The Mystery at Blackwater Falls

Part Two

Author’s note:

The Bob-Whites have traveled to Davis, West Virginia to stay at Blackwater Falls State Park and Resort. While on the Wheelers’ private jet, the boys decided to have a “no deodorant pact” to show the girls how manly they are.

After eating dinner at the local Pizza Hut, the Bob-Whites piled into the large van to go to the lodge at Blackwater Falls. Miss Trask drove slowly through the charming town of Elkins as her passengers commented on the sights.

Miss Trask had stopped at an intersection, waiting for the oncoming traffic to clear, when a loud giggle suddenly erupted from Trixie.

“I didn’t know your dad owned a sporting goods store, Honey!” she exclaimed, pointing to a large, brown building across the street to the left.

“Oh, that’s so cool!” Honey squealed as she wiggled around in her seat beside Brian and looked at the building. “Can we stop, Miss Trask? I’d like to take our picture in front of the sign to show Daddy.”

“That would be fine, dear,” Miss Trask agreed. “We’re in no hurry.”

Once traffic had cleared, she turned left, drove a few yards, and then pulled into the parking lot of the sporting goods store.

As the group exited the van, they went back to the intersection to admire a large statue of the Indian Princess, Minnehaha. The girls whispered back and forth as they discussed the statue’s interesting measurements.

Photo of the Minnehaha Statue in Elkins

“Whoo-hoo,” Dan whistled appreciatively. “Baby’s got back.”

The girls erupted in a fit of giggles as they simultaneously whacked Dan with their purses.

“What?” he asked sheepishly. “Like you didn’t notice! I heard you whispering about Minnie’s…assets.”

“It’s not polite to gawk, Daniel,” Honey chided. “You’ll offend the Indian Princess and her father will scalp you.”

“Hey, Minnie’s got a large backside,” Dan commented matter-of-factly. “Is that my fault?”

“Her butt is rather… large,” Jim commented, a stifled smile making the corners of his mouth twitch.

“That’s the understatement of the year,” Mart said with a snort. “It sure wouldn’t be too hard to hit that target with a slingshot.”

Di laughed as she punched Mart’s arm. “You’re awful. I’m sure she didn’t really look like that.”

“So why’d they make her posterior so big?” Brian questioned, an impish twinkle in his dark eyes.

“To entertain dirty-minded boys like you,” Trixie answered with a saucy grin. “Now, come on. I want to get to the hotel sometime tonight.”

Miss Trask took the group’s picture outside of Wheelers. After scolding them several times about bunny ears, nose picking, and protruding tongues, she finally captured a shot she deemed suitable.

“Do you mind if we go inside for a moment, Miss Trask?” Jim inquired, eyeing the store’s large fishing supply section through the window of the building. “I’d like to see what kind of lures they have.”

Miss Trask looked at her watch. “It’s five-thirty now, children. I’m going to go to the convenience store next door. If we meet back here at six, will that give you enough time, Jim?”

“Sure,” he answered. “We’ll be by the van in half an hour.”

The Bob-Whites entered the large sporting goods store and perused the fishing, hunting, and camping supplies for sale. Jim and Brian explored the fishing section, while Mart and Dan looked through the camping merchandise.

The girls wandered around aimlessly, not having much of an interest in anything the store offered.

“Psst!” Di beckoned the other two girls over to her. She giggled as she held up a bottle. “If the boys’ body odor gets too bad, we can hold them down and put this on them.”

Trixie laughed as she picked up the bottle in question and read its title out loud. “Deer scent. What’s that?”

“It must be some kind of perfume you use in the woods,” Honey commented with a shrug. “Too bad this company doesn’t make a spray deodorant that we could squirt on the guys.”

“Well, deer perfume would have to smell better than BO,” Di chuckled.

Trixie began gathering an armful of the small bottles. “Then we’d better stock up,” she declared as seriously as possible.

A kindly-looking older gentleman approached the three girls. “Need help findin’ something, ladies?”

“We were… uhhh… just thinking about purchasing some of your deer perfume,” Di informed him, her violet eyes twinkling in mirth.

“Is that so?” the salesman replied. He adjusted his bifocals farther up on his nose. “Well, that there is the best deer scent you can get.”

“Do you have a sample bottle we can try?” Honey questioned politely. “Is there a tester bottle like they have in department stores?”

The old man scratched his chin thoughtfully, attempting to stifle a chuckle. “Well, I don’t recall anyone ever askin’ if they could sniff it before. After all, it is made out of gen-you-ine deer urine.”

“D-d-deer urine?” Trixie stammered, her cheeks beet red. Her blush soon faded and her face turned ashen, as she quickly discarded the bottles she was holding into a nearby bin.

“ICK!” Di exclaimed, her pretty face scrunched up in horror. “What do people do with deer pee?”

The salesman’s white whiskers twitched as a hint of a smile tipped the corners of his mouth upward. “Well, miss, the hunters slather it on themselves so that the deer can’t smell ‘em.”

“Slather it?” Trixie repeated.

“You know,” the man explained, “rub it on their bodies.”

“They rub the deer pee… on their bodies… on purpose?” Honey asked weakly, turning a bit green around the gills.

“Well, yes, miss.” The kindly gentleman was visibly struggling to not bust out laughing. “That way the hunters can go out in the woods without lettin’ the deer know they’re there. They blend in with the scents around them.”

“How?” Trixie inquired, not sure she really wanted to know, but her curiosity getting the better of her.

“The scent makes the hunters smell like bucks,” he told them patiently. “That smell attracts the does. The does follow the scent, and it makes ‘em easier to shoot.”

Di wrinkled her nose. “Why do the girl deer like the boy deer’s… uhhh… scent?”

“ ‘Cause that’s how the bucks mark their territory,” the salesman answered with an amused smile. “The girl deer think they’re on the trail of a boyfriend.”

“I’m glad our ‘bucks’ don’t do that,” Honey whispered to the other girls.

“No, they just refuse to wear deodorant,” Trixie said with a giggle.

Di snorted. “I’m not sure which one is worse.”

“So, I guess you ladies won’t be purchasin’ any deer scent today?” the man asked, a twinkle in his gentle gray eyes.

“Ummm… no thank you, sir,” Honey replied politely. “We kind of thought… well, we were under the impression that… I mean, we weren’t aware that—”

“We didn’t know it was deer pee,” Trixie interrupted with a sheepish grin. “We thought it was some kind of woodsy perfume.”

“Well, that’s an honest mistake, my dear,” the gentleman said graciously, trying to leave the remainder of the girls’ dignity intact. “If you don’t need anything else, I’ll go see if those boys have found what they were lookin’ for.”

“We’ll be fine, sir,” Di told him sweetly. “Thank you for your help.”

“Yeah, thanks!” Trixie blurted out as he was walking away. As soon as he was out of earshot, the girls doubled over as giggles incapacitated them.

Just then, Mart rounded the corner and stared at them, his hands on his hips as he shook his head at them disparagingly. “What are you crazy squaws up to?”

Di batted her dark eyelashes at him. “Nothing,” she replied.

“Uh-huh,” he muttered, unconvinced.

“So, almost-twin, will you need any deer scent during our vacation?” Trixie asked, a wicked gleam in her china blue eyes.

Mart snorted in exasperation. “What do I want with buck pee?”

“So you know what it is?” Honey queried, her hazel eyes wide with wonder.

“Sure,” answered Mart with a shrug. “You’d have to be a total nitwit not to know what deer scent is. Why? Did you daffy girls think it was perfume or something?”

Trixie scowled at her slightly older brother, thankful that she hadn’t admitted that she and her friends hadn’t known what it was until a few minutes ago.

“Of course not,” she hissed. “Do you think we’re stupid?”

Mart grinned impishly at his sister. “You— yes. Honey and Di— well, the jury’s still out on that one. It depends on how much longer they hang around you.”

Honey stuck her tongue out at him. “Don’t you have someplace else to be, Mr. Belden?”

“As a matter of fact, I do,” he told them with a smirk. “I’ll see you squaws later. Don’t knock over any of the displays.”

Trixie grabbed the collar of Mart’s orange polo shirt and halted his progress. “And where do you think you’re going?”

Mart slapped her hand away and carefully straightened his collar. “Not that it’s any of your business, but I’m going to the visitors’ center, which is on the other side of the convenience store. I want to pick up a couple of new travel guides, since somebody ripped my old ones.”

“Hey, pick me up some too, won’t you, Mart?” Trixie asked.

Mart snickered and shook his head in total disbelief. “I don’t think so. If anything, you should be picking me up some brochures, since you ripped the ones I had before.”

“Mart!” Trixie whined. “Please?”

“Sorry, squaw.” He crossed his arms in finality. “If you want some travel guides, get them yourself.”

“Fine, I will,” Trixie said with an indignant sniff. She looked at Honey and Di. “I’ll meet you in the parking lot at six o’clock.”

She silently followed Mart out the door of Wheelers Sporting Goods and walked down the sidewalk to the visitors’ center. As they approached the entrance, a tall, balding man wearing a red and black plaid shirt held the door open for them.

Trixie smiled in thanks, as Mart politely said, “Thank you.” The two teenagers walked straight over to the brochures that were on display in a large, wooden rack hanging on the wall. Mart quickly selected the ones he had had before, as well as several new ones.

“It’s almost six,” he said, looking at his watch. “I’m going back to the van.”

“I’ll see you there,” Trixie called, as her brother trotted out the door.

Trixie plucked up several travel guides from the rack. “Let’s see, I’ll get one for Blackwater Falls, Smoke Hole Caverns, Cass Railroad, Seneca Caverns, Canaan Valley…” she murmured to herself, as she selected brochures.

“And I’d better get this trail guide for Blackwater Falls.” She frowned as she noticed that she’d taken the last brochure containing maps for the hiking trails in Blackwater Falls, but with a shrug, added it to her collection.

As she turned to leave, the man who had held open the door earlier pecked her on the shoulder.

“Pardon me, miss,” he said with a friendly smile, “but was that your brother that just left?”

“Unfortunately,” Trixie answered with a laugh. “Since he looks so much like me, I’m forced to claim him.”

The man chuckled. “I thought you two looked alike.”

“Yeah, some people even mistake us for twins,” Trixie said. “That really bugs him.” She turned to leave, but before she could walk away, the man spoke again.

“Miss, by any chance would you mind sharing your brother’s hiking guide?” he asked. “You got the last one, and I was hoping you wouldn’t mind parting with it. I really need one.”

Trixie looked at the map that she held in her hand. “Gleeps, mister. I ripped Mart’s other one, so I don’t know if he’ll share his new one with me or not.”

“I’m sure he would, if you explained the situation to him.”

“You don’t know Mart,” she replied with a smirk. “He can really be a pain sometimes.”

“Oh, I’ll bet he’d understand,” the man coaxed. “I’d really appreciate it.”

Trixie bit her lower lip as she pondered her options. She wanted to help the man, but she also really wanted that map. If the girls and boys split up, they would need two maps.

On the other hand, the man seemed nice, and she hated to say no to him. And if she explained the situation to him, she was sure Mart would understand.

With a soft sigh, Trixie singled out the hiking guide from the rest of the stack. However, before she could hand it to the man, an elderly lady hustled toward them, waving a stack of maps in her wrinkled hands.

“Don’t you fret about that trail map, sweetie,” the old woman called out. “I’ve got a whole stack of ‘em here to add to the rack. There’s plenty for everybody.”

“Great!” Trixie returned the map to the pile of brochures she’d already accumulated and placed them all in her backpack. “Ma’am, you saved the day.”

“I should’ve checked the rack earlier, but we’ve had a busy day,” the lady explained. “We had a tour bus from Kentucky come by earlier. They were taking the scenic route to Virginia.

“The driver told me that his passengers thought it was so pretty here that they’d like to see some of the local sights on the way back,” she continued. “They took several maps from the different resorts. We usually don’t go through so many in one day.”

“Well, I’m glad you had extra,” Trixie told the woman, a bright smile on her face. “Now we can both have one, mister. Lucky for us, huh?”

“Yeah,” he murmured, gazing at the bag as she zipped it closed. After a moment of silence, he nervously cleared his throat. “You know, that map you have is kind of wrinkled. If you want, I could trade—”

“Gleeps!” Trixie interrupted as she glanced at the clock on the wall. “I’m almost ten minutes late! Miss Trask’s gonna kill me. I gotta go. See ya!”

With a hasty wave, she skidded out of the visitors’ center and raced to the van. The man glared at the teenager, as he watched her harum-scarum departure.

It took approximately half an hour for a person used to traveling the mountain road to get from Elkins to Davis. However, Miss Trask was unaccustomed to driving on the winding roads. A heavy fog had begun to settle, which made the trip even more treacherous. Even though it was still daylight, it was difficult to see. Several deer stood on the banks near the road, and every now and then, one would run in front of the van.

To further increase their travel time, Di needed to stop several times to walk around. No matter how slowly Miss Trask drove, it didn’t prevent Di’s stomach from reeling as the aerodynamically-challenged van lurched around the mountain’s curves.

It was after seven o’clock when the Bob-Whites’ van pulled into the parking lot of the Blackwater Falls Resort. The resort’s lodge was enormous and looked like an oversized Swiss ski lodge situated in the middle of a forest. The stone and wood building was perched atop a mountain, and the view to the valley below was spectacular.

Miss Trask parked by the lodge entrance and allowed the teenagers to get their luggage out of the back and carry it into the lobby. After she parked, she would get everyone checked into their rooms.

The group “oohed and ahhed” as they admired the tastefully decorated rustic surroundings of the lodge’s lobby. They set down their suitcases by the front desk and wandered around, as they waited for Miss Trask to come inside.

Still slightly queasy from the trip, Di staggered down a long hallway past the gift shop, until she found the ladies’ restroom.

Jim studied a list of activities that were posted on a bulletin board. “The resort has a naturalist on staff. Boy, I’d sure like to meet him.”

“Yeah, that would be neat,” Brian said.

Dan wandered over to a large sitting room, containing several couches, chairs, and tables, arranged in cozy groups. A large fireplace graced the farthest wall, inviting an evening of chatting in front of a roaring fire.

The great room at Blackwater Falls Lodge

Mart peeked through the glass doors of the large dining room, trying to catch a glimpse of the food the patrons had on their plates. He took special notice of the sign advertising the restaurant’s hours, committing the times to memory.

The lobby of Blackwater Falls Lodge

The restaurant is beyond the glass doors

Trixie and Honey pored over a rack of travel brochures by the door. Honey looked up as her best friend snorted loudly in a very unladylike manner.

“What was that for?” she prodded with a smile.

“Oh, this man at Elkins tried to convince me to give him a trail map that I’d just gotten,” Trixie explained. “Mart and I picked up the last two that the visitors’ center had. Some guy in a plaid shirt wanted me and Mart to share one, and give him the other one.”

“What’s so funny about that?” Honey questioned, her hazel eyes filled with confusion.

“Well, they have a whole bunch of them here,” Trixie said, pointing to the aforementioned brochures. “If I would’ve known that, I would’ve given him the silly old map.”

“You didn’t give it to him?”

Trixie shook her head. “I was going to, but a lady came out holding a huge stack of them. I told him we could both have one.”

Honey smiled. “I’m glad that he got his map. It must’ve been very important for him to have one if he asked for yours.”

“I guess so,” Trixie answered with a shrug. Suddenly, almost as if a light bulb came on, she began gnawing on her lower lip with her teeth. “You know, even though that lady brought out a whole new stack of maps, that man seemed kind of mad that he couldn’t have mine.”

“Really?” Honey’s brow furrowed as she pondered Trixie’s words. “I wonder why.”

“I dunno,” Trixie replied. “For once, I actually wasn’t rude or anything.”

“Are you sure he was mad?”

Trixie began absentmindedly twirling a curl around her index finger as she recalled the event. “Well, maybe mad is too strong of a word. But I’d say he was disappointed that I didn’t give him my map. Really disappointed.”

“Hmm…” Honey murmured thoughtfully. “That’s weird.”

“Yes,” Trixie agreed, “it’s very mysterious.”

“How did I know you were going to say that?” Honey teased, grinning.

Trixie merely looked at her tawny-haired friend and good-naturedly rolled her china blue eyes.

“Maybe your travel guide is really a secret treasure map,” Honey suggested with a mischievous smile. “That’s why he wanted your map.”

“Or maybe my brochure had a check for a million dollars in it,” Trixie giggled. “A special prize for the taker of the last trail map.”

“Is there anything different about that particular guide?” Honey asked. “Maybe something written on it?”

“Gleeps!” Trixie exclaimed. “I never even thought of that! What kind of detective am I?”

“That’s what you’ve got me for,” Honey told her with a hug. “Now let’s see that map.”

Trixie retrieved her backpack and dug out the travel guide from the mess inside. By now, it was crumpled from being smashed against countless objects inside the sloppily packed bag.

“This is it.” Trixie opened the map for her and Honey to peruse.

The girls pored over the pamphlet, looking for any clues as to why Mr. Plaid Shirt seemed to want that particular one.

“See anything, Hon?” Trixie questioned hopefully.

“No.” Honey shook her head sadly. “I don’t see anything unusual on here. Just a map of the resort and a description of the different trails typed on the back. How about you? Did you notice anything strange?”

Trixie sighed glumly, an unhappy frown on her face. “Nope, not at all. Just looks like a regular old map.”

The boys wandered over to the door where Trixie and Honey were standing. Trixie, anxious to avoid the topic of the mysterious map with the boys, quickly refolded the guide. However, her frantic actions caught the boys’ attention. They gathered around Trixie and Honey and stared at them suspiciously.

“What cooks, squaws?” Mart asked, his blue eyes boring holes into the two girls.

“Nothing you’d be interested in, Chief Fuzzy Bunny,” Trixie retorted.

“Fuzzy Bunny?” he gasped, dramatically placing his hand over his heart. “Ugh! A spear right through the fifth rib.”

“Chief Fuzzy Bunny,” Dan repeated with a smug grin. “I like it.”

“I’d be keeping my mouth shut if I was you, Chief Scaredy-Cat,” Mart threatened with a scowl, “ ‘cause Chief Fuzzy Bunny has heap big blackmail stash about the flight over here.”

That effectively wiped the smug grin off of Dan’s face. He nonchalantly pulled his wallet from the back pocket of his jeans and asked, “How much would it take to make you forget about the plane ride here?”

“There’s not enough wampum in the world, my friend,” Mart informed him, his blue eyes dancing in delight.

Trixie’s diversion effectively distracted Mart and Dan; however, Jim and Brian crossed their arms and studied her face.

“What gives, Trix?” Jim questioned, one ginger brow raised in speculation. “Why so quick to put away your map?”

Trixie assumed an innocent expression. “No reason. I just didn’t want anyone to take it.”

Brian snorted. “Why would we want your stupid map? There’s a whole bunch of them here.”

“You never know,” Trixie hedged.

Brian seemed satisfied with that explanation and walked over to where Mart and Dan were.

However, Jim wasn’t so easily fooled.

“Out with it, Shamus,” he whispered, gently grasping her arm. “Something tells me you’re on the trail of another mystery.”

“Why, Mr. Frayne, what would ever give you that impression?” Trixie innocently batted her big blue eyes at him.

“Don’t pull that angelic act with me, Trixie Belden,” he murmured. Though he tried to look annoyed, he failed miserably. His amusement clearly shone through.

Trixie merely shrugged, a Mona Lisa expression planted firmly on her face.

Further conversation couldn’t be made, as Miss Trask walked through the main entrance and began checking the group into their rooms. Di also chose that moment to stumble back into the lobby. Her normally porcelain complexion was a bit ashen as she recovered from her motion sickness.

“Are you all right, Di?” Honey asked, concern evident in her soft voice.

“Gleeps, Di!” Trixie exclaimed. “You look awful!” A slight blush crept upon her cheeks as she attempted to dodge Honey’s glare. “I mean, you don’t look like you feel very good.”

“That pizza wasn’t nearly as good the second time,” Di muttered.

“Still not feeling well, dear?” Miss Trask inquired as she joined the group of teenagers.

“I’m doing a little better,” Di answered with a weak smile. “Maybe it would help if I lay down for a bit.”

“That sounds like an excellent idea,” Miss Trask agreed as she handed the girls two credit card-type objects. “Here are your room keys. Be careful not to lose them.”

“Thanks,” Trixie said, grabbing one of the keys and sticking it in the pocket of her Capri-length khakis.

“Would you like to carry the other one, or should I?” Honey considerately asked Di.

“You can,” Di offered. “Where’s our room?”

“Second floor,” Miss Trask answered. “Can you make it up to your room, Diana?”

“I think so,” Di replied, taking a few wobbly steps. She wearily looked at her luggage. “Uhhh… do you think someone could…”

“Let me get your bags for you!” Mart offered. He practically broke his neck reaching for Di’s large purple suitcase and matching carryon bag. He awkwardly pulled the straps of his duffel bag over his shoulder and grasped the handle of his own smaller suitcase, while placing the strap of Di’s carryon around his neck.

Brian watched, an amused smirk on his face. “Need some help?” Brian inquired.

“I’ve got it,” Mart assured, still trying to find the best way to carry all the bags at the same time.

“I thought you weren’t going to carry anyone’s bags but your own,” Trixie pointed out with a saucy grin.

Mart paused briefly in his finagling and snarled at his sister in response. Managing to pick up all his and Diana’s bags, he smiled gallantly at the violet-eyed beauty. His hands were totally fully, so he nodded to the elevator with his head. “Lead the way, m’lady.”

A half hour later, the girls were relaxing in their hotel room. Di, still recovering from her motion sickness, lay on the bed by the window with a cool cloth on her forehead. Honey neatly transferred her clothes from her suitcases to the dresser. Trixie, itching to explore the lodge, bounced on the other queen-sized bed in the room as she waited for her friends to accompany her. She hastily flipped through television channels, looking for something interesting to watch. However, her attention kept returning to the mysterious encounter at Elkins.

Trixie exhaled loudly as she cast a furtive glance in Diana’s direction. “Feeling better yet, Di?”

Honey placed her hands on her slim hips and glared at her sandy-haired friend. “Trixie Belden! Shame on you for rushing poor Di.”

“We’ve been out of the van for a whole hour!” Trixie exploded. “Surely she’s not queasy now!”

“Have you ever been carsick?” Honey asked.

“Nope,” Trixie admitted. “Moms says my body’s so used to sudden twisting and turning that I’ll never get carsick.”

“Well, I have, and it’s awful,” Honey told her. “It can take several hours to feel completely better.”

Trixie blushed slightly and turned apologetically to her ashen-faced friend. “Sorry, Di,” she apologized. “I guess I’m just kind of excited about looking around.”

“I’ll be ready in a few minutes, Trixie,” Di promised as she adjusted the cool cloth on her forehead.

“Want me to get your shoes?” Trixie offered eagerly, getting up from her seat on the edge of the other bed.

“Trixie!” Honey chided. “Why don’t you do something constructive until Di’s ready to go?”

Trixie sighed loudly. “Like what?” she prompted.

“Well, why don’t you unpack your suitcase?” Honey suggested. “That way your clothes won’t be as wrinkly.”

“My clothes were wrinkly when they went into the suitcase,” Trixie informed her tartly. “So how will unpacking my clothes make them any less wrinkly when I take them out?”

Honey schooled her lips into a stern frown as she opened one of the dresser drawers and pointed to it. “Humor me, missy. Now get busy.”

“Yes, ma’am,” Trixie giggled, with a mock salute. She went over to the corner of the room and picked up her gray suitcase. After placing it on the bed and unzipping it, she picked it back up, held it over the dresser, and then dumped the suitcase’s contents into the open drawer.

“Well, that’s done,” Trixie announced as she dusted off her hands.

“And what a fine job you did,” Honey said wryly. She studied the mound of clothes heaped in the drawer with distaste. “You know, you could fold them…”

“Fold them?” Trixie stepped backward and clutched her heart with a gasp. “Gleeps, Hon! I’m on vacation. I could fold laundry at home. I’m not gonna do it here!”

Honey tried to stifle a smile, but found it was impossible as she watched her impatient friend. Instead of rebuking Trixie further, she merely began the task of neatly folding the clothes Trixie had crammed into the drawer. “Miss Belden, you’re incorrigible!”

“Why, thank you, Miss Wheeler,” Trixie replied with a sweet smile and a dainty curtsy.

Di removed the cloth from her forehead and laughed. “I don’t think that was a compliment, Trix. I’ve heard Mummy call Bobby that several times, so I don’t think it’s good to be incor… incur… oh, whatever.”

Trixie looked hopefully at her ebony-haired friend. “Are you feeling okay now, Di?”

Honey playfully swatted Trixie with the T-shirt she was holding. “Haven’t you ever heard that patience is a virtue?”

“Patience?” Trixie snorted. “What’s that? And who needs virtue anyway?”

Di rose up slightly to look at her friends, propping herself up on her elbow. “Patience is one virtue that Trixie definitely doesn’t have,” she teased. “What’re you so anxious about anyway? I don’t think the ‘no-deodorant’ pact starts until tomorrow, so I doubt ‘nekkid Jim’ will make an appearance…”

Her cheeks burning a deep crimson, Trixie poised the television remote in midair, strategically aiming it for Di’s head.

“You’ll have to excuse Trixie. She’s on the trail of another mystery,” Honey explained with a laugh. “It’s making her a bit antsy.”

“You’ve already found a mystery?” Di queried. “Wow, that was fast. We’ve been here less than an hour.”

“I didn’t find it here,” Trixie clarified, tossing the remote control onto the bed. “I found it at the visitors’ center in Elkins.”

“What happened?” Di sat upright and crossed her legs Indian-style.

“Well, when Mart and I went to get those travel brochures, a man wearing a red flannel shirt opened the door for us,” Trixie explained, her blue eyes round with possibility.

“A red flannel shirt this time of the year?” Di’s delicate brows wrinkled in confusion. “It’s too hot for long sleeves.”

Trixie sighed impatiently. “This isn’t ‘What Not to Wear’, Di. I’m trying to tell you about my mysterious encounter.”

“My apologies, dear Trixie,” Di said with a giggle. “Please continue.”

“As I was saying, Mart and I went to the visitors’ center, and we saw a man wearing a red flannel shirt,” Trixie repeated. “We got the last two trail guides they had for Blackwater Falls. After Mart left, the man asked if I would give him my map.”

Di shrugged. “What’s so mysterious about that?”

“A lady came over to us, holding a great big stack of the exact same brochures,” Trixie told her. “I stuck my map back in my bag and told the man that now there was enough for everyone.”

Di cleared her throat dramatically. “Why, yes, Trixie… uhhh… that’s very mysterious,” she teased sarcastically. “We need to call the FBI at once.” She barely dodged the pillow that Trixie hurled at her.

“Ha, ha,” Trixie muttered, with a roll of her eyes. “That’s not the mysterious part.”

“Well, hurry up and get to it,” Di commanded with a giggle. “I need to pee.”

“It was mysterious that the man didn’t look happy about getting one of the other brochures.” Trixie stopped briefly to worry her lower lip, and then continued, “He looked really angry that I kept the last map. I’m not positive, but I think he glared at me as I left.”

“That is kind of mysterious,” Di admitted, twirling a strand of black hair around her slender index finger. “I wonder why he was so mad about not getting that particular map.”

Honey’s amber-colored eyes twinkled. “Trixie and I think there was a buried treasure marked on it.”

“Can I see the guide?” Di asked.

“Sure.” Trixie handed it to Diana and waited breathlessly for her friend to examine it.

Diana reached up and turned on the light by her bed. “It looks just like the map Mart had on the plane,” she murmured as she studied the details of the brochure.

Trixie sighed in disappointment and stood to take the pamphlet.

“Nothing special about this,” Di began as she carefully refolded the map. “And the man shouldn’t be upset that you took this one. This one has junk written on it. It’s ruined.”

Trixie and Honey looked at each other, both of their mouths agape at Di’s statement. They excitedly plopped down on either side of their friend.

“Writing? What writing?” Trixie exploded, shaking Di’s shoulder with her trembling hand.

“Where is it?” Honey squealed, peering closely at the map on Di’s lap.

Di blinked her eyes, surprised by her friends’ enthusiasm. “Why, right here. See?” She reopened the folds of the map and held it up so that both Trixie and Honey could see it. With the tip of her fingernail, she pointed out the tiny numbers written upon it.

“My goodness!” Honey exclaimed. “I hadn’t noticed that!”

“Me either!” Trixie was so excited that she was making the bed bounce with her wiggling. “Golly, Di, you’ve got a good eye for details.”

“You mean you hadn’t seen this before?” Di blushed from her friends’ praise, pleased that she had discovered a clue before they had.

“No,” Trixie told her. “Those numbers are so small that I hadn’t noticed them. And they’re written in black ink, so they kind of blend in with the rest of the words on the page.”

“It looks like whoever wrote them on there was trying to make sure that they didn’t stand out,” Honey commented.

“I still can’t believe that I didn’t see them,” Trixie muttered.

“Well, I doubt most people would notice them,” Di reassured her, patting her arm. “I just happened to get lucky.”

“No, Di,” disagreed Trixie with a rueful grin, “you just studied the map more carefully than I did. I was so anxious to find clues that I didn’t take the time to look for small details like that. I was just sort of hoping to find ‘buried treasure hidden here’ written on it in huge, red letters with a circle around it.”

“Well, whoever wrote those numbers was trying to hide them from anyone who wasn’t looking,” Di said.

“What are those numbers?” Honey asked. She squinted her eyes to stare at the guide.

Trixie anxiously ripped the brochure out of Di’s hands and raced over to the light. “304259490452,” she answered loudly. She looked at her friends, a scowl on her pretty face. “But why did someone write them on there?”

“Maybe it’s a room number?” Di suggested.

Trixie snorted incredulously. “Call me crazy, but I don’t think there’s,” she paused to study the number on the map, “304,259,490,452 rooms in this place. Think of something else.”

“Maybe it’s a phone number,” Honey enthusiastically sputtered.

Di shook her head. “No, there are too many numbers. Including an area code, a phone number would only have ten digits. This number has twelve.”

“I’ve got it!” Trixie began bouncing up and down excitedly. “I’ll bet it’s a combination for a safe!”

“A safe?” Honey repeated, rubbing her chin thoughtfully. “What kind of safe?”

“Like the ones they have in hotels!” Trixie returned to her friends’ side and lowered her voice to a whisper. “Maybe it’s the combination to the lodge’s safe.”

Di knotted her brows in curiosity. “Do they even have one?”

“I don’t know,” Trixie admitted. “But lots of hotels do.”

“Well, why would the combination to a safe in Davis be written on a travel guide in Elkins?” Honey questioned.

“Somebody from the hotel wrote it on there,” Trixie explained in a low voice. “Maybe the desk clerk is partners with the man I met at the visitors’ center. The guy at the desk wrote the safe combination on the very last map in the stack, thinking Mr. Plaid Shirt would find it.

“But a tour bus passed through and took several brochures,” she went on, the excitement growing in her voice as she added details. “The crooks had no idea so many guides would be taken that day. Mart and I took the last two in the rack, just as Mr. Plaid Shirt got there. He saw Mart take the next-to-last one and knew I had the map with the combination written on it.”

“So why didn’t he take it from you and run?” Di inquired.

“He didn’t want to draw attention to himself,” Trixie speculated. “He decided to let me have the map and somehow contact the hotel worker for the numbers.”

“Do you think he’s dangerous?” Honey asked in a voice barely above a whisper.

“I don’t know,” Trixie replied with a shrug of her shoulders. “Why?”

Honey nervously licked her lips, and then proceeded. “Well, he knows that you have the map with the safe combination, and what if he figures out that we figured out what all those numbers mean? What do we do then?”

Di shivered and anxiously looked around the room. “What if he comes after you, Trixie?”

“And follows us around the park,” Honey added in a whisper.

“And drags you to a remote part of the reserve,” Di continued with a gulp.

“And hacks you into a hundred little pieces,” Honey squeaked out.

Trixie tried to steady the slight quiver in her chin. “Oh, phooey. He won’t get a chance. We’re always with the boys. They won’t let anyone drag me away.” She assumed a thoughtful expression, and then added, “Well, Mart might, but I’m sure Brian, Jim, and Dan wouldn’t.”

“True, but we’re not always with the boys,” Honey pointed out. “They can’t always protect you.”

“I’m sure Mr. Plaid Shirt knows we’ll be alone in our room at night,” Di added nervously.

“And the desk clerk could give him a key to our room,” Honey suggested.

“And he could sneak in while we’re away and hide in the shower,” Di proposed in an ominous voice.

“Then, when we’re in a deep sleep, he’ll sneak out of the bathroom,” Honey said with a shiver.

“And one by one, he’ll hold a pillow over our noses and smother us in our sleep!” Di concluded with a shudder.

“Oh, we need to tell the boys!” Honey cried, linking arms with Trixie as if she could protect her friend.

Suddenly, the phone rang, breaking the nervous tension in the room. All three of the girls screamed and jumped in fright.

After taking a deep breath to calm herself, Trixie picked up the receiver. “Hello?” she answered, her voice still shaky.

“I’m okay,” Trixie told the caller. She shot her two friends a dirty look. “We were just talking about something scary when you called, and the ringing surprised us… Ummm, yeah, I think she’s feeling better… I don’t know. Let me ask…”

She held her palm against the mouthpiece of the receiver. “The boys want to know if we’d like to take a quick swim in the pool before we go to bed. If Di’s feeling better, that is. What do you think?”

“Sounds good to me. As long as Pierre Lontard isn’t lurking around the pool, that is,” Honey replied, a nervous tremor in her voice. She cast an apprehensive glance at her sandy-haired friend as she remembered Trixie’s near-fatal swim during their trip to St. Louis. “Do you think you’ll be safe, Trixie?”

Trixie’s chin rose in haughty defiance. “Oh, pooh. I’ll be fine. Even if Mr. Plaid Shirt is a deranged ax murderer, I’ll be with the six of you. I’ll be perfectly safe.”

Honey’s gaze transferred to Diana. “Are you up for it, Di?”

Di nodded. “Ye-es… as long as the boys wait for us outside our room and walk us to the pool. I’m kind of nervous now.”

“Me too,” Honey admitted, peeking into the bathroom just to make sure the ax-murdering, plaid-shirt wearing psychopath wasn’t in there.

“Don’t be silly!” Trixie hissed. With a roll of her eyes, she uncovered the receiver and held it to her ear. “A swim sounds like fun. We’ll gather up our junk and be ready in about five minutes, if you want to wait outside our room… okay, we’ll see you then.”

After hanging up the phone, Trixie dug in the dresser to find her swimsuit. She grabbed it and packed it inside the duffel bag she’d stored in her suitcase. Noticing that her friends hadn’t moved a muscle, she placed her hands on her hips and glared at them. “Are you girls coming, or are you staying here?”

“We’re coming,” Honey cried, hurriedly opening the dresser drawer to find her bathing suit.

Di jumped off the bed to find her own suit. “You couldn’t pay me to stay here by myself!” she shrieked.

Trixie shook her head and chuckled at her friends. “You’re being ridiculous. That man isn’t going to break in our room.”

“I still think we should tell the boys,” Honey insisted.

“Tell them what?” Trixie demanded. “Tell them a man glared at me in the visitors’ center in Elkins? Tell them that we found some numbers written on a trail map?” She shook her head and frowned. “We’re not telling them anything until we get some evidence. If we tell them our suspicions now, they’ll just laugh at us.”

“I suppose that’s true,” Honey admitted, her light brown eyebrows wrinkled in worry. “But if we notice anything mysterious, promise me that we’ll tell them immediately!”

Trixie held up three fingers in the Girl Scout Promise formation. “I give you my word.”

“O-okay,” Honey stammered. “I won’t say anything.”

“Me either,” Di promised, her violet eyes clouded with concern. “If you’re sure everything will be all right—”

“I’m sure.” Trixie smiled cheerfully at both of her friends. “I mean, we’ve only been here a few hours. What are the chances that something truly mysterious has already fallen in my lap?”

A knocking on their door made Di and Honey scurry to finish gathering their things. Once their task was completed, Di opened the door to an impatiently yawning Mart.

“Gee whiz, Di, what took you so long?” he asked. “The rest of the guys already went to the pool. They made me stay here to wait for you. They were afraid you goony girls would get lost and end up in China or something.”

“Ha, ha,” Di snapped with a flip of her shiny black hair. “We’re ready, so lead the way, Magellan.”

Honey giggled as she hoisted the strap of her beach bag over her shoulder. “Tomorrow we won’t have to worry about getting lost. We’ll just be able to sniff the air for your BO, and be able to find you.”

“Ewww!” Di squealed as she walked out in the hallway, Honey clipping at her heels.

“C’mon, Trix!” Mart bellowed. “The pool closes at 10:00!”

“Just a minute!” Trixie yelled. With Di and Honey both out of sight in the hall, she hurried into the bathroom. She yanked open the shower curtain and, much to her relief, affirmed that nobody was hiding in the tub. Her breathing finally normal, she locked the door to their room, stuck the key in the pocket of her capris, and firmly closed the door behind her.

Credits:

We have been to Elkins several times while traveling to Blackwater Falls and Canaan Valley, and there is a Pizza Hut restaurant, which we have eaten at recently. There is also a visitors’ center and a Wheelers Sporting Goods store. Every time we visit Elkins, our children must always look at the large statue of Minnehaha which stands at an intersection. And yes, poor Minnehaha has a large, round posterior, and since I work with teenage boys, I KNOW they would notice and say something.

Would you think less of me if I admitted that I once thought deer scent was a woodsy perfume? I was quite embarrassed when I was told what it was actually for. *ick*

The road between Elkins and Davis is extremely curvy. If you visit and are prone to motion sickness, I’d recommend Dramamine. It can also get very foggy. Just ask Mary. *VEG*

I wish I could describe the lodge better. It’s a lovely place, and it makes an ideal setting for a gathering (particularly Trixie Camp *hopeful grin* ). Yes, I know it isn’t mentioned in the books, but hey, I’m sure I could make something up.

The restaurant at Blackwater Falls serves excellent food. We love eating there.

“What Not to Wear” is currently my favorite television show. You can find it on TLC, and I recommend it highly. Stacy and Clinton ROCK!!!

Pierre Lontard was the villain of “Mystery on the Mississippi”, and is, in my candied opinion, the scariest bad guy in the series. He tried to drown Trixie in the book (sorry to ruin it, if you haven’t already read it), and that is the incident to which Honey is referring.