Chapter Five: Mom Swap

I had barely had Lisa as a girlfriend for two days when their dad Fred turned up on my doorstep. From the look on his face it wasn't good news

"Hello Gary" he said sternly "May I be correct if I said you were dating my daughter Lisa at the moment?"

He's going to stop me from seeing her, I thought. I'm going to have to sneak in through her window and hide behind bushes and stuff to continue dating.

"Y-yes" I stuttered

"Break it off" Fred replied

"Why?" I asked and then cringed. I was probably going to get an earful from him now about how he was preserving Lisa's happiness.

"Gary, as you know Lisa's mother and I are about to have another baby together. Lisa's sister"

"Yeah. Lisa's been really excited." I said "She's never stopped talking about what she's going to be called and everything. What's wrong? Do you want me to let her spend more time at home or something? 'cause I can do that"

"Nothing like that" Fred replied "Yesterday when I went down to the hall of records to look at some birth certificates when I saw something that made me sit up and take notice."

He gave me the birth certificate in question, which read:

CERTIFICATE OF BIRTH

Registration No: 1988/97253

Registration Date: 30th September

Child's First Name: Gary

Middle Name(s): Michael

Surname: Blake

Date of Birth: 14th September 1988

Place of Birth: Coolsville Hospital

Mother's First Name: Daphne

Surname: Blake

Father's First Name: Norville

Surname: Rodgers

I dropped the certificate and trembled in shock. "S-s-s-sh-sh-sh-she's my sister?" I cried and then after I realised I'd been dating my sister "Ugh! That's disgusting!"

"It's perfectly understandable" said Fred "You hadn't met them before so you fell in love in with them like you would with any other girl"

"Pardon me while I throw up" I gagged, and staggered into the kitchen "So that's why Velma doesn't like me" I told myself.

I heard raised voices from the hallway as Dad had got home and was now arguing with Fred. I didn't want to listen to any of it but I could figure out that it was home I came into existence. Seems that night that Dad spent with Daphne, he really did give in to temptation. A knock came at the back door. I opened it to find the slobbering family dog.

"Rot any Rooby racks? Ri've been raiting outside for rages!"

"Oh it's you Scoob" I sighed "Come on in"

Scooby wandered into the kitchen and started raiding the fridge. However he eventually noticed my sadness.

"Rhy the rong race rary?" he asked

Having grown up with Scooby around, I could tell what he was saying and so answered "I just discovered that I'm dating my sister. Isn't that disgusting?"

"Rot as risgusting as the ropping on this rizza!" Scooby replied and proceeded to pick at the pizza he was holding.

"Scoob! I'm pouring my soul out here, can't you keep your mind off food?"

"Rorry"

"I thought I loved her. I thought she was my first love" I sighed

"Raybe rit was ribling rove rou had for her?" Scooby suggested

Maybe Scooby was right. "Scoob, you're a genius!"

"Aw shucks, rit was rothing" Scooby giggled. "Roh! I ralmost rogot! Rhere's a rystery to rolve!"

A mystery to solve? Scooby said that as if it was the most normal thing in the world. Then I remembered that Scooby used to travel around with Mystery Inc and solved tons of mysteries. But why did he ask me?

"Scooby, I don't solve mysteries..."

Before I could finish, Scooby flipped me up onto his back and darted towards the front door, knocking both Dad and Fred to the floor. I clung on for dear life as Scooby then jumped the three steps leading up to the door and thundered down the drive and then across the busy road.

"Scooby doo! Slow dooooown!" I yelled, constantly being flung into the air as if I was on a mechanical manatee.

Scooby didn't seem to hear and as he turned this way and that way dodging citizens of Coolsville that got in the way of him. To my shock he then ducked through a hole in the fence into somebody's backyard, as he must have seen a shortcut. He skidded onto a seesaw to then have the child on the other end flip us into the air for us to land on a water slide being propelled through a plastic funnel tunnel into the hedge and out onto the other side.

At last the Great Dane stopped and I flew head over heels over his shoulders onto the lawn of the Jones mansion. When I recovered I saw Mimi and Lisa looking down on me.

"Uh... Hi?" I greeted weakly

"Hi brother" said Mimi and helped me up.

Brushing myself down I said "You know, it's actually half brother"

"Sure get technical" She replied "Anyways, we were hoping we could use your help. We know that your Dad and my mum were big on mysteries and we were hoping that you'd have some of it in you"

"Well, ok I'll... try. What's the trouble?" I asked

"It's our Dad's biggest customer Mr Howard Huge. According to recent reports the guy fell off his yacht and is still missing." Lisa told me "In today's paper they actually confirm he must be dead. That's such big news that it's pushed the Bush Street Bullion Robbery off the lead spot on the front pages for the first time in weeks."

"Oh yeah, I heard of that Bush Street Bullion Robbery" I pondered "September the ninth, ¼ of a million dollars was stolen from the second National bank on bush street"

"He knows about it! This is so exciting!" Lisa grinned

"Well anyway, Mr Huges Fiancé, Melissa "Pearls" Malone arrived at our house earlier convinced that the ghost of Howard Huge was haunting her mansion!" said Mimi

"Rikes!" Cried Scooby

"Zoinks!" I added

We followed the girls into the house where we found "Pearls" sitting on a sofa in the living room.

"We're back" Lisa said "And we've brought in some expert mystery solvers! Gary Blake here is the son of Shaggy, former head of "The Fearless Detective agency" (From Scooby and Scrappy Doo) and his dog Scooby Doo"

"Scooby-dooby... rexpert rystery rolvers? Ruh-uh! Ruh-uh!" Scooby denied

I shoved my hand over Scooby's mouth to silence him "That, uh, doesn't mean we won't help!" I said nervously. "Tell us what's bothering you"

"It all started with this note that I received this morning" said Pearls.

Mimi took the note from Pearls and stared at it. "Our first clue" She remarked "What do you think of it Gary?"

She passed the note on to me and all eyes turned on me, expecting an opinion. I cautiously made an analysis by reading out what the note said.

Poor Miss Malone

all alone,

With a silly old map I wish to own,

Hand it over and I'll send cash,

Ten percent of the map's hidden stash,

That's twenty-five thousand so stay by the phone,

And don't bring the police to Huge's Home,

You don't want to end up just like him,

Gone for ever on your very last swim.

A friend

"Rot a reepy note!" Scooby wailed.

"Is that all it says?" asked Lisa

I turned the note over and continued "One Set brake linings $13.09, Complete set of wheels $6.58 each $19.74... Hey! This not was written on the back on a receipt for "Bill's Autos""

"And that's where we're going next, right?" Mimi added "If we can find out who the receipt belonged to we can find out who sent the note to Pearls!"

"Yeah, but we need to make sense of it first" I replied "It mentions something about a map. Pearls?"

"Well, a map was mailed to me in the Huge mansion a few days ago but it didn't mean anything to me, so I stuffed it in a drawer and forgot all about it until now." Pearls said "Why?"

"Because I recon that the wording of this note suggests that the map could have something to do with the Bush Street Bullion Robbery!" I said, triumphantly.