The Mystery of the Blinking Eye

the carpet. There’d never be room to move around. Who wants to dance, anyway?”
    “I guess just about everyone does, except you,” Barbara said.
    “We’ll certainly go dancing at least one evening while you’re here; maybe in the afternoon, if you’d rather,” Trixie said.
    Bob smiled. “You can drop me off at that shooting gallery we passed whenever you go dancing. I can dance in the gym at school anytime, but in New York—boy!”
    “Honey, is this a nightclub?” Barbara asked. “I’ve seen some of them in movies and on TV.”
    The Bob-Whites all laughed. Then, when Barbara looked embarrassed, Honey explained, “No, it isn’t, Barb. This is one of our favorite restaurants. Jim and I come here often with our parents when we stay for the weekend in our apartment.”
    “It’s a great place,” Jim said. “The Frenchman and his wife who own this call it a ‘family restaurant.’ Mme. Geronne supervises all the cooking herself, and the food is superb.”
    Mart still scanned the menu, his eyes wrinkled in a frown. “It’s a good thing you’ve been taking so much French, Honey. The only thing I see here that I recognize is oeufs. How do I get a hamburger?”
    “In a French restaurant? A hamburger?” Barbara gasped.
    “I always order a hamburger, wherever I go,” Mart insisted.
    “Do you want me to order for you?” Honey asked, looking around the table.
    “Oh, yes, please... a different dish for each one!” Barbara begged.
    “Yeah,” Bob seconded. “If I point to one of these things, it’s sure to turn out to be eggplant or cauliflower, and I hate both of them.”
    Honey translated the menu, then gave the order to an amused garçon.
    “I wish I’d ordered snails!” Bob sighed.
    “Boy! Be glad you didn’t,” Mart told him. “One time when I was here with Jim and Honey and their parents, I saw that fancy item escargots and ordered some. Ugh! Gosh! Phooey!”

    When they went down into the street after dinner, a fairyland spread around them. Whizzing cars threw their lights ahead in a golden blur. Red, blue, and green neon glowed to outline the names of theaters, restaurants, and even little tobacco and candy shops.
    A block or so away, a long line waited at the entrance to a movie theater. The young people took their places, laughing and talking, and before they knew it, they found themselves in the lobby. They found seats just as the feature began. For the next two hours, they sat quietly, completely absorbed in the picture.
    “You could call this whole thing ‘Evening in Paris,’ ” Ned said as they went out into the street again. “First the French restaurant, then a movie about Paris. That old deaf-mute in Montmartre almost had me weeping. Look at your eyes, Trixie!”
    “I just couldn’t help it; it was so sad.” Trixie sighed heavily. “Shall we walk back or take a taxi?”
    “Walk!” they cried in one voice.
    “But around Central Park, not through it. Stick close together!” Dan warned. “It’s dangerous at night!”
    A different crowd filled the streets. Instead of rushing, the people now strolled leisurely. The girls walked slowly; watching beautifully dressed women cross to canopied entrances. They sighed ecstatically as they caught whiffs of imported perfumes. Bob and Ned looked closely at the Rolls-Royce, Mercedes-Benz, and Cadillac cars.
    Reluctantly the group walked on, approaching the side street of small shops.
    “This is where I found my little statue,” Trixie announced. “You can’t see a thing in there now. Just a dim light way in the back.”
    The young people pressed their noses against the window. “I can’t see a thing in here except a bunch of old junk. You must have picked the only thing anyone would want to carry away when you chose that Incan idol,” Mart said.
    “Some queer things find their way to New York City from South America,” Jim said. “In spite of the fact that it’s so near, I don’t think we know much about their people. Say....” Jim’s voice dropped to a whisper. “Get a load of those characters at the next window... the little guy with the scar!”
    Brian looked. “On the move!” he ordered. “Quick! Everybody march!”
    They walked quickly up the street. There were fewer people now and fewer lights. For some reason she couldn’t define, Trixie’s heart beat faster.
    “I’m scared!” Diana said in a low voice. “Let’s hurry faster. It’s a good thing we’re so near our apartment. Those two men