The Mandie Collection (42 page)

“Three days,” Joe exclaimed. “That was a quick job. It's a large barn, too.”

“And it looks nice, too,” Celia added.

The four walked on over to the barn and looked around inside. “His horse is not here,” Sallie remarked. “Mr. Riley is not home.”

Turning to Sallie, Joe asked, “Do you happen to know where Mr. Riley keeps his tools?”

“Yes,” Sallie said, going to the far corner inside. “But do not tell the schoolchildren. He does not want them to handle the tools.” She bent to open a small hidden door by the hay in the last stall.

Joe stooped to examine the tools inside the small bin. “Looks like he has some of everything,” he remarked. “Let's see, I believe I need a wrench and this hammer, and maybe a screwdriver.”

“Take as many as you need, Joe, because we can help carry them back to the cart,” Mandie said, squeezing Snowball in her arms to keep him from getting down.

“I believe these will be enough,” Joe said, standing up and pushing the door closed on the bin with his foot.

Sallie quickly pushed the hay back in front of the door, concealing it from view.

“Is there anything else we need to get?” Celia asked, looking around the barn. She quickly pulled a rag from a nail on the wall and said, “Like maybe something to clean your hands on.” She smiled at Joe.

As they left the barn, Sallie looked around the yard and said, “Perhaps Mr. Riley will be home when we bring the wood.”

“I hope so, after you came all the way over here to borrow a book from him,” Mandie said.

The four young people returned to the cart, and Joe repaired the wheel. The girls watched as he tightened nuts and bolts until he was satisfied the wheel was secure. Then, taking the piece of rag Celia had brought, he vigorously wiped his hands and added, “Thanks for remembering to bring this. Now we will go unload this wood.”

When Joe drove the cart up to the schoolhouse barn, Mandie saw a flash of something cross the yard behind it. Grasping Snowball, she jumped down and said, “There was someone back there.” She hurried around the barn.

“Yes,” Joe agreed.

“I saw something, too,” Sallie added.

“It looked like someone running,” Celia said.

The four of them gathered to look around the yard behind the barn. There was no sign of anyone now.

“Maybe there wasn't anyone after all,” Joe said, frowning.

“No, Joe, I'm sure I saw something run toward the woods,” Mandie declared. “And I don't believe it was an animal.”

“There are lots of deer in this section,” Sallie said.

“Whatever it was, I saw something,” Celia said.

“Well, right now let's get this wood stacked in the bin,” Joe told the girls as they entered the barn. “I believe I can get the cart closer so we won't have to carry the wood so far.” He went back outside to move the cart up to the doorway.

When the four young people had transferred the wood to the bin inside the barn, there was still no sign of Mr. Riley. They stood around talking for a few minutes, discussing what they thought they had seen flitting through the yard. No one agreed on what it might have been.

“I suppose we should go on back to your grandfather's house, Sallie,” Joe decided.

“Yes. But we must return Mr. Riley's tools to their place first,” Sallie told him.

“Oh yes, I'm glad you reminded me,” Joe said, walking over to the cart.

The girls came to help get the tools and carry them back inside.

Joe smiled at them and said, “You know, I could carry a screwdriver, hammer, and wrench all the way back to the bin.” He laughed.

“We wanted to be sure they were put back in the right place,” Mandie teased, grinning at him.

“Well, thank you,” Joe said, grinning back.

When they were ready to leave, Joe glanced around the yard and said, “I'm sorry you didn't get the book you came after, Sallie.”

“I will get it later,” Sallie said. “I have been helping teach the little children, but none of them are attending school right now, so I have time to get the book later.”

When they arrived back at Uncle Ned's house and related their adventures to him, he was concerned about the cart.

“Someone tinker with wheel,” he said with a big frown. “I drive cart yesterday. All right.”

“Then someone must have come into your barn since then,” Mandie said.

Upon their return, Morning Star had immediately poured hot coffee, sliced a chocolate cake, and motioned for them to sit at the long table.

Mandie was beginning to think she would never get an opportunity to go upstairs and search the roof. At this house every minute seemed to be used in some way. She looked around the table and thought that maybe after everyone finished she could have a chance.

Then she looked up to see Dimar coming in the door. He was carrying something wrapped in a white cloth, which he held out to Morning Star.

“My mother sent this,” Dimar told Morning Star.

Morning Star removed the cloth, and Mandie saw it was a huge bowl of white candy.

“We thank,” Morning Star told Dimar and then spoke rapidly in Cherokee.

Dimar nodded and smiled and told the young people, “Morning Star was going to make a cake for you, and now she does not have to,” he said.

“Sit,” Uncle Ned said to Dimar.

Dimar sat down, and everyone began telling him about the episode with Uncle Ned's cart.

Dimar frowned and then said, “Tsa'ni is back.”

Everyone understood what he meant. Tsa'ni was usually the cause of all the pranks and troubles around Deep Creek.

“Where had he been?” Mandie asked.

“I do not know. My mother saw Tsa'ni walk by our house this morning. He did not stop,” Dimar explained.

Riley O'Neal came in the door. He smiled as he looked around the room and sat down as Morning Star motioned for him to do so.

“We came to see you and you were not home,” Mandie said.

“Yes, I saw the wood and knew someone had brought it, for which I wish to thank you, Uncle Ned,” Riley said, turning to the old man.

Uncle Ned smiled and said, “Welcome.”

Then the young people had to relate their adventures to Riley O'Neal.

“Yes, and I imagine you all saw Tsa'ni in my yard, because he brought a quilt and left it on the back stoop with a note saying it was from Aunt Saphronia. Remember Uncle Wirt said she would give me one? Well, I suppose since Tsa'ni is their grandson, they sent it by him,” Riley explained. “Anyhow, I was glad to get it.”

Mandie told Riley about their quilt-making with Aunt Saphronia that morning. “And we are going back tomorrow,” she added.

Joe frowned and quickly said, turning to Riley O'Neal, “Please help me get out of this quilt-making business. Wouldn't you like to go hunting?” Turning to include Dimar, he said, “Both of you, tomorrow?”

Riley grinned and said, “Fine, we'll do that.”

Dimar agreed also. And Uncle Ned reminded Joe he would be going, too.

Mandie was thinking,
At least all the men will be out of the way tomorrow so maybe I'll get a chance to search the roof then
.

But as luck would have it, Mandie got her chance that night. Dimar and Riley stayed for supper. Everyone had finished supper and was sitting around the table playing checkers when Mandie realized that everyone was occupied and she could slip upstairs.

“I'll be right back. I need to get something from upstairs,” Mandie mumbled as she stood up and hurried toward the door. She left Snowball asleep in the woodbox behind the stove.

No one paid much attention to her, because all interest was on the checkers game.

When she got upstairs in Sallie's room, Mandie quickly looked around for something to prop up the window so she could crawl out on the roof. Picking up one of Sallie's old shoes, Mandie went over, raised the window, slipped outside onto the roof, and turned back to stick the shoe under the window when it slid down, which she knew it would do.

Satisfied with this, she cautiously made her way across the roof in the darkness, brightened in spots by the moonlight through the trees, to the chimney. She looked around and also felt around in the darkness, but she did not find anything there. Looking beyond, she cautiously crept across the roof, examining it as she went.

Suddenly her foot slipped and she slid, falling down on her stomach and grasping for something to hold on to. The toe of her shoe stuck on a nail in the roof, and she took a deep breath as she wondered how she would ever get back up the steep roof and into Sallie's window.

Remembering her special verse in time of all kinds of trouble, Mandie whispered, “ ‘What time I am afraid I will put my trust in Thee.' ” She knew God would answer and take care of her.

She lay there, afraid to move, for a long time. Then she decided she would have to try to make her way back across the roof. Afraid to stand up again, she crawled on her hands and knees for what seemed like hours to get back to the window of Sallie's room.

“At last!” she whispered as she finally came to the window.
Slowly rising in order to slip back through the window, she suddenly realized the window was completely closed. The shoe that had propped it open was gone.

“Oh no!” she exclaimed, trying to push the window up. It was stuck and would not budge. She sat down to rest and think. How was she ever going to get back into the house?

She glanced across the roof and suddenly realized there was a window to the room that Joe was using. If she could only get to that, maybe it would open.

Inch by inch, she moved on her hands and knees toward the other window. Finally she was there. Slowly and carefully rising on her knees, she reached up to try the window. It moved at the touch of her hand. It would raise up.

“Thank you, dear Lord, thank you,” she whispered in the darkness as she managed to push the window up enough to crawl through and fall to the floor inside. She lay there a moment, too tired and worn out to move.

Suddenly the door to the hallway opened and someone appeared carrying a lamp.

“Mandie, what are you doing? Are you all right?” It was Joe who was anxiously stooping over her.

“Oh, Joe, I'm sorry,” Mandie muttered as she sat up and felt tears in her blue eyes in spite of everything.

“Mandie, what is it?” Joe insisted as he reached for her hand and set the lamp on the floor.

“Oh, Joe, I was out on the roof—” she began and took deep breaths to steady her voice. “And the quilt is not out there.”

“Mandie, why didn't you tell me what you were doing?” Joe asked. “I could have looked for you. You could have been hurt out there.”

Mandie bent her head against her knees in order to hide her tears and said, “I'm sorry, Joe.”

“We'll find that old quilt yet, but please don't take any more dangerous chances,” Joe said, reaching to smooth Mandie's blond hair. “After all, you promised to marry me when we grow up, and at this rate we may not live to grow up.” He laughed loudly.

Mandie joined the laughter and said, “I won't go out on that roof again. I promise. But I do need to find that quilt.”

“I'll help you,” Joe promised.

Mandie silently wiped the back of her hand across her face to clear the tears. Together they would find that quilt.

CHAPTER TEN

ANOTHER QUILT MYSTERY

The next morning everyone met in the kitchen for breakfast. Riley and Dimar came to join Uncle Ned and Joe in a hunting trip over the mountain. Uncle Wirt came to take Mandie and Celia to his house to continue their quilting lessons.

As they sat around the long table having breakfast, Mandie asked Sallie, “Won't you come with us to Aunt Saphronia's? We may be gone all day, and I'd like to spend some time with you since we will be leaving soon.”

“I am not sure,” Sallie said. Turning to her grandmother, she spoke in the Cherokee language for a few moments.

Then Morning Star spoke rapidly to Uncle Ned in their language.

The old man replied to her and then turned to Joe, Riley, and Dimar. “Morning Star say go fish. She go, too,” Uncle Ned told them.

“Fish?” Joe asked and looked at the others.

“Yes, my mother could use some fish,” Dimar agreed.

“Yes, we could go fishing,” Riley said.

“It really doesn't matter to me what we do, as long as I don't have to go with the girls for that quilt-making lesson,” Joe said, grinning at Mandie.

Uncle Ned turned to Uncle Wirt and asked, “You fish, too?”

Uncle Wirt grunted and said, “Yes.”

“But you will take us to your house first, won't you, Uncle Wirt?” Mandie asked.

“Yes, first,” the old man agreed, drinking a cup of coffee.

“And I will go with you,” Sallie told Mandie. “Since my grandmother is going fishing, I will not be needed here today.” She began eating hurriedly.

Mandie swallowed a bite of ham and asked, “Uncle Wirt, Tsa'ni did come home, didn't he? Do you know where he had been?”

“Tsa'ni say he followed Jessan to Asheville, but Jessan did not see him until he came home yesterday,” Uncle Wirt explained.

“But he did come to your house, didn't he? He brought me a quilt yesterday and left it on the back stoop with a note saying it was from your wife,” Riley told him.

“Yes, she give him quilt and say take to school,” Uncle Wirt replied.

“I had gone across the mountain to take some books to some of the children over there who attend our school. I am really worried that the Cherokee children always seem to find excuses not to go to school,” Riley said. “I've been thinking, if you would agree, that if you had a little meeting with some of the parents, you might be able to get the children back in school. What is your opinion? Would a meeting help?”

“Yes, we have powwow. Soon,” Uncle Wirt agreed.