The Case of the Clever Secret Code Read online

  I tilted my head and looked at him cross-eyed. “They haven’t? How do you know that?”

  Bogey glanced around the room. “Think about it, kid. Remember all that furniture and stuff Bronson bought at our Mom’s store?”

  I sort of gasped. “He only bought stuff from the early families of St. Gertrude. Maybe he thought this key was hidden in one of those things.”

  Bogey grinned. “Exactly, kid. But he didn’t want anyone to know he was looking for that key.”

  I nodded my head really fast. “So he just pretended he was going to use that furniture for his movie set.”

  Bogey passed me another treat. “So if he’d found that key in all that stuff, he would have called off the dogs. Meaning, his little friends Frank and Nadia wouldn’t have been here hunting through our house tonight.”

  “That’s right,” I sort of murmured. “Because otherwise they wouldn’t be looking for it anymore.”

  Bogey stared at the French doors. “You got it, kid. But I think I found a clue that might lead us to the key.”

  All of a sudden, it seemed like I could hardly breathe. “Wow . . . you did? What is it?”

  He pointed to the picture of the stone on the computer screen. “Take a look, kid. Tell me what you see. Right up there in the left hand corner. I enhanced the photo and made it sharper.”

  I scooted closer to the computer. “I’m not sure, but I think I see three lines, followed by two small ‘X’s.’ And then I see a line and a little ‘V.’ What are those?”

  Bogey grinned. “Roman numerals, kid. The first three lines stand for the number three. And the next symbols come out to be the number twenty-four.”

  I turned and looked at my brother. “Number three and then number twenty-four? What does it mean?”

  Bogey passed me a treat and took one for himself. “Don’t know yet, kid. But I do know we’d better figure it out before Steele Bronson and his crew do. Otherwise, we’ll have some valuable treasure missing from St. Gertrude. And we’ll never even know what it was.”

  You may have heard the expression, “Curiosity killed the cat.” Well, right about then, I figured that expression was about to come true. Because let me tell you, I really thought I was going to die of curiosity at that moment. More than anything, I wanted to know what those numbers meant.

  Bogey stashed his treat bag back into the vase where he always hid it. “Let’s give it some thought, kid. But right now we’d better run our surveillance rounds. We’re behind schedule.”

  I wanted to salute him, but for some reason, I just couldn’t keep my mind off those numbers. What did they mean? And how would we ever figure out that part of the puzzle? Especially before Steele Bronson and his people did?

  I was still thinking about it when we ran our first surveillance round that night. We zoomed through the downstairs together and then headed upstairs. Everything looked fine, so we took time out for a nap. Then we ran another set of rounds and grabbed another nap. We were just finishing up our third set of surveillance rounds when our Dad came down the stairs. Yawning.

  And about to get ready for work.

  He opened the front door and grabbed the paper from the porch. He rubbed his eyes and yawned again. Then he blinked a few times and unfolded the paper.

  The St. Gertrude Times.

  We could even see the headline from where we sat on the floor. “World Famous Movie Star Steele Bronson Visits Local Home For Dinner.”

  And right below that was a picture. A huge picture. A much, much larger than life picture.

  That’s when my jaw dropped and practically hit the hardwood floor.

  “Bogey,” I meowed in a whisper. “Do you see that?”

  He clenched his teeth together. “Couldn’t miss it if I tried, kid.”

  I sure wished I hadn’t seen it. I even blinked my eyes a few times, just to make sure I did see it right. But no matter how I turned my head, or how many times I closed my eyes, that picture was still there every time I looked.

  I felt my heart sink inside my chest.

  For there, staring at us from the front page of the paper, was the Princess.

  Holy Catnip!

  CHAPTER 18

  Holy Mackerel!

  I could hardly believe it. There she was. The Princess. Staring back at us from the front page of the St. Gertrude Times. The caption below read, “Franklin Jefferson, the writer behind Steele Bronson’s fantastic success, holds one of the family cats as he attends an event at the home of Mike and Abigail Abernathy.”

  As pictures went, it was a really good one. But let me tell you, nobody was going to be looking at Frank Jefferson. That’s because he’d been holding the Princess forward, so she ended up being front and center in that photo. Even though Frank was in the background, what stood out was the Princess’ beautiful white fur and her big, green eyes. And, the diamonds sparking in her collar.

  The paper might as well have posted a caption that read, “Here’s Princess Alexandra. Come and get her.”

  Our Dad petted Bogey and me on the head. “Look boys. Lexie made the front page.”

  Then he wandered sleepily to the kitchen.

  I turned to my brother. “I don’t get it. That reporter must have taken a million pictures last night. But why, oh why, did the paper have to put that picture on the front? They must have had tons of other pictures they could’ve used. Pictures of Steele Bronson.”

  Bogey’s mouth was set in a firm line. “Probably a backroom deal, kid. That reporter is the son of the guy who owns the St. Gertrude paper. So what that reporter wants to go on the front page probably goes on the front page.”

  I looked up at the ceiling. “But I still don’t see why he put the Princess’ picture there.”

  Bogey rubbed his head. “He’s getting cozy with Frank, kid. Because the reporter has written a screenplay that he wants to go to Hollywood. He thinks Frank has the connections to help him. And that was probably the only picture he took of Frank. So he made sure it ended up on the front page of the paper. To flatter him.”

  I rubbed my own head. “All these people trying to get something from someone else. Yet the Princess isn’t trying to get anything from anyone. And she might be the one who ends up suffering from all this.”

  Bogey sighed. “I hear ya, kid. This could set off a huge chain reaction. If this picture hits the wires and goes national, we could be in big trouble.”

  I gulped. “Do you really think her old owners could break out of jail?”

  Bogey glanced at the front door. “Time will tell, kid. Time will tell.”

  A few minutes later, our Mom came down the stairs and headed for the kitchen. She and our Dad started cooking breakfast.

  Then, much to my amazement, I heard singing. The sound came closer and closer. Pretty soon I figured out it was Gracie singing one of her favorite songs. She was still singing when she came bounding down the stairs. She picked up Bogey and gave him a kiss on the head. Then she picked me up and gave me a big hug.

  I had to say, I needed a good hug right about then. So I hugged her back. And I gave her a nice kiss on the nose, too.

  She giggled and put me down. “Do you boys know what a great day this is?”

  Well, to tell you the truth, I had no idea. Though I was sort of surprised to hear her say so. Especially after all that she’d been through in the last couple of days.

  I turned to my brother and raised my brows, silently asking him if he knew anything. But he just shrugged his shoulders.

  Then Gracie went dancing into the kitchen.

  We ran in after her. What in the world was going on?

  She stopped right in front of our Mom and Dad. “I’ve made a decision. I would like to throw a party.”

  Our Mom looked at our Dad. And he shrugged his shoulders exactly like Bogey had. Then Bogey and I looked at each other again, and we both shrugged our shoulders.

  Right about then, the Princess and Lil strolled into the kitchen. Lil came over and joined us while the Prince
ss jumped onto a kitchen chair. She sat up nice and straight and sort of surveyed the room. She smiled and started to purr.

  Our Mom poured coffee for her and our Dad. “Um, what kind of a party did you have in mind?”

  Gracie smiled. “A Fourth of July party.”

  That’s when my head spun around toward the Princess like metal being drawn to a magnet. Because I suddenly remembered the pictures she’d left around Gracie’s room the night before. Now it looked like her plan was working.

  Our Mom smiled back at Gracie. “Okay. But you’re going to have a very full day. Are you sure you’ll have time to throw a party on Saturday, too?”

  Gracie danced around the room. “I’m not going to throw my party then. I’m going to throw my party tomorrow afternoon.”

  Our Mom choked on her coffee. “Tomorrow? That’s pretty short notice.”

  Our Dad cracked a bunch of eggs into a bowl. “Maybe you could tell us about the rest of your party plans.”

  Gracie stopped dancing. “I would love, too. I want to have red, white, and blue decorations. And I’m going to bake cupcakes and decorate them red, white, and blue, too. Then I’m going to invite all the kids who were at the essay contest. And Mrs. Peebles. I’m going to tell them I’ve got a big surprise for them. And when the party gets going, I’m going to make a big announcement.”

  By now our Mom’s eyes were wide. “Well, everything so far sounds good. What’s the big announcement?”

  “I’m going to announce that Dylan Federov should be the real winner of the essay contest. After all, everyone knows his essay was the best. Then I’m going to award him the trophy instead of me.”

  Our Mom and Dad both sort of gasped.

  Our Dad set down the bowl of eggs he’d been whipping. “Gracie, honey, you’re going to give up your trophy? And the ride on the float and everything else?”

  Gracie jutted her chin out. “Yes, Dad. It’s the right thing to do. The only reason I got that trophy was because Steele Bronson walked in and said I was the winner. But I didn’t really win that contest. Honestly, I did a terrible job that night. I don’t deserve that trophy. And I don’t want to have it if I don’t deserve it.”

  Our Mom was smiling. “Are you sure about this?”

  Gracie started to dance around again. “Mom and Dad, I’ve never been so sure about anything in my whole life. Ever since I got awarded that trophy, I’ve felt just awful. Because I didn’t deserve it and someone else did. But now that I decided to have this party, I feel like a big weight has been lifted off my shoulders.”

  Our Dad finished stirring the eggs and poured them into a hot frying pan. “Well then, Gracie, I think it sounds like a wonderful idea. You’ll turn it into a bit of a ceremony and make it official.”

  Our Mom walked over and wrapped Gracie in a big hug. “Gracie, that’s sounds like a perfect way to handle all this. I am so proud of you.”

  Gracie looked up to her. “You are? Even though I won’t end up with the trophy? And I did such a terrible job at the contest? I got so flustered when Steele Bronson showed up that I didn’t even practice enough. And I can’t believe I let that Frank rewrite my essay. I never should have let him do that.”

  Our Mom stroked Gracie’s hair back from her face. “He never should have done that to your paper. But to answer your question, I am proud of you right now for doing the right thing. You may not have done your best at the contest, but I think you’ve learned a lot from all this.”

  Gracie let out a really loud sigh. “I’ve learned a lot of things I wish I’d never had to learn.”

  Our Mom hugged her again. “Well then, let’s get your party set up. I think we can stay home from the store today. I’ll call Merryweather and Millicent and make sure they can handle things on their own. Then we can bake cupcakes and decorate.”

  Our Dad waved his spatula. “Don’t forget to save some cupcakes for your dear old Dad.”

  Gracie laughed. “I’ll set some aside for you.”

  Then she looked back to our Mom again. “Thank you, Mom. For giving me this idea.”

  Our Mom raised an eyebrow. “Me? Honey, I had nothing to do with this. You came up with this idea on your own.”

  Gracie grinned. “Uh-huh. Someone left a whole bunch of pictures around my room. Kind of like hints. It took me a little while, but I put two and two together.”

  Our Mom’s mouth fell open. “Honey, I’m afraid I don’t know what you’re talking about.”

  Gracie winked at our Mom. “Right, Mom. Sure, whatever you say.”

  With those words, Gracie skipped off. Our Mom and Dad stood there with their mouths hanging open. In the meantime, the Princess just sat there purring as loud as she could. I’d never seen her look so proud.

  And I was pretty proud of the Princess, too! I sure had to hand it to her. When she came up with a plan, she really knew how to make it work!

  Holy Catnip!

  It was so nice to see the Princess look so happy. And she kept on looking happy. That was, until she spotted the front page of the paper and saw her own face looking back at her. That’s when she bit her lip and quit purring. I could tell she was upset, and probably scared. But she was working hard not to show it.

  About that time, I could barely keep my eyes open. Bogey and I both dragged ourselves to our cat beds for a nice long nap. We woke up around lunchtime to see party decorations and balloons strung up in the living room. Plus we could smell cupcakes baking in the oven. Gracie announced to our Mom that she had sent emails to everyone and that all had promised to be there.

  Gracie spent the rest of the day practically walking on air. Later in the afternoon, she sat down at the computer at our Mom’s desk. She had the copy of her essay with her, the one that Frank had marked up with red ink.

  Bogey and I decided to join her. She giggled when he sat on one side of the computer and I sat on the other.

  She petted us both on our heads. “Hello, boys. I’m typing my essay into the computer again. And I’m deciding if I want to use any of the suggestions that Frank made. I may use some, and I may ignore others. Then I’m going to read it aloud in front of my mirror. This may sound kind of funny, but I just want to prove to myself that I can read it out loud without any problems.”

  I had to say, that sure sounded like a good idea to me! I gave her a kiss on the nose while Bogey watched every word she typed.

  She had barely finished when the doorbell rang. She saved her work and raced off to the front door. Our Mom was just coming up behind her as Gracie swung the door open wide.

  There on the front porch was Taffy, Steele Bronson’s hairdresser. She had her arms full of towels and she was pulling a small suitcase.

  “Hello, Abby. Hello, Gracie,” she said. “It looks like you both fixed your own hair today.”

  Our Mom smiled. “I’m afraid our hairdos weren’t in great shape after last night. And Gracie and I both decided to wear our hair like we normally do.”

  Taffy frowned. “Oh . . . all right. But I think Steele liked your hair better the way I fixed it.”

  Gracie put a big smile on her face. “Well, I don’t remember asking his opinion on how I should wear my hair.”

  Now Taffy raised an eyebrow and glared at Gracie. “I’ll just have to fix your hair again before you read your essay. For the movie.”

  But Gracie’s smile didn’t dip. “We’ll see.”

  Our Mom put her hand on Gracie’s head and looked at Taffy. “What can we do for you today?”

  Taffy stepped into our house. “I’m here to give Buckley and Bogey their baths. Ready for their part in the movie.”

  Our Mom shook her head. “It’s all right. I can bath the boys later. You don’t need to worry about it.”

  Taffy took another step forward, and sort of forced our Mom to move aside. “Look lady, if I don’t do people’s hair, then I don’t get paid. And if Steele Bronson says he wants me to bath those two cats, then that’s what I have to do. Otherwise I’ll be out of a job.” />
  Our Mom sort of laughed and shook her head. “All right, fine. You can give the boys a bath.”

  “I’ll need your kitchen sink,” Taffy said.

  Gracie let out a little shriek. “No, you can’t use the kitchen sink. Because I’m baking cupcakes and I need to use the whole kitchen.”

  Taffy rolled her eyes. “Whatever. Just show me to a bathroom. I’ll use the tub.”

  “Fine,” our Mom said again. “I’ll take you to an upstairs bathroom.”

  And the next thing I knew, Taffy carried Bogey and her suitcase up the stairs. Our Mom walked in front of her, and carried me and the towels.

  I wriggled around to look our Mom right straight in the eyes. I couldn’t believe she was going along with this lousy plan! Didn’t she know that Bogey and I were being carried to our doom?

  Let me tell you, I’ve had a bath or two before. And it was not pretty. That’s because us cats hate being in the water. So I sure wanted to avoid getting a bath today. Or any other day, for that matter. Especially from this Taffy person whom I barely even knew.

  “Don’t worry, Buckley,” our Mom murmured to me. “You’ll be fine.”

  I figured our Mom must suddenly be in some kind of a trance or something. Or maybe she was just really tired or stressed out and not thinking straight. Because I sure couldn’t understand why she hadn’t put a stop to this terrible trauma that was about to take place!

  So I started to squirm in my Mom’s arms and tried to get away. Then I saw Bogey waving to me. From the look on his face, I could tell he had something important to tell me. But to be honest, I didn’t really care at that moment. All I really cared about was escaping. And staying away from any bath water.

  “We’ve got to keep Taffy busy, kid,” Bogey meowed over to me. “So she can’t go off and search our house. For the key. Or the ‘old broad.’”

  “But Bogey,” I meowed back. “We’re talking about a bath here!”

  Bogey shook his head. “Don’t I know it, kid. Don’t I know it. But sometimes you’ve got to take one for the team.”

  I squirmed some more. “Take one for the team?”