Free The Black Widow Spider Mystery by Gertrude Chandler Warner

Arachnia using two different last names.

    â€œShe’s a photographer,” Jessie said to herself. She took one more look at all the photos.
    Jessie turned around and gasped in surprise. Standing right behind her was Mrs. Blackwell. Violet, Henry, and Benny were beside her.
    â€œYou’re a photographer, aren’t you?” asked Jessie. “You took the photos for the exhibit!”
    Something in Mrs. Blackwell’s stiff posture and face seemed to soften, as if she were relaxing for the first time. A smile spread slowly across her face. “Yes. Those are my photos.”
    â€œThey’re beautiful,” said Violet. “Your work is amazing.”
    â€œBut the pictures at the exhibit were taken by Arachnia Borrero,” said Henry, confused.
    Mrs. Blackwell nodded. “That’s me.”
    Benny grinned. “A secret code name?”
    Mrs. Blackwell’s smile grew. “You have a wonderful imagination, Benny. Not a code name, just my maiden name. Before I married I was Borrero, and I still use that name for my work.”
    â€œWhy didn’t you tell us that you’re a photographer?” asked Violet.
    â€œWell,” said Mrs. Blackwell, “I have to be careful. Some people just don’t understand.”
    â€œThat you’re a photographer?” asked Violet. “But what a wonderful job!”
    â€œOh, that’s not the part they have a problem with,” Mrs. Blackwell said. “It’s what I choose to photograph that causes problems.” She smiled at the children’s puzzled faces.
    â€œWhen I tell people I’m a photographer, they ask if I do weddings or sunsets or portraits of children,” Mrs. Blackwell explained. “When I tell them I only photograph spiders, people get upset. They think I should only take pictures of ‘beautiful things.’ Well, to me, spiders are beautiful. Some people think that makes me … strange.”
    â€œI think it’s pretty cool,” said Jessie.
    â€œYeah,” agreed Henry and Violet.
    Mrs. Blackwell looked at Benny, who’d been silently looking at the floor. “What’s the matter, Benny? You look disappointed.”
    â€œSpider pictures are okay,” Benny said. “But I was hoping you were a spy.”
    Mrs. Blackwell looked surprised. “A spy ?” she repeated. “Why would you think I was a spy?”
    â€œBecause you said on the phone you were tracking someone down but you hadn’t caught them yet and time was running out,” Benny said.
    Mrs. Blackwell began to laugh, something the Aldens had never seen her do before.
    â€œWere you talking about a spider?” asked Violet. “A special one you wanted to photograph?”
    Mrs. Blackwell nodded, still laughing. “You must have heard me talking to my editor. I’ve been trying to photograph a very rare type of spider for a new book and I’ve had a hard time tracking it down. They want to print the book, so they’ve been pressuring me to get the photo.”
    â€œAnd you don’t want the spider to know you’re there,” said Violet. “To catch it in the act of spinning its web.”
    â€œThis kind of spider hides if it senses people are around,” Mrs. Blackwell explained.
    â€œDo you photograph spiders all around the world?” Jessie asked. “And mark their locations in your atlas?”
    â€œSo you saw my atlas,” Mrs. Blackwell said, nodding.
    â€œAnd to travel around the world you need to know different languages,” Violet said, figuring out the reason for the dictionaries. Suddenly everything was beginning to make sense.
    â€œThat diagram in the library … did it show the location of a special spider?” Jessie asked. Mrs. Blackwell frowned for a moment, not sure what Jessie was talking about. “The paper on the desk,” Jessie said.
    â€œOh!” Mrs. Blackwell said. “You really are detectives. I