Mystery At Random - Part 7

Good Morning FFFs!
Once again I open the hotel curtains and take a look outside. This morning it is cloudy and breezy. It's a different view from the 8th floor. :) I doubt it will be chilly out today.

Since last Friday I have:
Worked at a Homeschool conference on Friday and then on Saturday. Packed up. Had a relaxing birthday on Sunday with Grandparents, brother and sister-in-law and the kiddos as well as my family.
Monday was busy with lots of ironing, and taking care of things. In the evening, my two best friends and I took a stroll around our blocks and talked. Very nice.
Tuesday was more ironing, more things done and Wednesday was much the same only I got the last of the ironing done.  At least until we get back from the conferences. :)
We left home yesterday and headed off to the next conference. My brother and Sis-in-law are at another conference in NE. We are in MO this weekend. You can check Light of Faith to find out where we are if you want to know.

I was able to get a little written. I'm trying to work on Ria and the Gang, but for some reason it is slow going. I did get some ideas though and am looking forward to writing them when I have time. :)
If you read this part of Mystery at Random and wish there was something else to read, you could go visit another writer's blog. Though I do not like all his writings, this story was a delight. :) I think you will probably enjoy it too. So, to read the Fun Story just click and enjoy. 
But first, I hope you will read the next part of Mystery at Random. The end will be posted next Friday. :) Can you wait that long?

Part 7

    “That sounds reasonable. I’ll go call the chief.”
    Chief Gallant was willing to co-operate with Officer Hansen’s plea for a day without flags. He was tired of the mess and wished it to be over. Never had there been a case quite like this one which was causing such controversy about town. Some of the people sided with Officer Erikson while the rest backed the Okeefenokees. And Chief Gallant was stuck right in the middle.

    It was eight o’clock the next morning when the Okeefenokees gathered quietly and soberly at their club house. There were no shouts, no laughing and teasing, no cheerful waves to Mr. Dutton.
    “Jeff has the floor,” Dan announced once everyone had found seats on the floor or on the few boxes and upside-down pails.
    As he looked about at his friends, Jeff knew that there wasn’t a better group of kids he’d rather hang out with. He also was thoroughly convinced that none of them had stolen the flags. “Well,” he began, “Dad called Chief Gallant last night and got him to agree not to put any flags out today. That will give us a little time to get organized and plan what steps we should take to catch the thief.”
    “Do you have an idea, Jeff?” Dwight asked.
    “Yes, now listen up--”

    When the Okeefenokees departed the old shed some forty minutes later, they all wore grim smiles. Woe to the one stealing the American flags now! The Okeefenokees had a plan!

    There were many surprised and pleased mothers in Random that day for every Okeefenokee flew to do their chores for that day as well as the chores for Saturday with a zeal that quite astonished those looking on. Floors were swept, dusting done, rugs shaken, lawns mowed and gardens weeded.
    Officer Hansen’s prediction that the entire town would soon know about the thefts had proved quite true. Anywhere a member of the Okeefenokees went, someone would make a comment.
    “Hey, have you got a flag I could use?”
    “What do you want with all those flags anyway?”
    “Oh, leave them alone. I know it wasn’t them.”
    “Positive?”
    “I’d bet my whole garden on it!”
    “Of course they had nothing to do with stealing those flags! They’d no more steal than the man in the moon would.”
    As for the Okeefenokees, they neither replied to the teasing, nor answered any questions about the matter. Dan and Jeff had cautioned them against talking. Even a hint of their plan might reach the ears of the true thieves and then it would all be up. So, though some of them longed to speak, they kept their lips shut as they went about their busy day.
    At a quarter past seven, the Okeefenokees again met at the old Dutton shed. Dan and Jeff, having finalized the plans, gave last minute instructions.
    “Since the flags have never been stolen while it was still dark,” Jeff began, “we must assume, at least until we are proven wrong, that the thief likes the daylight. That is why I think this plan will work. We will divide up into two groups and take turns watching the monument.”
    “Don’t worry,” Dan put in. “We’ve figured out just where we can hide and yet see the flags perfectly.”
    “Remember, the thief hasn’t come when we’ve been playing ball, so when it is time to switch groups, the second group will come running out to the park as though to play ball. Then slowly, one by one, in case anyone is watching, those who are hiding will come out and the new watchers will hide. It might take us all day for several days to discover the thief, but I for one won’t give up!” Jeff’s face was grim and his eyes held a glint of determination.
    His words were met with a loud cheer.
    “Now,” Dan spoke. “If any of you don’t want to take a turn watching, speak now so we can take you off the list.
    Not a person moved. There was no way any of the Okeefenokees were going to miss this. Why, the reputation of every Okeefenokee was at stake! No matter how long it took, each member would stick to their assigned place until the thief was caught.
    Dan and half the Okeefenokees were to meet just before dawn. Each person knew where they would be stationed. Jeff and the other half would take the second watch right after lunch. With a rousing cheer, following Dan’s promise to “catch the thieves red handed,” the Okeefenokees charged out of the club house uttering their usual Indian war whoops as they ran. And more than one member found it difficult to get to sleep that night.

    Driving down the street, Officer Erikson noted the two flags Chief Gallant had put out earlier that morning. He didn’t know why there had been none the day before, but they were there now.
    “Humph, I wonder how long these will stay here,” he muttered glancing quickly about trying to catch a glimpse of the thief.
    He would have been very suspicious had he seen any of the six Okeefenokees who at that very moment were watching him from their different hiding places. But, so well hidden were they that Officer Erikson passed them right by without the slightest notice.
    To the six Okeefenokees in hiding the morning passed by slowly, but to the other six who were impatiently waiting their turn to watch, it passed by on even slower feet. Would their time ever come? Would the thief show up during the morning watch or the afternoon watch?
    Officer Hansen, home for the day, wondered what was going on, but wisely refrained from asking. Jeff, instead of being off with the Okeefenokees all morning, was hanging around the house with five other members. Most of their time was spent on the back porch. Once Jeff had come in to ask, “Dad, if we find the thief, should we try to catch him or call for the police first?”

Any thoughts?

Questions?

Comments?