by Peggy Dulle
“Good idea.” I thought about my new journal. Sometimes great minds think alike.
Then Tom screamed. “Chase! Come back here!”
“What’s the matter?”
“The puppy’s gone under the back fence. I’ve got to go.” He panted. I could tell he was running with the phone.
“Goodbye, Tom.”
“Bye!”
A police dog named Chase? That wasn’t very inventive for a name. I closed the phone, grabbed a Diet Coke and a few black licorices from the refrigerator. I changed into a red long-sleeved shirt. The nights in Oregon were cooler than at my house and I hated to be cold. But my feet never get cold and since I spend so many days with my feet crammed into shoes for school, I always wear flip-flops during the summer time. Then Shelby and I drove back to the fairgrounds.
A massive crowd stood by the eating contest tables. All of the usual men were there: no-necks, Latinos and Asian groups. I spotted Ted and Kate and walked up to them.
I patted Ted on the shoulder. “Are you ready?”
He shook his head and grinned. “I am totally ready.”
I glanced at Kate. “Is he?”
“Oh yeah.” She turned her back and rolled her eyes so Ted couldn’t see her. “He’s been marching around chanting ‘I can eat more hotdogs than you!’ for the last half an hour.” She patted Ted on the back. “I’d say he’s geared up and ready to munch!”
“Great!” I replied. “How much longer before the contest begins?”
“About five minutes,” Kate answered.
Just then Mayor Galan’s voice boomed over the loudspeakers. “Contestants, are you ready to eat?”
Everyone screamed, “Yes!”
The contestants went to the right of the table where Mayor Galan stood. He held out a bowl. “These numbers will tell you when you’ll be participating in the contest.”
The contestants walked single file past the mayor and collected their numbers. Ted ran over to us, his face beaming. “I’ve got number ten.”
“And that’s good?” I asked.
“Yeah. It means I’m not in the first round. I want to watch them and see how many hotdogs they eat. It will help me know how fast I’ll need to go.”
“Wouldn’t a later number be better?” I asked.
“No, by then you’re so nervous your stomach is all tied up in knots. It’s hard to eat without throwing up then.”
I patted him on the shoulder again. “Great!”
“Okay, I’ve got to go and get ready.”
Kate leaned over and kissed him on the cheek. “We’ll be out front cheering for you.”
He blushed and then smiled. “Thanks.”
Ted left us and went into the huge tent behind the eating contestant tables. Kate and I stood with the rest of the crowd that had gathered to watch the contest.
The first five contestants came up to the platform and sat at the table. A huge plate of hotdogs was placed in front of them.
Mayor Galan stood holding a large stopwatch. “Contestants, don’t forget — you must eat the entire hotdog. Do not leave any pieces of the bun or meat on the table. Are you ready?”
All of the contestants nodded. Then the mayor looked at the table in front of the contestant’s table, where five men sat. Each had a legal pad in front of them.
“Judges, are you ready?” The mayor asked.
The judges’ nodded their heads and the mayor looked back at the contestants.
He grinned and slowly spoke the three words to start the contest. “Then … let’s … go!”
At that point, all five men started stuffing hotdogs into their mouths. Kate was right; it was gross. Pieces kept falling out and the men just stuffed them back in. If the kids in my class ate like that, I’d be giving them a long speech about etiquette. I guess manners don’t count during eating contests.
Mayor Galan held up the stopwatch and eyed it. When it got to twenty-five seconds, he yelled, “Five seconds left!”
The men stuffed the food in faster. The mayor blew a whistle and the contestants stood up, swallowed their last bites, and stepped away from the table. The mayor went directly to the judges. Their heads went together and they started comparing the notes they’d taken on the pads.
Mayor Galan went back to the contestant’s table. “Will the first five contestants please come back to your spots at the table?”
All five returned, smiling and clearly unaware of who had won the contest. The mayor held up a set of three-by-five cards. “On these cards is the total number of entire hotdogs each contestant ate in the thirty seconds.” He held up the first card. “Contestant Number One ate…” he paused for effect, “…fifteen hotdogs!”
The crowd went wild as contestant Number One smiled and took a bow. The mayor continued with the remaining results.
“Contestant Number Two…” another pause, “…ate eighteen hotdogs.”
Again, another bow and fanfare from the crowd.
“Contestant Number Three…” the mayor smiled broadly, “…ate twenty-two hotdogs.”
This brought even louder cheering from the crowd and contestant Number Three strutted back and forth across the stage. Contestant Number One and Two slumped toward the back of the stage.
The mayor continued but with much less enthusiasm and no pausing to excite the crowd. “Number Four ate sixteen hotdogs. Five was disqualified because he left four hotdogs only partially eaten.”
The losers frowned, the man who was disqualified yelled about the contest being unfair, and the winner screamed for joy.
Ted was in the next round — Contestant Number Ten. The mayor followed the same procedure. To me it looked like Ted was going really fast. I tried to count and I got to twenty-two before the mayor blew the whistle. The contestants left the table, the judges and the mayor conferred, and the mayor and the contestants returned. Ted ended up eating twenty-three hotdogs but was out-eaten by Contestant Number eight who ate twenty-seven hotdogs. It was amazing because he was a small man, barely five foot tall and maybe a hundred pounds or so. I don’t know where he put those hotdogs.
Ted came over and Kate gave him a big hug. “That’s not your contest anyway, Ted. You’re the pizza-eating king, remember?”
Ted smiled and nodded. “That’s right. I’m the pizza king not the hotdog king!”
“You did a great job, Ted.”
“Thanks, Liza.”
Ted and Kate started to walk away from the contest. “Wait,” I said. “You’re not going to watch the rest?”
They shook their heads. “We always leave if Ted doesn’t win.”
“Okay, but I think I’ll watch the rest. I’ve never been to an eating contest before.”
“Okay,” Kate said. “When the contest’s over, why don’t you come over to the café? Ted and I are going to walk over and get a snack.”
I glanced at Ted and grimaced. “You can eat after twenty-three hotdogs?” I asked.
“Oh no,” Ted gulped. “Kate eats. I just drink.”
“Okay, I’ll come over afterwards.” I glanced down at Shelby. “Do I have to take my dog back to the inn first?”
“No, the café will let you bring Shelby in, as long as she lies down under the table.”
“Great.”
Ted and Kate headed out of the fairgrounds and I went back to the contest. It was basically the same thing I’d already seen. There were five more rounds and in the end the winners ate between twenty-five and twenty-seven hotdogs. Afterwards Shelby and I walked the few blocks down Main Street to the Clainsworth Café. The place was crowded, but I spotted Kate and Ted in a back booth. Kate spooned ice cream from a huge banana split into her mouth and Ted sipped a soda.
They waved when they saw me. I waved back and went to their booth. Shelby scooted under the table and lay down.
I patted Ted on the arm. “How are you doing, Ted?”
“I’m fine. I’ve started gearing up for Wednesday’s contest.”
“The French fries?”
The waitress came over and I ordered onion rings and a Diet Coke. I try to watch my calorie intake but the onion rings I’d seen on another patron’s plate looked huge and very inviting. Of course, I ordered a Diet Coke to go with them. I have to save the calories someplace, don’t I?
“Have you learned anything new about Danielle’s death?” Kate asked between bites of her dessert.
“Not really. I’m pretty sure she came here to look into Sally’s death. But I haven’t been able to figure out why.”
“Maybe she was a friend,” Ted suggested.
“It could be, but I can’t find any connection between them.”
“If they weren’t friends then why would Danielle care about Sally’s death?” Kate asked.
“I don’t know.”
“Maybe she just liked crazy people?” Ted suggested.
Kate hit him on the arm. “Don’t call her that!”
He pulled his arm back. “But she was!”
“No, she wasn’t!”
“Yes, she was! She was always seeing people who weren’t really there, wandering around the town and in the woods behind her house.”
“I know, but that doesn’t give you the right to call her crazy.”
“Is it possible there really were people wandering in the town and in the forest?” I asked, trying to interrupt the banter between Kate and Ted.
Kate sneered at Ted and then turned to me, “I don’t see why there would be. There isn’t anything in the woods except trees.”
“And beyond the woods?” I asked.
“Just the old mine shafts.”
The waitress brought my food and Ted pointed to my onion rings. “Can I have one?”
“Sure. I wouldn’t think you’d be very hungry after eating all those hotdogs.”
“Yeah, but the café makes great onion rings. I usually take an order home and put them in my freezer. I just love frozen onion rings.”
“I’ve never had them like that.”
“They’re great.”
“He’s right, they are good in the freezer,” Kate added, pushing her empty plate away. “What’s the next move in your investigation?”
“I thought I’d wander around the woods and over by the mine shafts.”
“Do you think you’ll find what Sally was seeing all those years?” Kate asked.
“Probably not. I just want to get a feel for the place.”
“I’m a pretty good mine guide. Do you want me to go with you?” Kate suggested.
“No, that’s okay. I don’t really plan to go into the mine, just wander around on the outside.”
“Okay, but if you change your mind, I’d be happy to give you a tour. I spent a lot of time in the mines during class excursions with Mr. J. He even said I’d make a good guide.”
Ted grinned. “She was his pet.”
Kate hit him on the arm again. “I was not!”
This time I interrupted before the barrage of back-and-forth exchange began. “There’s nothing wrong with being the teacher’s pet.”
Kate smiled. “That’s right, and I was only his pet because I was the best.”
“Well, if I decide to actually go into the mine, I’ll call on you as my guide, okay?”
“That’s great. I’ve got all the gear.”
“Yeah, she looks like a real outdoor geek with all that stuff on.”
“I don’t care how I look. You have to have the right gear for the job.”
“That’s right,” I said. “By the way Kate, your dad invited me to dinner at your house tonight. Is there anything I should bring?”
“You’re going to dinner at their house?” Ted said, sticking his bottom lip out.
Kate hit him on the arm again. “You can come too, dummy.”
He smiled broadly. “Great. What are we having?”
“Chicken Marsala and homemade noodles.”
“I’m not much of a cook but that sounds pretty complicated. Your dad didn’t tell me you were an accomplished chef.”
“She’s a super cook!” Ted replied.
“I do okay,” Kate said, shyly. “I took a cooking class at the high school and loved it, so now I watch all the cooking shoes. Iron Chef is my favorite and I like to copy his techniques.”
Ted nodded in agreement. “It’s cool. She has all the right knives, pots, and gadgets, too.”
“I’m impressed,” I said truthfully. “I can’t wait for dinner.”
“Come over around six-thirty. It usually takes me that long to get everything ready.”
“Are you sure there isn’t anything I can bring?”
“No, I’ve got everything I need, plus Diet Coke for you.”
“Thanks.” I finished eating, although Ted ate most of my onion rings, and we talked about the next days eating contest.
Half an hour later, I said goodbye to them and walked back to Kate’s car at the fairgrounds. I drove over to where Sally’s house had been. Jimmy had put up a large sign warning of the moving dirt and the chance of falling into the hole. It was still light, but I didn’t know how long I’d be wandering around, so I checked Kate’s car for a flashlight. I didn’t find one, but I did find a helmet with a light and a backpack full of ropes and other gadgets. In a side pocket of Kate’s backpack was a granola bar. I might need a snack later, so I slid it into the pocket of my jeans. I was sure that Kate wouldn’t mind my eating it. As for the rest of the gear, I didn’t have a clue what it would be used for so I left it in her car. I also left my purse in the car, but put my cell phone into the back pocket of my jeans.
I put the hat on and was glad I didn’t have a mirror. I probably looked like an idiot. Shelby and I walked around the big hole and into the forest behind Sally’s house. The forest was thick with tall pine trees. The shade from the trees made it darker and I turned on the helmet light so I wouldn’t trip over any fallen branches. There weren’t any footprints that I could see and the ground looked undisturbed. In fact, the forest floor looked like I was its only human visitor in years.
I took Shelby off her leash and watched her run back and forth in front of me, barking the entire time. She was having a great time, while I was just being extremely careful with my footing. The last thing I wanted to do was fall. Who would come looking for me and when?
A quarter mile into the forest, the trees ended. The ground was covered with short grass, small bushy shrubs, and lots of broken tree branches. I had no idea what any of them where, but avoided the bushes because they had thorns on them. I picked up a long stick and used it as a walking stick, thinking that if I ran into any snakes or critters, I could use it as a weapon.
The ground crunched as I walked. With each crunch, Shelby barked, always trying to herd me. The crunching made her crazier than usual. I turned my helmet light off because since we’d left the thick grove of trees there was plenty of light to see the ground. There were several deep holes and I was careful to walk around them.
I couldn’t see where the mines actually were. There were a few small mounds of dirt to the right, so I headed over. I wouldn’t go into the mines — that would be stupid — but I could look in, especially since I had a light.
Shelby ran behind me and I turned and yelled at her, “Shelby, come on. Stay with me.”
I took a step backwards and heard the ground crunch under my feet. I wasn’t concerned, since the ground had been crunching since I left the forest. Then I felt myself start to fall backwards. It seemed as if someone pulled the back of my shirt, but that wasn’t possible because I was all by myself.
My foot started to slip downward and the ground gave way. I reached up and grabbed for some of the branches. But they slipped through my fingers. I tumbled down through the ground. I screamed, but there wasn’t anyone to hear me except, maybe, the person who had pulled on my shirt. After a few seconds I landed on the ground, fell backwards and hit my head. Then the world went black.
Chapter 15
Great! Now I had cut on the left side of my forehead. It was more superficial than the last time and didn’t appear to be bleeding. That was good. And thank God I’d changed into long pants or my legs would have been cut up, too. But I hurt all over again — after my body was just starting to recuperate from my car accident.
I glanced upward. The hole I had fallen through was barely visible. It was either very small or I’d fallen quite a few feet down. I reached around on the floor and began searching for the helmet with the light. Unfortunately, I didn’t find it, but I did find the sharp end of an ax that was lying on the ground.
Great! My finger was bleeding. Maybe I should forget the helmet light and just use my cell phone; hopefully it hadn’t been crushed in the fall.
I pulled it out of my pocket and it didn’t have a single crack in it. That was a good sign. I opened the phone and the display read, No Service. What good is a cell phone if it never works when you need it to? Last time I had bought an expensive cell phone so it would work at clown camp. I returned it because I didn’t need it any more. Maybe I should have kept it.
I put the cell phone back into my pocket. Maybe it would work in another section of the mine. Kate had told me that there were timbers that held up sections of the mine but I wasn’t sure how tall they were. I was afraid to stand up and end up hitting my head again, so I crawled around the floor in search of the helmet. The ground felt dusty, like it was covered in loose dirt, and had several pointed rocks protruding out of it. I was sure I was cutting up my hands on the rocks, but I couldn’t just sit there and wait for someone to find me. No one knew where I was.
The floor of the mine was also very uneven, sloping downward in several places. I kept slipping and almost hitting my face on the ground.
Finally I felt the helmet. I switched on the light; thankfully it hadn’t broken in the fall. The shaft was illuminated. There were timbers on the walls and ceiling. The shaft looked at least ten feet tall, so I stood up. I stretched my back and arms, trying to work out the aches that had started to set in because of the fall.