Mart and Trixie were finishing up the supper dishes when the telephone rang. Bobby, the youngest Belden, hollered, "I'll get it!"

"Trixie, it's for you. It's Miss Trask."

Trixie wiped her hands on her jeans and took the phone from Bobby. "Hi, Miss Trask," she chirped into the receiver.

"Hello, Trixie. Is Honey over there? We're waiting for her to come to supper."

"She's not here. I haven't seen her since we groomed the horses at the stable. That was at 5."

"That's strange. I saw her leave the house at 6. I assumed she was going to visit you for a few minutes before we ate. No one has seen her since then."

"Maybe she's at the clubhouse," Trixie suggested. "Mart and I will go look there right now."

"Thank you, Trixie. I'll get Regan to look in the stables again."

As Trixie hung up the phone, her mind raced with jumbled thoughts. Why would Honey go to the clubhouse just before supper? Where else could she have gone? I have a very bad feeling about this.

Mart was peering anxiously into his sister's face. "I take it Miss Trask doesn't know where Honey is?" he asked.

"No one has seen her in the last hour," Trixie replied, her voice quivering slightly. "You go tell Moms and Dad, and I'll get the flashlights from the garage. We'll look in the clubhouse, and if she's not there, we'll go up to Manor House."

Two minutes later, the almost-twins were walking quickly and silently along the path to the clubhouse. It was obvious that no one was in there- there were no lights on inside, and there was a pile of snow in front of the door from last night's snowfall. Despite the evidence, Mart tugged on the door, pushing the snow out of the way. One glance inside told them she wasn't there, and there was nothing to suggest that she had been there that night.

"Maybe she's already been found. Let's get up to Manor House." Mart put a comforting arm around Trixie's shoulder, and they left the clubhouse together. They burst into Manor House's foyer, bringing in clumps of snow and a blast of winter air.

Miss Trask hurried over to the siblings. Trixie silently shook her head, knowing from Miss Trask's worried expression that Honey wasn't here either.

Madeleine Wheeler came out of the parlour, a frown furrowing her elegant features. "She hasn't been to the Lynches or to Mr. Lytell's store. It's not like Honey to go anywhere without telling us. She knew supper was to be served at seven. I can't imagine that she made plans and forgot to tell us."

"Let's put all our information together." Trixie took charge of the conversation. "I left the stables at 5 o'clock. Regan was still there, and I saw Honey on her way up to the house."

"I heard her right here in the foyer at 6," Miss Trask volunteered. "Just as I came out of the powder room, I saw her leave through the front door. She had on her winter coat, her mittens, and her scarf. I didn't notice her feet, but her boots seem to be missing."

"So, she was dressed to go out in the cold," Trixie mused. "She must have intended to be gone for at least a few minutes."

"I just don't know what she would have been going to do out in the dark," Miss Trask interjected.

"Dark!" Trixie yelped. "I bet she was going to go get the mail. She told me that if she didn't remember to do it right after exercising the horses, she would end up going to the mailbox in the dark."

"I was at the mailbox just before 6," Mart said slowly. "There was a beat-up black car parked on Glen Road right near the driveway."

"I'm going down to the mailbox," Trixie stated. "I'm sure that's where she was headed."

"Right behind you, sis," Mart replied.

"We'll meet you down there as soon as we get our coats on." Miss Trask and Mrs. Wheeler began dressing for the outdoors.

Mart and Trixie ran as fast as they dared down the driveway. The snow was slippery, but they held on to each other to maintain a precarious balance. They reached the mailbox without falling, and Trixie shone her flashlight inside. The metal receptacle was empty.

Mart beamed his light on the ground around the mailbox. Making ever widening circles with the lights, they searched for clues in the snow. Where Glen Road intersected the Wheeler's driveway, right where Mart had seen the black car, Trixie found a bunch of letters and one Christmas present.

"Honey was here!" she exclaimed as Miss Trask, Mrs. Wheeler, and Regan came running up to the mailbox.

"And I know when she was here," Mart added grimly. "I put that parcel in the mailbox just before 6. That black car was here, but there was no one inside it. I checked in case a motorist needed help."

"Get back up to the house," Regan ordered. "We have to call the police and get this area secured."

For once in her life, Trixie didn't feel like looking for clues. This was serious, and she didn't want to mess up the police investigation by tampering with the scene.

 

At the Sleepyside Train Station

Brian Belden looked anxiously at his watch for the fourth time in as many minutes. It was 7:30pm, and no one was here to pick him up. He was sure that his dad had planned to be here when the train got in at 7:15. He'd tried calling Crabapple Farm twice, but both times there was no answer. Manor House's line was busy. This was totally unlike his family. There was no way Moms would forget that her eldest son was coming home tonight.

Feeling more than a little worried, Brian decided to hail a taxi and get driven home. Crossing the station with quick, long-legged strides, he threw his suitcase in the backseat of the first cab he saw, and sat back to fret during the short drive to Crabapple Farm.

 

Back at Manor House

Peter and Helen Belden had dropped Bobby off at the Lynches', picking up Di at the same time.  Now they were at Manor House, comforting Mrs. Wheeler as she tried to contact her husband in New York City.

Trixie, Mart, and Di were sitting in the parlour, waiting for Spider Webster to arrive. It had been Trixie's idea to call their old friend rather than the Sleepyside Police Department. She thought if the kidnappers were watching the house, they might become alarmed to see the cops there so soon. Spider was going to pretend to just be on a friendly visit, bringing Christmas gifts for Honey and Jim.

Tom Delanoy and his wife, Celia, were on their way to Mr. Maypenny's to let Dan know what was going on, and to bring him back to Manor House. Trixie was sure that once he heard Honey was missing, wild horses couldn't keep him away from his fellow Bob-Whites.

A knock on the Wheeler's door resounded through the parlour. Everyone tensed and slowly turned to face the sound. Miss Trask was the only one who approached the door, and she swung it open, revealing Brian. He smiled at Miss Trask, but his face grew serious as he looked at the faces staring at him.

"What's going on?" he asked.

Trixie rushed over to her brother, and threw her arms around him. "Honey's missing, and we think she's been kidnapped!" she cried.

Brian stared at his little sister in disbelief. His girlfriend had been kidnapped?!

 

In the beat-up old Chevy

Honey scrunched herself into the corner of the backseat as the car sped rapidly down a dark road. They had been driving for over an hour, but Honey felt like the car was going in circles. They hadn't passed any towns, only a few lonely farmhouses.

The driver and his accomplice hadn't spoken to each other at all. They occasionally communicated with arm pats and pointing fingers to discuss which way to turn. She hadn't seen the face of the man in the passenger seat, just enough of his form to know that he was a man.

Honey began to twirl the earring in her right ear. If she did it for awhile, the men, if they noticed at all, would think it was just a nervous habit. After ten minutes of twirling, she slowly pulled the back of the earring off of the post, and nudged it into her palm. Curling her hand around the earring, she let her arm drop to her side, with her fist over the edge of the seat. While looking to the left, away from her hand, she let the jewelry drop to the floor of the car. She knew that if Trixie or Di ever saw her earring in this car, they would recognize it. It was a gold horse's head that she had gotten from her parents for her birthday. She wore them at least once a week. Even Mart might recognize it as hers if he saw it.

Honey let her head fall back against the seat. There was no way she could fall asleep, but maybe if the kidnappers thought she had, they would talk and reveal valuable information. She closed her eyes and sent out thoughts to her friends and family. Mom and Dad, I hope you know that I'm all right. Trixie, I know you will be the one to find me, with the help of the other Bob-Whites. Honey felt a little comforted, knowing that Trixie would not give up until she had solved this case.

 

Back at Manor House

Mrs. Wheeler had finally gotten hold of her husband. She was tearfully telling him the story of Honey's disappearance when Spider Webster drove up. He was smiling and cheerful, brandishing an armful of bright presents. As soon as the front door closed behind him, the smile vanished, and he began getting information from Trixie, Mart, and Miss Trask.

Gently taking the phone from Mrs. Wheeler, Spider talked to Mr. Wheeler about his scheduled plans. "I think you should stay in the city, and do whatever you had planned to do. The kidnappers might try to contact you at your apartment in the city or at your office. They probably know when you and Jim are supposed to come home, and it's best if you keep to that schedule."

"I feel like I should be at home, with my family," Mr. Wheeler protested. "I can't stay here, not knowing-".

"Your wife will be here with Marge and Regan. They can man the phones here."

Mr. Wheeler finally agreed to business as usual for the next day. But he had one condition- nobody could tell Jim what was going on. He had two important tests the next day, and there was nothing he could do to help anyway. They could call him if there was any news- good or bad.

Trixie, overhearing Spider and Mrs. Wheeler agree to not tell Jim, thought they were making a big mistake. Jim would be furious when he found out that Honey had gone missing and no one had told him. His professors would understand, and let him make up the tests later. Still, it wasn't her place to go behind the Wheeler's backs and tell Jim his only sister had been kidnapped. But, boy, she didn't want to be there when he was told the truth!

The Beldens finally went home at 11 o'clock. Bobby was sleeping over at the Lynch's, and Di had permission to stay with Trixie. Miss Trask promised to phone the minute they heard anything, no matter how late or how early the time.

With heavy hearts and fearful minds, Trixie, Mart, Brian and Di walked to Crabapple Farm while Mr. and Mrs. Belden drove the car the short distance home. Spider was taking a casual drive to the police station, pretending to be visiting some old colleagues. He would let Sergeant Molinson know what was going on, and get the Sleepyside Police Department investigating.

 

A cabin in the woods

Almost three hours after Honey had been kidnapped, the black Chevy came to a stop in front of a small cabin deep in the woods. The road to the cabin was little more than overgrown wheel ruts. Honey tensed as the driver walked around to her door and opened it with a quick tug on the handle. He had something in his hands as he raised them towards her. A ski mask was put on her head, with the eye and mouth holes on the back of her head.

Unseen hands grabbed Honey's elbows and forearms, and she was steered to the cabin door. She stumbled as her toes bumped into the doorsill. Then she was propelled quickly across the main room, and pushed into a small bedroom. The mask was pulled from her head, and the door was shut loudly behind her. She took a deep, shuddering breath, then sat wearily on the edge of the small bed. The lone window in the room was uncurtained, and Honey could see a crescent moon riding high in the sky. She fixed her eyes on the night's only light, and hoped.

 

Trixie's bedroom

Trixie was stretched out on her bed, feeling overwhelmingly tired but unable to sleep. She couldn't stop imagining all sorts of horrors that could be happening to Honey at that very moment. She flipped restlessly onto her left side, and gazed out her window. A bright crescent moon was the only light in the sky. The stars seemed pale next to the moon's luminescent glow. Trixie fixed her eyes on that light, and prayed.

To Be Continued

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