Trouble on the Orphan Train Page 5

  Leonard

  Beth stood on top of the safe again. She looked out the vent. She counted three masked horsemen.

  Then Jesse James and the other robber walked away from the train. The two men tied mailbags to their horses’ saddlebags. Jesse and the second robber got on their horses.

  Beth watched as each of the five bandits rode off. They all went in different directions.

  They’re smart, Beth thought. Mr. Pinkerton will have five trails to follow.

  Beth jumped down from the safe. “They’re gone,” she said to Agent Wilson. “It’s time to go see my cousin and Miss Cookson.”

  “Why did Jesse James give you that silver dollar?” Agent Wilson asked.

  Beth had been wondering the same thing. “I think Jesse James likes children,” Beth said.

  “I believe you’re right, miss,” he said. “His favorite kind of children are spies.”

  Beth stomped her foot. “Do you still think I’m part of the gang?” she asked. “I told you, I did nothing wrong.”

  “Well,” he said, “we’ll still watch you. Let’s go see Mr. Alford together.”

  Agent Wilson led Beth out the side door of the express car. They went to the sleeper car.

  The first-class passengers chattered about the robbery. One man talked about hiding his money under the carpet. He was glad the robbers hadn’t found it. Reverend Hagerty was amazed that his wallet wasn’t taken.

  “The good Lord saw to it that my money was spared,” the reverend said. “The fire darkened my hands so I looked like a laborer. Otherwise my wallet would be empty.”

  Mr. Alford was sitting down. He looked pale and tired.

  Leonard was standing near the stove. He looked small with Jesse James’s large hat on.

  Patrick heard someone call his name. He turned around.

  It was Beth! She moved quickly toward him.

  A man followed her. He was wearing a white suit.

  Miss Cookson came in from the back door. “Leonard!” she called.

  Leonard rushed to her.

  Miss Cookson bent over and hugged him. “I’m so grateful that you’re fine,” she said.

  “How did you get that hat?” Miss Cookson asked.

  The room suddenly fell silent. Everyone turned toward the orphan boy.

  Leonard’s eyes darted around the room.

  The man in the bowler hat scowled. “This young man is a fool, ma’am,” he said to Miss Cookson. “He made a pact with Jesse James.”

  The man in the white suit shouted, “Another child spy!”

  “What happened to my diamonds?” Mrs. Scott asked. She glared at Leonard. “Are you trying to steal them?”

  Patrick didn’t like the adults picking on Leonard. And it seemed Beth didn’t either.

  “Leonard wouldn’t take your diamonds,” Beth said. “But he did make a pact. It was with me. He promised not to steal.”

  Miss Cookson spoke up. “You should be ashamed of yourselves,” she said. “Don’t bully a poor orphan.”

  There was a short silence as everyone again looked at Leonard. He was opening the stove. He reached inside the stove with a metal scoop.

  “Leonard,” Miss Cookson said, “you’ll get more ashes on your suit.”

  But Leonard didn’t stop. He blew on the embers in the scoop. They glowed red. Something else was sparkling.

  “Look,” Leonard said, “diamonds don’t burn.”

  “So that’s why you tripped me,” Patrick said. “I was so mad then. But now I get it. You had to hide the diamonds so Jesse James wouldn’t find them.”

  Leonard nodded. “I put them in the stove,” he said. “No one would look there.”

  Mrs. Scott said, “I’m sorry I thought you stole my diamonds. You were the bravest person on the train.”

  Leonard poked around in the ashes again. He quickly picked out something white. He blew on it and put it in his pocket.

  Leonard looked at Beth. “Jaguar teeth don’t burn either!” he said.

  Beth smiled.

  Then Leonard gave Beth a sheepish grin. “I didn’t steal the diamonds,” he said quietly. “But I did steal something else.”

  Leonard reached inside his suit pocket. He pulled out a gold pocket watch. He held it up so everyone could see it.

  The orphan grinned. “I think Jesse James forgot something,” he said. Leonard handed the watch to Mr. Alford.

  The man in the bowler hat said, “The boy pickpocketed Jesse James! That’s why he hugged him.”

  The people’s murmurs filled the car.

  Patrick said, “So you didn’t want to join Jesse James’s gang.”

  “Nope,” Leonard said. “I had enough of gangs in New York.”

  “God bless you, boy,” Mr. Alford said. There were tears in the man’s eyes. “My father’s watch. How can I ever thank you?”

  “You can let me and the other orphans stay in first class,” Leonard said.

  The End of the Line

  Beth and Patrick sat together in first-class seats near the front of the car. She told Patrick everything that had happened to her. And he told her about the robbery in the first-class car.

  Jesse James had stolen everything valuable in the express car. So Agent Wilson had nothing to guard. Mr. Alford let Agent Wilson stay in the first-class section too.

  Beth whispered to Patrick, “Is Agent Wilson watching me?”

  Patrick looked over his shoulder for a moment. “Yes,” he whispered. “Maybe he thinks you’re going to jump out the window.”

  The train whistled three times. The bell rang. The Iron Mountain Express number 7 moved away from the Gad’s Hill station.

  Mr. Alford checked his pocket watch. Then he came to punch their tickets. Beth and Patrick each handed him their tickets.

  “Remember the paper Jesse James gave you?” Patrick asked the conductor.

  Mr. Alford nodded.

  “What did it say?” Patrick asked.

  Mr. Alford chuckled. “It was a summary of the robbery for the newspapers.”

  “A press release?” Beth asked.

  “Yes,” Mr. Alford said. “I can’t show it to you. It’s evidence now. But the headline was ‘The Most Daring Robbery on Record.’”

  Beth giggled. She said, “I think it should have said, ‘Daring Orphan Saves Diamonds.’”

  Mr. Alford leaned forward. He said in hushed tones, “Mrs. Scott is going to pay for Leonard to go to boarding school.”

  “But he needs parents,” Beth said, “not just an education.”

  Mr. Alford patted Beth on the shoulder. “That’s what Miss Cookson said too. Reverend Hagerty plans to look for homes for all the orphans. He hopes to find the right home for Leonard. Some Christian couple will have a great son.”

  “If his new parents can keep him out of trouble,” Patrick added. He motioned with his head.

  Beth looked in that direction.

  Reverend Hagerty was asleep. His head was tilted back in the seat. His chest rose and fell with each snore.

  Leonard stood next to him. He was braiding the reverend’s beard!

  The train finally stopped at Little Rock, Arkansas. It was dawn.

  Patrick looked out the window. He nudged Beth.

  “Is that Mr. Pinkerton?” he asked.

  A man was on the platform. He had a white shirt on. And he was scowling.

  “Yes,” Beth said. “That’s the famous detective.”

  Mr. Alford came through the first-class section.

  “Everyone off the train,” the conductor said. “This is the end of the line.”

  Miss Cookson gathered all the orphans on the train platform. Patrick and Beth waited with the group.

  Patrick watched as Mr. Pinkerton and Agent Wilson spoke.

  Patrick asked Beth, “What do you think they’re talking about?”

  “Us,” Beth said. “They’re coming our way.”

  The detective and the agent moved toward the orphans. But the men didn’t talk to the cousins
. Mr. Pinkerton went straight to Miss Cookson.

  Whatever the detective said made Miss Cookson smile. She rushed to Patrick and Beth.

  “This is glorious news!” she said. “Detective Pinkerton has found your guardian.”

  Patrick glanced at Beth. She was pale. Her hands were shaking.

  “Guardian?” Patrick said.

  “Yes!” Miss Cookson said. “A man named Eugene. I’m surprised you didn’t tell me about him.”

  Miss Cookson kissed Beth on the cheeks. “Farewell, my dear,” she said. “Remember to be on time.”

  Miss Cookson took Patrick’s hand and leaned in close. She whispered in his ear, “I knew you didn’t take the apple.”

  The kind woman bid farewell again. Then she gathered the orphans and herded them off the train platform.

  Patrick closed his eyes. He prayed a little prayer. He asked God to find good homes for the children.

  Patrick opened his eyes. Mr. Pinkerton and Agent Wilson were standing in front of him.

  Agent Wilson said, “We found this on the floor of the sleeper car.” He held up an envelope. “We need to go to the courthouse so you can explain a few things.”

  It was Eugene’s letter with the name Patrick clearly written on it.

  We’re doomed, Patrick thought.

  Jail

  Mr. Pinkerton and Agent Wilson walked behind Beth and Patrick. They were all headed to a white building. A sign on it said County Courthouse.

  Beth knew that’s where the jail was. Her stomach burned with worry. It felt as if she’d sipped a cup of bleach.

  “Why didn’t Eugene come to meet us at the depot?” Patrick asked.

  Agent Wilson glanced at Mr. Pinkerton. They shared a knowing look.

  “You’ll see Eugene soon enough,” Mr. Pinkerton said. “And we’ll sort out your future.”

  Future? Beth didn’t want to spend her future in jail.

  The courthouse was a two-story, wood building. It had red trim and four steps leading to the front door.

  Beth’s boots felt like lead as she plodded up each step.

  Mr. Pinkerton opened the double doors. All four of them walked through. Agent Wilson led the way.

  They passed hallways that had portraits on the walls. The men in the paintings seemed to frown on Beth.

  The group passed offices with desks. They came to the back of the building.

  “Follow the stairs,” Mr. Pinkerton said. “Eugene is waiting. Agent Wilson and I have to talk to the court recorder.”

  Beth and Patrick walked down a few steps.

  Beth saw what she dreaded. Iron bars. Cement walls.

  Eugene was in one of the cells. He was sitting on a small cot with a gray blanket. A Bible was on a nearby table. He seemed lonely. But otherwise he looked okay.

  Patrick called, “Eugene!”

  Eugene looked surprised. “Patrick!” he said. “Beth!” Then he jumped up. “Did you see him?”

  Beth moved toward the cell.

  Patrick was confused. “See who? Mr. Whittaker?”

  It was Eugene’s turn to look confused. “I haven’t thought about him,” he said. “I was referring to Jesse James.”

  Beth moved closer to the bars. “Oh, him,” Beth said. She sounded defeated.

  “Yes, him!” Eugene said. “The master criminal has eluded some of the best detectives in history! I was hot on his trail.”

  “Until you got arrested,” Patrick said.

  Suddenly a bright light filled the jail cell.

  The car Imagination Station appeared just as Mr. Pinkerton and Agent Wilson entered. Only Beth, Patrick, and Eugene could see the Station.

  Patrick realized the problem at once. He and Beth couldn’t get inside the cell to reach the machine.

  Beth must have realized the problem too. She turned to Mr. Pinkerton. “I insist that you arrest us,” she said. “I confess to knowing more about Jesse James than you do.”

  The detective took off his hat. His eyebrows scrunched. “I can’t arrest you for that,” he said. “I didn’t listen when you warned me.”

  Beth reached inside her pocket. She showed the silver dollar to Agent Wilson. “Do you remember this?”

  The agent nodded. “Jesse James gave that to you.”

  Beth said, “And would you say it was probably stolen?”

  Again the agent nodded.

  “Then I’m in possession of stolen goods,” Beth said. “Arrest us!”

  Mr. Pinkerton took a key out of the inside of his coat. He put the key in the lock and turned it. The door clicked.

  Patrick and Beth rushed inside the cell.

  “Hurry,” Patrick said. “Get in the machine. What are you waiting for, Eugene?”

  He looked at his friend. Eugene still looked glum.

  “Your plan has a flaw,” Eugene said. “There are only two seats in this machine.”

  “So one of us has to stay behind,” Beth said. It was a fact. Not a question.

  Patrick heard a click. He turned.

  Mr. Pinkerton had locked all three of them inside the cell.

  Find out what happens next in adventure 19, Light in the Lions’ Den.

  Secret Word Puzzle

  Railroads like to keep their trains on time. Station agents and conductors check their watches often. They want to make sure the train stops are on schedule. In the 1870s, many railroad officials used pocket watches. And those pocket watches had Roman numerals on them.

  Roman Numeral Key

  I = 1

  II = 2

  III = 3

  IV = 4

  V = 5

  VI = 6

  VII = 7

  VIII = 8

  IX = 9

  X = 10

  XI = 11

  XII = 12

  Use this clock to break the following math code. Each Roman numeral on the clock corresponds to a letter. Fill in the letters on the blanks. Then you’ll know part of James 1:27. (The last word in the code is the secret word.)

  3+3 4+4 10-2 1+4 3-2 6-3 10+2 5-3 5+5 9-1 6+4 8+1 2+2 6-5 9-2 5+6

  Go to TheImaginationStation.com. Find the cover of this book. Click on “Secret Word.” Type in the correct answer, and you’ll receive a prize

  THE KEY TO ADVENTURE LIES WITHIN YOUR IMAGINATION.

  Voyage with the Vikings

  Attack at the Arena

  Peril in the Palace

  Revenge of the Red Knight

  Showdown with the Shepherd

  Problems in Plymouth

  Secret of the Prince’s Tomb

  Battle for Cannibal Island

  Escape to the Hiding Place

  Challenge on the Hill of Fire

  Hunt for the Devil’s Dragon

  Danger on a Silent Night

  The Redcoats Are Coming!

  Captured on the High Seas

  Surprise at Yorktown

  Doomsday in Pompeii