Mystery At Random - Part 4

Good Morning Faithful Friday Fiction Fans,
I look out my window this morning and see clouds and some clear sky. Everything is wet for it rained earlier this morning. It is chilly and back to spring weather. Perhaps the weather just mistakenly thought March was May. :) Anyway, everything is really green and I had to mow the yard for the second time yesterday. No, I didn't mean I mowed it twice in one day, just that it was the second time this year.


Life is busy these days. I'm not sure where all the days have gone. Perhaps there are some hiding in boxes or closets. Don't you wish you could pull out an extra day now and then? Let me see, what has kept me busy? Saturday my sister and I babysat the kiddos all morning. I did "school" with Pickle Puss, Goof Ball and Funny Boy. We did "spelling, math & science." (We made paper airplanes and they loved it!)
On Easter Sunday we had a really small group for church, but that was all right, we got to visit.
Monday I mailed several things, and now I can't remember what else I did. I know I was busy. :}
On Tuesday I went over to my brother's for about an hour to play with Funny Boy and Doodle Bug. You see, PP and GB were at their grandparents playing with visiting cousins, so FB & DB didn't know what to do by themselves. When I got there, Funny Boy reached up his arms so I picked him up. Then he wrapped his little arms around me and put his face next to mine. He didn't say a word, just hung on and grinned. That little guy just loves to be held, cuddled and tickled. :)
Last night I had a meeting with the JCRCC. (Politics)
Today I have the house to clean, chatting with a friend this afternoon and then this evening, two of my heart-sisters are coming over to spend the night!!!!!! One has a wedding to help take pictures of tomorrow but the other is staying here!!!!!! I can't wait!
I won't get any writing done tonight. :) However, I did get one story finished, one of Priscilla's letters written and am nearly done with another short story. I'm trying to get as much writing done as I can before we leave town for conferences.
Yep, we'll be out of town next Friday, but not to worry, I will post. And since next week is . . . well, . . . I'm going to . . . But I think you'll just have to come back to find out. :D

But let's get back to the Mystery at Random.

Part 4

    Looking his son straight in the eye, Officer Hansen replied quietly, “I don’t believe you had anything to do with it.”
    Jeff gave a little sigh but still looked worried. “Dad, it wouldn’t, it couldn’t be any of the Okeefenokees. It just couldn’t be.”
    Josh Hansen placed a quiet hand on his son’s shoulder. “I feel the same way, Jeff, but we’ll have to prove it. I might as well tell you all we know. The flags have been missing five different days. All of them taken at different times during the day. The reason the Okeefenokees were thought of at all is because there have been two small footprints in the flower bed. One after each of the last two thefts.”
    “But, Dad,” Jeff protested warmly, “it wasn’t us! I mean the footprints might have been ‘cause sometimes when we play ball we have to step in the flower bed to get the ball, but we didn’t take the flags.” He was becoming quite excited and had stood up.
    “Jeff, I believe you had nothing to do with it,” Mr. Hansen said again.
    Slowly Jeff sat back down, his shoulders drooping. “But you don’t believe it wasn’t some of the others, do you?” he asked dully.
    What should Officer Hansen say? He hadn’t believed it could be any of them, but the story of Red helping out an uncle seemed to throw at least a faint suspicion on him. Today’s doings might be checked into, but what about the other days? Then a new thought struck him; what if it were more than one person in the gang and they took turns stealing the flags? But why? Again Hansen was faced with that same question. Why would anyone want to steal small flags? But Jeff was waiting for an answer.
    “I don’t know, Jeff,” he said at last. “I don’t want to believe any of the Okeefenokees did it, but are you sure Red has an uncle that he was helping?”
    “I’m pretty sure. He’s gone out to help him several times in the past week or two.”
    That didn’t sound right to an officer trained in investigative analysis. “In the last week or two?” he echoed. “Have you heard of this uncle before then?”
    Frowning in thought, Jeff leaned his forehead on the back of the chair and thought. He too was beginning to wonder. Not that he seriously thought Red would steal anything, but what about his uncle? Had he ever heard about him before Red started going out to help? After several minutes, Jeff raised his head. “I don’t think so.” Then suddenly inspired, he asked, “Dad, can I do a little talking to the Okeefenokees about this? Maybe I can find out something.”
    “Sure.”

    After Jeff left the room, Officer Hansen picked up the phone.
    “Hello, Dave. This is Josh Hansen. . . . We’re fine, thanks. . . . I know this is going to sound strange, but . . . Well, I was wanting to verify a few facts. . . . Did Dan and Patsy have dentist appointments this afternoon?” There was a moment of silence in the office. “Can you give me the times again, Dave? . . . Got it. Thanks. . . . Yes. . . . They did? . . . No, they are missing again. . .  You got that right! . . . Sure. Thanks again. Bye.”
    Officer Hansen replaced the phone on the hook and played with his pen a moment while staring at the paper before him. Then he once again picked up the phone.

    The sun had only been up for an hour when Jeff Hansen jogged down the road towards the Okeefenokees’ club house. He had made a detour to check on the police memorial. There were no flags to be seen except for the large one on the flag pole. For a moment Jeff had paused, carefully looking the place over before continuing on his way.
    Arriving at the old shed, Jeff found Dan and Patsy were the only ones there.
    “Dan,” Jeff lost no time in getting to the point. “Dad was asking about the flags yesterday because someone has been stealing them from the memorial.”
    Dan’s eyes opened wide. “Stealing them?” he echoed. “Why?”
    Jeff shook his head. “That’s what we want to know. And who is doing it.”
    “Why did he ask us, Jeff?” Patsy inquired.
    “Well,” Jeff paused and scratched his nose. “I guess we’re suspects.”
    “Huh?” Dan stared at Jeff as though he was crazy. “Us? Why?”
    Patiently Jeff explained what his dad had told him, ending with, “He doesn’t really think it is any of us, but he was asking about Red’s uncle. I don’t remember hearing of any uncle until he started going out to help him, do you?”
    Dan looked at Patsy and she shook her head slowly. For a minute the three members of the Okeefenokees were silent. Surely it couldn’t be one of their number doing the stealing. But, why was Red suddenly helping out his uncle? It just didn’t seem to add up right. But what could they do about it? They had to think quickly because the others would be there soon.
    “Why don’t I offer to go and help him the next time he goes?” Dan suggested.
    “Good idea,” Jeff nodded. “Maybe I should go too.”
    “But who would keep an eye on things here?”
    “I will,” declared Patsy stoutly. “I can do it,” she asserted stubbornly when she saw her brother look doubtful.
    But Jeff agreed. “Sure she can. No one would think that she was keeping an eye open for trouble.”
    There was no more time to talk for shouts and laughter announced more arrivals.

    “I did a little checking last night, Chief,” Officer Hansen was making his report. Officer Erikson was in the room as well. “I found out that three of the Okeefenokees were not painting the fence. Dan and Patsy Farragut were at the dentist.

To be continued . . .

Who did it?

Whose story do you believe?

Have any questions that haven't been answered yet?