The Talking T. Rex Read online

  Jud and Scoop passed through the crowd, collecting a dollar from each person. When their hands were filled with bills, the men walked over to the truck and locked the money inside the cab. They each did this two or three times.

  “They must make a ton of money,” Josh said. “I’ll bet there are two hundred people here!”

  Jud climbed up onto the truck bed with a cordless microphone. “Thanks for coming, folks!” he said to the crowd.

  When everyone was quiet, Jud went on to explain why they were raising money “Our museum should be built by next summer, and I hope some of you will come for a visit,” he said.

  Jud pointed his mike at the dinosaur. “Now I’d like you all to meet my friend Tyrone. Tyrone, why don’t you tell these good folks about yourself?” he said.

  Nothing happened. Tyrone stood silent and still. He didn’t say a word.

  “I guess Tyrone is shy this morning,” Jud said. Then, in a louder voice, he said, “Tyrone? Can you say hi to all our friends out here? Wiggle your tail if you hear me.”

  This got a few laughs, but Tyrone still didn’t move.

  Some of the kids in the audience began to fidget. A boy sitting behind Dink muttered, “I wonder if we can get our money back.”

  Then, suddenly, Tyrone’s tail moved to the right, then to the left. His small front arms waved up and down. His mouth opened and Tyrone said, “Hi!” in a deep voice.

  “HI, TYRONE!” the crowd yelled back.

  “How many of you know what kind of dinosaur I am?” Tyrone asked. Dink recognized Dean’s voice coming from Tyrone’s mouth.

  Every kid and adult raised a hand. “Tyrannosaurus!” Nate hollered.

  “That’s right, I’m a Tyrannosaurus rex,” Tyrone said.

  “Now, how many of you remembered to eat a good breakfast this morning?”

  Most people raised a hand.

  “Well,” Tyrone said, nodding his massive head, “about seventy million years ago, I ate other dinosaurs for my breakfast!”

  Everyone laughed.

  Jud hopped off the truck and sat with Dink, Josh, and Ruth Rose.

  “Dean’s good with the crowd, isn’t he?” Jud said.

  “You’d swear Tyrone is really talking,” Dink said.

  Jud nodded. “Yeah, Dean’s a genius with anything mechanical. He had me scared at the beginning, though. I thought something went wrong with the computer.”

  Tyrone told the audience all about the dinosaurs who once roamed North America. He talked about what they ate, how they protected themselves, and how they raised their young.

  The show lasted about half an hour. “I hope you’ll all go to the library and learn more about dinosaurs,” Tyrone said, waving good-bye with his small arms. “And come visit me next summer in Montana!”

  A lot of the kids yelled, “Bye, Tyrone!” as the people began to leave.

  “That was so cool!” Josh told Jud. “How many schools have you gone to so far?”

  Jud scratched his head. “Gosh, I don’t really know, maybe fifty or so. Scoop keeps track of all that. I think he’s lined up about twenty more before we head back to Montana.”

  Dean climbed out of Tyrone and walked over to where the kids and Jud were sitting.

  “That was great,” Jud told Dean. “But what happened at the beginning?”

  Dean shrugged. “I couldn’t get the laptop to boot up,” he said. “One of the cables was loose.”

  “Well, at least you fixed it,” Jud said, standing up. “It’s getting warm,” he added. “I could use some ice cream. After we clean up, why don’t we meet at Ellie’s? Tyrone is treating!”

  “You just made Josh happy,” Ruth Rose said. “What can we do?”

  Jud pulled a plastic bag from his pocket. “If you’ll go around and pick up paper, that would be a great help,” he said.

  While Jud walked toward the truck, Dink, Josh, and Ruth Rose spread out and began collecting litter.

  Dink was leaning over to grab a crumpled flyer when he heard a shout. He looked up. The yell had come from near Tyrone. Jud, Dean, and Scoop were huddled in front of the open door.

  Even from a hundred feet away, Dink could hear Jud yell, “I don’t believe it!”

  CHAPTER 4

  Dink, Josh, and Ruth Rose ran toward Tyrone. “What happened?” Dink asked.

  “Our money got stolen—that’s what happened!” Scoop said.

  “The money you just collected?” Josh asked.

  Jud shook his head. “No, I still have that.” He held up two thick stacks of bills with rubber bands around them. “I was going to add it to the rest of the money, but it’s gone!”

  Dean pointed to the floor inside Tyrone’s belly. The table, chair, and carpet had been moved. Where the table and chair had stood was a square hole cut into the flooring. A hinged door was open, revealing a compartment. It was empty.

  “I built that as a hiding place,” Dean said. “That’s where we kept the money, in a duffel bag. We’ve been putting it in there since we left Montana.”

  “How much money was there?” Josh asked.

  Jud’s face was white. “All the money we’ve made so far,” he said in a shaky voice. “Almost five thousand dollars.”

  Six pairs of eyes stared into the empty compartment.

  “I don’t see when anyone could have gotten in there,” Scoop said.

  Jud closed his eyes for a second. “I put the duffel bag in there yesterday,” he said, “after we got Tyrone all set up.”

  “So someone stole it between yesterday afternoon and this morning,” Dean said. “And it couldn’t have happened last night, because I slept out here.”

  “I’m going to get Officer Fallon!” Ruth Rose said. “He’s the chief of police.”

  “What can he do now?” Jud asked. “The money is long gone.”

  “Officer Fallon catches a lot of crooks,” Dink said.

  Josh glanced down at the ground, dry-now from the sun. “He might find some clues around here.”

  “They’re right about bringing the police in, Jud,” Dean said. “We have to do everything we can to find our money.”

  “I’ll be right back!” Ruth Rose said as she took off running.

  “Well, no one’s getting this money,” Jud said. He opened his shirt and stuffed the bills inside.

  Dink felt Josh pinching his arm. When Dink looked at him, Josh motioned with his head for Dink to walk away with him.

  He followed Josh away from the three men.

  “I hate to say this,” Josh whispered, “but I think one of them stole the money.” He tipped his chin toward Jud, Dean, and Scoop.

  “Why would they do it?” Dink asked. “Jud and Dean really want to build the museum. And Scoop’s going to work there. They wouldn’t steal their own money Josh.”

  “But who else has a key to the door or knows about that hiding place inside Tyrone?” Josh insisted.

  Dink shook his head. He kicked a small stone. “No one can make me believe Jud would do such a rotten thing,” he said.

  Just then Ruth Rose and Officer Fallon came hurrying across Center Park. Dink and Josh walked back to the dinosaur.

  Officer Fallon introduced himself and pulled his notebook and pen from a shirt pocket. “Ruth Rose told me what happened,” he said. He looked at the three men. “May I have your names, please?”

  He wrote down each name. “Scoop?” he asked. “Is that a nickname?”

  Scoop grinned. “Yeah, I was the editor of my college newspaper. I got the name because I was always first with a news scoop. My real name is Michael Raker.”

  Officer Fallon wrote it down. “Can you show me where the money was when you fellas last saw it?”

  Dean pointed through the door at the empty compartment. “It was in there, except when we were on the road. Then we kept it with us in the truck.”

  “I put the duffel inside that compartment yesterday afternoon,” Jud said. “That’s the last time I saw it.”

  “Wouldn’t it be saf
er to keep your money in a bank?” Officer Fallon asked.

  “We thought the money was safe inside the dinosaur,” Jud said. “No one but us knew about the hidden compartment. And I was planning on taking the money to my bank back in Montana.”

  “Was that compartment locked?” the police chief asked, writing in his notebook.

  Jud shook his head. “No, but we always keep this outer door locked.”

  Officer Fallon examined the keyhole. He removed the rubber wedge and swung the door back and forth on its hinges. “Who has keys to this door?”

  “I have one,” Dean said. He tapped his key ring.

  Jud held up his keys. “And I have the only other key,” he said.

  Officer Fallon made another note on his pad. “So Mr. Wheat put the money into that compartment yesterday afternoon,” he said. “Then this morning, after the show, Mr. Whitefeather looked for the money and discovered that it was gone. Is that correct?”

  “Actually, no,” Dean said. “I did the show, but it was Jud who found out the money was missing.”

  “Could the money have been stolen last night?” Officer Fallon said. “Where did you fellows sleep?”

  “Scoop and I slept at the hotel,” Jud said. “We left the money in the compartment. We always do. Dean sleeps outside. He likes to guard Tyrone.”

  Officer Fallon looked confused. “Who’s Tyrone?” he asked.

  “That’s what we call the dinosaur,” Scoop explained.

  Officer Fallon glanced at Dean. “You slept out here all night?” he asked. “Even during the rain?”

  Dean smiled. “No, when it started to rain, I took my sleeping bag into the truck.”

  Officer Fallon made more notes on his pad, then turned to Jud. “Could anyone have snuck into your room and taken your key while you slept?” he asked.

  Jud shook his head. “The door was locked.”

  Officer Fallon looked at Dean. “How about your key Mr. Whitefeather?” he asked. “Where was it while you slept out here?”

  Dean held up his key ring. “Clipped to my belt, inside my sleeping bag with me.”

  Officer Fallon swung the door wide and looked at the computer. “Who makes this thing work?” he asked.

  “I do,” Dean said. “And my computer.”

  “So as far as you knew, the duffel bag was still hidden under the floor this morning,” Officer Fallon stated.

  “That’s right,” said Dean.

  Officer Fallon peered inside Tyrone. “And you would have been sitting right over the money at your computer, right, Mr. Whitefeather?”

  Dean nodded. “But I figure it was already stolen by then,” he said. “After the show, when Jud moved the table and pulled the rug back, the duffel bag was gone.”

  Officer Fallon placed the wedge so that the door remained slightly open. He looked at the three men. “Gentlemen, let’s walk across the street to my office. I’d like you to think about everything that’s happened since you pulled in here yesterday. I want you to write it all down—even the tiniest details, no matter how unimportant they seem.”

  “How long will that take?” Scoop asked. “We have a lot of other schools to go to. We’re supposed to be in New Haven tomorrow.”

  “Then we’d best get busy,” Officer Fallon said.

  CHAPTER 5

  Dink, Josh, and Ruth Rose watched the men follow Officer Fallon toward the police station. Above their heads, Tyrone’s big plastic eyes stared.

  “This is great,” Dink grumbled. “Jud comes to see us, and his money gets stolen.”

  “I just don’t see how anyone did it,” Ruth Rose said. “We were all here yesterday afternoon, and Dean guarded Tyrone last night. Plus, he was locked inside Tyrone during the show.”

  “So maybe Dean is the thief,” Josh said. “He could have taken the money last night or even during the show. No one saw what he did after that door closed.”

  “But we know what he did,” Dink said. “He was working on the computer. Otherwise, Tyrone wouldn’t have moved or talked.”

  “That’s just it,” Josh said. “Tyrone didn’t move for the first few minutes, remember? Maybe that’s when Dean was snitching the duffel bag!”

  Dink shook his head. “I don’t believe Dean would steal from his best friend,” he said.

  Just then Officer Keene pulled up in his cruiser. He climbed out with a roll of yellow tape and several wooden stakes in his arms. “Hi, kids,” he said. “Little excitement, huh?”

  He set the tape and stakes on the ground and walked over to Tyrone. The wedge was still in place, letting him open the door wider. He glanced inside. “Whew, you could bake a pie in there,” he said.

  Officer Keene began shoving stakes into the ground around Tyrone. Then he strung the crime-scene tape around the stakes, forming a big circle around the dinosaur.

  “Can we go to Ellie’s?” Josh said. “My brain needs a drink.”

  The kids started walking across Center Park.

  “Do you really think Dean is the robber?” Ruth Rose asked Josh.

  “Yes,” he said. “He has a key and he knew where the money was hidden.”

  “What about Scoop?” Ruth Rose asked. “Could he have borrowed a key from Dean or Jud?”

  “If he had, they would have mentioned it to Officer Fallon,” Josh responded.

  “Maybe the thief was someone else,” Dink said. “Some stranger who knew how to pick locks.”

  “But Dean was sleeping outside the dinosaur,” Ruth Rose said. “How would a thief get past him?”

  “That’s why I think it’s Dean,” Josh said as he pulled open the door to Ellie’s Diner.

  The kids slid into a booth near the windows. One of the Tyrone flyers was taped to the glass. Ellie waved, then came over.

  “Hi, kids. Why aren’t you at the dinosaur show?” she asked.

  “It’s over,” Josh said. “But someone stole their money!”

  Ellie slid in next to Josh. “Who stole whose money?” she asked with wide eyes.

  Ruth Rose explained about the money that was kept inside Tyrone’s belly.

  “Those poor guys,” Ellie said, standing up. “They were so excited when they came in for breakfast this morning.”

  “Officer Fallon is on the case,” Ruth Rose said.

  “Good!” Ellie said. “Josh, your tongue is almost hanging out. How about some fresh lemonade?” she asked.

  The kids agreed, and Ellie brought three tall glasses.

  Josh took a big slurp through his straw. “So, you guys agree that Dean is the robber?”

  Dink stirred his lemonade. “I don’t. Dean wouldn’t be dumb enough to steal the money while he was guarding it last night,” he said. “That would point the finger right at him.”

  Josh shook his head. “He could have taken the duffel bag during the show,” he said.

  “How?” Ruth Rose asked.

  “Easy,” Josh said. “He locks himself inside Tyrone. He moves the table and rug, grabs the duffel bag, then puts the rug and table back. It only takes him a minute.”

  “Then what?” Dink asked. “Where did he put the duffel bag?”

  He and Ruth Rose stared at Josh, waiting for his answer.

  Josh blinked at them. He took a sip of his lemonade. “Okay, here’s what happened,” he said. “Dean told us he built that little compartment inside Tyrone, right? So what if he built a second one that only he knows about? And that’s where he hid the money!”

  Dink looked at Josh over his glass. “You think the money is still inside Tyrone?”

  “Why not?” Josh asked. “It’s perfect. No one would think to look for it there.”

  Ruth Rose squinted her eyes at Josh. “Except someone with a sneaky mind like yours.”

  “I say we go search old Tyrone the T. rex,” Josh said, finishing his lemonade. “If I’m right, Dean is planning to come and get the duffel bag as soon as he gets a chance.”

  “I hate to admit it, but Josh is making sense,” Ruth Rose said. “It won
’t hurt to look inside Tyrone.”

  The kids left their money on the table, waved at Ellie, and headed back toward the high school.

  A few minutes later, the kids stood looking at Tyrone surrounded by yellow crime-scene tape. Officer Keene was gone. “No one’s supposed to go past the tape,” Dink said.

  “We could say we didn’t see it,” Josh suggested.

  “Right,” Dink said. “It’s broad daylight and we can’t see bright yellow tape.”

  “But what if it was dark?” Ruth Rose said, looking at Dink. “We could come back tonight.”

  Dink shook his head. “Forget it, guys. We’ll be at the fireworks with our parents tonight.”

  Josh draped an arm around Dink’s shoulder. “Perfect,” he said. “While they’re looking up at the sky, we can sneak away.”

  Dink finally agreed. “But I’m only doing this for Jud,” he said.

  The kids heard a bark and saw Mr. Pocket and Randolph inspecting the rosebush in the park. They walked over to say hi.

  “Did you hear about the robbery?” Ruth Rose asked.

  “Yes, and I feel bad for those young men,” Mr. Pocket said. “Any news?”

  Dink shook his head.

  “But something might break tonight,” Josh said, giving Dink a little nudge.

  “Our bush looks fine,” Mr. Pocket said. “But I have to get rid of this dead one. Dink, you want to get the wheelbarrow for me?”

  Dink ran to the shed. The wheelbarrow was where he had left it, leaning on the burlap bags. As Dink was leaving, he noticed muddy footprints on the bricks.

  He brought the wheelbarrow to Mr. Pocket.

  “Thanks,” Mr. Pocket said as he loaded the dead rosebush into the wheelbarrow. “I’ll toss this into the school Dumpster.” He walked away, with Randolph galloping along beside the wheelbarrow.

  “Look, there’s Jud and Scoop!” Josh said, pointing toward the dinosaur.