, Charles, I think you may."

  "Huh?" Brian said, shaking his head, and hoped Caera wasn't going crazy until he got to the punch table and spied Brian Anderson spiking the fruit punch with rum. He realized then that Caera had had several glasses and burst out laughing before finding Mr. Campbell and ordering a cup of coffee for her.

  After drinking the coffee and eating some snack sandwiches, Caera felt a little better and got up to tell her mother about what had happened to the punch, on the way spying Jessica Ford secretly slipping three large slices of cherry cake into her basket under the snack table.

  Mrs. Campbell took in the information calmly. She served the punch into glasses (which were distributed to willing persons over the age of twenty-one) and brought out a new batch of punch to refill the bowl. Caera didn't see Brian Anderson with any more alcohol and figured he'd have to make due with what was available.

  One and a half hours later, the party was coming to a close. Some of the younger children were asleep on their feet or on the floor, but for the most part, everyone had separated into groups and were still talking past midnight. Needless to say, the adults and their children seemed to polarize away from each other into different rooms, but finally, at about twelve thirty, those people who lived farther away left for home.

  Mr. and Mrs. Campbell got up and went to the door to wish a Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year to the departing guests, but their daughters remained in the living room, lacking the motivation to dislodge themselves from the sofa.

  Gradually, even those who lived more close by left or expressed intentions to do so. Caera and Claudia said goodbye as Brian Goodman and Justin Porter's parents came in to get them, and though Amy Porter was busy talking to Marie Summit, she was insistently pulled away. Michael Goodman and Todd Miller left next, followed by Corey Richardson and Ellison Davis, who took several minutes searching for her nose (she had come as a clown.)

  At about twelve forty-five, only the Davenports, the Robinsons, the Summits (who were always the last to leave), the Fords, the Stuarts, and the Miles were left. As the Stuarts left, Jason thought he had his chance to go over and talk to Erica Miles, who had hogged David Stuart all evening and he her, but his attempts were thwarted as Mr. and Mrs. Miles came in and announced that they were also heading home.

  As Emily passed Mrs. Campbell, she
looked back longingly at the snack table. Mrs. Campbell, always quick on the uptake and above average in generosity, went to the kitchen and came back with a box containing one cherry cake and several pieces of divinity. Emily's face brightened, and after Mrs. Miles was assured that "there would be no problem", Emily promptly stowed the box under one arm protectively, indicating to the company as well as to her family that she didn't mean to share.

  While this was going on, the Fords also decided to leave. Jessica got up from where she, Emily, and Marie had been talking and went over to the table to lift her basket. Caera noticed Jessica strain and turned to see if her mother had seen, guessing that she had, since her mother was smiling broadly, as if flattered in some way.

  The Davenports were right behind the Fords; Mrs. Davenport saying again how much she had enjoyed the evening since it seemed her husband was too tired and her children were not going to speak. Alex and Andrew stood behind their mother uncomfortably until she got the message and said one final goodbye.

  The Robinsons had offered to help the Campbells put all of the extra food away, and they all left for the kitchen. Since they didn't come back right away, Caera concluded that they must be talking--she hoped not about her, Claudia, or Ana. As for the Summits, especially Mrs. Summit, they didn't appear in a hurry to leave. They'd probably stay until everyone else had gone, and in the meanwhile they spread themselves out, Mr. Summit wafting towards the kitchen, and the Summit children staying in the living room with the others. (Mrs. Summit was nowhere to be found.)

  Jason seated himself next to Claudia (trying to avoid Marie), but Marie sat to his other side and Ana wedged herself between Claudia and Caera, who sat next to Chris. After an uncomfortable silence, Claudia left to find a pack of cards, and when she returned, Marie suggested they play hearts. But, they didn't have time to get a game going because Mrs. Robinson came in and announced that it was time to go, and Mrs. Summit re-appeared just behind her, telling Marie and Chris that they'd "best be moving along", too.

  So, in a few minutes, Caera and Claudia saw Ana off as Marie got her coat and waved goodbye to Jason through the front window. Mrs. Summit was busy thanking Caera and Claudia's parents and telling them how much she had enjoyed "this interesting little get together" when suddenly she asked to take yet another picture of everyone to "commemorate the evening". Caera wasn't sure when Mrs. Summit had reclaimed her camera from Marie, who'd had it for the duration of the party, but after they had all squeezed in close, the Summits left, and the Campbell clan breathed a sigh of relief as the door closed behind them.

  The Curator

  That night Claudia and Caera telephoned Ana, who was expecting the call and had been waiting near the phone since she got home.

  "Did you find out what time the Davenports' party is, Ana?" Claudia had partially suggested that Ana ask Todd to dance because she knew that when he was embarrassed he let his mouth run, and she was hoping he'd divulged some of the details to Ana.

  "Yeah. It's gonna be at seven o' clock, and I think their parents are leaving for a banquet in town at about seven-thirty. So I guess we can start looking about then, 'cause the boys will be inside, doing whatever it is that boys do at slumber parties, and if theirs are anything like my brother's were, they'll probably be too busy stuffing themselves, playing video games, and boasting to hear us."

  "We'd better hope so." Claudia wanted to be optimistic, but the Davenports made it their business to thwart them wherever possible, and even though they didn't know what the girls were planning, she figured that this particular trait of theirs would be on auto-pilot.

  "So what time do you want us to come over, Ana?" Claudia wondered if Caera was always as nonplused as she sounded just now.

  "Around six. And bring an appetite 'cause my mom thinks you guys are coming over for dinner."

  "Really? Well, what are you guys having for—"

  "It doesn't matter, Caera. Ana, do you have a black outfit? We need to dress so they can't see us."

  "I think I could scrounge for one."

  "Good. Caera and I'll bring a shovel, a flashlight, and my dad's toolbox."

  "Okay, see you then."

  Emma had just returned from a walk in the woods behind the house. The afternoon had been enjoyable until the sun had disappeared and a storm brewing outside had forced her to return home. As the winds picked up, she quickened her pace. Mrs. Brodie would have gone home by this late in the day, she realized. Mrs. Brodie was an old friend of her mother's, and she had been coming in once a week to keep her father company and look after Emma since Emma's mother had died.

  But to Emma, she was more than an affectionate godmother. She was the only mother figure she remembered. Visiting every day without fail since her own husband passed away, she had of late become almost a permanent member of the family, and a welcome one at that.

  Emma entered the house through the back entrance, stopping only once to pat Barney in the stables, feed him a carrot, and wish him a good-night. As she stepped into the kitchen, she pulled off her gloves and cloak and lit a lamp to see while she ate her supper. But after hanging up her cloak, she turned around, all at once frozen in her tracks. Papa's dinner was still on the table—the bread was only half-cut, and the stew was stone-cold. A cold dread swept over her.

  "Papa? Papa!" There was an uneasy silence in the house as the echo of her own words reverberated from room to room. Outside, Emma could hear the wind subside a moment, only to rise up again to a feverish pitch. Taking the lantern in her hand, Emma flew from room to room, calling out to her father and praying that he was all right. But as she cast light into the dark rooms with her lantern, the shadows seemed to mock her, heightening the fear tingling through her every limb.

  Emma came into the parlor and held her lantern high, but her father was not there, and the fireplace was empty. She called louder, searching room by room until she felt an icy draft coming in from his study; the door was flung wide open and all was darkness within. Emma entered slowly and laid the lantern on a small table, intending to close the windows and shutters.

  The curtains made a whipping noise in the wind, blowing by gale force into billows of scarlet velvet. They seemed to point to something, straining on the rod which held them. Emma walked toward the window and saw the pool of blood on the floor. Horror shot through her as she saw the blood-slick body of her father lying behind his desk, and she ran over to him, bending on her knees beside him.

  He was lying face-down, gored deep with the blade of a long hunting knife. In desperation, Emma gripped the handle and pulled it out, wincing at the sound of flesh on the blade, and with blood-smeared hands she carefully pushed her father over.

  His lifeless eyes stared at her; stared through her to the wall behind, rigidly fixed in perfect stillness at the last thing that he had ever seen. She gently closed his eyes as tears fell in streams down her cheeks.

  "Papa!" She cried in anguish to ears that could no longer hear, as the wind snuffed out the lantern's light and left her in darkness.

  Claudia's eyes stared up at the ceiling. Her room was stone-cold, which made the bed infinitely appealing, but nevertheless, she got up and slipped on her bunny slippers, hoping that no one else was awake so that she could enjoy the quiet of the house by herself. No one was, even though it was already eight o' clock, and the kitchen felt incredibly lonely with the coffeemaker percolating for no one.

  A few minutes later, a truck drove up, and Claudia heard a heavy thud on the slab out front. Time to rejoin reality, she thought as she went to the door to bring the newspaper inside. It was covered in a protective bag, although Claudia didn't remember hearing it rain the night before, and though she didn't usually read the paper (except for the comics), she slid off the bag and unfolded the paper. A photo of a smiling girl in a royal blue dress and blonde ringlets affronted her eyes.

  "Poor Emma," she whispered, then leaned her head on the table and cried.

  Somewhere in a dark an
d cluttered room, another copy of the local newspaper was being opened, and read.

  "Campbell Christmas Party, by Marjorie Summit." The title of the article appeared in bold letters at the top of the page with the description of the event underneath, while the group picture that Mrs. Summit had taken on her camera appeared on the righthand side of the article, along with several pictures.

  He read the names from left to right until he came to Claudia Campbell. Suddenly, the paper was thrown down, and its reader stood up and paced over to the wall.

  A candlestick was pulled down, and a watercolor of ships in Boston harbor lifted to reveal a portrait of a beautiful young girl in blue.

  After dinner with the Robinsons, Caera and Claudia followed Ana to her room where the three girls changed clothes.

  "Did you notice this morning's newspaper, Ana?" Caera inquired as she squeezed her head through a thick, black turtleneck sweater.

  "You betcha. I wanted to see if it was true what Marie said to me last night. She told me that after Chris and her dad were dropped off, she and her mother were heading for the presses. I guess gossip is more important to them than sleep."

  In a few minutes Caera announced that she was ready to go, and Ana carefully pried open her bedroom window. In case her mother came in and worried about where they had gone, there was a note of explanation sitting on Ana's bed, although Ana's parents were watching a movie on t.v. and none of the girls really expected that they'd check up on them. The Davenports' house was only a little ways away, and in no time the girls were standing behind the house, ready to climb the fence.

  Ana was over first, and the first thing that she noticed was a light on in what looked like the Davenports' living room. When she heard voices, she couldn't resist tiptoeing over and eavesdropping, especially after hearing her own name mentioned, but no sooner than she was half-way there, she heard Caera calling her back.

  "And just what do you think you're doing, Ana? Do you want to give us away? They'll see you."

  "You're the one who's gonna give us away if you don't lower your voice."

  "Sshhh!" Claudia whispered, the fingers of one hand by her mouth to emphasize the word, the other hand wrapped around the shovel. Unfortunately, she was too late in quietening them. Soon the hall light and then the back door lights were thrown on, and footsteps could be heard coming towards the back door. Just as the door slowly creaked open, Claudia dove behind a rusty swing-set, and Caera and Ana flattened themselves behind two trees.

  "...then you go first, Porter." Ana thought she heard Gerry Davidson.

  "No way. You!" he barked back.

  "I vote Alex and Andrew check it out, man. After all, it's their party, right?" This voice didn't need identifying. Caera knew by the words that it was Brian Goodman.

  "Let's send Dudley," Todd opined, and Ana didn't hear Dudley object, or anyone else except Andrew, who Ana figured must have been his best friend, since he was adamantly against his going out into the back yard. For a few minutes, it was completely silent, and Ana was tempted to take a peek and see what was going on. Just then, however, she heard scrabbling noises near her.

  "Uh oh! He's found something!" From far off, Ana could hear the sound of fast retreating footsteps. All of a sudden, something wet, slobbery, and heavy knocked her over, and she screamed,

  "Help! Get it off of me!" She couldn't see because she'd brought her arms up to protect her face, but she felt something licking her ear and relaxed a little. Claudia and Caera had moved silently over to her and helped her up. Ana figured it was safe to open her eyes now. On the ground was a big, fat Basset hound, its tail wagging furiously as it howled.

  "Hey," Andrew was considering, "I recognize that voice. It's Ana Robinson! What's she doing in our back yard?" Alex and Andrew, the only two boys left outside, looked at each other and ran over to where they'd heard Dudley howl.

  "Uh-oh!" Claudia looked up to see them coming, but it was too late to run and jump over the fence. Besides, she figured that the dog would follow them and bark even louder if they tried. A few seconds later, Alex flashed a flashlight into her eyes, and she covered them with her hand.

  "Hey, it's Claudia... And Caera, too!" Alex's voice betrayed surprise.

  "What are you guys doing here?" Andrew demanded, but Alex caught a glimpse of the shovel Claudia was trying to hide.

  "Are you still looking for that treasure? Gosh, what are you looking in our yard for? Hey, if it's in our yard, then it's ours!"

  "It isn't here, dummy." Ana scolded him.

  "Well, can we help you if you tell us what you're looking for? After all," he stroked his chin, "You uh, you are dressed as thieves, and this is," he paused dramatically, "our back yard. You could be here to steal something, couldn't you?"

  None of the girls had time to reply to this threat, however, as just then Todd Miller called out,

  "What's going on, guys? Who'd you find?"

  "Just a neighborhood kid!" Alex yelled back (which it was). "We'll be back in a few minutes, after Dudley's finished doing his business." This seemed to satisfy Todd, and the door clicked shut. From the doorway, Andrew motioned that he wanted to go back inside.

  "Come back on Monday," Alex had taken on a commanding tone, even though he was whispering. "Someone might see you here if you stay any longer."

  "Well, that's already happened." Caera threw back.

  "Tell me about it." Ana agreed.

  "What I'd like to know is just what you two hope to get out of this." Claudia looked skeptical.

  "I dunno." Alex pretended to be considering, "Maybe a share in the treasure if you find it."

  "Fat chance." All three girls sounded in unison.

  "All right, but come back Monday. I still wanna help you." He started back towards the house with Andrew and Dudley but threw over his shoulder, "Remember now, Monday. 'bout ten o' clock."

  "Oh boy. This is just great." Ana sounded about as deflated as a balloon.

  Monday morning at ten o' clock, Caera, Claudia, and Ana were making their way to the Davenports' front door. An hour earlier, Caera and Claudia had cycled their way to Ana's house. Overnight, the temperature had dropped, and Caera and Claudia had bundled themselves up against the cold. Once they had de-frosted their ears, toes, and fingers and Ana was ready to leave, the three girls headed to the Davenports', crunching the frost-covered grass with their galoshes as they walked.

  Caera was the first to reach the doorstep, and she rang the doorbell, shivering now that she had stopped moving. A few seconds passed in silence, so she rang the doorbell again.

  "Do you think they're here?" Ana asked doubtfully, noticing that the Davenports' car was gone.

  "They'd better be," Caera was growing impatient, "I'd hate to stay much longer out in this. And besides, they invited us here. Even they couldn't have forgotten already. Caera hoped she sounded more convinced than she felt. Yet at that moment, they all heard slow, heavy thumping as if someone were coming downstairs. A few seconds later, the door creaked open, and they saw Andrew standing in his pajamas, his hair all mussed up, and his eyes half-open.

  "Well, it's about time." Ana grumbled, watching as Andrew rubbed his eyes and tried to wake up.

  "Hey, what're you guys doing here?" He inquired sleepily.

  "Alex invited us. Don't tell us he didn't tell you." Claudia said in her most sarcastic voice, while peering through the doorway. "Where is Alex, anyway?" she saw fit to add.

  "I dunno. Hang on a minute." The door shut, and a short while later, Andrew opened it again. "He's outside, I think. 'Said he'll be coming along any minute." Andrew stood looking at them a few moments longer. Claudia's nose was blue, and Ana was rubbing her hands. Finally, he asked, "Do you guys wanna come in?"

  "Gee, I thought you'd never ask." Caera chattered through her teeth and pushed her way inside. As Andrew shut the door behind them, they all saw Alex coming down the hall. At that moment, Andrew took the opportunity to ask his brot
her what was going on, and Alex told him about their plans to work together to search for any clues concerning the treasure. In response, Andrew frowned and asked,

  "Hey, what do I get out of it?"

  "The satisfaction of a job well-done." Ana teased, quoting a well-known maxim of Mr. Hoffmeyer's.

  "You can make us lunch if you don't want to help," Caera suggested off-handedly as she pulled off her earmuffs.

  "No thanks. I'd rather help." While Andrew sulked, Alex pointed to the dining room.

  "You can dump your stuff in there. I gotta go get something." As Alex left, Ana asked,

  "Are your parents home?"

  "Nope," Andrew informed them flatly as they all folded their coats and scarves. "They've gone to work and won't be back until dinnertime. You guys can wait in the living room till Alex gets back. I gotta go get dressed." He sprang away and hurried back upstairs.

  Half an hour later, Alex, Andrew, Caera Claudia, and Ana trudged back down the attic steps, coughing and waving their arms through the air as the dust swirled around them, seemingly weightless.

  "Great idea, Alex." Caera muttered and poked him in the side, while just behind her she could hear Ana complaining to Andrew and Claudia.

  "Well that was a complete waste of time. I wonder if Alex has any more bright ideas." Alex heard her and took the clue.

  "Actually, I do. I've already looked through the rest of the house, so there wouldn't be any point in doing that again, but we haven't checked the back yard or the front yard yet. Remember, that's what you guys were gonna do when we caught you."

  "Of course we do. It was only a few days ago. Just what do you think we are, stupid?'! Caera was getting slightly irritable, Claudia noticed, and she wondered if it was because the dust was starting her allergies up again, a fact which she probably blamed on Alex for taking them up through the dust and fuzzy pink—insulation filled attic. Caera saw the hurt look on Alex's face and softened.

  "Look, I'm sorry. Give us the deal already."

  "Right. Well, take a look at this." Alex reached over to the coffee table in the middle of the hallway and lifted up a packet of paper. "These are the prints of the water, electric, sewer, gas, and telephone lines and pipes in the backyard. We'll have to dig around them, obviously. I figure there wouldn't be any clues underneath or near them anyhow, or they would have been discovered already.

  "Oh, and we can't dig in the front yard. Dad had a sprinkler system installed last year. The pipes are a few feet deep, and according to what we learned in our geology unit in science class, there hasn't been very much soil deposited in this area during the past two hundred years. The way I see it, we'll only have to dig a couple of feet, tops."

  "Well, that makes sense." Caera was agreeing. "I guess." Whoever said I was the hard one to please, Claudia wondered as they headed to the front hallway closet for their scarves and mittens. Claudia patted the brown paper bag that she, Ana, and Caera had brought along and followed the others outside.

  Ana started digging, it having turned out that she had chosen the longest twig. As she raked the shovel back and forth and heaved at the clod of earth, she wondered fleetingly if it weren't made out of immovable clay. It was probably just lightly frozen, she decided when the crispy grass snapped and crackled as she lifted the dirt away.

  The digging had to be carefully done so that when they finished they could re-construct the lawn and hope that Andrew and Alex's parents didn't notice. They had decided to pour hot water over the areas they were about to dig, to loosen the grip of the frost on the ground. Caera had to run inside every few minutes to put the kettle back on, and Andrew was steering a wheelbarrow in Ana's direction to deposit the dislocated soil as part of the plan. Ana swiped away a piece of hair that had fallen over her eyes and looked over to the patio to see Alex and Claudia laying down newspapers to put the grass-covered earth on.

  After her turn, it was Claudia's turn, then Alex's, and then Caera's, and so on. By the time it was Andrew's turn, the lawn locked like Swiss cheese, and they were running out of places to dig. Three hours of sheer hard work had produced absolutely nothing, and the range of facial expressions varied from glum to accusing, doleful to hopeful.

  Andrew was grumbling now, Caera heard as if from a faraway dream. His arms hurt, his back ached, he had a stiff neck, and what was it they were looking for anyway?... Eventually, someone blew the whistle and announced that it was time for lunch. Caera decided it must have been Alex and was suddenly jolted back into reality by Ana yanking her arm.

  The five of them headed for the kitchen at the fastest pace it was possible to go while maintaining a semblance of nonchalance and devoured their peanut butter and jelly sandwiches as quickly as courtesy and a sense of what looked bad would allow. After the sandwiches, milk, and Pepperidge Farm cheddar cheese fish-shaped crackers, Alex produced a chocolate cake from the fridge and passed out slices.

  "Yum! " Ana enthused as she took a giant forkful. Since she was the first to dig, she got the first piece. Her appreciative remarks prompted the others to attack theirs upon receiving, and soon they all needed seconds. "Gosh, you guys, your mom's a great cook!" Ana announced as she finished her piece, the others unable to answer when their mouths were full.

  "My mom didn't make it. Andrew did." Alex stated casually.

  "Really? " Caera almost choked. Andrew blushed a deep scarlet and turned to take the lunch plates to the dishwasher. The others sensed his shyness ( and was it modesty? Caera was asking herself ) and headed back outside. Alex took one look around his mutilated backyard and sighed.

  "This is just another disappointment. Like that cave I fell into." At the mention of the cave, Ana turned to look at Caera and Claudia, and a knowing look passed between the three of them.

  "Hey... It's not fair to keep secrets if we're gonna help from now on." Alex complained.

  "Well who says you were?" Caera demanded. Andrew was back now and stuck his two bits in.

  "Come on, you guys. You never did tell us what you found out there. Or anything else for that matter," he waved with his index finger. "Like why it is we're even helping you to dig up our yard."

  Caera sensed that at any moment they were going to withdraw their help and shot Claudia and Ana a look that said, "We might as well tell them. They're gonna twist our arms until we do," before launching into the details about the dreams and the books they'd found. She wore a relieved, almost self-satisfied expression as she finished, convinced that there'd be no more petty squabbles or accusations of withholding information.

  "Come on!" Alex cut through her smile like a knife through cream cheese. "You expect us to believe that this stuff is clues? Talk about an overactive imagination."

  "Waitaminute." Ana interjected. "We can prove some of it to you. "She ran back inside and re-emerged with the paper bag. Alex didn't know what to expect, but the uncanny resemblance between Emma Campbell and Caera and Claudia suddenly made him believe that anything was possible. But more than that, the possibility that the girls were proposing seemed almost... familiar?

  "Wow!" Andrew's excited voice betrayed a note of credulity. "I'd say the picture was a photgraphic trick if it weren't a painting. And you guys say you're having dreams about her life?" Caera nodded.

  "Weird!"

  The group continued to dig, and by mid-afternoon every possible square foot of yard was uncovered, and although they didn't find anything, Claudia thought that at least now they'd eliminated the Davenports' as a place where there might be clues. The five of them made a concerted effort to restore the yard before their work was discovered, and Ana, Claudia, and Caera slipped away just as Mrs. Davenport's car slowly rolled up the driveway.

  Late in the afternoon on December twenty-sixth, Caera and Claudia had gone to collect Ana at her house before heading to the Davenports'. It had snowed on Christmas morning, an event that had inspired Caera to wake up her groggy sister at six o' clock with a jubilant rendition of Bin
g Crosby's famous hit, "White Christmas", yet all that was left of the snow now were large cold puddles on the grass and damp sidewalks. When Ana came out, her cheeks were flushed, and her eyes sparkled merrily as she slammed the front door and hurried to greet them.

  "You guys'll never guess what I got for Christmas!" Ana said happily, clearly indicating that she wanted them to try anyway.

  "Then we won't try," Claudia said in a wry tone.

  Caera punched her.

  "Yes we will," she said. "Clothes? Skis? A tv?"

  "Nope--Even better. A puppy! Isn't that great?"

  "What kind?" Caera raised an eyebrow.

  "A collie. Actually, she's not just mine. She belongs to the whole family."

  "What's her name?" Caera slapped her gloved hands together and rubbed them, using the friction to heat her frozen fingers. Ana's face darkened in frustration.

  "Jason got to name her by using the same old argument—you know, about being older than me. He also told mom that he'd wanted a dog longer than I had to get his way. I wanted to name her Lassie, just like in the movies."

  "Hmmm, original." Caera laughed. "So wat'd he name her?"

  "Champ!" Ana admitted dolefully.

  "Gee, it's not so bad." Caera teased. "Be thankful he didn't name her Fluffy. Or worse, Snowball." Caera's joke had them both laughing.

  "Well, Claudia and I enjoyed our gifts this year. We got a couple of cellular phones--just for emergencies, of course. Of course, mom and dad had to cut back a lot this Christmas since they spent a lot of money having those old dresses repaired."

  "Hey, but don't overuse those things," Ana advised. "I've heard some rumors about how dangerous they can be. But anyway, be thankful you didn't get ten pairs of socks and underwear. My Aunt Jacqueline sends me some every year. At least this time they were the right size for a change," she added.

  "I wonder what the Davenports got for Christmas?" Claudia asked as the three girls marched up the pathway to the Davenports' house.

  Ten minutes later they were sitting at the table with Alex and Andrew. Three minutes of silence had gone by since Andrew had asked what their course of action should now be, but no one had been able to offer any suggestions. Ana was about to ask if it was too late to go into town to show the boys the old houses they had visited when they all heard loud knocking at the front door which was followed by several impatient rings of the doorbell. Caera shot Andrew a questioning look as he got up to answer it, but she only got a shrug in response.

  As Andrew opened the door, they all strained to hear the distant conversation. Andrew was whispering, but the other voice announced its presence loudly with a reverberating echo.

  "Company? Well, surely one more won't hurt..." There was a short pause then, filled with the sound of soft whispers. No one at the table dared to even breathe.

  "Come on you guys. I'm sure whoever's here won't mind me." At this point, Andrew seemed to have relented because they could all hear the door close and two sets of feet approaching. The louder voice increased in volume as it came closer to the kitchen, and the girls recognized it as belonging to Todd Miller.

  "Great. What's he doing here?" Caera whispered. And why'd Andrew let him in? She asked herself. But she didn't need to ask. She knew that Todd was as good a friend to the boys as Ana was to her and Claudia. Moreover, she suspected that Andrew's hesitation had come from embarrassment.

  "You know, I'm starting to worry about you guys," Todd was saying "you haven't come over in almost a week, and I noticed you've been acting strangely lately, ever since--hey, what're they doing here?" Todd turned into the kitchen, whereupon his face went red and his voice, as well as dropping several decibels, also lost any trace of bravado. He looked confused as he looked at Ana and then at the twins, and then finally at Alex and Andrew, as if waiting for an explanation.

  Alex coughed, pointed out a seat for Todd, and began to tell him the story, beginning with the untimely visitors Dudley had found one night.

  Mrs. Davenport opened the front door with her key and stepped inside, glancing at her wristwatch which said 5:55 as she laid down her briefcase on the floor of the entranceway.

  "Boys?" She called, waiting for an answer, but one never came. Almost immediately, she heard giggling and loud noises coming from the living room. As she turned the corner into the living room, she saw the three girls sitting on the sofa, laughing hysterically while Todd made faces as Alex told a story. Every so often Andrew would interrupt to make sure Alex was telling it correctly.

  Mrs. Davenport just stood, shocked, as her children finally turned around to see her in the doorway. "Hi, mom. You're home early." The boys stated casually. Their mother could only nod.

  "Hello, girls," Mrs. Davenport said, smiling sweetly at Caera, Claudia, and Ana. Caera thought she could detect a "What's going on here?" tone to her voice, and, not wanting to have to stay and explain the situation, she replied,

  "Hello, Mrs. Davenport. Don't worry about us, we're just leaving." Claudia and Ana followed her to the door. Todd and the Davenports were not far behind, and they stood and waved until the three girls were out of sight.

  One morning a few days later Caera woke up shivering. Looking over to her alarm clock and seeing that she only had fifteen minutes left anyway until it sounded, she decided to head downstairs and see if anyone else was up. In the kitchen she found her father going through the larder. There was already a stack of cans on the kitchen table and her father appeared to be crossing items off a checklist.

  "Whatchadoin?" she asked.

  "I'm seeing if we have enough food to last us," her father answered without even turning around. Uh-oh, Caera thought, something about this scenario was all too familiar.

  "And where's mom?"

  "She's calling the road service people to see when they'll be able to start clearing the roads near us."

  "Clearing the roads?" Caera wasn't really sure she wanted to know what was going on.

  "Yes, sleepyhead. Take a look outside." Caera walked off towards the living room, rubbed a circle on the frosted window pane, and peered through. Outside the wind was howling fiercely, and the mailbox was invisible past the clouds of swirling snow. It was piling up, maybe even six inches by now.

  "Welcome to January," she sighed and proceeded upstairs to inform her sister of the news. They might not be able to see Ana, Todd, and the Davenports until school started!

  Clues

  True to Caera's prediction, the snow didn't subside until the day before school began again. That had given Caera and Claudia only one day to get the copies of the clues made for the others, and they had only been able to accomplish this by finishing the process at their mother's office after the copy place had closed.

  Right now, Caera and Claudia clutched three of the six packets each as they headed for Ana's locker at a brisk pace. They were a little late, Claudia observed, as the three boys were already there with Ana, shifting their weight from one foot to another and trying to look inconspicuous as people they knew filed past.

  Caera and Claudia rushed over as soon as they saw them and handed the expected packets to Ana and their new "friends", but Claudia was worried. She wasn't sure that they should really be talking together so openly—after all, wouldn't people start to get suspicious when the Davenports and the Campbells, seemingly long-standing enemies, were now acting like all the years of squabbling didn't mean a thing?

  Unfortunately, nobody else seemed to have thought about it, or if they had, didn't seem to care, as Claudia looked at Ana, who was whispering excitedly to Andrew, and then at Todd, Alex, and Caera, who were grinning from ear to ear after something funny that she said. Claudia then shifted focus and took a broad sweep of the hallway. Her eyes narrowed as she spied Amy Porter lurking in a corner about four yards away. Was she looking at them? Claudia felt that soon she was going to be a nervous wreck.

  A few minutes later the bell rang, and after Ana left, Caera turned to Claudia and asked
her to walk with her to first period. Claudia had hardly noticed when the boys had sauntered off, but it couldn't have been more than a minute before. She sighed in relief when it appeared Amy Porter was nowhere to be seen and followed Caera to class, unaware of what she had dropped on the way.

  "Oh no!" Claudia pulled up abruptly by her sister and grabbed her arm. "I've dropped my packet of clues!" Caera looked confused for a moment and then smiled.

  "Good one, Claudia. You almost had me for a minute there. But remember, I'm the one who tricks you most of the time, and take it from me, your face is a dead giveaway. Now come on and let's get to class before we get a detention."

  "But I'm not kidding, Caera! I promise. I must have dropped it by Ana's locker! " Claudia insisted. Caera stood there a moment, scanning her sister's face and scrutinizing every detail.

  "How could you just drop something this important?! Don't you know what could happen if the wrong person finds it?" Claudia shook her head, and Caera was about to say something more, but the halls were clearing fast. Instead, she grabbed Claudia and hustled to class, barely sliding into her seat before the bell rang.

  That night Claudia tossed and turned in bed, unable to keep the lost packet out of her mind. Even after she and Caera had searched during lunch and for nearly an hour after school, it was nowhere to be found. Now she wondered if one of the others had accidentally been given two packets and prayed that this was the case. Anyway, the alternative was too worrying to contemplate.

  When she and Caera got to school the next day, Claudia went directly to her locker and tried to carry on as if nothing had happened, but before she could get out her books for the morning, Andrew came rushing through the crowded hallway and approached Claudia and Caera, white-faced.

  "Have you guys seen today's edition of the school paper?" The puzzled looks on both the girls' faces showed clearly that they hadn't, so Andrew held up the paper that he'd brought with him for them to read.

  "'The Secret Campbell Treasure' by Marie Summit' –Oh no!"

  "And that's not the worst of it"' Andrew flipped the page and pointed to the end of the article. "Look at this! "

  "Let's see... 'If you want to know how you can help find it, contact myself, Amy Porter, Jessica Ford, Emily Miles, or any other members of the newspaper's staff and join our treasure party. The more people we have to help, the quicker we'll find it!”

  "What are we gonna do?" Caera was nearing hysteria.

  "Don't ask me," Andrew sighed in resignation.

  "We can't just stand around moping." Claudia's determined outburst affected the others like a blanket of cold water. "We've gotta find it before they do!"

  Marie Summit hated mid-year exams because it always seemed that all everybody wanted to do was study or complain about studying, even if they never intended to. They actually thought they were too busy to gossip—sacrilegious! At least she could count on Amy, Emily, and Jessica; they had their priorities straight. She knew that without their help she couldn't have made it until Friday—newspaper sales were down, and she needed all the help she could get to come up with new stories. After all there were such limited possibilities in a ho-hum, hum-drum middle school. She sighed. At least the nightmare week was at last over, and things could get back to normal.

  Marie lounged back on her trundle bed and reached for one of several phones on her bedside table. Her room was one of the most comfortable places for her to work in--it had just the right ambiance. There were shelves in one corner for her thesaurus, encyclopedia volumes, and dictionaries, a chifferobe full of her favorite disguises by the wall next to the shelves, a t.v. and v.c.r. in a cabinet that included tapes of all her favorite news coverage--accidents, disasters, scandals, and more. Her room was so wonderful it overwhelmed her sometimes. Oh! She put the phone down. How could she forget?

  Marie swung her feet over and onto the floor, rising and proceeding to her drawers. She gingerly lifted a tape recorder out of the third drawer and selected one of a few dozen tapes to insert inside it before returning to her bedside table and attaching the recorder to a machine her mother had given her for taping telephone conversations. She punched number one out of ten pre-set calls and was instantly in touch with Amy Porter.

  "Are you ready, Amy?" she inquired languidly.

  "It's still a bit early, isn't it Marie?" Amy sounded as though the call had just woken her up. "You told everyone to come over at nine. It's only seven o' clock."

  "I meant everyone else. Look, I need to talk to you beforehand, get some things straight before everyone else arrives. Can you be here by eight?"

  "Yeah, I'll be there."

  "All right, g'bye."

  "Bye."

  Forty-five minutes later Amy followed Marie into her room, eager to finally hear what Marie had been planning. All any of the group knew was that Marie's brother was going into the capital for something and Marie had managed to con him into taking them somewhere, but Amy still didn't know where or why, even though she liked to think of herself as Marie's right-hand person.

  For a fleeting moment, she wondered if Marie had called her instead of Emily because it was she who had found the Campbells' packet of clues but thought better of it. Marie was a tough cookie and knew very well how far Emily could be trusted for anything.

  Amy was anticipating a divulge of information when Marie closed the door to her room, but instead Marie merely asked for help in gathering and hiding her equipment for the next few minutes. This in itself proved a discovery—Amy hadn't imagined in her wildest dreams Marie's having a camera-in-a-purse or miniature pocket tape recorders, and her fingers just itched to open Marie's fourth drawer, marked "Gadgets". Finally, Marie finished preparing for the trip and broke the news.

  "We're going to the museum," she announced flatly.

  "What? You've got to be kidding me!" Amy couldn't imagine any place she wanted to go less.

  "I didn't mean to seek intellectual enlightenment. Trust me, I have reasons. We're going to get ahead of the Campbells. I know they haven't thought of going there—" Amy shot an inquiring look— "Don't ask me how, it's incriminating."

  Amy looked troubled.

  "It's a joke, silly. Anyway, we Summits have our ways around that. As I was saying, a visit to the history section of the museum might prove useful. I have my mother's press card." This she waved in the air like a priceless gem before continuing. "Everyone knows her. She has connections, and I think some people are even a little afraid of her. We'll find out what we want to know. It'll be a cinch."

  Amy nodded, glad to know more than anyone else did but still foggy as to Marie's motivations and innuendo. She suspected Marie only hinted at things out of habit, a cat-and-mouse game she'd learned from her mother. Marie wore a complacent look now. Sharing a secret must have been something she relished as much as keeping one. After a minute of silence, Marie's brain had finished working over her own personal intrigues and she asked,

  "Well, have you noticed anything new with the Campbells and company? They were avoiding me yesterday." Marie humphed.

  "Not much. I heard the six of them whispering outside after school yesterday. 'Seems they're worried about our looking for the treasure, but you expected that anyway. And that got me to thinking. When I read those clues it said 'only a true Campbell can discover what was lost' or something."

  "That's right."

  "Well, then how are we going to find it? I mean, what if, and this part gives me the creeps. I told you so at the very beginning, remember? The dreams. They're kinda scary, you know. It's like messing around with ghosts. Anyway, what if the Campbells were to get the rest of the clues just by dreaming them? We couldn't possibly do anything about that, and they're not gonna volunteer information or anything."

  "Don't worry," Marie laughed enigmatically. "I've already got that under control."

  The office was dark and musty, the only way in or out being a door behind a facade of filing cabinets in an
adjacent room. There were no windows nor vents to clear the air, only cracks in the walls through which the wind whistled and called the aged wooden walls to creak and groan. In the center of the office was a bureau covered in yellowed newspaper clippings, bits and pieces of ancient artifacts, tools, and crumbling leather bound books, and the rest of the room appeared equally cluttered, although most of the items had been thrown haphazardly into crates to clear a walkway to its hidden door.

  A man was seated at the bureau, his palms pressed to his temples in rumination. For a long time he supposed the dull noise of hollow echoes in his ears was coming from his own mind, but suddenly he discerned a child's laughter out of the other incoherent sounds and got to his feet.

  In two strides he was peeping through a hole in the wall and into the neighboring room. No one had entered his inner sanctum; he felt along the wall for the switch to roll back the cabinets and stepped through.

  The noise was louder in here, the unmistakable screech of sneakers on the polished floor of the museum being the most prevalent sound besides the cacophony of pre-adolescent voices. Everything in his room looked in order, and there was no sign now of the hidden room now that the filing cabinet was back in place. He should probably check out what was going on, he decided, and opened his office door, proceeding out to the voluminous museum. No sooner than the door was opened, a group of a dozen or so unruly children affronted his eye.

  The children were several yards away, calling to one another or laughing, and a few were playing amateurish games that gave him a headache just to watch. One girl hunched over a display case caught his eye, however, with her business-like, almost professional mannerisms and the way in which the others followed her as a natural leader.

  On closer observation, he realized that the display case she was inspecting contained pieces from the Campbell family's history: artifacts found in the old general store and original farm up to photos of the house in the early twentieth century. His eyes narrowed, and creeping up silently behind her, he noticed her emerald green eyes seemed intent on an old hunting knife dated around 1765.

  "That's a very interesting piece, isn't it?" He broached the subject in a charming voice, cool, collected, and calm.

  "What?" Marie looked up in surprise. "Oh...uh, yeah, it is." She looked as though she were about to walk away, and for a moment his eyes darkened to little coals, the smile appearing tight around the corners of his mouth.

  "Excuse me. It's just that I am well versed in the history of this area besides being the head of this section of the museum, and I thought I might be able to answer any questions you might be having..." His voice sounded so open and friendly, Marie forgot her initial unsettling feeling around him, and after a moment's reflection couldn't believe her good luck.

  This guy probably already knew a lot about the treasure and the mysterious events of the murders, and he was acting like a typical adult on an education crusade. As such she felt she could count on him to try really hard to get her interested, all the while telling her everything she needed to know if she steered the conversation just right. She reached for her satchel and pulled out the precious clue packet.

  "I guess I have one or two questions you might help me with."

  He seemed to be beaming now.

  "Good."