Chapter 9: A holdup

It didn't take long for Garfield to go fetch Flight Lieutenant Nash and another officer at the air cadet recruitment stand while Shaggy further examined the colonel, and upon arrival, the two air force officers agreed to get medical help for the colonel and carried him away.

"Now that we've located the missing colonel, may I suggest that we go grab something to eat?" Shaggy asked as Wilkinson was carried away.

"That will be great, except that we've got another thing on our hands." Garfield said.

"Rhat's that?" Scooby asked.

"Don't you guys remember that we've got a gang of racketeers running loose in the fair?" Velma asked.

"Oh yes, I know that." Shaggy said.

It was then that Garfield looked towards a certain direction and spotted a holdup near one of the rides before saying, "Say, there's a holdup right there, guys!"

"No doubt that Jimmy has told his men to get to work fast." Velma said when she recognized the four men staging the holdup in question.

"And I suppose it's safe to say that Jimmy and Colonel Wilkinson's imposter are still in their hideout." Daphne assumed.

"We're going to have to split up, gang." Fred decided. "The girls and I will head back in to check and see if our friend Jimmy is still in his hideout. Meanwhile, Shag, Scoob, you guys and Garfield go and try to stop that holdup."

It was Scooby who spotted a nearby stand with baseballs and he tugged Shaggy's shirt, "Rey Raggy."

"Huh?" Shaggy asked as he and Garfield both turned around to face Scooby.

Scooby's tail pointed at the baseballs in the stand, and the two boys nodded.

"Like, great thinking, Scoob." Shaggy said as Garfield walked closer to the stand in question and saw the man glaring at the group staging the holdups.

Swiftly, he took out a five-dollar bill from his wallet and placed it on the counter of the stand.

"My friends and I will like to use this stack of baseballs, sir." He said to the man.

"Be my guest." The man said. "Those rascals staging the holdup over there are going to pay dearly for what they did to me earlier."

"I take it that they've messed with your stand, mister?" Velma asked.

"You can say that." The man nodded. "I'd like to use the balls on them myself, but my arms aren't as strong as they used to be for the throws to be effective."

"Are the balls...?" Garfield was about to ask before the man answered his question.

"Don't worry, pal." He said. "These balls are mainly cork and rubber, so they can at most knock people out but not land one in the hospital."

"Ah, okay." Garfield nodded as he tipped his cap. "Thank you, sir."

After Garfield obtained the balls, Fred said, "Okay, gang. Let's get to work."

"Right." Everyone else nodded before they proceeded to split up.


At that same time, Jimmy's men began staging a series of daring holdups in the fair.

In the latest holdup where the men were holding up a couple of pensioners, Jacques was about to order the pensioners to pay up when suddenly, one of his pals looked really foolish before slumping to the ground.

"Okay, let's..." Jacques was about to say when he noticed his pal slumping to the ground before saying, "...say, what's the matter with Joey?"

In a matter of speaking, he pretty much answered his own question when a baseball appeared out of nowhere and hit him in the head!

The two other men accompanying Jacques and Joey in staging the holdup turned towards the source of the baseballs that knocked their pals out and gasped.

"It's that young copper!" Pierre exclaimed when he spotted Shaggy, Scooby and Garfield armed with baseballs. "And that meddling kid and that chien!"

"Ah, bonjour monsieur." Garfield said loudly to the two remaining men. "Just some practice to keep my arm in trim."

The man accompanying Pierre exclaimed, "Let's get out of here!"

However, before the duo could take off, Shaggy and Scooby both threw their balls at them, hitting the men with precise strikes!

"Like, I don't think so!" Shaggy said as the two men slumped to the ground.

"Strike three!" Garfield exclaimed as they rushed over to the four racketeers, imitating a baseball umpire calling a strike. "You four are out!"

As Shaggy and Scooby moved to tie up the four unconscious racketeers, Garfield turned to the pensioners.

"Are you folks alright?" Garfield asked in concern.

"Oh, we're alright, and...oh, my word!" The first pensioner was speaking when she recognized Garfield. "Garfield! It's been a while!"

"Miss Stephenson!" Garfield's eyes brightened as he recognized Margaret Stephenson, one of the people he had helped out in the Bruce Stevenson case two years ago. "Didn't recognize you for a brief moment! How are you doing?"

"I'm doing alright." Margaret said as she shared a hug with Garfield. "I didn't even realize that you're in the air cadets."

"Now you know." Garfield smiled. "In case you're wondering, Flight Lieutenant Nash, who helped you and your family in winning the settlement of the Bruce Stevenson estate two years ago, is one of the officers in my squadron."

"Ah, so you're the young gentleman that everyone has told me about." The elderly lady accompanying Margaret said when she squinted her eyes at Garfield. "A pleasure in meeting you finally in person."

"Ah, Mrs. Janet Wagner, I presume?" Garfield asked as he turned to the lady.

"Yes, that's me, young man." Janet nodded as she gave Garfield a firm handshake. "The girls told me about how you were responsible for the recovery of Cousin Bruce's latest will that rightfully awarded his sizable estate to us instead of letting those uppity Ewell women hoarding all of it. I've always knew that Cousin Bruce had wrote another will when word has it that he wrote a will that awarded his estate to the Ewells."

"You knew it?" Garfield raised an eyebrow.

"He visited me once not long after moving into the Ewells." Janet said. "I saw him holding an envelope with documents, and he told me how he had wrote another will under the noses of those witches, where he also reassured me that it will take care of me and the other more-deserving relatives and friends."

"Anyways, how are the twins?" Garfield turned to Margaret.

"They're doing alright, thanks to you." Margaret smiled. "They're starting Grade 2 in the upcoming school year."

"And what of the Brooks?" Garfield asked.

"Oh, Barbara has began her piano lessons in the Royal Conservatory of Music this past September." Janet said. "She's quite the talented pianist, you know, and she actually encountered a major piano star while in Toronto."

"Oh really?" Garfield said. "Is that piano star Glenn Gould, famous for his 1955 recording of Bach's Goldberg Variations?"

"You guessed it." Margaret said. "You know your classical music."

"Ah, I listen to CBC Radio 2 frequently and watched its television programs on classical music." Garfield said. "Plus, I play the violin and piano."

"I see." Janet nodded just as Shaggy and Scooby went to join the conversation.

"Are those racketeers tied up?" Garfield asked.

"Yep." Shaggy nodded. "We sure gave them the strikes!"

"Reah!" Scooby agreed. "Re-he-he-he-he-he!"

"Ah, are these two your friends, Garfield?" Margaret asked.

"Well, technically, we only got acquainted a few hours ago." Garfield said. "They are actually visiting from the States and decided to visit the fair when they and their friends encountered live wax figures scaring them away at the wax figure exhibition stand."

"Like, except that we actually got racketeers disguising themselves as the live wax figures to scare away suspicious people so they can operate their illegal scheme in the fair." Shaggy pointed out.

"Ah, no wonder we spotted the slot machines over there." Janet huffed as she gestured towards the stand in question. "Slot machines and gambling are roots of evil and should be banned or at least kept out of places where minors like Nick and Nicole frequent."

"Anyways, I see that you boys are in a rush." Margaret remarked. "No doubt you're working to stop those racketeers."

"Indeed we are." Garfield said. "Are the twins at the fair?"

"Yes." Janet nodded. "Together with Jessica, the Stevenson brothers and the Brooks."

"Ah, okay." Garfield said. "When you find them, tell them to go somewhere safe. No doubt that those racketeers are bent on causing trouble around here, and I don't want those twins to get hurt as a result of that."

"Of course." Janet said as she and Margaret nodded before they headed off.

After Margaret and Janet had left, Shaggy turned to Garfield.

"Who were those two ladies, Garfield?" Shaggy asked. "Like, they're friends of yours?"

"Let's just say I played my role in the efforts helping them out in an estate-settlement case two years ago." Garfield said. "I'll explain the rest once we caged all those racketeers."

"Okay, then." Shaggy said as Scooby nodded before the trio rushed off to find the other racketeers.


Meanwhile, Fred and the girls were back in the wax figure exhibition stand when they heard Jimmy speaking to Brian.

"Wait, are you telling me that those meddling kids escaped with Wilkinson?" Brian asked as the trio peeked through the opened door.

"That's right." Jimmy nodded urgently. "Tim and Jeff told me that they've managed to find their friends and Wilkinson and has sounded the alarm for the latter. It means we're going to have to get out of here now."

Upon hearing the remarks, Fred and the girls turned and looked at each other.

"Any ideas on how to stop them, Freddie?" Daphne asked.

Fred peeked in as Jimmy and Brian started gathering what amount of money they could, where his eyes settled onto the pistol on the table.

As the two crooks prepared to make their getaway, Jimmy reached for his pistol on the table, only for another hand to reach over and grab his hand.

"Not so fast!" A voice suddenly said.

"Eh?" Jimmy asked as he looked up, finding himself face to face with Fred, who had reached over and prevented him from taking the pistol.

"You guys do realize that guns are dangerous, eh?" Velma asked as she and Daphne joined Fred while Jimmy retreated.

"You!" Brian exclaimed as he pulled his gun out.

Seeing the gun, the girls quickly pulled Fred back as Brian aimed towards them.

"Bad plan, Freddie." Velma said as Brian shoot at them and barely missed.

"Let's get out of here!" Brian said as he tugged Jimmy and the two men raced out.

Seeing the two retreating figures making their getaway through the rear door, Fred said, "We've got to stop them!"


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