“Finally!” thought Cathy as she settled on the couch to read through her mail from work. She rummaged past the memos and charts and graphs. “What’s this?” she wondered as she spotted the envelope. Cathy hurriedly ripped open the envelope and pulled out the note inside. It read:
“Dear Mom,
I wanted to let you know that I love you very much. I know that you are going to be disappointed in me after I tell you this, but I hope you’ll be able to forgive me. I have gotten involved in a gang of dog thieves. Here’s how it happened: I was having trouble paying for college and the dorms. I knew that you’d be glad to help me out, but I was too ashamed to ask. A couple of guys in my classes were having the same problem. They suggested that we take people’s dogs away and then, when they put a reward up for the dogs, we’d give the dogs back and take the reward. I thought that it wouldn’t be wrong since we’d be giving the dogs back and take the reward. But then, after we’d been doing that for a while, one of the guys, named Karl Dever, suggested that after we took the dogs we could sell them instead.
‘We could get a lot more money that way!’ he had said.
All the guys, except me, liked the idea. When I told them that I thought that was wrong, they turned to me and said: ‘David, if you give us away now, we’ll kill you!’
I know they meant it too! So you see, Mom, I’m in a BIG mess! Please help me!
(1) I need you to call the police and send them to Culver Library (the team is having a meeting in the basement). I’m going to try to stall them but if I’m not able to I’ll need the police you called to be there.
(2) The key the team needs for the next robbery is in the bottom of the envelope. Bring the key with you please. We’ll need it as evidence.
(3) If I’m already gone by the time you get there, drive to 3159 Lilac Dr. and inform the resident that there is going to be a break-in.
Thank you, Mom! I love you! Please keep this as evidence in case I don’t make it.
Your affectionate son,
David Setter”
David’s eyes finally adjusted to the brightness of the room. Five angry faces were staring at him. “Alright, David, let’s get down to business,” one of them said. “Yeah!” said another one. “Give it to us!”
Richard fumbled with the room key. He was in such a hurry that he didn’t even notice that his wallet fell out of his pocket and bounced down the stairs. He shoved open the door and stomped into the room. “Now, David! What’s this all…” Richard stopped short. The room was deserted. He slowly stepped over to the desk and sat down in the chair and placed his head in his hands. “Something must have happened to David!” he grunted worriedly. “He would never have done this!” Just then, Richard spotted something lying on top of his test papers. It was an envelope with his name written on it! He tore open the envelope, praying that it was from David. “Please, Lord, please let this be news from David! I need to know what has happened to him!”
“Oh, no!” Cathy groaned. “Steve! Steve!” she screamed desperately.
Steve responded by stampeding down the stairs at the cry of his wife. “What? What’s wrong? What’s happened?” Steve questioned. He stared at his trembling wife, anxious at what he was seeing.
Cathy tearfully handed him the letter left by David. He could hardly believe what he read. “Is this true? Is our son, our sweet David, really involved in a gang of dog thieves?” Steve asked dumbfounded.
“Yes,” replied Cathy, her voice shaking.
“Where is he? The library? I need to get to the library! Cathy, call the police and explain everything to them,” shouted Steve as he grabbed his coat. He paused to hug his wife and whispered, “Honey, it will be all right.” Quickly, Steve prayed with Cathy and then raced out the door.
Immediately, Cathy jumped into action and called the police. She read the letter to the dispatcher and was told to wait at home while the police investigated.
David gulped again. “What if Mom didn’t get my note in time?” he worried. Then one of the Bible verses he had learned when he was small flashed through his mind. “You will keep him in perfect peace, him whose mind is fixed on you.” Immediately, David realized he had not been keeping his mind fixed on God and prayed, “Please help me to keep my mind fixed on you. Please give me peace, Lord. I put all of this into your hands. Please help me to trust you.” A peace washed over David and he felt calm. He knew the problem hadn’t vanished, but he was confident that Jesus was helping him carry the burden.
Cathy anxiously paced the floor at home and waited impatiently for an update of what was happening. She couldn’t take it any longer. She had to go herself. She tried to reach Steve on his cell phone, but she couldn’t get through. She hesitated to leave, but decided to go anyways.
Richard hastily read the note. “Oh, no!” he groaned. “I knew something had happened.” He hastily rose, grabbed his coat and keys and bolted to the door. As he reached the door, he realized he didn’t have his wallet.
Steve tightly gripped the steering wheel. The palms of his hands were sweaty. He nervously fidgeted while waiting for a red light to turn green. The delay at the light gave him a moment to calm himself and pray that he was not too late.
“All right, Guys,” David said. He hoped his voice did not shake too much. “Here’s the key. I’ll give it to you on one condition.”
“What?” growled Karl. David could tell he was mad. In fact, Karl was fuming! “What’s your condition?” asked Bert.
“I’ll give you the key IF you don’t hurt the people,” responded David.
“We weren’t planning on hurting anyone,” snorted Sam. “Now, come on! Give us the key!”
Cathy’s imagination ran wild as she sailed across town to the library. She hoped she wasn’t too late to save David. She shuddered as she remembered what he had written in his letter. As she pulled into the parking lot, she could see through the glass front of the library that Steve was descending the basement stairs.
After a desperate search, Richard muttered, “What could I have done with my wallet?” He had completely turned the room upside-down looking for it.
“Man, what happened in here?” a voice from behind him asked. Startled, Richard responded, “Oh, hi Mark. I lost my wallet and I have to get to the library right away and…”
“And your library card is in it?” Mark finished.
Richard didn’t want to lie to Mark, but David had said not to tell anyone about what was happening. He tried to look sheepish. “Yeah,” he agreed.
“Well, man, you could have just called me. You didn’t have to desecrate your room! Here” Mark handed Richard his missing wallet. “I found it at the bottom of the stairs.”
“Thank you so much!” gasped Richard. “I’ve gotta run!” With that, he raced off, leaving Mark staring after him bewildered.
Steve raced down the stairs, almost tripping over his own feet as he flew down. He slowed when he reached the pitch-black hallway. “How on earth do I know which room to go into?” he mumbled to no one in particular.
Cathy hopped out of the car quickly and locked it. Unfortunately, she was in such a hurry that she didn’t even notice her keys had slipped out of her purse and onto the car floor just before she slammed the door. Cathy bolted up the sidewalk and ran headfirst into a menacing teenager coming out of the library. He had to balance himself on a nearby bench to keep from falling.
“Watch out, lady!” he said.
“I’m so sorry, sir,” Cathy stammered. “You see, I’m in a hurry. I have to save. . . .” Cathy stopped as she noticed something sticking out of the teen’s back pocket. It looked like a replica of the key David had given her in the note!
David took a deep breath. I’m so glad they finally left! he thought. But Mom didn’t get here in time! What am I going to do? I gave the gang what they wanted: the key. How am I going to prevent the break-in? Suddenly David heard a noise in the hallway. He froze. The gang was coming back!
Hannah Dunham
Mystery Story: Part 4
January 29, 2013
Richard pulled out of the college parking lot. Oh, dear Lord, please let me get there in time! he prayed. Richard was so nervous he nearly collided with another car. As the other driver furiously honked her horn, Richard prayed again. Lord, I know that my mind is wandering. That’s why I almost crashed my car. Please calm my heart and give me peace. Also, I pray that You’d give David safety in this situation. In your name I pray. Amen.
Steve heard a muffled sound in a room farther down the hall. Oh no! he thought. The gang is still here! I have to help David. He inched slowly toward the room where the sound had come from. Steve slowly pushed open the door and poked in his head. For an instant he heard a whooshing sound just before everything went black.
David stared in dismay at the figure lying on the floor in front of him. It was his father Steve! “Oh no!” he cried out. “I thought you were a member of the gang, Dad. Are you alright?” David stopped and waited for a reply. Nothing. “Dad?” he whispered.
Cathy struggled against the strong arms that held her tightly. Without stopping to think she had asked the teenager where he had gotten the key. The teen had become suspicious and had started to question her. Without realizing it, Cathy had given away valuable bits of information. The teenager soon suspected that she was somehow involved with David. He had attacked and dragged her off to a car where a bunch of
other teens were waiting to drive off. Slowly, Cathy realized that this was the gang David had been talking about.
She struggled against the people holding her down. “I have to get to David!” she whispered.
Richard pulled into the library parking lot. He jumped out of his car and started up the sidewalk to the library. As he was walking, he heard a car starting up. He turned around and saw a strange car pulling out of the library parking lot. Then he noticed something very unusual. “Wait a second! That’s Mrs. Setter riding in the back of that car. Why? I spotted her car over here.” Richard shrugged as he started up the library steps. “Maybe everything is resolved with David, but why didn’t he call me? That is weird.”
Steve finally came to. He was lying on a carpeted floor and a fuzzy face was staring anxiously at him. Slowly, the face came into focus.
“David! I thought you were a member of the gang! Are you all right? Did they hurt you?” asked Steve worriedly.
“No, I’m fine, Dad. I thought YOU were a member of the gang. I must have knocked you unconscious!” David replied.
“Yes, Son, I’m all right. Did your mother come while I was knocked out?”
David gave his father a strange look. “No, Dad. Was she supposed to? I thought you had come instead of Mom.”
Cathy tried to prevent the gang from blind-folding her. “If they blind-fold me, I won’t be able to see landmarks. Then it will be even harder to find David!” she agonized. Cathy struggled with all her might, but was unsuccessful. The gang managed to blind-fold her.
“All right, Lady,” hissed Tristan. “If you give us less trouble, it will be easier for all of us. If you cooperate, we might not hurt you, although there’s a very slim chance of that now. You’ve already caused to much trouble!”
Richard sprinted through the library to the basement stairs. The darkness of the hallway looked foreboding from the top of the stairs. He hesitated only briefly and then plunged down the steps.
The librarian sighed and looked back down to her reading. Something suspicious was going on. “Let me see, I’ve already watched one, two, three…eight people down those basements steps. What is going on? I’m going to investigate,” she muttered.
Steve realized fearfully that something must have happened to Cathy. As he tightened in fear, David stared back at him aghast.
“Something has happened to Mom,” he whispered.
Cathy felt the car stop. She was jerked off her seat and out of the car. She stumbled blindly forward through what seemed to be woods.
“Dear Lord,” Cathy prayed. “Please help Steve to find David. And please help the police to get there soon. I ask that everything would be resolved and that the criminals would be brought to justice. If it’s your will, I pray that I would be rescued. In your name I pray. Amen.”
As Richard dashed into the library, he noticed a woman descending the stairs. Puzzled, he thought: “I wonder who that is? I wonder if David sent a note to her. Whoever it is, I still have to get David.”
Richard ran over to the stairs and started to descend them.
Nora, the librarian, started down the basement hallway. As she walked she heard hushed talking in room A31. As she started toward the room’s door, Nora heard footsteps running behind her. She whirled around and came face-to-face with her brother Richard.
Steve and David suddenly heard voices in the hallway. They looked at each other and groaned.
“Oh, no!” David fretted. “I hope it’s not the gang!”
Cathy heard voices talking ahead of her. She realized that part of the gang must have gone ahead of her.
“What should we do with the lady?” Nathan asked.
“Oh, I dunno. It depends on how she knows David. If she’s a relative or somethin’ we’ll have to take more drastic measures.”
Cathy shuddered when she heard those words.
“I’m David’s mother!” she thought. “What will they do if they find out?”
“Nora!” Richard exclaimed. “What are you doing here?”
“It’s my shift at the library, Richard,” Nora answered. “And may I ask the same of you? What are YOU doing here?”
“Well. . . .” Richard paused. He didn’t know what to say. David had told him not to tell anyone David’s situation, but. . . . Nora was his sister.
Suddenly Richard and Nora heard footsteps behind them. They turned around, and there were David and Steve.
Cathy felt herself being pushed through a doorway. It smelled of pine within the building. Cathy felt like one of the three blind mice. She had to rely completely on her touch and smell.
“Alright, lady.” Cathy heard one of the gang speaking. It sounded like Tristan.
“Here’s the deal. Wait. First, tell us your name so we don’t have to keep referring to you as ‘Lady.’”
“My name is . . . Eileen,” Cathy lied. She hated to lie, but it was better that the gang not know her true identity.
After everyone had exchanged stories, the four of them, Steve, David, Richard, and Nora, decided to hold a meeting to decide what to do about Cathy.
“What time was she supposed to have left, Dad?” asked David.
“Only a few minutes after me,” Steve answered. “She had called the police.”
“Mom called the police?” David questioned.
“Yes,” replied Steve.
“Wait a second. . .” mused Richard. “If Mrs. Setter called the police, that would’ve been about twenty minutes ago. The police should have been here by now.”
The old lady rocked back and forth in her old, worn, yellow rocking chair, crocheting a blanket. Her dog, Captain, was snuggled up next to her. Mrs. Wenty had lived at 3159 Lilac Dr. as long as she could remember. Her mind drifted back over the years. Where had the time gone?
Cathy felt a rough hand pushing her over to a pine chair. Finally her blindfold was removed.
“Alright, Eileen,” Bert said. “What do you have to do with David?”
Steve and David talked as Steve drove. The four had decided to split up and try to find Cathy. Steve and David headed home to see if Cathy were there. They had failed to notice Cathy’s car in the parking lot.
“Dad, do you think we’ll find Mom?” David asked.
“I sure hope so, Son. I sure hope so,” David answered.
Richard was headed to the police department to see if Cathy were there. “I sure hope we find Mrs. Setter” he thought to himself.
Nora looked at the clock for the tenth time. She had to finish her shift at the library before looking for Mrs. Sitter. Finally Nora just decided to go. ”I only have ten minutes left anyway” she thought. “Anyone who wants to check out a book can wait a few minutes for the next worker.”
Mrs. Wenty was jolted out of her thoughts by the doorbell ringing. She sighed as she got up out of her chair. “I wonder who it is THIS time,” she mused to herself. Mrs. Wenty walked out of the living room and down the hallway. The old, wooden boards creaked as she padded over them. Just as she reached the door, the doorbell rang again. “Patience, whoever you are!” she exclaimed. She swung open the door and stood face to face with the chief of police.
Cathy sighed. “Finally, the questioning is over!” she thought. The gang huddled over in a corner and made plans. After about twenty minutes, one of them sauntered over to her.
“Eileen, this is how things are going to work,” he declared. “We…the gang I mean, are going to go and do our thing. We’re going to leave you here, tied to a chair, so you can’t get away. After we do what we’re going to do, if everything goes well, we might come back for you. If not, oh well. Got it?” he jeered at her.
Cathy stiffened as she grasped what Bert was saying. The gang was going to leave her alone in the cabin to die!
David and Steve jumped out of the car as soon as it stopped. They flung open the door of the house and desperately scrambled in.
“David, you take the upstairs and I’ll take the downstairs,” Steve directed.
“Got it, Dad,” answered David.
The two searched every nook and cranny without results. Cathy was not there.
Richard walked, discouraged, out of the police station. He had asked every person he met whether they had seen Mrs. Setter but all to no avail. Mrs. Setter was not there either.
Maybe Mr. Setter and David found Mrs. Setter thought Richard hopefully. I’ll call them on my cell phone.
Nora decided to call David on his cell phone. Since she hadn’t been able to leave the library right away, the other three had not told her what to do or where to go after her shift was over.
Maybe David can tell me where to go thought Nora.
“W-why, Mr. McCloskey!” stammered Mrs. Wenty. “How nice of you to visit! Won’t you come in? Would you like some tea or coffee?”
Mr. McCloskey laughed. Mrs. Wenty was just as cheerful and sweet-hearted as she had been when she had babysat him years ago. He stepped into the house and took off his hat.
“Thank you, Mrs. Wenty, for your kind offer, but I have more important business to attend to. I’ve been informed that there is going to be a break-in at your house tonight.”
Cathy struggled against the cutting ropes that held her back so strongly. Sure enough, the gang had done what they had threatened to do. They had tied Cathy to a chair and duck-taped her mouth.
Dear Jesus, she prayed, please help someone, anyone, to come and find me before it’s too late!
Steve suddenly heard his cell phone ring.
“David,” he asked, “will you answer it? I’m driving.”
“Sure, Dad,” David answered. “Hello?” Just then David heard his cell phone ring! He glanced at his father helplessly. Steve kept his eyes on the road.
“You’ll have to answer them both, son,” he exclaimed. “I’m driving.”
“Hello? Steve? David? Hello?” David heard Richard’s voice coming out of the phone. With one hand David answered his own cell phone; with the other he picked up his dad’s.
“Hello?” he said into both phones.
“Hello, David. This is Richard. . . .”
“Hi, David. Nora calling.”
David moaned as he glimpsed his dad’s hands tighten on the steering wheel. How was he going to manage this?
Richard was perplexed. He was confused at what David was saying to him on the phone. “ Hi, Nora!...Yeah…Okay…Yeah…Um, let me ask my dad real quick…”
“David!” Richard exclaimed, “This isn’t Nora, it’s Richard.”
Nora tapped her foot impatiently while waiting for an answer from David. Then she heard a muffled voice on the other end of the line. Nora barely heard the last words.
“It’s Richard!” Then she heard David’s voice talking.
“Hi, Richard! Sorry I didn’t answer you see my Dad’s driving and both you and Nora called at the same time. . . . No, we haven’t found Mom yet. . . Did you. . . ? Okay. . . Oh, I see. . . Alright, we’ll head to Bert’s Ice Cream Parlor. We can all talk there. . . Okay. Bye!”
“David?” Nora said into the phone.
“Hi, Nora!” answered David. “Did you hear what I said to Richard on the phone?”
“Yes, I did,” replied Nora.
“Okay. Good. It would be great if you could go to Bert’s too.”
“Okay, David. I will see you there! Bye!”
“Bye!”
Nora hopped into her car. She hummed to herself as she drove along. Boy, I sure hope we find Mrs. Setter she thought.
Mrs. Wenty gasped. “A break-in, Mr. McCloskey?” she asked. “But what would there be of value to a thief in this old house?”
“I’ve heard, Mrs. Wenty,” Mr. McCloskey said with a sigh, “that the thieves are going for your dog, Captain.”
Mrs. Wenty gasped again. Simultaneously Captain barked.
“Not Captain,” Mrs. Wenty wept. “Not Captain!”
“Mrs. Wenty, do you mind if police guard your house tonight, to prevent the break-in?” Mr. McCloskey asked respectfully.
“Yes, yes, please do!” answered Mrs. Wenty, trying to pull herself together. “Thank you so much, Brent.”
The four sat down for their ice cream, after praying, to discuss where to search next for Cathy.
“I’ve got an idea!” Richard exclaimed.
“What is it?” Steve, David, and Nora asked, almost in unison.
“Well, it’s not exactly about finding Cathy . . . but I’ll say it anyway,” explained Richard. “My dad has an old cabin in the woods that he goes to every fall during hunting season. According to his calendar, it should be about time he goes up. We could give him a description of the gang and ask him to watch for them. They could be hiding up in the woods. I know it’s far-fetched, but it just might work.”
The other three agreed to the plan.
“Let’s go up there right away,” David said. They all parted and got into their separate cars and headed for the cabin.
Cathy heard someone walking toward to the cabin.
Maybe the gang is coming back to release me! She thought hopefully.
In walked John Maddox, Cathy’s childhood friend and neighbor, and Richard’s father!
“Cathy!” John said, startled. “What are you doing here?”
Mr. Maddox untied Cathy and gently took the tape off her mouth. Just as Cathy was going to explain why she was in Mr. Maddox’s cabin, the two heard more people walking up to the cabin. The people knocked at the door.
“I’ll go see who it is,” Mr. Maddox said. He cautiously opened the door, and in walked Steve, David, Richard, and Nora!
Mrs. Wenty rocked back and forth in her rocking chair nervously.
Dear Lord, she prayed. Please let the police prevent the break-in. I pray for them, Captain, and me to be safe. Amen.
Mr. McCloskey and the police stationed with him shivered. The sun was almost gone, and it was getting cold.
“When do you think the thieves will come?” the man next to him whispered.
“I don’t know,” Mr. McCloskey whispered back.
Just then the police heard a car turning into the farm’s driveway. Mr. McCloskey’s hand automatically went to his gun. He hoped he wouldn’t have to use it, but he wasn’t sure.
Steve, David, Richard, and Nora stared in amazement at Cathy, who in turn stared back at them.
“Mom, how did you get here?” David asked, perplexed.
“Why don’t you all sit down, and I’ll tell my story then you all can tell yours. And then, if you don’t mind, could we have dinner? I’m very hungry.”
The other four agreed and they all told their stories.
The police saw five teens get out of the car. One of the policemen made a move to get up, but Mr. McCloskey stopped him. He wanted to get evidence against the teens before they jumped in. The teenagers slowly walked up to the door and unlocked it. They crept into the house and closed the door behind them.
A few moments later, the police heard a scream and a dog barking. A shouting voice added to the racket. The police walked up to the door and knocked. Immediately, the shouting and screaming stopped. The police opened the door and burst in. They sprinted down the hallway and into the living room. There was a sight to behold!
One of the gang members was holding a wriggling gunnysack on his back. Two more gang members were holding Mrs. Wenty on the couch. The gang looked at each other and groaned. They were caught!
Just as Cathy, Mr. Maddox, Steve, David, Richard, and Nora were walking out the door, Cathy’s phone rang. She answered it and walked out of the cabin to talk.
“I wonder who it is,” David mused.
“Yeah,” echoed Richard.
A few minutes later Cathy came back into the cabin, her face radiant. “The thieves have been caught!” she exclaimed. “They’re being taken to prison!”
Everyone rejoiced, and then they had a time of prayer.
“Mrs. Wenty invited us to her house for tea and scones,” Cathy said.
They all rode down and had a wonderful time with Mrs. Wenty.
“It’s amazing what God can do!” Cathy exclaimed. “Just amazing!”