Lucy did not need to smell the approaching mix of laundry soap and lemon cleaner to know that Joe had arrived.
“So we’re all here,” Cami said cheerfully. “Let’s go!”
Lucy followed as they walked through the gate of Pine Forest. People around them were laughing and there was the feathery sound of families loading up Christmas trees to take home. Lucy had been coming here with her parents for years so she knew that just inside was the fenced-off area where precut trees were stacked. There was a small wooden cabin, where people could buy hot cider or wreathes when they paid for their trees, or just warm up before venturing out to the acres beyond, which were thick with growing pine trees of every shape and size.
“So where should we start looking?” Max asked.
“We should ask the owner if he knows anything about GB,” Joe said.
“If Mr. Saint-Pierre knows anything, he won’t say,” Max said coolly. Lucy could feel Cami tense next to her.
“But maybe he’ll say something that gives us a clue,” Joe persisted.
“That’s a great idea,” Cami said quickly.
Max sighed but he didn’t put up a fight.
Lucy heard Mr. Saint-Pierre’s fingers tapping on the old-fashioned cash register as they walked into the heat of the little cabin that smelled of cinnamon-laced cider. Lucy took advantage of the moment to rest Valentine, who was panting slightly. Joe’s sneakers padded closer to the wood stove while Cami stayed next to Lucy, and Max wandered around, unable to keep still.
“How can I help you kids?” Mr. Saint-Pierre asked in his low voice a few moments later. Lucy’s parents had described his wild mustache and flowing beard that had half the kids under six thinking he was Santa Claus, a role he often played at the town Christmas Gala.
Lucy hesitated, wondering how to explain their mission, but Cami spoke up right away. “We’re hoping to find out some information about the person behind the Angel Tree,” she said, getting right to it.
“I’m sorry, kids, but I can’t help you with that,” Mr. Saint-Pierre said.
“We know it’s supposed to be a secret,” Cami said. “But this is important. We want to do something to thank the person who’s been working so hard for all these years.”
“I wish I could help, I truly do,” he said. “But I have no idea who does it. Every year I get a hand-delivered letter that there’s going to be a pickup for a tree that’s already been selected. They must come in the middle of the night to choose the tree, mark it with a ribbon, and then pay a trucker to come get it and put it up in town. And I bet the trucker knows even less than I do. We’re both paid in cash and that’s the end of it. Every year, that’s how it goes.”
“Do you still have the letter?” Lucy asked.
“No, it went out with the recycling weeks ago,” Mr. Saint-Pierre said. A bell jingled as the door to the cabin opened and a family came in, two little kids running ahead and giggling. Lucy and Cami turned to go but then Joe spoke up.
“Can you tell us what section of the forest the tree was taken from this year?” he asked.
“Sure,” Mr. Saint-Pierre said. “And to be honest I’m not sure anyone else has been back in that section. It’s where we have our biggest trees and we usually just sell a handful of those every year.”
“And you haven’t sold any others yet?” Cami asked, excited.
“Nope,” Mr. Saint-Pierre said. “Not yet.” There was the crinkly sound of paper as he handed something to Cami. “Here’s a map. The section you’re interested in is all the way back here,” he said. Lucy assumed he was pointing to a spot on the map. “So it doesn’t get much traffic.”
“This is great,” Cami said. “Thanks so much, Mr. Saint-Pierre.”
The others echoed their thanks and headed back out into the cold for the trek to the far section of the forest. Valentine seemed energetic and happy as she pranced carefully through the snow, leading Lucy on a wide, clear path through the rows and rows of balsam fir, Scotch pine, blue spruce, and white pine trees, each with a slightly different scent.
At first they followed paths made by trails of footprints, the snow packed down tight under Lucy’s feet. But by the time they reached their destination, the snow was untouched and harder to navigate.
“No one’s been here since last night’s snow,” Max said, his boots crunching on the crusty top layer, then breaking through with a crackle.
“That’s good,” Cami said. She had slowed down to stay next to Lucy and Valentine.
“Except that any clues GB left last week would probably be covered,” Max said.
“Not necessarily,” Joe said, clearly eager to disagree with Max.
“What do you know about it?” Max snapped. “Is there even snow where you come from?”
“Since we’re here let’s look around,” Cami interrupted before things could get heated between Max and Joe. “Something might have gotten caught in one of the trees or something. Let’s spread out and search.”
Lucy gave Valentine’s lead a light tug and the dog, who had been resting, struggled to her feet. Lucy knew walking in the high snow was hard for Valentine and decided she would only cover a little ground. It wasn’t like she was going to find a clue anyway. She gave Valentine a free lead and let the dog choose their direction and the pace.
They walked through evenly spaced trees on a low slope of land. The branches rustled around them, and farther off Lucy could hear Max and Cami talking and laughing.
But then Valentine tensed and picked up her pace. Clearly she had spotted something interesting, and Lucy hoped it wasn’t a squirrel out searching for a snack. Valentine was extremely well trained and would never chase a squirrel, but she did like to look at them and yip.
It wasn’t a squirrel that had caught the Lab’s attention, though. It was something buried in the snow. Valentine burrowed her snout in, the ice crunching as she dug down, and a moment later she pulled something up, shaking off the snow with a musical clink of the dog tags on her collar.
“What is it, girl?” Lucy asked, holding out her gloved hand.
Valentine set the object carefully in Lucy’s palm. Lucy took off her glove so she could feel what it was. It was covered with a thin sheen of ice, but as the warmth of Lucy’s fingers melted that, it revealed a thick rectangle of leather, about two inches wide and eight inches long. Delighted with her find, she hurried back to the spot where the others were gathering.
“I didn’t see anything,” Cami was saying gloomily as Lucy and Valentine approached. “I guess it was —” She broke off as Lucy held up the leather strip.
“I found something,” Lucy said. “Actually Valentine did. I guess she smelled it or something because she started digging through the snow and came up with this.”
“What is it?” Cami asked as the three of them crowded around Lucy and Valentine.
“I’m not sure,” Lucy said. “She had it in her mouth. Take a look and you tell me.”
Cami reached over and took the small object from Lucy. Both Joe and Max leaned in for a closer look.
“I think it’s a bookmark,” Cami said after a moment. “It’s swollen from the snow but you can see carvings in it, like ivy going up the sides.”
“Do you think it belonged to GB?” Lucy asked.
“It seems like a safe bet, doesn’t it?” Cami asked, her voice buoyant. “Guys, we have our first clue!”
“So what does it tell us?” Joe asked as they started back toward the parking lot and the road to town. His teeth were nearly chattering.
“That GB is a reader, obviously,” Max said in a withering tone.
“Yeah, but it tells us even more than that,” Cami said before Joe could respond. “I mean, a fancy bookmark like this tells us that GB really cares about books. Real books, too, not ebooks.”
“That’s probably a sign that GB’s a little older,” Lucy said, thinking that her parents read print books while her teenage cousins all read ebooks.
“Good point,” Cami said.
“And also it could mean it’s someone with a huge home library,” Lucy said, slipping a little on an icy patch but righting herself quickly. “You would only get a nice bookmark if you had a lot of books to read.”
They were back in the more populated section of the farm. There were voices around them and walking was easier now that there were footpaths to follow. Lucy could tell Valentine was tired and she took a moment to rub the dog’s floppy ears. After all, Valentine had been the hero of the day, finding their very first clue.
“Let’s meet up tomorrow for more investigating,” Cami said. “The Angel Tree, ten o’clock.”
The others agreed, but Valentine was panting again and Lucy knew she would need to let her dog rest the next day so that she would be ready for school on Monday. Lucy wasn’t sure if it made sense for her to go along tomorrow without the dog for help. She was pretty sure she’d just drag everything down, with people needing to take care of her instead of looking for more clues. Plus she had plans to go over to Anya’s in the afternoon. But as the others waited for her reply, Lucy changed her mind. Finding GB was important and Anya would understand. Plus Lucy had helped find the very first clue, which meant she was being helpful. She was probably worrying over nothing.
“I’ll be there,” she said.
The others were standing in front of the Angel Tree when Max arrived the next morning. He had overslept and barely had time to wolf down some toast before throwing on his jacket and heading for the meeting. Cami was chatting with Joe and Lucy but she broke off when she saw Max approach. Max braced himself for the inevitable scolding that he knew was coming: Cami did not tolerate lateness. But to his surprise, Cami just smiled sweetly and greeted him with great cheer.
Max was instantly suspicious. “What’s going on?” he asked.
Cami’s eyes widened and an ominous feeling began building in Max’s gut. “Nothing, I’m just glad you’re here,” she said, her voice way too sugary. “Now we can get started.”
Max decided not to press the issue but his guard was up. He greeted Lucy and then pointedly turned his back on Joe, who was shivering pathetically in his thin jacket. “So what’s the plan?” he asked.
“Today we start investigating our possible suspects — I mean, GBs,” Cami said.
“Excellent,” Max said, rubbing his hands together. He was ready to go undercover.
“I was thinking we should come up with reasons to visit everyone on our list,” Cami said. “Then we work the conversation around to the Angel Tree and look for clues, any change in expression, or a slipup where they know more than they should.”
It sounded great to Max, but Lucy was biting her lip. “Um, I’m not sure I can really do that,” she said hesitantly. “And I don’t know how to get to anyone’s house on my own. I can go back for Valentine, but I should probably let her rest up before school ….”
“No problem,” Cami said quickly. “I was already thinking that you and I could go together. I’ll look for visual clues and you can listen for clues. Or see if you can sniff any out.” Cami smiled at her joke but Lucy’s brow was tightly knit and the corners of her mouth turned down.
“I don’t know, maybe I should just sit this part out,” she said, so quietly Max could barely hear her over the sound of cars driving on the streets around the square.
“No, don’t be silly,” Cami said, sounding distressed. “We need you.”
“Changes in voice pattern can indicate a lie,” Max added. “You can be listening for that.”
“And two people are more likely to pick up on subtle clues,” Cami said, tossing Max a grateful look. “Like one person does the talking and the other keeps an ear out for anything unusual.”
“Okay,” Lucy said, but her shoulders were sagging.
Joe cleared his throat. “I’m not sure how much I can help,” he said. Max turned just enough to see Joe scraping a line in the snow with the toe of his boot. “I don’t know anyone on the list and I don’t know what I’d say to them.”
“You could try punching them,” Max muttered. Joe lifted his head and gave Max a murderous look. Max glared back.
“That’s why you’ll go with Max,” Cami said sweetly.
Max whipped his head around. Was she out of her mind? “What? No way.”
“No,” Joe echoed firmly.
Cami put a hand on her hip. “It makes the most sense,” she said. “Like he said, Joe doesn’t know anyone and Max, you know everyone. You can introduce Joe and then he can be on the lookout for clues while you get the conversation going.”
“Not going to happen,” Max said, and he meant it. But as he folded his arms over his chest, he could see that Cami was going to be just as stubborn.
She lifted her chin. “It makes the most sense,” she repeated slowly, like she was talking to a baby.
Max glared at Cami. Clearly this had been her plan all along. Well, too bad. No way were Max and Joe going to spend the day together.
“If you really think it’s the best way to get the job done, I’ll do it,” Joe said.
Max whipped around, his eyes blazing. What was wrong with Joe? Max knew Joe hated the idea as much as he did.
But Joe didn’t even bother looking at Max. His shoulders slumped and he looked resigned, like the total and complete wimp he was.
Cami gave Max a smug smile.
Max threw up his arms, knowing defeat when it came his way. “Fine, whatever,” he said.
“Great,” Cami said in her regular voice, the sugar gone now that she’d gotten her way. She whipped out her phone. “I made a list of possible GBs.”
Of course she had. Max leaned in so he could see the screen.
Mr. Pink
The VonWolfs
Alma Sanchez
The Barristers
“I was thinking that Lucy and I could go see Ms. Sanchez and you guys can visit the Barristers,” Cami continued.
Max knew she was trying to make up for pairing him with Joe by suggesting they follow up on Max’s favorite theory, but it was going to take a lot more than that for Max to forgive Cami.
“Remember to see if the Barristers have a lot of books to go with the bookmark.” There was no guilt in Cami’s voice and she had the gall to smile at them before she and Lucy headed off.
There was a long moment of silence after the girls left.
“So where are we going?” Joe asked lifelessly. Clearly he hated the thought of spending time with Max.
Max decided that just because they had to spend time together didn’t mean they actually had to speak. So instead of answering, he headed off, leaving the square and heading down Church Street. Joe followed.
They walked four blocks, then turned on Market Street. Max glanced back, half hoping Joe had decided to go home, but he was still there, visibly shivering. Max realized that Joe’s coat was way too thin for the bitter winters of Pine River. Joe’s family probably didn’t have much money for a new coat and Max was almost considering mentioning the church thrift shop, where his family got winter coats for him and Fiona every year. This year Max had gotten a nearly new Patagonia down jacket that was probably warm enough for camping out in the Himalayas. But before he could say anything, Joe caught his gaze and frowned.
“Problem?” he asked in his obnoxious way.
Max rolled his eyes and said nothing, just picked up his pace so they’d get this over with faster.
“What will we do when we get there?” Joe asked a few minutes later.
Max was tempted to keep on ignoring him but realized he needed to take charge of things or Joe would probably do something to mess the whole thing up.
“If they’re home, we try to get them to talk,” he said. “And if not, we’ll take a quick look around, do some searching in their yard and peek in the windows.”
“That sounds illegal,” Joe said, sounding hesitant.
“You scared?” Max taunted.
Joe glared but he rose to the bait like Max knew he would. “Fine,” he mutter
ed.
The Barristers’ house was on the corner of Market and Montgomery Streets, the only house on the block with a fence protecting the property. Their house was large, and kind of spooky, Max thought. It was painted a somber gray with black trim and the path hadn’t been shoveled. The boys walked up the icy front steps and knocked. After a minute passed, Max knocked again.
“No one’s here,” Max announced when no one answered. He had to admit he was hoping for this. Getting either of the quiet Barristers to talk would be hard, so spying was really their best bet.
He peered into the window next to the door. He could see an entryway with a set of shelves for shoes and a closed door, probably a closet.
Joe hesitated, then glanced in. “Nothing here,” he said. “Maybe we should leave.”
“Let’s go around back,” Max said, ignoring Joe’s annoying remark. They were going undercover, and Max was pumped up.
“What about our footprints?” Joe asked. “They’ll know someone was here.”
“But they won’t know who,” Max said cheerfully.
He pulled his hat down low over his eyes and wrapped his scarf around his face so that no one passing by would recognize him. Then he led the way around the house. The first window they peeked through showed a kitchen, full of the usual kitchen things. The dining room next door held a big wooden table but had only two chairs.
“I guess they don’t have much company,” Max said.
Joe shrugged and Max vowed not to talk to him again.
The next room was the living room, with a sagging sofa and chair set arranged around the fireplace. There was something slightly off about it but it took Max a minute to realize what it was.
“You know what’s weird?” he asked, breaking his vow after only two minutes. He couldn’t help it, though, not when he was in spy mode and uncovering so much. “They don’t have any pictures up.”
Joe’s eyebrows scrunched. “I guess that’s weird,” he said. “They don’t have any books either.”
Max was irritated Joe had remembered to look out for that. “Maybe they have books in another room,” he said, stepping away from the window and creeping around the corner of the house.
The Angel Tree Page 7