The Hampton House Mystery: The Dinswood Chronicles, #4

By Ellen Alexander

"Nancy Drew fans will feel right at home in this fourth stand-alone episode…" —Kirkus Reviews

 

Just because the gang's away on summer vacation, doesn't mean the mystery solving stops…

 

It's the end of Emma's sophomore year at Dinswood Academy, and that means only one thing: summer vacation! "Glamping" sounds exciting and Emma can't wait to join Martha and Sebastian's families at a local campground, especially when she learns that Doug will be joining them.

 

When Emma and the gang hear about a local legend, they are intrigued. According to the story, a family mysteriously disappeared twelve years ago and rumor has it that the abandoned house is haunted. When the teens learn that Hampton House is near their campsite, they decide to investigate—unaware that danger lies ahead.

• Language: English
• Publisher: BHC Press
• Release date: Feb 20, 2024
• ISBN: 9781643973814

Book preview

THE HAMPTON HOUSE MYSTERY

Copyright © 2024 Ellen Alexander

All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced, distributed, or transmitted in any form or by any means, including photocopying, recording, or other electronic or mechanical methods, without the prior written permission of the publisher, except in the case of brief quotations embodied in critical reviews and certain other noncommercial uses permitted by copyright law. For permission requests, please write to the publisher.

This book is a work of fiction. The characters, incidents, and dialogue are drawn from the author’s imagination and are not to be construed as real. Any resemblance to actual events or persons, living or dead, is entirely coincidental.

Published by BHC Press

Library of Congress Control Number:

2023945950

ISBN: 978-1-64397-379-1 (Hardcover)

ISBN: 978-1-64397-380-7 (Softcover)

ISBN: 978-1-64397-381-4 (Ebook)

For information, write:

BHC Press

885 Penniman #5505

Plymouth, MI 48170

Visit the publisher:

www.bhcpress.com

To my husband, Jim,

for his unwavering support

of my literary endeavors.

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Six-year-old Meredith Marsden sat up with a start as a loud crack of thunder shattered the silence in her room. A flash of lightning briefly lit the room, followed closely by a low rumble of thunder. Outside her second-story window, the limbs of a giant oak tree were thrashing around in a wild frenzy from the force of the rising wind. A major storm was on its way. Meredith had always been afraid of storms, and this night was no exception. Her first instinct was to run down the hall to her parents’ room, but she was a big girl now.

Meredith had just celebrated her birthday the day before. Now that she was six, she was much too old to be such a fraidy-cat. Determined to stay in her own room despite her fear, Meredith was just settling back under her covers when she heard the unmistakable sound of shattering glass. The noise had come from somewhere downstairs, and Meredith knew that it had nothing to do with the approaching storm. This time Meredith didn’t hesitate; she jumped out of bed and ran down the hall toward her parents’ room. To her surprise, her father met her at the door.

There you are, Merry, her father, Charles, said anxiously. I was just coming to get you. Meredith’s father, a tall, thin man with dark hair and wire-rimmed glasses, was the only one who called her Merry. It was his pet name for her. Her mother always called her by her proper name.

Thinking of her mother, Meredith peered around her father and could see her talking frantically on her cell phone. Ending the call, her mother, a petite blonde woman, rushed over to Meredith and hugged her tightly. Stroking her daughter’s soft, blonde curls, she whispered, I love you. Everything’s going to be all right. Then looking over Meredith’s head at her husband, she said, I got hold of Agent Paulsen. She’s sending help, but it isn’t going to get here in time. How did they find us?

There’s no time to worry about that now, Fran, Charles answered quickly. Then he gently took Meredith from her mother’s arms. Come on, Merry. You need to hide in the secret place just like we practiced.

The secret place consisted of a small cubbyhole hidden behind a panel in the back of her parents’ closet. Her father led her to the spot and swung the panel inward so she could crawl through.

Okay now, Merry. Someone will be here soon to get you. Be very quiet like a little mouse, and don’t come out until they get here. Promise?

I promise, Merry replied, trying to be brave.

Hurry, Charles. They’re coming up the stairs, Fran whispered in a panic.

With a hurried, I love you, Meredith’s father quickly pulled the panel back into its original position. Mere seconds later, Meredith could hear the sounds of a struggle in the room beyond. She heard her mother scream, and then there was nothing but an eerie silence.

As she had promised, Meredith stayed hidden in the almost total darkness of her little cubbyhole, quietly rocking with her knees drawn up to her chest. Meredith waited a long time before finally crawling from her secret place. Leaving the closet, she stood blinking in the light cast by the two lamps in her parents’ room.

Meredith went to the window and watched as two dark-colored cars started down the long driveway toward the house. They came silently—no sirens wailing and no flashing lights to herald their arrival. The cars were just coming to a stop when the storm finally arrived in all its fury. As the driving rain beat angrily against the windows, the first of many tears traced a path down her cheek.

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Twelve Years Later

I 'm so excited! I’ve never been camping before, Emma exclaimed to her best friend, Martha Merriweather.

The two girls, along with Martha’s eleven-year-old sister, Cindy, were sitting in the backseat of the truck owned by Martha’s parents. They were on their way to their first stop of the summer, a place called Crosswinds Campground.

"I don’t know if you can call what we’re doing camping, Mrs. Merriweather said from the front passenger seat. I believe the correct term is glamping."

Glamping? Emma asked with a frown. It was a term she’d never heard before. But that wasn’t surprising since she’d never been on a camping trip of any kind before now.

It’s a kind of camping where you still have all the luxuries of home—you know like a refrigerator, air conditioning, a bathroom, and so on, Martha explained.

Real camping involves pitching a tent and living off the land, Mr. Merriweather added as he navigated the truck, and the camper it was pulling, around another curve.

Emma nodded her head in understanding. I think I prefer glamping, she said, smiling.

Me too, Martha’s mother responded.

It’s the only way she’d agree to come, Mr. Merriweather said with a laugh.

Emma laughed too and then sat back to enjoy the scenery. They were currently passing through a forested area. Tall pine trees grew thickly on both sides of the road, giving the illusion of traveling through a tunnel. Suddenly the road, which had been taking them steadily upward for the last half hour, leveled out and then began to descend into a valley. The campground they were going to was located near a well-known trout stream. A sign they’d passed a few miles back said the stream offered some of the best fly-fishing in the country. Emma didn’t plan on doing any fishing herself, but she knew that Martha’s dad was really looking forward to it.

Emma was still amazed at how the summer camping trip had come about. Martha had told her the story right before inviting her to come along. It was back in early June when she had received Martha’s call. She and Martha, along with their friends, Doug and Sebastian, had just completed their sophomore year at Dinswood Academy. For once it had been a rather uneventful year—their first such year since coming to the academy in the seventh grade. Emma had just said goodbye to her friends for the summer a week before, so she had been surprised to hear from Martha so soon. Her surprise soon turned to joy when she was invited to spend most of her usually boring summer with Martha’s family. Emma was even more excited when Martha told her that Sebastian’s family and Doug would also be coming along.

The idea for the trip had all started with a phone conversation between Martha and Sebastian. Sebastian had told Martha that his dad was planning a family camping trip so that he could get in some fly-fishing—a sport he loved but, up until now, hadn’t had much time to pursue. After the call, Martha had told her dad about Sebastian’s upcoming trip. To her surprise, he had become very excited. It seemed he was an amateur fly-fisherman himself. He had also liked the idea of making it a family trip. After running the idea by his wife, he had called Sebastian’s dad to see if he’d mind some company. Leo Conners had been more than happy to have James Merriweather and his family come along.

Martha and Sebastian’s families were already acquainted, having met several times at the airport whenever their two teens were leaving for, or returning from, the academy. Having a lot in common, the two couples had hit it off right away. This trip would give them an opportunity to get to know each other better.

Here we are. Our first stop, Mr. Merriweather informed his passengers as he turned onto a gravel driveway. A small building with natural rock siding sat up ahead on the right. A sign that read Crosswinds Campground hung above the entrance. Adjoining the building on the east side was a good-sized swimming pool. Beyond the pool was another building with a sign indicating it was a game room.

You guys wait here, and I’ll go get us checked in, Mr. Merriweather said, opening the driver’s side door.

The occupants of the truck watched in silence as Martha’s dad disappeared inside the building. A few minutes later, he was back with a tag to hang on the mirror of the truck and a tag to hang on a pole at the campsite they’d been assigned. Each tag had their site number and the dates of their reservation. He also carried a map showing their campsite’s location and another paper.

Curious, Martha asked, What’s that other paper, Dad?

Campground rules and the hours of operation for the pool and the game room, Mr. Merriweather answered. Then he looked at his wife. There’s a little grocery store in there, Connie, so if it turns out we forgot anything, we can probably get it in there.

Good to know, Mrs. Merriweather answered, smiling. We’re bound to have forgotten something.

Well, let’s find our campsite and get set up, Mr. Merriweather said, starting the truck up. Sebastian’s family hasn’t arrived yet, but they’ll be right next to us when they do.

What’s the number of our campsite, Dad? Cindy asked.

We have Site 43 and Sebastian’s family has 41, Mr. Merriweather responded cheerfully. Then with another quick look at the map, he pulled out of the parking lot.

The campsites were set up on either side of a gravel road that formed a large semicircle. Numerous trees were scattered throughout the campground, providing plenty of protection from the hot summer sun. Emma noticed that most of the campsites were already occupied. A variety of trailers and motor homes lined both sides of the road. Each campsite was equipped with its own light pole, picnic table, and something else Emma couldn’t identify.

What are those? Emma asked Martha, pointing to a circular piece of metal sitting in the gravel of the site they were currently passing.

Those are firepits, Martha told her. You can buy firewood to burn in them. People like to sit around them at night when it’s cool and make s’mores.

Sounds like fun. Have you guys done a lot of camping? Emma asked.

Not as much as we’d like, Mr. Merriweather answered. We bought our travel trailer about five years ago, and up until this summer, we’ve only used it a handful of times. My family used to go camping a lot when I was a kid. Those are some of my favorite memories.

I’m glad we’re finally getting a chance to use it and make some of those memories for our family, Mrs. Merriweather added.

While Mrs. Merriweather was speaking, Emma was once again struck by how much Martha and Cindy resembled their mom, having the same red hair, high cheekbones, and petite features.

Emma’s mother had passed away when she was five, but she had seen enough pictures of her to know that with her heart-shaped face, honey-colored hair and green eyes, she resembled her mother as well. Emma’s thoughts were interrupted by Cindy.

There it is, Dad. Site 43, Cindy exclaimed, pointing to a site up ahead on their left.

Looks like we got one that’s nice and level, Mr. Merriweather commented with approval.

The site consisted of a large gravel area with the picnic table and light pole on the left side. On the opposite side was a water spigot and a shorter pole with a hinged metal box on top.

What’s that for? Emma asked, indicating the shorter pole.

That’s our electrical hook-up, Mr. Merriweather told her. This campground has full hook-ups—that means water, sewer, and electricity. Unfortunately, we won’t have any cable or internet here. But we didn’t really come here to watch TV anyway.

I packed a couple of DVD players and some movies, Mrs. Merriweather said when Cindy let out a loud groan of disapproval.

Thank goodness! Cindy exclaimed with a dramatic roll of her eyes. It’s bad enough that there’s no internet here.

There are plenty of other things to do here during the day, Mr. Merriweather explained patiently. You can watch your movies at night before bed.

Cindy responded with a sigh of reluctant acceptance. At the age of eleven, Cindy was in those awkward preteen years. There were times she behaved with uncharacteristic maturity, and there were times she acted her age. Martha had told Emma that her family never knew which Cindy they were going to get.

Emma’s thoughts were brought back to the present when Mr. Merriweather brought the truck to a halt and began to expertly back the trailer into their spot. After making sure the camper was level, he put stops around the camper’s wheels so that it wouldn’t roll once it was unhitched. Then he unhitched the camper from the fifth wheel in the bed of the truck and lowered the camper’s stabilizers. The girls watched with interest as Martha’s dad took several bins from the camper’s forward storage area. Using the items inside the bins, he made the necessary water, sewer, and electrical connections. He let the girls help where they could and patiently answered Emma’s questions while he worked. This was Emma’s first camping trip, and she was interested to know how everything worked.

Once he was finished and all the bins were stored away again, Mr. Merriweather looked at his wife and said, Okay, Connie, open her up and turn the air conditioner on. Don’t forget to put the slides out.

What’s a slide? Emma asked.

You’ll see, Martha answered, grinning.

The camper’s two doors were on the opposite side so Mrs. Merriweather walked around the trailer, disappearing from view. A minute later, a whirring sound could be heard as two sections of the trailer’s left wall began to slide out.

Mr. Merriweather watched Emma and smiled when he saw her look of dawning comprehension. The slides make more room inside the trailer once it’s parked, he explained. This trailer has four slides total—two on this side and two on the other.

You’ll see what Dad means when we get inside, Martha added.

Take Emma on in and show her around, Mr. Merriweather suggested. I’ll get Emma’s suitcase from the truck.

I can’t wait to see the inside, Emma said as she followed Martha up the three stairs that led to the trailer’s main door.

The main door opened into a living area that consisted of a couch and two small recliners. There was also a television mounted on the wall that separated the living room from the main bedroom. Martha let Emma take a quick peek inside her parents’ room. It had its own bathroom and boasted a queen-sized bed with a small nightstand on each side. Along one wall was a wardrobe-style closet with space for hanging clothes on top and drawers below. Emma noticed another small TV mounted on the wall near the foot of the bed.

The kitchen was on the left as one entered the trailer. Emma was amazed at how well equipped it was. It had a refrigerator, a microwave, and a gas stove with an oven. In addition to the appliances, the kitchen had several cabinets and a small pantry. A horseshoe-shaped banquette sat