Mystery on Stage (8 page)

“What's the matter?” Violet asked.

“That woman,” Jessie whispered. Violet looked puzzled.

“Remember the woman we saw the other night in the fur coat?”

Violet nodded. “You mean she's outside the theater again?”

“Yes,” Jessie was still whispering. “She's just waiting in the street.”

“Did she see you?” Violet wondered.

Jessie shrugged her shoulders. “I'm not sure.”

Violet shivered a little. “It's spooky back here at night,” she observed. The girls looked at the large sets stacked along the wall — Dorothy's simple farmhouse, the witch's castle, even the Yellow Brick Road glowed eerily under the light of one small bulb overhead.

Henry came backstage with Benny. “I'm starting to change the lighting so it won't depend so much on that big light we lost.”

“Couldn't you wait a little longer?” Jessie asked. “We might find a replacement.”

Henry looked at his watch. “Well, all right, but it's already nine o'clock.”

Jessie nodded. “I know.” Quickly she told her brothers about seeing the mysterious woman in the fur coat.

Henry shook his head. “I don't know what to think. So many things don't seem right about this play.”

“I know what you mean,” Jessie answered. She walked over to another storage closet. “Nothing but brooms and mops in here,” she announced.

Henry sat down on the steps. “I really think someone tampered with that light on purpose,” he said grimly.

“So do I.” Jessie's voice sounded muffled from inside the closet. “But who would do such a thing?”

“Why would someone in the cast try to ruin the show for everyone?” Violet remarked.

“We have to think about this,” Henry said. “First of all, whoever is doing these things may not be in the cast at all. Who do we suspect besides Sarah and Melody?

“Richard.” Violet and Jessie both answered at once. They came to join Henry on the steps.

“We did catch him fiddling with Violet's poster,” Jessie reminded them.

“Well, we didn't exactly catch him,” Violet pointed out. “But who else would want to make Richard's name bigger?”

Jessie and Henry both nodded.

“What about the Tinman?” Benny asked as he came out of the costume room. “Don't you think it's strange he never takes his costume off?”

“Well, yes,” Jessie agreed reluctantly. “Still, I can't believe he'd be responsible for ruining costumes and sets. He's so serious about his acting.”

“You could say the same about Sarah,” Henry reminded them.

“Yes.” Jessie said slowly. “I've been wondering about Sarah ever since the play started. She's so secretive.”

“Don't forget about that folder she didn't want us to see,” Benny reminded his sister as he joined his family.

“Yes,” Jessie nodded.

“But all these pranks were directed
against
Sarah,” Violet pointed out. “It's Sarah's costume someone ruined, Sarah's name that was crossed off the audition sheet …”

“And Sarah's props and script that were taken,” Jessie finished.

Henry stood and stretched. “The question is, why wouldn't someone want Sarah in the show?” he asked.

“Well, Melody wouldn't want her,” Benny noted.

“No,” Jessie agreed. “She wouldn't.”

“And Richard wouldn't want her in the play, either, because she takes too much attention away from him,” Violet pointed out.

“That's true,” Henry said, nodding.

“I guess if we're naming suspects, we can't forget the woman outside in the fur coat,” said Violet.

“Or the man in the big white car,” Benny remarked.

“Yes,” Henry agreed. “I wonder why he didn't want to go backstage to find Sarah himself. No one else would have taken his parking place. No other cars were even parked near his.”

“I hadn't thought of that,” Violet said slowly. She suddenly stood up and looked around the large backstage area. “By the way, where is Soo Lee?”

“I don't know,” Benny said. “Soo Lee! Soo Lee, where are you?” he called loudly.

“I'm in here,” answered Soo Lee from the costume room. “I think I found something.”

The Aldens rushed to her side. “There's a big trunk in this closet,” Soo Lee told them. “Look what's inside!”

“Soo Lee! You found a spare bulb,” Henry almost shouted. “I won't have to reset the lights.” Henry gave his cousin a big hug. “All we have to do now is replace this light and we're set for tomorrow.”

“The show will go on,” said Benny happily.

On the night of the performance, Jessie, Mrs. McGregor, and Benny arrived early. They needed plenty of time to change and put on their stage makeup.

Soo Lee came into the auditorium with Henry and Violet. She was all dressed up to be an usher in a red velvet dress and black patent leather shoes.

“I can't thank you enough for finding that light, Soo Lee,” Jim said when he saw her.

Soo Lee smiled.

“Goodness, some people are here already,” Violet said softly, looking toward the door.

“Oh, I better go seat them,” Soo Lee said as she took a stack of programs in her arms.

“We'll be backstage,” Henry called to Soo Lee.

From his post by the lighting board, Henry could peek behind the thick red curtain and watch the audience. He was the first to notice Grandfather seated near the front row.

Benny soon came to join Henry. Benny was all dressed up in his Munchkin outfit — pale blue pants and a matching jacket.

“Look, you can see Grandfather,” Henry said as he stood near the curtain. Benny peeked out into the auditorium. He looked back at Henry in surprise. “The woman in the fur coat is sitting next to him.”

“What?” Henry left his post by the lighting board to look for himself. Sure enough, Grandfather was helping the woman off with her coat. “They're talking like they know each other,” Henry said, surprised. “I wonder who that woman could be?”

While Henry stood behind the curtain talking to Benny, he heard some rustling noises behind him. A man wearing a tweed coat was opening the fuse box near the lighting board. He couldn't see Henry or Benny as they were hidden from him by the curtain.

“Hey!” Henry shouted to the man. “What are you doing?”

The man whirled around holding one of the fuses. Henry recognized him. He was the man he'd seen in the big white car. Suddenly, Sarah appeared in the wings with Jessie, Violet, and Jim. She was all dressed in her costume. “Oh, Dad!” she sounded heartbroken. “It was you all along, wasn't it?”

Sarah's father stared at the fuse in his hand and then at the shocked faces of Sarah, Henry, Benny, Jessie, Violet, and Jim.

“Yes,” he muttered looking down at the floor. “I couldn't let you be in this play,” he continued in a shaky voice. “I just couldn't.”

“Why not?” Benny blurted out.

When the man looked up, he had tears in his eyes. “Sarah's my only child,” he explained looking at his daughter. “Her mother was an actress. She died in the theater in a freak accident when Sarah was only a baby.”

“I knew that, but I still wanted to act!” Sarah exclaimed. She had tears in her eyes, too.

“Ten minutes to curtain time,” Nancy called to Henry from behind the backstage curtain. “I'll be ready,” Henry called back.

“You almost ruined our production so your daughter couldn't be in the theater!” Jim exclaimed. He couldn't believe it.

Mr. Bellamy sighed. “Yes, I was very upset when I heard Sarah was even trying out for a part. I made that phone call during the auditions and wrote those notes. I used to go backstage after everyone had left for the evening. I stole Sarah's script and tore Dorothy's costume, too.”

“How did you get in?”

“I would usually be somewhere in the building before the janitors locked the auditorium.”

Jim nodded grimly. “Someone could have been badly hurt when that light toppled over,” he said, scowling.

“I know.” Mr. Bellamy looked ashamed. “I was so upset, I couldn't think clearly. I can't tell you how sorry I am for all the problems I caused you.”

Jim nodded. “Well, I must confess, I am relieved to know the reason for all these disturbances,” he said slowly. “At first, I thought this play was jinxed, and no one would ever hire me as a director again.”

“Oh, that's why you always looked so worried, even at the very beginning, before the auditions began,” Violet said.

Jim smiled and looked a little embarrassed.

Sarah blinked her eyes furiously to keep the tears from running down her cheeks. She went over to her father and put an arm around him. “I really love being with you Dad, but I love acting, too. Please stay for the show. Just watch me. I love the theater so much,” Sarah said.

Mr. Bellamy looked at his daughter. “I know you do. I must say I've been impressed with your determination to go on despite all I did to stop you.”

“Five minutes to curtain time,” Nancy called from behind the curtain.

Mr. Bellamy sighed. “Will you let me stay?” he asked Jim. “I wouldn't blame you for saying no.”

“You can stay,” Jim said gruffly. He motioned to one of the ushers to lead Mr. Bellamy to a good seat.

“Time to raise the curtain,” Jim announced.

“Let's break our legs,” Benny said as he took his place in the wings beside the other Munchkins.

CHAPTER 10

Curtain Call

“I
t's going so much better than the dress rehearsal,” Jessie said to Henry as she raced by him between scenes.

“I can tell,” Henry said as he brought one of the switches down to the off position.

Nancy caught Jessie's eye and put her finger to her lips. Although she tried to look stern, she couldn't resist giving the Aldens a big smile. Jim had told her about catching Mr. Bellamy before the show, but she had had no time to thank the Aldens. Now she stood in the wings and quickly turned the pages of her script. As stage manager, she had to make sure everyone was on stage at the right time.

When the curtain fell on the final scene, the audience clapped and cheered. Sarah and Harold each received a standing ovation. Indeed, the audience applauded so hard, Sarah and Harold came on stage three times to take their bows. The third time, Sarah received a huge bouquet of red and white roses.

Sarah, Jessie, and Melody hugged one another in the dressing room. Soon the stage doors opened. Friends and relatives streamed backstage to congratulate the performers.

Grandfather stopped into the dressing room with Joe, Alice, Mr. Bellamy, and the woman in the big coat.

“You girls were wonderful,” Grandfather told Jessie, Sarah, and Melody. They all beamed at him.

“Sarah, I'm so proud of you,” Mr. Bellamy said. He choked a little over his next words. “I was wrong to try to stop you. You're really gifted, just like your mother.”

“Oh, Dad, I'm so happy!” Sarah threw her arms around her father and hugged him for a very long time.

“You're going to be even happier.” Sarah's father smiled at her as he stepped back to put his hand behind the woman in the big coat. “I'd like to introduce you to Marilyn Morris. She's a theatrical agent from New York. She'd like you to be her client.”

“I wrote to you,” Sarah said as she shook her agent's hand. She looked dumbfounded. “I sent you my resume and a picture.”

“So
that's
what you had in that mysterious manila folder you wouldn't let us see,” Jessie teased. Sarah nodded sheepishly.

“I wrote to Ms. Morris also,” Harold said as he came by to offer his congratulations. “I told her she needed to come and discover you.” As he finished speaking, Harold lifted off his helmet.

“You're Andrew Tompkins, the Broadway actor! Harold's not your name at all.” Sarah could not contain her excitement. “What are you doing here?”

“You're the man we saw in the pizzeria!” Benny blurted out. “Everyone recognized you except me.”

“I had to take a vacation from Broadway for health reasons, but I wanted to do some acting,” Andrew explained. “I wanted to go somewhere I wouldn't be recognized. Only Jim knew my secret, but some of you came close to guessing,” he added, smiling at the Aldens.

“I think we should all go out to celebrate,” Grandfather suggested.

“I agree,” Benny said.

“I'll never forget this evening as long as I live,” Sarah said, looking pleased and proud.

“None of us will,” Jessie said.

“Let's eat,” Benny added, smiling happily.

About the Author

G
ERTRUDE
C
HANDLER
W
ARNER
discovered when she was teaching that many readers who like an exciting story could find no books that were both easy and fun to read. She decided to try to meet this need, and her first book,
The Boxcar Children,
quickly proved she had succeeded.