Elizabeth's San Antonio Sleuthing

Splash!
Fourteen-year-old Elizabeth gasped as cold water covered her face and clothes. She stood and shook the liquid from her blond hair and tried to wipe it from her clothes before it soaked through.

“Please remain in your seat at all times,” the riverboat captain reminded her.

Didn't he see what just happened?
Elizabeth's mother took her hand and gently pulled her back into her seat, helping Elizabeth brush the water off.

“What happened?” Elizabeth whispered, not wanting to interrupt the captain's tour speech. No one else seemed to notice her.

“It looks like a water balloon. I didn't see where it came from. We'll deal with it when the boat stops,” her mother said. Elizabeth spied the small red piece of broken balloon at her feet.

“But who? Where?” Elizabeth looked at the tourists on the sidewalks. Surely no one would be brazen enough to throw a water balloon right out in the open.
The bridge!

She looked behind her at the bridge they'd just passed. Empty.

Puzzled, she took the tissue her mother held out to her. Elizabeth's dad and brother were seated in front of her, and never even turned around. Apparently, no one else knew what had just happened.

Once again, she looked back at the bridge. This time, she saw three teenagers leaning over the other side. One was wearing a red cap and a plaid shirt. They were pointing and laughing at another riverboat making its way toward them.

Suspicious. Well, Mr. Red-cap. You haven't seen the last of me
.

Elizabeth kept her eyes behind her, on the group of two boys and one girl, until a curve in the river blocked her view. Finally, she leaned back and tried to enjoy the rest of the ride.

When the riverboat pulled to the edge and the passengers were instructed to get off the boat, Robert Anderson turned and smiled at his daughter and wife. “I never get tired of San Antonio. As many times as I've ridden this riverboat and heard the same historical facts and the same corny jokes, I love it every time. Hey, what happened to you?” he asked Elizabeth, noticing her soaked hair.

“Some prankster dropped a water balloon on her,” Sue Anderson spoke for her daughter. “It seemed to come out of nowhere.”

“I saw who did it,” said Elizabeth. “Or at least, who I think did it. Some teenagers were leaning over one of the bridges right after it happened.”

Robert Anderson placed his hand on his daughter's shoulder and grinned. “I'm sorry, baby. That was a mean thing for someone to do. But if they were aiming for a pretty girl, I have to give them credit. Their aim was right on target.”

Elizabeth crossed her arms. She didn't see the humor.

“Let's not jump to conclusions,” said her dad as he helped her off the boat. “We'll go right now and talk to the captain. But just because you saw some kids on the bridge doesn't necessarily mean they're guilty.”

Elizabeth nodded, but she wasn't convinced. She was going to be on the watch for that red ball cap and plaid shirt. She was so caught up in her thoughts, she wasn't even aware that the captain was talking to her. Suddenly, she realized he was asking her a question.

“Your parents just told me what happened, young lady. Did you see anything strange or suspicious?” the man repeated his question.

“Well, not really. Not right away. But when we got down the river a piece, I looked back to where it happened, and a group of teenagers was standing on the bridge. One of them was wearing a—”

“Did you see them with a water balloon?” the man interrupted her.

“No, but—”

The man shook his head. “I'm sorry, miss. Truly, I am. I had no idea. Sometimes people pull pranks on the tourists. But unless someone actually catches them in the act, we can't do much.”

“I understand,” Elizabeth told him. But that wasn't exactly true. She didn't understand why the man didn't tell local authorities and the sheriff's department and the CIA and the FBI and go on an all-out manhunt until those hoodlums were found, handcuffed, and thrown in the slammer.

Okay, maybe that's a little extreme, she thought. But only a little
.

“Come on. Let's head back to the hotel and get you into some dry clothes. Or better yet, put on your swimsuit and we'll spend some time at the pool,” said Mrs. Anderson, sensing her daughter's mood. “This time tomorrow, your friend Kate will be here.”

Elizabeth brightened. “I can't wait! Kate is so cool—you'll love her. And she's bringing Biscuit, too. I'm glad Uncle Dan arranged for Biscuit to stay in the room with us.”

She smiled at the thought of the scruffy little dog she and her sleuthing friends, the five other Camp Club Girls, had rescued at camp. “And I bet she'll bring tons of nifty little gadgets with her.”
And maybe one of those gadgets will help me catch Mr. Red-cap and his friends
.

Later, Elizabeth lounged by the pool, sipping lemonade from a large cup. She didn't appear to have a care in the world. But her mind was racing with thoughts of water balloons and red ball caps. Her cell phone startled her, beeping to indicate she had a new message.

I
T WAS
K
ATE:
J
UST ARRIVED @
L
ITTLE
R
OCK
. W
HERE ARE
Y
OU
?

Elizabeth tried to think of where Little Rock was.
Oh, Arkansas!
she realized.
Only two states away!

The phone beeped again.

Kate: You
THERE?

Elizabeth smiled. She carefully texted back: R
ELAXING BY POOL IN
S
AN
A
NTONIO
.

A
FTER A MOMENT
, K
ATE'S REPLY CAME:
D
ON'T HAVE TOO MUCH FUN
. W
AIT FOR ME
. W
E'LL ARRIVE IN OUR VAN AT 3 TOMORROW
.

Elizabeth smiled. Less than twenty-four hours and she'll be here, in the flesh! She typed in: C
AN'T WAIT!

A shadow covered her, and she looked up to find her mother. Taking the lounge chair beside her, Mrs. Anderson shook her head and laughed. “I'll never understand you kids and those text things. You have free long distance on that phone. Why don't you just make a phone call?”

Elizabeth laughed, too. “I guess that would make more sense. But texting is fun. Kind of like reading code.”

Mrs. Anderson leaned back in her chair and flipped open a magazine. “To each her own,” she said. “By the way, there's a puppet show this evening at the Fiesta Noche del Rio. Your father and I are taking James to it. You're welcome to come, but since Uncle Dan will be on duty, you can stay here if you want.”

“Thanks, Mom. I'll think about it,” Elizabeth said, reaching for her lemonade. She sipped the cool drink then leaned back and closed her eyes. She was almost asleep when she gasped, covered in cold water for the second time that day.

James giggled and continued splashing her from the pool. “Come in the water with me, Betty-boo!” he taunted.

“I told you to stop calling me that!” she demanded. A moment later, she was in the pool with her little brother, splashing and laughing at his antics.

“Cannonball!” Mr. Anderson yelled out just before hitting the water with a gigantic splash.