Authors: Franklin W. Dixon

Ship of Secrets (7 page)

BOOK: Ship of Secrets

2.41Mb size Format: txt, pdf, ePub

ads

“But if we sell it, I won’t have anything to remember him by,” Melinda said sadly.

“That’s the thing, though,” Mrs. Heartpence replied. “We’ll have our memories of him. And pictures. Remember that time he took you to the zoo? You were in love with the bears, and he sat there with you for hours, just watching them. He loved being around you.”

“Or the time he brought you to the sweetshop in the city?” Sir Reginald continued. “You two had frozen hot chocolate. You talked about that for months afterward. You had the greatest time.”

Melinda sniffed back tears. She smiled at the memory. “That was the best day.”

“See, dear?” Mrs. Heartpence said. “It doesn’t
matter if we have the watch or not. Your grandfather will always be with us. We think about him all the time. How could we not?”

Sir Reginald gave his daughter a big hug. For the first time Joe noticed that the red scarf Melinda had worn as a disguise was Sir Reginald’s scarf. It was the same one he’d worn the first day of the cruise.

Then Sir Reginald turned away and stood up from the couch. He clapped Frank and Joe on their backs. “You boys did an amazing job,” he said. “If it weren’t for you, we never would’ve talked about this. We might not have found the watch at all. I can’t thank you enough.”

“We’re happy we solved the case,” Joe said. “And the watch is back to its rightful owner.”

Frank and Joe turned to leave, their parents right behind them. Before they could reach the door, Sir Reginald called out to them, “Tomorrow, when we pull into the harbor, I’d like you to
be my special guests at the auction. They’ll be a huge party afterward. A giant feast with music and dancing! Will you join us?”

Mr. Hardy looked at the boys. Frank and Joe smiled. A party sounded like the perfect reward for their hard work.

• • • •

The band played a fast song, and Frank and Joe danced on the open roof deck. From the top of the tallest building in Miami, they could see the entire harbor, including the giant cruise ship.

“This has been the best part of the trip so far!” Frank exclaimed. Across the dance floor his mom and dad swung each other around. They were really getting into the music.

“My favorite part was the chocolate fountain,” Joe said. They’d spent more than an hour dipping strawberries and marshmallows into it. Joe still had chocolate around his top lip.

Frank was about to say something about the coconut cake, or the giant stack of lemon candies that were piled high on the dessert table, but then Melinda came over to them. The party was ending. Mr. Hardy waved at them to get their coats.

“Thank you guys again,” Melinda said. “You
were right. I should’ve just told my parents what was wrong.”

“No problem,” Joe said. “We had fun on our stakeout. You were a tough thief to catch!”

Melinda’s cheeks turned bright red. “Well, I’m glad you caught me. I might’ve never told my parents. I was so scared once I’d taken the watch. I didn’t even know what to do with it!”

Across the room Sir Reginald chatted loudly with his friends. He held his wife’s hand. He looked happier than he had all weekend. Frank looked at him, then back at Melinda. “That was one place your dad would never have found it. The
T. rex
’s mouth!”

Joe, Frank, and Melinda all laughed. “Is that game any good?” Melinda asked.

“Good? It’s the best game on the ship!” Frank said. “It’s called Dino Ball. We’ll teach you sometime.”

“How about now?” Melinda laughed. “I could use some friends. My parents decided not to punish me . . . at least not yet. This might be my last night of freedom.”

Joe smiled. “Well, come on, then!” he said. “Let’s go back to the ship. Dino Ball is waiting . . . and so is our Soaker Shooter.”

“What’s a Soaker Shooter?” Melinda asked.

“We’ll explain later,” Frank said. He looked at his brother. Now they could enjoy the rest of their vacation. They couldn’t wait!

SECRET FILES CASE #15: SOLVED!