儿童英语读物 The Camp-Out Mystery CHAPTER 14 Hildy Disappears

At the store, Doris was pacing the floor. “You didn’t see Hildy anywhere along the way, did you?” she asked Violet and Henry when they arrived.



“No, we didn’t,” Henry said. “Were you expecting her?”



“This is her shopping day,” Doris answered. “She always comes in early so she won’t run into any other customers. There’s been no sign of her. I’m getting worried.”



“And she doesn’t have a phone,” Violet commented.



“No, and I can’t leave the store—it’s delivery day,” Doris said.



“We could stop to check on her,” Henry offered.



“Oh, would you?” Doris sounded relieved.



“Sure,” Violet said. “But she probably won’t want to see us.”



“I wouldn’t ask you to do it,” Doris said, “it’s just that … well, I’m worried.”



With her help, the children gathered the things on Jessie’s list. Then, promising 1 to be careful, they hurried off.



Henry and Violet raced into camp.



Breathing hard, Henry announced, “Something’s happened to Hildy!”



“Whoa! Slow down,” Mr. Alden said to them. “You look as though you’re being chased.”



Jessie and Benny took the grocery bags from their brother and sister and set them on the table.



“Sit down,” Jessie said. “Catch your breath.”



They sank to the picnic bench. Benny sat between them.



Grandfather hobbled over and sat down, too. He gave the children time to calm down before saying, “Now, tell us what happened.”



Violet started at the beginning. “We met the Changs in the parking lot,” she said. “They were leaving because they couldn’t stand the music and the other things that have been happening.”



Henry picked up the story. “And then we went to the store. Doris was upset because Hildy hadn’t come in for her groceries.”



“Maybe she’ll be in later,” Grandfather said.



Violet shook her head. “Doris said today is her shopping day, and she always comes in first thing.”



“We said we’d check her cabin,” Henry told them. “But we wanted to bring the groceries back first.”



“And get you two and Watch,” Violet said to Jessie and Benny.



“That was smart,” Grandfather said. “There’s safety in numbers. I only wish I could go with you.”



“Oh, don’t worry, Grandfather,” Henry said. “We’ll be all right.”



Benny shot to his feet. “Well, what are we waiting for?”



The four children hurried along the stream path. Watch yapped at their heels.



Hildy’s cabin looked deserted 2. The children approached it slowly. At the door, Henry knocked.



No response.



He knocked again. “Hildy!” he called. “It’s the Aldens. We have a message from Doris.”



Still no answer.



“Try the door,” Jessie suggested.



Henry turned the knob 3. The door was unlocked 4.



Slowly, cautiously 5, Henry pushed the door. It creaked as it swung open.



A few bars of light from the window fell across the cabin floor. Otherwise, the cabin was dark.



“Hildy?” Henry called softly.



He stepped inside the cabin. The others followed. Watch ran around sniffing 6.



Pointing to a small table under the window, Benny said, “Look! Our missing lantern!”



A battery-powered lantern stood in the center of the table.



Henry took a few steps forward. “It looks like our lantern all right,” he said.



“There are lots of lanterns like that,” Violet said.



“But Hildy had a kerosene 7 lantern,” Benny reminded them.



“And it was broken,” Jessie remembered. She went to the table and picked up the lantern. She turned it over. “It’s our lantern, all right,” she said. She showed the others the name Alden scratched on the bottom.



“Hildy took it!” Benny concluded. “She is the one behind everything!”



Henry wasn’t convinced. “But our lantern was missing before we saw Hildy with her broken one.”



“Maybe she already had our lantern here in her cabin,” Violet suggested.



“But if she had our lantern, why would she be so upset about hers being broken?” Jessie asked.



“We don’t have time to think about it now,” Henry said. “We promised Doris we’d find Hildy.”



They went back outside. Benny and Watch ran around the outside of the cabin looking for some sign of Hildy, but they found nothing.



“Maybe she’s on her way to the store right now,” Violet suggested. “Or already there.”



“In that case, we’re wasting our time,” Jessie said. “Let’s go back to camp.”



“Not yet,” Henry said. “I think we should look around a little more.”



“Let’s go to Andy’s,” Benny suggested. “He might know where Hildy is.”



They ran over the hill, Watch in the lead.



Andy’s place was closed up tight. Even the windows were shuttered.



When the children knocked, there was no answer.



“They’re both missing!” Benny said.