The Case of Too Many Clues

by Cindy Vincent

  I knew it was true. And sure, Garnet had said she was sorry, but it hadn’t made Gracie feel much better. So I gave her another kiss on the nose before she put me down and went back to work.

  The crowd had started to thin out a little by now, and as near as I could tell, Mr. Pennypacker had gone, too. Still, I kept my eyes peeled for him as I joined my brother. Then together, we trotted to the front of the store and jumped up onto a dresser in the big, picture window. Right under the huge “Abigail’s Antiques” sign. So we’d have a good view of what was going on outside.

  I immediately glanced across the street to the very spot where Mr. Pennypacker had been standing when we’d first seen him. Again, I couldn’t help but wonder what he’d been doing there. Was he just another one of the lookie-loos that Merryweather had been talking about? Or did he have another reason for being downtown today?

  And apparently I wasn’t the only one wondering about him.

  Bogey grabbed a bag of cat treats that he had stashed in a vase on the dresser. “Any thoughts on why old Pennypacker was out there, kid?” He handed me a treat and took one for himself.

  I munched on my treat. “I was wondering the same thing. And I sure don’t know the answer. How about you?”

  Bogey ate his treat and glanced down the street. “You know what they say, kid. Crooks like to return to the scene of the crime.”

  I gulped. “They do? Do you think . . .?”

  Bogey passed us another round of treats. “Could be, kid. I think we’d better keep this guy on our radar.”

  Right at that moment, I’m sure my eyes went really wide. “We have radar now? When did we get radar?”

  Bogey shook his head and grinned. “Just an expression, kid. It means we’ll have to watch out for him.”

  I glanced around us. “That sounds like a good idea since he was in our Mom’s store today. Just like he was in Garnet’s store yesterday. I sure hope we don’t get robbed tonight!”

  Bogey handed out one more round of treats. “Ditto for me, kid. But any way you look at it, we’ve gotta be on our paws. Until we figure out who’s behind this. And why.”

  I finished my last treat. “I sure hope we figure it out fast.”

  Bogey stashed the treat bag back in its hiding place. “You can say that again, kid.”

  But I didn’t have a chance to say another word. Because the next thing we knew, our Mom and Merryweather came to find us.

  Merryweather picked up Bogey. “Much as I always enjoy the company of two such handsome fellas, I’m afraid it’s time to say good-bye.”

  Bogey grinned up at Merryweather and started to purr.

  Our Mom picked me up, too. “That’s right, boys. We’re going to call it a day. Gracie’s had a rough morning and she’s still pretty upset. So we’re heading home early.”

  Just knowing that Gracie was upset made me upset, too. In fact, I meowed to her through my pet carrier as we drove home. And I kept on meowing until she took me out and held me tight. Then I wrapped my arms around her neck and buried my head in her hair.

  “I wish I’d never used that cell phone,” she murmured into my fur.

  A couple of hot tears dropped onto my head.

  Our Mom put her hand on Gracie’s shoulder. “I know this has all been quite an ordeal. Are you okay, honey?”

  Gracie sniffled. “Sort of. But not really. I keep thinking back to when I was on my cell phone and I walked right into that jewelry display. If I hadn’t done that, none of this would have happened.”

  “Well . . .” our Mom said. “That’s true enough. But even so, Garnet never should have acted the way she did. She was way over the top. Though I know she wasn’t really upset with us. She was really upset about the robbery.”

  “I know, Mom,” Gracie sighed. “But I’m still not sure if I want my cell phone anymore. Not after the mess it’s caused.”

  Our Mom nodded. “Cell phones can certainly cause their share of problems. Even so, they are good to have in case of an emergency. And it was nice to have it the other day to take pictures of the jewelry that landed on the floor at Garnet’s store. For proof of what really happened. But it’s your choice whether you want to use it now or set it aside for when you’re older.”

  Gracie rested her head on mine. “The only problem is, I’d miss my friends if I got rid of it. Everyone just sends emails and texts these days. Otherwise, they don’t talk at all. Not like we’re talking now. I wish we could all go back to the way we used to be. Back when we were younger and didn’t have cell phones. When we talked and played and just hung out together. It was fun.”

  Our Mom nodded. “I know, honey.”

  “I wish there was something I could do about it,” Gracie said as she put me back in my pet carrier. “I’m not sure my friends even know how to talk to each other anymore.”

  “Well, you’re a very bright girl, Gracie. And I know you’ve solved problems like this before. I’ll bet you can come up with a solution.”

  I knew our Mom was right. Because Gracie wasn’t just a nice girl — she was a smart girl, too. And I could tell she was thinking hard about her problem when she suddenly got very quiet. She stayed that way until we got home. Then she went straight to her room right after she let us out of our pet carriers.

  That’s when Bogey pulled me aside. “Why don’t you go on up with Gracie, kid. Make sure she’s okay. I’ve gotta take care of something on the computer first. Then meet me upstairs in the guest room.”

  “In the guest room?” I repeated.

  “Yup, kid. That’s where Lil and Trixie planned to set up their cat karate school. We’ll run in and grab Short-stuff before we head over to Mrs. Bumble’s place. To check out that latest clue.”

  “Aye, aye,” I told him with a salute. This time my huge paw went almost exactly where I wanted it to go. It was close, but still a little high on my forehead.

  Bogey gave me a quick nod before he zoomed off. And I didn’t waste any time taking off after Gracie. I was glad Bogey wanted me to check on her, because I was afraid she might be upstairs crying into her pillow. Especially after the way Garnet had treated her.

  But thankfully, Gracie wasn’t even close to tears when I found her in her room. She’d gone straight to her computer, and I could see that she’d searched the words, “How to get people to talk to each other.” And for the first time all day, Gracie even smiled. Then she pulled out a notepad and started to take notes.

  I couldn’t have been more proud of her. Just like our Mom had said, she was trying to figure out a way to solve her problem. Plus, she was staying off her cell phone, exactly like she’d planned. I had to say, when Gracie put her mind to something, well, she sure stuck with it.

  I glanced out to the hallway and saw the Princess motioning to me. So I ran right out to join her.

  “Everyone is home early,” she said in her sweet voice. “Is anything wrong?”

  I sighed. “Plenty. Lots of bad things happened today.” And then I filled her in on the details.

  The Princess’ green eyes went even wider than ever. “Poor Gracie! She’s been through so much.”

  I nodded. “She sure has. And it really upset her a lot. But now she’s trying to do something about her situation. She always tries so hard to make things better.”

  The Princess smiled. “We couldn’t have a better human sister. And I think I know just the thing to help her out. Gracie needs to host a party. A good, old-fashioned party. One where everyone has to make conversation.”

  “I think Gracie would like that,” I told her. “She’s had parties before.”

  The Princess nodded and stepped into Gracie’s room. “I can take it from here, Buckley. When Gracie turns her back, I’ll just type in my own Internet search. Then she’ll end up reading about the kind of party she should host.”

  I nodded. “That sounds like a really good idea.”

  Just the thought of it made me smile. The Princess always knew what to do when it came to things like that.

/>   “Mitzi is looking for you,” she added. “She’s been absolutely dying for you to get home. She wants to show you what she learned today.”

  Right away I was concerned. “Did she do okay?”

  The Princess’ eyes sparkled. “Mitzi did very well. She is a natural when it comes to cat karate. Real cat karate, that is.”

  This I had to see for myself. So I said good-bye and made a beeline for the guest room. Much to my surprise, I barely even recognized the place when I strolled in. Little pillows were scattered all over and long twigs had been pulled out of our Mom’s dried flower arrangement. And a whole lot of those twigs looked like they had been snapped in half.

  Bogey was leaning against the doorframe, while Lil and Trixie stood on either side of little Mitzi.

  Mitzi’s eyes went wide when she spotted me. She immediately sat back on her haunches, put her front paws together like she was praying, and bowed. “Oooss,” she said to me.

  I wasn’t exactly sure what I was supposed to say to that. And I sure didn’t know what it meant. Plus, I could hardly believe this was the same out-of-control kitten I’d been dealing with for days. She acted so calm and in control.

  But a split second later, she glanced up with a wild gleam in her eyes. “Do you want to see, Buckley? Do you want to see?” And like someone had flipped on a switch, she started to bounce around again. “I did soooo good today! Watch me do my cat karate!”

  Trixie stood in front of her. “Settle down, young one, and show us what you have learned.” She sat back and used her front paws to hold a twig firmly before her.

  “Yes, Teacher,” Mitzi said, becoming serious again.

  Then Mitzi took a deep breath and made a very sudden kick. A lightning fast kick. I heard the twig make a loud snap! And the next thing I knew, Trixie was holding a twig that was now in two pieces. I could hardly believe my eyes.

  “Buckley, did you see me break the stick?” Mitzi meowed excitedly.

  “Umm . . . yes,” I told her. Though to be honest, the whole thing was such a blur that I didn’t actually see Mitzi’s foot even touch the stick. It had all happened so fast.

  After that, she did some really quick punching moves with her front paws. And finally, she jumped up, turned a circle in the air and kicked high at the same time. Really, really fast. Scary fast.

  She finished it all off with the same bow and by saying, “Oooss.”

  Right about then, I’m pretty sure my chin practically hit the floor. I had to say, it sure didn’t take Mitzi very long to learn all that! And well, I sure wouldn’t want to be on the other end of all that kicking and punching.

  She glanced up at me with a huge smile on her face. “How did I do, Buckley? Did I do good? Did I?”

  For some reason, I couldn’t speak for a second or two, so I just nodded and nodded. I finally managed to say, “You did great, Mitzi. You did really, really great. I can tell you worked hard on this all day. I am very proud of you.”

  Bogey grinned at Mitzi. “That’s some pretty fancy footwork there, Short-stuff.”

  “She’s a very talented student,” Trixie added with a big smile. “But I think we’ve had enough for one day.”

  Bogey nodded to Lil and Trixie. “In that case, we’d like to borrow Short-stuff here. We need her to come with us to Mrs. Bumble’s place and show us the lay of the land.”

  I crinkled my brow. “Plus, we’ll need a plan to get outside.”

  Bogey grinned. “Already got it covered, kid. Our Mom was supposed to get a big package delivered to the store today. But I got on the computer and had it rerouted to our house. It’ll be the perfect cover for us to sneak out.”

  “Oh, umm . . . sounds like a good plan,” I said with a nod before I turned to Mitzi. “Okay, little one, you stick with me. We’ll have to hide near the front door and wait until our Mom opens it. But we can’t run out too soon or we’ll be spotted. So we’ll have to be very patient. Do you think you can wait with me?”

  For a moment, I thought she was going to say that “Oooss” word again. But instead, she just nodded her head. Really fast. “I can do it, Buckley. I know how to wait. Just like you taught me last night.” Then she bowed.

  “We’ll have to be on our paws,” Bogey said. “One misstep and we could get stepped on. Or worse yet, not even make it out the door.”

  I nodded and looked back at Mitzi. “So stick really close to me, okay? And you’ll have to run as fast as you can when we finally zoom outside.”

  Before she could answer, we heard the rumble of the delivery truck as it came up the street.

  “That’s our cue,” Bogey hollered before he flew out into the hallway. “It’s show time!”

  So Mitzi and I raced after him, doing our best to keep up. We all got to the front door only seconds after our Mom did.

  She pulled the door open and sort of gasped in surprise. “Hello, Chester. I thought you would be taking this to my store.”

  Bogey hid behind the potted plant. And I motioned for Mitzi to hide with me just inside our Mom’s office.

  “Can we go now?” she whispered.

  “Not yet,” I whispered back. “Wait till I say go.”

  The deliveryman rolled a crate on a cart up to the door, blocking our escape route. “Well, I don’t understand it myself, Mrs. Abernathy. It’s addressed to your store and that’s where I thought I was supposed to take it. But I got a last minute notice that said the delivery address had been changed. And I was told to bring it to your house instead.”

  “I wonder how that happened,” our Mom replied.

  “Beats me,” Chester said. “What would you like me to do with it?”

  “Well, I think you’d better take it down to the store,” our Mom told him. “It’s too heavy for me to haul down there myself. And it won’t fit in my car.”

  The man shrugged his shoulders. “As you wish. I’m still not sure how things got so messed up.” He turned and started to roll the huge box away with him.

  And that’s when Bogey signaled to me.

  Then I whispered to Mitzi, “Let’s go! Follow me!”

  Bogey darted a glance back at us before he raced for the door. I fell in line right behind him with little Mitzi bringing up the rear. One by one, we slipped through the opening between the box and the doorway, just as the deliveryman moved the crate down the porch to the stairs. Our Mom walked with him and helped him to steady the big box.

  And neither one of them had seen us at all.

  While they went straight, we took a right turn and ran to the edge of the porch. Then we jumped into the yard below. And the next thing I knew, we were running along the front of the house. We stayed close to the bushes and out of sight. Seconds later, we were on our way to Mrs. Bumble’s house just a couple of doors down.

  All in search of a clue about our latest clue.

  Holy Catnip!

  CHAPTER 14

  Holy Mackerel!

  Just as soon as we reached the edge of Mrs. Bumble’s yard, I stopped and turned to Mitzi.

  “Good job!” I told her. “You waited for me to say go!”

  She smiled and started to dance around. But then she quickly stopped. And I knew it probably wasn’t easy for her to control herself. But she was learning, that much I could tell. Plus she was trying extra hard.

  Bogey paused just ahead of us. “I agree with Buckley, Short-stuff. You handled yourself like a pro back there. Now we need you to show us around the Bumble place. Think you can do that?”

  She smiled and nodded really fast. “Uh-huh. I can do that.”

  Then we all glanced up at the mansion where Mrs. Bumble lived. Her house was probably just as old as our house was. But hers looked like it needed some paint and a little fixing up in spots.

  Bogey squinted as he looked from one end of the place to the other. “Let’s start in the backyard and go from there.”

  My mouth fell open wide. “Wait a minute. The backyard? Isn’t that where the bees are?”

  Mitzi nodded
. “Uh-huh. That’s where Mrs. Bumble keeps the bee houses.”

  I gulped. “Don’t bees sting?”

  Mitzi’s eyes went wide. “Oh, yeah! They sting, all right. Especially if you chase them and catch them.”

  “I’m not sure this is such a good idea,” I said as I glanced behind me, in the direction of our house. Our nice, safe, cozy, happy house. Our house that I wouldn’t mind returning to at any moment. Especially since I usually tried really hard to stay away from anything that wanted to sting me.

  Bogey licked his paw and held it up to check the direction of the wind. “It’s gotta be done, kid. We’ve gotta follow that last clue and get to the bottom of this case.”

  All of a sudden, my heart started to pound. “But we might be walking into a big, giant trap. For real this time. A trap where we could all get stung.”

  Bogey shook his head. “Not to worry, kid. Just like us, bees have an important job to do. They’re busy, and we’re not going to bother them. Or chase them like Mitzi here did. They’ll only put up their dukes if they think someone is after them. Or their home.”

  I crinkled my brow. “Put up their dukes? Bees have dukes?”

  Whatever dukes were.

  “Just an expression, kid. It means they’ll fight. In the case of bees, if you hit one or two, the rest might swarm and attack. So as long as we don’t swat at ’em, they won’t think we’re a threat. And if we leave them alone, they’ll probably leave us alone.”

  Probably? To tell you the truth, I sure didn’t like the sound of that. But what could I do? Bogey was already motioning for us to move on. And little Mitzi was raring to go. How would it look if I acted like a scaredy-cat and held back?

  That meant I had to go on. Like it or not. And I had to make it look like I wasn’t scared one bit. So I took a deep breath and put one paw in front of the other. As fast as I could go. Then I kept up with Bogey and Mitzi as we all ran toward the house. Once we got closer, Mitzi directed us down the driveway and past the garage.