The Jigsaw Jungle Read online

  * * *

  —————

  EXT. MERRY-GO-ROUND—DAY

  There’s a merry-go-round at a county fair. Dad sits on a huge white horse. Claudia is tiny, not yet three, and sits in front of him, a safety belt wrapped around her waist. She’s clutching the pole with her little hands and looks terrified.

  PAPA (O.S.)

  She’s too little.

  NANA (O.S.)

  She’s with her dad. She’ll be okay!

  The bell rings and the ride starts. Dad and Claudia circle around, away from the camera.

  A moment later, they come back around, both grinning. The wind is blowing Claudia’s hair into her eyes. She waves at the camera.

  NOTE TO READER

  THE HOME MOVIES gave me no hint where Dad might have gone, and seeing us all so happy just made me miss him more. Still, Mom and I kept watching, all afternoon. Papa hovered in the doorway. Mom told him to come sit on the couch at least three times. He insisted he was going to go lie down for a bit. But he never left.

  VIDEO TRANSCRIPT

  EXT. PAPA’S BACKYARD—DAY

  Seven-year-old Claudia wears a lavender dress and patent leather shoes with white lacy socks. She’s clutching an Easter basket. Dad holds out a small blue plastic egg.

  DAD

  There are clues inside each one.

  Claudia wrestles the blue egg open. She pulls out a slip of paper.

  CLAUDIA

  “I grow small red fruit.”

  She looks at Dad and smiles.

  CLAUDIA (CONT’D)

  The cherry tree!

  * * *

  —————

  EXT. PAPA’S BACKYARD—LATER

  Claudia climbs a branch of the cherry tree, moving toward a yellow plastic egg.

  PAPA (O.S.)

  She’s going to get her dress dirty.

  NANA

  Don’t be silly, dear. That’s what washing machines are for.

  Claudia retrieves the egg and sits back on a branch to open it.

  CLAUDIA

  “Little animals swim in me.” The fish pond!

  * * *

  —————

  EXT. PAPA’S BACKYARD—LATER

  Claudia stands by the edge of the tiny pool. There are orange goldfish swimming in the murky water. At the bottom of the pool is a green egg. She reaches in.

  MOM

  You made a whole treasure hunt?

  Dad nods. Nana smiles.

  NANA

  He liked to do that as a kid too.

  Mom gives him a hug.

  MOM

  What a great idea!

  Claudia squeals and holds up the green egg.

  DAD

  Only two more clues until the chocolate bunny!

  * * *

  —————

  EXT. BEACH PARK—DAY

  At the bottom of a hill is a swing set and a metal jungle gym, painted red and yellow. Claudia is about nine and hangs upside down from one of the monkey bars, her little T-shirt tucked into her shorts so it doesn’t fall onto her face.

  CLAUDIA

  Daddy! Come play too.

  Her father grabs the bar next to Claudia and hangs for a moment. Then he swings his legs up and wraps his knees around the bars.

  PAPA (O.S.)

  Careful, Jeff.

  Dad hangs upside down like his daughter. But he’s so tall, his hands reach the mulch on the ground beneath them. Claudia, still upside down next to her father, laughs and laughs.

  * * *

  —————

  EXT. POOL—DAY

  Claudia is ten now and wears a one-piece swimsuit covered with watermelons, pineapples, and strawberries. Nana is in the pool, swimming laps. A group of other kids, some about Claudia’s age, gather by the snack bar, eating ice cream. Claudia sits on a lawn chair, wrapped in a towel, listening to her father read a book.

  DAD

  “The sheep an inch and half, more or less: their geese about the bigness of a sparrow, and so the several gradations downwards till you come to the smallest, which to my sight, were almost invisible; but nature has adapted the eyes of the Lilliputians to all objects proper for their view.”

  The lifeguard blows a whistle. Nana gets out of the pool and starts to dry off.

  NANA

  Break is over now. You can go back in the pool if you want.

  Claudia glances at her grandmother and then back at her father.

  CLAUDIA

  Can we finish this chaper of Gulliver’s Travels first?

  Dad grins.

  NOTE TO READER

  WHEN WE WERE done watching the home movies, it was time to go watch the fireworks. But even though they were beautiful, I couldn’t concentrate. I’d done what my father had asked, and now I was even more confused. The videos had reminded me of how much fun we’d had together. I’d always thought he was a great dad, but now he was also the jerk who had left without an explanation. Which one was my real father?

  VOICE MEMO

  Walter Dalton’s Cell Phone | Saturday, July 4, 2015, 11:02 p.m.

  [RECORDING BEGINS]

  Lily, it’s late. We just got home from the fireworks. But I had a hard time focusing on them, because, well, I spent all afternoon watching home movies with Jenny and Claudia.

  Jeff was such a good dad. He did so much with Claudia. Sometimes I think I could have been a better father to him, could have done more with him and—

  Well, it doesn’t matter now. Jenny is leaving tomorrow and then Claudia and I will be on our own. Maybe these two weeks are an opportunity to . . . I don’t know. Better get some rest.

  [RECORDING ENDS]

  PHONE TRANSCRIPT

  Claudia Dalton’s Cell Phone | Sunday, July 5, 2015, 4:16 p.m.

  Mom: At my gate.

  Claudia: Great. Have a good trip!

  Mom: Thanks. I hope you and Papa have a—

  Claudia: Mom?

  Mom: What?

  Claudia: Is it my fault Dad left?

  Mom: Why would it be your fault?

  Claudia: I never told you, but . . . Dad asked me to watch those home movies with him about a month ago and I said no.

  Mom: Oh, Claudia! Why didn’t you say something? Is that why you wanted to see them?

  Claudia: Yeah. I felt so bad I’d blown him off.

  Mom: Sweetie, you’re almost thirteen! Of course you don’t want to hang out with your dad all the time.

  Claudia: But Nana died and I knew he was sad about that. And if I had just spent a little time with him, maybe he would still be—

  Mom: Claudia, listen to me. I don’t know why he left. But I’m one hundred percent certain it had nothing to do with you.

  Claudia: Really?

  Mom: Yes.

  [NOISE IN THE BACKGROUND]

  Mom: My plane is boarding. I have to go. Love you, sweetie.

  Claudia: I love you too, Mom.

  Mom: We’ll find him, Claudia. He’ll come home. We just need to be patient. And it’s not your fault!

  NOTE TO READER

  I KNEW MOM WAS was trying to make me feel better. But I didn’t really believe her. Dad had been gone for ten days—I was tired of being patient.

  Dinner with Papa was quiet and awkward. I hadn’t realized how much Mom talked. We ate sandwiches and chips and didn’t speak. I put my dishes in the dishwasher and went to Dad’s room as soon as I was done.

  It wasn’t even late, but I brushed my teeth and climbed into the lumpy bed. What had I been thinking? Why in the world had I thought watching old movies would help? I felt so stupid. I wished I had gotten on the plane with Mom. I wished I had stayed with a friend or gone to camp or . . . I wished I were anywhere except here, with Papa. We had nothing in common, nothing to talk about.

  I missed Nana, her jokes and h
er hugs and how she always had a puzzle on the table. I’d thought staying with Papa would be better than being at home, where every time I turned a corner, I half expected to run into my father. But no. At Papa’s, I was reminded that my grandmother was gone, too.

  I cried myself to sleep, thinking I would always be where I was, stuck, not knowing what to do.

  Of course, the next day when Papa got the mail, I received a letter and everything started to change.

  MAIL

  Monday, July 6, 2015, 12:45 p.m.

  Item #1: Flyer printed on light blue paper: Family Fun Night at the National Air and Space Museum

  Item #2: Ad for Mama’s Pizza Palace: Wednesday night is half-off!

  Item #3: Letter addressed to:

  Claudia Dalton

  c/o Walter Dalton

  4821 Poplar Lane

  Alexandria, VA 22301

  Postmark:

  7/2/15

  NYC

  Inside is one puzzle piece.

  On the picture side is something shiny and gold.

  On the back are four words:

  PART 2

  The Puzzle

  Jeff’s Puzzles

  Trucks and Cars (100)

  Flowers for Grandma (50)

  Neuschwanstein (1500)

  Leaping Lizards (90)

  The Periodic Table (1000)

  Elephants of the Wild (500)

  Gold Rush (300)

  Jack and the Beanstalk (100)

  Coffee and Muffins (500)

  On the Farm (250)

  Days of the Week (20)

  King of the Savanna (500)

  Popular Penguins (250)

  Months of the Year (50)

  Jack and the Beanstalk (500)

  Treasure Chest (300)

  Little Llamas (50)

  Dumbo Gets a Feather (75)

  The Washington Monument (500)

  The Giant of the Deep (250)

  The White House (500)

  David and Goliath (2000)

  Piles of Puppies (500)

  Midas’s Touch (100)

  Rocks & Gems (100)

  Lemonade Stand (500)

  Ketchup & Kittens (300)

  Seashells by the Seashore (500)

  Milk and Cookies (100)

  Apple Orchard (500)

  Learn Your Letters (26)

  Firemen at Work (100)

  Here Comes Peter Cottontail (300)

  The Titans (1000)

  The Star-Spangled Banner (500)

  Garbage Truck (50)

  The County Fair (300)

  Real Rabbits (300)

  Ice Cream (100)

  United States (50)

  Star Wars: Stormtroopers Stop the Landspeeder (140)

  Candy Bars (100)

  Valentine Villains (200)

  Linderhof (500)

  The World (100)

  Paul Bunyan (750)

  Soccer Balls (400)

  Pirates and Buried Treasure (300)

  Knights of the Round Table (250)

  The Planets (100)

  T-Rex on the Loose (150)

  Jack-o’-lanterns (500)

  Gulliver’s Travels (300)

  Edible Alphabet (50)

  Zebra Stripes (1000)

  Popsicles (300)

  Steam Engines (1000)

  O Tannenbaum (500)

  Marvelous Monkeys (1500)

  Saturn and Its Rings (200)

  The Dollhouse (500)

  Basketballs (300)

  The Wizard of Oz: Follow the Yellow Brick Road (200)

  River in the Jungle (500)

  Roses (100)

  Lilies (100)

  Stegosaurus and Friends (75)

  The Cursed Jewel (200)

  Daisies (100)

  Virginia (50)

  The Smithsonian Castle (1000)

  Orbiting Earth (1000)

  The Grand Tetons (500)

  The Eiffel Tower (500)

  Andre the Giant: The Princess Bride (1000)

  Fire Truck (350)

  Irish Lasses (200)

  Old Faithful (500)

  Luscious Lips (350)

  Golden Gate Bridge (500)

  Beach Balls (50)

  Gigantic Giraffes (1500)

  The Golden Egg (300)

  The Evening Sky (1000)

  Santa’s Reindeer (500)

  Mickey & Minnie (50)

  The Grand Canyon (1000)

  Pterodactyls Attack (100)

  Planes (200)

  Helicopters (200)

  The US Capitol (500)

  The Big Red Dog (75)

  Thanksgiving (200)

  Ocean Adventures (300)

  Animal Alphabet (100)

  Rhinos in the Grasslands (200)

  Lots of Spots (750)

  Rain Forest Friends (750)

  Girl with a Watering Can (500)

  The Gentle Giant (300)

  Trains (100)

  Ballpark Fun (500)

  Grapevines (1000)

  Niagara Falls (500)

  Peanuts and Popcorn (300)

  EMAIL

  From: Claudia Dalton

  Date: Monday, July 6, 2015 1:15 PM EST

  To: Jeffery Dalton

  Subject: The puzzle piece!!

  Dear Dad,

  You ARE reading these emails!!

  As soon as I got the piece, I ran up to the attic to look at the two bookshelves completely filled with all the old puzzles. But I don’t understand! The piece you sent has a blob of something golden on the front. But what does that mean? There are over a hundred puzzles on the bookshelves in the attic. And about half the puzzles have something golden on them. I found the list taped to the side of the first bookshelf, but . . . how do I know which puzzle to do?

  Love, Claudia

  PS. Is this like those treasure hunts you used to write for me when I was little? If I find the time capsule, will you come home?

  PPS. I think you will. Because there was always a prize at the end.

  PPPS. See you soon!

  PHONE TRANSCRIPT

  Claudia Dalton’s Cell Phone | Monday, July 6, 2015, 4:05 p.m.

  Claudia: Hi, Mom.

  Mom: Hi, sweetie. I just got back to my hotel and—

  Claudia: Mom, I heard from Dad!

  Mom: What?! Did he call or—

  Claudia: No, no. He sent me a puzzle piece.

  Mom: A puzzle piece?

  Claudia: Yeah.

  Mom: Why?

  Claudia: I told you how I’ve been sending him emails, right?

  Mom: Yes.

  Claudia: Well, I didn’t think he was reading them. But he is!

  Mom: How do you know?

  Claudia: Because he knew I was at Papa’s. And I mentioned something about that old mixtape he buried in the backyard. And then he sent me a puzzle piece and wrote on the back “Find the time
capsule.”

  Mom: He sent you a puzzle piece?

  Claudia: Yes!

  Mom: [SILENCE]

  Claudia: Say something.

  Mom: I don’t know what to say.

  Claudia: What do you think this means?

  Mom: I don’t know, sweetie.

  Claudia: I think it means if I find the time capsule, he’ll come home.