“It’s Mrs. Garrison’s roses. There were at least a dozen beautiful pink and yellow
flowers on those three bushes when I stopped by to feed her cats last night. But now
they’re all gone.”
Danny moved past her for a closer look. “You’re right. The pruning cuts are new.
The stem ends are still green and fresh.”
“But why would someone do such a thing?” Maria asked. “Mrs. Garrison’s a nice
lady. Everyone I know has been sending her cards and gifts while she’s in the hospital.”
“It only takes one mean person,” Danny said.
Maria glanced at him sharply. “Yeah, I guess you’re right.” She thought of all the
mean kids at school who teased Danny because he was...well...different, because he was
always either reading mysteries or talking about them. “Detective Dork” – that’s what
they called him. It didn’t help that he hated video games and was a klutz at sports. She
was one of his few friends.
“Well,” Maria said, “I guess we can’t do anything about the roses now.”
“Sure we can,” Danny said. “We can investigate. We’ll find out who took them.”
Maria frowned. “I don’t know, Danny.”
“Oh, come on,” Danny said. “We’ll talk to the neighbors. Maybe we’ll find an
eyewitness.”
“But even if we do—”
Danny wasn’t listening. He was already striding up the walkway of the house next
door. Unfortunately, it was also the house where Kayla Clark lived. Kayla was the most
popular girl in their class. She was also one of those who thought Danny was a dork.
“If you’re looking for Kayla she’s out back working in the vegetable garden,”
Mrs. Clark said upon opening the door to Danny’s ring. “You can go through the side
gate if you’d like.”
“Okay,” said Maria. “Thank you.” Kayla Clark, queen of fashion, working in a
garden? Maria stifled a giggle as Danny opened the gate.
“What’s so funny,” Danny asked.
“I was just visualizing Kayla with dirt all over her hands.”
He nodded. “Yeah. It’s nice to know she has another side to her.”
Maria looked at him sharply, then shook her head. “Yeah, I guess.”
They continued into the backyard. Sure enough, Kayla was hard at work on hands
and knees among rows of plants. Kayla looked up, saw them, and flushed. “How did you
two get back here?”
“Uh, through the gate,” Maria said.
“Your mother told us you were working here,” Danny added.
“Wonderful.” Kayla muttered sarcastically. She stood up, and stared at them with
unsmiling blue eyes. “Well, what do you want?”
“Oh, uh....” Maria struggled for the right words.
“Someone swiped Mrs. Garrison’s roses,” Danny said.
“What do you mean – swiped?”
“Cut them off her bushes and took them. Probably this morning. We thought...hoped...you might have seen something since you live next door..”
“Yeah, I live next door, but I don’t watch out windows.” Kayla took off her work
gloves and rubbed at several scratches on the back of her right hand. “Anyway, no one
would ever steal from Mrs. Garrison. She’s nice.”
“We know she is,” Danny said.
“Yes,” Maria agreed. “I’ve been feeding her cats since she went in the hospital.
She’s has three of them, you know. And when I was over there with them last night I saw
lots of roses on her bushes.”
“Interesting,” Kayla said in bored voice. “But I still don’t understand the point of
your playing detective.”
“It’s the principle of the thing,” Danny said.
“Principle?” Kayla’s eyes narrowed. “What do you mean?”
“Stealing. Taking someone else’s property. From Mrs. Garrison, or anybody else.
It’s not right.”
“You don’t know they were stolen.”
“What do you mean?” Danny said.
“Yes,” Maria chimed in. “They’re gone, aren’t they?”
“Maybe, but.... Oh, I don’t know.” Kayla slipped her gloves back on. “I just think
you two snoop too much, that’s all.” She turned back to the garden.
“What now?” asked Maria as they walked around to the front of the house.
“Check with other neighbors, I guess,” Danny said.
“Do you think we should? I mean, they’re only roses after all. They would’ve
dried up and died pretty soon anyway – probably before Mrs. Garrison got back home.”
“That’s true,” Danny said. “But-- Look, there’s Tim Larson doing wheelies in his
front drive. Let’s see what he can tell us.”
“Hey there,” Tim greeted. “I didn’t know you two were boyfriend and girlfriend.”
“We’re not,” Maria said, coloring.
“If you say so. Want to see something awesome?” He maneuvered up and down
the driveway in several figure 8’s, then popped another wheelie. “Pretty good, hey?”
“Yes, Danny said. “But right now we’re investigating a possible crime.”
“A crime? You’re kidding, right?”
“Wish I was,” said Danny. “How long have you been out here in front?”
Tim shrugged. “A while. Why?”
“You see anyone over at Mrs. Garrison’s?”
“Just you two a little bit ago. Why?”
“Because someone swiped the roses off Mrs. Garrison’s bushes,” Maria said.
“That’s why.“
“Well it wasn’t me, and if someone’s saying it was.... Man, what would I want
with any roses?” Tim dug out a wrench from a container of tools at his side, and bent over
his bike. “Gotta raise this seat a little more,” he muttered. He loosened a bolt, then
reached under the seat to pull up on it. “Ouch!” He stuck a finger to his mouth. “Jabbed it
on something sharp. Gotta go in and get a bandage. See you two snoops later.”
“Ooo!” Maria glared after him. “Now two people have called us snoops.”
“Yeah,” Danny said in a faraway voice. “Come on. Let’s go back to Kayla’s.”
“Kayla’s? Why? Do you think she saw Tim take the roses?”
Danny didn’t answer. He was already crossing the street.
Maria sighed, and ran after him.
“You two again?” Kayla lay aside a cultivating tool with a sigh.
“Afraid so,” Danny said. “I think I know who took Mrs. Garrison’s roses.”
Kayla rolled her eyes. “Is that so? And just who was it Mr. Smart Detective?”
“You.”
Maria gasped. “Danny, what are you—”
“Oh, he’s right, Maria,” Kayla interrupted.
“He is? I mean, you admit it?”
“Yeah. I almost told you before, but didn’t think it was any of your business. But
then I got to thinking about that principle thing. And I have to say it – I didn’t steal the
roses. I cut them off and put them in a vase so I can take them to Mrs. Garrison today
during afternoon visiting hours. I figured what better way was there to cheer her up
than by bringing her some of her own beautiful roses. I was afraid they’d be finished
blooming by the time she returned home.”
Danny nodded. “I thought that might be why you did it. And I hoped so, too.”
Kayla smiled. “You’re pretty smart. But how’d you ever figure out I was the one
who took them?”
“Tim Larson jabbed his hand on something sharp on his bike while Maria and I
were talking to him,” Danny replied.
“I don’t understand.”
“Me either,” Maria said.
“When Tim hurt his hand it reminded me of the scratches I’d seen on your own
right hand when we were here the first time,” Danny said. “You’d been wearing
gardening gloves, so you couldn’t have gotten the scratches while working in the
garden, but you could have been scratched earlier – by rose thorns.”
Kayla shook her head. “I’m sorry I’ve called you names in the past, Danny. You
are a detective - a great one.”
“Wow,” Maria murmured under her breath.
“And you’re all right, too, Maria,” Kayla went on. “Neither of you acted like I was
weird spending my Saturday morning out here gardening.”
“Why should we?” Maria asked.
“I don’t know. But I do know that a lot of my friends would tease me about it, say
I was wasting my time, doing grub work, whatever.”
“Well they’d be wrong,” Maria said. “Gardens can be beautiful. And you can
grow some tasty things in them, too.”
Kayla nodded. “For sure. Now I’d like to know if you’d both do me a favor.”
“A favor?” Maria looked at Danny who shrugged, then nodded.
“Okay,” Maria said. “What’s the favor?”
“Come with my mom and I to see Mrs. Garrison? We can give her the roses, tell
her how her cats are doing and just cheer her up. What do you say?”
“I say it’s a great idea,” Danny said.
“Sure is,” Maria agreed. She smiled. The missing roses morning had blossomed
into a wonderful rosy day.
