Harrington.
“You!” Jessie accused. “You’re the ghost!”
The others ran up.
“It’s Marianne!” Violet said. “She’s the Lady in Gray!”
Pulling off the fake rubber hands, Marianne began to cry.
At that moment, Victor Lacey blasted through the rickety swinging doors of the dance hall.
“All right, you kids!” he said menacingly. “I knew you were trouble the minute I laid eyes on you. Now I’ll have to fix you but good!”
Before the children had a chance to be frightened by his threat, a second voice boomed from the dry goods store.
“You’ll do nothing of the sort, you little weasel!”
Benny hopped up and down. “It’s Gert!”
It was indeed Old Gert. She loomed in the center of the road, her booted feet spread wide apart. No one was going anywhere without dealing with her.
“You leave these children alone,” she told Victor. “The jig is up. I’m on to your little game.”
“So are we,” said Henry. “But we needed to bring the ‘ghost’ out in the open first.”
Suddenly Violet figured out the missing piece that had been bothering her. They were on the wrong track! Marianne Harrington wasn’t the descendant of Rose and Duncan Payne.
Old Gert was!
CHAPTER 10
Benny’s Gift
Violet drew in a breath. It all fit. Old Gert had the brightest blue eyes Violet had ever seen. And Gert’s iron-gray hair had probably once been long and black.
“You’re related to Rose and Duncan,” she said to Gert.
The blue eyes twinkled. “I wondered when you’d guess! Yes, I’m Seraphina’s granddaughter. I was born back East, where Seraphina married. My father, her son, also stayed in the East. But when we visited out here, I knew where I belonged. I came out here as soon as I finished school.”
At that moment, a roaring sound made them all turn toward the top of the old wagon road above. The Jeep, which Marianne had had fixed, screeched to a stop. Grandfather, Corey Browne, and Mrs. Harrington hopped out. They wasted no time hiking down the wagon road into Tincup.
Grandfather strode over to the children. “Are you okay? I was worried when you didn’t come back for supper.”
“Grandfather!” Benny exclaimed. “You can’t sell our town! We know the truth!”
“They don’t know anything!” Victor Lacey blurted. “Who’d listen to a bunch of kids, anyway?”
“I would.” James Alden crossed his arms over his chest.
Marianne Harrington was still crying. She sobbed on Corey’s shoulder.
Victor threw her a disgusted look. “Oh, for Pete’s sake, stop sniveling! If you hadn’t messed things up, we could have pulled it off.”
“I think you’ve bullied enough people,” said Old Gert. “Why don’t you come clean, Lacey.”
But Victor wasn’t about to confess that easily “Those kids are so smart — let them tell what they think I’ve done.”
“Go ahead,” James Alden encouraged his grandchildren.
Henry began, “From the beginning, things didn’t add up. First, Eagles Nest isn’t what it claims to be.”
“I do my best,” said Mrs. Harrington.
“You try to drive people away,” Henry told her. “You deliberately made the food awful and pulled the fuse that works the electricity. You unplugged the phone wires, too.”
“That’s not true!” Mrs. Harrington argued.
“It is true,” Grandfather said, backing up Henry. “I’ve never stayed in a place with such lousy service. Even Mr. Williams left.”
“That’s because he was a real fisherman,” Benny said, taking up the story. “Henry and I saw pictures in a magazine showing the way fishermen dress. Mr. Lacey’s stuff is too new. Like he’s never used it.”
“Not only that, but the trout are trapped upstream with a net that goes all the way across Tincup Creek,” Henry added. “We found the underwater net. No wonder it’s so hard to catch any fish.”
“So what does that prove?” Victor challenged.
Now Violet spoke up. “Nothing, by itself. But there are more pieces to the
“You!” Jessie accused. “You’re the ghost!”
The others ran up.
“It’s Marianne!” Violet said. “She’s the Lady in Gray!”
Pulling off the fake rubber hands, Marianne began to cry.
At that moment, Victor Lacey blasted through the rickety swinging doors of the dance hall.
“All right, you kids!” he said menacingly. “I knew you were trouble the minute I laid eyes on you. Now I’ll have to fix you but good!”
Before the children had a chance to be frightened by his threat, a second voice boomed from the dry goods store.
“You’ll do nothing of the sort, you little weasel!”
Benny hopped up and down. “It’s Gert!”
It was indeed Old Gert. She loomed in the center of the road, her booted feet spread wide apart. No one was going anywhere without dealing with her.
“You leave these children alone,” she told Victor. “The jig is up. I’m on to your little game.”
“So are we,” said Henry. “But we needed to bring the ‘ghost’ out in the open first.”
Suddenly Violet figured out the missing piece that had been bothering her. They were on the wrong track! Marianne Harrington wasn’t the descendant of Rose and Duncan Payne.
Old Gert was!
CHAPTER 10
Benny’s Gift
Violet drew in a breath. It all fit. Old Gert had the brightest blue eyes Violet had ever seen. And Gert’s iron-gray hair had probably once been long and black.
“You’re related to Rose and Duncan,” she said to Gert.
The blue eyes twinkled. “I wondered when you’d guess! Yes, I’m Seraphina’s granddaughter. I was born back East, where Seraphina married. My father, her son, also stayed in the East. But when we visited out here, I knew where I belonged. I came out here as soon as I finished school.”
At that moment, a roaring sound made them all turn toward the top of the old wagon road above. The Jeep, which Marianne had had fixed, screeched to a stop. Grandfather, Corey Browne, and Mrs. Harrington hopped out. They wasted no time hiking down the wagon road into Tincup.
Grandfather strode over to the children. “Are you okay? I was worried when you didn’t come back for supper.”
“Grandfather!” Benny exclaimed. “You can’t sell our town! We know the truth!”
“They don’t know anything!” Victor Lacey blurted. “Who’d listen to a bunch of kids, anyway?”
“I would.” James Alden crossed his arms over his chest.
Marianne Harrington was still crying. She sobbed on Corey’s shoulder.
Victor threw her a disgusted look. “Oh, for Pete’s sake, stop sniveling! If you hadn’t messed things up, we could have pulled it off.”
“I think you’ve bullied enough people,” said Old Gert. “Why don’t you come clean, Lacey.”
But Victor wasn’t about to confess that easily “Those kids are so smart — let them tell what they think I’ve done.”
“Go ahead,” James Alden encouraged his grandchildren.
Henry began, “From the beginning, things didn’t add up. First, Eagles Nest isn’t what it claims to be.”
“I do my best,” said Mrs. Harrington.
“You try to drive people away,” Henry told her. “You deliberately made the food awful and pulled the fuse that works the electricity. You unplugged the phone wires, too.”
“That’s not true!” Mrs. Harrington argued.
“It is true,” Grandfather said, backing up Henry. “I’ve never stayed in a place with such lousy service. Even Mr. Williams left.”
“That’s because he was a real fisherman,” Benny said, taking up the story. “Henry and I saw pictures in a magazine showing the way fishermen dress. Mr. Lacey’s stuff is too new. Like he’s never used it.”
“Not only that, but the trout are trapped upstream with a net that goes all the way across Tincup Creek,” Henry added. “We found the underwater net. No wonder it’s so hard to catch any fish.”
“So what does that prove?” Victor challenged.
Now Violet spoke up. “Nothing, by itself. But there are more pieces to the
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