The Trail of the Screaming Teenager (2 page)

The girl bumped into his beach chair.

She waved at him, then bounced up the steps to the boardwalk.

“Well!” Noni told Dawn. “I hope you have better manners.”

Dawn hopped up. “I do, I do.”

She slammed down the cover of her detective box. She raced across the sand and dived into the water.

It was cool, salty, wonderful.

Behind her came the kindergarten kid and his mother.

She was still reading. She was holding the book up in the air.

The book was getting wet anyway.

The boy looked at Dawn. He pulled back his arm. Then he splashed her as hard as he could.

“Arno,” said the mother without looking at him, “I don’t think that was very friendly.”

Dawn scrunched up her nose. She’d like to give Arno a quick punch.

Dawn looked around for Jill and Jason.

One of Jill’s bows was floating on the water.

Jill was floating too.

Jason was swimming in the doughnut tube. “Great,” he yelled.

Dawn lay on her back. She kicked her feet. “I love to float,” she said. “I learned it at camp.”

She closed her eyes. If only she had a mystery to solve.

Then she thought she heard something. “Is someone yelling?” she began, and got a mouthful of water.

“Everyone’s yelling,” Jill said.

Dawn kicked once more. Then she stood up to see what was happening.

On the boardwalk, the merry-go-round was going around.

In front was the sand and umbrellas and people sitting on blankets.

She could see Noni bent over her crossword puzzle . . . and the teenagers standing near her.

The girl with the long blond hair was standing on her blanket.

And she was screaming as loud as she could.

D
AWN RODE IN ON
a wave.

She scrambled up on the sand.

The girl was still screaming.

She waved her arms around.

Even Noni looked up from her crossword puzzle to watch.

Dawn shook the water out of her hair. She raced for the blanket.

“Wait for me,” yelled Jill.

Dawn didn’t stop. She had to see what was going on.

Besides, poor Jill wouldn’t be any help at all.

“It’s gone,” the girl said. She was wringing her hands. “My almost-diamond necklace with the two almost-ruby hearts.”

The chicken-head boy with the radio clicked his teeth.

“It must have fallen off,” said the freckle-faced girl.

“We’ll look all over the place,” Long Hair said. “We’ll dig in the sand around the blanket.”

The blond girl shook her head. “I bet someone picked it up. That makes someone a thief.” She opened her mouth. “Help. Someone’s a thief.”

The other teenagers shook their heads. They searched through the blanket.

They scooped up the sand around them. Dawn crept closer.

“Help,” the girl yelled again.

“I’ll help,” said Dawn.

The girl stopped screaming. “You’re just a little kid.”

Dawn drew herself up. “I’m the Polka Dot Private Eye. I’ve solved at least eight cases.”

“Seven,” said Jill from behind her.

“Six,” said Jason.

“Anyway,” said Dawn, “I’m ready to solve this one too.”

She reached for her Polka Dot Private Eye hat. “Tell me the clues.”

“No clues. Not one,” said the girl. “I had it on the blanket. I didn’t have it on the boardwalk.” She opened her mouth wide. “Thieeeeef.”

“What’s your name?” Dawn asked.

“Mindy Merrill,” said the girl. “I made it up myself. I want to be an actress.”

Dawn frowned. “But what’s your real name?”

The girl frowned too. She opened her mouth. “Glad—”

Just then someone else started to scream. Someone up on the boardwalk.

“Gladys Gump,” yelled a boy with brown hair and glasses, “if you don’t get home right this minute, Mom’s going to kill you.”

“My brother,” said the girl. “I have to go home.”

She looked around one last time. “It’s a great necklace,” she said. “The rubies shine in the dark.”

“Did you hear me?” the boy shouted. “Time to go home.”

The girl shook out her shoes.

She put on a blue flowered hat.

“There’s a reward,” she said.

“How much?” asked Dawn and Jason together.

The girl raised one shoulder. “A quarter, I guess.”

“I think I’m going to look for pirate coins instead,” said Jill.

“Now,” yelled the boy. “I’m going without you.”

“My brother has no patience.” She looked at Dawn. “Try to find the thief.”

Dawn nodded. “I’ll look for coins later.” She shook her head. “How about your address?”

“One twelve-thirty-two . . . Never mind. I’ll be back tomorrow.” The girl hopped over Noni’s red plaid blanket.

She stepped in front of the man’s newspaper.

She made a wide circle around the kindergarten kid.

He threw another shovel at her anyway.

Then she disappeared up on the boardwalk.

“Terrific,” said Dawn. “We’ve got a mystery.”

“Not so terrific,” said Noni. “She got sand all over my crossword puzzle.”

Dawn put on her sunglasses with the mirror eyes. She didn’t want anyone to see her watching.

Then she looked around.

The man was still reading his newspaper.

Long Hair and Freckle Face were digging around in the sand.

Chicken Head was clucking in time to his radio.

“Someone here is probably a thief,” Dawn said. “And we’re going to catch him. Or her.”

Jill Simon shivered. She clapped her hands over her look-like-real pearl necklace.

“I think I know what we should do next,” she said.

Dawn looked up.

“Eat lunch,” said Jill. “I’m starved.”

D
AWN ATE HER
egg-salad sandwich on rye bread. “Nice and crunchy,” she said.

“That’s sand.” Noni smiled. “It’s all over you.”

“I don’t mind.” Dawn reached for a peach.

Then she sat back and tried to think.

How could she solve the mystery of the almost-diamond necklace?

She could see Jason was thinking too.

“I bet it’s the man with the newspaper,” he said. “He kept hiding behind it.”

“He probably didn’t want to get sunburned,” said Noni. “Or maybe he wanted some peace and quiet too.”

“Maybe,” said Jason. “I’m going to keep an eye on him anyway.”

Jill nodded. Her mouth was filled with a chocolate-chip cookie.

She had two more cookies in each hand.

“I gluf fo fem,” she said.

“I think she’s saying she loves to eat,” said Jason.

Jill shook her head.

“What are you saying?” Dawn asked.

“Wait till she finishes,” said Noni. “Better manners that way.”

Dawn looked up at the sky. “Who could have stolen it?”

“I don’t nof,” said Jill.

“Me neither.” Dawn sat up straight. “Wait a minute. I do know.”

“Whooof?”

“I
almost
know.” Dawn nodded to herself. “Now, listen. Mindy was wearing the necklace on the blanket. It was gone when she got to the boardwalk. Right?”

“Right,” said Jason.

Dawn narrowed her eyes. “It had to be someone in between.”

She raised her fingers in the air. “Suspects,” she said. “First: the man with the newspaper.”

“Told you,” said Jason.

Dawn nodded. “Or maybe one of the other teenagers.”

Jill swallowed. “I’m trying to say that maybe—”

“That chicken-head kid looks like a thief if I ever saw one,” Dawn said.

“What about that little kid?” Jason asked.

“Yes,” Dawn said. “That bratty kindergarten kid, Arno.”

Jill stood up. “I’m glad you didn’t say us.”

Dawn sighed. “Of course I didn’t.”

“Just joking.” Jill reached for the Marvelous Metal Finder. “Anyway, I was going to say that the necklace may just be lost.”

“Not stolen?” Dawn said. “Don’t be silly.”

Jill raised one shoulder. “I’m going to look anyway. I’m going to look for coins too.”

She swept across the sand with the finder.

Buzz, click.

“It works.” Jill sifted through the sand and pulled out a penny.

“Great,” said Noni. “It’s a 1962 penny. That was a year that John Kennedy was president.”

Dawn looked at the Marvelous Metal Finder. “Keep looking. Maybe you’ll find the necklace.” She leaned over the blanket.

“There’s something I have to do right away.”

Jason leaned forward. “What?”

“I’m going to lock my Polka Dot Private Eye box. No thief is going to get my good stuff.”

She tapped Noni’s knee.

Noni reached into her pocket. She pulled out a pink heart lock and a silver key.

Dawn snapped the lock on the private eye box. She piled the lunch box on top of it. . . and her flip-flops . . . and her wet pink towel.

Buzz, click.

“Hey,” said Jill. “A nail.”

“Hey,” said Jason at the same time. “There goes the man with the newspaper.”

Dawn didn’t stop to look. “Follow that man,” she yelled.

They scrambled up and started to run.

Dawn glanced down at the man’s blanket.

Nothing was on it, though.

Nothing but the newspaper.

She reached out with one toe and flipped the paper over.

A banana was underneath.

So was a pack of Chiclets.

No almost-diamond necklace with two almost-ruby hearts.

“Hurry,” yelled Jason. “I can hardly see him anymore.”

Dawn stood on tiptoes. “I can’t see him at all.”

They circled around the kindergarten kid.

Dawn hopped over his red-and-blue sand pail.

“You’re going to get it,” he said. “Any minute.”

Up on the boardwalk there was music.

The merry-go-round was going around.

“There he is,” whispered Jason.

Dawn looked. The man was sitting on the tallest horse.

He had on a yellow-striped bathing suit.

A yellow sweatband was pulled down over his forehead.

“That’s the man?” Dawn asked, shaking her head. “Are you sure?”

Jason nodded. “I’m positive.”

The man waved at them. “Love the merry-go-round,” he called. “Always did.”

“Good grief,” said Dawn. “That’s no thief.”

“How do you know?” asked Jason.

“It’s Mr. Ott from next door.”

“I
DIDN’T THINK
he was the thief,” said Dawn.

Jason looked disappointed. “There goes my suspect.”

“Isn’t it time for ice cream?” said a voice behind them.

It was Jill. Only two red bows were left on her braids.

She was carrying a green jar.

She rattled it. “I found a nickel,” she said. “It has a picture of Jefferson’s head, and his house on the back. Some house.”

Dawn looked toward the beach. She was dying to find some stuff.

“I found a key,” Jill went on, “and a couple of nails.”

“Lucky,” said Dawn.

“No necklace, though.”

Jill held out some money. “From Noni for ice cream.”

Dawn thought for a second. “I guess we have time for a quick— “

“Very quick—” Jason added.

Jill smiled. “—ice cream cone.”

They marched along the boardwalk . . . past the hot-corn-on-the-cob stand . . . past Freddie’s French Fries.

They turned in at Iggy’s Ice Cream Corner.

Dawn took a deep breath. “Look. There’s Chicken Head and Long Hair.”

“Freckle Face too,” said Jason.

“They’re having my favorite ice cream,” said Jill. “Chocolate double-dip Oreo crunch.”

Dawn stopped. She handed Jason her money. “Get me an orange raspberry,” she said. “There’s something I have to do. Right away.”

She raced back along the boardwalk, down onto the beach.

Stepping along, she raised her feet high in the air.

The sand was as hot as Freddie’s french fries.

She looked at her blanket.

Noni wasn’t there.

She could see Noni’s big straw hat bobbing along down near the water.

Dawn looked around. Then she tiptoed to the teenagers’ blanket.

Stuff was piled up all over the place.

Sand was too.

Dawn glanced toward the boardwalk.

She had to work fast.