Trixie Get Your Gun

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Nancy shook her head as though to shake off her worries about the production. "Anyway, the ghostlight does keep the first cast or crew members who arrive from tripping as they fumble for the lights."

She showed Trixie and Honey around backstage, pointing out several features as she went: lighting, the wings, the staging area for the scenery, and the trap door at the back of the stage, which led to dressing rooms under the stage floor. It was all so unfamiliar that Trixie's head was spinning by the end of the tour.

"Just watch the others for today," Nancy said reassuringly.

The technical part of the show had not yet been fully combined with the actors, Nancy explained. For the initial rehearsals, the actors had rehearsed without scenery and with just a few props. Subsequently, a few scenic elements, props, and lighting had been gradually added in to give the crew a chance to learn how to work around the actors and the actors a chance to get used to the staging. The first full Technical rehearsal with all lighting and complete scenery changes, she explained, would be on the coming Saturday when the cast and crew would have all day to work through glitches.

As Nancy talked, the stage began to fill with cast and other crew members. Trixie and Honey knew some of the students and chatted with them as they milled around, getting ready for rehearsal. Shortly before the rehearsal was to begin Alison Travers walked backstage from the prop room. She was composed but very serious, as if lost in thought. Immediately behind Alison, came Mrs. Catania with a tall red-haired woman. The woman's hair was so bright that Trixie assumed it was dyed.

"Oh, you there, young lady," Mrs. Catania called, wagging her finger at Honey. "Here is Mrs. T, our wardrobe mistress and this is Honey Wheeler," she said, completing the introduction.

"How do you do?" Honey said politely.

"Hi-dy, yourself," the woman said, popping her gum.

"Um, is it Mrs. T?" Honey asked.
"Sure thing, sweetie. I mean Honey! Ha! Ha!" Mrs. Travers's big hoop earrings shook as she laughed loudly at her own joke.

Trixie snorted, but Honey managed a weak smile.

"It's Mrs. T, short for Travers. Here's my card. You see, it says, 'Mrs. T, seamstress, suits you to a T!'" Mrs. Travers smiled and whipped out a small white card and handed it to Honey. Trixie looked over her friend's shoulder and saw the seamstress's name and address along with a picture of a needle and thread and the slogan, "Suits You to a T."

"Now you can come with me, Honey," Mrs. Travers said. Smiling and smacking her gum again, she led Honey back to the prop room. Trixie watched the two leave, thinking that she'd taken an instant dislike to "Mrs. T" and her gushy manner. Too late, she realized that she had missed an opportunity to ask Mrs. Travers about her scissors. "I'll have to find time later today or maybe tomorrow," she reminded herself.

But there was no time to think more about Mrs. Travers. Mrs. Catania had moved to center stage, and was calling the cast and crew to order. "Before we get started, I just want to say a few words about some mischief that's been occurring," she said. "You may have heard rumors and some of you may have been called in by the vice-principal, Mr. Reed, to find out what you know or have heard. I'm sure we can count on everyone to cooperate fully."

While Mrs. Catania spoke, Trixie looked around as casually as she could. Alison was staring into space, absentmindedly fiddling with the ruffle on her white blouse. Del came walking through the prop room entrance and stood at the fringe of the assembled cast and crew, restlessly brushing his hair back from his face.

"I'll bet he's just come from the Mr. Reed's office," Trixie thought.

"Some damage has been done to some of the costumes," Mrs. Catania was saying. "However, our excellent wardrobe mistress, Mrs. T, is making sure that we have replacements. We will not let a little thing like this stop us. We don't know who is behind this," as she was speaking, Mrs. Catania turned slightly and her eyes happened to light on Del. At Mrs. Catania's words, his face took on a resentful look and turned a deep red. Trixie noted that Alison had quickly dipped her face and was staring fixedly at the floor. "But we will find out who is responsible and this will be the best musical production Sleepyside High has ever seen!"

There was a slight pause and cast and crew looked at each other uncertainly. Then, rallied by Di and Nancy Norland, everyone applauded. Mrs. Catania announced the start of the rehearsal and the crew members hurried to take their places.

Del buckled on a toolbelt and walked across the stage, ignoring others as he passed them. He barely greeted Nancy when he approached and said nothing at all to Trixie.

"I'm on probation," he told Nancy, his voice flat. "Here are my keys to the auditorium and the prop room. If I need to get in at times other than regular rehearsals, I'm to ask you or Mrs. Catania."

For a moment Nancy just looked at the keys Del had put in her hand. Then she said quietly, "Gosh, I'm sorry, Del. What's going on?"

"I don't know," Del said emphatically, avoiding Nancy's gaze.

Trixie couldn't keep silent. "But didn't you let Tony and Greg into the prop room this morning?" she asked. "Did you see or notice anything?"

Del blinked and then waved his hand vaguely. "I don't know a thing," he said and abruptly walked off.

"I guess I shouldn't have blurted that out," Trixie said to Nancy. "It's just that Di's my friend and we were there when the damage was found."

Nancy was watching Del depart. "I know. This is all so mysterious, I just don't know what to make of it," she said in frustration. But she quickly became the cool and collected stage manager again. "There's no point in worrying, we've got work to do. Hopefully, Mr. Reed will get to the bottom of this. Come with me," she led Trixie over to the side of the stage and gathered two other students who were new to the crew. "Just listen and watch my cues and try to get familiar with some of the procedures," she said.

For the next few hours Trixie tried to watch everything as carefully as she could. In some ways, Trixie discovered, being backstage was even more exciting than watching a show from the audience. Flats, she discovered, were flat wooden frames onto which painted scenery was mounted. Rostra was simply the plural of rostrum, which were small platforms of varying sizes that provided additional elevation on stage.

The rehearsal started with the scene in which Annie Oakley first meets Frank Butler, the sharp-shooting star of Buffalo Bill's Wild West Show. A tall, dark-haired senior, Robert Wells, who Trixie knew slightly, played Frank.

Di was whispering her lines and songs to avoid straining her voice further. But, Trixie could tell that her determination from earlier in the day was holding firm. She had to ask Nancy for a line prompt a couple of times, but she didn't get flustered, even when Mrs. Catania scolded her for her lapses.

On the other side of the stage, Trixie saw that Alison was watching every move and taking notes. Sometimes she seemed to be mouthing Annie's lines along with Di.
"Alison looks like she's hanging on every word," Trixie whispered to Nancy at one point.

"Yes, as the understudy she's got to be able to go on at a moment's notice and be able to play the part just as the lead actor has rehearsed it," Nancy explained.

Whenever Trixie happened to glance around and spot Del he was still scowling and seemed not to have a polite word for anyone.

"He's really feeling the weight of suspicion," Trixie thought. "I wonder what Mr. Reed has found out - and if he'll tell the rest of us."

But Trixie didn't have much time for speculation and before she realized the time had passed, Mrs. Catania called the rehearsal to an end. She gave a flurry of instructions for study and practice. Then she announced that, because of the new crew members, the next day's rehearsal would be moved to the music room and practice would be limited to the major characters. This would give the crew a chance to have the theater completely to themselves and Del and Nancy could show the new crewmembers their jobs more thoroughly. It would also give the entire crew an opportunity to walk through the technical cues without any actors present.

"The crew should expect to stay later tomorrow. We've got some catching up to do," Mrs. Catania warned. "Everyone be here right on time tomorrow!"

Trixie looked around for Honey. She soon spotted her coming out of the prop room with Mrs. Travers. Honey was carrying a large shopping bag while Mrs. Travers carried her sewing kit, Trixie noticed, and talked animatedly to Honey. Alison approached her mother as Honey started to leave and join Trixie. Quickly, Trixie covered the distance between herself and Honey, pulled Honey's arm and headed back, as casually as she could, in the direction of Alison and her mother.

"I need to bring an absence excuse to Chemistry tomorrow," Alison was saying to her mother.

To Trixie's ear, Alison's voice sounded on edge and Mrs. Travers, she noticed, seemed surprised and then angry.

"Were you sick, too, Alison?" Trixie tried to keep her voice light as she butted in on their conversation. "What are the odds of having both Annies under the weather!"

Alison whirled around when Trixie spoke. She turned deep red. "I - I had a doctor's appointment," she said and turned quickly back to her mother. "I'll wait for you in the car, Mother," she said and hurried toward the prop room.

Mrs. Travers gave Trixie a sharp glance, then pasted a smile back on her face and rushed off to speak with Mrs. Catania.

Di and some of the other lead actors were staying to confer with Mrs. Catania, so Trixie and Honey waved good night to her and then collected their books, coats, and scarves and walked out into the cold night air.

"Boy, am I glad I have rich friends with chauffeurs!" Trixie said with a shiver. "Because it's a long, cold walk to Crabapple Farm."

"Oh, come now, if it came to that Brian would give you a ride in his jalopy," Honey said.

"Yes, but the heater's on the fritz," Trixie said. The girls reached the curb and looked around hopefully for the Wheeler's limousine. "Did you hear Alison mention that she needs a written excuse from her mother for missing Chemistry?"

"I did, but Trixie, she's such a sweet girl," Honey began.

"I'm just saying, we know from Jim that she was absent from Chemistry and if you ask me, she sounded nervous about asking for that excuse. Like her mother might not give it to her. And, Mrs. Travers didn't look too happy!"

"It's true, she didn't," Honey replied. "But you have to keep in mind that everyone is on edge right now because of all the trouble. Oh, good, here comes Tom."

A long, black limousine drove up and Tom Delanoy, the Wheelers handsome, young chauffeur, got out and held the back door open for the girls. On the ride back to Crabapple Farm and the Manor House, Trixie and Honey compared notes about their first day working behind the scenes.

"How was working with Mrs. T?" Trixie asked.

Honey frowned. "There's a lot of work. Those costumes for Di have some elaborate beadwork and fringe. We're going to have to make our fingers fly. But, what seems strange is that there is a full set of costumes for Alison."

"Shouldn't there be costumes for the understudy?" Trixie asked.

"Yes, if Alison had to go on stage she couldn't wear Di's costumes as she is quite a bit taller than Di. But I suggested to Mrs. T that, given the deadlines we're working with, it would be faster and simpler to shorten a few of Alison's costumes for Di. They have a similar build, it's just that Alison is taller. That way we'd know for sure that Di's costumes are ready to go for opening night and that would relieve some pressure. Then, we could make additional costumes for Alison."

"That sounds sensible. She didn't agree with that?" Trixie asked.

"No, she insisted on leaving Alison's costumes just as they are. We aren't to touch them!"

"That's mysterious," Trixie said.

Up in the front seat, Tom Delanoy burst out laughing.

"Mysterious?! What are you girls into now? Trapping more jewel thieves?" he asked. Tom had been hired as the Wheelers' chauffeur in the aftermath of an exciting mystery in which Trixie had exposed the Wheeler's previous chauffeur as a jewel thief.

"No, just a mischievous ghost," Honey replied.

"Or a jealous ghost," Trixie put in. "Mrs. T seems a lot more concerned about Alison's costumes than she is about Di's."

"Well, I know one thing for sure: Di's going have her costumes and she'll be wearing them," Honey said.

Trixie looked at her.

Honey held up the shopping bag she'd carried out. "This holds all of the material and patterns for Di's costumes. I told Mrs. T that Mrs. Catania had specifically said I was to work on Di's costumes, which is basically true, at least Di's costumes are the only ones she mentioned. And I also explained that since I live near Di it would make it easier to arrange fittings. So, it's settled. I'm doing Di's costumes and I'm not letting this out of my sight!" Honey's thin face glowed with determination.

For a moment Trixie and Honey grinned at each other and then both girls raised their right arms and slapped hands in a high five.

Chapter 6: A Real Mystery

Trixie said goodnight to Honey and Tom and hurried up the walk to Crabapple Farm. "I don't know what's the point of bringing these books home," she thought. "I'm much too excited to read history tonight."

"A real mystery again," she thought happily as she opened the door. It seemed like days, not hours, since she'd left Crabapple Farm that morning. She could hear her mother singing in the kitchen and, from the den, the less melodious howls of Bobby as he pestered Mart about something.

"You broke it, Mart!" he was crying.

Mart seemed to be saying something reassuring, but Bobby was having none of it. He burst into the living room, hollering, "I'm going to tell Mommy." Then he saw Trixie and skidded to a stop, promptly forgetting about his grievance with Mart. "Hey, Trix, where you been? Did you bring me anything?"

Trixie hung her coat in the hall closet. "I just got home from school, Bobby."

"You're late!" Bobby announced, his blonde curls bouncing. "Didja get in trouble? Didja hafta to stay after? Huh? Didja?"

"No, silly. I'm going to help put on a musical. That's like a play, with songs," Trixie said. "I learned all about spotlights and I saw a trap door today."

"A trap door? What does it trap? Hey, didn't you bring me nothin'?" he asked again, digging his hands into his pockets.

"Just a hug," Trixie bent down to give him a big hug, but he wiggled away.

"Mommy, Trixie's home!" he went running into the kitchen.

Trixie followed Bobby into the kitchen. She was relieved to see that her mother had saved her some beef bourgignon and buttered noodles from the Belden's earlier dinner. Mrs. Belden served Bobby some cherry cobbler and they both sat down at the table with Trixie. As Trixie ate, she described her crowded day, from Di's plea for help, to meeting Mrs. Catania, to the lengthy rehearsal.

"So, I hope you don't mind, Moms, and I hope we can work something out with my chores," she said, scraping her plate clean and licking her lips unabashedly. "I wouldn't have done it without asking, but Di was nearly a basket case and the second Honey and I showed up in her office, Mrs. Catania drafted us into service."

"Mart and Brian explained some of what's going on and also what they're willing to do to help out," Moms said. "I think we can be flexible and make it work for the next few weeks."

"Great," Trixie said, folding her napkin and taking a last sip of iced tea.

"I've been thinking about what you can do and it occurs to me that we can reduce the number of your ordinary, every day chores and, in their place, you can take on some larger projects. Things that don't need to be done all at once or at a certain time or done every day. Chores that you can work on when you get the chance."

Trixie nodded.

"Like cleaning the grout in the bathroom tile!" Mrs. Belden said triumphantly.

"Ugh!" Trixie groaned.

Mrs. Belden grinned evilly. Mr. Belden came strolling into the kitchen just then and raised a quizzical eyebrow at Mrs. Belden's glee and Trixie's evident misery.

"Dad, did you hear? In place of my everyday chores Moms is assigning me the job of cleaning the bathroom grout!" Trixie moaned.

Mr. Belden got a spoon from a drawer and helped himself to a bite of Bobby's cobbler. "Sure, Trixie. Didn't you know? Bobby gets his mischievous streak from your mother!"

"Hey!" Bobby said while Trixie and her parents laughed.

Trixie said good night and went upstairs to her room. She took a shower and managed to read a few pages for her book report for history, but soon felt her eyes growing heavy. She turned out the light and climbed in bed.

For all the joking she knew she was going to have her hands full over the next few weeks. "If I'm going to solve this mystery and help Di, I'm really going to have to take advantage of every minute," she thought.

While Trixie had confidently told Honey and Jim that she had a prime suspect, she realized that, in fact, it was hardly an open and shut case. There seemed to be two basic directions for investigation. One pointed toward Alison Travers and the other toward Tony, Jeff, and possibly Chris Delaney. There were pros and cons in either direction. On the one hand, in Trixie's estimation, Alison had the strongest motivation to do something that would harm Di.

Plus, she had a suspicious class absence that coincided with the time frame when the costumes had probably been destroyed. Could she have used her mother's keys to get access to the prop room? Or accompanied her mother when she dropped off the costumes and then made an excuse to stay behind? Could Mrs. Travers even be colluding with Alison in the vandalism?

"But surely she wouldn't tear up the very costumes she'd just finished," Trixie thought. It seemed more likely that Alison was just desperate to live up to her mother's expectation that her daughter have the lead.

On the other hand, the boys had been in the prop room also. And, as Mrs. Catania and then Brian had pointed out, while Di was clearly the most directly harmed, the actions might not be directed at her personally. Trixie doubted that, but she grudgingly thought she needed to keep that possibility open.

Plus, she was uncomfortably aware that neither Honey nor Jim suspected Alison or wanted Trixie to. Trixie hated to be going against the two people she considered her best friends in the world. With kind-hearted Honey on Alison's side it made Trixie feel mean even to suspect her.

Then there was Jim. Of all of her friends and fellow Bob-Whites, Jim was the one whose opinion she most respected. "And I want him to respect me," Trixie thought to herself. She frowned up at the dark ceiling. "Jim seems awfully protective of Alison."

Trixie sighed and turned over on her side. The alternatives, Tony and Jeff, did seem to have some kind of grievance, but if they were the perpetrators, where and how did they get Mrs. T's scissors? And why leave them out on display?

"Who had a motive to leave the scissors on display?" Again, Trixie couldn't think of an answer to that question.

Turning to consider Tony and Jeff, she suddenly recalled Tony's statement to Mrs. Catania, "You've got bigger problems than a couple of phony guns, lady."

"It's sounds like he knew about the destroyed costumes," Trixie thought. "Either because he'd participated or he'd come upon the torn costumes when he and Jeff returned the prop guns. And if Tony and Jeff knew, what about Del?"

Yet, Del denied knowing anything. And, he seemed to be one angry young man. Angry enough to take revenge?

"But his anger seems to have started today and the sabotage has been going on for weeks," Trixie recalled. "Maybe he's not an active participant, but is just covering up for his friends."

Trixie yawned, and tried one more time to think of how all the pieces could fit together. Di, Del, Alison, and other cast and crewmembers started to circle in her mind's eye. Together with bits of scenery and torn costumes they whirled faster and faster until everything blurred together and Trixie fell asleep.

The next morning Trixie's thoughts were no clearer, and she was determined to investigate more aggressively at the afternoon rehearsal.

She grabbed a warm biscuit in the kitchen and hurried out the door to the bus stop with Mart and Brian. Honey and Jim had walked down from the Manor House to catch the bus with the Beldens.

The Bob-Whites stamped their feet and rubbed their arms in the cold. Mart smirked as Trixie hurriedly ate her biscuit.

"My, my, Miss Belden, such a nourishing breakfast! Could it be that Sleepyside's reputed female detective - and I mean reputed in both senses, reputed female and reputed detective -- is slow to attack the day? In contrast to my lugubrious sibling, carpe diem is my motto!"

"Car -pay dee-um?" Honey asked, phonetically repeating what Mart had said.

"That's Latin for 'seize the day,'" Mart explained grandly. "It's the advice of the ancient Roman poet, Horace."

"I'd like to carpe you and throw you in the lake," Trixie said.

"Aha, the subject is exhibiting just the sort of grumpiness that comes without proper nutrition," Mart replied, eyeing Trixie and pretending to make notes on a chart. "I, however, am in the sunniest of moods since I had time for a complete and satisfying morning repast after having risen early to exercise Susie as a favor to my less energetic sibling," Mart leaned over into Trixie's face. "That would be you. And, since my time last evening was spent in the exquisite torture of Bobby-sitting so that you could play gumshoe, you'd better have something to show for it."

"Maybe now you'll appreciate how hard I work taking care of Bobby," Trixie retorted. She saw the school bus turning the corner and quickly crammed the rest of her biscuit in her mouth.

"Honey tells me you two are already making some progress," Jim said, interrupting Mart and Trixie's sibling rivalry with a smile. "Whoever did this, I'd hate to be in their shoes, knowing the intrepid Schoolgirl Shamuses are on my trail!"

Trixie swallowed the last of her biscuit and smiled. "Mock us if you like, Jim Frayne," she said over her shoulder as she climbed on the bus. "But we'll have the culprit before curtain rises on opening night or my name's not Beatrix Belden."

"I'm not mocking you," Jim protested, sliding into the seat next to Trixie, as Mart and Brian took the seat across the aisle.

"Be careful, Trix," Honey added with a laugh, taking the seat in front of Trixie and Jim. "You hate your full name!"

"I'm sure Di is already feeling better," Jim continued. "What's your next move?"

"I was thinking about it last night," Trixie began hesitantly. She described to Honey and Jim how she saw the two separate lines of inquiry. "I hope today in rehearsal to talk to Del and find out more about what those boys saw and what he knows. And, I know you think I'm barking up the wrong tree, but I'd like to find out about Alison's doctor's appointment." Trixie quickly told Jim about overhearing Alison's request to her mother for a doctor's excuse for missing Chemistry.

Jim frowned. Before he could say anything, Trixie rushed on. "If we could verify that she did have a doctor's appointment it might rule her out as a suspect," she pointed out. "The costumes were destroyed some time between when Mrs. Travers brought them in on Monday morning and before the start of fourth period on Monday. If Alison was at the doctor's on Monday morning, that rules her out, at least for part of the time."

The bus pulled up at the stop near the Lynch's home and Di and two other students climbed on. Di was smiling broadly and, as usual, looked beautiful even if her nose was red from the cold. She greeted Brian and Mart, then slid in next to Honey and turned around and nodded to Trixie and Jim.

"My voice is much better, but I'm still trying to save it," she grinned and pulled two fingers across her mouth in a 'zip it' motion. "But I have to tell you that last night I got the first restful sleep I've had in a month. You're a wonder worker, Trixie Belden!"

"But - but, I haven't done anything yet!" Trixie stammered.

"But you're on the case," Di said and turned back to Honey who had pulled out some drawings of Di's costumes and was describing her plans.

Jim looked thoughtfully at Di and Honey, and then turned to Trixie. "I'm telling you, if you suspect Alison, you're on the wrong track. And I don't like to spy, but I will see what I can find out. If only so we have all of the information to figure this out. If I find out anything, I'll let you know."

Trixie's relief at having Jim's cooperation buoyed her mood through the school day. She even managed to pay attention in algebra and get most of her algebra homework done in Study Hall. After the last bell she and Honey hurried to rehearsal. They arrived at the prop room to find Mrs. Travers hemming a costume and chatting with Mrs. Catania and Nancy Norland.

"I think sometimes boys just get a bit rambunctious and don't really think about the consequences of their actions," Mrs. Travers was saying. "But I hope that Del has learned his lesson."

Trixie noticed that Nancy looked unhappy and Mrs. Catania only nodded slightly.

"We don't know that Del did anything," Nancy said.

"Well, who else?" Mrs. Catania asked. "I brought those costumes in, in one piece yesterday morning. Who else but those boys and how did they get in here without Del's help?"

"We've worked with Del on several plays and never had this kind of trouble," Nancy's voice trailed off.

"Maybe it was peer pressure," Mrs. Travers said in an overly sweet voice that seemed to be trying to mollify Nancy. "Anyway, we'll make the best of it, won't we? Here's my 'Honey' of an assistant! How are you today?" Mrs. Travers smiled at Honey.

Honey replied cheerfully that she was fine.

"Before I forget, I want to invite you two girls to Alison's Valentine Day's party, Friday night after rehearsal," Mrs. Travers said. "Nothing formal. It's for the cast and crew to have a chance for a little fun in the midst of all of our hard work."

Trixie and Honey accepted happily.

"Valentine's Day," Trixie said. "I'd forgotten all about it."

"Forgotten about Valentine's Day? What kind of young girl forgets about Valentine's Day?" Mrs. Travers asked in mock astonishment.

Trixie shrugged.

"Oh, you're just playing hard to get," Mrs. Travers went on, smiling gaily at everyone. "I'll bet you've got a special Valentine, a pretty girl like you."

"I'm not really the Valentine type," Trixie mumbled, embarrassed at the turn of the conversation.

Nancy laughed. "Trixie's a real life Annie Oakley. Anything the boys can do, she can do better!"

"Oh really?" Mrs. Travers didn't look impressed. "Well, that's not necessarily what attracts the boys. You know what Annie Oakley says, "You Can't Get a Man With a Gun"! But never you mind, Trixie. We'll have lots of young men on Friday night. You can go in for some serious target practice that night!"

For the life of her, Trixie couldn't think of what to say to such remarks, but Mrs. Travers just laughed heartily.

Seeing Trixie's confusion Honey rushed to question Mrs. Travers about what time they should arrive and if they could help furnish refreshments. They chatted a bit more about the party and Trixie took advantage of the casual conversation to move closer to Mrs. Travers' worktable. She noticed that the seamstress' sewing kit was sitting open and the scissors were lying on the table beside the kit.

"These are really distinctive scissors," she said. "With your name engraved and everything."

"My sister, Alison's Aunt Rosalie, gave those to me," Mrs. Travers said. "She knows how I enjoy pretty things."

"Did anybody mention to you that these were found on Mrs. Catania's desk yesterday, along with some of the material from the destroyed costumes?" Trixie tried to keep her voice neutral and light.

Mrs. Travers smile faded and she fixed her eyes on the material. "I understand those delinquents tried to point the finger at me," she said in a tight voice.

"I just wondered, how would they have gotten hold of the scissors?" Trixie asked.

"Well, I'm sure I don't know," Mrs. Travers laughed nervously. "Goodness me, you're a regular Sherlock Holmes."

"Trixie's just trying to help Di and the production," Honey said hurriedly. "It could help to know how the culprits got hold of your scissors. You know, it might help to show how they got in or when or what they were thinking, or--or something," her voice trailed off.

"Oh," Mrs. Travers said again. Her smile was back in place and her voice was sugary again, but she didn't volunteer any more information.

"Did you leave your sewing kit or scissors here after the last rehearsal?" Trixie asked.

"I might have. I don't really recall. I'm so absent-minded, I'd forget my head if it wasn't screwed on," she laughed and looked over at Mrs. Catania. Mrs. Catania was reviewing a schedule with Nancy and ignored Mrs. Travers.

"Didn't Mr. Reed ask you about them?" Trixie knew she was on thin ice, but she wanted to see if she could find out just a bit more.

Mrs. Travers smile disappeared again. "I answered all of Mr. Reed's questions, that's all I need to say, young lady," she glared at Trixie, picked up her scissors, and cut the thread she was sewing with a vigorous thwack.

Nancy finished conferring with Mrs. Catania then and straightened the papers on her clipboard with a flourish. "Trixie, let's head on backstage," she said. "We'll be starting soon."

Trixie walked with Nancy onto the backstage. While Nancy flipped on the stage lights Trixie turned off the ghostlight and moved it to the wings.

"You're a pro already," Nancy smiled.

"Nancy, do you know what's happening with Mr. Reed's investigation? Is Del really under suspicion?" Trixie's voice echoed in the empty theater, and she tried to keep it low.

"I don't know exactly, but I'm afraid so," Nancy pushed her glasses up on her nose. "I know that Del is feeling badly about what all has happened. After all, his friends took props home without permission. And, they were the last ones on the scene of the vandalism," Nancy paused and a pained expression came over her face. "That doesn't make him look good. Mr. Reed has been talking to his parents and to Tony and Jeff and their parents. I know Del feels he's under a cloud."

"You've known him for a few years," Trixie held thumbtacks for Nancy as she posted production schedules and messages to various cast members on the bulletin board that was mounted on the backstage wall. "Does this seem like something he would do?"

"Not at all," Nancy said vehemently. "That's what makes this so frustrating."

"Has Mr. Reed questioned anyone else?" Trixie asked.

"I don't think so. Besides Tony and Jeff, who would he question?" Nancy replied.

Trixie hesitated. "Di and I saw Alison Travers coming from the direction of the theater before third period. And, you know, Mrs. Travers's scissors were found on the scene."

Nancy frowned. "No one knows anything bad about Alison. She's always cooperative and sweet-tempered in practice and Mrs. Travers is going all out for the musical. Why, she's the biggest supporter we've got among the parents! She puts in tons of time to help out. Besides, why would she tear up the costumes she'd just finished?"

Trixie was silent. She'd asked herself that very question.

"But Tony and Jeff were always late or horsing around. It's got to be somebody like that," Nancy continued.

"That puts Del in an awkward place," Trixie observed. "Do you think he's protecting his friends?"

"I just don't know what to think. He's been my friend and - and --" Nancy turned and stopped suddenly.

Trixie turned also. Mrs. Travers was standing at the threshold between the prop room and backstage, arms akimbo, glaring at the two girls.

After an awkward pause Nancy found her voice. "Do you need something, Mrs. T?" she asked pleasantly.

Mrs. Travers held her head up, shook it slightly then turned back to the prop room.

Nancy and Trixie stared at the empty doorway and then looked at each other, speechless. Nancy finally shrugged her shoulders.

"Oh well. We weren't really saying anything so bad. Why don't you get your prop table ready, Trixie? I need to review my cues one more time," she said and moved off to check her clipboard.

"Now Mrs. T knows for sure that I'm asking questions," Trixie thought. She supposed it had to come out sooner or later. "I just hope it doesn't complicate things for Di."

As the rest of the crew arrived for the "dry tech," that is, a technical rehearsal without actors present, Trixie switched her focus to her backstage duties. Nancy and Del gave a crash course for the newcomers in the technical aspects of putting on a play. It took quite a bit of coordination to remove the scenery for one scene while moving in the scenery for the next without bumping into each other or knocking each other over.

When they heard the word, "Clear!" Del explained, they should quickly look around and move out of the way - because that was the signal that someone was moving heavy or delicate equipment or scenery.

"If you hear someone holler, 'heads up!' then you should do exactly that and, again, get ready to quickly get out of the way," Del continued. "That means there is something overhead that may be falling or about to fall. We do our best to make everything secure, but accidents do happen," Del paused, turned red and looked down at the floor.

Seeing his embarrassment Nancy jumped in. "There are quite a few safety hazards," she cautioned the crew. She crossed over to the wings and held up the bottom of the curtain "Even something as seemingly lightweight as this curtain can cause injury. If you look closely, steel weights have been sewed into the hem of this curtain to make sure it hangs evenly. But, if the curtain were to accidentally land on someone's head, it could cause a serious injury."

Again and again the crew rehearsed moving "flats" onstage, and coordinating this with raising and lowering backcloths, curtain raisings, and lighting changes. There were also props to be gotten to the right spot. Trixie found that she was quickly absorbed in learning her responsibilities as a crewmember. After a couple of hours everyone was tired and Nancy called a short break. A delicious aroma was filling the air and when Trixie looked over to the right hand wings, she saw that Honey and Mrs. Travers were setting up a buffet.

"We've ordered in Chinese from Dang Luck! We'll have a quick meal and then get in a little more rehearsal," Nancy announced.

She led the way to the wings where the buffet was waiting. Big bowls filled with rice, cashew chicken, beef broccoli, and egg rolls steamed invitingly. The crew members eagerly descended on the food, filling their plates to overflowing. Trixie took a seat on one of the rostra. She was starving and could hardly keep herself from gobbling her food down. She noticed that Del was still silent more often than not.

Nancy had sat down beside Trixie and had apparently also noticed Del's silence. "Hey, Del," she said brightly as the crew began to finish the meal. "Why don't we introduce our new crew members to 'Backstage Fortune Cookies'?"

Del's face brightened a bit. "Okay. It's simple. You read your fortune and you add the word, 'backstage' to whatever it says." He tossed his paper plate in the trash can at the side of the stage and helped himself to a fortune cookie. Cracking it open he read, "Someone you've doubted deserves your support…backstage."

The crew murmured appreciatively and then everyone hurried over to get a fortune cookie and read the fortune inside.

"Now is the time to enjoy trying something new…backstage," Nancy read and made a face. "No! Nothing more new! I've got my hands full as it is!"

A quiet, freckle-faced boy with braces was next. "The love light is glowing for you tonight…backstage," he read and turned a deep shade of red.

"That's the ghostlight, Ryan, not the love light!" Del exclaimed.

"Oh, I'll bet Ryan's middle name is Romeo," Mrs. Travers spoke up. The boy blushed even more deeply and quickly popped the fortune cookie in his mouth.

Mrs. Travers opened her fortune expectantly. "Let's see, mine says, 'You will soon attract the notice of others…backstage.' Oh!" she giggled. "Goodness, me! I don't want to be noticed! I don't live for applause, like some people. I'm just trying to do whatever I can. For the good of the production."

The crewmembers smiled politely, but no one said anything. "Who does she think lives for applause?" Trixie was wondering when Mrs. Travers interrupted her thoughts.

"Read yours, little Miss Detective," she said. Her tone held a slight taunt.

Obediently, Trixie opened her fortune. "Be patient. The answer will be revealed…backstage," she read. "Oh, woe, patience is one virtue I'm definitely short of."

"And what do you need an answer to?" Mrs. Travers asked.

"Why, to all the sabotage that's been going on against Di," Trixie exclaimed. It seemed to her that the stage suddenly grew quiet.

"Mr. Reed is looking into this. That's something you should let the adults handle," Mrs. Travers cocked her head in Trixie's direction.

"I'm not interfering, but I'm not going to stand by and let this troublemaker get away with it," Trixie said, more hotly than she had intended. Del was frowning again. He turned away and moved to inspect the footlights on the far side of the stage.

"Trouble starts when people don't mind their own business," Mrs. Travers said, standing up. "You should keep that in mind." With that, Mrs. Travers whirled around, her skirt flaring, and headed back to the prop room.

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