The Search For The Wedding Necklace
CHAPTER 1, FLORICE
It was Friday night. Jeniffer Adler, her little brother, James Adler, Jeniffer’s friend, Mary Pistogants, and Jeniffer’s older cousin, Daniel Fifer, were lying down on Jeniffer’s soft, grassy backyard. Jeniffer was writing, Daniel and James were swinging on the swings, and Mary was reading one of her favorite mystery series, Gang Up For Mysteries. She was reading Number 15, The Mystery Of A Secret Bookcase.
“You know, guys,” Mary said. “Gang Up For Mysteries is a really great mystery book series.” “I mean, the famous authors, Gang Devors and Hiller McFail, wrote them with their own hands.” “I wish I had a stack of Gang Up For Mysteries books right in front of me right now.” “But, Mom only allows me to get five books from the library each week.” “So I have to read slowly.” “Writing is a better hobby,” Jeniffer suddenly said. “All you need to get started is a journal and a pencil.” “That’s it.” “Unlike other hobbies, writing gives you a chance to express yourself.” “You can write about anything you want.” “In order to read, you have to buy or borrow the books.” “But in writing, you just simply buy a pencil and journal and get started!” “I’ve kept my own private diary for years!”
Mary said with a frown, “That’s not true.” “Writing requires lots of thinking.” “Reading does not.” “And have you ever seen a child writing during the summer?” “No.” “But all teachers, principals, librarians and other adults suggest reading lists for children during the summer, so that they can read anytime, even when school’s not open.” Mary and Jeniffer started to argue, but Daniel, who was the oldest of the children, quickly changed the subject. “You know, Jenny,” he began. “I’ve heard that Great Spooges, the director of Scary Movies 2, is coming to town in a couple of weeks.”
Jenny’s real name was Jeniffer, but it was sort of a long name, so everyone changed it to Jenny. Jenny preferred to be called by her nickname. Suddenly, they saw Aunt Owners walking across the backyard. “Oh, hi, Aunt Owners!” James called. “Hi, youngsters!” Aunt Owners called back. “Just out for a little walk across Woodsland.” “This is a great place to live.” “It’s like the peaceful countryside, where I used to live with my grandfather.” “Oh?” James suddenly said, eager to know more.
Aunt Owners continued. “When I was about the age of six, my parents died in a car accident.” “After the funeral, my grandfather, Bash Jones, came over and brought me to his home in the countryside.” “Everything seemed different to me.” “Before my parents died, I used to live in the big cities of New York.” “In Kansas, where my new home was, everything was peaceful and everything was, well, sort of empty.” “At first I felt lonely.” “But later, I loved the countryside.”
“Grandfather and I used to go out and take long walks beside ancient trees.” “Sometimes, we’d sleep under the shining stars at night and have what Grandfather called ‘night picnics.’” “It was really fun.” “We’d light up a campfire and burn marshmellow sticks.” “Then we’d have fun cooling them off.” “Grandfather would tell me ancient stories, and then we’d go to sleep in our tents.” “It was quite fun.”
“But not until I was sixteen years old did I meet my grandmother, Florice.” “Grandfather told me that Florice was my own grandmother, and so we lived together.” “But soon Florice died, and so did Grandfather.” “I was so sad when I heard of Grandfather’s death, but not as sad when I heard about Florice’s death.” “Florice was still quite new to me, and I was a curious girl back then.” “I wanted to find out more about my grandmother, but I failed.”
“So I started to live my own life.” “I moved here, to Philadelphia, Pennsylvania.” “I was back in the city.” “I opened my own bookstore and settled down here.” “I got married, had children, and lived a happy life.” “But I am still curious about Florice.” “Although I barely ever think about it, it drives me crazy when I do.”
Saying this, Aunt Owners stopped. She let out a big sigh. Then she added, “Besides, if you’d like to come over for a nice swim by my pool tomorrow afternoon, feel free to stop by and pay me a visit.” “Sure thing,” the kids said as Aunt Owners left the backyard.
The kids began thinking about Florice. “Aunt Owners is really disturbed,” James said. “She really wants to find about Florice, even after all these years.” “She’s living a happy life, but that one thought drives her crazy.” Jenny said, “I think we should stop by and pay her a visit tomorrow.” “We’ll get to learn more about Florice, and we’ll get a nice, cool summer’s swim.” “For now, let’s go home.” “It’s getting dark, and I’m late for bed.” The kids agreed to meet at Aunt Owners’ the next afternoon and parted.
The next afternoon, the kids arrived at Aunt Owners house at lunchtime. “Well, perfect timing!” Aunt Owners exclaimed as she welcomed the kids in. “It’s just about lunchtime.” “We can have lunch together with my husband, Joseph.” “Where’s your son?” Mary asked. “Oh, he’s out to college,” Aunt Owners replied as she lead the kids to the kitchen. “Does he ever come home?” the children asked. “He comes home once in a month,” Aunt Owners replied. “Want me to help you prepare the sandwiches?” Jenny asked, who took cooking classes every Saturday. “Sure, why not?” Aunt Owners replied.
Jenny pulled up a chair and began preparing cheese sandwiches, while Aunt Owners prepared the ham sandwiches, burgers, turkey sandwiches, and veggie sandwiches. When the sandwiches were done, Jenny poured six cups of orange soda for everyone. Then she passed out the soda, and asked what kind of sandwich each person wanted. “I’ll go with ham,” Joseph Owners said. Joseph Owners was very tall, and wore a shining black suit with a blue necktie. His fine leather boots were green, and he had pockets all over his suit. He was very handsome.
After lunch, Joseph went out to work. Aunt Owners and the kids were alone. Aunt Owners showed the kids around the house. Then they settled down on a couch. The children were eager to learn more about Florice. So Aunt Owners said, “When Grandfather, Florice, and I lived together, Grandfather told me stories about Florice.” “He said that Florice and he got married a long time ago, when Florice was only sixteen years old.” “Grandfather was twenty.” “They got married in California, but later ran out of money in the bank.” “They took lots of loans, and at the end, they went bankrupt.”
“So one night, they escaped the hot waves of California and boarded the next possible flight to Kansas.” “In Kansas, Grandfather built a small house for Florice, and they lived together.” “But Florice and Grandfather got divorced shortly after my dad was born, and Florice went to live in California again.” “So there Grandfather was, all alone in that small house in the middle of the peaceful countryside.” “He lived a lonely life, but he was happy for what he had.”
“Later, my dad got married to my mom.” “They had me, and as I told you before, my parents died when I was six years old.” “So Grandfather picked me up.” “He was no longer lonely.” “But in California, Florice had no money as before.” “She was living a miserable life, so she came back to Kansas to live with Grandfather.” “However, they both died soon.” “And you know the rest of the story.”
By now, the kids were lost deep in thought. Realizing that she had said too much, Aunt Owners quickly changed the subject. “Anyone ready for a cool swim in my pool?” she asked. The kids quickly changed into their bathing suits and dived in the pool. In all that fun, they completely forgot about Aunt Owners’ story.
CHAPTER 2, THE SECRET OF A MYSTERIES WEDDING NECKLACE
After the long, cool swim, the kids came out of the pool, shivering. Aunt Owners quickly gave them their towels, and they dried themselves off. Aunt Owners tried to get the kids’ minds off Florice. But they were very eager to know more.
Finally, Aunt Owners said, “This is the last piece of information I know about Florice.” “When Grandfather and Florice got married, Grandfather gifted Florice a special wedding necklace made of jewels.” “But after the divorce, Florice gave the necklace back to Grandfather.” “Grandfather safely kept the necklace in a tin box, and hid in somewhere safely.” “I wanted to see the necklace, and so I tried to track down Grandfather’s hiding place.”
“Just a few days before Grandfather died, I went to Philadelphia, Pennsylvania with him.” “While I was away, Grandfather hid the necklace somewhere in this house.”
“Back in Kansas, as he was dying, he told me that he had hid the necklace in my new house in Pennsylvania.” “He told me that if I could find it before my wedding, my husband could gift it to me, and it would be mine.” “But I could not find the necklace before my wedding.” The kids were now really interested, but Aunt Owners said, “That’s all I know about Florice.”
The next day, Mary, Jenny, James, and Daniel met again at Aunt Owners’ house. They explained to Aunt Owners that they wished to find the wedding necklace. “Why, of course you can try!” she exclaimed. “But I don’t think you’ll succeed.” “Grandfather was a very good hider.” “I’ve searched for years and years, but I haven’t found that necklace.” “Well, we’ll find it for sure!” James yelled. “First, how about a cup of lemonade?” Aunt Owners asked. “Sure, why not?” the children agreed.
While they were drinking lemonade, Jenny asked, “Any chores to do?” “Well,” Aunt Owners said, rubbing her chin. “Really, no, but if you really want to work hard, then you could help me mow the lawn.” “Oh, sure, why not?” the kids exclaimed. They quickly ran to help Aunt Owners mow her lawn. Daniel and James moved the lawn mower back and forth, while Mary and Jenny cleared away rocks, boulders, stones, and other obstacles. They told Aunt Owners to relax. It was very hot outside.
The bright sun was beaming its rays upon the ground, and soon, the kids were tired. Mary wiped sweat from her forehead and said, “We’re almost done, Aunt Owners.” But Aunt Owners wasn’t listening. She’d dozed off into a nice summer’s sleep. “Let her rest,” Daniel whispered. “She’s got to be tired.” “She’s done so many chores today.” “I mean, preparing lunch for us, showing us around the house, things like that.” The children continued to work as Aunt Owners slept. Suddenly, Mary screamed. The kids ran to see what was happening.
There, Mary was pushing a huge boulder with all her might. It wasn’t moving at all. The kids all helped Mary push the boulder aside. They joined hands and pushed together very hard. Finally, the boulder fell apart and rolled down a distant hill. There, in a small corner beside a small stone, was a folded piece of paper. “Look!” Jenny cried. “A message!” James yelled. “Pick it up!” Mary exclaimed. Slowly, Daniel picked up the paper, unfolded it, and looked at the neat, capital letters written on it. The paper seemed very old, and it was crumbled and torn from the sides and edges. It had become a dark yellow color and was ripping apart. Daniel slowly read the words. He read:
IT’S GRAND BUT OLD
IT MAKES A SWEET SOUND
BUT TO FIND THE CLUE
LOOK UNDERGROUND
Daniel looked confused, so did the others. Hearing all this noise, Aunt Owners had awoken, too. She rushed over to see what had happened. “Look!” Jenny said as Aunt Owners rubbed her eyes.
Daniel explained everything to her. “This must be a clue to find Florice’s necklace!” Mary exclaimed. “Sure, why not?” James replied. “We found this when we were mowing the lawn, underneath a big boulder,” Daniel explained. Aunt Owners looked shocked. “My grandmother Florice!” she exclaimed. “Grandfather left me clues to find the necklace before he died!” Daniel read the clue again aloud to Aunt Owners:
IT’S GRAND BUT OLD
IT MAKES A SWEET SOUND
BUT TO FIND THE CLUE
LOOK UNDERGROUND
Now even Aunt Owners looked confused. But suddenly, James yelled, “It’s a mystery!” “And we’re great at solving mysteries, aren’t we?” “Sure, you are,” Aunt Owners said. “But this is a hard mystery.” “As I told you before, Grandfather was a very good hider.” “And his clues are almost impossible for you to solve!” “Nothing is impossible for this mystery team,” Jenny said. “Well, alright,” Aunt Owners finally said. The kids got to work right away. They began thinking about the clue. It was very confusing.
CHAPTER 3, THE GRAND KEYS
The kids thought and thought about the clue, but they couldn’t figure out what it meant. They asked Aunt Owners for help. “Want me to show you our family attic?” she replied. “That’s the place where you’ll find the most information about Florice.” “Sure, why not?” the kids agreed. Aunt Owners led them to a small wooden door in the corner of the living room. It looked quite old. On it was a little sign that said:
OWNERS’ FAMILY ATTIC
Aunt Owners opened the door, and it creaked loudly. There was a long line of stairs below the door. They were covered with fine, green carpets. Slowly, Aunt Owners and the kids climbed down the stairs. There was a second line of stairs beneath it. They climbed down that one, too. Finally, the kids could see an old room beneath a small wooden door. Aunt Owners opened the door, and led the kids inside the room. It looked very ancient and old. There were cobwebs in each corner of the room, and there were three big chests next to an old piano. There were some old photographs hung up on the brown walls, and the room seemed quite dark. Aunt Owners opened a small, blue door, revealing two light switches. Aunt Owners switched on the lights. The kids stared at the room.
“This is the Owners’ Family Attic,” Aunt Owners explained. “For many years, members from the Owners’ family have made things and placed them in this room.” “This is probably where you’ll find the most information about Florice.” “Maybe that should help you solve the riddle.”
Saying this, Aunt Owners left the room, closing the door behind her. The kids slowly explored the room. They opened the chests and found hand woven carpets of silk, handicrafts, recipes for ancient foods, cookbooks, old magazines, and many other things.
Then the kids took a look at the photographs. There was one that held Grandfather’s picture, and one that held an ancient ancestor’s picture. They were all in black and white. There was a caption beneath each frame. In the last corner of pictures, there lay Florice’s picture. Florice had long, flowing hair, and a crown of white daises on her head. She wore a long, flowing gown, and two large red hair clips on her black hair. Her eyes were blue, and she was smiling. The caption said:
FLORICE OWNERS ON HER WEDDING DAY, JANUARY 28, 1899
The children were shocked. “Florice got married over a hundred years ago?” James asked. “Well, this is fishy,” Jenny replied. Suddenly, Jenny’s eyes fell on the old piano. There was a sign on it that said:
THE GRAND KEYS
“What’s this?” Mary asked. “We better ask Aunt Owners,” Daniel replied. The kids rushed up the attic steps to the living room, where Aunt Owners was busy sipping a cup of tea. “Excuse me,” Jenny said. “We want to know what the Grand Keys are,” Mary said. Aunt Owners suddenly looked up. She put her glass down on the glass table. For a minute, she was shocked. Then, she said, “Lead me to the Grand Keys.” The children and Aunt Owners went up the steps again. They soon came to the old attic. There, in the corner, lay the old piano with a big sign on it that said:
THE GRAND KEYS
Aunt Owners stood there shocked for a moment. Then, she slowly sat down on the old, black piano chair and switched on the piano. She played wonderful music on it. The kids were shocked. “This piano is still in shape?” they asked. “Sure,” Aunt Owners replied. Then she explained, “This piano once belonged to Florice.” “Florice was a wonderful piano player.” “And she could play thousands of songs on the piano.” “I mean, you just name a song and she plays it.” “Florice played songs on this piano for as long as she lived.” “She started playing on it when she was just 4 years old.” “And when she died, she was 88 years old.” “Can you imagine that?” “A piano that has still stayed in good shape after all these years.”
“This is our special family piano.” “It makes wonderful music.” “That’s why we named it “The Grand Keys.” “It’s very special.” Then Aunt Owners stopped. “I guess all this old stuff dates back to years and years of generations,” she finally said, leaving the attic. The kids stood there, shocked. Suddenly, James said, “Hey!” “I think I know where the second clue is hidden!” “In the Grand Keys!”
The children stared at James. Then he explained, “The clue says, ‘IT’S GRAND BUT OLD, IT MAKES A SWEET SOUND, BUT TO FIND THE CLUE, LOOK UNDERGROUND.” “Just think.” “The Grand Keys is grand, because of its name.” “And it makes a very sweet sound, just as Aunt Owners said.” “This piano matches the clue perfectly.” “And...” Jenny began. “If it says to look underground, we should open the piano!” “How?” Daniel asked.
“By pulling the screws apart!” Mary replied. “I think we should ask Aunt Owners before doing that,” Daniel said. “Besides, it’s the family piano, and it’s very precious.” “What if we can’t fix the piano later?” “What if we break Aunt Owners’ special family piano?” But by then, the kids were already rushing back into the living room. They explained everything to Aunt Owners. Aunt Owners thought for a couple of minutes.
Although she was very worried about the piano, she slowly said, “If that is the place where my Grandfather’s clue is hidden, I will give my permission to tear it apart.” “I’m a really great fixer!” Daniel said. “My dad fixes electronics for people.” “I’m sure we can fix this piano later on.” “I have confidence in you youngsters,” Aunt Owners said as the kids rushed upstairs.
They got a few old screwdrivers from the chests and screwed off the screws. The top part of the piano finally came off, revealing a small, tin box in the edges. Daniel slowly lifted the tin box and opened it, and inside there was a brown piece of paper, similar to the first one. Daniel unfolded it and read out loud:
GOOD JOB, MY FRIENDS
YOU’VE SOLVED THE FIRST CLUE
BUT TO FIND THIS ONE
LOOK IN THE FLOWING BLUE
Daniel read the clue once more. The kids knew this clue was harder than the first. “The flowing blue?” Jenny exclaimed. “What’s that?” “It’s a secret clue,” Mary explained. “The flowing blue isn’t a thing, but it’s a clue to find the thing.” “You get it, right?” Jenny shook her head. “I’m afraid not,” she said. Suddenly, Aunt Owners appeared through the attic doors.
“Sorry, youngsters,” she said. “But it’s time for you to head back home.” “Can’t we stay a few minutes longer?” James begged. “Joseph and I are going to the city to run some errands,” she replied. “We can’t have you in the house alone.” “What kind of errands?” Mary asked. “Joseph has to deliver newspapers and ride his truck around the track to Farmer Hiller’s farm,” Aunt Owners replied.
“And I have to help Mr. and Mrs. Goodle in the bakery.” “We’re going to bake delicious breads.” “Cool!” Daniel exclaimed. “If you’d like to come over tomorrow for fresh baked breads and cakes,” Aunt Owners began. “You’ll be welcome here,” she finished. Then the kids set off across the grassy hills, waving good-bye to Aunt Owners. “What about the clue?” James asked as they reached the Woodsland neighborhood. “I have it right here,” Daniel replied, patting his pant pockets. Then the kids promised to meet the next day at Aunt Owners’ and waved good-bye to each other.
CHAPTER 4, THE SPRINGS OF LEAVES
Early the next morning, the kids met in Jeniffer’s backyard. “Let’s head out to Aunt Owners’ house,” Jenny said. The kids hopped across the grassy hills. Suddenly, they spotted a forest-like neighborhood said:
SPRINGS OF LEAVES
THE WONDERFUL OF THE WONDERFUL
The kids stared at the sign and the neighborhood behind it. “The Springs Of Leaves?” Jenny exclaimed. “Maybe Aunt Owners knows something about this neighborhood,” Daniel guessed. “We could ask her,” Mary replied. As they walked further, James spotted a tiny river flowing beneath tiny rocks. “Hey, look!” James exclaimed. The kids hurried over and looked toward the river. It said:
RIVER OF THE LEAVES
The kids looked confused. “A strange neighborhood and a strange river!” Jenny exclaimed. “Perhaps Aunt Owners knows about it all,” Mary guessed. “I sure do,” a voice suddenly said. The children shouted, “Aunt Owners!” “Yes, I’m here,” she said.
The children stared at Aunt Owners’ hands. She was carrying a large picnic basket. “I have a surprise for you,” she whispered. “A picnic!” James yelled. “Well, you sure are the best mystery team ever!” she exclaimed, setting down the picnic basket beside the River of Leaves. She opened the top of the basket, revealing five hot dogs, a few cold drinks, five bagels, and five bottles of milk. “Yum!” Jenny said, rubbing her hands and reaching for the food. “Not yet,” Aunt Owners said, pressing a drop of hand sanitizer in each child’s hands.
After rubbing very hard, the children’s hands were as clean as ever. Then Aunt Owners passed out the food. As they ate, the warm breeze flew among the trees. “I just remembered,” Mary said, swallowing a bite of hot dog, “Do you know anything about Springs of Leaves and River of Leaves?” “Yes, I do,” Aunt Owners said, wiping her mouth. She explained, “This neighborhood was built many years ago, by one of my ancestors.” “Florice?” James asked, sipping soda. “Oh, no,” Aunt Owners replied. “Not Florice.” “Florice’s great-grandfather built this neighborhood.” “As he was clearing off land, he cleared a small canyon beneath some houses.” “Suddenly, a river began flowing through the canyon.” “The canyon was eventually made into a neighborhood, but the river kept flowing.” “And here it is now, after all these years.”
“Wow!” Daniel exclaimed, finishing the last bite of his hot dog. “This was yummy!” The children put the dirty dishes back in the basket. Then, wiping her mouth and picking up the basket, Aunt Owners led the children to her house. As they entered, Jenny asked, “So where’s Joseph?” “Out to run a few errands in the city,” Aunt Owners replied. The kids rushed down the steps and doors to the family attic. When they got there, they stared at the photograph of Florice that said:
FLORICE OWNERS ON HER WEDDING DAY, JANUARY 28, 1899
“Something surely is fishy,” Daniel thought. “Florice got married to Aunt Owners’ grandfather over a hundred years ago?” Suddenly, Daniel exclaimed, “I think I know what ‘the flowing blue’ means!” “What?” the children asked, eager to know. “The River of Leaves!” he replied. “What?” the others exclaimed, confused. “I’ll explain,” Daniel said. “Aunt Owners said that the river has been flowing for many years, right?” Suddenly James continued, “And since the River of Leaves is blue…” “It’s the flowing blue!” Mary and Jenny exclaimed together.
The four kids rushed to the living room and pushed the door open, without even telling Aunt Owners where they were going. Aunt Owners pulled up her dress and ran after them. The children and Aunt Owners kept running until they reached the River of Leaves. There, the children looked under each rock and stone, searching for the clue. But not a single rock or stone had the clue underneath it.
Finally, the children gave up hope, until Mary yelled, “Ouch!” The kids rushed over. Mary’s finger was bleeding. “What happened?” James asked. “My finger hit a sharp rock,” Mary complained. Daniel looked around. “Every rock here is flat,” he said.
Suddenly, a tiny rock caught Daniel’s eye. He quickly went over, and saw that it was sharp. Daniel carefully lifted the sharp rock, revealing a small tin box. “I found it!” he cried. The children gathered around as Daniel opened the box. Inside was a brown piece of paper, looking exactly like the first two. Aunt Owners had watched everything. She, too, gathered in the group as Daniel read the clue out loud. It said:
THIS WAS HARD
BUT YOU FOUND IT ALL THE SAME
NOW TO FIND THE LAST ONE
LOOK UNDER THE OLDEST PHOTO FRAME
The kids were very confused, but looked into the evening sky. “It’s getting quite late,” Daniel said, yawning. “We should go home now, and come back tomorrow.” “Sure, why not?” Jenny replied. The kids parted for the night. As Jenny was changing into her night clothes, Mrs. Adler asked, “So how’s the search going?” “Good,” Jenny replied. “We’ve solved two clues.” “Now we’re on the last one.” “It says to look under the oldest photo frame.”
“Florice was a very kind woman,” Mrs. Adler said. “She was?” Jenny replied. “How do you know?” “Your great-grandfather lived in the times of Florice,” Mrs. Adler replied. “He did?” Jenny replied. “Florice had short hair and wore a long, pink dress on her wedding day,” Mrs. Adler replied. Jenny was confused. On Florice’s wedding picture in the family attic, she had long, flowing hair and wore a long, white gown on her wedding day. But Mrs. Adler was saying that she had short hair and wore a pink dress on her wedding day.
CHAPTER 5, A CONFUSION BETWEEN MOTHER AND DAUGHTER
The next morning, the kids were back in Aunt Owners’ family attic. They were discussing things with Aunt Owners. Aunt Owners was saying, “Florice got married on August 8, 1915.” “That can’t be!” the kids said, arguing. “On her wedding photo, the caption says:
FLORICE OWNERS ON HER WEDDING DAY, JANUARY 28, 1899
“But how can that be?” Aunt Owners replied. The kids led her to Florice’s wedding photo. As soon as she saw the photo, she burst into laughter. “What happened?” the kids asked. “That isn’t Florice!” Aunt Owners exclaimed, still laughing.
“Well,” she corrected herself, “It actually is Florice.” “What?” the kids cried. If it wasn’t Florice, then how was it Florice? “This is Florice’s mother,” Aunt Owners said, finally calming down. “And Florice’s mother’s name was also Florice.” “But a couple of days after Florice’s mother gave birth to Florice, she died.” “So Florice’s father named the baby girl Florice, after her mother.” “A daughter that has her mother’s name?” James said, rubbing his chin.
Aunt Owners laughed and said, “When Florice’s mother died, Florice’s father missed her a lot.” “So, in memory of his wife, he named the baby girl Florice.” “That way, the people would remember Florice’s mother.” “In other words, Florice and her mother had the same name.”
“Oh, I get it!” Jenny and Mary exclaimed. Daniel nodded his head. James still looked confused, but Daniel patted him on the back. “That was a pretty big confusion between mother and daughter,” Jenny joked. “Yeah, it pretty much was,” Mary replied. “But how does this have to do with our last clue?” James asked. “Well,” Aunt Owners began. “Florice’s mother’s photo is the oldest photo in this attic.” “So if the clue says to look underneath the oldest photo frame, then this is it!”
Slowly, she lifted the edges of the frame. Suddenly, a tin box fell down. “Here it is!” everyone cried. Aunt Owners slowly opened the tin box. Inside there was a piece of paper and a silk bag. Aunt Owners read the letter out loud:
DEAR CANDILA,
I NEVER KNEW YOU WERE SUCH A GOOD DETECTIVE. YOU FOUND MY SPECIAL GIFT TO YOU. IF THIS IS YOUR WEDDING DAY, PLEASE PLACE THE NECKLACE ON YOUR NECK IN MEMORY OF YOUR GRANDMOTHER, FLORICE. THIS NECKLACE ONCE BELONGED TO FLORICE, BUT NOW IT IS RIGHTFULLY YOURS. IF, HOWEVER, THIS IS NOT YOUR WEDDING DAY, KEEP THE NECKLACE SAFELY IN THIS SILK BAG AND WEAR IT ON SPECIAL OCCASIONS. AND, MY DEAR CANDILA, YOU ARE ONE OF THE BEST DETECTIVES IN THIS WIDE WORLD!
YOURS SINCERELY, DILLY OWNERS (GRANDFATHER)
“Your name is Candila?” the kids asked. “Yes, I’m Candila Owners,” Aunt Owners replied. “But everyone calls me Aunt Owners, except for my relatives.” “And your grandfather’s name is Dilly Owners?” Jenny asked. “Right you got it again,” Aunt Owners said, laughing. She opened the silk bag and closed her eyes. Then she said, “Grandfather, I am so sorry.” “I could not find your necklace before my wedding day.” “But I will surely wear it on special occasions, in memory of Florice.” Then Aunt Owners opened her eyes and placed the necklace on her neck. Everyone cheered loudly.
THE END
It was Friday night. Jeniffer Adler, her little brother, James Adler, Jeniffer’s friend, Mary Pistogants, and Jeniffer’s older cousin, Daniel Fifer, were lying down on Jeniffer’s soft, grassy backyard. Jeniffer was writing, Daniel and James were swinging on the swings, and Mary was reading one of her favorite mystery series, Gang Up For Mysteries. She was reading Number 15, The Mystery Of A Secret Bookcase.
“You know, guys,” Mary said. “Gang Up For Mysteries is a really great mystery book series.” “I mean, the famous authors, Gang Devors and Hiller McFail, wrote them with their own hands.” “I wish I had a stack of Gang Up For Mysteries books right in front of me right now.” “But, Mom only allows me to get five books from the library each week.” “So I have to read slowly.” “Writing is a better hobby,” Jeniffer suddenly said. “All you need to get started is a journal and a pencil.” “That’s it.” “Unlike other hobbies, writing gives you a chance to express yourself.” “You can write about anything you want.” “In order to read, you have to buy or borrow the books.” “But in writing, you just simply buy a pencil and journal and get started!” “I’ve kept my own private diary for years!”
Mary said with a frown, “That’s not true.” “Writing requires lots of thinking.” “Reading does not.” “And have you ever seen a child writing during the summer?” “No.” “But all teachers, principals, librarians and other adults suggest reading lists for children during the summer, so that they can read anytime, even when school’s not open.” Mary and Jeniffer started to argue, but Daniel, who was the oldest of the children, quickly changed the subject. “You know, Jenny,” he began. “I’ve heard that Great Spooges, the director of Scary Movies 2, is coming to town in a couple of weeks.”
Jenny’s real name was Jeniffer, but it was sort of a long name, so everyone changed it to Jenny. Jenny preferred to be called by her nickname. Suddenly, they saw Aunt Owners walking across the backyard. “Oh, hi, Aunt Owners!” James called. “Hi, youngsters!” Aunt Owners called back. “Just out for a little walk across Woodsland.” “This is a great place to live.” “It’s like the peaceful countryside, where I used to live with my grandfather.” “Oh?” James suddenly said, eager to know more.
Aunt Owners continued. “When I was about the age of six, my parents died in a car accident.” “After the funeral, my grandfather, Bash Jones, came over and brought me to his home in the countryside.” “Everything seemed different to me.” “Before my parents died, I used to live in the big cities of New York.” “In Kansas, where my new home was, everything was peaceful and everything was, well, sort of empty.” “At first I felt lonely.” “But later, I loved the countryside.”
“Grandfather and I used to go out and take long walks beside ancient trees.” “Sometimes, we’d sleep under the shining stars at night and have what Grandfather called ‘night picnics.’” “It was really fun.” “We’d light up a campfire and burn marshmellow sticks.” “Then we’d have fun cooling them off.” “Grandfather would tell me ancient stories, and then we’d go to sleep in our tents.” “It was quite fun.”
“But not until I was sixteen years old did I meet my grandmother, Florice.” “Grandfather told me that Florice was my own grandmother, and so we lived together.” “But soon Florice died, and so did Grandfather.” “I was so sad when I heard of Grandfather’s death, but not as sad when I heard about Florice’s death.” “Florice was still quite new to me, and I was a curious girl back then.” “I wanted to find out more about my grandmother, but I failed.”
“So I started to live my own life.” “I moved here, to Philadelphia, Pennsylvania.” “I was back in the city.” “I opened my own bookstore and settled down here.” “I got married, had children, and lived a happy life.” “But I am still curious about Florice.” “Although I barely ever think about it, it drives me crazy when I do.”
Saying this, Aunt Owners stopped. She let out a big sigh. Then she added, “Besides, if you’d like to come over for a nice swim by my pool tomorrow afternoon, feel free to stop by and pay me a visit.” “Sure thing,” the kids said as Aunt Owners left the backyard.
The kids began thinking about Florice. “Aunt Owners is really disturbed,” James said. “She really wants to find about Florice, even after all these years.” “She’s living a happy life, but that one thought drives her crazy.” Jenny said, “I think we should stop by and pay her a visit tomorrow.” “We’ll get to learn more about Florice, and we’ll get a nice, cool summer’s swim.” “For now, let’s go home.” “It’s getting dark, and I’m late for bed.” The kids agreed to meet at Aunt Owners’ the next afternoon and parted.
The next afternoon, the kids arrived at Aunt Owners house at lunchtime. “Well, perfect timing!” Aunt Owners exclaimed as she welcomed the kids in. “It’s just about lunchtime.” “We can have lunch together with my husband, Joseph.” “Where’s your son?” Mary asked. “Oh, he’s out to college,” Aunt Owners replied as she lead the kids to the kitchen. “Does he ever come home?” the children asked. “He comes home once in a month,” Aunt Owners replied. “Want me to help you prepare the sandwiches?” Jenny asked, who took cooking classes every Saturday. “Sure, why not?” Aunt Owners replied.
Jenny pulled up a chair and began preparing cheese sandwiches, while Aunt Owners prepared the ham sandwiches, burgers, turkey sandwiches, and veggie sandwiches. When the sandwiches were done, Jenny poured six cups of orange soda for everyone. Then she passed out the soda, and asked what kind of sandwich each person wanted. “I’ll go with ham,” Joseph Owners said. Joseph Owners was very tall, and wore a shining black suit with a blue necktie. His fine leather boots were green, and he had pockets all over his suit. He was very handsome.
After lunch, Joseph went out to work. Aunt Owners and the kids were alone. Aunt Owners showed the kids around the house. Then they settled down on a couch. The children were eager to learn more about Florice. So Aunt Owners said, “When Grandfather, Florice, and I lived together, Grandfather told me stories about Florice.” “He said that Florice and he got married a long time ago, when Florice was only sixteen years old.” “Grandfather was twenty.” “They got married in California, but later ran out of money in the bank.” “They took lots of loans, and at the end, they went bankrupt.”
“So one night, they escaped the hot waves of California and boarded the next possible flight to Kansas.” “In Kansas, Grandfather built a small house for Florice, and they lived together.” “But Florice and Grandfather got divorced shortly after my dad was born, and Florice went to live in California again.” “So there Grandfather was, all alone in that small house in the middle of the peaceful countryside.” “He lived a lonely life, but he was happy for what he had.”
“Later, my dad got married to my mom.” “They had me, and as I told you before, my parents died when I was six years old.” “So Grandfather picked me up.” “He was no longer lonely.” “But in California, Florice had no money as before.” “She was living a miserable life, so she came back to Kansas to live with Grandfather.” “However, they both died soon.” “And you know the rest of the story.”
By now, the kids were lost deep in thought. Realizing that she had said too much, Aunt Owners quickly changed the subject. “Anyone ready for a cool swim in my pool?” she asked. The kids quickly changed into their bathing suits and dived in the pool. In all that fun, they completely forgot about Aunt Owners’ story.
CHAPTER 2, THE SECRET OF A MYSTERIES WEDDING NECKLACE
After the long, cool swim, the kids came out of the pool, shivering. Aunt Owners quickly gave them their towels, and they dried themselves off. Aunt Owners tried to get the kids’ minds off Florice. But they were very eager to know more.
Finally, Aunt Owners said, “This is the last piece of information I know about Florice.” “When Grandfather and Florice got married, Grandfather gifted Florice a special wedding necklace made of jewels.” “But after the divorce, Florice gave the necklace back to Grandfather.” “Grandfather safely kept the necklace in a tin box, and hid in somewhere safely.” “I wanted to see the necklace, and so I tried to track down Grandfather’s hiding place.”
“Just a few days before Grandfather died, I went to Philadelphia, Pennsylvania with him.” “While I was away, Grandfather hid the necklace somewhere in this house.”
“Back in Kansas, as he was dying, he told me that he had hid the necklace in my new house in Pennsylvania.” “He told me that if I could find it before my wedding, my husband could gift it to me, and it would be mine.” “But I could not find the necklace before my wedding.” The kids were now really interested, but Aunt Owners said, “That’s all I know about Florice.”
The next day, Mary, Jenny, James, and Daniel met again at Aunt Owners’ house. They explained to Aunt Owners that they wished to find the wedding necklace. “Why, of course you can try!” she exclaimed. “But I don’t think you’ll succeed.” “Grandfather was a very good hider.” “I’ve searched for years and years, but I haven’t found that necklace.” “Well, we’ll find it for sure!” James yelled. “First, how about a cup of lemonade?” Aunt Owners asked. “Sure, why not?” the children agreed.
While they were drinking lemonade, Jenny asked, “Any chores to do?” “Well,” Aunt Owners said, rubbing her chin. “Really, no, but if you really want to work hard, then you could help me mow the lawn.” “Oh, sure, why not?” the kids exclaimed. They quickly ran to help Aunt Owners mow her lawn. Daniel and James moved the lawn mower back and forth, while Mary and Jenny cleared away rocks, boulders, stones, and other obstacles. They told Aunt Owners to relax. It was very hot outside.
The bright sun was beaming its rays upon the ground, and soon, the kids were tired. Mary wiped sweat from her forehead and said, “We’re almost done, Aunt Owners.” But Aunt Owners wasn’t listening. She’d dozed off into a nice summer’s sleep. “Let her rest,” Daniel whispered. “She’s got to be tired.” “She’s done so many chores today.” “I mean, preparing lunch for us, showing us around the house, things like that.” The children continued to work as Aunt Owners slept. Suddenly, Mary screamed. The kids ran to see what was happening.
There, Mary was pushing a huge boulder with all her might. It wasn’t moving at all. The kids all helped Mary push the boulder aside. They joined hands and pushed together very hard. Finally, the boulder fell apart and rolled down a distant hill. There, in a small corner beside a small stone, was a folded piece of paper. “Look!” Jenny cried. “A message!” James yelled. “Pick it up!” Mary exclaimed. Slowly, Daniel picked up the paper, unfolded it, and looked at the neat, capital letters written on it. The paper seemed very old, and it was crumbled and torn from the sides and edges. It had become a dark yellow color and was ripping apart. Daniel slowly read the words. He read:
IT’S GRAND BUT OLD
IT MAKES A SWEET SOUND
BUT TO FIND THE CLUE
LOOK UNDERGROUND
Daniel looked confused, so did the others. Hearing all this noise, Aunt Owners had awoken, too. She rushed over to see what had happened. “Look!” Jenny said as Aunt Owners rubbed her eyes.
Daniel explained everything to her. “This must be a clue to find Florice’s necklace!” Mary exclaimed. “Sure, why not?” James replied. “We found this when we were mowing the lawn, underneath a big boulder,” Daniel explained. Aunt Owners looked shocked. “My grandmother Florice!” she exclaimed. “Grandfather left me clues to find the necklace before he died!” Daniel read the clue again aloud to Aunt Owners:
IT’S GRAND BUT OLD
IT MAKES A SWEET SOUND
BUT TO FIND THE CLUE
LOOK UNDERGROUND
Now even Aunt Owners looked confused. But suddenly, James yelled, “It’s a mystery!” “And we’re great at solving mysteries, aren’t we?” “Sure, you are,” Aunt Owners said. “But this is a hard mystery.” “As I told you before, Grandfather was a very good hider.” “And his clues are almost impossible for you to solve!” “Nothing is impossible for this mystery team,” Jenny said. “Well, alright,” Aunt Owners finally said. The kids got to work right away. They began thinking about the clue. It was very confusing.
CHAPTER 3, THE GRAND KEYS
The kids thought and thought about the clue, but they couldn’t figure out what it meant. They asked Aunt Owners for help. “Want me to show you our family attic?” she replied. “That’s the place where you’ll find the most information about Florice.” “Sure, why not?” the kids agreed. Aunt Owners led them to a small wooden door in the corner of the living room. It looked quite old. On it was a little sign that said:
OWNERS’ FAMILY ATTIC
Aunt Owners opened the door, and it creaked loudly. There was a long line of stairs below the door. They were covered with fine, green carpets. Slowly, Aunt Owners and the kids climbed down the stairs. There was a second line of stairs beneath it. They climbed down that one, too. Finally, the kids could see an old room beneath a small wooden door. Aunt Owners opened the door, and led the kids inside the room. It looked very ancient and old. There were cobwebs in each corner of the room, and there were three big chests next to an old piano. There were some old photographs hung up on the brown walls, and the room seemed quite dark. Aunt Owners opened a small, blue door, revealing two light switches. Aunt Owners switched on the lights. The kids stared at the room.
“This is the Owners’ Family Attic,” Aunt Owners explained. “For many years, members from the Owners’ family have made things and placed them in this room.” “This is probably where you’ll find the most information about Florice.” “Maybe that should help you solve the riddle.”
Saying this, Aunt Owners left the room, closing the door behind her. The kids slowly explored the room. They opened the chests and found hand woven carpets of silk, handicrafts, recipes for ancient foods, cookbooks, old magazines, and many other things.
Then the kids took a look at the photographs. There was one that held Grandfather’s picture, and one that held an ancient ancestor’s picture. They were all in black and white. There was a caption beneath each frame. In the last corner of pictures, there lay Florice’s picture. Florice had long, flowing hair, and a crown of white daises on her head. She wore a long, flowing gown, and two large red hair clips on her black hair. Her eyes were blue, and she was smiling. The caption said:
FLORICE OWNERS ON HER WEDDING DAY, JANUARY 28, 1899
The children were shocked. “Florice got married over a hundred years ago?” James asked. “Well, this is fishy,” Jenny replied. Suddenly, Jenny’s eyes fell on the old piano. There was a sign on it that said:
THE GRAND KEYS
“What’s this?” Mary asked. “We better ask Aunt Owners,” Daniel replied. The kids rushed up the attic steps to the living room, where Aunt Owners was busy sipping a cup of tea. “Excuse me,” Jenny said. “We want to know what the Grand Keys are,” Mary said. Aunt Owners suddenly looked up. She put her glass down on the glass table. For a minute, she was shocked. Then, she said, “Lead me to the Grand Keys.” The children and Aunt Owners went up the steps again. They soon came to the old attic. There, in the corner, lay the old piano with a big sign on it that said:
THE GRAND KEYS
Aunt Owners stood there shocked for a moment. Then, she slowly sat down on the old, black piano chair and switched on the piano. She played wonderful music on it. The kids were shocked. “This piano is still in shape?” they asked. “Sure,” Aunt Owners replied. Then she explained, “This piano once belonged to Florice.” “Florice was a wonderful piano player.” “And she could play thousands of songs on the piano.” “I mean, you just name a song and she plays it.” “Florice played songs on this piano for as long as she lived.” “She started playing on it when she was just 4 years old.” “And when she died, she was 88 years old.” “Can you imagine that?” “A piano that has still stayed in good shape after all these years.”
“This is our special family piano.” “It makes wonderful music.” “That’s why we named it “The Grand Keys.” “It’s very special.” Then Aunt Owners stopped. “I guess all this old stuff dates back to years and years of generations,” she finally said, leaving the attic. The kids stood there, shocked. Suddenly, James said, “Hey!” “I think I know where the second clue is hidden!” “In the Grand Keys!”
The children stared at James. Then he explained, “The clue says, ‘IT’S GRAND BUT OLD, IT MAKES A SWEET SOUND, BUT TO FIND THE CLUE, LOOK UNDERGROUND.” “Just think.” “The Grand Keys is grand, because of its name.” “And it makes a very sweet sound, just as Aunt Owners said.” “This piano matches the clue perfectly.” “And...” Jenny began. “If it says to look underground, we should open the piano!” “How?” Daniel asked.
“By pulling the screws apart!” Mary replied. “I think we should ask Aunt Owners before doing that,” Daniel said. “Besides, it’s the family piano, and it’s very precious.” “What if we can’t fix the piano later?” “What if we break Aunt Owners’ special family piano?” But by then, the kids were already rushing back into the living room. They explained everything to Aunt Owners. Aunt Owners thought for a couple of minutes.
Although she was very worried about the piano, she slowly said, “If that is the place where my Grandfather’s clue is hidden, I will give my permission to tear it apart.” “I’m a really great fixer!” Daniel said. “My dad fixes electronics for people.” “I’m sure we can fix this piano later on.” “I have confidence in you youngsters,” Aunt Owners said as the kids rushed upstairs.
They got a few old screwdrivers from the chests and screwed off the screws. The top part of the piano finally came off, revealing a small, tin box in the edges. Daniel slowly lifted the tin box and opened it, and inside there was a brown piece of paper, similar to the first one. Daniel unfolded it and read out loud:
GOOD JOB, MY FRIENDS
YOU’VE SOLVED THE FIRST CLUE
BUT TO FIND THIS ONE
LOOK IN THE FLOWING BLUE
Daniel read the clue once more. The kids knew this clue was harder than the first. “The flowing blue?” Jenny exclaimed. “What’s that?” “It’s a secret clue,” Mary explained. “The flowing blue isn’t a thing, but it’s a clue to find the thing.” “You get it, right?” Jenny shook her head. “I’m afraid not,” she said. Suddenly, Aunt Owners appeared through the attic doors.
“Sorry, youngsters,” she said. “But it’s time for you to head back home.” “Can’t we stay a few minutes longer?” James begged. “Joseph and I are going to the city to run some errands,” she replied. “We can’t have you in the house alone.” “What kind of errands?” Mary asked. “Joseph has to deliver newspapers and ride his truck around the track to Farmer Hiller’s farm,” Aunt Owners replied.
“And I have to help Mr. and Mrs. Goodle in the bakery.” “We’re going to bake delicious breads.” “Cool!” Daniel exclaimed. “If you’d like to come over tomorrow for fresh baked breads and cakes,” Aunt Owners began. “You’ll be welcome here,” she finished. Then the kids set off across the grassy hills, waving good-bye to Aunt Owners. “What about the clue?” James asked as they reached the Woodsland neighborhood. “I have it right here,” Daniel replied, patting his pant pockets. Then the kids promised to meet the next day at Aunt Owners’ and waved good-bye to each other.
CHAPTER 4, THE SPRINGS OF LEAVES
Early the next morning, the kids met in Jeniffer’s backyard. “Let’s head out to Aunt Owners’ house,” Jenny said. The kids hopped across the grassy hills. Suddenly, they spotted a forest-like neighborhood said:
SPRINGS OF LEAVES
THE WONDERFUL OF THE WONDERFUL
The kids stared at the sign and the neighborhood behind it. “The Springs Of Leaves?” Jenny exclaimed. “Maybe Aunt Owners knows something about this neighborhood,” Daniel guessed. “We could ask her,” Mary replied. As they walked further, James spotted a tiny river flowing beneath tiny rocks. “Hey, look!” James exclaimed. The kids hurried over and looked toward the river. It said:
RIVER OF THE LEAVES
The kids looked confused. “A strange neighborhood and a strange river!” Jenny exclaimed. “Perhaps Aunt Owners knows about it all,” Mary guessed. “I sure do,” a voice suddenly said. The children shouted, “Aunt Owners!” “Yes, I’m here,” she said.
The children stared at Aunt Owners’ hands. She was carrying a large picnic basket. “I have a surprise for you,” she whispered. “A picnic!” James yelled. “Well, you sure are the best mystery team ever!” she exclaimed, setting down the picnic basket beside the River of Leaves. She opened the top of the basket, revealing five hot dogs, a few cold drinks, five bagels, and five bottles of milk. “Yum!” Jenny said, rubbing her hands and reaching for the food. “Not yet,” Aunt Owners said, pressing a drop of hand sanitizer in each child’s hands.
After rubbing very hard, the children’s hands were as clean as ever. Then Aunt Owners passed out the food. As they ate, the warm breeze flew among the trees. “I just remembered,” Mary said, swallowing a bite of hot dog, “Do you know anything about Springs of Leaves and River of Leaves?” “Yes, I do,” Aunt Owners said, wiping her mouth. She explained, “This neighborhood was built many years ago, by one of my ancestors.” “Florice?” James asked, sipping soda. “Oh, no,” Aunt Owners replied. “Not Florice.” “Florice’s great-grandfather built this neighborhood.” “As he was clearing off land, he cleared a small canyon beneath some houses.” “Suddenly, a river began flowing through the canyon.” “The canyon was eventually made into a neighborhood, but the river kept flowing.” “And here it is now, after all these years.”
“Wow!” Daniel exclaimed, finishing the last bite of his hot dog. “This was yummy!” The children put the dirty dishes back in the basket. Then, wiping her mouth and picking up the basket, Aunt Owners led the children to her house. As they entered, Jenny asked, “So where’s Joseph?” “Out to run a few errands in the city,” Aunt Owners replied. The kids rushed down the steps and doors to the family attic. When they got there, they stared at the photograph of Florice that said:
FLORICE OWNERS ON HER WEDDING DAY, JANUARY 28, 1899
“Something surely is fishy,” Daniel thought. “Florice got married to Aunt Owners’ grandfather over a hundred years ago?” Suddenly, Daniel exclaimed, “I think I know what ‘the flowing blue’ means!” “What?” the children asked, eager to know. “The River of Leaves!” he replied. “What?” the others exclaimed, confused. “I’ll explain,” Daniel said. “Aunt Owners said that the river has been flowing for many years, right?” Suddenly James continued, “And since the River of Leaves is blue…” “It’s the flowing blue!” Mary and Jenny exclaimed together.
The four kids rushed to the living room and pushed the door open, without even telling Aunt Owners where they were going. Aunt Owners pulled up her dress and ran after them. The children and Aunt Owners kept running until they reached the River of Leaves. There, the children looked under each rock and stone, searching for the clue. But not a single rock or stone had the clue underneath it.
Finally, the children gave up hope, until Mary yelled, “Ouch!” The kids rushed over. Mary’s finger was bleeding. “What happened?” James asked. “My finger hit a sharp rock,” Mary complained. Daniel looked around. “Every rock here is flat,” he said.
Suddenly, a tiny rock caught Daniel’s eye. He quickly went over, and saw that it was sharp. Daniel carefully lifted the sharp rock, revealing a small tin box. “I found it!” he cried. The children gathered around as Daniel opened the box. Inside was a brown piece of paper, looking exactly like the first two. Aunt Owners had watched everything. She, too, gathered in the group as Daniel read the clue out loud. It said:
THIS WAS HARD
BUT YOU FOUND IT ALL THE SAME
NOW TO FIND THE LAST ONE
LOOK UNDER THE OLDEST PHOTO FRAME
The kids were very confused, but looked into the evening sky. “It’s getting quite late,” Daniel said, yawning. “We should go home now, and come back tomorrow.” “Sure, why not?” Jenny replied. The kids parted for the night. As Jenny was changing into her night clothes, Mrs. Adler asked, “So how’s the search going?” “Good,” Jenny replied. “We’ve solved two clues.” “Now we’re on the last one.” “It says to look under the oldest photo frame.”
“Florice was a very kind woman,” Mrs. Adler said. “She was?” Jenny replied. “How do you know?” “Your great-grandfather lived in the times of Florice,” Mrs. Adler replied. “He did?” Jenny replied. “Florice had short hair and wore a long, pink dress on her wedding day,” Mrs. Adler replied. Jenny was confused. On Florice’s wedding picture in the family attic, she had long, flowing hair and wore a long, white gown on her wedding day. But Mrs. Adler was saying that she had short hair and wore a pink dress on her wedding day.
CHAPTER 5, A CONFUSION BETWEEN MOTHER AND DAUGHTER
The next morning, the kids were back in Aunt Owners’ family attic. They were discussing things with Aunt Owners. Aunt Owners was saying, “Florice got married on August 8, 1915.” “That can’t be!” the kids said, arguing. “On her wedding photo, the caption says:
FLORICE OWNERS ON HER WEDDING DAY, JANUARY 28, 1899
“But how can that be?” Aunt Owners replied. The kids led her to Florice’s wedding photo. As soon as she saw the photo, she burst into laughter. “What happened?” the kids asked. “That isn’t Florice!” Aunt Owners exclaimed, still laughing.
“Well,” she corrected herself, “It actually is Florice.” “What?” the kids cried. If it wasn’t Florice, then how was it Florice? “This is Florice’s mother,” Aunt Owners said, finally calming down. “And Florice’s mother’s name was also Florice.” “But a couple of days after Florice’s mother gave birth to Florice, she died.” “So Florice’s father named the baby girl Florice, after her mother.” “A daughter that has her mother’s name?” James said, rubbing his chin.
Aunt Owners laughed and said, “When Florice’s mother died, Florice’s father missed her a lot.” “So, in memory of his wife, he named the baby girl Florice.” “That way, the people would remember Florice’s mother.” “In other words, Florice and her mother had the same name.”
“Oh, I get it!” Jenny and Mary exclaimed. Daniel nodded his head. James still looked confused, but Daniel patted him on the back. “That was a pretty big confusion between mother and daughter,” Jenny joked. “Yeah, it pretty much was,” Mary replied. “But how does this have to do with our last clue?” James asked. “Well,” Aunt Owners began. “Florice’s mother’s photo is the oldest photo in this attic.” “So if the clue says to look underneath the oldest photo frame, then this is it!”
Slowly, she lifted the edges of the frame. Suddenly, a tin box fell down. “Here it is!” everyone cried. Aunt Owners slowly opened the tin box. Inside there was a piece of paper and a silk bag. Aunt Owners read the letter out loud:
DEAR CANDILA,
I NEVER KNEW YOU WERE SUCH A GOOD DETECTIVE. YOU FOUND MY SPECIAL GIFT TO YOU. IF THIS IS YOUR WEDDING DAY, PLEASE PLACE THE NECKLACE ON YOUR NECK IN MEMORY OF YOUR GRANDMOTHER, FLORICE. THIS NECKLACE ONCE BELONGED TO FLORICE, BUT NOW IT IS RIGHTFULLY YOURS. IF, HOWEVER, THIS IS NOT YOUR WEDDING DAY, KEEP THE NECKLACE SAFELY IN THIS SILK BAG AND WEAR IT ON SPECIAL OCCASIONS. AND, MY DEAR CANDILA, YOU ARE ONE OF THE BEST DETECTIVES IN THIS WIDE WORLD!
YOURS SINCERELY, DILLY OWNERS (GRANDFATHER)
“Your name is Candila?” the kids asked. “Yes, I’m Candila Owners,” Aunt Owners replied. “But everyone calls me Aunt Owners, except for my relatives.” “And your grandfather’s name is Dilly Owners?” Jenny asked. “Right you got it again,” Aunt Owners said, laughing. She opened the silk bag and closed her eyes. Then she said, “Grandfather, I am so sorry.” “I could not find your necklace before my wedding day.” “But I will surely wear it on special occasions, in memory of Florice.” Then Aunt Owners opened her eyes and placed the necklace on her neck. Everyone cheered loudly.
THE END