(A Tootsie Chase Mystery)
by Paula Robinson

Friday morning

In a land that’s far away,
There is a place called Beetlebay.
The school sits on a tree-lined street,
And there’s a park that’s really neat.

Around the block from Washington Square,
A row of shops is nestled there.
You’ll see Mrs. Kingsley’s candy store,
A used book shop and many more.

An antique shop, which is painted gray,
Is a favorite spot in Beetleby.
People come by to stop and stare
At a Calico Cat that’s sitting there.

In the window this special cat sits
And no matter how sunny or rainy it gets,
People peek in so they can see
What hangs round her neck...it’s a golden key.

No one knows who owned the cat
Or why she sits in the window like that.
When Mrs. Scott bought the store it was there.
She hasn’t moved it anywhere.

The years in the sunny window show
Fading of the brown calico.
And last year a hole began to appear
In the Calico Cat’s brown felt ear.

The golden key hangs there and nobody knows
What the key opens or where it goes.
But tales have been told of a treasure box,
One that the golden key unlocks.

Today when Mrs. Scott came to work,
She passed by the window and stopped with a jerk.
For the spot where the Calico Cat sat was bare.
The Calico Cat wasn’t anywhere.

Friday 10:45 AM

I go by the name of Tootsie Chase,
A private detective brought in on the case
Of the Calico Cat, and her golden key,
Who isn’t where she’s supposed to be.

I talked to the people of Beetlebay,
Listened to what they had to say.
At this time, my suspects number four.
I don’t think there are any more.

I’ll talk to each suspect and look around,
See if any clues can be found.
The cat and the key are missing right now,
But I’m certain I can find them somehow.

The Suspects

Katrina Purset

They call this girl Kitty and sometimes just Kat.
She knows where the missing calico sat.
I think she’d like it for her stuffed cat collection,
That’s why I am looking in her direction.

Mrs. Hunt

She owns a used book store right down the street.
Her collection of books is really neat.
She reads books about treasures hidden away.
And she’s sure there’s one in Beetlebay.

Todd Boxer

Todd has a large Match Box Car collection
Which he keeps locked in boxes for its protection.
He just found a new box for storage, you see.
But it’s locked up tight and he can’t find the key.

Mrs. Scott

The antique store is owned by Mrs. Scott.
She moves things around and dusts a lot.
She misplaces things; doesn’t know where they’re at.
Now she’s missing a Calico Cat

Solving the Crime

The Calico Cat and the golden key
Are involved in this Beetlebay mystery.
Was the cat just misplaced or taken away?
It’s another mystery in Beetlebay.

The first place I’ll go is Mrs. Scott’s store.
I’ll find out if she knows anything more.
Perhaps when she cleaned, she misplaced the cat.
I could solve this mystery just like that.

“Hello, Mrs. Scott, I’m Tootsie Chase.
I remember you from the Gargoyle case.
How long has the Calico Cat been gone?
When did you notice that something was wrong?”

Mrs. Scott brought her hand to her face. “Oh my!
I cleaned yesterday and the time flew by.
I was rushed and lots of people were here.
My business gets busy this time of year.

“I cleaned everything in my window display,
Then put it all back, late in the day.
I seem to recall the cat was there.
This morning it’s not; I’ve looked everywhere.”

“Would you care if I looked around?” I said.
She held out both hands and shook her head.
“You can search all you want, but the cat isn’t here.
Someone has stolen it, that’s what I fear.”

I looked at the window display once more.
There were no clues there; then I glanced at the floor.
Under a quilt and pushed out of the way
Was a book titled Treasures of Beetlebay.

I picked up the book. It seemed out of place.
Mrs. Scott had a puzzled look on her face.
“I don’t understand why that book’s here,” she said.
“It looks like a book Mrs. Hunt might have read.

“She’s been here quite a bit in the last week or so.
Why her book was down there, I really don’t know.”
“It might be a clue to this mystery,” I said.
Mrs. Scott, once again, just shook her head.

Then a customer came; Mrs. Scott said, “Take care,
But you won’t find the Calico Cat anywhere.”
She left me to search the shop high and low.
There wasn’t a place that I didn’t go.

In the backroom were packages wrapped up and they
Were sealed and addressed to be sent on their way.
When were they wrapped and what was inside?
Was it something the owner was trying to hide?

Mrs. Scott hurried in and told me to shoo.
“I’m busy,” she said. “I have lots to do.”
So, I didn’t find out what the boxes contained.
They became a detail that wasn’t explained.

As I stepped out the door, I came face to face
With a girl who was looking over the place.
It was Kitty Purset. She had stopped outside.
I saw a smile she was trying to hide.

“You know,” she said, “in the spot that’s bare,
A Calico Cat used to sit right there.”
“Yes, the cat’s missing. It’s not in its place.
It’s a mystery and I’m trying to solve the case.

“I’m Tootsie, and you’re...” “Oh, I’m Kitty Purset.
Haven’t they found the calico yet?”
I shook my head. “No, the cat’s missing still.
But I’ll surely find it, I know I will.”

On her shirt was a kitten. “You like cats, I see.
Do you know where the missing cat might be?
I hear your collection of stuffed cats is grand,
Like the one you have right there in your hand.”

“Yes, I have lots of cats but I always want more,”
She said, looking again at the antique shop door.
“Mrs. Scott won’t sell her Calico Cat.
Now the calico’s gone; too bad about that.”

Kitty smiled once more, then she hurried away.
There were many more things I wanted to say.
But the back-pack she wore wasn’t zipped up tight.
Do I see a cat’s tail? Am I wrong or right?

Well, I might just have a couple of clues
However, I need more that I can use
To solve this very interesting case.
So, get to work, Ms. Tootsie Chase.

I decided to go to Walnut Street.
A young man lives there that I need to meet.
The Boxers are new on this street, I hear.
They moved into an older house sometime last year.

When I got to the house, I knocked on the door.
It was opened by Todd; he had been on the floor
Playing with Match Box cars, having a race.
He was having fun by the smile on his face.

“So, you’re Todd Boxer,” I said smiling too.
“If you have some time, I’ve some questions for you.
My name’s Tootsie Chase. I’ve been hired, you see,
To solve the Calico Cat mystery.”

“Come in,” said Todd.  “What do you want to know?”
Then he sat and lined his cars up in a row.
“Where do you keep all your cars?” I said.
“When you put them away and go to bed?”

Todd pointed to the metal box on the floor.
“I fill this one up and I have two more.”
“Do they all have locks? Do you have all the keys?”
He said, “Yes, I do. At least for these.”

Then he changed the subject, quick as a mouse.
He started talking about the old house.
“Did you know Captain Dance built this house?” he said.
“I learned that from books our librarian read.

“When we moved, I had lots of time to explore,
I checked out each room and behind every door.
In the attic were things from long, long ago.
How long they’d been there I really don’t know.

“I found some old books and other neat stuff
That I showed Mrs. Hunt. And sure enough,
The things I found were from long, long ago.
She reads books on that stuff, so she should know.”

I said, “Did you find an old box, is that true?
One which can’t be opened by you?”
Then he looked away and lowered his head.
“I can’t talk about that,” is what he said.

Then I asked, “Have you been looking for a key?
Did you know a gold one just happened to be
Around the neck of the Calico Cat?”
Todd ran out of the room, just like that.

“Hum...” I murmured; is there something he’s hiding?
Is there someone in whom Todd Boxer’s confiding?
I think Mrs. Hunt is whom I should see.
I hope she’s willing to talk to me.

The used book store is on the very next street.
The person who owns it, I’d like to meet.
I hear Mrs. Hunt likes to read night and day
About hidden treasures in Beetlebay.

Friday afternoon

I went into the book store and looked all around
To see if Mrs. Hunt could be found.
Then way in the back by a desk was a chair,
And Mrs. Hunt was sitting there.

In her hands was a big green history book.
As I approached, I took a quick look.
When she moved one hand, I saw by chance
The title: Houses Built by Captain Dance.

“Good afternoon,” I said with a smile.
“I’m Tootsie Chase.  Could we talk for a while?
A Calico Cat is missing, and I
Am trying to find the reason why.”

Mrs. Hunt quickly closed the book with a snap.
She put the book face down in her lap.
“I don’t know why you’re talking to me.
I spend all day here, as you can see.”

I smiled again and nodded my head.
“You read about hidden treasure,” I said.
“Do you think there’s a treasure in Beetlebay?”
She shrugged and said, “I couldn’t say.”

“I understand Todd Boxer came to you
With books he’d found, and a metal box too,
From his attic.  And did you know by chance,
His house once belonged to Captain Dance?”

Mrs. Hunt looked nervous.  “Who told you that?
And what does this have to do with the cat?
I think you’d better be on your way.
Besides, I have nothing more to say.”

As I gave a sigh and turned toward the door,
Mrs. Hunt said, “I’ll tell you one thing more.
There are treasures hidden in Beetlebay.
Soon people will listen to what I say.”

I turned back and said, “Mrs. Hunt, by the way,
Where’s your book titled Treasures of Beetlebay?”
A look of alarm came over her face
As I turned and left the used book place.

Then I stood on the street and scratched my head,
Thinking of what each suspect had said.
I still hadn’t found the cat or the key,
But I might have solved the mystery.

Let’s go over the clues once more and then you
Can solve the Calico Cat Mystery too.

Checking the clues

We know Kitty Purset likes stuffed cats a lot.
I think it’s more than fifty she’s got.
But I couldn’t tell what she had in her pack,
The one she carried right there on her back.

Mrs. Scott dusts a lot and moves things around.
But the Calico Cat was nowhere to be found.
The book on her floor might be a clue,
And the boxes she packed might be one too.

Todd Boxer keeps cars in boxes locked tight.
But the locked box he found...do you think he might
Have looked for a key and taken the cat?
And where is the locked box he found really at?

Was Mrs. Hunt given the box by Todd?
The book she was reading seemed quite odd.
Todd’s house once belonged to Captain Dance.
Did Todd stumble upon a treasure by chance?

Or did Mrs. Hunt take the cat for the key?
A book that she owns just happened to be
Under the place where the calico sat.
The cat could have been scooped up, just like that.

Now comes the part where you can have fun.
Do you know who did it and why it was done?
Sort through the clues you’ve been given throughout,
I think that you can figure it out.

Did Todd take the cat or did Mrs. Scott?
Or was Kitty the one, ‘cause she likes cats a lot?
Did Mrs. Hunt take the Calico Cat?
The one that disappeared, just like that?

Have you made up your mind?  Just take a guess
At who created the calico mess.
You won’t have long to wait and see.
Soon Tootsie will solve this mystery.

Who took the Calico Cat?

 Katrina Purset

 Mrs. Hunt

 Todd Boxer

 Mrs. Scott

 I don’t know