Katy and Daniel Play Detectives
Illustration © 2023 Susan Fleming
Daniel, Katy, Matthew and Poppy are playing at detectives.
“The first thing we must do is to be able to send secret messages to each other,” says Daniel.
“How do we do that?” asks Matthew.
“We write a message,” says Daniel, “and then we put it in a secret place that only we know.”
Katy says, “There is a stone loose in the wall near the gate into the field. We could hide it there.”
“Good”, says Daniel, “and so that you know there is a message I will put a chalk mark on your gateposts. When you see it rub it out and go and collect the message.”
The first message that Daniel sends says: -
Mrs. Armstrong has lost her cat. Let’s find it. Meet me after school, usual place.
After school they met to discuss how to find the missing cat. Daniel and Matthew decide to look in all the trees in the village, because they know that cats like to climb trees, but do not always remember how to climb back down!
Katy and Poppy look over the walls into gardens to see if they can see the cat.
In the garden next door but one to Mrs. Armstrong, Katy sees paw prints going towards the garage. This is the house of Mr. and Mrs. Hodgson, who have just gone on holiday. Katy and Poppy walk up to the garage door, and hear a cat’s” meow” from inside.
They quickly find Daniel and Matthew to tell them.
“The cat must have been locked inside by mistake when the Hodgsons went on holiday. You are a brilliant detective, Katy,” says Daniel. This makes Katy very pleased.
They tell their mother who says that a friend of hers has the key to the Hodgson’s house while they are away. They soon unlock the garage, rescue the cat and take it back to Mrs. Armstrong who is delighted to get her cat back safe and sound.
The next day she gives each of them what she says all good detectives should have - a notebook, a pencil and a magnifying glass to thank them for finding her cat – plus a bar of chocolate each as a special treat.