The Case of the Crafty Christmas Crooks

by Cindy Vincent

  "Well," I said. "I just found out about Christmas today. And I don't understand why it's so important to everyone. People are decorating or making cookies or buying presents and all kinds of things. And Christmas is so important that some people want to hurt other people by stealing their presents. Because it seems like stealing Christmas presents is worse than stealing any other kinds of presents. So, why is Christmas so important to everyone?"

  The Wise One nodded. "Ah, yes, Grasshopper. I can see where it would all be rather perplexing. And yes, you are correct, Christmas is a very important day. And the Christmas season is one of great celebration."

  "But why?" I stood up straight and looked her in the eyes. I couldn't believe how I was acting around one so revered as the Wise One! Yet for some strange reason, I couldn't seem to control myself.

  And I couldn't seem to keep my mouth shut. "What are we celebrating?" I went on. "Bogey says it's a birthday party. Is it? And whose birthday is it?"

  Miss Mokie gave me a small smile. Then she held up her paw, as though asking for silence.

  I hunched down, with my front legs before me. Ready to listen to whatever wise words she might send my way.

  Miss Mokie looked from me to the Princess, and then back to me again. "Ah, yes," she said. "You might think of it as a birthday party. After all, Christmas is the time when we celebrate the birth of baby Jesus. A long, long time ago, Jesus was born in a stable in Bethlehem. His Mother and Father had traveled for many miles and many days to get to Bethlehem. And when they arrived and tried to find a place to stay, there weren't any rooms left in the whole city. So an innkeeper let them stay in his stable, and that's where Jesus was born. His Mom laid him in a manger filled with straw, which made a nice soft bed for him."

  I'm sure my eyes went really wide right about then. "In a stable? With animals?"

  Miss Mokie nodded. "Yes, that is correct, young one. With animals."

  I scooted a little closer to her. "Cats, too?"

  The Wise One sat back on her haunches. "Ah, yes, amongst us cats there is a legend of a tabby cat who lived in the stable. And much like many cats desire to be helpful, this cat wanted to help care for the newborn baby Jesus. So the cat bathed and bathed and bathed himself first, so his fur was nice and clean and shiny. Then he climbed into the manger and cuddled in next to baby Jesus, to keep the baby warm. The cat started to purr nice and loud, and that made baby Jesus fall fast asleep. His mother, Mary, was very grateful to that tabby cat."

  My mouth fell open wide. For once, no more words came out.

  But Miss Mokie still had lots more to say. "On the night when Jesus was born, there was an enormous, bright star in the sky. The brightest and biggest star that anyone had ever seen. That star hung in the sky, right over the spot where Jesus was born. It lit up the night and burned brightly for many days. And it directed all to come see the baby."

  "Wow," I breathed.

  I noticed the Princess looked pretty wide-eyed, too. I could tell she was enjoying the story, just like I was.

  "Did lots of people come to see the new baby?" the Princess asked.

  Miss Mokie turned to her. "Oh, yes, they most certainly did. And they brought wonderful presents for the new baby. That's why we give presents to each other every year when we celebrate Jesus' birthday."

  "Wow," I said again, just under my breath. "Bogey told me there'd be presents. I always like getting presents."

  Miss Mokie turned back to me. "Just remember one thing, young Detective. It is more important to give presents than to receive them. It is only in giving that you can feel the true joy and spirit of Christmas."

  The Princess and I looked at each other. I knew I wouldn't mind giving her a present. And I wouldn't mind giving one to Bogey, too. And to the rest of my family.

  Before I could say another word, Miss Mokie raised her paw again. "You have learned much here tonight, Grasshopper. But now you must leave me. For it is time for me to rest."

  I sat up straight. "Aye, aye, Miss Mokie. Thanks so much for answering my question." I tried to salute her but I ended up poking myself in the nose instead.

  Miss Mokie closed her eyes and the Princess waved to me. I knew she would be staying with Miss Mokie while she slept. She seemed to like taking care of the most senior member of our household.

  I finished my surveillance of the room on tiptoes, so I wouldn't make any noise. As I was leaving, I glanced back at the Princess once more. She smiled at me and I smiled back. There was something about hearing Miss Mokie tell the story of Christmas that made us both happy.

  Then I ran out of the room and down the hallway. I felt like I was floating on air. I skipped down the stairs and went into our Mom's office, where I joined Bogey.

  But now I started to think about something else the Wise One had said to me. That it was more important to give presents than to receive them. But what kind of presents could I give to the cats and the humans in my family?

  "Everything okay up there, kid?" Bogey asked me. He'd been busy typing on the computer keyboard when I walked in.

  "Uh-huh," I told him. "Everything is locked up and secure. No burglars to report."

  He stopped what he was doing and handed me a cat treat. "Looks like we squeaked by tonight, kid. The humans will be getting up soon. And I don't think our burglars will be breaking in with so many people up and around."

  I munched nervously on the treat. "That's good."

  Bogey went back to his typing. "Did you have a little chitchat with Miss Mokie?"

  I swallowed the treat. "Um-hum. Bogey, why does she always call us 'Grasshopper'?"

  Bogey shook his head. "I don't know, kid. It's just something she does."

  I scrunched down on the desk. "She told me to give presents for Christmas. But I don't know anything about giving presents."

  Bogey grinned. "Don’t sweat it, kid. You just give something you think the other cat or person would like."

  I gulped. "But how would I know?"

  Bogey stopped typing for a minute and waved a paw in the air. "It's easy, kid. Just think of something you would like. Lots of times, it's what the other person likes, too."

  He grabbed another cat treat and handed one to me. Well, at least I knew one thing for sure — Bogey liked cat treats! That meant I could give him cat treats for Christmas. But trying to figure out to give everyone else, well, that was a different story.

  So I thought of Bogey's advice about giving something I might like, too. And I sure liked cat toys. When I had time off, I spent hours chasing little furry toy mice, or fuzzy balls, or fake feathered birds. According to Bogey, if I liked it, others were bound to like it, too. Maybe cat toys would make good Christmas presents.

  Bogey hit the "Print" button on the computer. A few seconds later a sheet of paper came jerking out of the printer.

  I munched on the treat and pointed to the paper. "What's that?"

  He grinned back at me. "Part of our plan to get to the Nelsons' before dinner tonight."

  I gasped. I had been dying to ask Bogey about our plan. And I was just about to say something when I started to choke on my cat treat.

  Bogey patted me on the back. "Take it easy, kid. Some of those cat treats can be a little stiff."

  Then he pushed the paper from the printer and onto the floor. "Why don't you head into the kitchen for some water, kid? I've got to get this letter stashed away before our humans get out of bed."

  He picked up the letter in his teeth and pranced out of the room.

  I thunked my chest so I would quit choking. Did Bogey say "letter"? What was this letter? It looked like he'd just finished typing it himself. But why in the world did he have to stash it away? And how was it going to get us to the Nelsons' house tonight?

  So many questions swirled around and around in my mind. It all made me a little bit dizzy. I wondered if I was up to the task of solving this crime. Maybe I didn't have what it took to get the job done.

  But then again, it had been a really big day. And nig
ht. In fact, it seemed like two days in one. Or even three. Maybe it was kind of normal to feel like I was up to my whiskers in clues and questions and crime-solving right now.

  I could hardly believe that we'd barely even started to investigate this case. And already things were getting complicated.

  Holy Mackerel!

  CHAPTER 10

  __________________________

  Holy Catnip! The day began with lots and lots of hustling and bustling. Our Dad got up early and started getting ready for work. Then Gracie got up and started getting ready for school. And our Mom cooked breakfast while everyone else got ready. Since her store didn't open until ten o'clock, she usually went out the door a little bit later than everyone else.

  She lined up plates of canned cat food for Bogey, Lil, the Princess, and me in the kitchen. We all dug in while she took a plate up to Miss Mokie. Since I was on the end of the row, I hunched down and tried to stay out of the way. Not an easy thing to do for an oversized cat like me. Still, I did my best. Because I had learned a very important lesson right away when I got adopted into this house — watch out for the humans on Monday morning!

  That's because the humans all stumbled along, bleary-eyed and half awake, on that day and at that time. Sometimes they didn't see a tail on the ground or a cat sitting in their path. No, on Monday mornings, it was our job to watch out for them.

  Even so, Gracie picked each of us up and kissed us good-bye before she headed for the school bus.

  She gave me an extra special hug. "Today is a big day for me," she said. "Today we find out about the school Christmas play. And I'm trying out for the part of the angel."

  I gave her a kiss on the nose. I couldn't think of a better person to play an angel than Gracie.

  She giggled. "You've been a very good boy this year, Buckley. I'll bet Santa will bring you lots of presents."

  There was that name again. Santa. The more I heard about him, the more I was dying to meet him.

  Gracie put me down and buttoned up her coat. Then she opened the front door and she was off.

  I had a feeling Santa was going to bring Gracie lots of presents, too. Because she had been really good herself. In fact, Gracie was always a good person.

  Once she had closed the door, I flopped over on my side and closed my eyes. I was one tired guy after all the excitement of yesterday. And from running surveillance all night.

  Bogey came up behind me. I opened one eye to see he had a big frown on his face.

  "Looks like we won't be going to our Mom's store today," he told me. "I checked her schedule. It turns out she's got meetings around town first thing this morning. She'll never take us with her to a meeting."

  I tried to open my other eye, but for some reason, it weighed so much that I couldn't even pull it open. "What are we going to do?"

  "We won't sweat it, kid," he said. "We'll try again tomorrow. But we'll still see what we can find out at the Nelsons' tonight."

  And that’s when I remembered to ask him about his plan. There was only one problem. My other eyelid suddenly weighed a ton, too. I barely had time to drag myself from the front entry to a nice, sunny spot in the dining room — only seconds before that eyelid fell shut.

  The next thing I knew, Bogey was shaking me on the shoulder. "Wake up, kid! Wake up!"

  "Huh, what?" I grumbled. I opened my eyes to see my nice sunny spot had disappeared and it was now dark outside. Had I really slept through the whole day?

  Bogey waved a cat treat over my nose. "Here, kid. This'll get you going. It's time to put our plan into place."

  I took the treat from him. "What plan?"

  Bogey shook his head. "C'mon, kid. Snap out of it. We're about to head over to the Nelsons' house. To check out the scene of the crime."

  Oh, that plan!

  Bogey started pacing across the hardwood floor. "I've already ordered the pizzas, kid."

  Now I sat up and stretched. "Pizzas? How did you do that?"

  He grinned. "Over the Internet, kid. With our Mom's computer. I paid for it with my emergency fund account."

  Sometimes I forgot that Bogey had his own bank account. Before he became a cat detective, he'd made a bundle of money acting in cat food commercials.

  I was about to ask him why he had ordered those pizzas, when I heard a commotion outside. The next thing I knew, Gracie and our Mom came through the front door.

  Gracie squealed and made a beeline for me. She picked me up and immediately started spinning around the room. We went around and around and around.

  As always, I just hung on for dear life.

  "Oh, Buckley," she cried. "I got it! I got the part! I'm going to be the angel in the school play."

  Right about then, I really wanted to give Gracie a kiss on the nose. But I was too busy watching the room fly by.

  I could hardly wait for Gracie to grow out of her spinning phase.

  She put me down and I wobbled to the front entry. Even though I'd stopped spinning, my eyes still kept on going in circles. I could barely make out Bogey pulling something from his secret stash behind the potted palm. Pretty soon I recognized that "something" as the letter he had printed out the night before.

  He dropped it at our Mom's feet while she took off her coat.

  Our Mom reached down to pet Bogey. "What have you got there, my handsome boy?"

  She picked him up with one hand and the letter with the other.

  Then she started to read aloud. "Dear Abigail. That is so thoughtful of you to offer to bring us a pizza for dinner tonight. We heard you brought the Mitchells a casserole after their house got broken into. So bringing us a pizza after our house got broken into is really nice, too. What a kind, sweet, beautiful and wonderful person you are. And like I said, nice. Very nice. Your family is wonderful, too. Especially your two boy cats, Buckley and Bogey. They are really, really wonderful. Be sure to bring them with you when you bring the pizza. Signed, Mrs. Nelson."

  As our Mom finished reading the letter, her mouth fell open wide. "I don't remember telling Nellie Nelson that I would bring over a pizza. Do you remember me telling them that?" she asked Gracie.

  Gracie shrugged her shoulders. "I don't remember you saying anything like that. But it sure would be nice. And she already said how nice you were in her letter."

  "Well, yes, it would be nice," our Mom agreed. "I guess I'll have to order a pizza then."

  Our Mom held Bogey close to her face. "Bogey, where did you get this letter?"

  But Bogey didn't so much as meow to her. Instead, he just started to purr.

  "If I didn't know better . . ." our Mom said.

  But she didn't even get a chance to finish her sentence. Because, just then, the doorbell rang.

  "Pizza delivery!" A young man yelled from behind the door.

  Our Mom's eyes went wide. "Pizza delivery? I don't remember ordering any pizzas . . ."

  Gracie giggled. "Mom, maybe you've been working a little too hard."

  Our Mom opened the door and accepted the pizzas. She signed for them quickly and gave the ticket back to the deliveryman.

  Seconds after she did, she crinkled up her eyebrows. "Wait a minute . . . Did that ticket have the name 'Bogart' on it?"

  But the pizza delivery guy just smiled and waved to her. "Don't worry, ma'am, the pizzas were already paid for." Then he jumped into his car and he was off.

  Our Mom stood in the door for a second with her mouth hanging open.

  Then Gracie tugged at her sleeve. "Mom, Mom. We'd better get a pizza over to the Nelsons before it gets cold."

  Our Mom just kind of gasped and made a funny sputtering noise. She took one pizza and stuck it in the oven to keep it warm. Minutes later, we were all on our way to the Nelsons' house. Our Mom carried Bogey and the pizza, and Gracie carried me.

  So this had been Bogey's big plan. And what a good plan it was! Holy Mackerel!

  Bogey leaned over our Mom's shoulder and grinned at me. I grinned back and gave him a "paws up."

  Then, b
efore I knew it, we were inside the Nelsons' house. Mrs. Nelson was so thankful to see us. She kept gushing over my Mom and Gracie, telling them how thoughtful they were. She took the pizza from our Mom and set it on the coffee table in the living room.

  Our Mom just sat on their couch with a confused look on her face. Gracie carried me over to see their Christmas tree in the corner.

  Mrs. Nelson sniffed and blew her nose into a tissue. "I'm so glad we have such wonderful neighbors like you, Abigail. Would you mind if I held Bogey? What a beautiful cat he is. And he's smart, too."

  She took Bogey into her arms.

  Our Mom raised one eyebrow. "Oh, yes, he's smart all right, Nellie. Sometimes I wonder exactly how smart he is."

  Bogey gave Mrs. Nelson a kiss on her nose. She smiled and tears started running down her face. She hugged him tight and he just purred and purred.

  I guessed Mrs. Nelson was feeling really bad, too, after having her house broken into. And Bogey knew just how to make her feel better.

  She smiled at my brother. "Oh, Bogey, you are such a joy. I could use a cat like you in my life."

  Then she turned to our Mom. "I still can't believe someone robbed us. And right before Christmas, too."

  Our Mom nodded in sympathy. "I can't either, Nellie. Did they steal a lot of stuff?"

  "All our Christmas presents," Mrs. Nelson said. "And they took our front-door wreath and the crystal star from the top of our tree. Plus they took a bunch of our star ornaments and the big star I hang in my entryway every year. That star belonged to my grandmother. It can never be replaced."

  Fresh tears rolled down her cheeks. So Bogey wrapped his arms around her neck and pushed his head beneath her chin.

  He was still hugging her when Mr. Nelson came in from the kitchen. Mr. and Mrs. Mitchell followed him in.

  All at once, everyone started saying hello to each other. Then Mrs. Mitchell walked over and sat by the Christmas tree. Mr. Mitchell joined her. He was a big guy with brown hair and hazel eyes. And to tell you the truth, he kind of blended into the background.