by David Lewman
Hannah looked at the scrap and the sweatshirt closely. “Exactly the same color,” she announced. “And the fabric looks the same to me, too.”
“Sounds to me like it’s time to have a talk with Lauren,” Corey said.
As they walked out of Werner’s, leaving the disappointed saleswoman behind, Ben said, “I’m not sure it’s such a good idea to confront Lauren.”
“Why not?” Corey asked. “I know she’s in high school, but she’s only, like, five foot one. She doesn’t scare me.”
“I know,” Ben said. “But stealing dogs is a pretty serious crime. Maybe we should include the police.”
They walked on for a minute or two, thinking about what to do.
“You know, speaking of Lauren only being five foot one, I seriously doubt she wears a man’s size ten D shoe,” Corey pointed out.
“Maybe she had an accomplice,” Hannah suggested. “Maybe she got some big guy from her high school to help her.”
“All the more reason to bring Officer Inverno in on this,” Ben said.
“Come to think of it, we forgot to tell the police we got Molly back,” Hannah realized.
“I think that settles it,” Ben said. “To the police station?”
“To the police station,” Corey agreed. “But if we walk anywhere after that, you may have to carry me on your shoulders.”
Chapter 17
The policeman at the front counter of the station hung up his phone. “I’m afraid Officer Inverno isn’t available right now. Would you like to talk with another officer?”
The three members of Club CSI looked at one another. They were all thinking the same thing: They didn’t want to talk to another officer. They wanted to talk to Officer Inverno. They’d reported Molly’s disappearance to him, so they wanted to continue the case with him.
Ben turned back to the policeman behind the counter. “Do you know when Officer Inverno might be available?”
The policeman shrugged. “I’m not sure. He’s interviewing a witness.”
“We’ll wait, thanks,” Ben said.
The three friends sat down on a bench to wait. Corey was hoping they’d see criminals being escorted in and out of the station, but it seemed really quiet.
“I’ve been thinking about Lauren’s motivation,” Ben said.
“What about it?” Hannah asked.
Ben shifted on the wooden bench. It wasn’t comfortable. “Well, you thought maybe Lauren took Molly because she was jealous Molly won the dog contest, beating her dog, Princess.”
“Right,” Hannah said, nodding.
“But why would she take Pepper?” Ben asked. “He didn’t win the contest. He didn’t even beat Lauren’s dog. Didn’t you say Princess came in second?”
“That’s true,” Hannah said. “I don’t know.”
“Maybe once she got a taste for stealing dogs, she really liked it,” Corey suggested.
A man came through a door from inside the station. He was followed by Officer Inverno.
“Thanks again for your statement,” Officer Inverno said. “We really appreciate it.”
“No problem,” the man said.
“The prosecutor will be in touch,” Officer Inverno continued. “She’ll let you know if she needs you to appear in court.”
Officer Inverno noticed Ben, Hannah, and Corey. They’d jumped up from the bench the minute they saw him.
“Well, hello!” he said, smiling. “Are you waiting to see me?”
“Yes. Do you have a minute to talk with us?” Hannah asked.
“I sure do,” the policeman said. “Come on back.”
He led them through the doorway, down a hall, and into the same room where they’d met before. They all sat down.
“What can I do for you?” Officer Inverno asked.
“Remember my dog, Molly?” Hannah asked. “The one who was missing?”
“Of course,” he said.
“Well, she’s back,” Hannah said.
“That’s great! Glad to hear it!” he said, smiling. “So the case is closed.”
“Not quite,” Ben said. “Now a different dog has gone missing.”
They told him about Ryan’s missing dog, Pepper. Officer Inverno looked skeptical.
“Well, I doubt the two missing dogs have anything to do with each other,” he said. “Dogs go missing every day.”
Ben took a plastic bag out of his backpack. It held the small scrap of red fabric. He handed it to Officer Inverno, who held up the bag and peered at it. “Looks like a scrap of material.”
They explained how they had found the scrap on the gate at Ryan’s house and how it matched the Woodlands High School sweatshirts.
“Okay,” Officer Inverno said, drawing out both syllables. “What does that tell you?”
They told him about Lauren, and about how she always wore a red Woodlands High School sweatshirt.
He wasn’t convinced. “This evidence is pretty”—He was going to say “flimsy,” but he didn’t want to hurt their feelings or discourage them from exploring forensics—“light. And didn’t you show me a plaster cast of a man’s shoe print?”
Hannah was impressed he remembered that detail from Molly’s disappearance. “Yes, but I was thinking maybe Lauren had an accomplice.”
“So, what is it you’d like me to do, exactly?” Officer Inverno asked.
“Come with us to talk to Lauren,” Corey said.
“Right now?” he asked, surprised. “Do you even know where she is?”
Hannah was already looking up the number of O’Brien’s pet supply store on her phone. She called the number.
“Hello?” she said. “Is this Lauren? Oh, hi. We were just thinking about coming down to O’Brien’s. My friend has some more questions about—”
She put her hand over the phone and hissed, “What do you call those lizards you’re interested in?”
“Axolotls,” Ben said. “But they’re not lizards—”
“Axolotls,” Hannah said into her phone. She listened for a moment. “Great! We’ll see you there!” She ended the call and said, “Lauren’s working at the store right now. Could you go there with us? Please?”
Officer Inverno thought about it. He wasn’t convinced by any means that this high-school girl was stealing dogs. All the three kids had to go on was a tiny scrap of red fabric. On the other hand, cases had been solved on tiny pieces of evidence before. And these kids had a good track record. They’d been right before.
“I’m glad you came to me,” he said. “I don’t like the idea of you going around accusing people of crimes.” He sighed. “Okay, let’s go.”
“Great!” Corey said. “Um, would you mind driving? I’m sick of walking.”
Chapter 18
Club CSI enjoyed riding in Officer Inverno’s police car. He even agreed to stop off at Hannah’s house on the way and pick up Molly.
“It’s okay,” he said as Molly jumped into the backseat. “I’m a dog lover myself.”
“Why do you want Molly to go?” Corey asked.
“I’m not sure,” Hannah said. “Just a hunch.”
They parked a block away from O’Brien’s. “I don’t want to spook anybody,” Officer Inverno said. “Think you can handle the walk, Corey?”
“Just barely,” Corey said. “But don’t tell Coach.”
The shop was small but tidy, with everything neatly arranged on clean shelves. A sign said customers were welcome to bring their pets in with them.
“That means you, Molly,” Hannah said. Molly wagged her tail and trotted right into the store.
Lauren looked up from a magazine. She was startled to see Hannah, Ben, Corey, and a policeman. “What’s going on?” she said. “Get that dingo out of here!”
“Your sign says pets are welcome,” Corey pointed out.
“Pets, not wild beasts,” Lauren said.
Ben watched Molly carefully to see if she looked mad or scared when she saw Lauren (or smelled her, knowing dogs). But Molly ignored Lauren c
ompletely. She seemed much more interested in all the bags of dog food, sniffing around them and checking the floor for any dropped pieces.
Officer Inverno gave Lauren a friendly smile. “Hi, Lauren,” he said. “I’m Officer Inverno. I just wanted to ask you a couple of quick questions.”
Hannah couldn’t help but step forward. She already suspected Lauren of stealing her dog, and Lauren’s comment about Molly being a wild beast made her even madder.
“Why did you steal Molly and Pepper?” she asked accusingly.
“I didn’t steal anything,” Lauren snapped. “And who are Molly and Pepper?”
Officer Inverno tried to intervene. “Now, Hannah, I really wish you’d let me handle this.”
But Hannah took another step closer to Lauren. “You know perfectly well who Molly and Pepper are. Molly’s my dog and Pepper belongs to Ryan. They were both in O’Brien’s dog contest. And you stole them!”
Lauren looked totally confused. “You’re crazy,” she said. “I have a wonderful little Norwich terrier. Why would I want to steal your stupid mutts?”
Hannah yanked the bag with the square of red fabric out of Ben’s backpack and held it right in front of Lauren’s face. “Then how do you explain this?” she barked.
“A plastic bag?” Lauren said, mimicking Hannah’s tone.
Hannah opened the bag and took out the scrap of red fabric. “We found this piece of red material on the gate to Ryan’s yard,” she said, holding it against Lauren’s sweatshirt. “And it perfectly matches your sweatshirt!”
“So what?” Lauren said. “Get away from me!”
Lauren turned away from Hannah. Corey pointed at the back of her sweatshirt, near the bottom hem. “Look!” he said. “There’s a hole!”
Lauren whipped back around. “What are you talking about?”
Officer Inverno stepped forward. “Lauren, would you mind if we look at the back of your sweatshirt for a second?”
Lauren folded her arms. “Yes, I do mind. This is harassment.”
“Are you afraid we’ll find something that proves you’re guilty?” Hannah asked.
“Of course not! Because I’m not guilty of anything!” Lauren said. She sighed, then turned around to let them examine the back of her sweatshirt.
Corey quickly found the hole he’d spotted. Hannah held up the scrap of red fabric to the square hole. The piece fit perfectly.
“See?” Hannah said. “It matches. That proves Lauren tore her sweatshirt on the gate to Ryan’s backyard.” Satisfied, Hannah placed the piece of fabric back in the plastic bag.
“No, it doesn’t!” Lauren insisted. “I’ve never even been in this Ryan’s backyard. In fact, I don’t even know which Ryan you’re talking about!”
“Do you know how you tore your sweatshirt, Lauren?” Officer Inverno asked.
“I didn’t tear it,” she said. “Someone else must have. I left my sweatshirt here, in the store, overnight, and when I looked at it the next morning, there was this tear in it.”
Ben didn’t think this sounded very likely. “So, you didn’t tear your sweatshirt. Someone else did. But you don’t know who.”
“That’s what I said, dork,” Lauren said, sneering.
“Okay, okay,” Officer Inverno interjected, holding up his hands. “There’s no need for name-calling. Lauren, I’d appreciate it if you’d come with us back to the station.”
Lauren looked stunned. “Seriously? Are you arresting me? Because of a torn sweatshirt?”
“No,” he said. “But this is a serious matter, and I’d just like to ask you a few more questions.”
“Can’t you just ask me here?” Lauren said. “I’m trying to work.”
“I’m afraid the store where you work really isn’t the best place for questions,” Officer Inverno explained.
“But I’m the only one here right now,” Lauren protested. “I can’t just leave. I’ll get fired.”
Officer Inverno was about to speak when Molly suddenly ran into the rear of the pet supply store, barking. She had been sniffing the floor, making her way toward the back. Now she had run through an open door leading to a back room.
“Molly!” Hannah called. “Where are you going? Molly, come!”
Usually Molly was very good about immediately obeying commands. But she stayed in the back, out of sight, barking and barking.
“It’s like she’s found something,” Ben remarked.
“That’s just where Mr. O’Brien boards the dogs,” Lauren said.
They all rushed into the back room. The room was full of big cages with dogs in them. Molly was barking at the dogs, who had started barking back at her. It was loud.
In one of the cages, Hannah recognized . . .
Pepper! Ryan’s missing dog!
Chapter 19
That’s Pepper!” Hannah cried. “Ryan’s dog! I recognize him from the poster!”
Hannah kneeled down, slid back the latch to the cage, and opened the door. Pepper came running out, wagging his tail and licking Hannah’s face. She wasn’t his owner, but she knew his name, and he was thrilled to see anyone who let him out of that cage.
“Are you sure it’s Pepper?” Officer Inverno asked. “Looks like a plain brown dog to me.” He looked at the tag on the cage Pepper had just come out of. “And the tag here says ‘Buddy.’”
Hannah pointed to a white patch on Pepper’s chest. “See this mark? Where his fur is white?”
Officer Inverno nodded.
“See how it’s shaped like a pepper shaker? That’s what his family named him for.”
“Watch this,” Corey said. “Hey, Buddy!” The brown dog paid no attention at all. “Hey, Pepper!” The dog immediately turned and trotted over to Corey.
“I’m sold,” Officer Inverno said. “He’s Pepper.”
Molly and Pepper sniffed each other and tried to play together, even though there wasn’t much room to play in the back area.
Corey noticed brown crumbs in the bottom of the empty cage Pepper had been in. He picked one up and sniffed it. It smelled like peanut butter.
He noticed a couple of the other dog cages had brown treat crumbs in them too.
“Lauren, what do you know about Pepper being kept in a cage here?” Ben asked.
“Nothing,” she said. She looked totally bewildered. “I thought his name was Buddy. These are the dogs Mr. O’Brien boards for people who are going out of town for work or for vacation. Maybe the tag on the cage got switched or something. Maybe someone put this dog in the wrong cage. I have no idea.”
“Are there records for all the dogs who are boarding here?” Officer Inverno asked.
“Sure,” she said. “On the computer.”
“Let’s take a look, okay?” Officer Inverno said with a friendly voice.
Lauren went back out front to the computer. She used the mouse to click through a couple of screens.
“Is there a record for Pepper?” Officer Inverno asked.
Lauren typed “Pepper” into a search box and hit return.
“Nope,” she said. “Nothing here for Pepper.”
Pepper looked up every time someone said his name.
“How about for Buddy?” Ben asked.
“Good thinking,” Corey said, giving a thumbs-up.
Lauren typed “Buddy” into the search box. No results.
“There’s no record for a dog named Buddy, either,” she said. “That’s really weird.”
“It’s not all that weird, considering that Ryan’s family never boarded Pepper.” Hannah countered. “The question is, how did Pepper get here?”
“Don’t look at me,” Lauren retorted. “I have no idea how he got here. I don’t have much to do with the boarded dogs. I just work at the store in front.”
Hannah looked at Lauren sharply, trying to gauge whether she was telling the truth or lying.
“I wonder if there are any other dogs back there who aren’t in the computer,” Corey said.
Ben headed back toward the room w
ith the cages. “That’s a good question,” he said. “Let’s find out.” Corey followed him through the door.
In the back room Ben pulled a pen and small notebook out of his backpack. “Read me the names on the cages,” he instructed.
“You got it,” Corey said. He went from cage to cage, reading out loud all the names of the dogs, so Ben could write them down. It wasn’t always easy for Ben to hear the names with all the dogs barking, but Corey repeated each name until they’d listed them all.
Ben took the list of dog names back to Lauren. “Could you—”
“Check to see if they’re in the computer? Absolutely,” she said, getting right to work. Lauren actually seemed as eager to find out what was going on with the dogs in the back as Club CSI was.
As Lauren rapidly typed names into the computer, Hannah felt her suspicion of the high-school girl melt away. If Lauren was acting, she was a really good actress. She should get all the leads in her school’s plays and musicals.
“There are two other dogs in the cages with no records in the computer,” Lauren said. “Rocky and Brody.”
They all went back to look at Rocky and Brody. Rocky was a boxer, and Brody was some kind of spaniel. In the bottoms of their cages, there were brown crumbs from peanut-butter dog treats.
“I think Brody’s a springer spaniel,” Hannah said. Before her family got Molly, they researched lots of dog breeds together.
“If Brody’s even his name,” Ben said. “The tag on Pepper’s cage said ‘Buddy,’ so maybe these names are wrong, too.”
“Did you check these dogs in when their owners brought them to be boarded, Lauren?” Officer Inverno asked.
“No,” Lauren said. “Mr. O’Brien must have checked them in. But I don’t get why he wouldn’t put them in the computer.”
Officer Inverno nodded slowly. “I’d like to talk to Mr. O’Brien. Do you know where he is?”
Lauren shook her head. “He said he’d be right back. I thought he’d be here by now.”
They heard a door open. It was the front door to the store.
Lauren went back out front. The others followed her—even Molly and Pepper.