The familiar bend to the highway was coming up, soon the Ohio River would be in sight and before sight of home would unfold on the horizon. Daphne took the curve to the road smoothly, hoping not to wake up Velma, who had been sleeping since they had left Metropolis that morning. As nice as her family Mercedes was, she missed the sounds the Mystery Machine made, the creaks of the dashboard, the light scratching sound of the brakes, and the metallic springs of the suspension. But this trip was not one that required the full deductive powers of the mystery gang.
Hearing a drawn-out inhale from Velma, Daphne felt that her driving had not been quite as easy as she hoped. In the passenger seat her friend was stirring from her nap and adjusting her glasses as she sat up.
"What time is it?" asked Velma, blinking sleep from her eyes.
"Just after three." Replied Daphne, tapping her fingers on the steering wheel before looking to the navigation panel for upcoming traffic.
"You didn't stop for lunch." Said Velma, who figured it was a safe deduction due to the time and lack of food packaging in the car.
"I just wanted to get back." Said Daphne as she merged into the fast lane to pass a dark gray SUV. "Thankfully there wasn't any problem going through Baltimore or Washington."
"That's good." Said Velma, letting the conversation thread end there.
"Are you sure you want to wait until we're back to talk about what happened?" asked Daphne. It was not that she was hoping for some secret from Velma's recent experience at S.T.A.R. Labs, rather she was afraid Velma would internalize something stressful when she didn't need to.
"No, I'm fine Daph." Said Velma. They didn't always use their shortened nicknames for each other, "Daph" and "Velm", but when they did there was an unspoken understanding between the two of them to trust the other.
"Alright." Said Daphne, as they went across the bridge.
Being back home in Ohio was comforting enough and Daphne turned off the annoying navigation as she was able to finish the ride home blind. It was an unspoken truth, accepted among the Mystery Gang, that though Fred had the stamina of a long-haul trucker, Daphne was by far the better driver.
A turn before arriving in Coolsville, Daphne took the exit which led up to her family's estate. The Mercedes would go back in the family garage with the ten other vehicles her parents never used, and from there it was a short walk to the guesthouse which acted as company headquarters.
Approaching the driveway, she saw groundskeepers tending to the trees and flowers which lined the walking paths which led around the property. Parking just in front of the manor, Daphne gave Velma a nod as they got out of the car. Not missing a beat, the front door to the mansion opened and Jenkins, the Blake's loyal butler exited the house, directing the chauffeur to see to the car.
"Miss Blake, Miss Dinkley. Welcome home from your trip." Said Jenkins, giving a courteous, if somewhat stiff, bow.
"Thanks, Jenkins." Said Velma, who started around the side of the house to the Guesthouse.
"Did we miss anything?" Asked Daphne.
"You have a few company letters on the dining table. I took the liberty of cleaning the kitchen while Misters Rogers and Jones were working on modifying your corporate vehicle." Said Jenkins. "One parcel, in particular, was marked urgent, but your companions felt it only right to open it when you returned."
"Very good Jenkins. Any news from Mom and Dad?" The last Daphne has heard from her parents, they were taking a vacation in the South China Seas.
"Only that your father had a mild sunburn in Thailand and your mother had discovered an aversion to mango fruit." Daphne could tell that both of those statements were horrid understatements to protect her parent's dignity, but she appreciated Jenkin's dedication and professionalism which allowed him to fib if it meant protecting his employers.
"Keep up the good work then Jenkins. You have the house to yourself again tonight."
"Very good, I shall indulge myself with another evening of Doc Martin and earl grey."
With a smile, Daphne walked the path which around the property to the house she shared with Velma, Fred, Shaggy, and Scooby. There had been a lot of renovations over the years, but it felt a lot more like home than her parent's mansion did.
Inside the garage, both Fred and Shaggy had their heads looking into the engine block of the old VW Bus. For the past two weeks, they had been tinkering with the new hybrid engine Shaggy had bought second-hand and working on installing it. Before her feet were every manner of tool strewn across the concrete floor, some even dangled precariously atop the engine hoist.
Leaving them to finish their work, she went inside, finding Velma was already sitting at the table writing notes on an old legal pad. With a sigh, she sat down and took a look at the mail. They all contributed to making their business work. Fred handled accounting, Velma moderated their website, despite Daphne's own objections Shaggy managed their social media image, which left communications to Daphne.
"Let's see here," Daphne spoke aloud, knowing Velma wouldn't mind the interruptions and would voice her opinions regardless. "A request to investigate strange cult activity in Iowa."
"Crop circles again? Pass." Said Velma, not looking up from her writing.
"Talk of giant lizards in Lubbock, Texas." Daphne said, reading another letter.
"That's from a conspiracy nut that has been trolling us for the past year. Check to see if the name is an anagram of Charles Torgo." Said Velma.
"Let's see here. Arles Gortoch… that's him alright." Daphne set the letter aside for Fred, knowing he enjoyed keeping their weird letters. There were a few fan letters she would let Shaggy respond to. Which left her with the last letter which was in a padded envelope. Turning it over, Daphne saw that this was the one Jenkins had mentioned was marked urgent. "This one is from out in California." As she tore open the top, Fred and Shaggy came in from the garage, the sound of which seemed to awaken Scooby-Doo from where their canine companion had been lying in the living room.
"When did you two get back?" Fred seemed a bit surprised to see their faces. "We were just about to fire up the new engine, want to come out to see?"
"Just a minute guys, take a seat." Said Velma, breathing in deeply as everyone sat down, Velma sorted her thoughts as she set down the legal pad in front of herself. Scooby-Doo stood up on his back legs and put his paws on the table to participate.
"Like, is this about your trip?" Asked Shaggy.
"You all know that it's no secret that S.T.A.R. Labs has been wanting to recruit me for a few years now. Somewhere between helping Batman catch the Riddler and helping out Wonder Woman on Paradise Island, we've gotten ourselves on a few government watchlists."
"Not to mention the time we went into space or crossed dimensions with KISS." Said Fred.
"We don't need to go through the list again." Said Daphne, giving Shaggy a look to stop him from adding to Fred's list.
"I spent all night at their offices, actually doing some work in their Chem lab. I got a little carried away with an alien alkahest sample they let me experiment with." Said Velma, clearing explaining to Daphne why she had slept on the drive home. "I guess my point is, this is the third time they've wanted to recruit me, and they have gotten more insistent that I accept their offer. If it were anybody else, this would be a dream job."
"You're going to turn them down again." Said Daphne, already knowing the decision Velma had reached.
"It's not the first time any of us has turned down an offer in order to stick together." Said Velma. "Don't get me wrong, S.T.A.R. Labs has some of the best facilities in the world, but they have a pretty bad reputation outside of their scientific accomplishments. That being said, I got the impression that I need to be very careful about how I turn them down this time."
"We support you Velma, and we're happy you want to keep the Mystery Gang going." Said Fred, breathing out a sigh of relief.
Getting up from the table, Shaggy washed the grease and metal tint from his hands before grabbing a handful of granola from the pantry. Petting Scooby on his head, Shaggy leaned against the doorframe leading to the garage. Seeming to have just gotten an idea, Shaggy got out his phone. "When we're done here, we need to get a selfie with the Mystery Machine. This is totally an Instagram moment."
"Sounds fine Shaggy, just let me finish up with the mail." Said Daphne.
"Sorry if I made you worry during the ride back Daphne." Said Velma.
"It's okay Velma." Said Daphne, smiling softly as she reached across the table to take her friend's hand. Returning her attention to the unopened package, Daphne checked the name as she emptied out the contents of the envelope. A letter, a smaller envelope, and a small item wrapped in plastic. "This is from Barbarossa Hanne Esq. out in Los Angeles, CA."
"Reesh, rhat a name." Said Scooby.
"Like, what's an Esq?" asked Shaggy.
"Esquire, it's a title that means lawyer." Said Fred, who quickly grew concerned when he saw how Daphne was frowning at the letter. "Something the matter Daphne? Is it a new case, a mystery?"
"It's a new case… or a very old one." Said Daphne, as she finished reading the letter.
Dear Mystery Incorporated,
I took great pleasure in making your acquaintance some four years ago. I have since closely followed your exploits and adventures as you have spanned not only this great country of ours but the world. Perhaps it is a bit presumptuous of me to ask this of you, but I have some sensitive matters which I cannot entrust to anyone close to me for reasons which I fear I cannot elaborate upon, and which I fear I have run out of time to resolve on my own.
Enclosed with this letter are two items. The first is what I ask of you. A key, which neither I nor any of my living relatives know what it unlocks. The second is your incentive, an envelope containing two thousand dollars to pay for travel expenses to come out to California to find out what the key goes to. Should you decide not to investigate this mystery, then the two thousand dollars is for you to destroy the key instead.
Contact my attorney if you accept the case, but do not rely on him for anything outside of legal or culinary advice. I trust this letter finds you well and wish you all the best whatever you decide.
Best Regards,
Jebedissa Bravo.
Tapping away at his phone, Shaggy dropped it on the table, revealing an obituary. "She passed away two days ago."
"She was a tough old lady." Said Fred, as the group at in silence to remember. After a moment had passed, he picked up the envelope to confirm that it was full of hundred-dollar bills. Velma, on the other hand, had unwrapped the key and was looking it over.
"I want to say it's bronze cast from the patina, but I'm not sure." Said Velma, examining the teeth of the old-fashioned key, she shook her head as she got out her magnifying glass for a closer look. "There are gears inside of the key's teeth, this is weird. What kind of lock would this even fit?"
"Is the Mystery Machine good for the road Fred?" asked Daphne.
"We finished the suspension yesterday, hooking up the engine to the new battery system was the last thing we needed and that's done. We can leave tonight if you want." Said Fred.
"Like, it's not even a question we're going, right?" Said Shaggy.
"Wouldn't pass this one by for the world." Said Velma, flipping her magnifying glass in her hands and beaming a smile.
"Right ron. Ret's ro to Rali!" said Scooby-Doo, the old dog seemed as energetic as a puppy at the thought of returning to the west coast, and thoughts of a mystery to be solved.