Chapter 9: A sinkhole and the capture
Soon, the gang walked over to the large pile of crystal doorknobs Shaggy had discovered with their flashlights on.
"Wow." Fred whistled. "Look at all of these doorknobs!"
"Yeah." Velma agreed. "All of these doorknobs must be the crystal doorknobs that were stolen in town."
"And check out all of the equipment." Daphne added as her flashlight shined onto some power tools and equipment.
"Like, someone must have gone through a lot of training in heavy industries, like those in the manufacturing sector, in order to be able to operate these equipment and tools effectively." Shaggy observed as they took a look at the equipment. "Perhaps someone working for the Ladderton Oil Company!"
"Someone like Rung!" Daphne said.
As Daphne made the comment, Shaggy looked down onto his right hand and suddenly remembered something.
SHAGGY'S FLASH VISION
Back at the Bloody Stake Restaurant, Shaggy watches himself shaking hands with Rung as the rest of the gang looked on.
During the handshake, Shaggy thought he felt Rung's hand was rough, as if he had worked with heavy machinery or power tools frequently.
Remembering the roughness of Rung's hands, Shaggy then flash forwarded back to the cave as he imagines Rung operating the equipment.
Knowing how rough Rung's hand was, as well as noticing that Rung looked a little muscular, Shaggy had no trouble picturing Rung operating the equipment and using them to steal the doorknobs and examining them in the cave.
END OF FLASH VISION
"Like, I think we've just discovered an important piece of the puzzle." Shaggy remarked.
"Indeed." Velma agreed. "Everything's starting to add up about these doorknob thefts and the ghost truck."
"We'd better get the sheriff." Fred suggested. "That is, if he'll be willing to listen to us."
Just then, the gang heard a horn that sounded all too familiar.
"Zoinks!" Shaggy exclaimed as Scooby leaped into his arms. "Like, I think I just heard something I wish I didn't hear."
"S-s-sounds like the ghost truck." Daphne shivered.
Sure enough, they saw a dark, large cloud forming and moments later, the ghost truck was there.
"Let's get out of here!" Fred shouted.
Immediately, the gang took off and raced for the cave exit and got on the Mystery Machine.
As soon as they fasten their seatbelts, Shaggy stepped on the gas pedal and the van took off with the ghost truck close behind.
As the Mystery Machine took off down the highway, Velma said, "Shaggy, drive back to the suburbs. There's a sheriff's station house along the way. If we're lucky, we can get the deputies' attention."
"Yeah, and get a speeding ticket." Shaggy joked as he pressed down on the gas pedal.
Soon, the two vehicles sped past the station house, just as two sheriff deputies were departing from the parking lot on a cruiser.
"Get those two punks!" The first deputy said to his partner, who is behind the wheel.
"I'm on it!" The other replied as he activated the siren and joined the chase.
Hearing the sirens behind the ghost truck, Shaggy remarked. "Like, one massive speeding ticket is on it's way, gang."
Daphne and Scooby both chuckled at the remark as the Mystery Machine drove past a sign labeled "Bogmyer River: 5 miles"
Seeing the road sign, as well as some construction signs that followed, Shaggy suddenly remembered something.
SHAGGY'S FLASH VISION
Outside the Bloody Stake Restaurant, Shaggy watched himself reading the newspaper page that flew into his face as the gang looked on.
Pausing his flash vision, he walked over to the newspaper page and skinned through the page until he found something.
"GOSNELL & ASSOCIATES INVESTIGATED FOR FRAUD
Engineering firm responsible for the rehabilitation of the County Highway One bridge over Bogmyer River, as well as the construction of sewer pipe that passes under the major highway right after bridge, under investigation for fraud."
Reading the news article, Shaggy noted that several of the engineering projects handled by the troubled engineering firm has been noted for several safety defects, such as the use of substandard concrete for the bridge, and that the city has spent millions of dollars in repairs and cost-overruns related to those projects.
He then remembered that there was a detour sign for large vehicles like tractor trailers that can't pass through the section of the highway, due to possible formations of a sinkhole after the bridge.
Nodding to himself, Shaggy managed to get a trap planned out in his mind.
END OF FLASH VISION
"Like, I just had an idea for a trap to capture that ghost truck, gang." Shaggy said.
"You do?" Fred asked, surprised, since he usually is the one that comes up with traps to capture the villain.
"Yes, but this is going to involve a big sink!" Shaggy replied as they drove onto the bridge as the ghost truck and cruiser followed.
Before Fred or Velma could question Shaggy on what he meant, the Mystery Machine crossed the bridge and right over the affected area of the roadway.
The ghost truck soon followed, but right as it finished crossing the bridge and drove a few feet away down the road, a sinkhole suddenly opened up, causing the tractor to drop downwards while the trailer ends up hanging onto the edge of the sinkhole.
Both the Mystery Machine and the police cruiser behind the ghost truck screeched to a halt as Shaggy saw the ghost truck partially trapped in the sinkhole that just opened up, a result of the collapse of the sewer pipe running below the highway above it with the flawed concrete used in the casting of the pipes being badly corroded, with both the corrosion and the flawed material of the concrete rendering it too weak to support the weight of the soil above and the heavy tractor trailer, hence the reason why the road caved in as soon as the ghost truck drove over it.
"Jinkies!" Velma said as she saw the ghost truck trapped while Shaggy stopped the Mystery Machine. "The ghost truck is trapped!"
"How did it happen?" Fred asked.
Shaggy responded by passing him the newspaper page that blew onto his face and directed him to the article on Gosnell & Associates.
As Fred and Velma read the article and understood, they all got off the van and walked over to the ghost truck just as the two deputies on the cruiser walked over to them.
"This sure is a first in seeing the ghost truck going down like that." The first deputy remarked. "We're going to need to bring in a rescue squad."
"And fast!" A faint voice can be heard from the cab. "I can't get out of this cab!"
Moments later, the rescue squad has lifted the ghost truck out of the sinkhole as the sheriff arrived.
"What have you done to our tourist attraction?" Stone demanded when he saw the truck being lifted out of the sinkhole and the gang.
"We just drove down the highway, sheriff." Daphne replied. "We didn't see that coming."
"And besides, why will you call something that is responsible for the police department's constant need to replace equipment, particularly motorcycles, when it is under serious budget constraints a 'tourist attraction', sheriff?" Shaggy added as the gang nodded in agreement.
"Hmph." The sheriff snorted but then continued, "Well, then anyways, who's the driver of this ghost truck?"
At that moment, two deputies opened the ghost truck cab door and Rung Ladderton got off, visibly shaken by the ordeal.
"Rung Ladderton!" Velma said. "Just as we suspected!"
One more chapter to go. Please read and review!