[The Secret of Casa Grande]
[The Mystery of Carlitos]
[Crossed Trails in Mexico]
Copyright, MCMXXXVI
The Saalfield Publishing Company
Printed in the United States of America
CONTENTS
CHAPTER PAGE [I The Mysterious Window] 7 [II The Search Begins] 22 [III A New Discovery] 36 [IV Jo Ann’s Secret Quest] 50 [V The Siesta Hour] 66 [VI Jo Ann’s Predicament] 82 [VII The Promenade] 99 [VIII The Señor’s Library] 116 [IX The Sealed Door] 134 [X Through the Mysterious Window] 148 [XI The Hastily Planned Merienda] 162 [XII Florence’s Surprise] 173 [XIII Into the Unknown] 185 [XIV Ghostly Figures] 200 [XV The Black Box] 220 [XVI More Precious Than Jewels] 229 [XVII The Señor’s Story] 240
CHAPTER I
THE MYSTERIOUS WINDOW
Aroused by a slight noise in the room, Jo Ann sleepily tossed back the turbulent black curls from her forehead and slowly opened first one eye, then the other. She lay staring half dazedly as the solid doorlike shutters swung back, letting the rays of the morning sun filter into the room through the iron bars of the window. Where was she? Why the iron bars?
Slowly her gaze traveled over the room, taking in the high, heavily beamed ceiling, the bare plastered walls, and finally resting on Peggy sleeping peacefully beside her. Everything floated again before her mind’s eye: their long trip to Mexico, their midnight arrival at this great old stone house, and their warm welcome by Peggy’s friend, Florence Blackwell, whom she had never seen before.
The next moment the Indian woman, who had wakened her by opening the heavy shutters, noiselessly crossed the room and began arranging dishes on a small table beside the bed.
“Buenos dias, señorita [Good morning, miss],” she said softly in Spanish as she noticed that one of the girls was awake.
“Ah—buenos dias,” stammered Jo Ann.