Hello Everyone I'm Back with a new chapter! Enjoy!
It was another typical day in Aberdale, with school wrapping up for the day; as such, many students began walking home, with some waiting for their parents to pick them up, while a handful took the bus to get home. One particular student chose the latter option, but with several students taking the same transportation, Heida knew that she had to get comfortable for the long drive home, but was more or less used to this by now, taking the time to watch the scenery through the window. Despite how repetitive it can get, it was always marvelous to watch the scenery, even if the rowdiness of the peers can somewhat ruin the peaceful moment.
"Hey Jeff, you want to head over to my place tomorrow?"
"Sorry Clarence, I have my hands full. Another time perhaps."
"Oh come on! I'm sure you can just ditch whatever you have planned," Sumo insisted.
"I'm pretty sure ditching a doctor's appointment would be a very unwise decision," Jeff disagreed.
"Say that to my past self. I skipped my doctor's appointment and I came out fine!"
"You need help."
Clarence and Sumo only laughed in response, while Heida could only shudder in dread. She could never imagine herself skipping on anything important and why these two would enjoy doing it was beyond her imagination. For now, though, Heida just wanted to enjoy her bus ride home in peace, watching her peers get off the bus when their destination one after another; soon enough, the school bus reached in front of her house and Heida got off the bus. By all accounts, it wasn't considered to be extravagant, but it wasn't unkempt or ancient either, for it was an red old-fashioned two-storied house, with pink lining covering the edges and windows, along with a small porch, though it did contain a few modern upgrades that were hardly noticeable, something that bother Helda very much.
As she made her way inside, she was immediately greeted with the pleasant smell of freshly grown fruit, as she ran towards the backyard where she found an abundance of kiwis, golden crisp, red, and green apples, and green and yellow pears, bananas, various grapes, pomegranates, and both Asian and bell peppers, as they stretched half of the backyard.
"Time to check every one of you," Heida set her backpack down, grabbed a nearby wooden basket, and started picking up the fruits.
"Okay, I think that's enough for today," Helda remarked, wiping off the sweat from her forehead. She wasn't able to fully get all of the fruits due to how many there were. Heida wasn't too stressed over it, however, as her amount was more than enough to sell at the farmer's market this weekend, but more so with this year's annual Autumn festival. Any that remained she either kept them for herself or handed some away to her neighbors.
"Heida! Dinner is ready!"
"Coming, Grandpa!"
Heida returned inside, carrying the fruits in her basket as she set them in the kitchen and joined her grandfather at the dining hall; He had black hair and a neatly trimmed black beard, both having a few gray streaks, a deep tan complexion and blue eyes, with his hands scarred from his line of work as a fisherman. He also wore a pair of khaki shorts, a Hawaiian shirt with coconuts and parrots all over it, a cap decorated with fishing lures and the phrase: "Kamohoalii's Lucky Fishing Hat" and a pair of sandals.
"Helda, you're just in time," said Helda's Grandpa, as his granddaughter was greeted by the sight of a home-cooked meal on the table.
"Oh! We're having pot pie, mac and cheese, and yams!"
"One of your favorites!"
Immediately, Helda sat down at the table and quickly began eating her dinner without a care in the world.
"Enjoying it?"
"Sure am." Heida happily replied as she continued to eat, while her grandfather only smiled in response as the two of them enjoyed their night together in each other's company.
"Heida! Time to wake up!"
The girl could groan, as she opened her eyes and was greeted by the warm sun and the chirping birds. After stretching her arms out, she hopped out of bed, got herself dressed up and made her way downstairs, just to be greeted by her grandfather.
"Morning Heida."
"Morning Grandpa, I'm gonna check on our harvest."
"Alright, but try to hurry it up, because the bus will be here in the next hour."
"Got it," Heida exited the house to check on the harvest. While some in the basket were safe and sound, The same couldn't be said about the backyard, it was desecrated, leaving the area a complete mess. The fruits were covered with bite marks, tears and juices! Who could have done something like this to begin with?!
'Oh no! At this time?!' Helda thought in dismay seeing all of this. How could she break this awful news to her grandpa?
"Heida, is something wrong?"
"...I gotta go now," was all Heida said, as she ran inside to get ready for a long day of school.
"Hello Marlie, you smell very pleasant today!"
"Oh, thanks."
"Yeah, you smell like roses, water, and fresh plants."
"Sumo!"
"No, it's okay. I like the smell of fresh plants and the scent is rose, water and ivy."
"Want to join and eat with us?"
"Sorry Jeff, I'll have to decline. I had a very chaotic morning and I need some peace and quiet right now."
The trio then watched their classmate leave the library, leaving the boys alone to enjoy their lunch. Marlie wanted to enjoy the chilly weather right now and while the boys would have wanted to eat their meals at their library with her, they shrugged it off and continued with their foods, until Sumo glanced up and saw a familiar face coming inside.
"Hey, is that Heida?"
"It is," Jeff replied. "And she looks pretty upset"
"Aww, that's not good. We should help her!"
His mind made up, Clarence got up from his seat to talk to his classmate, with his friends right behind him.
"Good afternoon, Heida," Jeff greeted her. "Sorry to bother you."
"...Hey." Heida greeted her classmate somberly.
"...What's wrong? You seemed sad," Jeff suddenly asked with concern.
"...My autumn harvest has been destroyed after I worked so hard on it!" Heida confessed.
"Oh my," Jeff gasped. "Do you think someone might be doing it?"
"I…don't want to jump to conclusions yet," Heida hesitantly replied. "But I have a feeling that they might be closer than I realized."
"You're suggesting that your culprit may be one of our classmates?" Sumo asked.
"I do, but it could be anyone," Heida confessed.
"Why is the harvest important to you? You can always plant more fruits." Clarence pointed out.
"I could do that, Clarence, but I don't want my grandfather to restart the harvest all by himself. He's not as young as he used to be," answered a concerned Heida. "Also, replacing all those seeds are pricey and I don't want to keep doing it every time."
"I can relate," Sumo nodded in agreement.
"So who do you think it might be?" Jeff inquired.
"Well, we can't just go to everyone and ask them," Heida said. "Let's try a subtle approach."
"Like investigating?" Clarence gasped, as his eyes lit up. "Just like finding who threw that meatball sub sandwich at Mr. Reese's car!"
"Yeah, just like that…" Heida arched her eyebrow, weirded out by Clarence's answer.
"Detective Clarence is on the job!" Clarence got out his detective gear and started observing his peers.
"Where in the world did he get that?" asked a confused Jeff.
"It's Clarence, so it's best just to go along with it," Sumo answered nonchalantly.
"We'll do our best to gather up some clues," said Jeff.
"Thanks, guys, I appreciate it." Heida expressed her gratitude. "Alright now that I have some help, I can enjoy my lunch with ease."
With, Heida took a bite of a fresh-picked pear and munched away in delight.
"Wow…you guys gathered a lot of information," A surprised Heida commented, looking through the pages, as she and the boys were sitting at the table in the Wendle residence. "Hope it wasn't too much work."
"It was nothing I couldn't handle," Clarence laughed dismissively.
"If that's the case then why do you have a black eye, Clarence?"
"...It's a long story." Sumo chimed in, waving his hand with indifference.
Just then, the door was opened, and was greeted by Mary who was carrying a tray of freshly cut fruits.
"Hey kids, I got you some healthy fruit snacks."
"Thanks, Mrs. Wendle," Jeff grabbed the tray and set it on a table.
"You're welcome, Jeff. Let me know if you need anything."
"Will do, Mom!" Clarence happily exclaimed, as Mary smiled, before leaving her son's room.
"You have such a wonderful mother, Clarence," Heida remarked,
"Why, thank you! My mom is the best! Heck, she's the best mom in the world!"
"It must have been nice to have a mom that dotes on you," Heida somberly commented.
"Did you say something?" Clarence asked.
"I didn't. Anyway, Let's go over the list."
Over the next few hours, the four went through the notes, going through one name after another, crossing some out and figuring out any connection that the remaining few have to the incident. But before long, though, it was starting to get dark in Aberdale.
"Oh no!" Heida gasped, as she looked outside and frantically packed up her belongings in her backpack. "I lost track of time! Grandpa must be getting worried sick! I've got to go!"
She then ran out of the bedroom, not even bidding farewell to the boys or waving, as she made her way through the front door and was about to open, when she heard a familiar voice from behind.
"Oh, you have to go?"
"I'm afraid so, Mrs. Wendle," Heida replied. "It's late and I need to get home!"
"Whoa ,hold on there..." Mary began, as Heida stopped in her tracks. "It's too dark for you to go out by yourself. Plus, I made some dinner. Why don't you join us?"
"N-no thanks, I can't possibly overstay my welcome."
"I insist," Mary reassured.
"... Alright." Heida relented, as she closed the door and made her way to the kitchen. "Thank you, Mrs. Wendle."
"It's no trouble at all." Mary casually waved her concerns.
Heida nodded her head before Clarence walked over towards his mother.
"What are we having for dinner?"
"Salmon with teriyaki sauce, squash, green beans, and a loaded baked potato."
"Alright!" Clarence ecstatically said, looking forward to tonight's dinner.
"Be a dear and set the table for me, sweetie."
"Will do!"
The boy wasted no time setting up the table and passing out drinks, with Mary following up by passing dinner to everyone. Before long, everyone began to enjoy their meal and drinks, though Heida hesitated to take a bite. Eventually, though, she calmed down enough and soon, was enjoying her meal just like everyone else.
"So happy that she's less stressed now," Clarence remarked.
"Still, we haven't gotten any strong leads…" Sumo pointed out, before stretching his chin. "I'm beginning to wonder why anyone would want to ruin her harvest."
"What do you think?" Clarence asked.
"I think it's rather simple. Because it's free," Sumo confidently answered.
"Oh come on, there has to be more than just that," Jeff wasn't so easily convinced by his friend's conclusion.
"Never underestimate the power of free food. You'll be quite surprised at how effective free food can turn one's greed into overdrive."
"...When you put it that way, I guess that makes sense," Jeff conceded.
"Let's forget about that for now and enjoy our food."
With that, everyone began to peacefully enjoy the rest of the night.
"ARGH"
Almost immediately, everyone in Mr. Bulsara's class turned their attention to an irate Heida at her desk.
"Heida, care to tell me the reason that was warranted for being disruptive?" Mr. Bulsara demanded an explanation.
"...I-It's nothing," Heida replied, bashfully rubbing her head.
"I'll let you off with a warning."
Heida only nodded in response, before the teacher resumed the lecture. She couldn't help but groan in despair: her harvest was once again desecrated this week and the deadline for the farmer's market was around the corner. Whoever was doing this, it was done on purpose. More importantly, though,: who would want to do this, how did they ever find out where she lives and why?
She wanted to find out the truth, but the last thing she wanted right now is being disciplined by Mr. Bulsara. Fortunately for her, though, Mr. Bulsara managed to finish up his lecture, as he allowed the students to do anything they wanted, as long as it wasn't too disruptive for the classroom. Immediately, Heida went up towards Clarence, Sumo, and Jeff.
"Any luck, guys?"
Clarence nods his head. "We have boiled down to a few people."
"Sweet!" Heida was happy to hear something good for once. "Show me what you guys have."
Jeff handed over the notebook that he carried. "Here, I'll show you where the results are."
Heida looked through the notebook and sure enough, she saw some potential suspects: Samuel, Tinia, Gabbie, and Debbie. Far from being happy, though, she looked at the results with confusion on her face.
"Clarence, are you sure there aren't any more culprits you can look into?"
"They were the only ones that we could think," Clarence swore.
"Sounds like you're not particularly happy with the results," Sumo stated the obvious.
"N-no!" Heida tried to backtrack her claims.. "I'm sorry how I behave, but I'm just shocked."
"I can see that, especially since these are the ones that know where you live," Jeff commented.
"Yeah, no denying that."
"Well it's time that we confront them, shall we?" Clarence suggested, getting into his detective outfit and made his way towards Debbie.
"Why do I get the feeling that something terrible is going to happen?" Jeff asked.
"We should stop him right now," Heida suggested.
Thirty seconds later…
"Well, that didn't end well," Sumo remarked.
"What do you expect?" Jeff added. "They weren't going to react well when Clarence accused them on the spot."
"Don't remind me," Heida groaned.
"Heh, sorry about that," Clarence sheepishly apologized.
Not too long, Clarence began bombarding Samuel, Gabbie, Debbie, and Tinia with one too many questions about what they were doing the night Heida's fruits were ruined.
Unfortunately for him, though, the results weren't what he had in mind:
Samuel looked at Clarence with confusion, Gabbie responded with annoyance and ignored him, and both Debbie and Tinia got irked by his accusation, the latter even tackling and riding Clarence like a horse. The resulting chaos caused Mr. Bulsara to quickly apprehend the two students and have them clean up the mess, before sending them outside.
"I think we're back at square one." Sumo shrugged.
"Wait, we can still ask them," Jeff suggested. "But this time being less aggressive."
"After what Clarence did, I'm not so sure they might want to hear us out," Heida spoke with uncertainty.
"Let's hear them out once class is over," Sumo suggested. "Besides, what do you got to lose?"
"...Alright then, let's give it another shot."
"...I see," Samuel started to understand what was going on. "Well, I have nothing to do with it and neither did Gabbie and Debbie, but I am sorry that your harvest is ruined."
"I'm sorry about Clarence hounding you like that," Heida apologized.
"Have you ever considered the culprit to be someone from the farmer's market?" Samuel suggests. "I'm sure you've come across a few disgruntled customers or other owners at the place, considering you've been selling products with your grandfather for a few years."
"Of course, why didn't I think of that?" Heida couldn't believe she didn't consider that possibility.
"Does anyone come to mind?" Samuel asked.
"None at the moment, but I feel that this might give me an idea of what to do next," Heida admitted. "Still, thanks for your help."
"No problem, Heida," Samuel appreciated her gratitude. "Anyway, I'm going to head over to Rough Riders Chicken. Wanna join me?"
"As much as I want to, I can't." Heida declined. "I have a few errands on my to-do list, so I want to get it done by today."
"Understandable." Samuel respected his friend's answer. "See you tomorrow?"
"Absolutely! See you!" Heida waved at her friend, before making her way to the school bus, took her seat and let out a sigh of relief.
It had been a rather long day, having to endure three subjects with Mr. Bulsara, before getting a much-needed break with Ms. Baker's class. Once class was over, she made her way towards Samuel, who thankfully, was able to clear things up with her about what he, Gabbie and Debbie have done the previous night.
Tinia, however, was another story and Heida doesn't know what to make of her. She had heard horror stories about how mischievous yet manipulative she can be, once learning from Clarence that she once terrorized him during his stay at the hospital. Though she was mortified by his story, she couldn't bring herself to take it seriously. After all, she finds her classmate to be a rather unreliable narrator at times.
As the bus began dropping students off, Heida couldn't help but recall what Samuel told her not too long ago: her culprit may have been a regular customer or a fellow seller at the farmer's market. It was no secret that Heida and her grandfather have been regular sellers in the farmer's market in Aberdale for several years, because they were one of the first people who were present at the market opening. While not at the top, Heida and her grandfather became well-known among the populace due to their hard work, consumer trust and feedback, allowing them to grow in popularity over the years and maintain it to this very day., something that Heida was quite proud of.
However, there were two nasty incidents that occurred at the market; the first time it happened was when Heida was only seven years old, when a young man named Joshua was in the back of their stand and she caught him in the act, angrily attacking him by throwing a good amount of her stock to get him to leave, but he only left when her grandfather called the police. She never figured out why Joshua would eat her stock; it was not like he was poor or homeless, but then again, she hardly knew him at all.
The second time occurred about a few months ago during her summer vacation: This time, the perpetrator was a fellow seller, who recently moved to Aberdale. She was a young woman with quite an arrogant demeanor that rubbed Heida the wrong way and she overheard her that the woman's attitude got on every seller's bad side; Despite this, they were shocked when she and her family's produce were selling quite well. She didn't say much of who she is, but the only name she got was Chase; whether it was her first or last name, though, Heida didn't bother to know anything else.
She did, however, recall seeing Chase having a white colored dog accompanying her all the time, remaining close to her family. Later in the day, however, the farmer's market turned into a battlefield of accusations and arguments that soon escalated into a full-blown conflict. Heida wasn't there when it happened, but according to some of the sellers, someone was going around and contaminating many of their products. Sadly, she and her grandfather's stall was among them, forcing them to close up shop early and their income taking a significant hit. Immediately, the sellers accused Chase and family of contaminating their products, as they were unaffected by the incident, as well as getting a sudden increase in customers in such a short notice.
Despite not having any proof, several sellers did get into a big brawl with Chase and it quickly spiraled out of control and by the time she packed up and left the market, the police arrived and managed to calm everyone down. Fortunately for Heida, though, her grandfather told her that the farmer's market wouldn't be shutting down, much to her relief, but regardless, the experience left her and many others with a very bad impression, as none of them wanted to do anything with Chase and her family.
"Hey Heida," Heida snapped from her line of thinking and saw Clarence sitting next to her.
"Oh hey, Clarence. What do you need?"
"Oh, I wanted to tell you that after much thought, we decided that we're going to help you catch the perpetrator who's been sabotaging you!" Clarence loudly declared..
"We?" Heida asked in confusion.
"You, Me, Jeff and Sumo."
"We can go to your house today right now," Sumo suggested.
"Today?" Heida was caught off guard by this. "This is rather sudden, you guys."
"That's what I said," Jeff commented. "But I see that you are at your wits end and we feel bad for not doing more to help."
"I say that the quicker we solve this mystery, the easier you can rest easy," Clarence said.
"And that's why we start today," Sumo added.
Heida took a moment to think about it. She wasn't in the mood to have company today, but the next farmer's market is almost here and she still has no idea who is ravaging her harvest. Unless something was done, she won't be able to have products to sell at the end of the month and that will spell terrible news for her and her grandfather's livelihood.
"...Okay, you guys can help me, but not today. I need to get myself ready."
"Do you need anything? Like supplies?" asked Clarence.
"No, I think I got that covered," Heida answered.
"So when do you want us to come over?" Sumo asked.
"How about Friday? Would that work?"
"Sure, that can work," Clarence nodded.
"Works for me!" Sumo agreed.
" I'm down with that," Jeff added.
"Perfect." Heida sighed with relief. "I'll be counting on you guys."
Heida arrived home after everyone left and upon entering, she was greeted by the scent of home-cooked food and her grandfather at the dining hall.
"Hey, my little pumpkin!." Her grandfather happily greeted her. "I've made you some homemade apple pie."
"Hey, Paw Paw." Heida greeted back before running towards the stairs. "I'll be in my room for a bit, so I'll eat later."
"Whoa there! What's the rush, Heida?" her grandpa stopped his granddaughter in her tracks.
"Sorry Paw Paw, it's very urgent."
"It is about the harvest?"
Heida simply nodded, causing her grandfather to pat her head.
"Pumpkin, it's okay if we missed out on the farmer's market. One weekend wouldn't hurt us at all."
"Paw Paw, I know you are trying to talk me out of it, but my mind has been made up," Heida spoke up. "Besides, I'm all caught up with my homework and I want to do this."
"Heida, that's not what I meant…" Her grandfather sighed heavily. "You're one of the most hardworking people I have ever known but don't overwork yourself. That's not good for you."
"Y-your right Paw Paw…I'm sorry," Heida apologized to her grandfather. "I was so caught up that I ended up ignoring my homework and had trouble sleeping. Still, I just can't leave an issue alone. I want to solve it rather than allow it to become worse, especially what's been happening with our harvest over the last few weeks."
"...Alright seeing how severe this issue has become, I'll help out," Her grandfather declared.
"Thanks, Paw Paw. I really appreciate that."
"So, how do you want to do this?"
"Well, I want the backyard to be heavily armed with traps, lights, and cages," Heida replied.
"Alright, I think I have a few spare cages laying around."
"Excellent, do we have any ropes and lights?"
"Let me take a look."
Heida watched her grandfather heading to the garage, before she sat near the stairwell, sighing with relief, content to have Clarence, Jeff, Sumo and her grandfather helping her out, certain that this mystery will be solved in no time.
'Still, I can't let my guard down,' Heida thought, before she got up and made her way to the garage. They have a lot of work to be done.
"Wow, you have a nice house, Heida!"
"T-thanks, Sumo," Heida bashfully said.
"Lead the way."
Heida nodded and let the boys inside and immediately, the trio were left awestruck by how spacious it was from the inside, with both Clarence and Sumo eager to relax in the living room, while Jeff looked at the family photos, being mindful of Heida's hospitality.
"Guys, come on. We're here to help Heida, not to lay up," he reminded his friends.
"Sorry!" Both Clarence and Sumo backed away from the couch.
"Is everything alright down here?"
The kids looked up and saw a hoodie figure bringing in a few light bulbs inside, before removing their hood, revealing himself to be Heida's grandfather.
"Hey, Paw Paw."
"Hey, Pumpkin," he greeted his granddaughter, before facing the trio. "You must be the boys that Heida mentioned."
"Hello sir, I'm Jeff and this is Sumo and Clarence." he introduced himself and his friends.
"It's a pleasure to meet you all," Heida's Grandpa said with a warm smile. "Thank you for looking after my little pumpkin."
"No worries." Clarence happily said. "Heida needed help, so we're happy to volunteer our service."
"I cannot thank you enough," Paw Paw expressed his gratitude. "And call me Alm."
"We'll remember that," said Jeff. "Are those cages for us?"
"That's right," Alm replied. "We're setting them up in the backyard."
"Sweet," Sumo grinned.
"Let me show you the backyard and after that, I'll make you guys some snacks while we wait."
The kids smiled at the idea and they followed Alm as he led them to the backyard.
The rest of the afternoon was comfortable, as after Alm gave a short tour of the backyard, he made some snacks for the kids, consisting of a tray of sliced pineapples, sliced apples, purple grapes, sliced kiwis, and sliced watermelon cubes. The boys were surprised by how fresh the snacks were, but at the same time, they looked so appetizing and in a way, motivated them much more to help Heida out.
Before long, evening was approaching, as Heida and the boys began to bring out some electrical lamps, but for the next two hours, nothing but the constant cricket noises and the loud chattering neighbors filled up the backyard. They checked and observed the soundings numerous times to see anything amidst, but they found nothing out of place and eventually, the kids gathered at the door and sat on the balcony.
"Well, I couldn't find anything unusual," Sumo spoke up.
"Neither have I," Jeff added.
"Anything on your end, Paw Paw?" Heida asked her grandfather.
"I got nothing," Alm admitted. "Anyway, you kids want to take a break?"
"I would like that," Clarence said, with his friends nodding in agreement.
"Alright then, I'll get you kids some drinks." Alm went inside, leaving the kids alone in the backyard.
"Are we doing something wrong here?" Clarence pondered.
"I want to say no, but I'm not so sure," Sumo admitted.
"It's probably because that we've been keeping a close eye on the backyard all day, so I doubt our suspect would just drop by like that." Jeff pointed out, before facing Heida. "What's the most likely time for them to show up?"
"I'm not even sure myself. I only see the aftermath after I wake up in the morning," Heida shrugged.
"What time do you go to bed and wake up?"
"Around nine or ten," Heida replied. "I wake up around eight or eight thirty."
"If what you say is true, then it's most likely around midnight." Jeff concluded.
"In that case, we should wait past ten then," Heida agreed.
"It's not like we have any choice anyway."
"I know, but I want to get this over with, Jeff."
"Sounds fair, but if that's the case, we should drink some coffee" Jeff suggested, much to Clarence and Sumo's disgust.
"Ew! I don't like coffee."
"Yeah, they suck!"
"Well, we have sugar and creamer," Heida explained.
"What flavor?" Sumo asked.
"Irish creme and French vanilla," Heida answered.
"That's fine by me," Sumo accepted her answer.
"Here you go, kids," Alm spoke up, returning with four glasses of oranges on the tray.
"Thanks," Heida and the boys happily drank their beverages. "Paw Paw, can you make us some coffee?"
"Why?" Alm was confused by such a request.
"Um, to catch a thief?" Heida sheepishly replied.
"I don't know if that's a wise idea."
"What choice do we have Paw Paw?"
"Heida, I'm not going to let you kids stay up past midnight," Alm folded his arms. Hieda wanted to argue, but her grandfather's stern look forced her to back off.
"Dang it!" Heida cursed, before facing the trio. "Well, we can stay up without coffee."
"I'm not liking what you're implying." Jeff voiced his concern.
"It's exactly what I'm implying."
For the next few hours, the kids stayed up as much as they could, occasionally changing shifts with one another for a quick nap. Still, they have one shot at finding their suspect and if they let their guard down for even a moment, then they would have wasted their time for nothing and Heida's harvest would be ruined for good. Alm, meanwhile, stood around for a while, until he fell asleep on the couch.
"Guess this was a bust," Heida muttered, but just as she and her friends were about to head upstairs, they heard a faint but loud cry.
"What was that?!" Clarence asked.
"It came from the backyard!" Heida exclaimed.
The kids immediately ran to the door and went to the backyard; much to their surprise, however, it wasn't a person at all, but rather two stray dogs: One had white fur with hazel brown eyes and the other had brown fur with black, beady eyes, with the former trying to free the latter with all of its might. One particular feature that both dogs shared was the visible scar on their right eye.
"Well, this is interesting," Clarence remarked.
"Wait, I recognized that dog before." Heida points at the white dog.
"You do?" asked a surprised Jeff.
"I'll explain later!" Heida then turned her attention to Clarence and Sumo. "Don't just stand there! Get going!"
"Who do you take me for?! Speedy Gonzales?!" Sumo objected.
"No time to argue! Just do it!" Jeff commanded.
The five kids then ran towards the dogs; unfortunately, though, the brown dog got freed from his companion and soon, both dogs sprinted out of the five yard, with the group sprinting after them as fast they could. Even so, the dog continued to run quite fast, keeping a distance from them and before long, they wound up in an unfamiliar part of the neighborhood.
"Where are we?" Heida asked, looking around.
"I'm not sure. I've never been in this part of town before and I know Aberdale like the back of my head," Clarence confessed.
"Let's worry about that later. Besides, I saw the dogs making a left turn around the corner," Jeff informed his friends.
Nodding in agreement, the five kids resumed following the dogs' trail and soon enough they found themselves facing a house in a field, though it was hard to make out the area, as it was rather dark. It was very modest and at least three stories tall, surrounded by a tall steel gate with barbed wires resting on top. On the right was a large barn and on the left were several stacks of hay…along with two dog houses.
"Look, there they are," Jeff pointed at the dog houses.
"Well, we can't just barge in," Clarence noted.
Just then, the gang saw a figure walking towards the dogs. They couldn't tell who it was, but the moment they spoke up, they can tell it was the voice of a young woman..
"You worthless mutts. Can't you be quiet or be well-mannered? That's why you are rightfully punished by not being able to eat freely as you want in the past."
The dogs softly whined in response, as the owner continued with her speech.
"Don't give me those puppy-eye looks. Maybe next time you follow instructions!"
The white dog growled at its owner, only to back down when she raised her hand up, ready to slap it any second.
"You want to start trouble, eh? If you want to extend your punishment for not eating anything for another week, that's fine. I'm surprised you two survived for this long, but no matter. Another week of no meals for both of you."
After staring down at them one more, the figure walked back inside and closed the door, leaving the dogs alone to rest, while the kids looked on in complete shock.
"What the heck?" Jeff finally spoke up.
"That woman is a monster!" An angry Clarence shouted.
"Well, I think we can see why the dogs keep eating your harvest." Sumo said, as he faced Heida.
"Only because they are being mistreated. In fact, I think I recognized that voice."
"Who is it?" Sumo inquired.
"It's that lady I encountered not too long ago at the farmer's market and that white dog was with her as well," Heida explained. "I haven't gotten her name, but I just know that she goes by Chase."
"You mentioned that you met the white-colored dog before."
"Yes, I did. In fact, everyone suspected her dog was responsible for what happened at the previous farmer's market, but they lacked any evidence to tie her in. All the sellers ended up arguing with Chase and she just left right then and there and they avoid her ever since."
"The plot thickens!" Clarence gasped.
"So now that we found out the culprits, what are we going to do?" Sumo asked.
"...Let's go home," Heida replied after much hesitation. "I don't think it's the right time to confront Chase at the moment."
"What about getting justice?" Sumo reminded her.
"Don't worry, I have a better alternative," just then, Heida fell down onto her knees, followed by a yawn. "Ugh, we need to get home."
"You're right. Let's get going," Jeff agreed.
With that in mind, the four turned around and made their way back to Heida's home. Even if things didn't turned out exactly as they have in mind, they at least know who was responsible for messing with their friend's harvest and they can put that mystery to rest.
Several Days Later…
"Heida, I'll be going out for a bit."
"Alright, Paw Paw! Take care out there."
"You too as well, pumpkin."
Heida watched her grandfather leave the house and resume watering the vegetables in the backyard. Before she could sit down and rest, Heida spotted a couple of familiar faces: it was the brown and white dogs from the Chase residence.
"Hey, you two, just in time! Have a basket of fruit ready," Heida smiled at their presence.
She opened the door and guided the two hungry dogs outside, as they were greeted with a basket of several fruits, fresh and picked from the ground. Excited by this, both dogs happily barked and began chowing down, while Heida looked on with a smile; since last week, she and the dogs were able to come up with a compromise: both were allowed to eat any of the harvests she grew in the extra pile, in exchange for leaving the rest of the harvest alone. It was the least thing she can do to keep them happy.
"Oh, it's great out here today," said Heida, as she took a seat on the porch and admired the view of the entire neighborhood, watching her neighbors enjoying their day while enjoying the cool air, with the sun shining bright in the clear blue sky.
That's it for Chapter 10! Hope you enjoyed it. Ten chapters Never thought I would reach this milestone. But as much as I'm happy about it, I'm going to take a break from writing Clarence a bit. Been suffering from burnout and personal reasons. As well as wanting to explore other series. Hope you can all join me when I publish them!
See you next time! Caio!
