by Lisa Orchard
After a dinner of spaghetti and meatballs, Sarah and Lacey dashed off to put up the tent. Both girls were excited about camping out in the backyard. Sarah couldn’t wait for Jackie to spend the night, and her heart danced with anticipation. We go together like peanut butter and jelly. A smile burst out on Sarah’s face. Even though the threat of Klonsky lurked in the background, she was enjoying her summer and her new friend.
Sarah and Lacey managed to get the tent up without too much trouble, and they brought out sleeping bags and a cooler full of soda. While her sister was in the house gathering more camping supplies, Sarah opened the flaps to air out the tent. It smelled musty from being stored away all winter.
Joining her sister in the backyard, Lacey carried a flashlight and a radio in her hands. “Looks like we’re ready.”
“It sure does.”
Lacey searched the cooler, counting cans with her index finger. “I’m going to get some more, just in case.”
“Good idea, you can never have too much.”
While her sister ran back into the house, Sarah’s thoughts turned toward their investigation. A chill ran down her spine when Klonsky came to mind. What possible reason could he have for killing the Cat Lady? As she pondered this question, a police cruiser turned the corner and drove slowly down the street. Sarah saw Klonsky at the wheel. He glared at her from inside his car. Sarah’s blood ran cold. She sucked in a breath and stared back, refusing to be intimidated. Scowling and shaking his finger at her, he yelled and sped away. Sarah took several deep breaths; she hadn’t understood what he shouted, but she knew it couldn’t be good. With trembling hands, she pushed her hair out of her face. All of a sudden it hit her.
Klonsky knows where I live.
Chapter Seven
Jackie arrived at seven. After she said hello to Sarah’s aunt and uncle, Sarah and Lacey whisked her outside. They ambled through the yard enjoying the slight breeze blowing in with the twilight.
The air was still thick with humidity—Sarah took a deep breath and let it out slowly. Her chest felt heavy as if the moisture in the air was too thick for her lungs. This feeling brought back the memory of the family camping trip last summer. They had gone to Colorado and hiked through the Rocky Mountains.
On one of their hikes they discovered a river. While sitting on the edge cooling their feet, a herd of elk walked near the Cole family and drank from the water. At that moment, Sarah realized she loved nature. These wild animals just accepted her family as a part of the world, there was no fear or aggressiveness.
She felt at peace as she watched the herd. It was one big family. The older elk kept an eye out for predators, while the calves played in the water. Watching the elk, Sarah realized how important her family was to her. Even my sister, she admitted to herself. All of a sudden, gratitude for her family overwhelmed her, and she couldn’t help but compare her life to the Cat Lady’s.
Tears welled in Sarah’s eyes and her heart swelled with sorrow as she thought about the Cat Lady’s tragic life. The idea she had been haunted until her dying day by the disappearance of her son struck a chord deep in Sarah. A grave injustice had been done, and she felt compelled to rectify it.
Reaching the tent, Sarah stepped inside. Her thoughts turned to Klonsky and apprehension flowed through her body like a raging river. The teens sat in the center of the tent in a circle. Sarah took a few minutes and told the girls about her sighting of the crooked cop.
Jackie’s eyes widened when she heard the tale. Lacey whimpered but didn’t make any other sound.
Jackie took a shuddering breath. “There’s something wrong with that guy.”
“You got that right,” Sarah said.
The girls squirmed for a few minutes getting comfortable on the floor, then Sarah held up a notebook she carried with her. “This is going to be our spy-book.”
“Okay, I’ll bite, what’s a spy-book?” Jackie asked.
“It’s the book we’re using to keep track of all our clues,” Sarah said.
“Cool beans.”
Sarah scrawled the words ‘spy-book’ across the front of the notebook.
“Anyone want a soda?” Lacey asked.
Sarah and Jackie both nodded.
Lacey handed the girls their soft drinks, and they all popped the tops and drank.
Huddling together in the middle of their new shelter, the teens leaned forward as if they were planning a conspiracy. Setting her soda off to the side, Sarah turned on the flashlight and set it in the center of the tent. The light shone on the ceiling. It cast a warm glow, creating a cozy atmosphere.
Sarah grabbed the spy-book. “Okay, this is what we know so far.” She began writing. “The Cat Lady opened her door for her killer. That means she knew Klonsky.”
“Or felt comfortable with him because he’s a cop,” Jackie said, pulling on a curl.
Sarah nodded. “Yeah, that’s right, and we heard him down by the creek last night getting rid of evidence.”
“Scott stepped on a knife,” Jackie pointed out.
“Right, and the Cat Lady was stabbed.” Sarah scribbled frantically in the spy-book.
“Wait a minute, guys,” Lacey said, holding out her arms as if she were stopping traffic. “When I talked to Scott, he said the police have a suspect already.”
Sarah shook her head. “No way.”
“Way… I guess there’s been a rash of murders in this state.”
“Are you serious?” Sarah frowned.
“Yeah, it’s some guy posing as a delivery man. That’s how he gets in the door, then he goes after them, kills them, and robs them blind. Scott says this is called a blitz attack.”
“It can’t be true,” Sarah shook her head.
“It’s true,” Lacey insisted. “The cops have a nickname for him. They’re calling him the Death Messenger.”
“Then what were Klonsky and the other guy doing last night?” Jackie asked.
Lacey shrugged. “I don’t know.”
“Remember what he said about us when we were leaving the police station? He said we killed the Cat Lady.”
“That was probably before they found out about the Death Messenger.” Lacey pulled on her shoelace.
“I don’t know.” Sarah shook her head and put the spy-book down.
“Yeah, what about the knife we found today?” Jackie asked.
Lacey raised her hands in agesture of confusion. “Beats me, maybe a hunter lost it.”
“Remember, the evidence tells the story,” Sarah frowned and fiddled with her pen. “I think it’s strange we heard Klonsky down by the creek last night getting rid of evidence, and then the next day we find a knife in the water.”
“You’ve got a good point,” Jackie said.
“Plus, the Cat Lady was stabbed to death. It’s all pointing toward Klonsky.”
Jackie nodded. “We just don’t know why.”
“We’ve got to get back inside the Cat Lady’s house.” Sarah furrowed her brow and doodled on the spy-book.
“Yeah, we do,” Jackie said as she shifted her weight.
“What about the Cat Lady’s son?” Lacey asked. She suddenly leaned forward and whispered. “Maybe he’s the Death Messenger.” Her eyes widened as she stared at Sarah.
Sarah stared back at her sister—she could tell images of the Death Messenger were running rampant through Lacey’s brain. “He couldn’t be. We found out he was kidnapped when we were at the library.”
“No way.”
“Yeah, and the Cat Lady paid the ransom and everything,” Jackie added.
“Did they ever find his body?” Lacey asked.
“Nope.”
“How much was the ransom for?” Lacey fiddled with her shoestring.
Sarah fumbled in her backpack and pulled out some of the photocopied articles. She quickly scanned one of them, looking for the ransom information. “It says here… one hundred thousand dollars.”
“She paid it, huh?” Lacey asked, pulling harder on her shoelace and untyi
ng her shoe.
“Yep.”
“I wonder if he’s still alive?” Jackie speculated.
“At this point anything is possible.” Sarah scribbled in the spy-book. “We need to find more evidence, guys.”
“Yeah, we do,” Jackie said.
“You know what that means?” Sarah cracked a smile.
“We’re sneaking out tonight?” Jackie asked, matching Sarah’s grin with one of her own.
“We are?” Lacey gulped.
“Yep. We need more evidence to put Klonsky away.”
“But what if it’s not Klonsky? What if it’s the Messenger?” Lacey asked, wringing her hands.
“More evidence will tell us,” Sarah said firmly. “I have a hunch it’s Klonsky.”
Jackie tugged on her curls. “I think Klonsky is looking for a fall guy, someone to blame the murder on.”
Sarah’s stomach fluttered. “You know, I just had a thought.”
“You had a thought? What’d it feel like?” Jackie teased.
“I’ll tell you later,” Sarah snorted. “I’ll describe it in great detail. In fact, I’ll even write it down for you. I know you’ve never had one, so you don’t know what they feel like.”
“Ooooh, you’re soo funny.”
“Why, yes…yes I am,” Sarah laughed.
“A regular comedian.”
Sarah laughed again and then grew serious. “What if Klonsky heard about this other guy and tried to copy him. He murdered the Cat Lady to make it look like the Death Messenger.”
“You mean like a copycat?” Jackie asked.
“Yep.” Sarah doodled on the spy-book.
“He’s smart.” Lacey grimaced. “He’s going to get away with it, isn’t he?”
“Not if we can help it,” Sarah said.
“You guys, this could get dangerous,” Lacey whimpered.
“We laugh in the face of danger,” Jackie crowed. She lifted her hand in the air, and pretended to swing a sword.
“It’s already dangerous.” Sarah gave Lacey a long look. “Klonsky is trying to pin this murder on us. The only way out of this mess is to find more clues.” Sarah placed her elbow on her knee and leaned her head against her fist. Her brow wrinkled as she thought about the Cat Lady.
All of a sudden, she heard an odd snuffling noise from outside the tent. Jackie gazed at her with a confused expression.
“It’s Lily. Uncle Walt must be walking her.” Sarah answered the question lurking in Jackie’s eyes.
“Hi, girls,” he said from outside the tent.
“Hi,” they chorused.
“I just thought I’d see if you girls need anything before I turn in.”
“We’re okay,” Sarah said.
“I think Lily would like to sleep out here with you.”
“Awwww, she’s going to bark at every little noise,” Sarah complained.
“Just keep her in the tent. She’ll be okay.”
“All right,” Sarah grumbled.
Uncle Walt unzipped the tent, and Lily trotted in. She went to work sniffing the far corners of the tent, her coppery nose intent on finding any long forgotten morsel.
“Don’t stay up too late, girls.”
“We won’t,” all three girls said in unison.
Sarah giggled. This was the universal warning given by parents at all sleepovers, along with the universal reply by teenagers.
“Night.”
“Night.”
Sarah put her fingers to her lips, telling the other girls to be quiet. She listened as Uncle Walt made his way back to the house. Minutes later, she heard the squeak of the screen door, and then the loud bang as the taut spring pulled the door shut. Secrets were being shared, and uncles were not allowed.
“What are we going to do now?” Jackie asked.
“Looks like we can’t sneak out tonight.” Lacey sighed with relief.
“We’ll think of something.” Sarah furrowed her brow. “We won’t let Lily ruin our plans.”
“We might as well unroll our sleeping bags and get comfortable,” Jackie suggested.
The girls stood and unrolled their sleeping bags. They put the tops of the bed rolls in the center of the tent, so when they were asleep their heads would be close. All three Super Spies proceeded to lie on top of their sleep sacks.
Lily lay down on Sarah’s bag, with her chin on the teenager’s leg. Sarah stared at the ceiling of the tent. She played with the flashlight, moving it back and forth.
Watching the shadows dance on the side of the tent, Sarah planned the night’s adventure. “We’ll wait until everyone’s asleep and then put Lily back in the house.”
“Okay,” Jackie agreed.
“I don’t know if it’s a good idea to go to the Cat Lady’s at night,” Lacey said, chewing on her lip.
“We can’t go during the day, Klonsky and the other cops will be there,” Sarah reasoned.
“I just can’t figure out why Klonsky would murder the Cat Lady?” Jackie frowned.
“I keep going back to what Uncle Walt said about her being one of the richest people in town.” Sarah continued to play with the flashlight as she spoke.
“Do you think this is about money?” Jackie sat up and scratched Lily’s head.
“I don’t know, but it’s one of the oldest reasons in the book.”
All of a sudden an offending odor engulfed the girls. They wrinkled their noses and scrambled out of the tent.
“Gross, Lily farted!” Sarah grimaced and covered her nose.
“Man, that was bad.” Jackie took several deep breaths of fresh air.
“You can say that again,” Sarah said.
“Man, that was bad.” Jackie snickered and gave Sarah a playful nudge.
The girls burst into laughter.
“But that does give us an excuse to put Lily back inside the house,” Sarah beamed.
“It sure does,” Jackie giggled.
Sarah grabbed Lily. She squirmed in protest, but Sarah kept her under control. “I’m taking her in.”
With Lily squirming in her arms, Sarah walked toward the back door. She stopped when she noticed the stars were out in full force. They littered the sky with their twinkling lights. For a moment, Lily stopped struggling as if their beauty mesmerized her too. After a few seconds, Lily put her cold nose on Sarah’s arm, bringing her back from the heavens. Sarah hurried the rest of the way to the house. Uncle Walt came to the door, and Sarah explained to him why Lily had to sleep inside.
“What did Uncle Walt say?” Lacey asked when Sarah returned to the tent.
“He just laughed. He said he would put her in her kennel for the night.”
“So sneaking out is still on?” Jackie asked.
“You bet. Let’s just wait until Uncle Walt falls back to sleep.”
After checking to make sure there were no more fumes, the girls crawled back into the tent.
“Boy, Lily sure has stinky farts,” Sarah said.
Jackie rummaged around in her backpack and pulled out a small bottle of perfume. She began spraying it in the corners of the tent.
Sarah laughed at her. “What are you doing?”
“Making sure the fart smell is gone.” Jackie continued spraying the perfume until the tent was filled with the flowery aroma.
“Knock it off, you’re making my eyes water,” Sarah protested.
All three girls laughed until tears came to their eyes. Wiping her eyes, Sarah sat down on her sleeping bag; the other girls followed her lead.
The Super Spies lay on their sleeping bags talking, the stories turning to the town of Harrisburg. Sarah and Lacey sat wide-eyed as Jackie regaled them with tales about the quirky characters in the tiny burg. There was Mr. Copinski, a shrunken old man who walked around town sweeping the sidewalks and the streets. Jackie said he wasn’t right in the head, and on a number of occasions he appeared drunk and had to be taken to jail. She giggled as she stood and imitated his hunched, drunken walk.
Sitting back down, her expre
ssion turned serious and her eyes darkened when she told the Cole girls about Mr. Dewilde. If the Cat Lady was the town’s crazy lady, then Mr. Dewilde was the town’s crazy man. According to Jackie, he came home from work one day and found his family brutally murdered. The police investigated, but the mystery remains unsolved to this day. Mr. Dewilde locked up the house and left it just the way he found it and has never returned. Another True Crime mystery, Sarah thought to herself.
“Wow, there sure are a lot of crazy people in this town,” Sarah said.
Jackie flopped down on her sleeping bag. “Tell me about it. This town is full of crazy people. It’s amazing that I’m as sane as I am.”
“You’re sane?” Sarah laughed.
“Are you questioning my sanity?” Jackie sat up and put her hands on her hips, pretending to glare at Sarah.
“Okay, okay.” Sarah put her hands up in mock surrender. “What time is it?”
Jackie placed her wrist in the beam of the flashlight. “It’s midnight.”
“It’s time to go.”
“Are you sure we should do this at night?” Lacey whimpered.
“We have to move fast,” Sarah said, casting a sideways glance at Lacey as she sat up.
“You don’t have to go, if you don’t want to,” Jackie said.
“I’m just nervous.”
“Then don’t go,” Sarah said.
“I don’t want to miss anything, either.”
“Here, have some tootsie rolls.” Sarah handed Lacey a handful of the treasured candies. “It’ll calm your nerves.”
“Okay.” Lacey grabbed the candy and pulled it out of its wrapper with trembling hands.
“Let’s head out.” Jackie pulled her curls into a fuzzy ponytail. “Grab a flashlight.”
Armed with flashlights and backpacks, the Super Spies left the safety of the tent and began their journey to the Cat Lady’s.
Sarah sighed as she walked, the moon lighting her way. Listening to the crickets and katydids, Sarah’s mind wandered to the nagging questions haunting her. Why would Klonsky want the Cat Lady dead? Who was the man that was with him by the creek? What is the connection between the Cat Lady and Klonsky? No answers came to her.
Shaking her head, she focused her attention on the streets of Harrisburg. They were different at night. The moon hung in the sky like a half-eaten lollipop minus the stick. Moonlight hit the giant trees and houses, throwing eerie shadows everywhere. A chill ran down Sarah’s spine, and she shivered in the heat. Finally, the girls reached the Cat Lady’s house and once again hid behind the oak tree across the street.