Mystery in the Old Attic by Gertrude Chandler Warner

CHAPTER 1
    The Long Trip
    â€œW atch, let go! I have to take these boots with me to Michigan,” said sixyear-old Benny as he tugged one end of his red snow boot.
    Watch wagged his tail and obediently dropped the boot before scampering down the hallway to Jessie’s room. There he began to sniff her open suitcase. “Watch, what are you doing?” said Jessie, laughing. She packed her thick white sweater and gently nudged her dog away.
    â€œI think he wants to go with us,” said Violet as she came into Jessie’s room carrying her purple ski jacket. Purple was Violet’s favorite color, and she liked most of her clothes to be purple or lavender. “Do you think I will need this jacket and my wool coat, too?” Violet asked her older sister.

    â€œNo, probably just the jacket and one wool sweater,” answered Jessie. “And don’t forget your boots. Grandfather says it snows a lot in that part of Michigan.”
    Jessie, who was twelve years old, sometimes acted like a mother to her ten-year-old sister, Violet, and their two brothers, Henry, age fourteen, and Benny.
    The children’s parents had died when the children were younger, and Henry, Jessie, Violet, and Benny now had a home with their grandfather, James Alden, and his housekeeper, Mrs. McGregor. Even so, the Aldens were used to taking care of themselves. Just after their parents died, the children had lived all by themselves in a boxcar in the woods. Now the boxcar had a home, too — in Grandfather’s backyard. The children often used the boxcar as a playhouse.
    â€œJessie, I can’t wait to play in all that snow,” said Benny as he ran into Jessie’s room carrying his pink cup and a wool scarf. “I don’t have room for these things in my suitcase. Can you take them?” he asked his sister.
    â€œSure, Benny,” answered Jessie. Benny had had that pink cup ever since his boxcar days. He liked to take it with him wherever he went. Jessie carefully wrapped the scarf around the cup and put it in her suitcase. “Come on, Benny, I’ll help you pack.”
    The next day the four Alden children and their grandfather were going to board a plane bound for Michigan’s Upper Peninsula. Grandfather’s aunt Sophie had died recently, and Grandfather had inherited her big old house, which he planned to sell. The children were traveling with him to help him clear it out.
    â€œJessie, did you know that Great-aunt Sophie’s house is more than one hundred years old?” Benny asked.
    Jessie nodded as she took a pair of roller skates out of Benny’s suitcase to make room for his sweaters. “Yes, I know. And it’s so big, it even has a ballroom in it.”
    Benny gulped. “That means we’re going to have a lot of rooms to clean,” he said.
    The next morning, Watch ran around the car as the Aldens loaded all their suitcases into the trunk.
    â€œOh, Watch, I wish you could come, too,” said Benny as he wrapped his arms around his dog’s neck.
    â€œHe wouldn’t like the long plane trip,” Grandfather said gently.
    Henry nodded. “It’s true, Watch. Do you know we have to take two planes? One from Boston to Detroit. Then another from Detroit to Brockton, where Great-aunt Sophie’s house is. And you would not even be allowed to ride with us.”
    Watch licked Henry’s hands. Then Benny, Jessie, and Violet all took turns hugging their dog. Only then did Watch follow Mrs. McGregor up the steps to the front door.
    â€œGood-bye,” the Aldens called as Grandfather backed the car out of the driveway. “We’ll write!” Jessie promised.
    â€œDon’t forget to wear your boots,” Mrs. McGregor called.
    â€œBoy, airports sure are crowded,” said Benny as he followed his family to the waiting area at the gate. All the chairs were taken, so the Aldens went over to the window, where they could see the planes