Mystery of the Mixed-Up Zoo (3 page)

“Stop,” Violet begged. “I can't keep track of all the books you're showing us.”

“Mr. Thatcher, you certainly know a lot about animals,” Benny said admiringly.

“Call me Mac,” he said in a kind voice. “Yes, I know my animals.”

“Do you spend a lot of time at the zoo?” Benny asked.

But Mac didn't answer. He wheeled about and reached for another book.

“Do you spend a lot of time at the zoo?” Violet asked again, thinking he hadn't heard Benny.

Mac stared at her but pressed his lips together, not responding.

CHAPTER 4

More Trouble at the Zoo

W
hen the children arrived home from the bookstore, they greeted Grandfather, who was digging holes for the new shrubs he had bought that morning.

Entering the house, they were surprised to see Edward in an angry conversation with a woman in a red suit and a black hat.

Edward stopped talking when he saw the children. “Hi, kids,” he called. He briefly introduced them to the woman, whose name was Helen Brooks. She scarcely gave them a glance as she impatiently tapped her shoe.

After saying hello to her, the Aldens excused themselves and went into the kitchen.

They sat around the table while Jessie poured milk into three glasses and one pink cup, which was Benny's.

As they drank, they couldn't help overhearing Edward arguing with Helen Brooks.

“I tell you,” Miss Brooks said in a stern voice, “that zoo of yours is not worth another penny of the taxpayers' money!”

Edward shot back a cold reply, “The zoo means everything to the children in Rosedale, and to lots of adults, too.”

Helen Brooks sneered. “That's the most ridiculous thing I've ever heard. The zoo should be closed down. It costs thousands of dollars a year for food and medicine alone!” She continued in a raspy voice, “As a member of the town council, I intend to bring this up at the next meeting!”

“And what will happen to the monkeys and lions and all the other animals?” Edward shouted.

“How should I know?” Helen Brooks snapped back.

“If you had a heart, you'd care,” Edward said sadly.

“Animals can be sent to other zoos,” Helen said in a quarrelsome tone, “or you can give them away. I don't care!”

“I'll never give my animals away,” Edward answered defiantly. “Each one means a lot to me!”

“That's too bad!” Helen said. “At the next meeting the zoo will be the first order of business!”

The children had stopped drinking and stared at one another. Violet felt a stab of concern. The town council couldn't get rid of Edward's zoo, she thought, and all his wonderful animals. Or could they? Jessie and Henry had the same thought.

Benny pushed his milk away. “I think the zoo is great,” he murmured. He looked as if he were going to cry.

Henry jumped up. “I'll tell that Helen Brooks how
we
feel about the zoo,” he said in a low voice.

“No,” Jessie whispered. “Let's wait and see what Edward wants us to do.”

Slowly, Henry sank back. “I guess you're right. But that woman …”

“I know,” Violet said.

“You can be certain that I'll be at the next council meeting!” Edward shouted. “You won't get away with this!”

“You're stubborn, Edward Marlow!” Helen retorted, “but it won't do you any good!”

The door slammed and it was quiet.

For a moment all the Aldens heard was the tick of the clock. Then Benny stood up and rushed into the living room. “We heard what that mean woman said!” he cried. “The zoo won't be shut down, will it?”

Jessie, Violet, and Henry stood in the doorway, waiting for Edward's answer.

Edward shook his head. “Not if I can help it!” He glanced at each one. “Hey! Don't look so glum! I have lots of people on my side.”

Benny smiled.

So did Jessie. But she wondered if Edward had any friends on the town council.

“Let's go check out the animals at the zoo!” Edward said.

As they walked along, Henry began, “Edward, we found a picture of you in a pilot's uniform.” He looked at Edward, uncertain if he was intruding or not.

Surprised, Edward smiled. “Oh, you found the one of me and our squadron's mascot, Billy. That was when I was in the air force in Texas.”

“Billy looked fierce,” Violet said.

“He
was
fierce!” Edward said. “He was one of the fiercest wildcats I've ever seen. When I saw him, he was in a tiny cage and I was determined to put him in an area where he could run. I found an unused dog run and rented it. There Billy could prance, sleep in the sun, or just play with the leaves.”

“Billy must have been special,” Jessie said, noticing Edward's caring face.

“He was!” Edward said emphatically. “After the war was over and I returned from overseas, I went back to Texas for Billy. Other soldiers had taken care of him. At first I didn't know what I'd do, but Billy gave me the idea of raising money for a zoo, a place where animals could have freedom to roam about. I've always loved animals, and this gave me a purpose in life.” He paused, remembering. “Billy was my first zoo inhabitant.”

“What happened to Billy?” Benny asked.

“My wildcat lived to a ripe old age, then died in his sleep.”

Entering the zoo's gates, Benny was excited to see the animals.

The children strolled by the elephants where a boy about Henry's age was grooming a baby elephant. When he saw Edward, he stopped and waved.

“Hi, David,” Edward called. “He looks good!”

“Thanks,” the boy said.

“That's David Adams,” Edward explained, moving on to the monkeys' area. “He's a reliable helper after school and on Saturdays. During the summer, he works three days a week. You'll have to get to know him.”

They stopped to watch the monkeys. Several flew through the air on a trapeze while others played in the trees, swinging from branch to branch.

“Isn't that one cute?” Violet said, pointing at the smallest monkey. His bright button eyes peeked at them through a cluster of leaves.

Edward chuckled. “You know zoos often name their animals, and I enjoy naming mine. That's Amos, a real show-off. He loves people and is a smart little fellow.”

Amos swung down and plucked a tin cup off the ground and hugged it to his chest.

“I'll bet that's his very own cup,” Benny said. “Just like I have my pink cup.”

“He's an imp. But everyone loves him,” Edward said. “He likes to clown for an audience, and when they clap, he claps back.”

Edward moved on.

“I like Amos,” Benny said, following the others. He glanced back for one last glimpse of the monkey.

At the zebra enclosure, Violet said, “The zebras' coloring is so different.”

“Good camouflage on the plains,” Edward answered.

“How striking! White stripes on black,” Jessie said.

“Oh?” Henry teased. “I thought it was black stripes on white.”

Puzzled, Benny asked, “Which is it?”

“Whatever you want it to be,” Violet said, smiling.

A roar startled them. They hurried around the corner and saw two orange-and-black-striped tiger cubs rolling about in the dirt. Nearby, the mother swam in the pool.

“I didn't know cats liked water,” Jessie said.

“Not many of them do,” Edward explained, “but the Bengal tiger from India is the exception. Isn't Zelda a beauty?”

“Zelda's jaws are huge!” Violet said.

“Zelda eats about ten pounds of meat a day and a beef shank every Wednesday,” Edward said. As if knowing she were being talked about, Zelda opened her mouth and roared. Edward chuckled. “Zelda knows it's almost dinnertime.”

The two cubs, biting and growling, continued to roll about in play.

“Oh, here's a sight you'll like to see,” Edward said, crossing to the other side.

Two bears splashed in a pool, shoving a log back and forth. “You need to give the animals playthings,” Edward said. “Otherwise they get bored. It gives them good exercise, too.”

“The way they toss that log,” Jessie said, “you'd think it was as light as a toothpick.”

“Brown bears are strong, all right,” Edward said, walking on to the giraffes.

Suddenly, Pat caught up with them. “The electricity is off in the kitchen,” she said breathlessly.

“What!” Edward whirled about. “I'll check the transformers.”

“I've already done that,” Pat said. “All of them are in place. I phoned the electrician and he'll be here as soon as he can.”

Edward frowned. “Why is the electricity off?” He gave Pat a worried glance. “Without electricity, the big food processor will be off. It will take hours to mash the food and chop vegetables. And there'll be no hot water to mix with the food,” Edward said, running his fingers through his gray hair. “Do you kids want to help?”

“You bet!” Benny answered.

“Come with me to the kitchen. We'll have to slice vegetables, fruit, meat, and get the bales of hay for the elephants,” Edward said.

Violet hurried after Edward. She frowned, deep in thought. First the animals' signs were switched. Then Helen Brooks wanted to close down the zoo. Now the kitchen electricity was cut off. She didn't like it. She didn't like it at all.

CHAPTER 5

Hungry Animals

T
he children chopped and cut fruits and vegetables until their fingers were stiff. They sliced bananas, carrots, oranges, and apples.

Pat took out the meat from the huge refrigerator and hurriedly sliced the meat for the big cats. She worked fast and well. In the background they could hear growls, roars, squalls, screeches, whistling, and squeaking. Pat glanced over at Violet. “You can certainly tell the animals are hungry,” she said.

“All these different dinners you need to prepare,” Jessie said in amazement. “I didn't know there was so much work in running a zoo.” She threw three oranges in a bowl, which already contained a half pound of carrots, a half pound of cabbage, and five apples. This was one bear's diet.

Pat stopped what she was doing to come to Jessie's side and add a pound of beef mix and drizzle honey over the entire meal.

Jessie started on the second bear's dinner. This wasn't as hard since she'd already done one. At least nothing needed chopping.

Pat, slicing off large chunks of fat from the beef, chuckled. “You'd be surprised how many diets we've tried. Lions, though, are particular, like your ordinary house cat. Finicky. If they don't like the food you give them, the lions simply give a swish of their tails and leave it. Sometimes it takes months to get the right balance that will tempt them.” Pat's soft blue eyes sparkled. She liked to talk about her work. “We mix nutritious food with beef, but if I mix in too much of the nutritious food, the cat won't eat it. It's hard to find just the right healthy combination.” As she spoke, she cut meat off a joint of beef. “I miss the large electric knives that we usually work with.”

“The lions should like that,” Jessie said, eyeing the huge chunks of meat.

“Oh, they will,” Pat said.

“Do the animals get fed only once a day?” Violet asked, rinsing off fish for the seals.

“No,” Pat replied, scooping back a wisp of hair. “Usually they eat once in the morning, have an afternoon snack, and dinner at night. We need to chop food for the special diets. Often the animals won't eat the food if it isn't in bite-sized pieces. Then, too, when we cut up the food it's easier to add the vitamins and supplements that the animals need.”

Edward rushed into the kitchen. “The electrician arrived, so you can use the appliances,” he said.

“What was wrong?” Pat asked.

“Someone cut a few wires!” Edward replied bitterly.

“Oh, no,” Pat exclaimed. “What a rotten thing to do! Why would they do it?”

“That's a good question,” Edward replied. “Something's going on here and I don't like it!”

Pat shivered. “I don't either.”

“We'll need to be more watchful,” Edward said, plucking a piece of straw from his denim shirt.

“Looks like you've fed the elephants,” Pat said.

“Yes,” Edward answered. “David returned just in time to help me.” He sighed. “Good thing my zoo is small or we'd be here until midnight.”

David hurried in. “It's scary about the cut wires,” he said anxiously. “I'd like to catch the one who did it!” He glanced at Pat. “What can I do?”

“Give the bears their food. They must be starved,” Pat said.

David grabbed two large buckets, smiling at the Aldens. “Hi,” he said. “Welcome to the zoo!”

“Let me help you.” Jessie acted quickly, opening the door for him.

Edward introduced all the children to David.

“I'll be back in a minute for the seals' food,” the boy called over his shoulder. He ran to the bears.