Free Mystery of the Melting Snowman by Florence Parry Heide

away from the door with one hand while he pushed Dexter out of the way with the other. Then he flung open the closet door and peered inside.
    “I get it!” whispered Dexter. “Ready?”
    He and Cindy leaped to the door, slammed it shut, and Cindy turned the key in the lock. Alex Baxter was a prisoner in the closet!

    There was a muffled roar of anger. And then Alex Baxter threw his entire weight against the door.
    Cindy gulped. Maybe he was strong enough to break the door down. She and Dexter leaned against it. Another shuddering crash. And then silence for a moment.
    They could hear his heavy breathing. And then his voice. “What do you think you’re doing? You’re making a terrible, terrible mistake. You think you know the facts, but you don’t!” His voice rose in anger.
    “We know the whole story,” said Dexter. “We went to see Mrs. Wellington. Jay’s taken the case of diamonds home where they’ll be safe until Jenny and Tom come for them.”
    “Listen to me,” Alex Baxter said hoarsely. Now he put his mouth against the crack of the door. “I told you she was off her rocker. I told you!”
    “But we saw Mrs. Wellington, we talked to her,” said Cindy. “There isn’t anything wrong with her at all. She likes living at the North Star. You lied about Jenny and Tom. They didn’t sell her house.”
    “I can prove it!” shouted Alex Baxter. “I can prove everything! Let me out of here and I promise to give you all the proof you need. She believes Jenny. She believes everything Jenny tells her—even Jenny’s lies about me. Melanie Wellington is a mixed-up old lady.”
    “She didn’t seem mixed up at all,” said Cindy.
    “Of course not,” said Alex Baxter. “She lives in her own dream world. Her own fantasies. Harmless enough—except that now she has talked you into believing a lot of rubbish!”
    “She’s your aunt,” said Cindy.
    “Of course, she is,” he answered impatiently. “Why do you think I’ve taken this so hard? Why do you think it’s important to me? Because I’m her nephew and I love her! I want to protect her. I can’t permit her life’s savings to be stolen from her!”
    “You’re not a detective at all!” said Dexter.
    “You mean she says I’m not,” shouted Alex Baxter, angry again. “It’s her word against mine. And I can prove I’m telling the truth. Let me out of here. I’ll show you all my credentials.”
    Dexter and Cindy looked at each other.
    The voice went on. “Do you realize what you’ve done? With your bungling you have let a fortune fall into the hands of scoundrels. A fortune that Melanie Wellington’s husband spent his life gathering. It’s hers! And now it’s going to fall into strangers’ hands. They’ll find your brother tonight, don’t worry. They’ll get the diamonds from him. Your brother is all alone right now—just him and the diamonds. Do you think he has a prayer of keeping them from Jenny Mayflower and Tom Foster?”
    Alex Baxter’s voice was urgent. “Quick. There is no time to lose. They may be coming to look for him this very moment. They will have talked to Melanie Wellington. They will know you have figured out the secret of the iron dog and the key, and they will come directly to your homes to find you. They will find the boy and the diamonds. Hurry! Open this door!”
    Cindy’s heart pounded. What if Alex Baxter were telling the truth after all? What if Jay really was in danger?
    She glanced down the hall toward a room that she had glimpsed that afternoon. The door was closed.
    On an impulse she ran down the hall and opened that door. It was dark. She groped for a light switch and found one. She flicked on the light. It was the bedroom—the bedroom made up for guests. Vases of fresh flowers were on the tables. And there was a big sign— Welcome .
    She ran back to the closet door. “I don’t believe anything you say,” she called through the door. “Jenny and Tom are really bringing his parents back here.