Read Online The Fiddler's Secret by Lois Walfrid Johnson - Free Book Online Page A

she finished eating the evening meal, the sun had dropped low in the western sky. Libby went to her room in the texas, the boxlike structure at the top of the boat where many crew members had their rooms. Long shadows fell across her bed, but Libby could still see her way around.
    The first thing she noticed was that her drawings were out of order. Then she knew someone had opened her large trunk. Next she found a drop of wax on the floor. Here on the texas, far away from water and help, Pa did not allow her to use a candle. Yet there was no mistaking the wax.
    Someone was here while I was gone. Someone entered my room, my private place. Whoever that person is, he looked through my things, searched everything I own. It has to be the man I saw on deck!
    At first Libby felt angry. She wanted to scream, to cry out,to sob.
That man wanted the sketch I drew. Why? Who is he? What is he trying to hide?
    Then Libby knew something even worse.
Whoever he is, he knows I can recognize him. That I can show the drawing to others
.
    Without wasting another moment, Libby went looking for her father. She found him and Annika sitting on the hurricane deck, talking together. Libby stopped, not wanting to break in.
    Annika saw her and asked, “What’s wrong, Libby?”
    When she finished telling them, Pa had another question. “Do you know the man’s name?”
    Libby shook her head. “He looked like Mr. Trouble to me.”
    â€œGive me his description again.”
    â€œTall, brown hair, blue eyes. Cruel lines around his mouth.” Libby told about the drawing in the safe.
    â€œI’ll get my best men working on it,” Pa said. “We haven’t much time before we reach St. Paul. But if they see the drawing, they can begin to search.”
    Pa started off, then came back. “I love you, Libby,” he said. “Remember that, okay? Bring your blankets to my cabin tonight. You can make a bed on the floor.”
    Partway across the deck, Pa turned back a second time. “That man has it in for you, Libby. Wherever you go, take Samson along.”
    â€œI wonder what’s going on,” Libby said to Annika after Pa left. Spreading her hand wide, she counted on her fingers. “First, the tall man in the shadows of the main cabin. Black hat and long, black coat.”
    â€œSecond—” Libby ticked off another finger. “The short, thin man on the main deck. Hair slicked down, collar so highthat it looked as if he has no neck. He’s the one who threatened Jordan, saying, ‘I know you’re Micah Parker’s son.’”
    Libby drew a long breath. “Third, the man I drew on the deck for first-class passengers. Tall, brown hair, blue eyes. Cruel lines around his mouth. And no doubt, the man who searched my room.” Just thinking about it, Libby’s stomach knotted again.
    â€œMaybe it’s like children in a classroom,” Annika said. “If they’re troublemakers, they always manage to find each other.”
    â€œYou mean they’ve found each other on the
Christina
? And we can expect more trouble?”
    â€œMaybe,” Annika said. “Your pa would know better than I.”
    Half an hour later, Libby and Peter watched from the hurricane deck as the
Christina
rounded the bend a mile below St. Paul. As the steamboat whistled its long, deep blast, Libby saw the city against the last rose color of the sunset.
    Near the riverfront stood large warehouses. On higher ground homes and businesses spread across the bluff. Rising above all the other buildings, church steeples pointed upward.
    Then a high, squealing noise shattered the peace. As the bloodcurdling sound cut through to her bones, Libby trembled.
Is this what it means to come to Minnesota Territory?
    When she turned to Peter, his happy look had not changed. But Wellington yipped and squirmed, rubbing his paws against his ears.
    The high-pitched squeal kept on and on. Unlike anything