The Mystery on Blizzard Mountain

  A figure appeared through the trees. Everyone held their breath.

  The figure leaned forward and pulled hard on a rope in one hand. A sled bumped along at the end of the rope. “Whoa,” the figure commanded, and raised one foot awkwardly to slow down the sled.

  “Let’s go,” said Jessie, and leaped to her feet and out of the lean-to.

  The person saw the four Aldens running through the trees and, yanking the sled hard, began to run, too.

  “Stop!” cried Jessie.

  “Stop, thief!” shouted Benny. Henry jumped forward—and landed right on the sled.

  The sled tipped over. The person pulling the sled stumbled and fell, but tried to get up and run again.

  But by this time Maris had stepped out into the middle of the trail.

  “Give up, Chuck,” said Henry. “We know all about the gold.”

  The man turned and pushed the hood of his jacket back. Chuck’s face was red.

  “What a dumb thing I did,” he said, and sat down hard on a fallen tree trunk.

  Jessie stepped forward and pulled back the tarp on the sled. Underneath was a lump, covered with purple velvet. Carefully, she and Violet lifted the velvet cape. Gold bars shone beneath it.

  “Gold!” said Benny.

  “It’s the museum gold,” said Violet.

  “I ... I ... oh, no,” moaned Chuck, and buried his face in his hands.

  “Not exactly gold,” said a new voice.

  Maris and the Aldens looked up in surprise at the woman striding up the trail.

  “Rayanne?” asked Maris. “What are you doing here?”

  “Rayanne Adams, private detective, at your service,” said Rayanne.

  “But you work at the diner!” said Violet.

  “That’s because I was undercover. What better place to find out what’s going on than at the town’s only diner?” asked Rayanne. She stared at Chuck. “You ought to be ashamed of yourself, mister, robbing that museum.”

  “I didn’t mean to.” Chuck looked up. “I was just standing there, and no one was around, and I saw how easy it would be to take the gold that was on display. I put a piece of tape on the back door lock and just pushed the door open right after the museum closed. I wrapped the gold in that old purple cape and carried it out.”

  “You’re a private detective?” Maris asked Rayanne.

  Rayanne nodded. “My nephew runs the museum. I’m retired now, but I agreed to take this case to help him out.”

  “That’s why you asked so many questions! And knew so much about the museum theft!” cried Jessie.

  “Yep,” said Rayanne. “And I had my suspicions about Mr. Chuck Larson here. But until you came along, I couldn’t prove anything. How did you know to make a trap for him?”

  “Two clues,” said Henry. “Shoes and purple velvet. Chuck was acting like a hiker who didn’t know anything. But he wore good old comfortable hiking boots. Boots that had been used a lot.”

  “And they were worn down on one side, like a man who’d been limping while wearing them,” said Jessie. “That matched the boot prints we found in the snow. The prints weren’t very clear, but they were clear enough to show us that whoever walked around our cabin limped on the same foot as Chuck. Only we didn’t know why he’d be following us.”

  “We thought first he’d found Stagecoach George’s treasure. It wasn’t until you mentioned the cape from the museum was purple velvet and we remembered that scrap of purple cloth Violet had found that things began to make sense,” said Henry.

  “That purple velvet was an important clue,” Rayanne agreed. “It got my attention. And it got Chuck’s attention, too.”

  “That’s when we knew for sure Chuck was faking it. That his ankle was not all that broken anymore,” said Benny.

  Henry looked at Chuck. “You’re not even a history teacher, are you? It was all faked.”

  Chuck groaned. “No,” he confessed. “I’m a mountain guide from out West. I came here just to hike.”

  “We should have known you were no beginner when we found you all snug in your tent when you were injured. Beginners usually wander off the trail. And they aren’t so prepared,” said Maris.

  “I was hoping you wouldn’t notice that,” Chuck said. “Anyway, I’d carried the gold, wrapped in the cape, in my pack, about halfway down Blizzard Mountain when I slipped and broke my ankle.” He made a face at the memory.

  “I knew I was near the cabin—I’d used it on the way over the mountain the first time. So I managed to get there and bury the gold under the floor of the cabin and put the boards back down.”

  “That’s why there was so much dirt on the floor,” said Violet. “We figured that out, too.”

  He nodded. “I guess that’s when a piece of purple velvet tore off that old cape. Anyway, I dragged myself back over to the trail so no one would know I’d been in the cabin. I had enough supplies to last awhile, and I knew I’d be okay, that someone would come along before long.”

  “You let the air out of our tires, too,” Benny accused Chuck.

  “Yes, it was me. When I went to the bathroom at the diner, I really sneaked out and did that. And I followed you up the trail and took part of your food,” Chuck confessed. “I hoped that would scare you off, but it didn’t. So I followed you to the cabin and tried to scare you away then.”

  “And you took my boots,” said Henry.

  “I did. But I gave them back!” said Chuck. “I couldn’t let you try to hike down the mountain without them, any more than I could leave you without any food at all. I’m a mountain guide. I just couldn’t do it.”

  “You’re a better mountain guide than a thief,” said Rayanne. “That wasn’t even gold that you took.”

  Chuck sat up. “What?” he said.

  “Iron bars painted to look like gold, for the mining display,” said Rayanne. “That’s all it is. Heavy and worthless. It’s the cape the museum wants back. It’s an important part of this park’s history.”

  Chuck’s mouth had fallen open. So had Benny’s.

  “N-not gold?” Chuck managed to stammer at last.

  “Nope,” said Rayanne. “So now that we’ve got the cape back, the museum’s going to let you go.”

  “You will?” said Chuck. He jumped to his feet. “Oh, thank you! I’ll never, ever do something like that again. I’ve never done anything like that before. I know it was wrong. I’ve learned my lesson.”

  “Good,” said Jessie. She almost felt sorry for Chuck.

  “Thank you,” Chuck cried again. “Thank you.”

  “Go on, then,” said Rayanne. “We’ll get this down the mountain.”

  Chuck looked around. Then, almost running, he headed down the mountain.

  As the Aldens and Maris and Rayanne came out of the woods at the bottom of the Blizzard Trail, Grandfather Alden stepped out of a car parked near Maris’s truck.

  “Grandfather!” said Jessie. “We caught the thief.”

  “And Rayanne’s a real live detective,” said Benny.

  Another person got out of the truck.

  “Bobcat!” said Maris. “There you are. What happened?”

  “We forgot to ask Chuck what he told you to make you leave town,” said Henry.

  “So you figured it out, huh?” Bobcat chuckled. He shook his head. “And I fell for it, too. Chuck met me outside the general store. Must have been waiting for me, I realize now. He gave me a message, said it had been left at the diner for me. That’s not unusual. Everyone knows that the people at the diner can always find you. It’s the way a small town works.”

  “What was the message?” asked Violet.

  “My brother had an attack of appendicitis. It said please come at once. Chuck said he’d see that someone else took supplies to you, so I drove to the airport and flew halfway across the country. Boy, was my brother surprised to see me. We had a nice visit, though.” Bobcat grinned. “That buzzard!”

  “Bobcat called when he got back,” Grandfather explained. “I told
him what had been going on and we drove here.”

  “But what about when your truck wouldn’t start, Maris? Did Chuck do that, too?” asked Violet.

  “Nope. My truck’s just an old truck. But Chuck knew about the trouble I’d been having with it. Carola had stopped by the diner earlier on her way out of town and been talking about it. That’s what gave him the idea to try to scare us off the trail until he could get back up there and haul the gold out,” said Maris.

  “And because his ankle was hurting, he waited until the first snow so it would be easy to pull the gold out by sled. Only it wasn’t gold,” Henry concluded.

  “Chuck made a mistake,” said Rayanne. “And he got caught. Bad luck for Chuck.”

  “He always said Blizzard Mountain was a bad luck mountain,” Bobcat said. “Looks like it was—for him.”

  “But good luck for us,” said Benny.

  Everyone looked at Benny. “What do you mean, Benny?” asked Jessie.

  “Well, Stagecoach George’s gold is still up on Blizzard Mountain,” Benny said. “So on our next visit, we can go back and find it!”

  About the Author

  GERTRUDE CHANDLER WARNER discovered when she was teaching that many readers who like an exciting story could find no books that were both easy and fun to read. She decided to try to meet this need, and her first book, The Boxcar Children, quickly proved she had succeeded.

  Miss Warner drew on her own experiences to write the mystery. As a child she spent hours watching trains go by on the tracks opposite her family home. She often dreamed about what it would be like to set up housekeeping in a caboose or freight car — the situation the Alden children find themselves in.

  When Miss Warner received requests for more adventures involving Henry, Jessie, Violet, and Benny Alden, she began additional stories. In each, she chose a special setting and introduced unusual or eccentric characters who liked the unpredictable.

  While the mystery element is central to each of Miss Warner’s books, she never thought of them as strictly juvenile mysteries. She liked to stress the Aldens’ independence and resourcefulness and their solid New England devotion to using up and making do. The Aldens go about most of their adventures with as little adult supervision as possible — something else that delights young readers.

  Miss Warner lived in Putnam, Connecticut, until her death in 1979. During her lifetime, she received hundreds of letters from girls and boys telling her how much they liked her books.

  The Boxcar Children Mysteries

  THE BOXCAR CHILDREN

  SURPRISE ISLAND

  THE YELLOW HOUSE MYSTERY

  MYSTERY RANCH

  MIKE’S MYSTERY

  BLUE BAY MYSTERY

  THE WOODSHED MYSTERY

  THE LIGHTHOUSE MYSTERY

  MOUNTAIN TOP MYSTERY

  SCHOOLHOUSE MYSTERY

  CABOOSE MYSTERY

  HOUSEBOAT MYSTERY

  SNOWBOUND MYSTERY

  TREE HOUSE MYSTERY

  BICYCLE MYSTERY

  MYSTERY IN THE SAND

  MYSTERY BEHIND THE WALL

  BUS STATION MYSTERY

  BENNY UNCOVERS A MYSTERY

  THE HAUNTED CABIN MYSTERY

  THE DESERTED LIBRARY MYSTERY

  THE ANIMAL SHELTER MYSTERY

  THE OLD MOTEL MYSTERY

  THE MYSTERY OF THE HIDDEN PAINTING

  THE AMUSEMENT PARK MYSTERY

  THE MYSTERY OF THE MIXED-UP ZOO

  THE CAMP-OUT MYSTERY

  THE MYSTERY GIRL

  THE MYSTERY CRUISE

  THE DISAPPEARING FRIEND MYSTERY

  THE MYSTERY OF THE SINGING GHOST

  MYSTERY IN THE SNOW

  THE PIZZA MYSTERY

  THE MYSTERY HORSE

  THE MYSTERY AT THE DOG SHOW

  THE CASTLE MYSTERY

  THE MYSTERY OF THE LOST VILLAGE

  THE MYSTERY ON THE ICE

  THE MYSTERY OF THE PURPLE POOL

  THE GHOST SHIP MYSTERY

  THE MYSTERY IN WASHINGTON, DC

  THE CANOE TRIP MYSTERY

  THE MYSTERY OF THE HIDDEN BEACH

  THE MYSTERY OF THE MISSING CAT

  THE MYSTERY AT SNOWFLAKE INN

  THE MYSTERY ON STAGE

  THE DINOSAUR MYSTERY

  THE MYSTERY OF THE STOLEN MUSIC

  THE MYSTERY AT THE BALL PARK

  THE CHOCOLATE SUNDAE MYSTERY

  THE MYSTERY OF THE HOT AIR BALLOON

  THE MYSTERY BOOKSTORE

  THE PILGRIM VILLAGE MYSTERY

  THE MYSTERY OF THE STOLEN BOXCAR

  THE MYSTERY IN THE CAVE

  THE MYSTERY ON THE TRAIN

  THE MYSTERY AT THE FAIR

  THE MYSTERY OF THE LOST MINE

  THE GUIDE DOG MYSTERY

  THE HURRICANE MYSTERY

  THE PET SHOP MYSTERY

  THE MYSTERY OF THE SECRET MESSAGE

  THE FIREHOUSE MYSTERY

  THE MYSTERY IN SAN FRANCISCO

  THE NIAGARA FALLS MYSTERY

  THE MYSTERY AT THE ALAMO

  THE OUTER SPACE MYSTERY

  THE SOCCER MYSTERY

  THE MYSTERY IN THE OLD ATTIC

  THE GROWLING BEAR MYSTERY

  THE MYSTERY OF THE LAKE MONSTER

  THE MYSTERY AT PEACOCK HALL

  THE WINDY CITY MYSTERY

  THE BLACK PEARL MYSTERY

  THE CEREAL BOX MYSTERY

  THE PANTHER MYSTERY

  THE MYSTERY OF THE QUEEN’S JEWELS

  THE STOLEN SWORD MYSTERY

  THE BASKETBALL MYSTERY

  THE MOVIE STAR MYSTERY

  THE MYSTERY OF THE PIRATE’S MAP

  THE GHOST TOWN MYSTERY

  THE MYSTERY OF THE BLACK RAVEN

  THE MYSTERY IN THE MALL

  THE MYSTERY IN NEW YORK

  THE GYMNASTICS MYSTERY

  THE POISON FROG MYSTERY

  THE MYSTERY OF THE EMPTY SAFE

  THE HOME RUN MYSTERY

  THE GREAT BICYCLE RACE MYSTERY

  THE MYSTERY OF THE WILD PONIES

  THE MYSTERY IN THE COMPUTER GAME

  THE MYSTERY AT THE CROOKED HOUSE

  THE HOCKEY MYSTERY

  THE MYSTERY OF THE MIDNIGHT DOG

  THE MYSTERY OF THE SCREECH OWL

  THE SUMMER CAMP MYSTERY

  THE COPYCAT MYSTERY

  THE HAUNTED CLOCK TOWER MYSTERY

  THE MYSTERY OF THE TIGER’S EYE

  THE DISAPPEARING STAIRCASE MYSTERY

  THE MYSTERY ON BLIZZARD MOUNTAIN

  THE MYSTERY OF THE SPIDER’S CLUE

  THE CANDY FACTORY MYSTERY

  THE MYSTERY OF THE MUMMY’S CURSE

  THE MYSTERY OF THE STAR RUBY

  THE STUFFED BEAR MYSTERY

  THE MYSTERY OF ALLIGATOR SWAMP

  THE MYSTERY AT SKELETON POINT

  THE TATTLETALE MYSTERY

  THE COMIC BOOK MYSTERY

  THE GREAT SHARK MYSTERY

  THE ICE CREAM MYSTERY

  THE MIDNIGHT MYSTERY

  THE MYSTERY IN THE FORTUNE COOKIE

  THE BLACK WIDOW SPIDER MYSTERY

  THE RADIO MYSTERY

  THE MYSTERY OF THE RUNAWAY GHOST

  THE FINDERS KEEPERS MYSTERY

  THE MYSTERY OF THE HAUNTED BOXCAR

  THE CLUE IN THE CORN MAZE

  THE GHOST OF THE CHATTERING BONES

  THE SWORD OF THE SILVER KNIGHT

  THE GAME STORE MYSTERY

  THE MYSTERY OF THE ORPHAN TRAIN

  THE VANISHING PASSENGER

  THE GIANT YO-YO MYSTERY

  THE CREATURE IN OGOPOGO LAKE

  THE ROCK ’N’ ROLL MYSTERY

  THE SECRET OF THE MASK

  THE SEATTLE PUZZLE

  THE GHOST IN THE FIRST ROW

  THE BOX THAT WATCH FOUND

  A HORSE NAMED DRAGON

  THE GREAT DETECTIVE RACE

  THE GHOST AT THE DRIVE-IN MOVIE

  THE MYSTERY OF THE TRAVELING TOMATOES

  THE SPY
GAME

  THE DOG-GONE MYSTERY

  THE VAMPIRE MYSTERY

  SUPERSTAR WATCH

  THE SPY IN THE BLEACHERS

  All rights reserved under International and Pan-American Copyright Conventions. By payment of the required fees, you have been granted the non-exclusive, non-transferable right to access and read the text of this ebook onscreen. No part of this text may be reproduced, transmitted, downloaded, decompiled, reverse engineered, or stored in or introduced into any information storage and retrieval system, in any form or by any means, whether electronic or mechanical, now known or hereinafter invented, without the express written permission of the publisher.

  This is a work of fiction. Names, characters, places, and incidents either are the product of the author’s imagination or are used fictitiously. Any resemblance to actual persons, living or dead, businesses, companies, events, or locales is entirely coincidental.

  copyright © 2002 by Albert Whitman & Company

  978-1-4532-2143-3

  This 2011 edition distributed by Open Road Integrated Media

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