"Oh, Amanda!" gasped Julie, her laughter echoing through the dusty room. "Isn't it hilarious? We're no closer to solving this mystery than when we started!" Their chuckles filled the air, their frustration momentarily forgotten.
Facing them was the enigmatic portrait that had confounded them: two babies, identical in appearance, gazing solemnly toward a distant church steeple. The twins, likely around two or three years old, had chubby cheeks, big brown eyes, and fluffy golden curls. One of them wore a slightly more severe outfit, suggesting he was a boy.
"Poor little things," Amanda murmured. "Imagine being turned to the wall all these years! Why would anyone do that to two innocent babies?" But Julie's mind was racing, her eyes gleaming with sudden realization. She set her candle down and turned to Amanda, excitement lighting up her face.
"I've got it!" she exclaimed. "Those babies are twins, a brother and sister. The girl grew up to be our Lovely Lady, and the boy was her twin. Something must have happened—something that made her so upset she turned their picture to the wall. It’s all so clear now!"
Amanda's eyes widened as she processed Julie's theory. "You must be right," she admitted. "I thought we were stumped again when I saw that picture, but it actually helps make sense of things. Do you think the miniature was a copy of this?"
"Maybe, or it could have been just the brother alone when he was older. We can't be sure." Amanda had been holding her candle and dust-cloth all this time, staring at the cloth with a determined expression. She suddenly spoke up.
"Julie, do you think there'd be any harm in doing something I've wanted to do since we first came in here?"
"What is it?" Julie asked, intrigued.
"I want to dust this place, clear out some of the dirt and cobwebs. They drive me crazy. And besides, I’d love to see what this furniture looks like without all the grime."
"Good idea, Amanda!" Julie said, instantly thrilled. "Let's come back this afternoon with old clothes and have a proper house-cleaning session! We won't disturb anything important. I'll bring a dust-cloth too, and an old broom. But for now, let's finish our studying so we can focus on this later. House-cleaning this afternoon it is!"
With renewed excitement, the girls rushed out to tackle their schoolwork, eager to get it out of the way. The prospect of cleaning an old, abandoned mansion full of secrets filled them with a sense of adventure. If their mothers had asked them to do such a chore at home, they would have grumbled endlessly. But here, in this mysterious house, it was a thrilling challenge.
Smuggling their cleaning supplies into the old house through the cellar window proved more challenging than Julie and Amanda had anticipated. Amanda had brought a whisk-broom and dust-pan, while Julie carried an old broom and a dust-cloth hidden under her sweater. The disguise didn’t last long; an end of the cloth trailed behind her unnoticed, catching the eye of Max, the curious cat. Lounging on the veranda steps, Max spotted the trailing cloth and couldn’t resist chasing it, much to Amanda's amusement when she noticed.
"Oh, let him come along!" Amanda urged. "He makes the old house feel cozier, and besides, he discovered it first!" So Max joined them as they ventured into the Boarded-up House.
They began their efforts in the drawing-room, quickly realizing they had taken on a far more arduous task than expected. The dim candlelight only compounded their difficulties, casting long, eerie shadows and making their work feel endless. They took turns sweeping the thick, moth-eaten carpet with a decrepit broom, stirring up clouds of dust that seemed to refill the room as quickly as they cleared it.
"My arms ache, and I bet yours do too," Julie sighed after a while. "Let's leave the carpet for now and focus on dusting the furniture and pictures."
They set to work with the whisk-broom and dust-cloths. Half an hour later, exhausted and grimy, they collapsed into chairs and surveyed their progress. Though it felt like a small victory, the surface dust had been removed, revealing glimpses of the room's former elegance. The old furniture, now partially cleaned, hinted at its original polish and grandeur.
Julie glanced at the large, dusty candelabrum hanging from the ceiling and sighed. "Amanda, we’ve got such dim light here with only two candles. Why not light some more?"
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"We’ve only got three left," Amanda replied pragmatically. "And my pocket money is running low again. You’ve spent all yours, as usual. We should economize until allowance day."
Julie’s eyes sparkled with a new idea. "I’ve got it! Wouldn’t it be amazing to see this room fully illuminated by that candelabrum? They say candlelight is the prettiest light. Let’s save up and buy enough wax candles to fill the whole thing. Just once, we’ll light it and see how it transforms the room. What do you say?"
Amanda considered the plan. "It’ll cost more than a dollar," she calculated. "But I’d love to see it too, so I’ll go halves with you. We might only get cheap tallow candles, though. Do you think people could see the light from the street through any gaps in the boarding?"
"Of course not," Julie said confidently. "All the inside shutters are closed and the velvet curtains drawn. No light will escape. We’ll have the illumination as a special treat sometime. I hope we’ll have solved the mystery by then. We’re not very good detectives, or we’d have done it already. Sherlock Holmes would’ve!"
"But remember," Amanda countered, "Sherlock Holmes usually solved mysteries right after they happened. This took place years ago. Considering that, we’re doing pretty well."
"Maybe you’re right," Julie conceded thoughtfully. "It’s not easy after all these years! But I’m rested now. Let’s see what we can do in the library. I’m dying to look at the Lovely Lady again. I think I love that picture!"
They moved to the adjoining room, holding their candles high. The flickering light illuminated the portrait of a beautiful woman, captivating them once more. The Lovely Lady seemed almost alive in the shifting candlelight, her eyes watching them as they worked.
"She's lovely, absolutely stunning!" Julie sighed, her eyes fixated on the portrait. "Oh, how I wish I could have known her! And do you notice, Amanda, she has the same big brown eyes as the girl in the baby picture in the parlor? There’s no doubt that baby is her."
After a time, they reluctantly tore themselves away from the mesmerizing portrait and resumed their battle against the dust and cobwebs of the library. Their earlier heroic efforts in the drawing-room had left them exhausted, and their progress slowed considerably as their enthusiasm waned.
"I guess we’ll have to leave this for another day," Julie groaned at last, slumping against a dusty bookshelf. "I’m just dog-tired!"
"All right," Amanda agreed, her voice muffled from under a large, old desk in the corner. "But wait till I finish sweeping out under here. Oh, mercy! What’s that? I just touched something soft!" Instantly, Julie was at her side, holding the candle high.
"Why, it’s Max as usual!" they both cried, peering under the desk. There, curled into a comfortable ball, sat Max, his front paws tucked under, purring loudly.
"He’s sitting on an old newspaper, I think," Julie said, inching closer. "He always does that if he can find one because they’re warm." Suddenly, she snatched at the paper so violently that Max slid off with a protesting "meow."
"Look, look, Amanda!" Julie exclaimed, brushing off a cloud of dust with the whisk-broom and pointing to the top of the sheet. "This is one of our biggest discoveries yet!" Amanda leaned in, squinting to read aloud:
"'Tuesday, April 16, 1861.'"
"Which means," Julie added, "whatever happened here didn’t take place much earlier than this date, or the paper wouldn’t be here. We need to search for newspapers with later dates. Let’s do it right now!"
Forgetting their weariness, they seized their candles and scurried through the house, rummaging through drawers and cabinets, and finding occasional newspapers tucked away in odd corners. However, each one they found proved to be of an earlier date than the first discovery. When it became clear there were no more papers to be found, Julie declared:
"Well, I’m convinced that the mystery of the Boarded-up House happened not earlier than April 16, 1861, and probably not much later. That’s over 140 years ago, given that it's 2023 now! Just think, Amanda, of this place standing shut up and untouched for all that time! It’s incredible!" But Amanda had turned her attention to Max, who was attempting to wriggle free from her embrace.
"You precious cat!" she crooned to him as he struggled unappreciatively. "You’re the best detective of us all! We ought to change your name to 'Sherlock Holmes'!"