by Ron Roy
“Tell us!” Ruth Rose said.
“Okay,” Josh said. “Mr. Paskey owns a bookstore, right? And kids buy books there, right?”
“Josh, we know that,” Dink said. “Tell us your trick!”
Just then a skinny guy came in. He wore a baseball cap that partly covered his face. The guy stopped at the counter and wiped raindrops from his glasses while he glanced at the ice cream choices.
Josh grinned. “Okay, here’s the plan,” he said. “I’m going to tell Mr. Paskey that some kid came into his store to buy a book. The kid paid for the book with a bunch of coins he had in his pocket. One of the coins was a nickel like the one in this book, worth three million dollars!”
Dink and Ruth Rose just looked at him.
“How is that going to work?” Ruth Rose asked. “Mr. Paskey knows that two of those nickels are owned by rich collectors. The other three are locked up in museums. So how does a kid have one?”
“I’m getting to that part,” Josh said. “That’s why my idea is so—”
“Brilliant?” Dink asked.
“Yes!”
The skinny man brought his cup of ice cream to the booth behind the kids. He pulled out a cell phone, typed a number, and began talking. Dink heard him say, “Mark’s party” and something about a cake.
“What’s your brilliant idea?” Ruth Rose asked Josh.
“Be prepared to be amazed,” Josh said. He leaned closer to Dink and Ruth Rose. “My grandfather plays a game with us every time my brothers and I visit him. He hides money, and if we find it, we get to keep it.”
“That sounds like a great game,” Dink said. “But I didn’t know your grandfather was rich.”
“He isn’t,” Josh said. “He just hides nickels and dimes.”
“Okay, but what does your grandfather have to do with Mr. Paskey?” Ruth Rose asked.
“I’m not finished,” Josh said. “I’m going to tell Mr. Paskey that one of the two collectors who own those nickels plays that game with his grandson. He hides money, and his grandson gets to keep what he finds.”
“Don’t tell me!” Dink cried. “The grandson found—”
“Yes!” Josh said. “The grandson accidentally found that valuable nickel and put it in his pocket.”
“And then he spent it in Mr. Paskey’s store?” asked Ruth Rose.
Josh nodded, looking like a sly fox.
“But how did this kid find the coin?” Dink asked. “I mean, if it’s so valuable, wouldn’t his grandfather keep it locked in a safe?”
Josh thought for a minute. Then he tapped his forehead and grinned. “Here’s what happened,” he said. “The rich guy was at his desk, messing around with some of his most valuable coins, when he heard the doorbell. So he picked up the coins, then shoved the them into a drawer and went to answer the door.”
Josh grinned again. “But he missed one nickel on his desk,” he said. “When he opened the door, it was his grandson. Granddad went to the kitchen for some milk and cookies while the kid wandered around the house looking for hidden coins. He saw the rare nickel and put it in his pocket, not knowing it was part of his grandfather’s collection.”
“He thought his grandfather left the nickel on the desk for him to find, like in the game?” Ruth Rose asked.
“Right,” Josh said.
“Okay, the kid got the coin,” Dink said, “but how did he spend it in the Book Nook?”
Josh squinted his eyes. “The kid lives in Hartford,” he said. “His mom drives him to Green Lawn, and they walk into the Book Nook. The kid has the nickel in his pocket, along with his allowance. He buys a book, and Mr. Paskey puts the money in his cash register.”
Dink blinked. “You mean this kid spent a three-million-dollar nickel to buy some three-dollar book?” he asked.
Josh nodded and grinned. “Yep.”
Ruth Rose looked at Dink. “It is kind of brilliant,” she said.
Just then the guy in the baseball cap jumped up from his seat and ran out of the diner.
“So what happens after you tell Mr. Paskey this crazy story?” Dink asked Josh.
“Then Mr. Paskey rushes to his cash register and starts looking at all his nickels through that loopy thing,” Josh said.
“It’s a loupe,” Ruth Rose said. “My uncle uses one when he examines his stamp collection.”
“But won’t Mr. Paskey wonder how you, Josh Pinto, know about this kid and his grandfather?” Dink asked Josh.
Josh pointed to the small TV on the wall behind Ellie’s counter. “He probably won’t ask, but if he does, I’ll tell him I saw it on TV. Big news story!”
Ellie came by with a wet sponge. “How was your ice cream?” she asked.
“It was delicious, thank you,” said Dink.
Ellie wiped the empty table behind theirs. “Oh, that guy who was just here forgot his glasses,” she said. “He didn’t even finish his marshmallow fudge nut ice cream!” She picked up the glasses and hurried out the door after him.
“So when are you going to pull this brilliant trick on poor Mr. Paskey?” Dink asked.
“Tomorrow,” Josh said, working on his cone.
“But April Fools’ Day is today,” Ruth Rose said.
“That’s why this is going to be so awesome,” Josh said. “If I go back to the Book Nook today and tell him a kid spent a three-million-dollar nickel in his store, he’ll know I’m just goofing on him.”
Josh tapped his forehead. “But if I spring this on him tomorrow, when it isn’t April Fools’ Day, he’ll never expect a trick. It’ll be perfect!”
—
The next morning, Dink, Josh, and Ruth Rose met and walked to the Book Nook. Josh was mumbling to himself, rehearsing the story he planned to tell Mr. Paskey.
Suddenly they heard a siren, and a police cruiser raced past them. It was headed down Main Street, the same direction they were going.
“Come on!” Josh said, and the kids took off after the cruiser.
Five minutes later, they reached the Book Nook, out of breath. Mr. Paskey was standing out front, talking to Officer Fallon, Green Lawn’s chief of police. His cruiser was parked in front of the store.
“I wonder what’s going on,” Josh said.
“Officer Fallon is here to arrest you,” Dink whispered.
“For what?” Josh asked.
“For lying to Mr. Paskey.”
Ruth Rose giggled. “Twenty years in jail for Josh,” she said.
“No way,” Josh said. “I won’t be lying, just April-fooling him.”
Officer Fallon noticed the kids. “Hi, gang,” he said. “What’s going on?”
“Um, we’re just here to see Mr. Paskey,” Dink said. “Josh has something to tell him.”
“Well, I hope you can cheer him up,” Officer Fallon said.
Mr. Paskey turned around. His face was pale, and he looked as if he hadn’t slept in a week. His hair was mussed, and Mr. Paskey always combed his hair.
“Mr. Paskey, what’s wrong?” Dink asked.
“Someone broke into my store last night,” Mr. Paskey said. He sounded as if he had a sore throat.
“You’re kidding!” Josh said.
“Did they take anything?” Ruth Rose asked.
Mr. Paskey swallowed, then said, “They stole my coin collection and my grandfather’s box!”
“That’s awful!” Ruth Rose said.
Just then Officer Keene came around the corner of the Book Nook. “No sign of forced entry anywhere,” he said.
“Okay, let’s go inside,” Officer Fallon said. “I want to see the damage and those footprints you told me about.”
Mr. Paskey led the two officers inside, with the kids following. He stopped and pointed. One side of his glass display case was shattered. Sharp pieces of glass were scattered across the counter and the floor.
The coins and the carved box were gone.
Someone had spray-painted HA! HA! HA! across the case’s door in yellow letters.
They all stared at t
he smashed case. Officer Fallon touched one of the sprayed letters. “The paint is dry,” he said. “Must’ve been done hours ago.”
“But who would do this?” Mr. Paskey asked.
“Maybe it’s supposed to be some April Fools’ joke,” Dink said.
“But it’s not a joke!” Mr. Paskey wailed. “My coins are gone, and my grandfather’s box!”
“You’re right,” Officer Keene said. “This is no joke. It’s grand theft! And spraying HA! HA! HA! means the crook is laughing at you!”
Dink didn’t know what to say. He looked at Mr. Paskey, who had tears in his eyes.
Officer Fallon put his hand on Mr. Paskey’s shoulder. “Come on,” he said. “Show me the footprints.”
They walked to the bathroom in the rear of the store. Mr. Paskey shoved the door open wider. “There,” he said. “Damp footprints on the floor and on the toilet seat.”
He pointed to the small window next to the toilet. “And I found that window open,” he said. “When I left last night, it was closed and locked.”
Officer Keene bent down and studied the dirty footprints. “Made by medium-size feet,” he said, placing his own large shoe next to one of the prints.
“I don’t see how anyone could get through that window,” Officer Fallon said, “if it really was locked.”
“It was,” Mr. Paskey said.
“Who uses this bathroom during the day?” Officer Keene asked.
“I do,” Mr. Paskey said. “Sometimes a customer will ask, but not often.”
“Yesterday you let the plumber wash her hands in here,” Dink said.
“You’re right. I forgot about that,” Mr. Paskey said. “Her hands were dirty because she’d fixed a leak in my basement.”
“So maybe these are the plumber’s footprints,” Officer Fallon said.
Mr. Paskey shook his head. “No, I’m pretty sure this floor was clean when I went home,” he said. “I check the bathroom every night before I leave.”
“Then we’ve got a real mystery on our hands,” Officer Fallon said. “You say nobody was in the store when you closed up, yet somebody left these footprints here!”
Officer Keene touched one of the footprints, then looked at what his finger had picked up. “It’s not dirt from a yard or garden,” he said. “It’s more gritty, like tiny pieces of stone or cement.”
“Mr. Paskey, are you absolutely, one hundred percent sure this floor was clean when you locked up and went home?” Officer Fallon asked.
Mr. Paskey closed his eyes for a moment. “Well, maybe not one hundred percent sure,” he said. “All I know is that I usually check the bathroom every night. I suppose I could have forgotten.”
“And who was the last person in here?” Officer Keene asked.
“Amanda Dale, the plumber,” Mr. Paskey said.
“And before coming in here, she had been in your basement fixing a leak, right?” Officer Keene went on.
Mr. Paskey nodded.
“So she probably had wet, gritty stuff on her feet when she came out of the basement and walked into this bathroom, right?” Officer Keene continued. “Leaving tracks on your bathroom floor.”
“Yes, I guess she could have,” said Mr. Paskey. “But as I told you, the floor was clean when I went home. If Amanda came in here with dirty shoes, she cleaned up after herself.”
“How well do you know Amanda?” Officer Fallon asked Mr. Paskey.
“Pretty well,” Mr. Paskey said. “Her father, Steve Dale, used to be my plumber. When he retired last year, Amanda took over his business.”
“Think real hard,” Officer Fallon said to Mr. Paskey. “Would Amanda have any reason to unlock this window while she was in here washing her hands?”
“I don’t see why she would,” Mr. Paskey said. “But she might have, I suppose.”
“It happened on April Fools’ Day,” Officer Keene pointed out. “Could this plumber—Amanda—be playing a prank?”
“Some plumbers carry spray paint in their toolboxes,” Officer Keene said. “They use it to mark pipes where they want to cut.”
Mr. Paskey shook his head. “She’d never do that. Her dad and I have been friends for years,” he said. “We collect coins together. Amanda knows how important our collections are.”
Officer Fallon looked at Officer Keene. “Maybe we’d better talk to Amanda Dale anyway,” he said quietly.
They all walked back toward the front of the store.
“I’m sorry for your trouble, Mr. Paskey,” Officer Fallon said. “I’d like you to make a list of everyone who came into your store in the last couple of days.”
“But I don’t remember everyone,” Mr. Paskey said. Then he added, “Do you think the thief was one of my customers?”
“It had to be someone who knew about those coins,” Officer Fallon said. “Just do the best you can with the list.”
The officers started to leave. Officer Keene stopped and turned around. “Would you have Ms. Dale’s phone number?” he asked.
“Yes,” Mr. Paskey said. He pulled a business card from a drawer and handed it to Officer Keene. “You won’t tell Amanda that I’m accusing her of anything, will you? Because I’m not.”
“We just want to ask a few questions,” Officer Fallon said. “Maybe get her fingerprints. So please don’t touch that bathroom window, in case her prints are there. In fact, I’d like you to lock the bathroom door now. And don’t touch the glass case, either. We’ll need to check it and the bathroom for fingerprints.”
The two officers left. Dink watched them climb into their cruiser and pull away up Main Street.
While Mr. Paskey was locking the bathroom door, Josh pulled Dink and Ruth Rose behind a bookshelf. “Should I tell him you-know-what?” he whispered. “It might cheer him up, like Officer Fallon said.”
“You mean the story about the boy and the nickel?” Ruth Rose asked.
Josh nodded.
“I think you should,” Dink said. “But tell him it was meant to be an April Fools’ joke.”
Mr. Paskey walked over to the counter. He still looked pretty upset, but his hair was combed. “Now, what can I do for you kids today?” he asked. “Need more copies of The Dark Forest?”
“No, but I want to tell you something,” Josh said. “It’s sort of a joke.” His face turned pink.
“Good, I can use a joke,” Mr. Paskey said, glancing around. “I still can’t believe my coins are gone!”
Josh explained the trick he had been planning to pull on him. When he was finished, all three kids stared at Mr. Paskey.
Is he going to be upset at us? Dink wondered.
Mr. Paskey grinned. “That’s brilliant!” he said. “I would have checked all the nickels in the store, then run to the bank to look over last night’s deposit. That would have been a terrific April Fools’ trick, Josh. How did you think of something so clever?”
“I got the idea from that coin book you gave me,” Josh said.
Mr. Paskey looked at the broken glass case. “Well, I’d better start on that list,” he sighed.
The kids left the Book Nook. Through the window, they could see Mr. Paskey writing on a pad.
“I feel so bad for him,” Ruth Rose said.
“Me too,” Josh said.
“I just can’t believe the crook is someone Mr. Paskey knows,” Ruth Rose said. “Like a customer or that plumber.”
“Me too,” Dink said, thinking about the HA! HA! HA! sprayed on the glass case. “I’ll bet it was a stranger.”
It began to rain again. Dink put up the hood on his sweatshirt. “I have money today,” he said. “From my coin collection. I’ll treat for hot chocolates at Ellie’s.”
The kids hurried up Main Street.
The booths in Ellie’s Diner were all taken because it was a rainy Saturday. Ellie was hurrying between the counter and the booths, waiting on people.
“Gee, maybe I could work here,” Josh said. “I could be an ice cream scooper!”
“You mean an ice cr
eam eater,” Dink said. “Ellie would never let you near her ice cream!”
The kids sat at the counter and ordered three hot chocolates.
“We should tell Ellie about Mr. Paskey’s coin collection,” Ruth Rose said.
“She’s pretty busy,” Dink said. “Besides, Mr. Paskey will probably tell her himself.”
They sipped their hot chocolates and watched Ellie zooming around the diner, helping her customers.
“Officer Fallon thinks it was her,” Josh said.
“Who?” Dink asked. “Ellie?”
“No, Amanda,” Josh said.
“I don’t see how she could have done it,” Dink said. “We saw her leave the Book Nook after she came out of the bathroom.”
“But Officer Fallon thinks she might have unlocked the bathroom window,” Josh said. “Maybe she came back after the store was closed and climbed through it with dirty feet.”
“So you think those were her footprints?” Ruth Rose asked.
“It makes sense,” Josh said.
The three kids sipped and thought about Amanda Dale stealing Mr. Paskey’s coins.
“Well, if it was Amanda, maybe Officer Fallon will find her fingerprints on the window and the lock,” Dink said.
“But she could just say she wanted some fresh air, so she opened the window,” Ruth Rose said. “Her fingerprints on the window don’t prove she took the coins.”
“Unless she also left fingerprints on the glass case while she was spraying HA! HA! HA!” Josh said. “She’d have a hard time explaining that!”
“Guys, I don’t think it was Amanda,” Dink said. “Mr. Paskey knows her, and he trusts her.” He sighed. “But some burglar got inside the Book Nook and stole those coins!”
After a minute, Josh said, “Maybe not.”
“What do you mean?” Ruth Rose asked.
“Maybe there was no burglar at all,” Josh said. “What if Mr. Paskey made those footprints to fool us? What if he just took his coin collection home?”