Mike's Mystery by Gertrude Warner Read Free Book Online

I wish you would.”
    So Mike went on. “Aunt Jane, you gave me that newspaper, you know.”
    “Yes, I did.”
    “Well, you said you didn’t look at it. Will you look at it now?”
    “Certainly I will, if you want me to,” said the lady.
    “It’s just the picture,” said Mike, taking it out of his pocket. “Just look at my brother, Pat, and remember I was right here, standing beside him. But the picture cut me off.” Mike pointed. He gave the picture to Aunt Jane.
    But Aunt Jane suddenly saw the picture of the short man. She frowned. Then she cried, “I know that man! He is one of the men who tried to buy my ranch. I’d know him anywhere!”
    Henry was excited. “That was last summer. It was the time you were alone in the house. We all went to the store, and the men came while we were away. Are you sure, Aunt Jane?”
    “Of course I’m sure!” cried Aunt Jane. “I never liked those three men. I’d know them anywhere.”
    “Well, Mike, what do you think about that!” shouted Benny.
    Just then the telephone rang. It was for Benny.
    “Hello,” said Benny.
    “This is Mr. Carter,” said the voice. “You can tell the rest about this. We found a lot of wires behind the mine. Someone was going to blow it up. Thanks to you and Mike, we got the wires out.”
    “Good!” said Benny. “And listen to this! Aunt Jane knows the man in the picture. He is the man that just got out of jail, I bet.”
    “What? What? I’ll be right down,” said Mr. Carter.
    When he came down, he asked Aunt Jane many questions. At last he said, “We know the man, and we can prove it. I don’t think it will be very long now. We just have to find him.”

CHAPTER 13
    The Party
    M r. Carter had said, “It won’t be long now.” But it was longer than he thought. Nobody saw the man. Benny and Mike were always watching, but they never saw him. There seemed to be no stranger in town.
    The pie business was doing well. Every day Mrs. Wood and the girls made sixty pies. The boys sold them all.
    “We are making money,” said Jessie. “People are very good to us. And the insurance helped.”
    “Yes, my dear,” said Mrs. Wood. “I think I can earn a good living this way.”
    “Yes,” said Violet. “We have so much practice, we can make them faster and faster!”
    “It was a very good idea,” said Henry, “having Mike’s Mother’s Place. I never get tired of selling pies. The men are so glad to get them.”
    Mrs. Wood said, “When you go back to school, I can hire two girls to help me. I know two nice girls.”
    “Some day we ought to have a party,” said Jessie. “The people have been so kind.”
    “A Pie Party!” cried Benny. “Give everybody a pie.”
    Mrs. Wood laughed. “Not a whole pie, Benny,” she said. “We could give everybody a piece of pie, and some coffee.”
    “And milk,” said Benny.
    “Well, all right, milk,” agreed Mrs. Wood.
    “Have it Saturday night, when all the men could come,” said Violet.
    “Have it this Saturday night!” shouted Benny.
    “We can ask Mr. Carter and Mr. Gardner,” said Henry.
    “And we can make pies all day,” said Jessie, “and have the party in the evening.”
    Everyone thought this was a fine idea. When they told Mr. Gardner he laughed. He said, “Go ahead. I’ll help you. It will surely be very lonesome here when you four Aldens go back to school in the Fall.”
    Mrs. Wood and Jessie and Violet wore white. They made white caps.

    They made white caps for the boys, too. They made big white aprons. The boys got a printing set and printed MIKE’S MOTHER’S PLACE on the front of their big aprons. They had many cans of milk and hot coffee.
    Then the people began to come to the party. The two dogs ran around having a wonderful time. They loved everybody, and they were good dogs.
    There were plenty of chairs, because Mr. Carter had sent them. He sent movies too.
    He said, “I have some beautiful pictures of the South Seas. The people will like to see the banana