Gertrude Warner - Great Shark Mystery

Emily showed the children how to do the different hand motions they’d seen her do during the show. They raised their arms high, and the dolphins went up on their tails. They swung their arms, and the dolphins did flips. They made kissing noises, and the dolphins echoed them. For each trick, they rewarded the dolphins with fish and plenty of stroking.

Too soon, it was time for Emily to get ready for her next show. As the Aldens got out of the water, their faces glowed with happiness. Taking off their life jackets, they all talked at once.

“That was so great!” Henry said.

“I’m glad you enjoyed it,” Emily said, her face glowing almost as much as the Aldens’. “Now you can see why I love my job so much.”

“Thank you for letting us play with the dolphins,” said Violet.

“No problem,” Emily said.

As the Aldens toweled off, Jessie suddenly remembered something. “Emily?” she said. “Have you ever been to Wilson’s?”

A look of recognition flickered across Emily’s face for a moment, but then it was gone.

“Wilson’s?” she repeated.

“It’s a jewelry store in town,” Jessie explained.

Emily looked at her watch and said, “I’ve got to run and grab something to eat before my next show. See you!” And with that she was off.

Jessie and Violet looked at each other. “That seemed sudden,” Violet said.

“Yes, it did,” Jessie agreed.

“And there was something about the look on her face,” said Violet. “As if she was avoiding the truth,”

“All I asked was if she’d ever been to Wilson’s,” said Jessie. “Why wouldn’t she answer?”

“We didn’t even get to ask her about the key,” said Henry. “Let’s stop by the office on the way back to our cabin and see if anyone’s claimed it.”

The office was empty when the Aldens entered. Ms. Carver’s door was open a bit, and the children could hear her talking with someone inside, although they couldn’t see who it was.

“Maybe if we wait a few minutes she’ll be done,” Violet suggested. As they stood at the counter, they couldn’t help but overhear what Ms. Carver was saying.

Suddenly, she said something that made the children look at one another in horror.

“The only answer,” Ms. Carver said, “is to kill the great white shark.”

The Aldens couldn’t believe what they had just heard. Had Ms. Carver really said she wanted to kill the shark?

The other person in the room with her murmured a response, speaking too softly for the children to hear.

“I know, I know,” Ms. Carver went on. “I’m not happy about it, either. But it’s simply too expensive.”

Then, suddenly, Ms. Carver’s door opened. The Aldens looked at one another, unsure what to do. Before they could say or do anything, Ms. Carver stepped out.

When she saw the Aldens, she looked surprised. And angry.

Then the person she was speaking with appeared in the doorway. The Aldens were surprised to see someone they recognized. It was Mr. Wilson. The children recognized him from that morning, when he’d been talking to the police outside his store.

“How long have you been standing here?” Ms. Carver asked.

“Just a couple minutes,” Henry said.

“Were you listening to our conversation?” she demanded.

“No!” Jessie said.

“I certainly hope not,” Ms. Carver said fiercely. She gave Mr. Wilson a look before turning back to the children. “What are you doing here, anyway?”

Jessie spoke up in a nervous voice. “We just, um, we just came to see if anyone had claimed the card key.”

“No,” said Ms. Carver. “No one has. Which is strange, because I can’t imagine how someone could do their job without their key.”

“That is odd,” Jessie agreed, eager to escape. “Well, see you later!”

The Aldens hurried out of the office. When they were down the path a bit, Jessie turned to the others. “Can you believe what she said?”

“How could she kill the shark?” Violet asked in horror.

“And why was she talking about it with Mr. Wilson?” Henry added.

“We need to tell Emily right away,” Jessie said. “I hope she’s back in the arena.”

The Aldens ran back to the Dolphin Arena, their sandals pounding the pavement. Emily was refilling her fish pouch when they ran in, breathless. She looked concerned when she saw their serious faces. “What is it?” she asked.

“We just overheard Ms. Carver saying something awful!” Jessie said.

“What?” Emily asked.

“She said she was going to kill the shark!” Henry said.

“She said what?” asked Emily.

“She said it was too expensive, and she’d have to kill it,” Jessie said.

“She was in her office,” Henry explained. “And when she came out, she asked if we’d heard what she was saying. We said no, because we didn’t want her to get mad.”

Emily thought for a minute. “I have a show coming up in a few minutes, but you guys need to tell Mac. He’ll know what to do.”

The Aldens ran to Mac’s office, which was next to the great white shark’s tank. They found Mac standing beside the tank, talking to some of the visitors who were crowded around watching the shark swim. Benny watched, too. The shark didn’t scare him as much as it had the day before.

The Aldens waited, trying to be patient. At last Mac finished talking and came right over. “Is something wrong?” he asked.

The Aldens repeated what they’d told Emily. Mac shook his head. “Who was she speaking to?” he asked.

“It was Mr. Wilson, from the jewelry store downtown,” Jessie said.

Mac frowned sharply.

“Do you know him?” she asked.

“Yes,” said Mac. Then he added quickly, “I mean, I know the store.”

“You’ve been there?” Henry asked, remembering the card key.

“A while ago,” Mac said vaguely. Then he steered the conversation back to the shark. “I need to know exactly what you heard Ms. Carver say.”

“She said, ‘The only answer is to kill the great white shark,’” Henry repeated.

“You must have misunderstood,” Mac insisted.

“Those were her exact words,” said Henry. “She said she wasn’t happy about it, but it was too expensive.”

“That’s terrible,” said Mac. “I never thought that would happen here. …” His voice trailed off. “I’ll go speak to Ms. Carver right away.”

When Mac had left, the Aldens hung around the great white shark’s tank, watching the huge animal glide slowly by. Its sheer size took their breath away each time it passed. The shark’s glassy eyes stared off in an eerie way, never seeming to focus on the children the way other animals did, like the friendly dolphins. But the shark was alive—and someone wanted it dead.

The Aldens wandered over to the other shark tank and looked at the collection of smaller sharks swimming around the algae-covered rocks piled on the sandy bottom. The sharks were a range of sizes, colors, and shapes. Some had flat whiskered snouts and hovered close to the bottom of the tank. Others had more pointed mouths and swam near the top.

A few minutes later, Mac returned. “Ms. Carver wasn’t in her office, but I left her a note,” he said. “I’m sure there’s an explanation.”

Mac stood with the Aldens for a moment, watching the sharks.

“Sharks are cool,” Henry said.

“Yes, they are,” Mac agreed. “They’ve been around for millions of years—since before the dinosaurs.”

“Are these all sharks in this tank?” Violet asked.