Finders Keepers Mystery Read Free Page A

He managed to smile. “To dust. Maybe from all the time I’ve spent in people’s attics looking at what they call treasure.”
    At the mention of treasure, Benny perked up. It was a word he liked. “Lina’s grandfather said her great-great-aunt had hidden trea — ”
    Interrupting quickly Lina said, “Mr. Munsey, I’d like you to meet my neighbors, Henry, Violet, Benny, and Jessie Alden.”
    “And Watch,” added Benny, pointing toward Watch, who was now curled up in the sunlight from the attic window on a faded pillow. Watch raised his head at the sound of his name — and sneezed, too.
    That made the Aldens and Lina laugh.
    “I hope you are not allergic to dogs,” said Jessie.
    “As a matter of fact, and most surprisingly, no,” said Mr. Munsey. “Now, am I to look at quilts, or, er, treasure?”
    “Quilts,” said Lina, stepping over to the cedar chest. She raised the lid, moved the gray quilt to one side, and lifted out the first of Hope’s masterpieces. Henry, Violet, and Jessie helped Lina spread it out while Benny gathered up the delicate old tissue paper in which it had been folded.
    Mr. Munsey blinked. He cleared his throat. He leaned close to the quilt, so close his nose almost touched it. Then he whipped a small magnifying glass and a small flashlight from his pocket. He clicked on the light and began to examine the quilt through the magnifying glass.
    “Ah, um, hmmm,” he murmured as he traced the quilt’s stitches with the flashlight and magnifying glass. “Oh, hmmm, yes.”
    “Yes,” he repeated, straightening up. His green eyes were very bright. “Yes, indeed. Treasure, Ms. Diaz. Treasure, indeed. And there are more of these, you say?”
    “Five more,” Lina said, and she and the Aldens produced the quilts from the cedar chest, one by one.
    Mr. Munsey looked at each very, very carefully. “Flying Geese,” he murmured. “Log Cabin. Ah… the Nine Patch pattern. And look at this stitching, this detail!”
    “What are you talking about?” asked Benny.
    Mr. Munsey looked up almost as if he’d forgotten anyone else was in the attic with him. “The quilt patterns,” he explained. “Those are the names of the patterns of the quilts. This one is called Log Cabin, and that one is Flying Geese.”
    “I don’t see any log cabins or geese flying,” said Benny.
    “I think I do,” said Violet. “I mean, not real geese, but you can see a sort of pattern… like the wings of geese when they fly.”
    “Exactly,” said Mr. Munsey. “Both Log Cabin and Flying Geese are very common quilt patterns. A couple of these others are a bit more unusual. All are, well, amazing.”
    The quilt expert turned to Lina. “Your Great-great-aunt Hope had a wonderful way with color. And I don’t think I’ve ever seen finer stitching. These quilts are worth quite a bit of money.”
    Lina reached out to stroke a green velvet patch on the Log Cabin quilt. “Yes,” she said simply.
    “Perhaps you would consider giving them to the museum,” said Mr. Munsey. “We could see they are properly cared for and hang them up where many many people could enjoy them.”
    With one last quick pat of the quilt, Lina looked up. “Hang them in a museum?” she said. “I don’t know.”
    “They are very valuable. Unique. Irreplaceable. You don’t want anything to happen to them, which it easily could, stored in a chest in an attic,” said Mr. Munsey. He glanced toward the window. “Even sunlight will damage them.”
    “The quilts have been here for a long, long time, and they’ve been safe,” Henry pointed out.
    Mr. Munsey ignored Henry and kept his attention focused on Lina. “We should act quickly,” he urged. “If it’s money you want, I can try to arrange something. We’re not a wealthy museum, but we have resources.”
    Laying a hand on Lina’s arm, Jessie said, “We’ll help you put the quilts back in the trunk, and you can think about it.”
    “Yes,” said Lina. “That’s what I’ll do.