by Dele Daniel
“That’s a bonsai tree,” answered Kathy. “They’re beautiful Japanese trees that are grown in flat short pots.”
“Oh? So they can grow anywhere?”
Kathy smiled, “Yeah, as long as they’re cared for. You could have one anywhere.”
“Are we talking to the Mukais or not?” Angelo was getting impatient because his arms were getting tired from holding the map so wide, which no one had asked him to do. All morning the view of space had been growing foggier beneath the dome. The Squad had barely noticed it. Elon took the map from Angelo, rolling it so as to keep creases from forming. He would hate to have folds when they put it back up in the tree house. A gust of wind rose through the quiet street and Elon, for the first time, noticed the forming clouds. “Hey, did anyone check the forecast app?”
“Forecast app?” Alex had never heard of that.
Noticing Alex’s puzzled expression, Elon explained, “It’s an app that lets the town’s people vote on weather. It’s new.”
“We can all vote on the weather?” Angelo hadn’t heard of the app either.
Their Captain was growing uncharacteristically impatient, “I’m sure Mr. and Mrs. Mukai can tell us the forecast.” She barely finished her sentence, leaving the rest of them outside. The other three shared a look. The inside of Bonsai Bakery was tranquil. Flat oblong stones with polished shades of beige and grey made up the floor. Different breads, sticky buns and rolls of every kind surrounded the bakery on fine zairai wooden shelves. The counter running along the far wall, with even more delicious baking stacked behind it, was also made of Japanese zairai wood, all imported from the mountains of Kagoshima, Japan. Alex was in awe. And then he saw it, a beautiful bonsai in the corner of the room, just as tall as him.
“I want one,” Alex blurted.
Everyone else sort of paused at the abruptness of Alex’s sudden love of bonsais.
Catching himself, Alex turned back to the group, embarrassed. “Well I mean— I think they’re kinda—” he began to stutter and tried to explain.
For a moment Kathy forgot all about Jack and enjoyed her cousin’s sudden outburst, “I’m sure Mom and Dad would let you get one for your room.”
Alex couldn’t help but beam with excitement, but then he recalled Jack, “That would be amazing, but we got other things on our plate, don’t we?” and with that he pulled on the brim of his fedora, as though locking himself into detective mode, and made for the counter. The sandy colour of the counter was almost the same grain as the baking surrounding them, as if the buns and rolls just grew from the very walls. Alex really really liked it here. But now, it was time to find some info. He tapped the small brass bell shaped like a rooster.
Within seconds, the kindliest looking woman emerged from the back with a bright smile, “Oh hello, children. How may we help you today?”
“We would like some buns,” chimed Angelo before being shot a look by Kathy, “Oh, I mean, and a dog” he added.
“Excuse me?” laughed Mrs. Mukai, her eyebrows rose but her smile did not waver.
Alex’s sudden confidence spurred him to clarify, “We’re actually looking for her—” and he caught himself. “Our,” he corrected, “we’re looking for our dog.” Kathy hadn’t noticed, but the rest of the Squad had. Alex was feeling more a part of Silver Creek every day.
“Oh, no! Is he a corgi by any chance?” Mrs. Mukai asked with deep concern.
“I’m afraid so, ma’am,” Alex began, fiddling with his fedora.
“Oh my, so polite,” Mrs. Mukai said. “I do not believe I have any information to offer, but my husband, Satoshi, did see a corgi some five days ago. But there’s no way to know if he was yours since they announced that other corgis have also gone missing.”
“Did he happen to be missing a collar?” Kathy asked with the smallest ounce of hope.
“That is correct.”
The Squad all shared an excited look.
Then Mrs. Mukai’s expression changed, “I’m afraid you may not like what he had to share.”
A lump caught in Kathy’s throat, “Please, what did he say?” The rest of the Squad moved closer to Kathy, prepared for the worst.
“That morning, when my husband was preparing to open, he said a dog had been sniffing around the rear entrance. This, of course, is not unusual as a bakery always smells best first thing in the morning.” Mrs. Mukai looked directly at Kathy. “He must be a dog with very good taste,” she said with a wink. Kathy gave a slight smile. Mrs. Mukai continued, “We keep a few dog biscuits near the back door; he isn’t the first to come around with a curious nose. But my husband said this dog was quite dirty and seemed as though he wanted to be followed.”
“The dog wanted Mr. Mukai to follow him?” Elon asked with great surprise.
“That is correct. Mr. Mukai even followed, part way into the forest even. But he said a strange noise sounded and the dog ran away. It had been quite startled. Mr. Mukai could not follow the dog, nor could he locate from which direction the strange sound had come.”
“So he ran away into the forest again?”
“I am afraid so, off into the woods. I believe, that way,” Mrs. Mukai said, pointing towards the back of the bakery.”
“That’s the other side of town,” chirped Angelo.
“Well, I guess we got a hike on our hands,” Elon said with gruff determination, pulling down the brim of his own fedora.
“If you wait until noon, I could drive you children out to the far biome if you like.”
“That’s very generous of you, Mrs. Mukai,” Kathy said with a bow, “but we should be going, he’s been missing so long already.”
“Mrs. Mukai bowed back with a soft frown, “I hope you find him. I will tell Mr. Mukai you stopped by. Perhaps he may recall some other detail. I hope you find your…”
“Jack,” said Alex.
“Your Jack,” replied Mrs. Mukai.
The Squad thanked Mrs. Mukai, each bowing in turn before making their way to the door, when it suddenly swung open and a tall man in a dark brown trench coat and black fedora silhouetted the doorway. A gust of wind whirled the hem of his coat, and the Squad froze.
The man took a long, lean step into the bakery, closed the door gently behind him, removed his hat, and turned to the children.
“The name’s Detective Krantz. I’m here to find some dogs.”
The crackle of thunder burst in the distance.
Without taking his eyes off the strange man, Elon called politely over his shoulder, “Mrs. Mukai? What’s the vote on the forecast app today?”
Mrs. Mukai tapped at a screen next to the register, and after a moment, “It would appear my young friends, the weather calls for: storm.”
7
“So no other breeds have been reported missing?”
After introductions, the detective offered to drive the kids out to one of the other biomes. One was currently under construction which left only two. Sea and Desert. The kids weren’t sure which to choose. The road sped beneath the rover like one enormous tread, as though a giant had ridden its bike through the forest. Alex had taken the passenger seat as the others had opted for the back.
Alex felt a little guilty as to how much he had been enjoying the day. It was serious that they didn’t know where Jack was, and with all the corgis missing, it was quite worrisome. Mrs. Mukai had gifted them a complimentary batch of cinnamon rolls. The detective had been direct with a flash of his badge and an explanation for his visit. He wasted no time in gathering them into the police rover. Angelo, Elon, and Kathy were making short work of the pastries, so Alex did the talking.
“We don’t think so. Just corgis mostly. All around town.”
“That’s what our reports said back at Moon P.D.” Detective Krantz said matter-of-factly. He kept one hand on the wheel and fished out a cinnamon roll from the police console.
“How long have you been…umm…doing this, Detective Krantz?” Alex was as nervous as he was interested in hearing about anything
related to Moon P.D.
“A long time. Specialize in the abduction of exotic animals mostly. And hey, call me Galan.”
“Ok, Galan.” Alex went quiet for a bit. He was very happy with that exchange. The road gently curved around a knot of fallen trees and just then the rover came to an abrupt stop at an overturned junk-hauler.
“Woah!” barked the detective as he slammed the brakes. Everyone managed to retain their buns in hand. The detective was out the side door and on scene within seconds. The Squad were in awe and followed promptly, save for Angelo, who was far too engrossed in finishing his complimentary pastry.
The junk-hauler was a large rectangular all-purpose utility truck. The clouds had slowly been gathering all morning and now it wasn’t possible to see the stars of the dark grey. Alex could have sworn, thanks to the disc’s reflective light, with all the clouds, he could have sworn he was back on earth. An array of broken trees led up the hill. “Is everyone alright?” the detective asked, pulling a man from the driving module. A lanky pot-bellied man with dirty coveralls coughed and got to his feet.
The man swatted at the dust on his pants with more coughing and muttering. Finally he cleared his throat as the Squad gathered behind the detective, “Oh don’t trouble yer self nah,” wheezed the man.
“It’s no trouble at all,’ said Galan, eyeing the man oddly. “What came to happen here?”
The man dismissively waved them on, “Oh nuffin’ need troublin’ over. I was jus taking a load of spare lumper down to one of the biomes and lost my way on a slick a mud. And here I am, came a tumblin’ down.”
The detective turned back to the Spaghetti Squad, now joined by a contented Angelo, “Kids, is there a tow truck service in town.”
The stranger strained himself taller, balancing moreso on the ball of one foot, as if peering over a fence, “Oh what’s that? No need for a tow, officer. I’ll just radio my boys, they ought to get here in a jiff should I be quick about it. Like I said, just coming back from the biome.”
“And which biome would that be?” asked Galan.
“Oh, Desert. Yeah, I do some handy work on a few of the air intakes for the weather and humidity control to the rest of Silver Creek.”
“You and your boys?”
“Oh yes, sir. Just some handy fellows,” the man smiled with the glint of a silver tooth.
“You know, maybe I should help make a report, wouldn’t want any issue in case something’s been damaged. Let me at least help you take an inventory of the—”
“Oh no, no, no!” interrupted the man, waving his hands in front of him like a dual goodbye. “No need for all that.”
The kids shared a look, and Alex was certain there was something suspicious about this man. Galan didn’t have to check with the squad to gather the same hunch. He knew how to play it and he always played it cool, “Well I’m glad you’re not injured. Still, we can’t have you blocking the whole of the road.”
Before the detective could take a step forward, the man ran off to the side of the road, chirping over his shoulder, “No need, no need, no need. Ha, Ha. I know where the ol’ gravity generator is, under this here bubble. See, let me just,” and dashing over to a low-cut tree stump, he pressed a hidden button on a jutting knot of bark, and the stump slid up and open just like one of the bushes in the back yard at home. He quickly fiddled a setting and bolted back to the junk-hauler. Galan and the squad watched with fascination at the speed of the suspicious man, who then took a slow, long jump back to the truck, and with a very red face, lifted the thing up and over. He had to hang onto one of the hauler’s side mirrors as he lifted off the ground. Then, he bound back to the stump, reset the settings and rushed back to the truck as gravity returned to normal. Without a word, he was into the driver seat and starting the hauler. A huff of black smoke coughed from the back as he reversed down the road and away from the detective.
“That, kids,” began Galan, “Is what we call a suspect.”
“You think he stole the corgis?” Alex asked.
“Well, he’s up to something. That’s for sure. Did you hear which biome he said he was going to?”
“Desert,” answered Kathy.
“That’s right,” continued Galan, “which means what?”
“He definitely didn’t come from the Desert biome.”
“Very good. So where do we think he really came from?” not moving a step with his eyes fixed down the road.
This time Elon replied, “The Tropical biome is under construction. It’s got no atmosphere right now. There’s no way that hauler came from there. It’s open cab and only meant for inner-bubble use.”
“That’s good, you guys are pretty good at this,” the detective said, finally turning from the road. “So what does that leave us?”
“I think the Sea biome,” answered Alex.
“I think you’re right. Sea biome it is.”
***
The police rover pattered against the trail once more. The trees began to thin as they neared the edge of the other side of the forest. Alex sat quietly in the passenger seat, wondering about all they had learnt, which wasn’t much. He couldn’t work it out, so he decided to simply ask, “Why corgis?”
No one said anything, but the detective weighed Alex’s words in the silence of the car before answering, “Well I have a hunch on that.”
“Yeah?” Alex seemed to get less shy the more he tried to work on the mystery of Jack’s disappearance.
“Well, what do you know about corgis?”
Alex went quiet once more, deep in thought. And suddenly, he just sort of answered without thinking, “Royalty,” he blurted.
A sly smile curled at the corners of the detective’s mouth.
Angelo laughed from the back seat, “Dogs can’t be royalty.”
Elon and Kathy gave the benefit of the doubt but their expressions also betrayed an air of bewilderment. The detective flashed a glance to the rear-view mirror and noticed the rest of the Squad’s puzzlement, “Why don’t you elaborate on that?” he chuckled.
“Well,” Alex began, “Corgis are the English royal family’s official pet. They keep a bunch around the palace or whatever. So, I don’t know, that’s something.”
“It is something,” agreed the detective.
“What’s that got to do with Jack?”
“Well, it just so happens that a very special line has been bred for generations. Years back, when the moon and its municipalities were founded, the royal family made an official visit, and through some mishap or another, lost their favourite. It was presumed to have accidentally escaped an airlock and…well. Anyways, this was some time ago, even before a few of you would have been born. And there has been an enormous corgi shortage on the rise over the past decade. One theory is that the royal corgi never escaped and ended up adopted somewhere in one of the other municipalities. Maybe, he ended up in Silver Creek.”
The Squad was silent with anticipation.
The detective continued, “It’s a little known fact, that because of this one fact, Moon born corgis are incredibly expensive and with a shortage in regular corgis, well, you get the picture.”
“So you think…what do you think?” fumbled Elon.
However, it was Alex that answered, “So you think someone is kidnapping these dogs and sending them back to earth, to England.”
“Bingo,” said the detective.
“My dog has been stolen to England?” Kathy was almost teary.
“Not necessarily,” continued the detective. “At least not yet. There hasn’t been any extra rocket activity, but tomorrow night the disc is going to be down for maintenance, and when that happens, radar detection is offline. If someone wanted to launch a secret rocket full of stolen corgis, that would be the time.”
“Of course!” Elon shouted, smacking his forehead with the palm of his hand, “It’s so obvious.”
Kathy didn’t say anything.
“We gotta figure out where they’ll be launching from. But first,�
�� the rover hit a bump, giving the detective pause as the hatchway-bubble to the Sea biome revealed itself at the edge of the very last tree, “But first let’s see if there’s anything interesting going on seaside.”
***
The police rover crept along the shore that skirted a small jetty with a lone booth. There were no clouds in this biome’s bubble. It was another beautiful sight to see stars reflected in far stretching water; a mirror of yawning possibility. Alex felt like writing something down and maybe he would, later, a poem even. But maybe that was silly. It was a beautiful sight, though.
Someone in the booth got up and came to the doorway, then came out all the way to greet the rover. “Hey, that’s Mr. Leibowitz. He’s our neighbour on the other side. What’s he doing out here?”
Mr. Leibowitz had a long gait and took heavy strides when meeting the detective and the Squad. “Mr. Galan Krantz, you old so and so, how are you doing?”
“Mr. Leibowitz, never a disappointment,” Galan replied, while applying a firm handshake.
“So I got your message this morning, wasn’t much activity down this way. An old junker came down and popped a U-turn. Beyond that suspicious activity, nothing to report.”
Galan laughed, “Well do me a favour and have someone patrol the shoreline. There might be a rogue rocket smuggling valuable corgis tomorrow night.”
“Hey!” Angelo shouted, elbowing Elon in the side, “He already knew to come check the Sea!”
“That’s right,” chimed in Kathy.
Alex was dumbfounded.
“Galan’s a pro, kids. He had us check the tracker and no one’s been through the Desert biome in weeks. The Sea however…” Leibowitz trailed off. The kids were shocked and impressed.
“Hey, I got a question for ya, Donald,” Galan said.
“Shoot, city slicker.”
“What’s the deal behind this weather app?”
“Oh it’s a fool thing. They’ve been testing it out here, all part of some eco group initiative. Anyways, lets people vote on the weather.”