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Mooch jumped up. Shut up back there! he yelled.
The newcomer with the dog turned up the lane and led his animal to
Mooch on the porch steps. What gives? Mooch demanded. The man with
the dog was middle-aged and mild-mannered, with a bald head and heavy
eye-glasses. He winced slightly and took a step backward when Mooch spoke
so roughly.
I-I understand you take in strays, he said. I brought this one along
for you. He was down at the Beachfront Market, trying to get into the trash
bin. He s hungry.
Mooch looked searchingly at the dog. A mutt! he said.
Yes, said the man. Well, all the same . . .
What do I look like? said Mooch. The animal rescue league?
The man was completely bewildered. But they told me you cared for
dogs and
Hey, forget that stuff! said Mooch. There s dogs and then there s
dogs, and that one is a disaster. Take him around to the ASPCA. Or dump
him back at the market. Just don t try to stick me with him!
The man retreated then and went down Speedway with the mongrel dog
trotting at his heels.
A Thief Takes a Dive
Suddenly, on the porch of the old house, a voice that was hard with scorn
began to berate Mooch Henderson.
Behold the great animal lover! said the voice.
Okay, stow it, will you? said Mooch.
A dark-haired young woman had come out onto the porch. She might
have been one of the skaters, for she wore a purple leotard over black tights.
Sequins flashed at the neckline of the leotard, and her hair was held back
with a band that sparkled with colored stones.
You phony! she said to Mooch. She did not bother to keep her voice
down, and the boys could hear every word.
I lied for you, said the girl, but I ll never do it again!
Keep it down, will you? said Mooch.
The cops were here to ask about that little boy who s lost, and they
wondered about those dogs in the yard. So I lied. And now you turn that
guy away. What s he going to think? A dog s got to have papers from the
American Kennel Club to hang out in your backyard?
Can it, will you? cried Mooch. Put a lid on it or I ll . . . I ll . . .
Don t you threaten me! she said. If the cops come back here they
won t find me hanging around. I never did have any ambition to be an
accessory after the fact!
She slammed into the house. Through the open windows the boys heard
her footsteps pounding on bare wooden floors. There was a crashing and
a thumping that seemed to indicate that drawers were being yanked open.
Very soon the girl slammed out of the old house again, her head-band still
sparkling defiantly, but her leotard covered by a long, loose-sleeved garment.
Hey, Sunshine, began Mooch. Like later, she said, and she billowed away
up the lane toward Pacific Avenue, her robe floating behind her and various
belongings threatening to spill from a woven straw satchel that she carried.
Her roller skates dangled around her neck.
Mooch Henderson watched her go. Then he turned his head and spied the
boys watching from the parking lot. So? he said. What do you want?
Jupiter decided to be brazen. He stepped across Speedway and approached
the front steps of the old house. Bob and Pete followed. I wonder if you
could help us, Jupe began. As you probably know
You re snooping around playing detective, said Mooch. You stay away
from here or I ll sic my dogs on you. I m not taking any more guff from
anybody today, you understand?
He stomped down the steps and brushed past Jupe. Then he strode up
the sidewalk in the same direction as the girl in the purple leotard.
Let s follow him, said Jupiter.
32
A Thief Takes a Dive
You bet! Pete declared. That girl said she doesn t want to be an
accessory after the fact! That means he s doing something illegal.
Hold on, said Bob as Pete started toward Pacific Avenue.
There s somebody still in the house.
The boys listened. They heard a man inside. He would talk for a while,
be silent, and then talk again.
It s someone on the phone, said Bob. You guys follow Mooch. I ll
stay here and see what s up.
It seemed a sensible arrangement. Jupe and Pete set out, trotting toward
Pacific Avenue.
Mooch Henderson was two blocks south on Pacific by now, and headed
toward an area where there were new apartment buildings and a boat marina.
Jupe and Pete trailed him, keeping a good distance between them.
When he was about half a mile from Mermaid Court, Mooch went into a
small market.
Oh, rats! said Pete. He s not going anywhere, really. He just needs
some groceries.
Maybe, said Jupe. Maybe not. The boys loitered in the parking
lot of the market. Through the glass doors in front they saw Mooch take
something from the meat case and then go directly to the checkout stand.
Jupe and Pete hastily hid behind a parked car. Mooch came out of
the store and again headed south, toward the more prosperous area of the
marina. Finally he turned down a side street toward one of the restaurants
that overlooked the marina.
The restaurant was called Smuggler s Retreat, and it looked quietly sub-
stantial. There were Porsches and Cadillacs and Jaguars in the parking lot.
Mooch wandered among the cars, stopping now and then to kick a tire.
He s a car thief! decided Pete. He s picking out his next set of wheels!
I don t think so, said Jupe. Look! Mooch had stopped near an open
convertible. Inside it sat a Saint Bernard dog with his leash fastened to the
column of the steering wheel. Mooch stared at the dog and the dog stared
back. Then Mooch began to talk to the dog.
The dog stood up in the car and wagged its tail.
Mooch dug into the bag he had brought from the market and held out
some meat to the dog. The Saint Bernard sniffed. Then it licked. Then it
gobbled the meat down.
He s going to steal that dog! whispered Pete.
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