The Case of The Purloined Paperbacks

Characters:
Caitlyn and Dawn. Detectives from the C&D Detective Agency.
Brenda. Full time psychic and TV star.
Aurora Li Hua Chang. Restauranteur.
Louise Heel. TV Station owner and daughter of Madame Heel.
The Ghost of Sarah Willow. Grandmother and part time spirit.
Sarah Willow. Granddaughter to the ghost of Sarah Willow.
Madame Hi Heel. Overall bad person and villain.
Wendy. Compulsive knitter and secretary.
Officer Malloy. Local law enforcement.
Silent Cecilia. A reformed villain out on parole.
Alberta Moore. Sleazy used car lot owner.
Felicia. Harrased maid that works at Alberta's house.
Sam and Mike. 2 incompetent hired minions.

When the phone rang, Caitlyn was on her knees looking for a pen that had rolled under her desk. She almost hit her head on the desktop, but managed to crawl out and grab the receiver before the ringing stopped. "C&D Detective Agency," she said, brightly. "Mysteries solved while you wait. Hi Rory!"
"Hello, Caitlyn," Rory laughed. "How did you know it was me? Have you been taking lessons from Brenda?"

"The Astonishing Caitlyn knows all." Caitlyn gestured mysteriously with her hand that wasn't holding the phone. "Actually, Rory, we just got Caller ID on our phones. How was China?"
"Great. You have to go sometime, Cait. You would love it." Rory smiled, thinking about her trip. "If you and Dawn are free for dinner tonight I will tell you all about it."
"I certainly am, and you know if you have biscuits on the menu Dawn will be there."
"Good," said Rory. "That is not why I am calling, though. I heard you are on the panel which is selecting the librarian for the new library at the Carruthers lot."
"Yes, Brenda and I are both on it, and so is Louise," Caitlyn replied. "I hope you aren't giving up cooking for library science, Rory."
"No, no, I got some great new recipes on my trip. I’m going to let you and Dawn try a couple tonight and see what you think. But listen, do you remember Amanda?"
"Of course," said Caitlyn, who had always been very impressed with Amanda because she was both courteous and quick, and in addition had an excellent sense of humor. "Amanda was here helping us out not too long ago, she had to break some bad news to Alberta Moore, and I know she really enjoyed that."
"You know that she’s been working at my restaurant to support herself while she goes to library school? Her family is very poor. She recently graduated and is looking for a library job. I thought it might help if I would put in a word for her with you."
"Thank you, Rory," said Caitlyn. "I can’t promise anything but I will certainly try to give her a fair chance to get the job. I wish I was able to employ her at C&D, but she isn't licenced with the DDB."
"The DDB?"
"You know, the Dolly Detective Board. All dolly detectives have to be registered with them and have their certification to work in the detecting field. You do realise if she does get the job you will be short of a good worker?"
"Jenni is going to help out till I get somebody new," said Rory. "She’s been telling me all about the diamond and how you got it back to the Sultanate of Tamsen. Good work, Cait!"
"Thanks Rory, but I never did it alone, Jenni actually found the diamond and Dawn took a lot of the heat off us when she was accidently kidnapped. It gave us time to prepare some traps for the bad guys. I am just sorry we never got to nail the mastermind behind the whole affair in the first place."
"Who? Madame Heel"
"One and the same Rory."

When the time came for the interviews, Caitlyn remembered Rory’s recommendation and passed it along to the other members of the panel. Brenda and Louise also knew Amanda from the restaurant and were both in favor of her being hired as the first librarian for the Carruthers Library. They were able to sway the remaining panel members in Amanda’s favor and not long afterward, a very nervous Amanda found herself arriving at the library door for her first day of work.
The door was already unlocked so Amanda went inside and was greeted with whistling and banging. A red-haired Twinn stepped out from behind the bookshelves she was constructing.

"Hi, you must be Amanda. I’m Sarah Willow. I’m just finishing up these bookshelves for you."
The girls shook hands. "Nice to meet you, Sarah Willow. I didn’t realize the library wasn't already completed."
"The outside is finished but the inside is not," Sarah explained cheerfully, driving another nail in place. "There are some boxes of books over there. Maybe you could get busy cataloging them till I get the shelves finished."
"Oh, OK," agreed Amanda. She got a small scissors from her purse and started opening packing tape on the four boxes of books. She took the books out and stacked them on the floor near the front desk. She opened the last box, "this is really strange," she said to herself, but Sarah overheard her.
"What is Amanda?" asked Sarah, curiously looking at the book titles to see whether one she was looking for, The Encyclopedia of Home Repair, was among them.

"They’re all series books but the first ones in the series are missing. For example, we seem to have Little Men by Louisa May Alcott but not Little Women, C is for Corpse by Sue Grafton but not A or B, and The Five Little Peppers Grown Up but there are two books in the series before that one."
"I always liked the Five Little Peppers," Sarah commented. "I never knew there was more than one book about them."
"Yes, there is," Amanda insisted. "And it’s not here. Were there any more boxes of books, Sarah?"
"Not that I saw," said Sarah, as a young lady came through the front door to the library.

"Hi, I’m Wendy," she introduced herself. "I am looking for The Knit Stitch by Sally Melville."
"Good morning Wendy, I’m Amanda and I’m sorry to say we aren't really open yet," Amanda apologized, "and it looks as though we only have novels at the moment." She dug through one of the piles. "No, here is The Purl Stitch by Sally Melville. Will that do?"
"No, it is the second book in the series. You need the other one first. I am in a knitters group, the Society of Compulsive Knitters - we call it SOCK for short - and we want to make one of Sally’s vests from the first book." Wendy's attention was drawn to Sarah, who had gone back to hammering again. "Oh, hi, Sarah. I didn’t know you were working here."
"Yes, I was assigned this morning." Sarah gestured with her hammer. "I was told there were just a few finishing touches to be made and now I find the bookshelves aren't done; there isn't even a desk for poor Amanda to use to check out books on. I don’t know if this is another economy measure by the city but it is very frustrating."
"I’ll say it is," said Wendy. "And where are all the books? I heard when the Star of Tamsen was returned to the Sultanate the reward money was used to buy the books for our new library."
"I don’t know," Amanda admitted. "I am not even sure who to call."
"I’d be glad to stay and help you put the books you do have on the shelves but I have to get back to work. I’m on my lunch hour and the boss is hopeless when I’m not in the office." Wendy worked as a legal secretary in one of the local lawyers’ offices. "If I give you my phone number will you let me know if the book comes in?"
"Yes, certainly," said Amanda. She rummaged in her purse and found a piece of paper and wrote down the number. "I know how Caities hate to be disappointed."
"Especially Caities who knit!" laughed Wendy. "Thank you, Amanda. It was nice to meet you. Good to see you again, Sarah." She hurried out the door to return to her office.
Amanda sighed and sat down on one of the overturned book cartons, absent mindedly chewing on the end of her pen. "This is a mystery," she said to herself.

"Whenever there’s a mystery you should call the C & D Detective Agency," suggested Sarah. She retrieved a business card from her toolbelt and gave it to Amanda. "Though I hope you have a cell phone, Amanda, because there doesn’t seem to be one here."
"No, I can’t afford one," Amanda replied. "But I know where it is, I often work there as a temp doing filing and answering phones. Maybe I will go over there and talk to them."

Meanwhile in another part of town, sinister figures wearing ski-masks were unloading cartons from a panel truck which had "Stan’s Appliance Repair" painted on the sides. They were taking the cartons into the old Whitney mansion through the servants’ entrance.

Suddenly one of them carried out a tied-up Twinn. It was Dawn! She was complaining loudly, though she was being ignored. "You guys are really getting on my nerves. This is the second time I’ve been snatched and brought down here. This is me, Dawn, not the princess. The princess went back to the Sultanate of Tamsen. Let me go!" Dawn wiggled and struggled to get free from the ropes and hands holding her. "Caities hate to be tied up! You’ll be sorry!"
"Shut her up, Mike!" said the one who seemed to be directing the unloading process. "Where’s the gag?"
"I’ll give you a gag. I’ll bite you!" Dawn squirmed even more but it was in vain. She was unceremoniously dumped on a chair down in the basement.... right next to....
"Scrrmrph?" said Dawn through the gag.

"Yes, it’s me, Dawn, Brenda," sighed Brenda, who had been tied to an adjacent chair. "Can you believe it? I came down here to have a quiet conversation with Sarah Willow’s grandmother and these jerks broke in and tied me up. Then they used strips torn from my turban to gag you with. I hope my insurance will cover replacing it." She shook her head, outraged that they would dare to ruin one of her best turbans. "I think I can claim it as a business expense."

"Mmfh mffffhfffffmmff," replied Dawn.
"I’ve had better days," Brenda agreed.. "But don’t worry, Dawn, as soon as they leave I’ll get us out of here. After all, I did take a course in Houdini escapes in psychic college. Bend over and let me untie that gag."
Because Dawn was not tied to her chair she managed to lean over to where Brenda’s tied hands could reach the tie for the gag. Brenda quickly untied it. "What happened, Dawn? Why did they snatch you? Are these the same guys as before?"
"Thanks, Brenda," said Dawn, gratefully. She sank down on her chair. "I think they may be the same but it’s hard to tell. All crooks in ski masks look alike to me." Now it was Dawn's turn to sigh. "I was on my way back to the office after I had collected my new comic from a local collector, when I saw a truck come to the new library and unload a lot of boxes of books. Amanda from the restaurant is the new librarian and thought I may as well pop in and see if she needs any help. Next thing I knew this appliance truck came up and the guys started taking the books back out of the library. I hid in the truck because I thought I could catch them and solve the mystery myself. I get so frustrated sometimes that Caitlyn always solves the mysteries. Even the Case of the Missing Budgie. She found it right outside the house in a tree and it came down and sat on her hand when she whistled to it. All I seem to be good for is making tea and filling out paperwork."
"Dawn, that’s not true," said Brenda. "The best detective is only as good as his or her support staff. You contribute a lot to the C&D Detective Agency, why, without you it would just be the C Detective Agency and that doesn’t sound half as professional. That paperwork you do is the foundation of each case, without it Caitlyn would not be able to do anything. You are just as important as she is and she values your contribution."
"But I’m never the one shaking hands with the mayor," Dawn said wistfully, a tear rolling down her cheek.

It suddenly got a bit chilly and the ghost of Sarah Willow's grandmother materialised. "Young lady, please do not whine," she admonished Dawn. "Didn't your mother teach you to always have a clean handkerchief in your pocket?"
"Oh, ghost of Sarah Willow, this has been a bummer of a day," replied Dawn. "I am sitting here tied up when I am supposed to be going out to dinner later. I couldn't reach my hankie even if I had one. Oh, You're invited too, Brenda. Rory is going to tell us about her trip. And she promised a new Chinese dessert that she said we are going to love. It has lots of chocolate in it."
"We are going to need lots of chocolate after this experience," said Brenda, as the door opened and the leader of the gang stomped in.
"Are you girls all comfy in those chairs?" he asked sarcastically. "Because you're going to be there for quite a looooong time."
"Who is this ruffian?" asked the Ghost of Sarah Willow. Placing her hands on her hips, she glared at him. "Where are your manners? kidnapping young ladies like this. And not to mention speaking discourteously to them as well."
The thug was taken aback, he was sure that he had only seen two Twinns in the room previously. "Butt out, Granny," said the man. "Or I’ll tie you up, too."
"You’ll do no such thing," said the Ghost of Sarah Willow primly. As he reached for her she levitated a dusty steel box off a nearby shelf and right onto his head.

The thug sank to the ground, stunned by the steel box. Sarah Willow Senior smiled in a gostly fashion, "I do so dislike ruffians and riff-raff. Now don't forget to wave at my granddaughter for me, tell her I send my love." She waved her arms in the Twinn's direction before disappearing in a puff of luminescent smoke.
"No, wait, Grandma Sarah Willow Ghost! Untie us, please!" Dawn pleaded, remembering the ghostly help she had previously received. "As much as I am grateful to her for all she does for me, she still gives me the shivers." Dawn said.
"I know, it is a bit strange. But I wonder why does she still haunt this house?"
"Never mind that Bren, we have to get out of here before those bad guys re-appear."
"Don’t worry, Dawn. Watch this." With a few well-placed wiggles, Brenda was out of her bonds and started untying Dawn.

"How did you do that?" asked Dawn, impressed.
"I learned it at school. We had a whole semester of escape techniques," Brenda explained. "It was a tough course, though."
"Brenda, when you have some time I really like to learn some of those techniques too. It seems as if I keep on getting kidnapped lately".
"No problem Dawn, anytime you have some spare hours and a length of rope." She pulled off the last rope with a flourish. "Let’s just tie up our friend here before he causes us any more trouble." The girls quickly tied the thug’s wrists and ankles together. "Now, let’s get out of here."
Loud steps were heard on the stairway. It was the other man, the one called Mike. "Hey, Sam," he began, as he came into the room. Brenda and Dawn hid behind a dusty shelf of preserves.
"Now where did those girls get to?" Mike almost tripped over Sam. "Sam! What happened?"
"He met with some trouble," said Brenda, stepping out from behind the shelves of jars. She was holding a dusty old hose squirter that she had found on the floor. In the dim light it looked like a gun. "And you will have some, too, if you don’t do as I say."
"Yes, ma’am," said Mike, looking pale at what he thought was a Smith and Wesson.
The girls tied Mike to the chair where Brenda had been tied. ("My poor turban," murmured Brenda, as she used it to bind him to the chair.) "Now," said Dawn, "Tell us why you stole those books or I will make sure that the ghost of Sarah Willow comes to keep you company."
"I don’t know. We got an order to pick them up and take them to Birdwood Prison." stated Mike grumpily. "Some lady there wants them."
"They belong to the library," Dawn pointed out coldly. "You had no right to take them."
"I think he knows more than he is telling us," said Brenda. "Let me see if I can convince him to talk."
Mike cringed as Brenda took a shiny object out of her pocket. What could it be? He was trying to be brave in the face of whatever torture might come but, truth be told, he was a wimp. "Don’t hurt me! I’ll tell!" he whimpered.
Brenda, who had gotten out her pocket watch inherited from her great great grandfather and was only intending to hypnotize Mike, nodded and put the watch back in her pocket. "OK spill the beans!"

"Some of the books came from St. Helen’s By the Gatepost College. They belonged to Professor Mallory."
"Is that same Professor Mallory who bred the sheep with the hypo-allergenic wool?" Dawn suggested ."I used to know him," she whispered to Brenda. "I was sorry to hear he died recently. I guess maybe he is up there chatting with Sarah Willow Senior now."
"Yes! That’s the one! He was developing a formula to prevent armature squeaks. He was in the habit of writing it down as he went along, in whatever book he happened to be reading at the time. We were trying to get the formula but we didn’t know which carton the books from the college were in so we just took them all. Madame Hi Heel is offering big bucks for the formula." Mike closed his eyes unhappily, thinking about the trouble he was going to be in when Mme. Heel or her co-conspirator Alberta Moore found out he and Sam had blown the job.
"I didn’t think she HAD big bucks anymore," commented Brenda, more to herself than anyone else.
"She probably still has ways to get them. Louise says she is still wheeling and dealing even from prison. And if she would get this formula, she will really be rich," said Dawn. "You know how we all worry about armature squeaks, Brenda."
"Well, you and I are here to see she doesn’t get it. I rode over here on my bike. It’s out back in the carriage house. Take it and go to the nearest phone booth and call the police. I’ll watch these guys till they get here."
"Are you sure you will be OK?" Dawn asked, concerned for her friend’s safety.
"Yes. If need be I can always summon the Spirit of Sarah Willow again," Brenda replied.

Dawn grabbed Brenda's bike and cycled over to the nearest telephone booth where she phoned Officer Malloy. Then she called Caitlyn and explained to her what had happened.
"Dawn, are you both okay? I was getting worried here. Amanda called just before you did and told me what had happened at the library. I am looking into things on this side so you are in charge on that side. When Officer Malloy is finished maybe ask him if he would like to come to Dinner at Rory's too."
Dawn's knees got a bit wobbly when she thought of Officer Malloy, "Will do Cait, and give my regards to Amanda and Sarah, Oh, and tell her that her grandmother was there again and she says hullo."
A police car, sirens blaring drove past the phone booth at high speed, "I have to go Cait, the police have just come past me. I will give you a call later."
Dawn climbed onto the bike and cycled back to the Whitney Mansion where Officer Malloy had just confronted the bad guys and was putting them under arrest. They were just too glad to get away from Brenda who was muttering about communing with the spirits once again.