Free The Sleepy Hollow Mystery by Gertrude Chandler Warner Page B

power at the
moment. If you are too frightened to stay out
there, we can all stay inside the main house.”
    “We’ll be fine,” Jessie said. “We’re used
to staying in places without electricity. Our
boxcar in the woods didn’t have any power.”
    After their parents died, the Alden
children had run away. They had never
met their grandfather, but they were afraid
of him because they’d heard he was mean.
The children had found an abandoned
boxcar in the woods and made it their home.
When their grandfather found them, they
realized he wasn’t mean at all. He brought
them to his home to live with him and Mrs.
MacGregor. He even had the boxcar moved
to his backyard.
    Mrs. Vanderhoff’s cell phone rang. She
answered and a serious look appeared on
her face. “Oh dear. Margot isn’t home, but
I’ll be there right away.” Putting the phone
away, she said, “That was Annika. Her friend
Isiah didn’t show up with the wagon and she
can’t reach him. I need to go pick up the tour
group and bring them back here.”
    “Will everyone fit in your car?” Mrs.
McGregor asked. “I can take my car too.”
    “Thank you. I was going to have to take
two trips,” Mrs. Vanderhoff said. “You
children will be fine here by yourselves for a
little while, won’t you?”
    “I guess so. You’ll be back soon, right?”
Benny asked. “It is very dark even with
the fire.”
    Jessie put her arm around him. “We’ll be
fine,” she assured him. But she looked around
at the trees with their twisted branches
looming over the yard and hoped they
wouldn’t have to stay alone for too long.
    “Have a cruller or a cookie while you’re
waiting.” Mrs. Vanderhoff motioned to the
covered platter and the cookie jar. “There
are plenty.”
    After Mrs. Vanderhoff and Mrs. McGregor
left, Jessie finished pouring the cider for
everyone and asked, “Which do you want,
cookies or crullers?” She tried to sound
cheerful so the others wouldn’t realize she
was already getting a little spooked about
being in such a dark, strange place.
    “I think we should try something new, so I
vote for the crullers,” Henry said.
    Jessie passed them out. “I like the shape of
these. They look like someone braided pieces
of dough.”
    “These are yummy,” Violet said, biting
into hers. “They’re so much crunchier that
regular doughnuts.”
    “I like the sugar that’s all over them!”
Benny said.
    “Maybe I can get the recipe from Mrs.
Vanderhoff,” Jessie said. “I can try to make
them.”
    The wind picked up and the branches of
the trees rustled. Most of them had already
lost their leaves, but a few fell from a big oak
tree and blew onto the patio. Watch leaped
up and tried to catch some.
    “I’m glad we have a fire.” Jessie shivered,
buttoning the top button of her coat. “It’s
chilly.” The moving branches of the trees
threw shadows on the ground, and they
looked like broken skeletons dancing in the
circle of light from the fire.
    Just then Violet jumped, spilling some of
her drink on the ground.
    Henry was so startled, he almost dropped
his drink too. “Violet! What’s wrong?”
    “Did you hear that noise?”

CHAPTER 2
A Headless Horseman
    H enry said, “I don’t hear anything but the
wind.” He listened and for a moment though
he heard a low rumble of thunder coming
from down the street. It stopped, and he
decided his ears must have been playing
tricks on him.
    “I don’t hear anything either,” Jessie said.
    Violet was quiet for a moment and then
asked, “You didn’t hear anything that sounded
sort of like an animal snorting, did you?”
    Benny made pig noises and then asked,
“You mean like that?” Henry and Jessie
laughed.
    “No, not like that,” Violet said. “It’s hard
to explain. Listen again.”
    They all sat quietly again, but there were
no noises except the wind and the leaves
blowing across the patio. Watch had stopped
chasing them. He sat next to Henry with his
ears alert.
    “I still don’t hear