Chapter 6 - Christmas Sleuthing (10 December 2027)
"I know one of Ima and Abba's hiding places for Christmas gifts," Rivka told her twin and younger brother as the three were getting ready for bed.
"You're lying," LJ looked his sister in the eye, challenging her assertion.
Riv nodded and smirked, "What's it to you?"
"Nothin'… I already found some hidden presents," the six-year-old retorted.
"Wait… you both found hidden gifts? Where?" Beth demanded from her siblings. "Whose gifts did you find too?"
"Gonna cost you… one dollar for one hidden gift… er, eh… Hi, Ima," Rivka quickly shoved her toothbrush in her mouth and began brushing. Ziva gave the older twin a weird glance as the other two quickly wiped hands on towels and headed to their beds.
"Do I want to know what that was all about?" Ziva asked Rivka. When the girl continued brushing her teeth and shook her head, Ziva headed to the hallway.
"Lights out in fifteen; Abba will be in to read to LJ and I will be back to read to Beth and Rivka very soon. Let me check on Anthony and Tali," she called over her shoulder.
"Whew; that was a close call," Riv let out a sigh of relief to her siblings. "If we're gonna be detectives and find the clues, we gotta be quiet about it. Ima and Abba can't know that we are looking for clues…"
LJ and Beth nodded agreement, keeping a watchful eye for a parent to come in from the hallway.
"Do we want to get Anthony and Tali in on it?" Beth asked the other two. "More eyes give us more clues as Grandpa says…"
Tony came through LJ's door, "Bedtime! Are we continuing with The Borrowers tonight?" He sat on the side of his son's bed as LJ handed him the book and laid back on his pillow.
~Sleuths~
As the five DiNozzos walked to their school bus stop at the end of the street, they discussed the discoveries of Rivka and LJ.
"I think we should act like we don't know, and then find out as much as possible on the D L," Tali gave her opinion. "Wait until Ima and Abba are out or busy in another part of the house and only one or two of us go check out their offices. Riv, are you sure there is a hidden compartment in the credenza in Abba's office?"
Riv nodded solemnly, "Yes. I saw it. I was vacuuming for my weekly chore and I bumped the side of the credenza with my elbow. The door popped open; it has a secret latch. You have to press just the right spot to get it to release. I saw three bags from stores inside."
Anthony was more reluctant to snoop, "Why do we have to even check it out? Christmas will be here soon enough, and we'll have our gifts. What if Ima or Abba finds out that we've been looking around? Especially Ima…"
"Oh, come on, Anthony, aren't you even a bit curious about your big gift? Whatever is in there has to be something big or it wouldn't be hidden," Beth reasoned.
LJ added, "Same for the weird box in the garage where the outdoor decorations are stored. It's a plain box, unmarked, just sitting on the shelf. It wasn't there when we put out the yard decorations. It's just an odd place for a mystery box."
Tali turned to her younger siblings, "Who's in for some sleuthing? We can be investigators just like Ima and Abba used to be. DNIS or DiNozzo Investigative Service. We can split into teams so Ima and Abba don't suspect that we are on the case."
"Well, when you put it that way…" Anthony agreed, "But you and I get to lead the teams. I want Rivka on my team."
Riv shrugged, "As long as you don't try to boss me around, I'm good. I like the idea of teams. How about you, me, and Beth on one team and Tali and LJ on the other."
"That works; each team has one person who has found a clue," Anthony commented to all. "We can check out Abba's office, and the other team can check out LJ's find in the garage."
The school bus arrived and the five agreed to keep their plans secret and regroup at home after school.
~Sleuths~
"Shh, Riv, you're making too much noise," Beth worried that her sister's pounding on the credenza's side to open the secret latch would get her Abba's or Ima's attention. "Can't you open it without making that much sound?"
"I gotta find the right spot to pop it open," the older twin whispered. "You are making noise by talking…"
"Just hurry up and get it opened," Anthony hissed from the doorway where he was keeping watch for either parent. Daisy sat by his feet and looked up at her master when he spoke. She wagged her tail and nuzzled the boy's hand. "Not now, girl; we are on a secret fact-finding mission."
Riv pressed the corner on the side nearest the front part of the large piece of furniture; the latch let go and the side of the piece opened about two to three inches. "Got it!" she informed the others. "I'm gonna open it slowly, just in case Abba has it booby-trapped."
"You've been watching too many TV shows," her twin quipped. "Why would Abba booby-trap his own office?"
"To keep us from snooping?" Anthony suggested as he peered down the short hallway. He thought he'd heard a noise from the main hall to the master bedroom. Asher peeked around the corner as the boy let out a sigh of relief. "C'mere, Asher… good boy." He gave both dogs some head rubs and scratches behind their ears to keep them quiet.
Beth tried to grab one of the bags that was inside the hidden cabinet as Rivka lifted another from the small shelf near the top of the chamber. Both items fell to the floor and a small jeweler's box tumbled from one of them. The lid opened and a diamond, ruby, and topaz necklace partially fell from the padding inside the box.
"Pretty!" both girls looked at the visible parts of the jewelry.
Anthony glanced at the necklace as Beth held it up for him to see. "I'd bet that's for Ima," he observed to his sisters. "Abba almost always gets some sort of jewelry for Ima every year. I think those red stones are rubies, and the clear ones are diamonds."
Riv opened the second bag, "Another jeweler's box in here." She reached in to retrieve the smaller box, and then opened it. "Matching earrings for the necklace," the girl turned the box so her siblings could see the earrings. "These are all for Ima…"
"What's in the last bag?" Anthony pointed to the last item on the bottom of the secret closet.
Rivka lifted the plastic bag by its handles and pulled it open, "Ugh… lacy underwear… red and black lacy stuff…"
"For Ima," the three said together and giggled.
Asher perked up and turned towards the door; the three kids stuffed the boxes back in their bags, and put the bags inside the cabinet. Rivka shut the secret door making sure the latch clicked.
"What are you doing?" Ziva looked at her middle three standing in Tony's office with the two dogs. Asher moved over to his person and leaned on her as she put a hand on his head.
"Um, nothing, Ima…" Beth started to reply.
"I needed some colored pens for my homework, so we are looking for the ones Abba had…" Riv yanked open the drawer that she knew held her father's pens and pencils.
"I'm just helping my sisters," Anthony shrugged.
Ziva looked among the three of them; she was certain that they were not 'just looking for pens,' but decided to let it go. "Okay; remember to put them back when you are done with them." She turned and went into her own office across the hallway followed by Asher.
Riv grabbed several of the colored gel pens and shut the drawer, "That was close… let's get outta here."
~Sleuths~
"See that long flat box behind the tote for the lights?" LJ pointed the flashlight beam at the back of the bottom shelf where the Christmas decorations were stored most of the year. "The one that isn't like any of the other storage boxes on these shelves…"
"Yeah; it's a strange shape for the decorations that we have for outside and inside," Tali moved the tote for the lights so she could see the box in question better. "Help me move it out where we can check it out."
LJ and Tali tugged the long box out into the open area in front of the storage shelves. It was definitely not Christmas decorations. The siblings inspected all sides of the mystery box with their flashlights.
"There are words on this side," LJ noticed a shipping label and some other words printed in blue ink on one of the long skinny sides of the box. "E-l-e-c-t-r-i-c… and F-e-n-d-e-r… and g-u-i-t-a-…"
"A Fender electric guitar," Tali read the printed words on the shipping box. "It's for Abba. I am sure of that. Probably from Ima…"
LJ nodded his agreement as the siblings pushed the box back to where it had been and returned the tote for the lights to its spot in front. The garage door opened as they were putting things back.
"Oh, hi, Abba," Tali grinned at her father.
"Hi, Abba!" LJ also grinned.
"Whatcha doin'?" Tony wondered why the two were by the storage shelves for the Christmas décor.
Tali pulled the lid off the lights tote, "Looking for the replacement bulbs for the lights on the big Merry Christmas sign… one of them on the letter C is out…"
Tony gave his oldest and youngest a strange look but decided to let it go, "Oh. Well thanks for keeping up with that. We can change it in the morning when it's easier to see what we are doing." He walked in the door that led to the kitchen as the siblings let out breaths of relief.
"Good thinking, Tali," LJ commented.
"Yeah, that was too close!" She grabbed the needed bulb and closed the tote. "Now we gotta find a way to tell the others what we discovered. I wonder what they found?"