The City of Fair Winds

Henry, Jessie, Violet, and Benny sat in their hotel room and stared at a small glass jar. The label on the jar read dulce de leche, and the syrupy substance inside had the thickness and color of caramel. The hotel clock read almost midnight where they were in Christchurch, New Zealand. It was very late for the four of them, especially six-year-old Benny, who let out a big yawn. Normally they would all be in bed, but a recent discovery kept them all awake.

"I can't believe Mr. Ganert is a spy," said Violet, who was eight years old. "Just think. Our pilot! He's traveled to every stop with us and has been telling the Argents our every move. No wonder Anna Argent was able to find us."

"At least it was Mr. Ganert and not Emilio," said Benny, thinking of the second of their two pilots. "I like Emilio's jokes. If he was the spy, we wouldn't get to hear any more of them."

Henry, who was fourteen years old and the oldest, agreed.

"We should call Trudy," he said. "Jessie, will you get your laptop and see if you can reach her on Skype? Do you think she's awake?"

Jessie nodded and unzipped her backpack. She was twelve years old, and she was the best among her siblings at using the laptop. Her skills had come in handy many times during their recent worldwide travels.

"Hmm, let's see," Jessie said. "If it's midnight here, it'll be six o'clock in the morning in Connecticut. We might wake her up, but I think this is important."

Jessie opened Skype and clicked on Trudy Silverton's name. She crossed her fingers and clicked the green button to start the call.

"Let's just hope Trudy has some good advice," Jessie said. "We only have one artifact left, and we're not going to let Mr. Ganert get in the way of returning it."

Violet glanced at the hotel dresser. Sitting on top was a small, plastic box. It was safely locked, just like the other five had been. If the previous boxes were any clue, the last box would hold a precious artifact that had been lost. The Aldens had been sent by Trudy Silverton to return the boxes. She worked for a secret organization called the Reddimus Society — which made sense, because reddimus was Latin for "we return." So far, the Aldens had successfully returned six other artifacts. They had only one left, and the Aldens were determined to finish their task, even if one of their pilots was a spy.

"Hello, Jessie! Hello, Henry, Violet, and Benny!" Trudy's cheerful voice was a welcome sound. The Aldens gathered around Jessie's laptop so they could all see her and wave hello. It was very early in the morning where Trudy was, and her purple hair was a little disheveled. She was still in her pajamas.

"Good morning!" Jessie said. "We're so glad you're awake. We have something important to tell you."

Even though Trudy looked tired, she seemed to be lively and alert.

"Do you?" she asked. "Very interesting. I wonder if it's related to the important thing I have to tell all of you. Why don't you go first."

Henry lowered his voice even though Mr. Ganert wasn't anywhere nearby.

"You remember back in Thailand when we found out one of our pilots was telling the Argents about our travels?" Henry asked.

"Yes, you were all very clever!" replied Trudy.

"We were clever again," Jessie said. "We found out which one of the pilots is the spy. Henry came up with a great plan while we were flying back to New Zealand from Antarctica. We —"

"It's Mr. Ganert!" Benny blurted. "Mr. Ganert's the spy!"

"I guess the explanation will have to be a story for another day." Henry chuckled.

"That's great!" Trudy said. Then she tilted her head. "Well, it's not great that he's a spy, but it's great that you figured it out. Now we know he can't be trusted."

"And it helps Tricia too, right?" Jessie asked. The children had recently learned that there was an investigation going on into thefts around the world. Because Tricia had been seen in the areas of thefts in Kenya, Italy, and Japan, the investigators thought she might be secretly working with the Argents. But now the Aldens could prove otherwise.

"Yes, I will let Agent Carter know," Trudy said. "We now have evidence showing it's Mr. Ganert who is working for the Argents, not Tricia. Tricia will be so relieved to hear the news, if I can ever get ahold of her."

"What are we going to do about Mr. Ganert?" Jessie asked. "Can you send another pilot to take his place? If he stays as our pilot, he could make trouble for us when we try to return the last box."

Trudy shook her head.

"I'm sorry. I can't. That brings me to the thing I have to tell all of you. I received a message last night about the final artifact. According to the message, it's important that the seventh artifact is delivered quickly and to the right place. Even if he is a spy, Mr. Ganert is the best pilot Reddimus has. That's why we sent him with you ... So unfortunately, we don't have time to find another pilot as skilled as he is."

"Can we fly with one pilot?" Jessie asked.

"I'm afraid you'll need two pilots to make a trip of any real distance."

Henry sighed in frustration. "In order to return the box, we have to fly with a pilot who's trying to steal it! This won't be easy."

"No, it won't," Trudy agreed. "But you have outsmarted Mr. Ganert and Anna Argent up until now, and you didn't even know there was a spy traveling with you. I know you will be able to outsmart him one last time."

"He might be extra grumpy because this will be his last chance to steal a Reddimus artifact," Henry said. "What if he tries something desperate?" "Desperate people make more mistakes than patient ones," Trudy said. "Remember that and focus on yourselves. Take your time making good decisions. If you do, I'm sure you will have the last artifact returned in no time, and then we will deal with Mr. Ganert."

They said their good-byes, and Jessie closed the laptop with a big yawn.

"We had better get some rest," she said.

"Yes," said Henry. "Tomorrow will be another big day."

"I hope we find out our next destination soon," Violet added. Jessie's sleepiness was contagious, and Violet yawned too.

Benny would have agreed, but he had already fallen asleep.

The next morning, the Aldens got ready for a day of travel. They had been traveling for so long that it had become habit to expect a plane ride on the Reddimus jet.

Benny was ready first, and he inspected the jar of dulce de leche while he waited for his brother and sisters. The liquid in the jar was thick like honey. It reminded Benny of the topping on Mrs. McGregor's caramel apple pie. His stomach growled.

"Jessie, can I please try some of the dulce de leche?" he asked. "The jar wasn't in the Reddimus box, so it's not the artifact we have to return. It should be okay to taste just a little bit, right?" Jessie laughed. "You're right. The jar is probably a treat for us to try. But I don't want you to eat too much. It will spoil your appetite."

The lid was on tight, so Jessie helped Benny open it. They...