Jane and the Fire – Part XXIV

In 1958, young Jane has just moved to the city of Chicago, Illinois with her parents and cousins Billy. Jane and her friends are discovered by Uncle Wallace to be exploring the abandoned house of the Three Thugs. He is surprised, but doesn’t press them for information, though they’ve seen more of the house than he has. He lets them leave, in fact, and doesn’t ask any serious questions – that is, until…

Uncle Wallace looked at them carefully. Then he shrugged.

“Be cautious,” he warned. “Don’t be foolish. Explore outdoors where it is safe. Exploring in rickety old houses can be dangerous. Especially…”

“Especially when?” asked Paige curiously.

“Especially in houses owned by tax evaders,” Uncle Wallace said quickly. None of them believed him.

“All right,” he said, “run along now! Enough dawdling!”

The kids got up to leave. “Just one question,” Don said, as he stood, stretching, “How did you know the house belonged to them? That day, at The Hungry Eagle, you let them go! When they dropped the fake newspaper, you didn’t…” Paige slapped a hand to her forehead.

Uncle Wallace blinked. “How did you know about that?”

The guilty looks the children exchanged were more incriminating than a court statement.

Jane explained. She began, craftily, with the day exploring at The Hungry Eagle, when she had met Don and Paige – neatly evading explanation of why she’d found the Thugs suspicious and keeping her excursion into the woods by the park secret. Uncle Wallace looked as if he knew she wasn’t sharing the full story.

“You’re a resourceful bunch,” was all he said, ruefully, “And I suppose with your noses this deep in the business you’ve got some explanation due.”

This was such an unexpected boon, when they had expected a telling-off and a ban on detective work, that Don stood on the bench and yelled out, “Hallelujah!”

As he leaped to his feet, his sock caught on the head of a nail slightly lifted above the rest. The pressure pulled him back slightly, just enough to imbalance him, and with an earth-shaking crash he landed on the ground behind the bench. When Don had been pulled to his feet and seated, Uncle Wallace sighed.

“I saw the image of the house when they dropped the newspaper that day in The Hungry Eagle. I can’t tell you more about the thugs. But, as you’ve guessed, I’m not an accountant. I work for the city as a sort of private eye.”

The children frowned. “We know.”

“I have followed these Thugs for years. I’ve met them all before and arrested one.”

“We know,” repeated the children. “We figured.”

“What you don’t know,” began Uncle Wallace triumphantly, before catching himself and glaring. “I’m not supposed to reveal details of ongoing investigations. All I can do is warn you and insist utterly that you stay away from Trouble. These are dangerous men.”

He sighed and waved them away. “Go on now! And again… be careful!”

Jane got up slowly, and the twins followed her down the shady park pathway. The hot afternoon sun warmed their backs and the faint July breeze wafted by, cooling their faces as they followed the well-traversed walkway out of the park. People still dotted the greens and birds hummed busily. They left Uncle Wallace still sitting on a park bench, among the oaks and dogwoods. Keep reading next month!