Benny Uncovers a Mystery Read Online Free PDF

“Grandfather and Violet and me—we’ve all been asked. We’ll be there, too.”
    Benny turned to Grandfather and said, “Something is going on. And I just don’t understand it. I have an idea you know something about this.”
    Grandfather looked at Benny and said with just a small smile. “I’m having lunch on Wednesday with some old friends. You remember I’ve known Mr. Furman for years. In fact, I remember when Mr. Furman’s father came to the store each day.”
    “But what about Jessie and Violet?” Benny asked. He looked at his sisters. “I didn’t think you knew Miss Douglas that well.”
    “We met Miss Douglas at Furman’s,” Jessie said.
    “Yes, she helped me buy the blouse I like so much,” Violet added.
    “There’s something else, too,” Jessie told her brothers. “Violet and I were at Woodland Path yesterday afternoon.”
    “And you never told us?” Benny asked. “Jessie, that isn’t fair. You’ve heard us talk and talk about Miss Douglas and how she comes to Furman’s all the time.”
    “Can’t we girls have a little mystery of our own?” asked Jessie. “You aren’t the only one who can uncover a mystery wherever you go, Benny.”
    Then Violet looked at the boys’ faces and laughed. “I can’t be mean to you two,” she said. “You won’t be able to wait until Wednesday if we don’t explain some things.”
    “We’re listening,” Henry said. “What’s been going on?”
    Jessie said, “You know we’ve been working, too. At the park. You never even once came to swim while I was a life guard there. But it’s all right, I know you have been busy. I met some new kids, and one of them knew Benny. He told me how hard you work, Benny—you never have time to talk when you’re on the job.”
    Benny said right away, “I know who that is! It has to be Ted Evans. Right?”
    “Right,” said Jessie. “Ted likes to know what’s going on. He’s curious, just like you, Benny. He walked around to see what was happening at the different classes in the park. He stopped to watch Violet’s painting class.”
    “We were painting flowers,” Violet explained. “Anybody can take a class in the park, you know. There were some children painting and a few older people, too.”
    “Did Ted want to take painting?” Benny asked. He couldn’t imagine that.
    “No,” laughed Violet. “But he said he knew some ladies who might like to paint. And the next day, guess who came? Miss Douglas and her neighbor, Mrs. Fields.”
    “I remember Mrs. Fields,” Benny said. “Ted and I put up the bird feeder for her. She had sprained her ankle.”
    “That’s why she said she wanted to try painting,” Violet said. “I was a little afraid to have the ladies in my class. I’m not that good a teacher. But Miss Douglas and Mrs. Fields were so nice that we all had a good time.”
    “How did Miss Douglas act?” Benny asked. “Was she really pleasant to you?”
    “Oh, yes,” Violet exclaimed. “She asked Jessie and me to come over to her house after we were through with our work at the park. We knew how to find Woodland Path because Benny had told us so much about getting there.”
    Jessie said, “Miss Douglas is a lot different in her own home. She’s not at all like the woman who goes shopping at Furman’s. She told us she had just moved here. She likes Greenfield very much.”
    “I remembered that Miss Douglas helped me buy my blouse,” Violet said. “I asked her how she had learned so much about clothing. She told us she likes to test different fabrics. She washes samples to see if the color runs. She dries them in the sun to see if the colors fade.”
    Benny said, “Miss Douglas told me she’s been testing the different coffeemakers, too.”
    While the others talked, Henry had been quiet. Now he asked, “But why is Maggie Douglas asking everyone to come to a picnic next Wednesday? It seems like a lot of work just to be friendly.”
    “You’ll have to wait and see,” was all Mr.