Sir E. Robert Smythe and the Lost Detective

Sir E. Robert Smythe and the Lost Detective

Christina Weigand

 

Sir E. Robert Smythe and the Lost Detective

During summer vacation, while Anna and her brother Ben, along with Bridget and her brother, Sam, are participating in the Summer Reading Adventure at the local library, the town council announces they are building low-income housing for the homeless. While the housing is being constructed a tent community has been established on an old soccer field on the other side of a haunted swamp. Sam is upset by this turn of events, but his anger is only beginning.

In the meantime, unbeknownst to them, the girls befriend Zoe, one of the homeless people living in the tents. The girls spend time together tracking down clues supplied by the books they are borrowing from the library that will eventually lead to a prize at the end of the Summer Reading Adventure.

When Bridget and Sam’s grandfather dies in a tragic car accident Sam’s anger increases when it is discovered that Zoe’s father was the drunk driver in the truck that crashed into his grandfather’s car. The family lawyer reveals in the will that the farm and house have been left to the community to build low income housing for the homeless.

Sam’s anger reaches a boiling point and he directs it at Zoe, hatching a plan to get back at the people he thinks are taking away everything he holds dear.

Title Sir E. Robert Smythe and the Lost Detective

Author      Christina Weigand Created by Ricci Moore

Genre        Middle-Grade Fantasy

Release     November 2017

Designer  Charlotte Volnek

Length      95 pages

ISBN         ebook 978-1-77127-961-1 Paperback coming soon

Excerpt

Eleven-year-old Zoe Jones unzipped the 8’ X 10’ tent door that she, her mother and her Labrador puppy lived in, really just slept in. There wasn’t enough room to do anything more than that. She wished they hadn’t had to leave their house at all, but with Daddy gone, there had been no choice. At least they hadn’t moved until school was finished so there was a place to do her schoolwork.

After finishing her breakfast in the large dining tent set up by the town for the homeless people to get a hot meal Zoe walked back to their tent. It was time for her and mom to walk to the bakery where Zoe would spend the day while her mother went to work in the city. The sky was blue, with fluffy light clouds, so that meant no rain today while they walked to town. After entering the tent she kneeled and crawled to her cot to brush her hair and pet the dog in his kennel one more time before they left.

“Momma, how much longer do we have to stay here? It isn’t fun anymore, not like the camping trip we took with Daddy last year. I want to go home,” Zoe said.

The brown and white puppy whined. “Buster doesn’t like being in his kennel so much, and he misses his training sessions,” Zoe said.

“Zoe, you know we aren’t going back home. We can’t let Buster run around while we live here. Now hurry up and finish getting ready. We have to get to the park. I need to catch my bus,” Zoe’s mom said.

Zoe finished brushing her short, red hair. “Do I have to go today? Can’t I just stay here? Buster will watch out for me.”

“No, you can’t stay here by yourself. Mrs. Reilley, the lady at the bakery, will keep an eye on you while I go to work.”

Zoe picked up a bag with library books and gave Buster a dog biscuit. “Maybe I’ll meet someone at the park today.”

“That’s the spirit. Isn’t the Reading Club Kick-off carnival today?” Zoe’s mom asked as they exited their mid-size tent.

Zoe glanced around the homeless camp. It was terrible living here. There were only a couple of children in the fifty tent encampment and they weren’t her age. There was no one to play with. She wrinkled her nose, because in spite of the fact that they were able to use the restrooms and the limited kitchen facilities of the soccer field, the camp still smelled of unwashed bodies and human waste. A garbage dump was set up outside the camp, and the trash was picked up once a week, but that didn’t completely eliminate the smell from fifty families’ trash. Her mother had explained that there were very strict rules for keeping the camp clean, but Zoe didn’t think they were much help. “Yeah, I think so,” Zoe said, answering her mother’s question.

As they walked past Gullies Swamp, Zoe rummaged through her bag. “Oh no, I forgot one of my books. Can we run back and get it?”

“No. If we go back I’ll miss my bus. Can’t you just bring it tomorrow?”

“It’s due today. They’ll fine us. I’ll just run back and get it.”

“Okay, just be careful and don’t talk to anybody. I’ll see you after work. Meet me at the bus stop at 6:00 and we can walk home together. Now you behave yourself with Mrs. Reilley and enjoy the carnival. Don’t eat too many of the baked goods.”

“All right. Love you, mom.” Zoe kissed her mom on the cheek and ran back to the camp.

The book was on her cot in the tent. Picking it up quickly, she headed back to the park. Passing the swamp, she noticed Morton the Morph, the yellow toad-like creature and his small blue pear-shaped panngoes playing on the edge of the swamp. One of the panngoes bounced into the swamp.

“Hey, you guys shouldn’t go in there,” Zoe yelled.

“Oh, don’t worry about them. They’ll be fine. Just a bunch of panngoes,” Morton answered as more of the creatures bounced into the swamp.

Zoe heard some dogs barking and one of the panngoes squealing. “One of them might be hurt. Shouldn’t you go in there and check on them?” She heard another sound, children talking and laughing. “Oh no, someone’s coming. I have to hide. Mamma doesn’t want me to talk to any strangers.” She glanced around trying to find a spot to hide then looked at the panngoes. She immediately ran to them and straight into the swamp.

One of the bigger ones had fallen in a hole and was calling out for the others to help him. Zoe followed the sound of the crying.

Buy Links:

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Hometown Memories

LETCHWORTH STATE PARK 

THE GRAND CANYON OF THE EAST

Jonathan Lee

Jesse Crowden

Peter Anuszkiewicz

Everyone has a favorite place they went to as a child.  For me, Letchworth State Park was paradise! My family only went there for day trips. I do not recall any sojourn that felt like a repeat, for nature always provided new beauty to behold. The light on the water, the colors of the foliage, or even wildlife making an appearance; something made each trip special.

 

Dan Rittenhouse

Eli De'Enn

So, what exactly is Letchworth that makes it stand out? It is a 14,427-acre park (about 17 miles long) located in Eastern Upstate New York. It follows the path of the Genesee River as it travels north to its outlet Lake Ontario near Rochester.  With canyon cliffs as high as 600 feet, it is often referred to as "The Grand Canyon Of The East".  The northern end is marked by Mount Morris Dam which helps thwart the chance of flooding. There are nearly 50 waterfalls located within the park with three major ones (Upper, Middle and Lower Falls) located in the southern end.

Marian Carloni

Phil Conroy

Many tributaries flow into the river and can be found along the various hiking trails. The numerous smaller falls can be found along these tributaries or by following the hiking trails or by kayak or rafting. One of the more well-known ones is Inspiration Falls, which is a ribbon falls with a drop of 350 ft. Unfortunately, its appearance is seasonal, like many of the other smaller ones.

Jeanne Mcnarmara

It has been a very long time, 26 years to be exact,  since I have been able to enjoy an outing there. My sister and I took my husband to NY so he could see where I grew up.  We also felt the need to prove to him that there was country in NY, since he was not convinced by my descriptions.  While there, we went to Letchworth.  Unfortunately, there was a drought at the time and he did not get to experience the full beauty of the falls. 

 

Jack Geising

I feel a connection to the river.  My troubles seem to fade away with the flow.  I can almost feel the gloom being purged from my heart as the water cascades over the falls, the spray on my skin refreshing my soul. 

From the thundering power of the three main falls, to the tinkling of those along the tributaries, the music of nature frees me.

Ryan Yo-nv Schmidt

Ryan Yo-nv Schmidt kindly shared this gorgeous shot and several other pictures of the falls.  I gathered them into a short slide show,  click on the link to enjoy some beautiful views.
https://docs.google.com/presentation









I am thrilled to be able to share these many pictures with you.  They were all provided by members of the Facebook group Letchworth State Park Lovers (https://www.facebook.com/groups/2218333570/) If you like what you see here, be sure to visit them on Facebook, they have many more beautiful scenes to share.  I find the pictures take me back in time and I am able to relive, re-experience this wonderful paradise.

Remember to check out my next piece where I visit Lower and Middle Falls. 

Find Cindy on her:
Blog:
https://cindysvoices.blogspot.com/
Website:
http://carternovels.com/author-cindy-j-smith.html
Twitter:  https://twitter.com/cindysvoices
FB:  https://www.facebook.com/CindysVoices/
Goodreads:
https://www.goodreads.com/author/show/6505989.Cindy_J_Smith
Pinterest:
https://www.pinterest.com/cindyjsmith1/
Portfilio Links
https://view.joomag.com/golden-box-book-publishing-cindys-voices/0568888001561494976

http://pubhtml5.com/ahsh/nmba

Plants, Birds, and Beavers Grow and Change

Daddy, why is Fido getting old?

Mommy, why can’t I stay a kid forever?

Sometimes kids ask questions that can catch you off guard. Having a talk about the necessity of change and the circle of life can be difficult. That’s why I’ve written my Changes duet, to help open up little minds to understanding the nature of change.

Meant for educational purposes, but still, an enjoyable light and colorful read, Plants and Animals Change Over Time, explains the circle of life in the simplest terms. It follows the life of a seedling and an unhatched egg to full maturity and beyond. You may also want to check out, Land Changes Over Time, to learn how the world is reshaped around us.

Daddy, what is change anyway?

Mommy, does change have to happen to me?

Sometimes kids ask questions that can catch you off guard. Having a talk about the necessity and inevitability of change can be difficult. That’s why I’ve written my Changes duet, to help open up little minds to understanding the nature of change.

Meant for educational purposes, but still an enjoyable light and colorful read, Land Changes Over Time, explores how the world is reshaped around us. It chronicles the results of beavers, worms, and birds moving into an empty meadow. You may also want to check out, Plants and Animals Change Over Time, to learn about the circle of life. 

Plants and Animals Change Over Time Purchase Book Here

Land Changes Over Time Purchase Book Here

Find out more about me, my work, and my inspiration at the following links:

Amazon | Goodreads | The ToiBox of Words | YouTube | See a list of my other posts here.

Recipe for the Inner Child

RECIPE FOR THE INNER CHILD:

CLOUD ANIMALS, TEA PARTIES AND HULAS

Christina Weigand

Several years ago I wrote this article when my youngest daughter was on her way to pre-kindergarten. Now I have an eighteen year old ready to head off to college. With little time to write a new article and an opportunity to reminisce I found this post. With the impending onslaught of family and celebrations I thought it was a good time to remember the message in this post.

A funny, wonderful thing has been surreptitiously happening to me this summer.  I have been rediscovering my inner child, with the help of a four year old and a two year old.  When you have Ana and Andi in your life it becomes impossible to ignore your inner child.  So with God by my side, this summer has become the summer of release for my inner child.

It started innocently enough one early summer evening, while trying to rest from a days hectic activities.  I was craving some hard won privacy.  With so many people living in my house including a 24 year old, 21 year old, 4 year old and 2 year old, besides my husband and I, privacy is a rare commodity.  Before the birth of my four year old we had been on the verge of having an empty nest.  I was almost finished with raising my first three children, graduated from college, and my husband and I were still young and enjoying the freedom that comes with having grown children.

Image by Rudy and Peter Skitterians from Pixabay 

 

So now I am laying her in the early evening sun, trying to relax and recover from a hectic day.  Meeting the needs of my two year old granddaughter and four and 21 year old daughters has left me little time for anything including prayer.  Finally I have a few minutes of peace, although I’m not completely alone.  Nearby, two year old, Andi plays in her playhouse.  Soon she wanders off to find her mother.  I breathe a deep sigh, “At last, I am alone.”  The television show in the family room ends and I hear footsteps heading toward the door.  So much for my peace.  Ana, my four year old daughter, comes bursting through the screen door and jumps into my chaise lounge.  “Mommy, look there are clouds in the sky.  I see animals.”  Reluctantly I open one eye.  I don’t see any animals.

“Mommy, look.  There’s a tiger.  No, it’s an elephant.”

My other eye opens.  I still see only white puffy clouds.  Ana pops up and heads off to play with something else and I close my eyes again.

 Ana wanted to look at clouds.  I had let the chance get away.  I had become so self absorbed in recovering from the adult issues of the day and I had refused to let my inner child come out and play with Ana.  During the last 20 years of my life I had fallen easily into the pattern of being an adult and bottling up my inner child, because I had no small children in my life.  I did what comes naturally as your children grow up.  I had grown up along with the kids.  Even when Ana was a newborn I struggled with my inner child.  I was still dealing with the issues of my older children and ensuring that my newborn was healthy and happy, the inner child stayed locked up.

Now that Ana is a little older and Andi is moving into the curious years, my inner child has stepped up the battle.  So as Ana walked away on that summer evening, I opened both of my eyes and looked to the clouds and ended up finding an elephant or two in the clouds.

It’s 10:00 p.m.  Ana should be in bed.  She has a cold and got up early for school this morning.  The uptight adult is talking here.

Image by Janice Brown from Pixabay 

“Quiet, get back, down, down!”  Ana wants to have a tea party.  We have hot soup, spaghetti and chili.  Then we put on an Easter hat and Hawaiian lei and do the hula.  My inner child is happy and Ana is happy.  Plenty of time tomorrow for the uptight adult.  Tonight the inner child will play.

Image by skeeze from Pixabay 

  The whole summer went like this, when I least expected it and needed it most Ana or Andi, would gently awaken the inner child and ask her to come out and play.  There would be tickle fights, cloud watching, tea parties and seeing everyday things through new eyes, where fluffy white clouds become dragons and castles, blankets become tents or ball gowns and mixing bowls become crowns.

Image by Iris Hamelmann from Pixabay 

With the start of fall and pre-kindergarten, I feared losing the magic.  Not so with Ana and Andi.  The new season has only supplied more inspiration to feed the magic.  Last week Ana and I went on a field trip to a local apple orchard.  While there I learned a few things about apples I had never known.  Of course Ana was in heaven as this was a whole new experience for her.  Walking through the gift shop, market and green house, the world became a giant playground.  The toys along with the other merchandise in the gift shop tickled her fancy.  The different animals around the farmyard fed her vivid imagination, especially the very large pig.  Questions like, did he walk and how did he walk on those little legs sprang from her hungry little mind.  Choosing apples and vegetables from the market was an adventure and choosing the right colored mums from the greenhouse bordered on overload, there were so many to choose from.  The word “WOW”, a most wondrous word, was heard coming from her mouth at least a hundred times.  With every new sight it was uttered.

Image by pixel2013 from Pixabay 

Another thing we have taken to doing about once a week since school started, is stopping in a local park on our way home from school and visiting the ducks.  Ana loves to run around the island and see what the ducks are doing.  Today when we stopped we got two bonuses.  The first was a couple men fishing on the island.  It was difficult to contain her excitement and to explain being quiet and patient so the gentlemen could fish.  Once we got past them and found the ducks we got to be observers to the mating ritual of ducks.  The squawking, diving and preening of the male ducks was fascinating to watch.  To Ana the ducks were playing and she wanted to know what they were saying and doing.  Little did she know that what she observed today will lead to the new baby ducks we will see next spring.

With autumn upon us and winter quickly approaching Ana, Andi and I will need to find new outlets for our imaginations, but I’m sure God will continue to provide them for us as Ana and Andi discover His big, wonderful world.

Ana and Andi have taught me and continue daily to remind me what a wonderful precious world God created.  I now look at God’s world through a child’s eyes.  Suddenly the newness and excitement has once again made an appearance in my perceptions.

Jesus tells us, “Let the little children come to me.  Do not shut them off.  The reign of God belongs to such as these.  Trust me when I tell you that whoever does not accept the kingdom of God as a child will not enter into it.” (Luke 18: 16-17, NAB)

It seems to me, all adults need to release their inner children.  The world becomes a much more special place when seen with the eyes of a child. I am so thankful to have Ana and Andi in my life and I feel honored that God has chosen me to share their lives.  So my inner child has escaped and I see the world through new eyes.  Thank you God, and pumpkins, turkeys and snowballs here we come.

Image by annca from Pixabay

The Parrot Who Didn't Speak English

Because he spoke only Spanish

Bilingual children's book for ages 4-12

Pico, the parrot, is sad and frustrated. He screeches and squawks all day but because he speaks Spanish, nobody understands him. His story teaches children acceptance, compassion, and helping others.

PREVIEW:

http://online.pubhtml5.com/ahsh/muta/

EBOOK:

https://books2read.com/u/mdKQdW

Amazon print:

http://tinyurl.com/ydcf7w5r

B&N print:

http://tinyurl.com/y8qgpkqm

More books by Erika M Szabo for children and parents

Travel and writing: a tight bond in the Trilogy Deadly Deception

By P. J. Mann

The trilogy Deadly Deception that has been finally released as a whole is set mainly in Boston and Tbilisi, with some short stops in Africa described in the first book of the series.

In my life, writing and traveling are very closely connected together. 

Traveling is meant for me as a journey to my inner growth, besides seeing something new, and my destinations are not always those, someone who is thinking about a holiday would consider. Many of them have been in conflict areas where we needed the support of some people we knew who were working at the UN missions.

Tbilisi, the capital of Georgia, has been chosen because I really liked the attitude of the country from its detachment from the Soviet Union, which happened in 1990.

I have traveled in Tbilisi during the spring period, and I believe I should have done it in summer to appreciate all the beauty of the place. 

Here are some pictures from the places that inspired me the most in Georgia:

Something I wanted to bring out from this trilogy was the cultural difference, the beauty of the landscape and cityscape, the flavors, the colors, and the language.

The contrast between the two places, Boston and Tbilisi, was something worth highlighting, and here are some pictures from Boston:

The Georgian characters are brought to life by the observations I have made and the people I have met during my stay in Tbilisi. 

In the same way, also the Boston characters come from direct experiences of people I have met during my journey in Boston.

Now I understand that we cannot generalize, and people are different even within the same country. Nevertheless, there are always those cultural heritage backgrounds common to general behavior.

Due to my lack of clue on how to properly market my writing, I have received very few reviews. However, I am glad to see that they are all positive, which compensates from low sales.

I hope you found this peeking behind the scenes interesting.

Here is the general link for the whole series:
Deadly Deception-The trilogy 

Jasmine's Wish Boxset

The Five Divisions in Each of the Books

When my daughter Jasmine decided she was going to pursue her idea to have my poems published, she realized she needed a title and to make them presentable.  First things first, she decided on the perfect title, Voices In My Head.  Now she could concentrate on the second task, presentation.  At the time, I had a Brother Word Processor that created beautiful pages.  Using various fonts and colors, she printed out every poem I had written that she could find.  The volume of paper she ended up with was more than she figured on.

Unwilling to be thwarted, she decided the poems just needed to be put into categories.  Jasmine attempted to sort them several different ways.  Her final choice was to separate them into 5 basic themes:  People In My Life, Nature In My World, Visions In My Mind, Days In My Years, and Pieces Of My Heart.  Once the divisions were settled on she decided to call the entire collection Voices In My Head. 

Sorting turned out to be rather frustrating as a great many of the poems could easily fit into more than one category.  Her decision was to place them where they fit best.  Jasmine's divisions had  the poems in alphabetical order.  Her reasoning was that a publisher would put them where they wanted to anyways.

Voices In My Head, the first book in the Jasmine's Wish set, is her design.Besides mixing up the poems, the only difference between what she mailed out and this volume was the addition of poems written after her attempt at publication.  

People In My Life

In this section, the theme of the poems is people. Some of the poems are about actual people, like my daughter and granddaughter. They tell what I feel about them and what they are doing.  Others are ideals, how I wish things were, or how I once thought the people were, as an example the poems about Moms.  Requested poems are also here.  "Adonis" or "Cereal Killer" are examples of poems where I took lots of characteristics and blended them into someone everyone knows. 

Nature In My World

Everything to do with nature. Weather, landscapes, animals, even outdoor activities are included in this category. Most of these poems are fantasies, mere mixtures of memories--theories on what the subject could be.  The poem "Sailor" envisions sailing across the oceans while "Cave Paintings" question the real reasons for the discoveries.The seasons have a major presence.  I have always been moved by the continuously changing displays of Mother Nature.  No two seasons are every exactly the same. 

Visions In My Mind

 Magic, fairy-tales and dreams are the mainstays of this section.  As you can probably guess, all of the poems could easily fit into this category as all the poems are just ideas in my head put down in ink.  Jasmine agreed with that assessment yet felt some would fit nowhere else.  Here we find poems like "Jack Frost" describing his painting the world, or ones with fairies dew-kissing the flowers.  Many relate tales of the paradise I wish the world was. Some are fanciful while others are thought provoking like "Child's View." 

Days In My Years

These are rhymes about actual days, specific times in my life. Poems in this section include birthday wishes I've written for people as well as my views on various holidays celebrated throughout the years. Days in general are also topics as I write of the need for coffee to face the day and how weeks have way too many days.  It is a section devoted to time as its ripples guide our lives.

Pieces Of My Heart

 

Emotions, thoughts and feelings about everything are gathered here. Anger, angst love and grief flicker through many of the stanzas. Laughter and sarcasm find homes in my heart as well. In this section, my voices help me understand and accept the way I feel. The verses help me find the balance that emotions destroy.  In these poems, as with any of the sections, the details are not necessarily my own experiences.  I try to put myself in someone else's shoes, see the world through their eyes.  I attempt to be them for a few moments and thus see both sides of situations.  I mainly write in the first person so no one will feel like a target, while still giving a truthful representation of the behavior I am witnessing.  Just knowing someone else feels what you feel or simply understands your pain is often the balm a heart needs to keep trying. 

The divisions Jasmine decided on were perfect, in my opinion.  For that reason, I used them for the entire set of books in this collection.  It is hers, a gift from my heart to her.  None of my other collections are divided, except 365, everything about them is random.  I feel it is the right thing to do.  Jasmine's Wish is the fulfillment of her dream for me and it should be special.

As a special note, I would like to thank Erika Szabo and Golden Box Books Publishing for the pictures used for each category. Erika added them to the e-versions of my books making them beautiful. 

Find Cindy on her:

Blog:
https://cindysvoices.blogspot.com/

Website:
http://carternovels.com/author-cindy-j-smith.html

Twitter:  @cindysvoices

FB:  https://www.facebook.com/CindysVoices/

GOODREADS:
https://www.goodreads.com/author/show/6505989.Cindy_J_Smith

Pinterest:
https://www.pinterest.com/cindyjsmith1/

Portfilio Links
https://view.joomag.com/golden-box-book-publishing-cindys-voices/0568888001561494976

http://pubhtml5.com/ahsh/nmba

Squint-eyed Woman

When a simple paint job goes wrong

By Erika M Szabo

I visited a friend, Marie, and noticed with surprise that everyone in her family was unusually polite and quiet. On my usual visits everyone was laughing, teasing each other and her ten years old son, Brian, was running around in one of his many hero costumes.

That day the tension was thick as honey in their home. We sat around the coffee table and had a light chat about everyday things. Brian sat close to his father on the couch and acted like a little angel. I felt the brewing tension ready to erupt, and I was frantically searching for an excuse to shorten my visit.

Marie sat across from me with a plotting cat expression and distant smile on her face. Once in a while she darted angry looks at her husband and son that lasted only for a fraction of a second.

When Marie went out to the kitchen to put on coffee, Brian whispered to his father, "Dad, we are in big trouble."

"I know, son! There is nothing more dangerous in the whole world than a squint-eyed woman . You never know if she's going to forgive you, or she's planning your slow and painful death, until she comes to her final decision."

"What happened? What's wrong?" I asked.

"Well, we painted the kitchen while Marie was at work and we got a little carried away. We had such a great time and we even cleaned up by the time she got home, but as soon as she saw it, the silent treatment began. I'm in big trouble." Peter sighed.

I stood up and went out to the kitchen. Marie silently looked at me with murderous look in her eyes, lifted her arm and pointed at the walls that was dark blue with big, yellow stars painted all over it.

Trying to hide a laugh I managed to say, "They meant well Marie, give them some credit for the effort."

"Oh, I will give it to them alright! They will pay for this for a long-long time. I specifically told them vanilla color, and look what they did! I'm gonna... Oh, I'm going to..." she yelled with daggers in her eyes.

"Okay girlfriend, we're going to the movies." Marie opened her mouth to protest, "Go get ready, no objection!" I ordered her firmly, so she turned and went upstairs.

In the living room I told Peter, "I know you meant well, you had your fun too, but now to the store you go to get the vanilla color paint. You will paint the walls and clean up the kitchen by the time we get home. Otherwise, you two will stay in the doghouse for a long time."

The boys looked at each other, they stood up and stormed out the front door.

Marie wasn't a good companion that night. I struggled to get her her mind off her kitchen wall but she just sat there quietly as if she was plotting the punishment of her husband. A few hours later when I drove her home, Peter and little Brian were anxiously waiting in the living room. Marie walked into the kitchen and I was right behind her.

The kitchen was spotless and the walls had a fresh coat of vanilla color paint. The next day, with Marie's approval, they painted Brian's room blue with yellow stars.

Sir E Robert Smythe and the Lost Detective

Sir E. Robert Smythe and the Lost Detective

Christina Weigand

Can Sam overcome his anger to welcome Zoe and aid in the establishment of a homeless shelter in the community?

Excerpt:

     “All right. Love you mom.” Zoe kissed her mom on the cheek and ran back to the camp.

     She found the book on her cot in the tent and started to head back to the park. Passing the swamp she noticed Morton the Morph, the yellow toad like creature and his small blue pear shaped panngoes playing on the edge of the swamp. One of the panngoes bounced into the swamp.

     “Hey, you guys shouldn’t go in there,” Zoe yelled.

     “Oh don’t worry about them. They’ll be fine, just a bunch of panngoes,” Morton answered as more of the creatures bounced into the swamp.

     Zoe heard some dogs barking and one of the panngoes squealing. “One of them might be hurt. Shouldn’t you go in there and check on them.” She heard another sound, children talking and laughing. “Oh no someone’s coming. I have to hide. Mamma doesn’t want me to talk to any strangers.” The swamp would be the best place to hide, so she followed the panngoes into the swamp.

     One of the bigger ones had fallen in a hole and was calling out for the others to help him. Zoe followed the sound of the crying.

****

     Sam stomped through the kitchen door of their two-story house. “Some animal dumped the trash cans again. Why does it only happen on the days I have to take out the trash?” He snarled as he grabbed a trash bag and a pair of rubber gloves.

     “Sam, stop your complaining and get it done. We’re supposed to be meeting Hunter and Anna to go to the park for the Reading Club kick-off,” his sister, Bridget said.

     “Yeah, I’d rather head over to the Gullies Swamp soccer field for a quick game of soccer. I’m sure Hunter would too. I’m too old for the reading club.”

     “Well, you can’t do that.” Sam’s dad said. “Didn’t you see today’s paper? They voted to take that field on the other side of Gullies Swamp and turn it into a homeless community while they build some low cost housing for the homeless.”

     “Why the heck are they doing that?” Sam said. “Where am I supposed to play soccer?”

     “The high school field is open and the new field at the park.” Bridget answered.

     “But we always play at the Gullies Swamp fields.”

     “Well I think those fields are creepy. You have to go past the haunted swamp.” Bridget said.

     “It’s not haunted.” Sam said.

     “But you told me…”Bridget said.

     “Bridget, how many times have I told you not to listen to your brother’s stories about the swamp?” Mom said. “He does that just to scare you so you’ll stay away. Sam, finish cleaning up the trash so you can take your sister to the library.”

      Sam grabbed the broom and stomped out the door slamming it behind him.

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