The Mystery Horse by Gertrude Chandler Warner Page B

the guests are starting to wander over.” She handed him a hickory switch and he stuck a hot dog on the top. “Just remember to hold it over the flames, not in them.”
    Benny accidentally let his first hot dog turn black on one side, but he was so excited that he ate it anyway with plenty of mustard and ketchup. The second one was even better because he had figured out how to rotate the hot dog so it cooked evenly.
    â€œThis is a beautiful spot,” Jessie said to Danny. The sun had already set over the pond, and they were sitting under a willow tree, balancing paper plates on their laps.
    â€œThis is where Dad takes Wind Dancer for his exercise,” Danny said, keeping his voice low. “You see that trail between the pine trees over there?” Jessie nodded. “It’s the old bridle path, and it runs all the way around the pond. Wind Dancer gets a good workout, and it’s really safe. No one can spot them.”
    â€œI hope you’re right,” Jessie said, a little shiver going down her back. She knew that Wind Dancer would never be completely safe as long as the two horse thieves were around.
    After Benny had finished a second helping of blueberry cobbler, he stood up and stretched. A twinkling of lights at the edge of the pond caught his eye and he nudged Violet. “Hey, look at the lightning bugs,” he said. “There must be a hundred of them over there in the forest.”
    â€œOh, they’re pretty. I love the way they blink on and off.” Violet scrambled to her feet. “Let’s go over and see them.” After they carefully threw away their paper plates, Violet and Benny headed for the dense pine forest that ringed the old pond. The grown-ups were having coffee, and they knew it would be another hour or so before the camp songs started.
    As they started to walk around the pond, Benny taught Violet what he had learned about the constellations. “You see that little group of stars all stuck together? That’s the Seven Sisters,” he said proudly. “Henry said it’s one of the easiest ones to spot. That’s the very first constellation he taught me.”
    â€œOh, I think I see the Big Dipper,” Violet said. “Or is it the Little Dipper?” She brushed aside a pine branch and noticed that the sharp needles clung to her sweatshirt.
    Benny tilted his head to one side. “No, you’re right, it’s the Big Dipper. I like that one, because it looks just like its name. Some of the other ones are hard to pick out.”
    â€œThat’s funny,” Violet said in a strange voice. She was staring at the blanket of pine needles on the ground.
    â€œWhat’s wrong?”
    â€œLook over there,” she said, tugging at Benny’s arm.
    Benny shrugged. “It looks like the pine needles are all mushed down, that’s all.”

    â€œThose are tire tracks,” she said.
    Benny stared, his eyes round. “I knew it! Henry said I was dreaming, but I knew I was right.” Quickly, he told Violet about seeing lights around the pond one night. “They weren’t ghost lights, they were headlights!”
    â€œSomeone was out here snooping around,” Violet said. Her voice was shaky. “Do you think we should follow the tracks and see where they lead?”
    Before Benny could answer, a shout went up from the direction of the camp fire. “Fire!”
    â€œThat sounded like Henry,” Violet said, grabbing Benny by the arm. “We better see what’s up!”
    They started to race back to the picnic area and then realized that everyone was heading in the opposite direction.
    â€œOh, no,” Benny wailed. “The fire must be back at the farm.”
    â€œIt’s at the stable!” Violet shouted. She pointed to a thick coil of black smoke above the roof of the stable.
    By the time they had dashed back to the stable, the smoke was gone and a small group of people had