Chapter 8

Chapter 8 "I wonder who took it," Dink said. Ruth Rose climbed the steps and knocked on the door. "Anyone in there?" she called out. The trailer remained silent. Pal sniffed the ground near the chair, then began whimpering. He sat facing the trailer and wagged his tail. "Pal smells someone," Josh said. "Should we wait around?" Dink asked. "I can't think of anything else to do," Ruth Rose said, sitting on an aluminum step. "The

game is canceled, Mr. Pocket's baseballs are missing, and Pete's in jail." Suddenly the trailer door burst open. A boy appeared with a wild look in his eyes. He resembled Pete Unkenholz, only a lot younger. His blond hair was messed up and he was wearing the flannel shirt. "What do you mean, 'Pete's in jail'?" the kid demanded. Pal let out a low bark. "Hush, Pal," Josh said. Ruth Rose was so startled she jumped off the steps. "Who … who are you?" she stammered. The boy shook his head. "You first. Who are you guys?" Dink took a step toward the boy. "I'm Dink and these are my friends Josh and Ruth Rose," he said. The boy studied the group. "I saw you at the game," he said, raking a hand through his hair. "I'm Buddy, Pete's brother. Is he really in jail? Why?" "He stole … I mean, the cops think he stole some valuable baseballs," Josh said. Buddy just stared with his mouth open. "The baseballs in that glass case," he said. "Pete showed them to me before the game started. But

he didn't take 'em. My brother wouldn't steal a penny." "But he confessed," Dink said. Buddy came through the door and flung himself down on the top step. "He must be lying for me so the cops won't think I stole the balls." Dink stared at Buddy. He looked around fourteen years old. His eyes were red, as if he'd been crying. "Did you take them?" Dink asked. Buddy shook his head. "Heck, no," he muttered. He swallowed and took a deep breath. "But Pete must think I did." "Why would he think that?" Ruth Rose asked. "Because I was teasing him before the game," Buddy said. "We were both looking at the balls, and I said something stupid like 'I'll bet we could get a lot of money for these.'"

Buddy looked up. "It was just a joke. Pete's fun to tease," he said. "Anyway, I saw Pete leave the game to go after his medicine. When he didn't come back, I went inside to see if he was okay. But Pete wasn't there. The glass case was busted and the balls were missing. I figured Pete must

have thought I stole 'em and came to the trailer looking for me. So I ran back, but Pete wasn't here." "Officer Fallon picked up Pete in his truck," Dink said. "That's when your brother said he took the balls." "Yeah, to keep me out of trouble," Buddy muttered. "Just like he did before we left Maine." "What happened in Maine?" Ruth Rose asked Buddy. "Something really dumb," Buddy said. He stared into the trees that surrounded the clearing. "Pete and I live together because our folks died in a car crash a few years ago," Buddy said. "Ever since then, I keep messing up and Pete keeps trying to get me out of trouble." Buddy scooted down the steps and reached out to pet Pal. The dog licked Buddy's hand and rolled over on the ground. "Last winter I was hanging out with my friend Fizzo," Buddy said. "Pete doesn't like Fizzo. Says he's a bad influence on me. Anyway, it was cold, and we saw this delivery van in the alley next to Sugar's Bakery. The engine was running, and Fizzo says, 'Let's sit in it to get out of the cold.'

We sat there for a few minutes, smelling the warm bread. Next thing you know, Fizzo's driving the van." Buddy looked up at Dink, Josh, and Ruth Rose. "It was just supposed to be a joke on Mr. Sugar," he said. "Fizzo wanted to park the van around the corner, for laughs. Only the road was icy, and the van slid into a snowbank. Fizzo got out to try to shove us free. I slipped behind the wheel to put the van in reverse. That's when the police came, and we got busted." "So … Pete didn't take the van?" asked Ruth Rose. "No way!" Buddy shouted. "I told you, my big brother's the most honest guy in the world." Buddy stroked Pal's silky ears. "Anyway, Fizzo and I are at the police station, scared to death," he continued. "I called Pete and told him what happened. Five minutes later, he came flying into the police station." Buddy shook his head. "I still can't believe what happened next. Pete lied, probably for the first time in his life. He told the police officers he was the one who drove the van into the snowbank.