Gertrude Warner - The Mystery of the Lost Mine

Tom narrowed his eyes in the afternoon light. He didn’t look quite so friendly now, Violet thought.

“You kids shouldn’t be fretting about an old man. You’re on vacation! Have fun!”

The Clarks made loud splashing sounds in the pool.

“Now, they’ve got the right idea,” Tom said, jerking his thumb toward the pool room. “By the way, tomorrow evening is our desert hike. Don’t forget!”

“Sounds great,” said Henry. “Let’s hope Jake is back by then so he can go with us.”

“Don’t concern yourselves with an old prospector.” Tom’s tone was light enough, but his eyes were still like slits.

When he left, Jessie spoke. “Something’s fishy. Tom knows more about Jake than he’s telling.”

Henry nodded. “We have something more important to look for than the mine.”

“Jake,” said Benny.

That evening, Grandfather met them for dinner.

“The cabin is coming along nicely,” he said, settling into their booth. “A few more days, and we’ll be finished.”

“In just a few days?” Violet said. That didn’t give them much time to find the mine—or Jake.

Grandfather asked the children what they had been doing.

“We rode horses into the hills,” Benny said. “And I fell off Ginger, but I wasn’t hurt.”

Henry added, “We’re taking a longer ride tomorrow. Don’t worry, Benny will be careful. Won’t you, Benny?”

“I’m always careful,” Benny asserted. “It was Ginger who slipped, not me.”

Grandfather listened to their plans, then nodded. “That sounds like fun.”

It was late by the time they performed their evening chores. Soon everyone was ready for bed.

Benny shifted uneasily in his bunk. He hadn’t been asleep very long. Something had awakened him. A sound?

He listened and heard nothing. That was it. The air-conditioning unit that ran constantly was silent.

Someone had shut off their air.

Benny sat up in bed. He listened carefully for the familiar sounds of the humming refrigerator and air conditioner. He heard only Grandfather’s faint snoring.

A darting shape outside the window caught his attention. A tall, dark figure flitted between the Garcias’ RV and Mr. Tobias’s trailer.

“Henry!” Benny reached across and shook his brother.

Henry was awake in an instant. “What?”

“The air conditioner’s not running,” Benny said. “And I just saw somebody outside. Maybe it’s the prowler Jessie saw the other night.”

The air inside the RV was getting stuffy. Henry climbed out of his bunk and flicked on the light switch. The lights didn’t turn on, either.

“The power’s off,” Henry reported. He climbed up to Grandfather’s bed. “Grandfather, wake up. Something’s happened to the power.”

James Alden was up quickly. He began pulling his clothes on. The boys dressed hurriedly in the dark. By now the girls were awake, too.

“What is it?” Jessie called from the other end of the trailer. “How come the lights won’t come on?”

“Something’s wrong with the power,” Grandfather said, grabbing his flashlight. “Henry and I will check it out.”

“Me, too!” Benny scrambled after them.

Outside, all the RVs in the D Block were shrouded in darkness. Only small, overhead street lamps cast weak pools of light.

The door to the Garcias’ trailer opened. Mr. Garcia and Luis stumbled down the steps. Mrs. Garcia followed them.

“Our power is out,” said Mr. Garcia to Grandfather.

“Ours, too. Maybe a fuse in the main building blew,” guessed James Alden.

“I’ll go check with the management.” Mr. Garcia headed toward the office. Mrs. Garcia went with him.

Luis came over to the Aldens’ trailer. “I wonder what’s wrong?” he asked.

Henry shone his flashlight around the hookup area. “Here’s the problem,” he said. “The cable’s been disconnected.” He held up the loose end of the plug.

Grandfather reconnected the cable. “That’s strange.”

Luis ran over to his RVs hookup. “Our plug has also been pulled! Yet the sewer and water pipes are still connected.”

Inside the Aldens’ RV, Violet tugged at Jessie’s sleeve. “Look,” she said. “There are two people hanging around Mr. Tobias’s trailer. Do you think we should warn him?”

“It’s Mr. and Mrs. Clark,” Jessie said, as the couple approached. She and Violet went outside. It was creepy inside the dark RV.

“Our electricity has been disconnected!” Mrs. Clark complained to Grandfather. “Yours, too? And the Garcias’?”

Mr. Clark was angry. “If this is somebody’s idea of a prank, it’s not funny. These trailers can get very hot.”

“Fortunately, it’s nighttime,” said Grandfather. “The desert always cools down after dark.”

Benny shivered and wondered if the prowler was watching them.

Henry and Luis refastened the cables to the Garciases’ RV. Then they helped Mr. Clark fix his hookup.

Violet pointed to Mr. Tobias’s RV. “What about Mr. Tobias? Should we check his hookup, too?”

Benny ran over. “It’s okay,” he called.

“That’s funny,” Jessie mused. “Everyone’s electricity was disconnected, except Mr. Tobias’s.”

“And he never even came out to see what was wrong.” Henry stared at the metallic-colored trailer.

“Unless,” Benny added, “ he was the guy I saw running between the trailers.”

This time Jessie shivered. “I sure hope we catch this prowler.”

“Excitement’s over,” Grandfather said, herding them toward the RV. “Back to bed. We’ll solve the mystery in the morning.”

And if they didn’t, thought Jessie, what would happen next?

Early the next morning, Gerald McCrae came by to pick up Grandfather. The Alden children rose early, too.

Jessie and Henry packed breakfast and lunch while Violet and Benny tidied the RV.

Luis knocked on the door.

“We’re almost ready,” Jessie told him. “Henry’s filling the canteens now.”

Luis looked pale in the faint morning light. “Someone got into our RV last night. The photographs of the stone maps were stolen!”

Henry turned from the sink. “Are you sure?”

“Yes. I knew we’d need them today. But when I opened the drawer, the folder was gone.”

“Maybe your mother put it someplace else,” Violet suggested.

Luis shook his head. “No. I’m certain the photographs were in the drawer last night.”

“It must have happened when we were all outside!” Benny exclaimed.

“Benny could be right,” said Henry. “The prowler could have sneaked into your trailer while everyone was fixing their electrical cables.”

“We were all there,” said Jessie. “Everyone except Mr. Tobias.”

“What would Mr. Tobias do with my photographs?” Luis asked. “He hardly ever comes out of his trailer. We need those maps to find the exact location of Weaver’s Needle.”

“Wait!” Violet flipped open her drawing tablet. “I made some drawings of the stone maps. They aren’t perfect, but I have a pretty good memory.”

Luis inspected her sketches. “Not bad. These seem fairly accurate. Nice work, Violet.”

Pleased, Violet stashed her drawings into the backpack containing their food.

Henry strapped on the backpack and passed out the canteens. “If we hurry, we’ll be at the stables by six.”

Rex was waiting for them. Their horses had been saddled and fed. Each horse carried extra water rations.