Ann Martin: Claudia And the Clue in the Photograph

sometimes you see things completely differently when you look at them through a camera.

I was especially fascinated with the facade of the old Stoneybrook bank building. It had vines and flowers and words, plus marble pillars and beautiful old revolving doors trimmed in brass. As the sun shone on the building, it cast really cool shadows over the carvings. I shot photo after photo of the bank, going through one whole roll of film and starting on a second. At one point, I noticed Mary Anne "taking pictures of me taking pictures. She seemed to think that what I was doing looked funny. I just ignored her.

By then, I wasn't even thinking of Dawn or our project anymore. Instead, I had become obsessed with "capturing the essence" of that building, just as if it were a person I was taking a portrait of. I was even hatching a whole new project that I couldn't wait to present to Mr. Geist: a portfolio of building portraits. I knew he'd love it.

I had forgotten about Mary Anne and the kids until suddenly I felt a tug at my sleeve. "Claudia!" said Buddy. "What are you doing? Come on."

"Yeah, come on," said Charlotte. "We already used up all our film. And we took much more interesting pictures than you're taking."

She glanced at the bank. "I mean, that’s just a boring old building."

I tried to explain why the building fascinated me, but Mary Anne and the kids kept teasing me. Finally, Mary Anne pointed out that we needed to break for lunch soon if we were going to be at the train station in time to meet Stacey's train. I took one last picture of the bank, and we headed for lunch at the Rosebud Cafe.

Later that afternoon, we all met up in my room to talk about how the day had worked out. Shannon and Kristy reported that they'd each taken some great shots at the picnic, and Jessi and Mal were thrilled about their pictures of the triplets' haircuts. Mary Anne told everybody about my obsession with the bank, and they teased me, but I didn't let it bother me. I just said to them, "Wait and see. Those pictures are going to turn out great!"

Little did we know (I love that phrase!) that those pictures would turn out to be very, very important.

Chapter 5.

"Baby, baby, angel of mine, my heart is in your hands — " Stacey and I waltzed around my room together, crooning along with the radio. When the song ended, we fell onto my bed, giggling.

"I adore that song," I said.

"Me, too," said Stacey. "It reminds me of Robert."

"Oh; Robert, Robert, Robert," I said, grabbing a pillow and bopping her with it. We giggled some more.

"Order!" said Kristy, suddenly.

"Is it five-thirty already?" I asked. I glanced at the dock on my night table. Sure enough, it was time for our BSC meeting. It was a Wednesday, three days after we'd done all that picture-taking, and my friends were gathered in my room for our meeting. I still hadn't had a chance to develop the photos I'd taken on Sunday, mostly because I'd been working

on my portrait series. The pictures of my friends were almost ready, and I could hardly wait.

Kristy reached over and snapped the radio off.

"No!" I cried, snapping it back on. "You can't do that!"

"Why not?" she asked. "It’s time for our meeting."

"I know," I said. "But WSTO is playing a whole hour of Billy Blue right now. There's no way I'm missing that."

"Who's Billy Blue?" asked Kristy.

"WHO'S BILLY BLUE?" Stacey and I shouted together.

"Kristy, I don't believe you," Stacey said. "Sometimes I think you live under a rock or something. Billy Blue is only the best singer since — since — "

"We're wasting time here," said Kristy impatiently. "How about this? We can leave the radio on, but you'll have to turn it down."

"Cool," I said. I reached over and inched the volume control down, just the tiniest bit.

"Lower," said Kristy, giving me a Look.

"Okay, okay," I said, turning it way down. I could still hear Billy Blue, but just barely. Still, it was better than nothing. Right then he was singing another song I love, called "Your Sweet Kiss." Stacey and I grinned at each

other as we mouthed the words silently. Kristy pretended to ignore us.

"Any new business?" she asked.

Nobody said anything. Stacey and I started to sing very softly along with Billy. Kristy reached over as if to turn the radio off again, and we broke off in mid-song. "Sorry! Sorry!" I said. "We'll stop, I promise."

Kristy just gave me another Look and turned to ask Stacey about the state of the treasury. "My Kid-Kit is almost due for some new stickers and markers," she said. "Do we have enough money?"

"Sure," said Stacey, instantly serious. She always knows exactly — and I mean to the last penny — how much is in the Treasury. "I need some stickers, too."

"We should plan a shopping trip," said Mary Anne. "I'm all out of those little coloring books, and Suzi Barrett has a fit if I show up without one."

"Do you have a job with them soon?" asked Shannon.

"With the Barretts and the DeWitts," said Mary Anne. "Kristy and I are sitting for both families together next week."

"Whoa!" said Jessi. "That should be a challenge."

Just then, Billy Blue stopped singing, and this time Kristy wasn't responsible. "We interrupt this program for a special bulletin," I heard an announcer say. I held up my hand. "Hey, listen, you guys!" I said.

"This is exactly why I don't want the radio playing during — " Kristy began, but Stacey shushed her. She had just heard the same thing I had heard — a mention of the Stoneybrook Bank.

"Hold on, Kristy," she said. "This could be important."

I turned up the volume, and we all listened.

"A recent surprise audit has uncovered a major deficit in the bank's holdings," the reporter said, sounding very serious. I wasn't exactly sure what she meant by that, but as she kept 'talking, it became pretty dear. There was a ton of money missing from the bank, and no way to explain why.

"Hundreds of thousands of dollars," Mallory whispered, echoing the reporter's words. "I can't even imagine what that much money looks like."

The reporter went on to say that the police had already ruled out the possibility of "transaction error" (Stacey said that meant, like, if a clerk had put ten too many zeros after a number or something), and that the bank's video cameras showed no signs of a robbery or forcible entry. Then she said that the bank was asking for anybody with information or

tips to call a special number. Then the bulletin ended, and Billy Blue came back on, in the middle of singing "I'm Lost Without You."

This time, I was the one to reach over and turn the radio off. Kristy looked at me in amazement. "That was big news," I said. "I mean, that could be our money that’s missing."

"Do you have an account at that bank?" asked Shannon.

"Well, no," I admitted. "But I might have opened one, if I ever decided to save my money. Anyway, I was just thinking — wouldn't it be wild if there was a due to the crime in one of those pictures I took on Sunday? I mean, I must have shot a zillion pictures of that bank."

"Oh, Claud, you've been watching too many late-night movies," said Stacey.

"There is a movie about something like that happening," Mary Anne said thoughtfully. "I can't think of the title, but it's about this photographer who takes a picture of a murder — by mistake, I mean. He only finds out about it later, when he develops the pictures."

"See?" I said. "It could happen."

"Sure it could,” said Kristy. "But it doesn't seem too likely. I mean, we don't even know when the crime took place. If d be a major coincidence if it happened last Sunday."

"Kristy's right," said Stacey. "I mean, this isn't Nancy Drew and the Mystery of the Bank." She poked me in the side and giggled. The rest of my friends joined in the teasing, but I tried not to pay attention.