The Mystery at Darcy’s Discount Store by Headline Books / Zoom Into Books

The Mystery at Darcy’s Discount Store

Gracie is ready to begin her summer vacation, but her inquisitive mind takes her on an adventure that lands her in the hospital. Crutches and stitches do not slow her down, but opens up a new opportunity to help the employees at Darcy's solve a mystery. The story takes on a twist when the criminals are caught but merchandise is still disappearing. Gracie has an idea about the thief, but no one believes her. Can she convince the management to check out her lead?

Angie Wilson

Award winning author, Angie Wilson, is a veteran elementary school teacher. Her books, Dori's Gift, and Dori's Activity Book, were awarded a Mom's Choice Award and Mrs. Wilson was a featured author at Book Expo America 2014. She is very active in the Headline Kids School Show Program and visits classrooms throughout the year. She can often be found traveling with her husband, Derek, a church consultant and minister.

Award-winning author and illustrator, Ashley Teets, is a summa cum laude graduate of Alderson-Broaddus College where she earned a bachelor's of visual arts degree with a minor in creative writing. She has illustrated multiple award winning children's books. Ashley is also a portrait artist and muralist. For more information visit www.AshleyTeetsIllustration.com ISBN 9781882658350

$8.95

CAD 10.92

2015 Independent Publisher of the Year www.HeadlineKids.com

9 781882 658350

50895

Gracie and the Mystery at Darcy’s Discount Store

Angie Wilson illustrated by Ashley Teets

Headline Kids an imprint of Headline Books, Inc. Terra Alta, WV

Dedication For my Aunt Bea- who always had snacks, “officing” supplies, and the best mac and cheese

Gracie and the Mystery at Darcy’s Discount Store by Angie Wilson illustrated by Ashley Teets copyright ©2015 Angie Wilson All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced or transmitted in any other form or for any means, electronic or mechanical, including photocopy, recording or any information storage system, without written permission from Headline Books. To order additional copies of this book, for book publishing information, or to contact the author: Headline Books, Inc. P.O. Box 52, Terra Alta, WV 26764 www.HeadlineKids.com Tel: 800-570-5951 Email: mybook@headlinebooks.com Headline Kids is an imprint of Headline Books

ISBN-13: 9781882658350 Library of Congress Control Number: 2015941631

P R I N T E D I N T H E U N I T E D S TAT E S O F A M E R I C A 2

Chapter 1 I woke up with raindrops hitting me in the face. What in the world? I mean, my bedroom is on the first floor of our apartment building! Okay, it could not be rain hitting my face, although it is pouring outside, but what else could it be? I bet that mysterious Mr. Chapman (the tenant who lives above us), is up to no good. I jumped up, dressed and discovered there was definitely water coming from the ceiling, I was not dreaming—it was real. I grabbed my binoculars, rain jacket and a pop tart, told Mom I was going to investigate and was out the door in a matter of minutes. There is something about solving a mystery that makes my day. My mom knows I enjoy investigating around our neighborhood every Saturday. “One day I’m going to latch on to something big,” I always say as I walk out the door. 3

I climbed to the top floor of our building and walked out onto the roof which connected with the building next door so I could get a peak at our neighbor above us to find out what was going on. I quietly walked to my favorite spot—where one roof reaches out over the other. It makes a perfect little hiding place with its own little roof—a just-right place on a rainy day. I must say I was surprised, to put it lightly. Right there in Mr. Chapman’s window was the most peculiar looking plant I had ever seen. It was shaped like a palm tree, with little orange and yellow blossoms at the base. And to top it all off, it had some sort of green fruit growing from the top. I grabbed my binoculars to get a better view . . . and boy did I ever get a view! As soon as I focused in on the right window, there was Mr. Chapman staring back at me, pointing his finger and yelling something I’m glad I didn’t hear. I quickly moved the binoculars around and pretended as though I was just checking out the entire building. I was being as nonchalant as I knew how, I even started whistling. It was then I heard his window open. He leaned out and yelled, “You are the nosiest kid in this whole building!” he said, veins bulging on his neck. “You need to be punished by your mother,” his fists were tightly clinched. “You should never use those things to look in other peoples’ homes,” at this point he began to shake his fists at me. 4

His face grew redder by the second. I stood there looking back at him, not knowing what to do. I had been caught red-handed like a kid with his hand in the cookie jar, and I was speechless. He started pacing back and forth in front of his window. It was an awkward moment as I stood there frozen in my tracks. At last, he leaned out of the window as far as he could get and yelled even louder, “and furthermore, binoculars are not for young girls.” Now, he could have gone all day without saying something like that. I mean really, what does being a girl have to do with binoculars? Absolutely nothing! I had kept my cool and was really proud of myself up to that point, but that statement made me mad. Real mad. In fact, I felt my face getting red and my temperature rising. He was right. I was nosy (although I like to call it inquisitive) and I shouldn’t be staring into other people’s homes, I will give him that much. He was even kind of right about being punished. My mom would not approve of me spying into other people’s homes. But where did he get that binoculars were not for girls? I had to give him a piece of my mind. The next few minutes happened so quickly it is hard to get everything straight in my mind. The first thing I did was jump up to yell back at him . . . but, I did not properly consider my height and the fact I was huddled

in the short end of my hiding place where I cannot stand up without hitting my head on the overhang. I shot up so fast that I knocked myself out when I hit the roof. I scratched my forehead on the dangling gutter and twisted my foot around sideways and sprained my ankle. And, to beat all, there was a board sticking out on the corner that scratched my side. Being a skinny ten year old kid, it bruised three ribs. WHAT A WAY TO START MY SUMMER VACATION!

Chapter 2 I don’t know how long I was there, but I woke up to my mother’s face literally inches away from mine. She was praying, crying and yelling my name and talking on her cell phone to the 911 operator informing him we were located at 504 Richmond Drive Apartments. I felt pain all over—from my head to my ankle. There was something warm on my face, I touched it and realized it was my own blood. I was bleeding from my encounter with the gutter. Mom was trying to clean it off with her big oversized shirt she always wears on Saturdays to clean (with pajama pants, of course). It was a bizarre feeling to say the least. Within minutes, there were two men from the ambulance checking me out and placing me on a bed-like cot they called a ‘gurney.’ A gurney . . . I thought that was some kind of a cow. Oh, well, whatever the thing is called, it was not made for a comfortable ride. And did I mention that it 7

was still raining? Yes, I was really getting rain in the face this time. As I rode along on my cow-bed thingy, I heard all of my neighbors talking to my mom. They were concerned and wanted to let her know that they would be praying for me, well most of them would be praying, all of them except Mr. Chapman who didn’t even come out to wish me well. Mom grabbed her purse and was allowed to ride with me to the hospital, which was such a relief. The ambulance was full of buttons and beeping thingies and it was a little bit scary. They kept asking me questions—silly questions, like how many fingers were they holding up, and what was my name and what was my mother’s name, and lots of other things that I knew. Crazy! As I looked out the back window, I saw our little town passing by quickly—the empty school, the gas station that sells the best hot dogs on the street, the downtown shops, and then my favorite place in the whole world . . . the Golden Arches. My stomach growled when I saw the big ‘M.’ I was hurting from my head to my ankle, but that big ‘M’ reminded me I didn’t have time to eat my pop tart and I was so hungry. I hoped that at least I would get to eat lunch soon.

The speeding little “hospital on wheels” came to an abrupt stop at the ER and I was wheeled inside to a white room. And when I say a white room, I mean a white room. White walls, white floor, white ceiling, white lights, white sheets, white blankets and even white coats on the people passing by! This place was an interior decorators biggest nightmare. As I listened to Mom answer questions, I finally began to piece together what happened. I became so angry at Mr. Chapman that I was just going to give him a piece of my mind. Talk about a plan backfiring. Mom brushed my hair back from my face and shook her head as she inquired, “What were you doing up there?” “Well,” I began slowly. I didn’t want to tell her I was snooping into someone else’s business. The concern on her face, however, made me want to be honest with her, I couldn’t leave anything out. “I was just a little curious about the dripping water that woke me up this morning, so I set out to find out what that mean ol’ Mr. Chapman was up to.” “What do you mean?” “A drop of water in my eye woke me up this morning and I had to go find out what was going on. I figured Mr. Chapman was up to something, so I used my binoculars to look into his apartment window . . . and, uh . . . well . . .he kinda caught me.” 9

“Gracie! You know better than that,” she said as her ‘concerned mommy’ face instantly turned into a ‘discipline mommy’ face. “It wouldn’t have been a big deal if he hadn’t yelled at me. I would have just simply turned around and walked away if he would’ve kept his mouth shut.” “So, are you saying this mess is his fault?” “Yes, it is,” I insisted. “He said something that was not nice.” “So what exactly did this man say to you?” Mom asked with sudden concern. At this point, I thought I had her on my side and she would understand completely . . . so with the biggest “puppy dog eyes” I could make, I continued, “he said binoculars were not for girls and that made me furious.” Mom couldn’t help but smile at that one. She didn’t ‘feel my pain,’ but I kept going while she was smiling, “before I knew it, I stood up to give him a little piece of my mind, and…well…I forgot I was at the short end of the overhang. It went downhill pretty fast after that.” “I’m just glad you are okay. You need to work on that temper of yours,” she said as the ‘concerned mommy’ expression came back. “And, that ‘mean ol’ Mr. Chapman’ called me. He was the one who let me know you were in trouble.” I couldn’t believe my ears. I thought he hated me. “Really?” I babbled with unbelief. 10

“Yes, he said he saw you on the rooftop and you had encountered a pretty bad fall.” It was so difficult to believe he was concerned. We sat there in silence for a while as I tried to wrap my mind around the events of the day. A nurse came in and thought we were bored so she turned on the TV. I just found a station I wanted to watch when my little room suddenly became ‘Grand Central Station.’ I quickly learned the best thing about being in the hospital is that…well, there is no best thing about being in a hospital. But the nurses—they are cool. Even though they constantly did things like taking my blood, checking my temperature or rolling me to get x-rayed, they made sure I was comfy and not in pain. I was a little scared when the doctor used a needle and thread to stitch up the gash above my eye. It was not a pleasant experience. I wanted to sit back and enjoy an afternoon watching ‘toons on the tube, but that was not the way it happened. The day did not get any better until I was allowed to choose what I wanted for dinner, notice I said dinner, that’s right- they skipped breakfast . . . and lunch. I had gone all day without eating anything except a few crackers Mom had stashed in her purse and a half can of ginger ale. A half can, I mean, who buys half cans of soda? And, where else do you drink ginger ale except in a hospital? 11

So, I ordered chicken strips (because they didn’t have nuggets) and fries with chocolate pudding for dessert and of course, a ginger ale. You know what everyone says about hospital food? Well, they are right! It was not anything like the big ‘M.’ The doctor said I had a very badly sprained ankle and I needed to wear a removable boot for a couple of weeks. The boot would prevent my ankle from moving around and causing more damage. Really? A couple of weeks in this thing? I also had eight stitches on my forehead. The doctor gave my mom a folder full of information on how to take care of my ankle and my stitches. He said there was nothing to do about my bruised ribs except try to rest. Boy, I looked like a stinkin’ mess. 12

Chapter 3 Finally, I was released to go home. So, I left with my foot in a boot, walking on crutches, and a bandage over my left eye. My mom was still in her pajama pants and oversized shirt, totally embarrassed at how she looked. I just smiled at her and asked her to take me to Walmart, she would fit right in. She called a cab to take us home and within four minutes a quirky cab driver picked us up. Her name was Prissy de ‘Angelo. She laughed from the time we got into the cab until she left us at 504 Richmond Drive Apartments. Now, don’t ask what was so funny, but she was one lady who enjoyed her job. When someone pulled out in front of her—she laughed, when a person was driving slowly in the pass-

ing lane—she laughed. In fact, she laughed at everything. When Mom commented on her being so happy, she replied, “The Bible says that ‘laughter doeth good like a medicine,’ and I live by the scriptures.” Prissy asked me about my accident and I told her all about my day. The part that really stuck out to me was the lack of food and the big disappointment the chicken and fries tasted nothing like the ones in a happy meal. She just smiled and kept driving. The best part of the ride was when she pulled into my favorite place (yes, the big ‘M’) and turned the meter on pause and took us through the drive-through and let me choose anything I wanted. I chose a chocolate dipped ice cream cone. I must say she just made my day. She dropped us off in front of our building. It was a little difficult to walk on crutches and hold my ice cream, but I managed to get to apartment 107 without missing a lick. It was 9:38 when we got back home. My mom was worried about missing a day of work. She was supposed to work from 3:00 till 9:00 today, and she was concerned because we really needed the money. “I know the Lord will provide all of our needs” Mom said with a smile, “I will call Miranda and tell her I just got back home.” 14

Miranda was Mom’s boss. Most of the time she was pretty nice, except when she’s in a bind, and I’m afraid I put her in a bind today by taking Mom away from the store. Mom works as a cashier at Darcy's Discount Store on the corner of Westview Avenue and Maple Street. It’s my favorite store because it has such good stuff and the cost is usually just a few dollars. It is also within walking distance from Richmond Drive Apartments. I listened as Mom talked to her. I think Miranda understood. I decided I would donate my summer doggie sitting money to help pay our bills. It was the right thing to do. When I got in bed, I stared up at the ceiling . . . where all of my trouble began. I still didn’t know where that water came from, but I was determined to find out one way or another. I thought about Mr. Chapman, he is a strange puppy to say the least. He is retired from the local phone company. He mostly stays inside his apartment. He is not a friendly guy. He’s a loner. I wonder why he didn’t want me looking in his window . . .kind of suspicious if you ask me, but I know—no one asked me. I pulled on my pj’s and crawled into bed and thought about the day and the big unplanned adventure that happened in my life. I thought it was probably the biggest story of my summer vacation, but little did I know what was in store for me in the next few weeks. 15

I closed my eyes and said my prayers. God had been good to me today, it could have been a lot worse. The doctor told us I could have lost my eye if the cut had been two inches lower. My Sunday school teacher says to be thankful in the little things and I was sure thankful for those two little inches.

Chapter 4 The church bells struck seven times on Sunday morning, awaking the town to get ready for church when I heard a knock at my door. “Gracie, are you awake?” Mom called out. “Kind of, why?” “There’s someone on the phone for you.” “Uh… who?” Mom opened my door and held her cell phone out to me, “It’s Uncle Wyatt!” I sat up in bed and eagerly reached for the phone, I only have two uncles in this big, wide world and Wyatt is my favorite. He’s Mom’s older brother who lives in Omaha. He’s married to my Aunt Haley and they have two children in high school. They live in a fancy house in a very nice part of town. He has a great job and he really loves Mom and me . . . and did I mention he was my favorite uncle? He talked for a few minutes and told me they were sending me a care package full of goodies. Aunt Haley talked for a few and said she wanted Mom and me to visit sometime soon. 17

I hung up, smiled, and dreamed of having a normal family with lots of money and a house. “Mom, can we go visit Uncle Wyatt and Aunt Haley this summer?” “I only get three days off in July and there’s no way we could make that trip in that amount of time. Besides, we can’t afford it,” Mom said with a smile, “but we will do something special, I promise.” We had my favorite breakfast of French toast with lots of syrup and bacon crumbled on top and chocolate milk. Then it was off to church. We usually walked to church, but with my boot and crutches, we got in “Old Faithful” and headed down the road, making the short trip to our church. “Old Faithful” is the name of our Toyota Corolla which is older than me and has truly lived up to its name. The mechanic in town is on speed dial, need I say more. I received many pats and hugs at church and Mr. Crowder, one of our neighbors, handed me a five dollar bill. Some of the ladies talked to Mom about my ‘misfortune’ and asked if they could help us with the extra medical bills. Mom assured them we would be alright (because she never takes handouts). I was surprised when she let the pastor and his wife take us out to the Emerald Diner. It was a real treat. How can you go wrong when your meal ends with a warm caramel sundae with nuts, whipped cream and three (yes, three) cherries? 18

This was turning out to be a pretty good day. I sat all afternoon on the couch, watching a “Brady Bunch” marathon and eating cheese popcorn. Ice cream for free, two days in a row— not bad, I thought— but then a pain shot through my ankle and I realized it wasn’t a good way to get a treat. Mom had to go to work at 3:00, so she called Aunt Bea and asked if I could stay with her. She’s not really my aunt, we don’t have any family in Brentwood, but everyone in the building calls her ‘Aunt Bea.’ She happily agreed, so I hobbled up to apartment 214. Mom didn’t want to leave me, but she had no choice. Being a single parent is hard, especially when you work for minimum wage, but Mom never complains about life. Aunt Bea is a true southern lady and you can tell that the minute she opens her mouth. Okay, if you are 19

thinking she is like the “Aunt Bea” on the “Andy Griffith” show, you are so wrong. The ‘TV Aunt Bea’ was not from the south—she had this northern accent going on. She always wore dresses and got all fancy on special occasions and wore gloves, pearls and a hat. My Aunt Bea is not like that. I’m not saying that southern ladies never get all dressed up and fancy, but she’s just more of a normal kind of person. She talks slow, loves to bake, always has Twinkies and sweet tea waiting for me, and I never once saw her dressed up and fancy. She has names for me like, “doll baby” and “sugar” and she always says, “Bless your heart”- in good times and bad. Today, my heart was blessed so many times I couldn’t count them. As she was in the middle of frying chicken and telling a tale about a rowdy neighbor she had as a child, there was a loud knock at the door. Both of us jumped at the sound. Aunt Bea hurried to the peephole. The man on the other side asked her if she knew anyone who was buying used cell phones. She replied she did not, so he went on down the hall. I wanted to get a good look at the guy, but there was no way I could get to the peephole in time. If there’s one thing you need to know about me, it is the fact that I always have a pen and a notebook with me. I usually have a little tablet in my backpack or pocket and today was no exception. 20

I grabbed my notebook and immediately started asking Aunt Bea for a description of the guy at the door. She described the man to me—about six foot tall, dusty blonde hair, a goatee, earring in one ear, tattoo of a football on his shoulder and a gruff voice (which I heard myself). I wrote it all down and sat for a while to contemplate why someone would ask for such a thing. I couldn’t wait to get home to do some research online and find out the uses of old cell phones. I finally got home that evening, after some ‘deeelishious’ fried chicken and gravy with Mom and Aunt Bea. I immediately went online. My search revealed nothing important. Most uses for old cell phones were ridiculous. It’s hard to believe someone would take the time to make a website about stupid ways to use old cell phones. I mean it—these people need to get a life—or at least a job. I sat at the computer for as long as my sore ribs would allow and then called it a night.

Chapter 5 My summer vacation officially began on Monday, because I was use to getting Saturday and Sunday off. Kenzie, my BFF, called and asked if I could go with her to the water park, but Mom said that was not a good idea. So, I sat in our little apartment looking out the window and sulking. If I hadn’t been so curious, then I would be at the water park today. What a bummer! The next two days were full of pretty much the same boring events: wake up, eat breakfast, watch TV, look out the window, go to Aunt Bea’s while Mom’s at work, come home, eat dinner, and go to bed. This had to end or I would go crazy. My ribs were somewhat better, still sore, but not as bad. My stitches were a little better, but they wouldn’t be taken out for nine more days. I was getting much better at getting around with my boot. My crutches were becoming optional. I pleaded and begged to walk to the diner today for fries, but Mom worried I wasn’t ready yet. I asked if I 22

could go with her to work for a few hours, but she worried about that as well. What’s up with Mom worrying all of the time? Maybe it was the medical bills that were already piling up. . . Needless to say, I was on cloud nine when Molly, my mentor from church, called and offered to take me out on Thursday. Molly is a college student and volunteer youth leader at our church. They pair the youth leaders up with members of the youth group to mentor and I was blessed to get Molly. She has the cutest clothes ever and she is not much taller than me, I keep hoping she will give me some hand-me-downs. She pulled in at 10:30 in her little pickup truck and we were off to the mall. Shopping was a little difficult with my boot slowing us down, but we still managed to get to a few of the stores we love. We didn’t buy anything, but had fun trying on clothes and finding the wildest outfit we would never wear. Finally, we settled in the food court for some lunch. As we sat and indulged in some great Chinese food, she wanted to know all about the accident. I filled her in on what happened and she smiled and shook her head at me. “One of these days, your investigative mind is going to get you in trouble,” Molly said.

“It’s just the way God made me,” I explained. “When I grow up, I want to be either a private investigator or an investigative reporter.” Molly smiled and agreed I would be good at either one. We opened up our fortune cookies as we slowly walked down the hall and I couldn’t believe my fortune. It read: “Great adventure awaits those who seek it.” Was that not the perfect cookie for me? Molly’s cookie said, “The road to knowledge is paved with deep thought.” We giggled because we both knew Molly rarely engaged in deep thought. We lingered at the store where everything costs one dollar for almost an hour. I used the five dollars Mr. Crowder gave me to restock my backpack for the summer. I know, most kids don’t think about their backpack in the summer, but I don’t go anywhere without it. I found a new purple notebook with stickers, a necklace with a pen attached (so I would never be without it), a pack of three sticky notes, and two rolls of pink camouflaged duct tape (because it was the coolest thing ever- and a girl never knows when she might need duct tape). Molly dropped me off at Darcy's Discount Store after our day out. Miranda just shook her head when 24

she saw me and invited me to come and hang out in the office with her for a while. Her office was the coolest ever. It’s on the second floor where you can look out at the entire store through a window that you can see out of, but you can’t see in. There’s a big desk with a comfy swirling chair and three big, flat-screen TVs with pictures from security cameras in and around the store. This was without a doubt my kind of room. I could sit here and examine the entire grounds. I was in heaven. Miranda saw the look of awe on my face, so she let me sit in her chair and check things out. I could literally see down every aisle, the cameras can be zoomed in, and you can stop the tape and rewind. “Wow,” all I could say was, “wow!” I sat in the big chair for two hours watching the store from all angles. Mom literally had to drag me away when it was time to go home. When Miranda saw how excited I was in her office, she told Mom I could come to work with her some this summer and hang out in the ‘observation room’ as she called it. I had no trouble walking home, for I was on cloud nine. I spent the next few days at work with Mom for as long as she would let me stay. She didn’t want me to ‘wear out my welcome,’ so half of the shift was spent with Aunt Bea.

Sixteen cameras for me to watch! That was just so amazing. I kept an eye on all of the areas Miranda said were on high watch for shoplifting—beauty supplies, batteries, electronics, and energy drinks. This store only had two visible cameras. They were having a lot of shoplifting going on, so Miranda installed all the hidden cameras to try to solve the problem. I spent most of 26

my time in the observation room writing down shoplifting incidents. I couldn’t believe how many people steal stuff! At the end of each day, there were several sheets of paper for Miranda. Each note was short, but to the point, like“Aisle 3, lady in pink jogging suit, short brown hair, glasses— two bottles of vitamins.” It was a full time job to keep watch. Miranda was amazed at how many notes I had taken. She decided to hire someone to help with security, so early Monday morning we were introduced to Ted. Let me tell you, whoever hired Ted at the security office was off their rocker. First off, he was one hundred years old— well, not really, but close. How can this old man fight off crime? I could do more than him and I’m just a skinny kid with a sprained ankle. I mean, really folks, this Ted guy is a joke. He’s a nice man, but I don’t think he will be solving any crimes soon. Boy, I would soon find out how wrong I was about Ted.

Chapter 6 “Gracie, Gracie, come quick,” I kept hearing this voice but I couldn’t find who needed me. I ran around the store as fast as my boot would let me. There was no one yelling for me, just customers filling their pockets with anything they could get their hands on. I burst through the doors and ran into the parking lot. I could still hear this voice. Every car held people emptying their pockets of stolen items. I was terrified, what was happening? Where was Miranda? Where was Ted? I had to find someone, fast. “Gracie, Gracie, come quick,” I heard again, and it seemed so close. I ran until my ankle just could go no farther and I collapsed at the front door of the store. The automatic door was opening and closing, touching my shoulder each time. I closed my eyes and tried to pray the pain away. Suddenly, the tapping door grabbed my shoulder and shook me hard and was yelling my name. I opened my eyes and saw that it was Mom. She was the one shaking me and repeating, “Gracie, Gracie, wake up!” I realized I had been dreaming. She was waking me up, breakfast was ready and she was running late for work. I sat up in bed and shook my head, what a dream— I was literally in a cold sweat. 28

This job was getting in my blood! Within the hour I was once again at my new perch. Maybe today we will catch someone. I was determined to keep my notebook full. I wrote down every little detail that might help the police. Ted came in and stood beside me. He looked over my shoulder and carefully examined my notes. He smelled like an old man, you know what I meana combination of Old Spice and the lingering aroma of Ben-Gay. He had on brown pants, brown shirt, brown shoes and an old red cardigan with big pockets in the front. I must admit, his disguise was perfect, no one would think he was the security guard. His hair was neat, but a bit wiry and solid gray. He had a mustache that was even wirier than his hair, it was kind of long and hung down a little over his upper lip and wiggled when he talked. He pointed his finger at the top of my page and pointed out there was a lady who matched this description in the store right now. “She has blond hair and is wearing a Pittsburgh Pirates baseball cap. I think she’s getting ready to help herself to the ‘five finger discount’ on aisle seven,” he stated. “The five finger discount?” I inquired. Ted smiled and said, “Yeah, that means she’s gonna wrap her five fingers around something and steal it. It looks like that big purse is where she’s going stash it.” 29

We watched her closely and Ted was right, she stuffed several bags of candy into her purse and some batteries from a hanging display. He quickly turned and before I knew it, he was waiting at the door for this lady. When she started to leave, he took her to the side and called Miranda. I watched as the lady opened her purse and revealed the stolen stuff. The police were called and she was caught. I felt pretty important when the officer examined my notebook. He smiled and patted me on the head and told me to keep up the good work. Not bad for a ten year old, right? That was a great way to start my day and it proved to be my busiest day so far. I was writing as fast as I could go. I mean, really, do people think they deserve this stuff? I never realized how many people shoplifted. I know times are hard, but I’m pretty sure one of the ‘Big Ten’ says, “Thou shalt not steal.” I guess people have been doing this since Moses’ time. There was a guy acting weird in the cleaning supply aisle. What in the world was he thinking? I’m pretty sure he wasn’t thinking, because it was the most stupid thing ever. He came in and walked straight to the aisle and began to open cartons of Drano and put them down his pants. I mean, really? I’m just a kid and I know that isn’t very wise. He must have stashed three cans! By the time he got to the door, he was squirming and scratching and he emptied his pants right in front of everyone. Apparently, the Drano had come open and 30

spilled on him and was burning his belly. Thank the Lord he had on two pairs of shorts! There was another lady who had her little boy placing items in her bag, pretty sneaky, huh? There were several others that kept my pen in action. Then I saw something that made me sit back in my chair and drop my jaw. It was Mason Redding. He is in my class at school. Well, he used to be. He’s a constant pest to everyone and a trouble maker. His name is written on the board so many times, the teacher should use a permanent marker. It’s more than just little things with Mason. His problems may have started small, but boy, have they snowballed. This past year at school, he was suspended so many times I lost count— for fighting, bullying, and that kind of stuff. What happened after spring break, however, got him expelled. The teacher asked him to sit down and finish his morning assignment and he acted all mad. He started yelling and refusing to do his work and then pulled a knife out of his pocket and threatened the teacher. It was weird, I mean, why would anyone do such a thing? I think he wanted to be kicked out of school. Well . . . it worked . . . he was history. I kept my eyes on Mason the entire time he was in the store. Not too much out of the ordinary. He kept browsing in the electronics section. I’m not sure what he was doing, but I wrote down every move he made. He made it out of the store without stealing anything 31

or causing a scene. I just knew he was going to be trouble. I just wonder what that boy’s up to. I had a total of fourteen different incidents of shoplifting recorded by the end of the second day with Ted. He caught three of them, which meant eleven people got away. That was not good; it should have been the other way around. We had to be quicker on our feet. But look at me, how can I be quick? Miranda told my mom she was really impressed with the work I had done and she wanted me to come and stay as long as I wanted. Mom still wouldn’t let me stay her whole shift, she thought I needed some time to relax and chill out with Aunt Bea. The next day, I got my package from my Uncle Wyatt and Aunt Haley. Wow, all I could say was wow. I’m sure Aunt Haley put this box together. It had three pairs of capris, eight shirts, two pairs of flip flops, two church dresses, a new back pack (filled with notebooks, pencils, notepads, markers, paint and a diary), some Shrinky Dinks, a candy wrapper bracelet kit and a mini ice cream maker. I call that ‘Christmas in a box.’ It was perfect. And when I opened my get well card, it was loaded with gift certificates to my fav place- the ‘big M.’ So, I did what any normal ten year old would do . . . I begged and pleaded with Mom to go out for dinner, it was a treat on me (technically from Uncle Wyatt), and it was so yummy. 32

Later that evening, as Mom and I were chilling out on the balcony, I began to tell her about all of the criminals that enter her store daily. She never realized how many people help themselves to the ‘five finger discount.’ I told her about seeing Mason and she said he often came into the store. He was always alone and usually never bought anything. She said she knew he was in my room at school and was in a lot of trouble, in fact, she told Miranda about him because she felt he might cause trouble at the store. We were getting ready to get out the new ice cream maker when she received a call from Miranda. There was a major problem at the store and she needed Mom to come down immediately. We quickly loaded into ‘Old Faithful’ and headed to the corner of Westview Ave. and Maple Street. There was a police car in the parking lot of the store. Miranda met us at the door and immediately took us to the observation room. The small room was filled to capacity. There was Mr. Burke, the district manager, a policeman, Ted, Miranda, Mom and me. I must say that I was freaked out at the sight. They were all gathered around someone sitting in a chair, but I couldn’t see who it was. Everyone was so much taller than me and I couldn’t get a good look.

Mr. Stanley, the policeman, was looking over Mr. Burke’s shoulder as he was rewinding several different tapes and zooming in for a closer look. All eyes were on the screen to see what could be detected as evidence against the person in the chair. The tapes were so far away I couldn’t get a good look at them either, I was just about to give up hope of seeing anything, when Officer Stanley stepped to the side and I was standing face to face with the person in the chair. It felt as if my heart dropped to my toes… had I seen this person in the store?… yes…had I written anything about him in my book?…yes…did I know him?…yes… It was Mason Redding. For the first time in my life, I actually felt sorry for Mason. Whenever he got in trouble at school, I usually agreed he deserved the punishment, but this time he looked scared- really scared. His cheeks were red from crying and his face streaked where tears had streamed down. He looked right at me with a look that seemed to be asking for help. I didn’t know what to do, but I couldn’t stand the stare he gave me. I stepped back where he couldn’t see me and I stayed quiet. “How old are you, young man?” Officer Stanley asked Mason. “I just turned twelve.” “Where are your parents?” 34

“My parents gave me up for adoption when I was a baby, I’m in foster care.” “Who are your foster parents?” Mason looked down and wouldn’t answer. “Who are your foster parents?” Officer Stanley asked a little bit louder. Again, Mason waited for a bit and then muttered something. The officer leaned down closer to Mason and asked him to repeat the name. Mason talked so softly he was almost whispering, so the officer took him to a private room to talk. Miranda turned to my mom and asked her what she knew about Mason, “I know you two know this young man, which is why I asked you to come down here. Tell us what you know.” Mom told them everything she knew about him, including that he was expelled from school and the whole knife story. She said he comes into the store often, but rarely buys anything. Miranda looked at me and asked if I had any notes on him. I pulled my notebook from the shelf and showed her that he was here a few days ago, but did not take anything. “Well, this time, the boy is in trouble with the law and I hope he gets what he deserves,” Miranda stated with no compassion. “He had over two hundred dollars worth of our items in his backpack, mostly electronics, and he almost got away, but Ted saw it and caught him as he was walking out the door.” 35

I was so glad I was not at work today. Now, don’t get me wrong, I’m not friends with Mason. I just don’t want to be involved. I hate that he saw me here. Mr. Burke found what he needed on the tape. He saw proof that Mason took the items and within a few minutes, Mason was placed in the police car and taken to the police station. I stayed in the observation room so I wouldn’t have to be in the same room with him. Miranda came back and told us his foster parents refused to come to the station and they told Officer Stanley they didn’t want him back. She laughed about it, thanked Mom for coming and hoped she enjoyed her day off tomorrow. We rode all the way home without saying a word. I think Mom felt as bad as I did. How could Miranda laugh about this and be pleased? I went straight to my room and knelt by my bed to pray. Mom came and knelt beside me. We both prayed for Mason Redding. 36

Chapter 7 My ankle was almost back to B-F (before fall) and boy, was I glad. The boot was gone! Hopefully, my summer fun would begin soon. I told Mom I didn’t want to go back to the store for a couple of days. I needed a break from the drama. I still worried about Mason and wondered what was going on with him. Mom and I prayed for him every night. I called Molly and asked her if we could do another day out and she agreed. This time I would have no crutches or boot, sounded like a good day. Molly’s pick-up pulled in our parking lot just in time for lunch, so she agreed to take me to the dinercheeseburgers and cheesy fries…that just spells deliciousness. As we were sitting in our booth sipping on vanilla Cokes, I didn’t pay a lot of attention to the couple sitting behind us. We were so busy talking and chatting, that is, until I heard them mention the name Mason. I didn’t know if it was the same Mason, but I signaled to Molly to be quiet so I could eavesdrop. Their conversation went like this… “What are we going to do without Mason?” 37

“Well, one of the other boys will have to bring in twice as much.” “We can always go to the agency and get another kid, the more we have, the more dough we make.” “Let’s try to make it for a while without any more little pests. It’s getting too dangerous. I think Jonathon can bring in what we need.” At this, they stopped talking and buried their heads in their coffee cups for a last big gulp and then walked out to their vehicle. They drove a unique SUV, to say the least— it was burnt orange with a luggage rack on top loaded with boxes. When it pulled out we noticed the entire back was covered with hundreds of bumper stickers. Crazy! My mouth was wide open. Could this be Mason’s ex-foster parents? And what were they referring to? I quickly filled Molly in on the goings on with Mason and we sat there trying to figure out if we had just overheard something important or nothing at all. As we dove into our burgers and cheesy fries I took out my notebook and wrote down everything the couple said. My instincts told me it had to be Mason Redding they were talking about. The more we talked about the conversation we just overheard, the more we felt it was something pretty important. We tried to enjoy our day, but the encounter with this couple had overtaken our thoughts. Molly 38

thought we needed to go tell my mom about it and see what she thought. We caught her during her lunch break and we unloaded all of the new information to her. Mom thought this was very important, so she informed Miranda who immediately called Officer Stanley and within the hour, he was at Darcy's. Molly and I filled him in on the conversation we overheard. He copied my notes and said he would look into it. It was kind of a weird feeling for me. I wasn’t sure if we were helping Mason or hurting him. Molly and I decided to go driving around and try to get our minds off of the police and Mason and the whole mess. She drove me to her favorite spot out of town, a little farmer’s market that sells fresh fruits and vegetables. We bought a bag of peaches and sat in the back of the truck and ate them as the juice ran down our chins- the best kind of yummy is when it drips off your chin. When our bellies could hold no more, we rode back to town. Looking back on the day, I think God placed us in the right spot at the right time. Actually, I know He did, because what are the chances of running into that couple again? At the edge of town is a little storage building full of units people can rent. As we were stopped at the stoplight in front of the building, we saw a burnt or39

ange SUV with a luggage rack and a gazillion bumper stickers at the storage lot. There could not possibly be more than one of those! Sure enough, it was the same couple from the diner. They were getting out of their vehicle and getting ready to open one of the storage doors. Molly and I looked at each other, nodded, and without saying a word, she turned the truck into the parking lot and we started to slowly drive toward them. I must admit they didn’t look distrustful. In fact, they looked pretty normal as they unlocked the unit and lifted the big door. We were driving extremely slow and searching the units, hoping they would think we were looking for our own place. As we passed them, we could see inside, which was fully loaded with boxes and boxes of stuff. We couldn’t tell what was in the boxes. We stopped and watched them for a minute. They were so busy they didn’t notice us. They were taking things out of the back of their SUV and placing it inside the boxes. It looked like a bunch of tools to me, but I wasn’t exactly sure. We decided we had better leave so they wouldn’t get suspicious. I recorded a brief description of the storage unit in my notebook as we rode back into town because you 40

just never know when little pieces of evidence may become big pieces. Molly and I just couldn’t shake the feeling that something was up with these two, but there was no proof. We thought it was best to tell Miranda about it and she agreed. She sent the info on to Officer Stanley. He told her a vehicle like that would be easy to find. The day ended with Molly hanging out with Mom and me for a movie night. We rented a couple of the dollar movies for a girls’ night in. Good food, lots of giggles and plenty of popcorn, it was a just-right kind of night. I went to bed thinking about my summer. It has been a whole lot of craziness- first, my fall, then my ‘new job,’ then Mason Redding… it’s been a mixed-up few weeks. I was looking forward to some normal kinds of things, like hanging out with Kenzie and just having fun. Everyone knows I love a good adventure, you know me, always investigating everything, but I really just need some “me time.” As I lie in bed planning a fun day for Kenzie and me, I felt a drop on my forehead. I looked up and guess what? - The dripping had returned. My mind started running in twenty-seven different directions at once as I tried to figure out what was hap41

pening. One thing for sure, I certainly was not going to go try and look in Mr. Chapman’s window. I thought back to what I saw that morning on the rooftop--a weird plant. Although it was the strangest looking plant I had ever seen, it wasn’t such a big deal. So the old man waters his plant too much and it drips onto my bed . . . that’s not enough to call the police about. Wait a minute-- if that is leaking through his floor, then maybe this is not a safe place for me to sleep. I mean, if the floor weakens, I could be lying here with that crazy plant on my head instead of a few drops of water. That kind of accident would leave me with more than just a sprained ankle and a few stitches. I may end up in the hospital for weeks. I jumped up and started pacing the floor. The more I paced, the more I worried, I had to go tell Mom. I must admit that I opened her bedroom door quickly and as I ran to her, my voice was a little loud as I proclaimed, “MOM, MOM!” She sat straight up and screamed in fear and yelled, “What is it?” When she realized it was me, she yelled, “Graceanne Faith! What in the world is wrong?” I knew I was in trouble when she added my middle name. It’s kind of funny about my middle name. You see, my dad left my mom before I was born. Yep, that’s right-- he snuck out before I arrived. So, my mom was 42

alone in her early twenties with a baby on the way. She knew raising me as a single mother would take grace and faith, so she combined those words for my name. I am Miss Graceanne Faith. Mom was right about it being hard to handle everything on her own and has reminded me of that fact many, many times. “Granceanne, answer me!” she exclaimed. “Mom, I’m sorry I scared you, but I was lying in bed and I got hit right on the forehead again with that drip. I tell you, it may be just a leaky plant, but if water is coming through the floor, then it could be very dangerous for me to sleep there.” “That is what you are worried about? I thought someone was breaking in the apartment by the way you barged in here.” “I’m sorry about that, I was just thinking about waking up with a six foot plant on my head, not to mention all of the wood and ceiling tiles and nails and whatever else is between us and him and it freaked me out.” “There’s nothing to worry about-- that is, unless you run in here like that again, and then you’d better look out,” she teased. “But, I didn’t want to have to go back to the hospital. It really scared me, Mom.” She moved over and made room for me beside her. We laid there for a while without saying a word. I knew I had scared her so I just kept my mouth shut. I thought 43

she was going back to sleep, but then I heard her sniff . . . is she crying? I startled her so bad she cried? I tell you what- grownups sure are hard to understand. “Gracie, I’m sorry we don’t have a nice house to live in. I really thought by now we would at least have a home, but we are stuck here in this lousy apartment.”

I told her that it was okay and not to worry, but I don’t think she even heard me. “God has been good to us, our needs have always been met, but when I look at Wyatt and Haley and their beautiful home, I guess I just get jealous. I always wanted a career, but it never worked out for me. I’m just sorry you are stuck here with me in this cheap little apartment without any hope of anything better anytime soon.” “Mom, I love our little neighborhood. Kenzie is just a couple of blocks away and we are within walking distance of town and our church. I would like a house someday too, but until then, I’m happy just being with you.” She thanked me and promised me things would be better one day. We talked for a little while and then she drifted off to sleep. I stared at the ceiling and asked God to help my mom, because the conversation we just had was not like her at all. She is not a whiner and I’ve never heard her say anything about wanting a career. We have plans of a house one day, but this was the first time I had ever heard her talk about a career. I started to think about how hard it must be for her as a single mother. Our money is usually pretty tight, but we make it. I started to think how life would be different if my dad would have stayed around. Maybe we would have a nice house or maybe a big family. 45

I have to admit I have always wanted to know my dad. It would be nice to just meet him. I have seen two different pictures of him, but that’s all I know about the man. I haven’t met anyone on that side of my family and that kind of stinks. Maybe one day God will let me meet him, maybe. I started to think about how blessed I am to have my mom, because she is a good mom. I thought about Mason, his real parents gave him up for adoption and now his foster parents didn’t want him. I am very blessed to have a great mother who wants me, even if my dad didn’t stick around. Poor Mason . . . no one wanted him. I can’t imagine how that feels. I wonder where he is at right now. I hope he finds a nice family that will keep him. Once again, before going to sleep, I prayed for Mason Redding.

Chapter 8 Mom had the next day off, so we decided to go do something special. We picked Kenzie up and headed off to the lake for a day in the sun. The lake is only about an hour away from our town and it has a big sandy beach area for swimming and sunning. Mom packed a big lunch bag filled with sandwiches, chips, fresh fruit, and bottled water. We had our swimsuits on under our clothes, and our beach towels were packed, so we were good to go.

Kenzie and I swam, covered each other with sand and built sand castles while Mom sat on a towel reading some kind of romance novel. I didn’t think about Mason or the dripping water or anything else that had troubled my summer. It was a just-right kind of day. Kenzie spent the night with me. We made a big bed in the living room in front of the TV. There were two reasons for this: one, so we could stay up late and watch movies without keeping Mom awake, and two, so we would be safe--no ceiling crashing in on us. Mom called the apartment manager and they checked out my ceiling, but still no word on the safety of my room. I may sleep on the couch the rest of the summer. Kenzie and I slept in and had breakfast in bed, or on the floor I guess I should say. Her mom picked her up by noon and then Mom and I were off to work. It’s a good thing I had that relaxing day, because the next few days were busy beyond belief. It started when I went back to work with Mom for a few hours. I was sitting in the observation room, taking notes as I watched the monitors when I got a sniff of Old Spice. I knew Ted had entered the room. He checked out the TVs and my notes and he zeroed in on a man in the medicine aisle. The meds are kept on the row near the cashiers to try to keep the shoplifting down, but there are always some people who will try it anyway. Ted watched as the man slipped a couple of bottles into his 48

baggy-pants pocket and then he slipped out and stopped the guy at the door. This kind of thing went on all day. Remember what I said about being busy? It was a constant stream of thieves all day. When it was lunchtime, Miranda brought in hot dogs for everyone from a church hot dog sale. While we sat around the lunch table, her cell phone rang, it was Officer Stanley. He asked if she would meet him at the station, he had something to show her. I sat there squirming in my seat. I knew it had to be something about Mason or his family because that is the only time he had been to the store. She laughed when she hung up and kind of brushed it off like it was not a big deal. She was only half way through lunch when she got the call, and boy, it took her forever to finish that hot dog. I wanted to push her out the door so she would hurry, but she had to eat a fried pie for dessert. And did I mention that she TALKED BETWEEN EACH BITE? And . . . she not only ate one fried pie, but two… two fried pies in addition to the two hot dogs and bag of chips. And when I thought she could eat no more, she went back to the bag of chips, because she needed “to get rid of the sweet taste in her mouth.” She finally stood up and grabbed her purse and left without as much as a goodbye.

I ran to tell Mom about the call and my theory that it involved Mason’s case and possibly even the couple we saw at the diner. Mom thought I was right, because Officer Stanley had only been at the store that one time as far as she knew. So, all we could do was wait for her to return and give us the details. By the way, there’s another thing about me that you should know-I’M NOT GOOD AT WAITING! I stayed by the door so I would know the minute she returned. I’m not usually a nail biter, but this was one time I couldn’t keep them out of my mouth. Why is it that time seems to crawl when you are waiting for something? I paced around the entrance until Mom made me stop. It was killing me. At last, I saw her pull in the parking lot, so I ran to meet her. She told me she wanted to meet with my mom, Ted and me to discuss the case. Mom went on a break and we all met in the observation room. “What I’m about to tell you has to stay inside this room,” Miranda began, “Officer Stanley told me I could share it with the three of you since you were all a part of the investigation.” Although it was a tense, serious moment, I had to smile at the thought of me being in on an investigation…a dream come true. 50

“Gracie, the couple you and Molly saw at the diner and the storage buildings were, in fact Mason’s ex-foster parents. The information you gave the police was a key piece of evidence in a case that had them puzzled for months.” Once again…couldn’t hide the smile. “Apparently, they used their foster children to steal items from stores and then sold the merchandise on the Internet. The police searched the storage unit and it was loaded with tools, games, electronics and toys. Most all of the products were tagged, a lot were from Darcy's Discount Store. The police took the couple into custody and placed the child they currently had in their care with another family. They questioned the child and he admitted they forced him to steal. The couple would spank the children if they did not comply. They called Mason in and he confirmed the story of the other child. I saw the picture of the other boy and sure enough, I recognized him. That kid was in the store all of the time, but he was pretty sneaky and didn’t get caught. So, Miss Gracie, this case was solved thanks to the information you gave to Officer Stanley.” My smile was from ear to ear, but then it felt as if it just fell off my face, I thought about Mason and wondered what was to become of him. “Where is Mason now?” I asked.

“He was placed with another family just right outside of the town limits. From what I was told, they are a good family and I think they will be good to him,” Miranda replied. My smile returned, maybe he will get his act together and get back in school. Mom came over and gave me a hug, “Well, we have our own little private investigator here,” she said, “Graceanne Faith, I’m proud of you. You were right . . . you latched on to something big this time. Your little curious and investigative mind helped solve a crime.” “Wow,” all I could say was, wow! That was a good moment.

Chapter 9 The next few weeks were kind of quiet. I wasn’t involved in any exciting arrests, so you know, just the normal kind of everyday stuff going on. But, just when I thought everything was cool, there was another issue at Darcy's. Miranda called a meeting with all of the employees. I wasn’t allowed to go, so I just hung out with Aunt Bea. We had just settled down to watch a funny episode of ‘I Love Lucy’ when Mom knocked on the door. “Well, Miss Gracie, I hope your pencils are sharpened,” she declared as she burst into the room, “it seems that the mystery of missing items is not solved.” I could hardly believe my ears. Did that mean that I didn’t do my job? “What do you mean?” I exclaimed. “Miranda informed us today when the employees completed the inventory, there was a huge difference in what they had in stock and what they were supposed to have in stock. She was surprised. She thought the new security cameras were making a difference. She 53

even allowed for a few stolen items the cameras did not catch and the store was still in trouble.” I immediately began to pace back and forth across the room. There had to be a mistake somewhere. There was no way this type of stealing was going on. It would have been picked up on the cameras! “Was Ted at the meeting?” I inquired. “Yes, he was there. He didn’t have a lot to say.” “What? How can he quietly sit there with something like this going on?” I was at a complete loss for words (I know-- hard to believe), but my mind was rolling like a double-decker roller coaster. I ran to our apartment and once again I grabbed my binoculars, but this time I headed for my window. I wasn’t sure what I was looking for, but I was determined to help Miranda solve the mystery. Miranda stated there were so many items missing it had to be more than shoplifting. The store was just a couple of blocks from our apartment and I thought maybe I could scout out and find some clues as to what was going on. I couldn’t see the front of the store, but I did have a decent view of the back. I looked out my window and I couldn’t quite see anything. I ran to the hall closet and grabbed some boxes and pulled them into my room so I could stand on them to get a better view. I still could not see anything. Mom came home and just shook her head at the 54

sight of me standing on three boxes spying out the window. I somehow had the feeling if I could get a clear view of the store, then maybe I could help. I had to get somewhere that was higher than our apartment to see. I told Mom I was going investigating and was out the door. I really hoped she wouldn’t stop me, but I heard the door open by the time I was at the end of the hall. “Graceanne Faith,” she blared, “you be careful this time!” “I will! I promise!” “And, stay off the roof!” The first place I went was Aunt Bea’s. Her apartment is one floor above ours and it would provide a better look at the store. When she opened the door, the smell of chocolate cake was overwhelming. Hmmm, and this, my friend, 55

is why I love this place. Not only is she caring and loving, but without doubt the most amazing cook in the world. My plan was to race to her window, but my stomach wouldn’t let me. I found myself racing to the kitchen and indulging in the yummiest, richest, chocolatey-est piece of goodness ever!! As I was eating, Aunt Bea and I discussed the case. I explained to her about so much merchandise missing, there’s no way it could all be the shoplifters. She sat there for a while as she studied the case. “You know, if it’s not going out the front door, then it must be going out the back,” Aunt Bea stated. “Well, that’s exactly why I’m here. I came to look out your window to see if I can find any clues.” “What type of clues?” “I don’t know. The only thing I do know is that I’m going to help solve this case.” Aunt Bea smiled as I stuffed the last bite of cake into my mouth and ran to the window. I pulled a chair over and climbed on it and began to examine the street. All I could see was a lot of normal kinds of things going on. You know--cars and trucks passing by and people walking around--nothing exciting. I sat there for over an hour watching nothing. It was like a rerun of the most boring TV show ever invented-uh, kinda like a fishing show or something. But still, I sat there with my binoculars in one hand my notebook 56

in another. Once again, I wrote down everything I saw. When someone opened the back door or when there was a delivery, I wrote it down and noted the time. I did this off and on for a solid week. I must admit it was not a lot of fun and honestly, I didn’t see anything that looked suspicious. I decided if I was going to be any help at all, I needed to go to the store. I didn’t think I could stand sitting at the window any longer. I had to get to where the action was. I met with Miranda and showed her my notebook full of back door facts. She looked over it and didn’t see anything out of the ordinary. She thanked me for all of the work I had done and said I could keep working at the store. So once again, I was sitting in the observation room. My notebook was filling up with people helping themselves to the ‘five finger discount.’ Ted was still looking over my shoulder and catching most of the thieves as they walked out the door. One evening Miranda came bursting into the observation room just as Mom and I were preparing to go home. She was so mad. She had just realized there was a box of electronic toys missing from the stockroom. “I know that box was there earlier today, I was talking on my cell phone and sat on that box this morning and now it’s gone!” she exclaimed. 57

Mom and Miranda headed to the stockroom and I tagged along. They marched to the spot where the box was supposed to be and started looking for clues. When I got to the spot, I froze. I knew who had been there. There wasn’t a doubt in my mind. I knew who needed to be brought in for questioning . . . because I could smell the scent of Old Spice!

Chapter 10 For the first time in my life I felt like no one was listening to me! I told Mom and Miranda about the Old Spice and they would not even give it a second thought. ‘Ted is such a nice man’ they would say--or, ‘He’s our security guard, for Heaven’s sake.’ I found it hard to believe as well and I didn’t say he did it, but he really needed to be questioned. When I couldn’t stand it any longer, I borrowed Mom’s cell phone and called Officer Stanley. I felt downright awful, but I couldn’t shake the feeling Ted was in on it. He thanked me for the call and said he would look into it. I spent the next day with Kenzi. She invited me to the water park and I jumped at the chance. I didn’t want to be around the store if the policemen showed up and took Ted away. We had a blast at the park. It was a perfect day for making a splash and Kenzi and I certainly did our share of splashing and having fun in the sun. Her mom packed a cooler of granola bars, fruit and mini bottles of wa59

ter and we ate and swam and ate some more. The day ended with a sleepover at her house and we stayed up all night watching movies. We were awakened at noon by my mom on the phone. I grabbed the phone and struggled to say ‘hello.’ But soon I was wide awake and sitting straight up in bed. I WAS RIGHT! IT WAS TED!! Mom informed me Officer Stanley had stopped by the store and arrested Ted. My stomach dropped to my toes. I had a feeling Ted was involved, but I didn’t want it to be true. My mouth was wide open as Mom told me the story. Officer Stanley ran a background check on Ted after my phone call. He thought I was wrong at first, but he had been in the law enforcement business long enough to never trust anyone. Ted was new to the area, but not new to the world of crime. He had a criminal record. He was a convicted felon and actually served time for shoplifting. Ted moved around from town to town. He kind of fit into the ‘grandfather type’ so no one really expected he had a criminal record. In fact, most people did as Miranda did, and hired him without doing a thorough background check. Apparently, he was sneaking out the side door and loading the boxes into his car. 60

“What was he doing with the stolen stuff?” I inquired. “He was taking it into neighboring cities and selling it to pawn shops. He was making quite a lot of money with his little scheme. You were right, Gracie, we should’ve listened to you,” Mom declared. By this time, I was up and pacing the room. I had a feeling about Ted, but I was hoping I was wrong because I liked the ol’ guy. I was getting used to having him around in the observation room. I was even getting used to him looking over my shoulder and reading my notes. We hung up and I sat back down on the bed. Kenzi had already gone back to sleep, but there was no way that I could even think about sleeping. I should have felt like I had won a victory, the case was solved and once again I was the lead investigator. But instead, I felt horrible. I had a knot in my throat that I could not swallow. Tears filled my eyes and I hid my face in my pillow. I prayed for God to help Ted. My summer was almost over. It had been the most adventurous one I had ever experienced. I had been awarded a “Good Citizen” award by Officer Stanley. Ted had been arrested and had to serve some time. Mom talked to our pastor and he visited Ted in jail. He led him to Jesus and the two of them became friends. There was some good that came out of it after all. 61

One evening, as Mom and I ate dinner with Aunt Bea, Mom informed us she was going to look up information about taking online college courses to earn a degree. It’s something she wanted to do for quite a while, but had repeatedly put it off. “You know what, girls?” Mom stated, “I realized the other night when Gracie scared me out of a year of my life that I needed to start to working toward that teaching degree in order to improve things.” “I think that is a good plan,” Aunt Bea added. “You would make a great teacher. I can tell by how patient you are with Gracie and her friends.” “Thank you, Aunt Bea,” Mom said as she helped herself to some steamed asparagus. She smiled and said, “I guess I owe a lot to that Mr. Chapman.” “Mr. Chapman!” I shouted, almost choking on my chicken, “what in the world did he do?” “Well, if it weren’t for his leaky plant, then my eyes would not have been opened to the fact that I needed to get working on that college degree.” We all laughed at how that silly plant changed my mom’s life. We sat there for a few moments enjoying the fried chicken and mac and cheese as I thought about Mr. Chapman and that crazy plant. “You know what?” I added, “That drop in my eye is what got me started fighting crime and helping Officer Stanley solve a case. If I hadn’t been so curious . . . and 63

uh, inquisitive . . . then I probably wouldn’t have been invited to help out at the store and been in on the case.” “Well, I think you need to bake Mr. Chapman a batch of cookies to thank him. You don’t have to explain-just give them to him with a big smile,” Aunt Bea said. We all agreed that would be a good idea. As I sat there thinking about delivering the cookies, I thought if I actually could get in his apartment, then I could investigate it and maybe find out what is up with this man--if there is anything up, that is. I know I could definitely catch an up-close glimpse at that crazy plant. Maybe I could find out why he has so many visitors. “Maybe I can get a good look at that plant and his apartment when we deliver the cookies. I’m curious as to what goes on up there. I just might get some clues to work on,” I stated. “No,” Mom and Aunt Bea both blared at the same time as they shook their heads in rhythm. “Well, you can’t blame a kid for trying.” Mom smiled, “I will deliver those cookies alone. You are not allowed anywhere near that apartment. I can’t afford any more hospital bills. If I see anything suspicious, you will be the first to know.” I stuffed my mouth with a forkful of macaroni and cheese as I smiled at the thought of this brand new adventure. 64