The Vanderbeekers and the Hidden Garden by Karina Yan Glaser

Author:Karina Yan Glaser
Language: eng
Format: epub
Publisher: Houghton Mifflin Harcourt

* * *

After lunch, they got ready to leave again.

“Where are you disappearing to all day?” Mama asked as she pulled a load of laundry from the dryer. She had been washing Miss Josie’s laundry for her and bringing fresh clothes to the hospital every day.

“The park, the playground . . . you know,” Jessie said vaguely.

Mama eyed Papa. “You should go with them and get some fresh air. It’s a beautiful day.”

The Vanderbeeker kids froze. If Papa came with them, they would actually have to go to the playground instead of their garden.

“I’m injured!” Papa reminded her. He didn’t budge from his spot on the couch.

“He needs rest and ibuprofen,” Hyacinth suggested. She ran to the bathroom to get the medicine and was back in five seconds.

“Thank you, sweetie,” Papa said. “I’m glad someone understands my pain.”

Hyacinth leashed Franz, his tail at 150 wags per minute, or wpm, and then she and her siblings went out the door. Orlando was already on the stoop having a conversation with Mr. Beiderman, who was hanging out one of the third-floor windows.

“Where are you going?” Mr. Beiderman was yelling down to Orlando.

“Just for a walk, sir!” Orlando yelled up at him.

“Hi, Mr. Beiderman!” Hyacinth yelled.

“I don’t want to see any more skinned knees, you hear?” Mr. Beiderman said. “And take these gloves with you, just in case!” Before anyone could register what was happening, gardening gloves—really nice ones with rubber grips and elastic around the wrist—rained down around them. Mr. Beiderman had thrown them from the third floor.

“Wow! Thanks, Mr. B!” the kids chorused, casting puzzled looks at one another. Was this just coincidence? Hyacinth wanted to ask how Mr. Beiderman knew they were gardening, but he had already disappeared from sight and she heard the window slam. She shrugged at her siblings, and they went down the street toward the church.

“When do you want the garden to be ready?” Orlando asked.

Jessie shrugged. “In time for Isa to get home in two weeks. But now I’m not sure Mr. Jeet will be back by then.”

“He’ll be back,” Oliver said with certainty. “He has to be.”

“I think we can get the main part done,” Orlando said. “It’ll be a lot of work, though.”

“I can’t wait to plant Tilia of the Eternal Spring,” Hyacinth said.

“And Paganini food,” Laney chimed in, bouncing from foot to foot.

“We’ve got to get rid of all the weeds first,” Jessie said. “Then we can talk about what we should plant.”

Oliver let them inside the gate and they got to work. Hyacinth noticed that it was a lot easier to pull weeds and pick up trash with the nice gardening gloves on. How had Mr. Beiderman known they needed them?

Hyacinth was working near the fence line with Laney, ripping out a particularly stubborn weed, when she heard the telltale clicks of fancy shoes.

She froze.

“What’s wrong?” Laney asked as she sifted through the dirt to look for pretty rocks for her collection.

Hyacinth put her finger to her lips. Laney shrugged and continued her search.

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