Blue Crew Mystery

“Hey, Jessie,” my cousin, Lenny, said, “meet Donny and Chip Mason. Donny’s the Blue Crew’s treasurer, and Chip is his little brother.”

“I’m not little,” Chip said, jutting the chin of his freckled face forward. “I’m almost eight. And one of these days maybe I’ll be the treasurer. I can keep track of money just as good as anyone else.”

“You probably can,” Donny agreed. “But right now you’re still too young.” He flashed me a grin. “Today’s going to be a big day for the Blue Crew. After everyone pays their dues, we’ll have enough to get a good lock for the clubhouse door.”

“Clubhouse?” I asked.

“Yeah,” Lenny said. “It’s back in those woods. Donny, Mark Cassidy and I built it all by ourselves this summer using scrap wood from Dad’s lumber yard.”

“And a lot of work it was, too,” Donny added. “Took us almost a month and--” He broke off, staring at the sky. “Oh, oh. Look at those dark clouds. More morning rain might be on the way. We better get moving and head over to the clubhouse right away.” He glanced at Chip. “See you later, brother.”

“Aw, can’t I come along?” Chip asked. “I wore my blue shirt and jeans today so I’d fit right in.”

“Afraid not. You’re too young.” Donny started off at a fast pace, and Lenny and I followed. The going was wet and muddy, but within minutes a small, ramshackle structure came into view.

“Doesn’t look like much from the outside,” Lenny told me, “but it’s got a good roof, and the floor’s made of plywood nailed to railroad ties. Hey, Donny, I thought Mark planned to meet us here this morning?”

“He was supposed to--”

A blond, blue-shirted figure came running out from behind the clubhouse. “About time you guys got here. We’ve been robbed!”

“What?” Donny exclaimed.

“Are you sure, Mark?” Lenny added.

Mark nodded. “I got here ten minutes ago, and when I went inside I found the cash box in the middle of the floor. I picked it up and looked inside and -- well, it’s empty.”

“Mind if I take a look?” I asked.

Mark looked at me skeptically. “Who are you?”

“Jesse McKinley,” I said. “Lenny’s cousin. I read lots of mysteries and am sort of good at figuring things out. Maybe I can help.”

Mark shrugged, glanced at the others.

“Okay with me,” Donny said.

“Go to it, cuz,” Lenny added.

I swung open the clubhouse’s squeaky door. It was pretty dark inside, but by holding the door wide I let in enough daylight so I could get a good view of the place. Sure enough, there was the metal cash box on the floor just as Mark had described.

I studied the floor. No tell tale footprints, or anything else that could be an obvious clue. The furnishings consisted of an old round table, three folding metal chairs, and a battered metal shelving unit upon which sat a couple of flashlights, a deck of cards, and some paper and pencils.

I turned back to Mark. “Anything else missing?”

“Not that I know of, but”-- Mark glared at Donny. “I told you we shouldn’t keep the cash box in here.”

“Are you saying this is all my fault?” Donny asked, his face reddening.

“Yeah,” Mark retorted. “As treasurer it’s your job to keep our money safe.”

Donny’s face grew even redder and Lenny cut in quickly. “Hey, take it easy, guys. The Blue Crew’s a team. Remember? We support one another.”

Mark looked away, a little guiltily, I thought. “All right,” he said. “I’m sorry.”

“Can I help solve the case?” came a voice from behind us.

“Chip!” Donny let out a groan. “I thought I told you to stay home. And look at the mud on your shoes. Mom’s gonna blow her stack.”

“You guy’s got mud on your shoes, too,” Chip said. “Besides, I want to help.”

“Well unless you took the money, you can’t.”

“Took the money?” Tears welled in Chips eyes, and he looked at the rest of us. “I didn’t do it. Honest.”

“Hey, easy kid,” Mark said. He gave the younger boy’s left shoulder a little squeeze. “In fact--”

“In fact,” I cut in, “thanks to you, Chip, I think I’ve figured out who did take it.”

“Thanks to Chip?” Donny stared at me.

“Thanks to me?” Chip echoed.

“Yes,” I replied. “And unless I’m terribly wrong” – I swung a measured look around the group – “I also believe the thief was about to confess. Weren’t you, Mark?”

“I, uh. . . .” Mark flushed. “Yeah, I was about to own up, but I’m not really a thief.” He reached inside his jacket pocket, and withdrew several bills. “Here’s the money. Sorry I got everyone worked up, but I was just trying to make a point about how easy it will be for someone to steal our savings if we don’t keep it somewhere safer. I guess my attempt wasn’t very good though, was it?”

“No, it wasn’t,” Lenny said.

“But you are right, Mark,” Donny added. “I wasn’t a very good treasurer to leave the cash box here overnight.” He looked at me. “Now, Jesse, how’d you know it was Mark who took the money? And how’d Chip help you?”

I grinned and gave Chip a thumbs up sign. “He pointed out that all of us had mud on our shoes.”

“So?” Lenny said.

“So,” I said, “there were no muddy footprints on the clubhouse floor. But if Mark had been inside like he said he was--”

“He would have left muddy footprints,” Chip finished excitedly.

“Exactly,” I said. I turned to Mark. “My guess is that you took the money yesterday, before it rained.”

“Good guess,” Mark said. “You want to join the Blue Crew? We need someone with your brains.”

“Only if Chip is also allowed to join,” I said. “His sharp eyes and never-quit attitude could be a valuable asset.” I looked at the others. “How about it guys?”

“Sounds good to me,” Lenny said.

Mark nodded. “Me, too.”

Donny shrugged, then smiled and offered his hand to the younger boy. “Welcome to the Crew, brother.”