Pinky Bloom and the Case of the Missing Kiddush Cup Page 3

  “Pinky is a detective and I’m her helper,” Avi declared. “We’re solving a mystery.”

  I elbowed Avi in the ribs. This case was top secret, and I wanted it to stay that way.

  “Well, that’s very exciting,” Mr. Federman said. “And what is it you’re working on, might I ask?”

  Luckily, Avi didn’t get a chance to answer Mr. Federman because at that moment our train pulled into the station. It came to a screeching stop in front of us, and the doors slid open.

  We hurried inside and found a bench along the wall that was big enough for all of us to sit together.

  “Sit here, Mr. Federman,” Madame Olga said. “There’s plenty of room.”

  “Where are you and these charming children going?” he asked.

  Avi told Mr. Federman we were going to the New York Aquarium. “We’re looking for the Hat Lady,” he said. “So Lucy doesn’t have to move.”

  “The New York Aquarium!” exclaimed Mr. Federman. “How lovely. I haven’t been there in so long.”

  “Why don’t you join us?” Madame Olga suggested.

  Mr. Federman beamed. “I’d be delighted.”

  I looked out the window . . . and saw Joe the Waiter! He hopped onto our train just as the doors were about to close!

  Chapter Thirteen

  The train came to a stop at the Coney Island Station. When we stepped out onto the platform, I looked around for Joe the Waiter, but I didn’t see him. Maybe he’d stayed on the train.

  When we got to the aquarium entrance, Mr. Federman was first in line to buy tickets. “Three children and two adults, please,” he said, winking at us. “This will be my treat.”

  Madame Olga leaned over and whispered in my ear, “Such a mensch! A good man.”

  We thanked Mr. Federman. Then Madame Olga asked the ticket seller how to get to the Seaside Restaurant.

  “Sorry, the restaurant has been closed for renovations,” she said. “It’ll reopen tomorrow afternoon.”

  I groaned. Our biggest lead had dried up!

  Madame Olga said, “Not to worry, darlings. We can still enjoy the aquarium.”

  The ticket seller suggested we start at Conservation Hall. “It’s where we have the largest collection of fish from all over the world,” she said.

  We walked over to Conservation Hall. Inside were aquariums filled with hundreds of amazing, colorful fish.

  Madame Olga was across the room from us, standing in front of a huge tank. “Over here, darlings,” she called out. “Look, I found the carp. On Passover, Lucy, we use it to make gefilte fish.”

  We all crowded around and watched as a school of carp swam in and out of seaweed.

  “There’s an ancient Chinese legend that says carp leap over waterfalls and change into dragons!” Lucy told us.

  “There’s no such thing as a dragon,” Avi said. “Only Komodo dragons are real, and they live on an island in the ocean and eat snakes and rats.”

  Lucy didn’t seem to mind how obnoxious Avi was acting. “Carp also bring riches and success to the people who own them,” she added cheerfully.

  I might have to ask for a fish tank filled with carp next Hanukkah.

  Avi put his nose close to the tank’s glass. “The fish don’t have anything to play with,” he said.

  I shrugged. “They’re having fun swimming in and out of the rock formations.”

  “But Pinky, the fish in the restaurant’s aquarium had a toy in their tank.”

  Mr. Federman quickly jumped in. “I think the sea lion show is about to start,” he said. “We don’t want to miss that, do we?”

  I looked over at Mr. Federman. His face was as green as the seaweed in the carp’s tank!

  Chapter Fourteen

  We walked out of Conservation Hall just as a voice on the PA system announced that the sea lion show would start in twenty minutes. “That’s lots of time!” said Avi. “Let’s go back—”

  “What if we look at some of the other outdoor exhibits instead?” suggested Mr. Federman.

  At the Touch Pool, Avi dipped his hands into the water. “I touched a stingray!” he said proudly. “It was slimy and yucky.”

  Next we stopped and watched the penguins. They waddled around on the edge of the pool, and then they dove in.

  “Okay, now it really is time for the sea lion show,” Mr. Federman said, looking at his watch.

  We walked over to the Aquatheater, where the show was being held. Tall metal bleachers surrounded a large swimming pool. We climbed up the steep stairs and sat down in our seats.

  Lucy, Madame Olga, and Avi were on one side of me. And on my other side was Mr. Federman. Madame Olga leaned over and handed each of us a sandwich wrapped in waxed paper. “Eat up before the show starts. If you want more, I have.”

  As I happily munched on my salami sandwich, I realized this was the perfect time to interview Mr. Federman about the case. “Do you go to the Lotus Blossom a lot?” I asked him.

  “I’ve been there a few times since it opened,” he said. “Do you and your family eat there often?”

  “Lucy’s parents own it, so we like it. The food tastes good, but Avi doesn’t like to eat the vegetables.”

  Mr. Federman stared at me. “What happens to his leftovers?”

  “We take them home, and then I hide them in the refrigerator,” Avi chimed in.

  My mom still hadn’t found Avi’s leftovers, and by now they were probably growing green hairy mold.

  I shot Avi an irritated look. How was I supposed to interview this witness properly if my brother interrupted me?

  Mr. Federman looked as if he wanted to say something else, but at that moment, music blasted, and the show began.

  A trainer in waterproof coveralls and rubber boots stepped out onto a platform suspended over the swimming pool. “Good morning, folks,” she said. “My name is Martha, and this is Bernie.”

  Bernie was a brown sea lion. He waddled over to Martha. Then she bent down and shook his flipper.

  Martha asked Bernie if he wanted to go for a swim. He bobbed his head and slid into the pool.

  We all cheered as we watched Bernie swim in circles.

  And when Martha blew her whistle, he climbed out of the pool and waddled back over to her. “Take a bow, Bernie,” Martha said and rewarded him with a fish.

  Next Martha asked for a volunteer from the audience. “Who would like to perform with Bernie?”

  “Oh, pick me!” Avi shouted, waving his hand. “I like all animals, but I love sea lions the best.”

  “She doesn’t see you, Avi,” I said. “We’re too high up.”

  Lucy and I also tried waving, but Martha gave the nod to a man in the front row.

  The man hesitated, but then he got up from his seat and walked over to Martha and Bernie.

  She whispered something in the man’s ear. Then she leaned down and said, “Bernie, let’s see what you have for this nice gentleman.”

  The man bent down, and Bernie planted a kiss on his cheek.

  Everyone in the audience laughed, except for me. I was too busy digging through my backpack for my binoculars.

  I focused them on the man Bernie had kissed. “Just as I thought,” I said to myself. “It’s Joe the Waiter!”

  Chapter Fifteen

  At the end of the show, I grabbed Lucy’s hand and together we ran down the bleacher steps.

  “You look for him over there,” I said, pointing to the row of seats where Joe had been sitting. “I’ll go question Martha.”

  I had to find Joe the Waiter and ask him why he was showing up everywhere we went.

  Bernie was swimming in the pool while Martha put away props from the show.

  “Excuse me,” I said. “Do you know where the man you picked from the audience went?”

  Bernie hopped out of the pool. He must’ve thought it was showtime.

  “The show’s over, Bernie,” Martha told him. “Now, who is it you’re looking for, young lady?”

  “The man who was just her
e. You know, Bernie gave him a kiss.”

  “Oh, that man. I’m not sure where he went. I’m sorry I can’t help you.”

  Martha walked away carrying the bucket of fish, with Bernie following close behind.

  Lucy hurried over. “I looked everywhere, but I didn’t see Joe the Waiter. Did you find out anything?”

  “No—I think Bernie knows where he is, but he’s not talking!”

  “He probably just went to work, Pinky. The restaurant opens soon.”

  I had to come up with another plan since the only thing I learned at the aquarium was how to get a sea lion to do tricks.

  “Lucy, do you think we could have dinner at your parents’ restaurant tonight?”

  “Of course!”

  Great, now I just had to find Madame Olga and tell her the plan.

  Madame Olga, Mr. Federman, and Avi were waiting for us outside the Aquatheater.

  “Nu, where did you two disappear all of a sudden?” Madame Olga asked.

  Lucy spoke up first. “My parents invited everyone to have dinner at the restaurant tonight, and it’s their treat.”

  Madame Olga handed me her cell phone. “First, Pinky, you’ll call your mother. See if it’s all right by her.”

  I called home, and Grandma Phyllis answered the phone. “What, more Chinese food?” she said. “Avi’s leftovers are still sitting in the refrigerator. Wait, I’ll go see if they’re good.”

  “Grandma, listen . . .”

  “It’ll just take me a minute. Don’t be so impatient, Pinky.” After a few seconds she got back to me. “Pinky, something’s not right . . .”

  “I know, Grandma, throw them away. Avi won’t care. I have to go now. Bye.”

  I handed the phone back to Madame Olga. “Grandma Phyllis said we can go to the restaurant,” I fibbed.

  “Would you like to join us, Mr. Federman?” asked Madame Olga.

  Mr. Federman smiled, but he had an odd look in his eyes. “I’d love to.”

  Avi took me aside. “Pinky, why are we going there again?”

  “I want to question Joe the Waiter, and I’m hoping the Hat Lady will show up.”

  “T-i-x-e is this way,” Avi said, reading the aquarium’s exit sign backwards.

  “Stop doing that,” I yelled. “It’s so annoying!” “Y-a-k-o, Y-k-n-i-p,” Avi said, with a sly grin.

  “Let’s take a shortcut through the parking lot,” Mr. Federman suggested. “We’ll get to the train station faster that way.”

  As we headed across the parking lot, I noticed a bakery truck parked in the space reserved for deliveries. Suddenly the hairs on my head stood on end. The name on the truck was Mazer’s Bakery!

  Chapter Sixteen

  We all rode the subway back to our neighborhood and walked to the Lotus Blossom Kosher Chinese Restaurant.

  Mazer’s Bakery was next door, but since it was Sunday night, there was a Closed sign on the window.

  I peeked inside and saw bare shelves and empty display cases.

  Lucy came up behind me. “What are you looking for?” she said.

  “I wanted to ask Mrs. Mazer about the delivery truck parked at the aquarium, but no one’s here.”

  “Let’s go, I’m hungry,” Avi complained, tugging on my arm.

  “Wait,” I said. “Don’t you think it would be weird for the aquarium to order baked goods from Mazer’s and from the Hat Lady’s place? Wouldn’t they just get everything from one business?”

  “What are you getting at, Pinky?” asked Lucy.

  “What if the place the Hat Lady works for—the place that makes your fortune cookies—is actually Mazer’s?”

  Lucy looked puzzled. “But the boxes of cookies said it was the Rezam Fortune Cookie Company, not Mazer’s.”

  “Hey!” Avi shouted. “M-a-z-e-r spelled backwards is Rezam.”

  Wow! That made sense, though I hated to admit he was right.

  “Yoo-hoo!” called Madame Olga up ahead. “What’s keeping you, darlings?”

  “Let’s keep this to ourselves for the moment,” I whispered to Lucy and Avi. “We still need proof.”

  We walked into the restaurant, and Mrs. Wong immediately led us toward our table. But I hung back in the entryway.

  I walked over to the fish tank, pressed my nose against the glass, and watched as one of the fish pecked at the gravel in the bottom of the tank.

  Something Avi had said was bugging me . . .

  Aha!

  Once I’d found what I was looking for, I rushed over to join the others at a large round table close to the entryway. Before I could say anything, Avi reached into his backpack and pulled out his hand sanitizer. “Who wants to use this?” he said, unscrewing the cap.

  “Don’t use it all up, Avi,” I warned. “It belongs to Grandma Phyllis.”

  No sooner had those words left my mouth than Grandma Phyllis walked into the restaurant and marched over to our table!

  Chapter Seventeen

  “Can someone please tell me the meaning of this?” she demanded, holding a white takeout container.

  “I can explain, Grandma,” Avi stammered. “I didn’t want to eat the vegetables, so I put it in the back of the refrigerator where Mom wouldn’t find it.”

  Grandma Phyllis looked at Avi as if he was a Martian. “What leftovers, Avi? Here’s what I’m talking about.”

  She reached into the takeout container and pulled out a gold Kiddush cup!

  Mr. Federman lunged for the cup. “I believe that belongs to me,” he said. “I’m so glad you found it!”

  Grandma Phyllis took a few steps backward. “I beg your pardon, sir, but isn’t this the Kiddush cup that was taken from the Jewish Museum last week?”

  “Perhaps your granddaughter knows something about that, ma’am,” Mr. Federman said. “I believe she was the one who took that container from this restaurant and brought it home.”

  Avi jumped up from his seat. “You’re mean, Mr. Federman! My sister didn’t put a Kiddush cup in my leftovers.”

  Avi sat back down, and his arm bumped the open bottle of hand sanitizer. Smelly goo spread across the table and dripped down onto the floor.

  Joe the Waiter appeared out of nowhere. “Hands up, Federman!” he barked. “You’re under arrest for robbing the Jewish Museum.”

  Mr. Federman looked surprised. “You’ve got the wrong man, officer!” he said. “I had nothing to do with the robbery.”

  “Nice try,” Officer Joe said. “But your accomplice, Mrs. Wong, gave you up.”

  Mr. Federman bolted out of his seat and tried to make a run for it—but he slipped on the hand sanitizer that puddled on the floor.

  In one swift move Mr. Federman slid feetfirst into the restaurant’s aquarium. Glass shattered. Gallons of water and fish spilled out onto the floor.

  Avi grabbed a water glass from the table and tried to save the fish that were flopping around.

  Lucy turned to me. “Pinky, is it always this exciting when you’re on a case?”

  Madame Olga fanned herself with a menu. “Oy! I’m a little farklempt,” she said. “Who knew he was a no-goodnik?”

  Officer Joe grabbed hold of Mr. Federman by the seat of his pants and slapped on a pair of handcuffs.

  “Wait a minute,” I shouted. “There’s one more piece of unfinished business.”

  I waded through shards of glass and puddles of water until I found what I was looking for.

  “I think you’ll want this for evidence,” I said, handing Officer Joe a silver Torah pointer. “It was hidden in the fish tank.”

  Suddenly the smoke alarm went off. A woman wearing a floppy hat and sunglasses ran out of the kitchen with Chef Wong chasing her.

  “You made trouble for the restaurant!” he shouted. “I’ll turn you into moo goo gai pan!”

  “That’s her,” Avi cried. “It’s the Hat Lady!”

  The woman stopped in her tracks and looked around at the chaos. “Hey, what’s going on here?”

  “Welcome to the party, Mrs.
Mazer,” I said. “You have some explaining to do!”

  Chapter Eighteen

  The next Sunday, Lucy’s parents invited my family to be their guests at the Lotus Blossom Kosher Chinese Restaurant again. Our meal would be their treat since Avi and I had helped save their business.

  Mrs. Wong was gone, but Lucy’s mom and dad were waiting to greet us in the entryway.

  “Welcome, Pinky,” Mrs. Chang said. “It’s an honor to have a famous detective eating dinner with us tonight.”

  “Thank you, Mrs. Chang,” I said. “I’m glad I could help out because now Lucy won’t have to move away.”

  “And you can borrow my sweatshirt anytime you want!” Lucy added.

  “Are you going to get a new fish tank?” Avi asked Mr. Chang.

  “Yes, we are, Avi. And you can help us pick out some new fish.” Mrs. Chang showed us to our table. “Enjoy your dinner,” she said. “Someone will be here shortly to take your order.”

  “Pinky, will Officer Joe be our waiter?” Avi wanted to know. “I really liked him.”

  “He can’t because he’s busy being a police officer,” I said. “But he can still be our friend.”

  “I’m curious, Pinky,” Mom said. “Why was the Torah pointer in the fish tank?”

  “Mrs. Wong was hiding it there until Mr. Federman was ready to sell it. They figured no one would think to look for a stolen artifact there.”

  I had to give Avi credit. He was the one who’d first noticed there was something besides fish in the restaurant’s fish tank. But I was the one who figured out it was stolen goods.

  “Their plan worked like this,” I went on. “Mr. Federman was in charge of the special exhibit, so he knew how valuable the Kiddush cup and the Torah pointer were. He could’ve just stolen them himself, but he was worried about getting caught. So he had Mrs. Wong do the stealing for him. Then she brought the stolen goods to the restaurant. Mr. Federman was supposed to come here to eat, sneak them out of the restaurant, and sell them one at a time. Then they’d split the profits.”

  “So how did the Kiddush cup wind up in Avi’s leftovers?” Grandma Phyllis said.