Read Online The Mysterious Visitor by Julie Campbell - Free Book Online Page A
Authors: Julie Campbell
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guessing games. You know. A group acts out a line from Shakespeare or something, and the others have to guess what they’re trying to say." "Okay." Trixie agreed. "Charades are always fun. Not that I’d know a line from Shakespeare from a straight line somebody drew with a ruler." "Oh, stop it," Honey protested. "You get very high marks in English, Trixie. Why must you always go around acting as though you were illiterate? I think the theme you wrote yesterday was just wonderful, and I’ll bet the teacher thinks so, too."
"If she can read my horrible handwriting," Trixie said with a rueful grin. "And that gives me an idea for another game. We can analyze one another’s handwriting. Mart’s got a book on the subject. If things get dull, we can always make a fortune-teller out of him. He’d love it."
All week, when the girls met at school or on the bus, they added to the list, but in the end it wouldn’t have mattered if they hadn’t made any plans at all.
Lots of Surprises • 7
THE BOB-WHITES, as assistant hosts and hostesses, were the first guests to arrive at the party.
Diana greeted them tearfully. "It’s all happened just the way I told you it would. And he did it on purpose just to be mean. I know he did." "Who did what?" Trixie asked in amazement. "Don’t tell me Harrison didn’t take the night off, after all?" .
"He’s still here, too," Di said exasperatedly. "But I told him flatly he couldn’t answer the door. But I’m not talking about him. I’m talking about Uncle Monty. He’s running everything, and it’s all such a horrible mess that I don’t know what to do!"
Sure enough, Uncle Monty was running everything. As a "surprise" for Diana, he had persuaded Mrs. Lynch to order caterers, a five-piece orchestra, and even decorators from New York. The walls of the downstairs rooms were draped in black sateen on which weird, luminescent shapes had been painted. Witches, cats with huge fangs and arched backs, pumpkins, and spiders—all done in luminous paint—grinned eerily down from the black drapes hanging near the entrance.
"Wow, just look at these decorations," Brian said.
"It certainly looks like a Halloween party, doesn’t it, Trixie?" Jim said.
"It looks like something out of a movie," Trixie gasped, trying to see it all at once.
"That’s just it," Diana wailed. "Hollywood! And I planned that everything would be so nice and simple." She led them into the long room which was called the art gallery. You couldn’t see any of the pictures now because of the ghostly draperies, and the carpet and all of the furniture had been moved to the terrace. The orchestra was tuning up on a raised platform at one end, and the folding doors at the other end of the room were closed.
"Even if they were open," Di said, "you couldn’t get out on the terrace, it’s so packed with furniture. And I guess they’ve thrown out all the stuff I ordered. Wait till you see the dining room. The table is positively groaning under turkeys and hams and all sorts of fancy appetizers. And it looks to me as though there must be a waiter for every guest."
"Never mind, Di," Honey said soothingly. "Everyone’s going to have a wonderful time." "That’s right; just wait and see, Di," Trixie said, and the boys heartily agreed.
"But what are we going to do?" Di demanded. "A lot of the kids who are coming don’t know how to dance. I don’t myself. But you can’t get that through Uncle Monty’s head. He has made up his mind that we’re going to spend the whole evening dancing and eating. How are we going to play the games we planned with the orchestra making so much noise and all the rooms cluttered up with waiters and fancy decorations?"
Honey smiled. "The caterers won’t bother us, Di. They’ll serve supper, then clean up everything and go back to New York. And if nobody wants to dance, why the orchestra can leave then, too. Your mother is still here, isn’t she? Couldn’t you ask her if that would be all right?
"If she can read my horrible handwriting," Trixie said with a rueful grin. "And that gives me an idea for another game. We can analyze one another’s handwriting. Mart’s got a book on the subject. If things get dull, we can always make a fortune-teller out of him. He’d love it."
All week, when the girls met at school or on the bus, they added to the list, but in the end it wouldn’t have mattered if they hadn’t made any plans at all.
Lots of Surprises • 7
THE BOB-WHITES, as assistant hosts and hostesses, were the first guests to arrive at the party.
Diana greeted them tearfully. "It’s all happened just the way I told you it would. And he did it on purpose just to be mean. I know he did." "Who did what?" Trixie asked in amazement. "Don’t tell me Harrison didn’t take the night off, after all?" .
"He’s still here, too," Di said exasperatedly. "But I told him flatly he couldn’t answer the door. But I’m not talking about him. I’m talking about Uncle Monty. He’s running everything, and it’s all such a horrible mess that I don’t know what to do!"
Sure enough, Uncle Monty was running everything. As a "surprise" for Diana, he had persuaded Mrs. Lynch to order caterers, a five-piece orchestra, and even decorators from New York. The walls of the downstairs rooms were draped in black sateen on which weird, luminescent shapes had been painted. Witches, cats with huge fangs and arched backs, pumpkins, and spiders—all done in luminous paint—grinned eerily down from the black drapes hanging near the entrance.
"Wow, just look at these decorations," Brian said.
"It certainly looks like a Halloween party, doesn’t it, Trixie?" Jim said.
"It looks like something out of a movie," Trixie gasped, trying to see it all at once.
"That’s just it," Diana wailed. "Hollywood! And I planned that everything would be so nice and simple." She led them into the long room which was called the art gallery. You couldn’t see any of the pictures now because of the ghostly draperies, and the carpet and all of the furniture had been moved to the terrace. The orchestra was tuning up on a raised platform at one end, and the folding doors at the other end of the room were closed.
"Even if they were open," Di said, "you couldn’t get out on the terrace, it’s so packed with furniture. And I guess they’ve thrown out all the stuff I ordered. Wait till you see the dining room. The table is positively groaning under turkeys and hams and all sorts of fancy appetizers. And it looks to me as though there must be a waiter for every guest."
"Never mind, Di," Honey said soothingly. "Everyone’s going to have a wonderful time." "That’s right; just wait and see, Di," Trixie said, and the boys heartily agreed.
"But what are we going to do?" Di demanded. "A lot of the kids who are coming don’t know how to dance. I don’t myself. But you can’t get that through Uncle Monty’s head. He has made up his mind that we’re going to spend the whole evening dancing and eating. How are we going to play the games we planned with the orchestra making so much noise and all the rooms cluttered up with waiters and fancy decorations?"
Honey smiled. "The caterers won’t bother us, Di. They’ll serve supper, then clean up everything and go back to New York. And if nobody wants to dance, why the orchestra can leave then, too. Your mother is still here, isn’t she? Couldn’t you ask her if that would be all right?
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