Mystery of the Star Ruby Read Free

“I’m not a big fan of peach cobbler.” He left the dining room.
    “ I’m a big fan of peach cobbler,” Benny said to the waitress. “You can give me his, too.”
    Everyone laughed.
    Jessie was still thinking about the contest. “How can Mr. Knight afford to pay the prize money if his business isn’t doing so well?”
    “A lot of people come here for the contest,” Sybil said. “They pay for entry fees, lodging, and meals in the restaurant, have their stones mounted in jewelry, and buy buckets of pre-spaded dirt.”
    “Serious rock hounds don’t buy the five-dollar buckets,” Jonathan added. “They spring for the more expensive specialty buckets.”
    After dinner, the grown-ups lingered in the rocking chairs on the wide front porch.
    The Alden kids strolled down one of the trails behind the cabins. Crickets chirped their end-of-summer song. The mountains rose darkly around them. No moon or stars could be seen in the pitch-black sky.
    “Boy,” murmured Henry. “When it’s night here, it’s really night!”
    “I can’t wait to start looking for rubies tomorrow,” said Jessie.
    “Me, too,” Benny agreed. “Maybe one of us will win the contest.”
    “We’d have to find a Papa Bear ruby bigger than Mr. Hodge’s,” said Violet.
    “We have as good a chance as anyone else here,” Jessie said confidently.
    Snap! Cra-ack!
    Henry spun around. “What was that?”
    “It sounded like a twig breaking,” Violet said, her heart pounding. What would be in the woods after dark? A bear? A fox?
    Suddenly Benny cried, “Look!”
    Everyone looked up at the sky. It wasn’t pitch-black anymore.
    A round, reddish light like a globe appeared over the peak of a distant mountain. The light hovered in the air a few seconds, then vanished. A moment later, the light reappeared, but in a different spot. Then it was gone again.
    “Wow!” exclaimed Henry. “What was that ?”
    Benny’s voice was low. “It could only be one thing.”
    “What?” chorused Jessie and Violet.
    “A flying saucer,” he replied solemnly.

CHAPTER 3
Jewels in the Dirt
    “Benny, there are no flying saucers,” Jessie said.
    “What else can it be?” he insisted.
    The children watched for a few more minutes. But the reddish round light did not reappear.
    “We’d better get back,” Henry said. “It’s pretty late.”
    They walked to the cabins. Lamplight shone through the window of the cabin next to Garnet, the girls’ cabin.
    Jessie glanced up at the sky once more. No strange light. She knew it wasn’t a flying saucer. But what else could it have been?
    Loud caws in the pine trees woke Jessie the next morning.
    “Those crows are a good alarm clock,” she told Violet as they got dressed. “Who could sleep through that racket?”
    The boys were waiting for them outside their cabin. The door to the cabin next to Violet’s and Jessie’s opened and Sybil Finley stepped out. Her cabin was called Sapphire.
    “Good morning,” she greeted them. “I didn’t know you girls were in Garnet. We’re neighbors!”
    They all walked to the restaurant. The day’s forecast—hot and sunny—was printed on the chalkboard, along with the breakfast specials, “Gold Nuggets and Potato Pebbles.”
    Jonathan was sitting at their table, scribbling in a notebook.
    “I saw an eastern kingbird on my morning walk,” he said. “I’ve never seen one before. I’m adding it to my bird list.”
    “You keep a bird list?” Violet asked.
    “I keep lists for everything,” Jonathan said, holding up a small black notebook. “I write down the mileage on my car, the weather, even what I eat for breakfast.”
    “I should start a food list,” Benny said.
    Henry laughed. “You’d need a pretty big notebook just for one day!”
    Grandfather and Donald Hodge joined them. Donald wore a white button-down shirt. Violet thought it was strange he was so dressed up to hunt for rubies.
    “Grandfather!” Benny exclaimed. “We saw a flying saucer last