Free The Black Widow Spider Mystery by Gertrude Chandler Warner Page A

spotted an unusual web out beyond the tall grass. I drew a diagram so I could go back and check it out later.”
    â€œAnd you did go back!” said Henry. “Last night, to take pictures. Those were the flashes I saw from my bedroom window.”
    â€œBut what about all those books about spies?” asked Benny, not wanting to let go of the idea that Mrs. Blackwell was a secret agent.
    â€œOh, they’re just for fun — I love to read spy thrillers,” Mrs. Blackwell said. “My sister Amy is a mystery writer, and I collect all her books.” She chuckled. “Me, a spy. Wait until my husband hears that.”
    â€œWe saw your husband at the museum!” Benny said. “At least we think it was him.”
    â€œYou hadn’t met him before? He’s been so busy … Wait here a minute.” Mrs. Blackwell left the room and reappeared a moment later. “Let me introduce my husband.” She turned around as a man several inches shorter than Mrs. Blackwell came in behind her. He was the man from the museum.
    â€œYou’re a spider expert, right?” asked Henry. “You study spiders in that room at the back of the house.”
    â€œThat is right,” Mr. Blackwell said. “I am a scientist, and that is my laboratory. I’m sorry that I haven’t had the chance to say hello before this but I don’t like to be disturbed when I’m working — and I have been working very hard.”
    â€œDo you work with black widow spiders?” Jessie asked.
    â€œYes,” he said. “Others as well, but those are my specialty.”
    â€œThat’s why your boxes have red hourglasses on them,” Jessie said. “And why you two wear those bracelets.”
    Mrs. Blackwell and her husband smiled at each other. “We met while working on an article about black widows,” Mrs. Blackwell explained. “When we got married, we got these matching bracelets. It’s our little symbol. And, yes, we put it on the boxes that contained my husband’s delicate equipment.”
    â€œWe really enjoyed the museum exhibit,” said Henry. “We learned a lot!”
    Mr. Blackwell sighed and looked at his wife, who smiled back. “Thank you. This is the biggest exhibit of my career and I want it to do well.” Mr. Blackwell said. “If it does, I may get a permanent job at the museum.”
    â€œI think you’re going to get that job,” said Violet. “The woman at the front desk said they had a bigger crowd there today than they’ve had in a long time.”
    The Blackwells smiled.
    â€œI still don’t understand why you tried to hide what your jobs are,” said Jessie. “Why didn’t you tell us?”
    Mr. and Mrs. Blackwell looked at each other. Then he spoke. “We have had problems with our neighbors in the past. One neighbor became afraid when he learned I had a laboratory in the house where I studied poisonous spiders. The neighbor did not understand that I am very careful. We make sure our house is safe.” Mr. Blackwell looked at his wife grimly. “Our former neighbors made things so difficult for us, we had to move.” He sighed. “This time we decided we would do as the spiders do and hide ourselves away.”
    â€œThat’s why you built those big walls in front,” Jessie said.
    â€œExactly,” said Mrs. Blackwell.
    â€œAnd do you have secret cameras to see who’s coming?” asked Benny.
    The Blackwells looked at each other, confused. “Secret cameras?”
    â€œYou always saw us coming before we rang the bell,” Jessie said.
    Mrs. Blackwell smiled and motioned to a desk that was in front of a window. “That’s my desk,” she said. “I often sit there to work. Go look.”
    The children went over to the desk. From the window they could see the front walk clearly. They smiled sheepishly and turned away from the