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everyone’s so impressed.”
    As they moved from painting to painting, Jessie and Violet kept a sharp eye out for any clues. Although they didn’t mean to eavesdrop, they couldn’t help overhearing what people were saying about Margaret Longford’s work.

    “Just look at the bold swirls of the brushstroke!”
    “Magnificent!”
    “This artist is one of a kind.”
    Jessie smiled over at her sister. “One day your paintings will be hanging here, Violet.”
    “Do you really think so?” Violet asked her, hopefully.
    Before Jessie had a chance to answer, Henry and Benny came rushing up. “Did you find anything suspicious?” Benny wanted to know. He swallowed a bite of his eggsandwich.
    “Not a thing.” Jessie shook her head. “Grandfather was right. It’s hard to look for clues when it’s so crowded.”
    Violet looked over at Henry and Benny. “Did you strike out, too?”
    “Not exactly. We came across something kind of ... weird,” Henry said, and Benny nodded in agreement.
    Full of curiosity, Jessie and Violet quickly followed Henry and Benny, weaving their way around the guests. On the far side of the room, Henry pointed to the wall, where a sheet of paper had been pinned.
    “Everybody who entered the contest is on that list,” he said. “And guess who got an honorable mention?”
    “Oh!” exclaimed Violet, her eyes widening when Henry placed his finger under Janice Allen’s name. “But ... Janice told us she couldn’t draw. Remember?”
    Benny nodded. “I wonder why she lied to us.”
    “That’s what I’d like to know,” said Henry. “It seems kind of strange. Don’t you think, Jessie?”
    Jessie didn’t answer. She was thinking hard. Suddenly she said, “There’s something else that’s strange. When Janice said good-bye to Watch today, she called him by name. What I can’t figure out is how she even knew Watch’s name. I’m sure we never told her.”
    Henry, Violet, and Benny had thought nothing of it. But now they wondered about it, too.
    “We always leave Watch at home when we go to the library,” Henry commented.
    Benny nodded. “Dogs aren’t allowed in the Greenfield Public Library.”
    “Maybe somebody else told her about Watch,” Violet offered.
    Benny thought this was possible. “Watch is a very nice dog. Everybody in Greenfield likes him. I bet they talk about him all the time.”
    “Or ... ” said Jessie, “maybe Janice was there the day the paper airplane flew into our yard. Maybe she heard us calling Watch.”
    Slowly, the others understood Jessie’s meaning.
    “You think Janice might be the Tattletale?” Violet asked in surprise.
    Still glancing at the list, Jessie nodded. “It’s possible. She has been studying art history in school,” she pointed out.
    “If Janice lied when she said she couldn’t draw,” Henry reasoned, “maybe she was trying to throw us off the track. So we wouldn’t suspect her of being the Tattletale, I mean.”
    Violet looked confused. “But why would Janice leave a trail of clues for us to follow?”
    “One thing’s for sure,” said Benny. “Now we have two Tattletale suspects.” When he saw their puzzled looks, he added, “Janice Allen and the ghost of Milly Manchester.”
    Henry looked as if he wanted to argue with Benny but there was no time. Grandfather was waving them over. James Alden was deep in conversation with Edmund and an attractive young woman with straight blond hair. The woman, wearing a pale yellow dress, looked vaguely familiar to Jessie.
    “Your paintings are wonderful,” Violet said shyly, as Grandfather introduced the children to Margaret Longford.
    “Thank you.” Margaret reached out to shake hands with Violet. “I hear painting is a hobby of yours.”
    “And she’s good at it, too!” put in Benny. He sounded proud.
    A flush of crimson crept over Violet’s face. “I still have a lot to learn,” she said modestly. “But I do love to draw and paint.”
    “That’s what really matters,”