Nobody had What did it look like Ricky wanted to know Holly frowned Well it was wrinkled like an old man with great big teeth Yikes Ricky sighed Now we’ve got to look around for a little old man with big teeth The others laughed and Holly banged her brother with her elbow I’m not kidding Well Pete what are we going to do about the monster anyway Dave Mead asked The detective club members discussed the mystery which was being talked about all over town Hikers had reported seeing odd footprints along the edge of a wooded trail in the State Park which was located north of Shoreham The creature who had made those impressions seemed to have hoofs with three hornlike toes and a small delicate finger at the end of each toe So our little old man has not only big teeth but fingers on his toes said Ricky Everyone laughed but Pete raised his hand Now listen this is serious The whole town is scared Some people won’t even go out at night They’re afraid they might meet the monster Little Sue wriggled on the bench There aren’t any monsters she said Mommy told me True But something or somebody’s making those funny tracks Pete replied and explained that other clawed prints had been seen near the shore of Pine Lake which bordered the back yard of the Hollisters home 10
Do you think somebody’s playing a joke Dave asked Well that’s what we have to find out Pete declared All the club members agreed to join in the search Any clues they found would be reported to Pete And don’t forget the toy library Pam reminded them It was May and school was nearly over The library would be dedicated in a short time and would be open during the summer for children of the Washington School district After Pete had closed the meeting and the children had left the sound of tires could be heard in the driveway outside Four headlights shone into the window Two cars Pete said I wonder who’s with Mother and Dad The children thumped up the cellar stairs through the house and onto the front porch Mr and Mrs Hollister had parked the car and were carrying several packages inside A tall man in uniform followed them Hi everyone he called out Officer Cal Holly ran over to the policeman who picked her up in his arms Officer Cal Newberry was a handsome young man with red cheeks and clear blue eyes He belonged to the Shoreham Police Department and was a great friend of the Hollisters He had helped them solve 11
some of their mysteries and they had cleared up some of his too Pete glanced over at the police car and noticed a boy inside Who’s that he asked Officer Cal turned around Come on out Alex he called I want you to meet some friends of mine From the car stepped a boy about Pete’s age He was tall very slender and walked with an easy motion His skin was light brown his black hair closely cropped and he was dressed in dungarees a skivvy shirt and sneakers As he stepped to Officer Cal’s side a wide smile crossed his face This is Alex Kane the policeman said Meet the Hollisters Pete and Ricky shook hands with the boy as did Mr Hollister a tall handsome man Mrs Hollister slender and pretty said Hello Alex Are you Officer Cal’s assistant Sort of Alex replied He sure is Cal Newberry smiled Alex was riding on his bicycle when he saw something very unusual Oh Tell us about it Pam urged Alex said he was pedaling home from a bicycle ride in the State Park when he had a flat tire By the time he had repaired it it had grown dark I was going as fast as I could the boy explained when suddenly I saw kind of a shadowy shape ducking behind these houses here With a sweep of his hand he pointed to the homes located along the 12
shore of Pine Lake When Officer Cal drove by Alex concluded I told him about it See Holly cried What did I tell you I saw the monster’s face in our window The little girl quickly related the story Then the policeman said Come on down to the basement Holly and show me where you saw the face Everyone including Alex went downstairs It was right over there Holly stated and led them past the recording machine and the big box in which White Nose the Hollisters cat and her five kittens were sleeping That’s the window Holly pointed up just as a blurred figure moved quickly past in the dim light There it is again the pigtailed girl shrieked Everyone raced up the stairs The quickest of them all was Alex Kane His long legs carried him up with the speed of an Olympic runner He bolted out the back door and around the side of the house Seconds later he threw himself upon a fleeing figure I’ve got him he yelled as the others hurried to the spot where he and his captive rolled over and over in the grass Let me up a protesting voice called out The same instant Officer Cal whipped out his flashlight Its beam circled the two figures as they rose from the ground Alex had collared another boy whose face squinted in the bright light shook his head disdainfully It’s Joey Brill Ugh Ricky Hollister 13
